Uniwaleco
South African Whale factory ship
Uniwaleco under her former name Fraternitas. Photo courtesy of Danish Maritime Museum, Elsinore
| Name | Uniwaleco | ||
| Type: | Whale factory ship | ||
| Tonnage | 9,755 tons | ||
| Completed | 1905 - Harland & Wolff Ltd, Belfast | ||
| Owner | Union Whaling Co Ltd, Durban | ||
| Homeport | Durban | ||
| Date of attack | 7 Mar 1942 | Nationality:  South African | |
| Fate | Sunk by U-161 (Albrecht Achilles) | ||
| Position | 13° 23'N, 62° 04'W - Grid ED 6891 | ||
| Complement | 51 (18 dead and 33 survivors). | ||
| Convoy | |||
| Route | Curaçao - Trinidad - Freetown | ||
| Cargo | 8800 tons of fuel oil | ||
| History | Completed in August 1905 as British steam merchant Mahronda for T. & J. Brocklebank Ltd, Liverpool. 1922 sold to Norway and 1923 converted by Framnæs Mek. Værksted, Sandefjord, to the whale factory ship Sir James Clark Ross for Hvalfanger-A/S Rosshavet (Johan Rasmussen & M. Konow), Sandefjord. 1930 sold to Denmark and renamed Fraternitas for Fraternitaskompagniet A/S (A.P. Møller), Copenhagen. 1936 fitted with a stern ramp at Gøtaverken A/B, Gothenborg. 1937 sold to South Africa and renamed Uniwaleco for Union Whaling Co Ltd (A.E. Larsen), Durban. | ||
| Notes on event | At 17.59 hours on 7 March 1942 the unescorted Uniwaleco (Master Johannes Marins Bernard Rosvik) was hit by one of two torpedoes from U-161 45 miles west of St. Vincent Passage. The ship apparently went out of control because she ran in circles and settled but did not sink. At 18.14 hours, the U-boat fired a coup de grâce which hit aft and caused her to sink within 3 minutes after breaking in two. 18 crew members were lost. The master and 32 crew members landed on St. Vincent. | ||
| On board | We have details of 21 people who were on board. | ||
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