Convoy ON-154
Encyclopedia
Convoy ON-154 was the 154th of the numbered series of World War II
merchant ship convoy
s Outbound from the British Isles to North America. The ships departed Liverpool
on 18 December 1942; they were met by the Royal Canadian Navy
Mid-Ocean Escort Force
Group C-1, consisting of the River class
destroyer
with the Flower class corvette
s , , , , and . ON-154 included the convoy rescue ship
Toward, the oiler
Scottish Heather and the French-crewed 2456-ton Special Service Vessel
Fidelity (D57). Fidelity was armed with four 4-inch (10-cm) guns, four torpedo
tubes and a defensive torpedo net. She carried two landing craft
(LCV-752 and LCV-754), two OS2U Kingfisher
float planes and Motor Torpedo Boat
(MTB) 105. The convoy sailed in 12 columns of three or four ships each. The convoy formation was five miles wide and 1.5 miles long.
In a second attack, U-356 torpedoed the Dutch freighter Soekaboemi at 0410, and the British freighter King Edward at 0415. King Edward sank within three minutes. U-356 was detected by the escorts and was sunk with no survivors following depth charge attacks by St. Laurent, Chilliwack, Battleford and Napanee. At dawn, Toward rescued 25 men from the King Edward and assisted Napanee, recovering all but one of Soekaboemis crew. Soekaboemi remained afloat when abandoned at 0730.
U-boats then entered the port side of the convoy. torpedoed the British freighters Lynton Grange at 2120, Zarian at 2123, and Baron Cochrane at 2124. hit the damaged Ville de Rouen again at 2210 and U-225 torpedoed the convoy commodore's freighter Empire Shackleton at 2215 and the Belgian freighter President Francoui at 2230.
Disabled ships were also being attacked astern of the convoy. Baron Cochrane was sunk at 2150 by and sank Lynton Grange a few minutes later. The crews had abandoned both ships when they were hit earlier. U-123 and sank Empire Shackleton at 2255. sank the abandoned Zarian just before midnight.
Shediac was ordered to leave Fidelity 30 miles astern and rejoin the convoy while searching for survivors. Shediac rescued 35 survivors from Melmore Head and 71 from Ville de Rouen between 0310 and 0330 and 24 from Empire Shackleton at 0530. Shediac rejoined the convoy at 1300 short of fuel and with inadequate provisions for the number of survivors aboard.
Two lifeboats abandoned the damaged President Francoui, but the remainder of the crew attempted to sail independently to the Azores. U-225 torpedoed the ship again at 0630; and it was sunk at 0930 by . The damaged Norse King was similarly attempting to reach the Azores when she was sunk by U-435 at 1507. There were no survivors.
The convoy escort was reinforced by the M class
destroyers and at 1400 on 29 December after the arriving destroyers rescued 42 survivors from Baron Cochrane at 0700, 52 survivors from Lynton Grange at 0720 and 49 survivors from Zarian at 0815.
and shadowed her cautiously. A reconnaissance flight by Fidelitys remaining Kingfisher observed two shadowing submarines and two of Empire Shackletons lifeboats. Fidelity launched LCV-752 and LCV-754 to tow-in the lifeboats. Fidelity recovered the Kingfisher and the two landing craft with Empire Shackletons survivors that afternoon and launched MTB-105 to conduct anti-submarine patrols through the night. U-615 launched four torpedoes at Fidelity at about 2000, but the anti-torpedo net protected the ship from damage. MTB-105 experienced engine problems and lost contact with Fidelity at about 2300. MTB-105 heard radio calls from Fidelity shortly after dawn, but had inadequate battery power to respond. U-435 torpedoed Fidelity at 1630 and was surprised by the size of the resulting explosion and by the large number of men subsequently seen floating in the water where the ship had sunk. MTB-105 rigged a makeshift sail to try and reach land.
at the scale of the losses. Following the loss of the convoy commodore, he invited two fast ships with large passenger complements (Calgary and Advastun), to escape if they found an opportunity. and the V class
destroyer
HMS Viceroy reinforced the convoy escort before nightfall on 30 December, the U-boats were ordered to disengage. Shediac and Meteor ran out of fuel before reaching the Azores. Battleford towed Shediac the last 40 miles and Meteor was towed the last five miles. All four refuelled and joined the search for survivors. HMCS Prescott found and rescued the eight men aboard MTB-105 on 1 January; but, aside from the 2-man Kingfisher crew rescued earlier by St. Laurent, there were no other survivors from Fidelitys crew of 325 and the men rescued from Empire Shackleton. Prescott also saved 26 crewmen from President Francoui, but the recovery effort found no other convoy survivors. The remainder of the convoy reached New York City
on 12 January 1943.
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
merchant ship convoy
Convoy
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support, though it may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas.-Age of Sail:Naval...
s Outbound from the British Isles to North America. The ships departed Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
on 18 December 1942; they were met by the Royal Canadian Navy
Royal Canadian Navy
The history of the Royal Canadian Navy goes back to 1910, when the naval force was created as the Naval Service of Canada and renamed a year later by King George V. The Royal Canadian Navy is one of the three environmental commands of the Canadian Forces...
Mid-Ocean Escort Force
Mid-Ocean Escort Force
Mid-Ocean Escort Force referred to the organization of anti-submarine escorts for World War II trade convoys between Canada and the British Isles...
Group C-1, consisting of the River class
Canadian River class destroyer
The River class was a class of fourteen destroyers of the Royal Canadian Navy that served before and during the Second World War. They were named after Canadian rivers.-Description:...
destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
with the Flower class corvette
Flower class corvette
The Flower-class corvette was a class of 267 corvettes used during World War II, specifically with the Allied navies as anti-submarine convoy escorts during the Battle of the Atlantic...
s , , , , and . ON-154 included the convoy rescue ship
Convoy rescue ship
During the Second World War purpose built convoy rescue ships accompanied some Atlantic convoys to rescue survivors from ships which had been attacked. Rescue ships were typically small freighters with passenger accommodations. Conversion to rescue service involved enlarging galley and food...
Toward, the oiler
Tanker (ship)
A tanker is a ship designed to transport liquids in bulk. Major types of tankship include the oil tanker, the chemical tanker, and the liquefied natural gas carrier.-Background:...
Scottish Heather and the French-crewed 2456-ton Special Service Vessel
Q-ship
Q-ships, also known as Q-boats, Decoy Vessels, Special Service Ships, or Mystery Ships, were heavily armed merchant ships with concealed weaponry, designed to lure submarines into making surface attacks. This gave Q-ships the chance to open fire and sink them...
Fidelity (D57). Fidelity was armed with four 4-inch (10-cm) guns, four torpedo
Torpedo
The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...
tubes and a defensive torpedo net. She carried two landing craft
Landing craft
Landing craft are boats and seagoing vessels used to convey a landing force from the sea to the shore during an amphibious assault. Most renowned are those used to storm the beaches of Normandy, the Mediterranean, and many Pacific islands during WWII...
(LCV-752 and LCV-754), two OS2U Kingfisher
OS2U Kingfisher
The Vought OS2U Kingfisher was an American catapult-launched observation floatplane. It was a compact mid-wing monoplane, with a large central float and small stabilizing floats. Performance was modest, because of its light engine...
float planes and Motor Torpedo Boat
Motor Torpedo Boat
Motor Torpedo Boat was the name given to fast torpedo boats by the Royal Navy, and the Royal Canadian Navy.The capitalised term is generally used for the Royal Navy boats and abbreviated to "MTB"...
(MTB) 105. The convoy sailed in 12 columns of three or four ships each. The convoy formation was five miles wide and 1.5 miles long.
Discovery on 26/27 December
ON-154 was routed south to avoid storms and remained distant from escort support groups and out of range of Allied patrol bombers for longer than most convoys. reported the convoy on 26 December. That night torpedoed the leading ships from two of the starboard columns. Empire Union was hit at 0140, Melrose Abbey was hit ten minutes later. Both British freighters sank at about 0230. Toward rescued 63 survivors from the first ship and 47 from the second.In a second attack, U-356 torpedoed the Dutch freighter Soekaboemi at 0410, and the British freighter King Edward at 0415. King Edward sank within three minutes. U-356 was detected by the escorts and was sunk with no survivors following depth charge attacks by St. Laurent, Chilliwack, Battleford and Napanee. At dawn, Toward rescued 25 men from the King Edward and assisted Napanee, recovering all but one of Soekaboemis crew. Soekaboemi remained afloat when abandoned at 0730.
Second attack on 27/28 December
began stalking Scottish Heather as she refuelled escorts fifteen miles astern of the convoy on the afternoon of 27 December. U-225 was twice driven off by Chilliwack before hitting the oiler with a single torpedo in a third approach at 2040. The ship was temporarily abandoned, but the second mate re-boarded her with ten men and sailed the ship out of the danger zone. At dawn he returned and pattern-searched for lifeboats. The oiler returned to England independently after recovering all of her crew.Main attack on 28/29 December
began shadowing the convoy on the morning of 28 December and directed 18 U-boats to the convoy. Fidelity attempted to launch a Kingfisher, but the plane capsized and sank at 1915. While St. Laurent rescued the Kingfisher crew, a coordinated night attack began with U-boats entering the starboard side of the convoy at 1958. torpedoed the Norwegian freighter Norse King at 2000. torpedoed the British freighters Melmore Head at 2003 and Ville de Rouen at 2005. torpedoed the British freighter Empire Wagtail at 2045. As Empire Wagtail disintegrated in an explosion that claimed all of her crew, Fidelity reported a main engine failure; Shediac was sent to assist her two miles astern of the convoy.U-boats then entered the port side of the convoy. torpedoed the British freighters Lynton Grange at 2120, Zarian at 2123, and Baron Cochrane at 2124. hit the damaged Ville de Rouen again at 2210 and U-225 torpedoed the convoy commodore's freighter Empire Shackleton at 2215 and the Belgian freighter President Francoui at 2230.
Disabled ships were also being attacked astern of the convoy. Baron Cochrane was sunk at 2150 by and sank Lynton Grange a few minutes later. The crews had abandoned both ships when they were hit earlier. U-123 and sank Empire Shackleton at 2255. sank the abandoned Zarian just before midnight.
Shediac was ordered to leave Fidelity 30 miles astern and rejoin the convoy while searching for survivors. Shediac rescued 35 survivors from Melmore Head and 71 from Ville de Rouen between 0310 and 0330 and 24 from Empire Shackleton at 0530. Shediac rejoined the convoy at 1300 short of fuel and with inadequate provisions for the number of survivors aboard.
Two lifeboats abandoned the damaged President Francoui, but the remainder of the crew attempted to sail independently to the Azores. U-225 torpedoed the ship again at 0630; and it was sunk at 0930 by . The damaged Norse King was similarly attempting to reach the Azores when she was sunk by U-435 at 1507. There were no survivors.
The convoy escort was reinforced by the M class
L and M class destroyer
The L and M class was a class of sixteen destroyers which served in the British Royal Navy during World War II. The ships of the class were launched between 1939 and 1942.-Design details:...
destroyers and at 1400 on 29 December after the arriving destroyers rescued 42 survivors from Baron Cochrane at 0700, 52 survivors from Lynton Grange at 0720 and 49 survivors from Zarian at 0815.
HMS Fidelity 29/30 December
Fidelity restarted main engines at 0500 and declined the offer to dispatch a tug from Gibraltar. Speed was limited to two knots while streaming anti-torpedo nets when observed by Meteor and Milne at 0530. found Fidelity while her main engines were again stopped for repairs between 1015 and 1100. U-615 identified Fidelity as a Q-shipQ-ship
Q-ships, also known as Q-boats, Decoy Vessels, Special Service Ships, or Mystery Ships, were heavily armed merchant ships with concealed weaponry, designed to lure submarines into making surface attacks. This gave Q-ships the chance to open fire and sink them...
and shadowed her cautiously. A reconnaissance flight by Fidelitys remaining Kingfisher observed two shadowing submarines and two of Empire Shackletons lifeboats. Fidelity launched LCV-752 and LCV-754 to tow-in the lifeboats. Fidelity recovered the Kingfisher and the two landing craft with Empire Shackletons survivors that afternoon and launched MTB-105 to conduct anti-submarine patrols through the night. U-615 launched four torpedoes at Fidelity at about 2000, but the anti-torpedo net protected the ship from damage. MTB-105 experienced engine problems and lost contact with Fidelity at about 2300. MTB-105 heard radio calls from Fidelity shortly after dawn, but had inadequate battery power to respond. U-435 torpedoed Fidelity at 1630 and was surprised by the size of the resulting explosion and by the large number of men subsequently seen floating in the water where the ship had sunk. MTB-105 rigged a makeshift sail to try and reach land.
Survivors
Battleford, Shediac, Milne and Meteor were released on 30 December to refuel in the Azores. With only four escorts remaining and as many as twelve U-boats in contact with the convoy, St. Laurents captain, as commander of Escort Group C-1, suffered a nervous breakdownNervous breakdown
Mental breakdown is a non-medical term used to describe an acute, time-limited phase of a specific disorder that presents primarily with features of depression or anxiety.-Definition:...
at the scale of the losses. Following the loss of the convoy commodore, he invited two fast ships with large passenger complements (Calgary and Advastun), to escape if they found an opportunity. and the V class
V and W class destroyer
The V and W class was an amalgam of six similar classes of destroyer built for the Royal Navy under the War Emergency Programme of the First World War and generally treated as one class...
destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
HMS Viceroy reinforced the convoy escort before nightfall on 30 December, the U-boats were ordered to disengage. Shediac and Meteor ran out of fuel before reaching the Azores. Battleford towed Shediac the last 40 miles and Meteor was towed the last five miles. All four refuelled and joined the search for survivors. HMCS Prescott found and rescued the eight men aboard MTB-105 on 1 January; but, aside from the 2-man Kingfisher crew rescued earlier by St. Laurent, there were no other survivors from Fidelitys crew of 325 and the men rescued from Empire Shackleton. Prescott also saved 26 crewmen from President Francoui, but the recovery effort found no other convoy survivors. The remainder of the convoy reached New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
on 12 January 1943.
Ships in the convoy
| Name | Flag | Dead | Tonnage | Cargo | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aldrastus (1923) |  |
7,905 gross register tons (GRT) | |||
| Algorab (1921) |  |
4,938 GRT | destination Capetown | ||
| Baron Cochrane (1927) | |
2 | 3,385 GRT | 4376 tons coal | sunk by and |
| Baron Elgin (1933) | |
3,942 GRT | veteran of convoy SL 125; destination Halifax; survived this convoy, convoy SC 122 & convoy ONS 5 | ||
| Baron Inchcape (1917) | |
7,005 GRT | |||
| Belle Isle (1932) |  |
1,960 GRT | |||
| Berkel (1930) | |
2,130 GRT | veteran of convoy SC 107; survived this convoy and convoy ONS 5 | ||
| Bonita (1918) |  |
4,929 GRT | survived this convoy and convoy SC 122 | ||
| Bornholm (1930) | |
3,177 GRT | veteran of convoy SL 125; survived this convoy and convoy ONS 5 | ||
| Calgary (1921) | |
7,206 GRT | veteran of convoy SL 125 | ||
| Dundrum Castle (1919) | |
5,259 GRT | veteran of convoy SC 42 and convoy SL 125 | ||
| E G Seubert (1918) | |
9,181 GRT | survived this convoy and convoy SC 130 | ||
| (1919) | |
5,758 GRT | veteran of convoy SL 125 | ||
| (1942) | |
6,991 GRT | |||
| (1941) | |
37 | 7,068 GRT | 2,000 tons ammunition, aircraft & general cargo | veteran of convoy SC 107, carried convoy commodore VADM W de M Egerton DSO; sunk by , & |
| (1919) | |
5,691 GRT | veteran of convoy SL 125 | ||
| (1921) | |
6 | 5,952 GRT | 940 tons general cargo | veteran of convoy SC 107; sunk by |
| (1919) | |
43 | 4,893 GRT | sunk by | |
| Esturia (1914) | |
6,968 GRT | |||
| Euthalia (1918) |  |
3,553 GRT | |||
| Fana (1939) |  |
1,375 GRT | survived this convoy and convoy ONS 5 | ||
| Fort Lamy (1919) | |
5,242 GRT | ship's master was convoy vice commodore; survived to be sunk 2 months later in convoy SC 121 | ||
| Henry R Mallory (1916) | |
6,063 GRT | survived to be sunk a month later in convoy SC 118 Convoy SC 118 Convoy SC-118 was the 118th of the numbered series of World War II Slow Convoys of merchant ships from Sydney, Cape Breton Island to Liverpool.-Prelude:... |
||
| James Hawson (1930) | |
6,074 GRT | |||
| Janeta (1929) | |
4,312 GRT | veteran of convoy SC 107 | ||
| Jasper Park (1942) | |
7,129 GRT | |||
| King Edward (1919) | |
23 | 5,224 GRT | (in ballast) | veteran of convoy SL 125; sunk by |
| Kiruna (1921) |  |
5,484 GRT | veteran of convoy HX 79; survived this convoy and convoy SC 118 Convoy SC 118 Convoy SC-118 was the 118th of the numbered series of World War II Slow Convoys of merchant ships from Sydney, Cape Breton Island to Liverpool.-Prelude:... |
||
| Lynton Grange (1937) | |
(none) | 5,029 GRT | 5,997 tons general cargo | veteran of convoy SL 125; sunk by and |
| Melmore Head (1918) | |
14 | 5,273 GRT | (in ballast) | veteran of convoy SC 7 and convoy SC 94; sunk by |
| Melrose Abbey II (1936) | |
7 | 2,473 GRT | 3,403 tons coal | sunk by |
| Norhauk (1919) | |
6,086 GRT | |||
| Norse King (1920) | |
35 | 5,701 GRT | 5,453 tons coal | sunk by and |
| Northmoor (1928) | |
4,392 GRT | destination Capetown | ||
| Olney (1920) | |
7,294 GRT | veteran of convoy SC 107 | ||
| President Francqui (1928) |  |
5 | 4,919 GRT | (in ballast) | sunk by and |
| Ramo (1921) | |
2,334 GRT | |||
| Ravnefjell (1938) | |
1,339 GRT | veteran of convoy HX 79; survived this convoy, convoy SC 121 and convoy SC 130 | ||
| Runswick (1930) | |
3,970 GRT | returned to England | ||
| Scottish Heather (1928) | |
7,087 GRT | escort oiler, damaged by and returned to England | ||
| Soekaboemi (1923) | |
1 | 7,051 GRT | 5,000 tons general cargo | sunk by |
| Toward (1923) | |
1,571 GRT | convoy rescue ship Convoy rescue ship During the Second World War purpose built convoy rescue ships accompanied some Atlantic convoys to rescue survivors from ships which had been attacked. Rescue ships were typically small freighters with passenger accommodations. Conversion to rescue service involved enlarging galley and food... |
||
| Tynemouth (1940) | |
3,168 GRT | veteran of convoy SC 94 and convoy SL 125 | ||
| Umgeni (1938) | |
8,149 GRT | detached 1 January | ||
| Veni (1901) | |
2,982 GRT | veteran of convoy SC 94 | ||
| Vest (1920) | |
5,074 GRT | veteran of convoy SC 107 | ||
| Ville de Rouen (1919) | |
(none) | 5,083 GRT | 5,500 tons general cargo | veteran of convoy SL 125; sunk by and |
| Vistula (1920) | |
8,537 GRT | survived this convoy and convoy SC 122 | ||
| Wisla (1928) |  |
3,106 GRT | veteran of convoy SC 42 | ||
| Zarian (1938) | |
4 | 4,871 GRT | 7,500 tons general cargo | veteran of convoy SL 125; sunk by and |