Pennington Court
British Steam merchant
Name | Pennington Court | ||
Type: | Steam merchant | ||
Tonnage | 6,098 tons | ||
Completed | 1924 - Richardson, Duck & Co Ltd, Stockton-on-Tees | ||
Owner | Court Line Ltd (Haldin & Philipps Ltd), London | ||
Homeport | London | ||
Date of attack | 9 Oct 1942 | Nationality: British | |
Fate | Sunk by U-254 (Odo Loewe) | ||
Position | 58° 18'N, 27° 55'W - Grid AK 3589 | ||
Complement | 45 (45 dead - no survivors) | ||
Convoy | SC-103 (straggler) | ||
Route | St. John, New Brunswick - Belfast | ||
Cargo | 8494 tons of grain and trucks as deck cargo | ||
History | Completed in July 1924 as Rochdale for Rochdale SS Co Ltd (C. Radcliffe & Co), Cardiff. 1927 renamed Pennington Court for Court Line Ltd (Haldin & Philipps Ltd), London. | ||
Notes on event | At 21.01 hours on 9 Oct 1942 the unescorted Pennington Court (Master John Horne), a straggler from convoy SC-103, was hit by two of three torpedoes from U-254 southeast of Cape Farewell. The U-boat had spotted two stragglers from convoy after they were reported by U-753 (von Mannstein) and subsequently attacked one of them with a spread of three torpedoes of which one was a tube runner. As the ship was still slowly moving after the hits, the U-boat fired its fourth bow torpedo at 21.45 hours, but missed. Five minutes later the stern torpedo was fired which passed underneath the target without detonating. While the crew abandoned ship and sent distress signals, U-254 had to reload the torpedo tubes first because a high swell prevented the use of the deck gun. Pennington Court sank by the bow after being hit amidships by a coup de grĂ¢ce at 23.10 hours. The U-boat then immediately left without questioning the survivors to unsuccessfully chase the other straggler. However, the lifeboats were never found and the master, 40 crew members and four gunners were lost. | ||
On board | We have details of 45 people who were on board. |
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