HNoMS Honningsvåg
Encyclopedia
HNoMS Honningsvåg was a naval trawler
that served throughout the Second World War
as a patrol boat
in the Royal Norwegian Navy
. She was launched at the North Sea
harbour of Wesermünde
in Hanover
, Germany in February 1940 as the fishing trawler Malangen and was captured by Norwegian militia
men at the North Norwegian
port of Honningsvåg
during her maiden fishing journey to the Barents Sea
. Having taken part in the defence of Norway in 1940 she spent the rest of the war years patrolling the ocean off Iceland
. She was decommissioned in 1946, sold to a civilian fishing company in 1947 and scrapped in 1973.
had not yet begun requisitioning all new trawlers and Malangen was used as an ordinary fishing vessel.
to the fishing grounds of the Barents Sea. While she operated off Norway the German invasion of that country
began. As she attempted to make her way back to Germany Malangen entered the port of Honningsvåg in the Norwegian Finnmark
county on 13 April.
When the German trawler entered the small port she was swiftly boarded by a locally raised guard unit led by løytnant
(Lieutenant, Junior Grade) C. A. Carlsen and seized before the crew could set off the two scuttling
charges they had placed in the engine room. This was the second German trawler the Honningsvåg riflemen had captured; two days previously they had seized control of the München of "Nordsee" Deutsche Hochseefischerei AG. The German sailors were later transferred to a prisoner-of-war camp
at Vardøhus Fortress
by the 1,382 ton Norwegian steamer Nova, arriving on 24 April. The sailors were transferred on the Nova to Skorpa prisoner of war camp
in Troms on 13 May 1940 and released from captivity on 12 June, after the Norwegian capitulation.
(Ensign) A. E. T. Plyhn assumed command of the trawler. Since her capture the ship had been renamed Honningsvåg in honour of the port in which she was captured and had had a 47 mm gun installed. Her first mission in Norwegian service was to sail south to the city of Bodø
in Nordland
county for further orders.
for local patrol missions. While stationed in Sandnessjøen fenrik Plyhn was promoted to løytnant. In April and May 1940 Honningsvåg was one of two Norwegian naval vessels patrolling the southern coastline of Helgeland
, keeping German forces away from the coastal areas even as they advanced northwards along Norwegian national road 50 further inland towards Narvik. The other warship on the Helgeland coast was the 192 ton requisitioned local steamer Heilhorn
On 9 May the British troopship
Royal Watch arrived at Bodø carrying a 600 men-strong force of two companies codenamed Scissorforce to help block the German advance northwards from Trondheim
. Honningsvåg, two local coastal steamers and three fishing vessels were assigned to help land the British forces. By the morning of 10 May all the British soldiers and their equipment had been brought ashore by the Norwegian vessels.
14 May saw Honningsvåg being despatched to the Vefsnfjord
to deal with a German twin-engined seaplane that was grounded on the shoreline near Kvalnes at the island of Alsten
. When Honningsvåg arrived on the scene the crew found that since the aircraft had landed a local militia unit had attacked the Germans, killing one and capturing the other two crew members, one of whom had been wounded. The seaplane was found to be loaded with tins of food that were probably destined for the surrounded German forces at Narvik. Honningsvåg loaded the aircraft's machine guns and ammunition as well as the food cargo and brought the German airmen with her back to Sandnessjøen. The dead German was handed over to the hospital while the two prisoners
were taken into police custody. HNoMS Honningsvåg proceeded to Dalsvåg in Dønna
and was anchored there when five German bombers attacked Sandnessjøen later in the day.
On 15 May a German land aircraft made an emergency landing at Alstahaug
where it was approached by a local militia force. After the German aircrew refused to surrender, the Norwegians opened fire, wounding one of the crew and forcing the four airmen to capitulate. The wounded German was brought to the hospital in Sandnessjøen while the other three were taken by fishing boat to a prisoner-of-war camp.
Honningsvåg became involved in the episode later the same day when a Heinkel He 59
D-AKUK, an ambulance seaplane of the German Seenotflugkommand
o 1 (Sea Emergency Command 1), responded to emergency calls that the downed German aircrew had made before being captured. At Alstahaug the German officer in charge of the rescue operation, Oberstleutnant
Branger, was told by the local population that the crew of the German aircraft had been moved and that there were German wounded and prisoners in nearby Sandnessjøen.
After encountering rifle fire from armed guards at the Alstahaug plane wreck Branger decided to continue on to Sandnessjøen to free the wounded Germans held there. Landing at Sandnessjøen at 1730hrs, Branger and an Unteroffizier
armed themselves and went to the hospital where they demanded the release of the wounded Germans held there. Although the chief physician refused to release the Germans the police commissioner
at nearby Nesna
ordered him to comply with the Germans' demands. While the Germans attempted to gain the release of their comrades Honningsvåg arrived at Sandnessjøen. Løytnant Plyhn contacted the district commander in Bodø and was ordered to seize the He 59 and capture the Germans. Oberstleutnant Branger and the Unteroffizier were the first to be taken prisoner, while the two Germans remaining with the seaplane refused to budge and stayed on board until Plyhn approached them alone and after firing a warning shot took them prisoner. The captured Germans were handed over to the police. The He 59 proved impossible to remove due to low tide. After attempts to pull it free had damaged the pontoons and wings beyond repair, it was towed out on the Leirfjord
and sunk on 18 May.
The next engagement involving Honningsvåg occurred four days later, on 19 May. The SS Albion, a 192 ton fishing trawler seized by the Germans at Trondheim, had landed 25 German soldiers at Rørvik
on 18 May and continued northwards with a cargo of food and other supplies. The cargo was intended to be landed at Mosjøen
or Mo i Rana
, to supply troops of the German 2nd Mountain Division that were advancing northwards in the direction of Narvik. Albion' s mission came nine days after the Germans had successfully used the Norwegian Hurtigruten
passenger-cargo vessel Nordnorge to land troops in Hemnesberget
on 10 May and bypass strong Allied defensive lines in Nordland. Before Albion could reach her designation she was spotted by civilian observers on Mount Sundsfjellet in Vik, who reported her to Norwegian authorities. Honningsvåg and Heilhorn were ordered on 19 May by the commander at Bodø to intercept and sink the armed German-operated steamship. By the evening of 19 May the Norwegian warships found Albion riding at anchor at the Strømøyene islands some 5 nautical miles (9.3 km) north of Brønnøysund
. Locals in rowing boats met the Norwegian warships and told them where to find the Albion. After Honningsvåg had closed to less than 1000 metres (3,280.8 ft), Heilhorn to even less of a distance, the Norwegians opened fire at around 2200hrs and sank Albion. The German crew jumped overboard, swam ashore, and were quickly captured by a waiting militia unit of volunteers from Brønnøysund and Velfjord
. Of the ten Germans crewing the Albion two were killed and one wounded. The prisoners and the dead bodies were handed over to Honningsvåg for transportation to Sandnessjøen where they arrived in the early hours of 20 May. A Norwegian pilot
was also rescued from the sunken ship. While the Norwegian pilot accompanied the warships back to Bodø, the German prisoners were handed over to a Royal Navy destroyer
the Norwegian ships encountered off Sandnessjøen. The Albion was the last German blockade runner
to attempt to break through the coastal areas under Norwegian control, with parts of the Helgeland coastline remaining unoccupied until early June.
As the Norwegian Campaign
continued and work on the German airfield at Værnes in Central Norway progressed with the help of some 2,000 Norwegian collaborationist
workers, attacks by the Luftwaffe
increased in number and intensity.
Honningsvåg was subjected to her first attack on 20 May when she was strafed
by a single German aircraft while out on patrol in the Ranafjorden, suffering no damage. The next day Sandnessjøen was bombed while Honningsvåg was nearby. This time also being attacked with bombs, as well as strafed, Honningsvåg made evasive manoeuvres and returned fire with her two anti-aircraft
machine guns. Suffering minor damage from machine gun hits, she had her first casualty of the war when one of her gunners was lightly wounded.
The following days saw steadily increasing German air activity and Honningsvåg was bombed and strafed repeatedly. Skilled manoeuvring and good gunners enabled the trawler to avoid direct hits until she evacuated the area on 24 May. Being completely out of machine gun ammunition, and suffering from major leaks after several near misses from bombs, Honningsvåg sailed to Harstad
where she was placed on a slipway
for repairs.
had decided to evacuate from Norway
in response to the German invasion of France
. Initially the orders specified Shetland as the first designation for the Royal Norwegian Navy ships, but after British requests this was changed to Tórshavn
on the Faroe Islands
where the Norwegian commanders were to contact British naval authorities there
to be given recognition signals to identify themselves during their further journey to the UK. The Norwegian Naval Command in Tromsø
also ordered the ships to sail as westerly as possible to avoid German air attacks.
Honningsvåg departed Harstad on 7 June 1940 to begin five years in exile, leaving the Norwegian coast at Fugløy and joining the westbound allied convoy on 10 June. On 12 June she and several other Norwegian naval vessels arrived at Tórshavn. As the Royal Norwegian Navy assembled in the UK later in the month its total force was 13 warships and five seaplanes manned by 80 officers and 520 men.
autocannon
, four 12.7 mm Colt Browning
AA machine guns, 50 depth charge
s as well as an Asdic
Type 123A sonar system.
. Honningsvåg remained with the Iceland Group for the duration of the war, until 16 May 1945. The Iceland Group, under the overall command of the Admiral Commanding, Iceland Command, initially consisted of Honningsvåg, HNoMS Fridtjof Nansen
and HNoMS Nordkapp
, later being joined by more Norwegian patrol vessels. The unit's mission was to patrol the Icelandic coastline and the areas of the Arctic Ocean
between the islands of Iceland, Jan Mayen
and Greenland
. Although the Iceland Group had been operational since August 1940 the official establishment of the unit only occurred in June 1941 when a formal RNoN administration was put in place in Reykjavik.
island of Jan Mayen to retrieve the shipwrecked crew of the Fridtjof Nansen, the latter ship having hit an uncharted underwater reef off the island's southern coast and sunk on 8 November. The crew of the Fridtjof Nansen had managed to abandon ship in lifeboats and land at the nearby island of Eggøya, from where they were picked up by the Honningsvåg on 12 November and brought back to Iceland. April 1941 saw Honningsvåg return to Jan Mayen in order to re-establish the weather station
on the small volcanic island. Honningsvåg and the other vessels of the Iceland Group returned regularly to Jan Mayen with replacement crews and supplies throughout the war. During the visit the crew of Honningsvåg spotted the remnants of two German Heinkel He 115
seaplanes that had been wrecked during a failed October 1940 attempt at establishing a floating seaplane base off the island to provide for meteorological operations.
Honningsvåg and fellow Norwegian patrol vessels Namsos, Farsund and Svolvær repeatedly attacked German U-boat
s. These attacks led to numerous unconfirmed claims of U-boat sinkings. On 10 November 1944 the UK - Reykjavik convoy UR-142 was attacked by U-boats off western Iceland. The British steam tanker Shirvan and the Icelandic merchant vessel Godafoss were both torpedoed and sunk by U-300
. In response Honningsvåg and a Royal Navy escort vessel counter-attacked with depth charges, claiming a sinking after hearing a large underwater explosion, seeing oil slicks on the surface, and losing the Asdic contact. Following the attack Honningsvåg picked up 25 survivors from the Shirvan and the Godafoss.
on 23 August 1946. The next year she was sold to a civilian trawler company in Kristiansund
and was converted back to her original role as a fishing trawler. In 1973 she was sold for scrapping
in Tjeldsund
.
Naval trawler
A naval trawler is a vessel built along the lines of a fishing trawler but fitted out for naval purposes. Naval trawlers were widely used during the First and Second world wars. Fishing trawlers were particularly suited for many naval requirements because they were robust boats designed to work...
that served throughout the Second World War
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...
as a patrol boat
Patrol boat
A patrol boat is a relatively small naval vessel generally designed for coastal defense duties.There have been many designs for patrol boats. They may be operated by a nation's navy, coast guard, or police force, and may be intended for marine and/or estuarine or river environments...
in the Royal Norwegian Navy
Royal Norwegian Navy
The Royal Norwegian Navy is the branch of the Norwegian Defence Force responsible for naval operations. , the RNoN consists of approximately 3,700 personnel and 70 vessels, including 5 heavy frigates, 6 submarines, 14 patrol boats, 4 minesweepers, 4 minehunters, 1 mine detection vessel, 4 support...
. She was launched at the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
harbour of Wesermünde
Bremerhaven
Bremerhaven is a city at the seaport of the free city-state of Bremen, a state of the Federal Republic of Germany. It forms an enclave in the state of Lower Saxony and is located at the mouth of the River Weser on its eastern bank, opposite the town of Nordenham...
in Hanover
Province of Hanover
The Province of Hanover was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia from 1868 to 1946.During the Austro-Prussian War, the Kingdom of Hanover had attempted to maintain a neutral position, along with some other member states of the German Confederation...
, Germany in February 1940 as the fishing trawler Malangen and was captured by Norwegian militia
Militia
The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
men at the North Norwegian
Nord-Norge
North Norway or Nord-Noreg , North Sámi: Davvi-Norga) is the geographical region of northern Norway, consisting of the three counties Nordland, Troms and Finnmark, in total about 35% of the Norwegian mainland. Some of the largest towns in North Norway are Mo i Rana, Bodø, Narvik, Harstad, Tromsø...
port of Honningsvåg
Honningsvåg
at 70° 58' N, in Nordkapp municipality, claims to be the northernmost city in Norway and even in the world, although the title is disputed by Hammerfest, Norway; Barrow, Alaska; and Longyearbyen, Svalbard...
during her maiden fishing journey to the Barents Sea
Barents Sea
The Barents Sea is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean, located north of Norway and Russia. Known in the Middle Ages as the Murman Sea, the sea takes its current name from the Dutch navigator Willem Barents...
. Having taken part in the defence of Norway in 1940 she spent the rest of the war years patrolling the ocean off Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
. She was decommissioned in 1946, sold to a civilian fishing company in 1947 and scrapped in 1973.
German career
Malangen was launched in February 1940 with the designation PG 550 for the trawler company Norddeutsche Hochseefischerei AG. At this early point in the war the KriegsmarineKriegsmarine
The Kriegsmarine was the name of the German Navy during the Nazi regime . It superseded the Kaiserliche Marine of World War I and the post-war Reichsmarine. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches of the Wehrmacht, the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany.The Kriegsmarine grew rapidly...
had not yet begun requisitioning all new trawlers and Malangen was used as an ordinary fishing vessel.
Maiden voyage and capture
On 27 March 1940 the Malangen departed Wesermünde on her maiden voyageMaiden voyage
The maiden voyage of a ship, aircraft or other craft is the first journey made by the craft after shakedown. A number of traditions and superstitions are associated with it....
to the fishing grounds of the Barents Sea. While she operated off Norway the German invasion of that country
Operation Weserübung
Operation Weserübung was the code name for Germany's assault on Denmark and Norway during the Second World War and the opening operation of the Norwegian Campaign...
began. As she attempted to make her way back to Germany Malangen entered the port of Honningsvåg in the Norwegian Finnmark
Finnmark
or Finnmárku is a county in the extreme northeast of Norway. By land it borders Troms county to the west, Finland to the south and Russia to the east, and by water, the Norwegian Sea to the northwest, and the Barents Sea to the north and northeast.The county was formerly known as Finmarkens...
county on 13 April.
When the German trawler entered the small port she was swiftly boarded by a locally raised guard unit led by løytnant
Norwegian military ranks
The green part represents soldiers and the equivalent of non-commissioned officers. The blue part represents officers. Norway does not have a NCO-system and thus Sergeant and Quartermaster are grouped with the officers under the common designation befal...
(Lieutenant, Junior Grade) C. A. Carlsen and seized before the crew could set off the two scuttling
Scuttling
Scuttling is the act of deliberately sinking a ship by allowing water to flow into the hull.This can be achieved in several ways—valves or hatches can be opened to the sea, or holes may be ripped into the hull with brute force or with explosives...
charges they had placed in the engine room. This was the second German trawler the Honningsvåg riflemen had captured; two days previously they had seized control of the München of "Nordsee" Deutsche Hochseefischerei AG. The German sailors were later transferred to a prisoner-of-war camp
Prisoner-of-war camp
A prisoner-of-war camp is a site for the containment of combatants captured by their enemy in time of war, and is similar to an internment camp which is used for civilian populations. A prisoner of war is generally a soldier, sailor, or airman who is imprisoned by an enemy power during or...
at Vardøhus Fortress
Vardøhus Fortress
Vardøhus Fortress is located in Vardø municipality in the county of Finnmark on the Barents Sea on the mouth of the Varangerfjord in north-eastern Norway near the Russian border.-History:...
by the 1,382 ton Norwegian steamer Nova, arriving on 24 April. The sailors were transferred on the Nova to Skorpa prisoner of war camp
Skorpa prisoner of war camp
Skorpa prisoner of war camp was a facility built by the Norwegian 6th Division to hold German prisoners-of-war during the 1940 Norwegian Campaign of the Second World War...
in Troms on 13 May 1940 and released from captivity on 12 June, after the Norwegian capitulation.
Norwegian Campaign
On 23 April 1940, ten days after the capture of Malangen, the Royal Norwegian Navy fenrikNorwegian military ranks
The green part represents soldiers and the equivalent of non-commissioned officers. The blue part represents officers. Norway does not have a NCO-system and thus Sergeant and Quartermaster are grouped with the officers under the common designation befal...
(Ensign) A. E. T. Plyhn assumed command of the trawler. Since her capture the ship had been renamed Honningsvåg in honour of the port in which she was captured and had had a 47 mm gun installed. Her first mission in Norwegian service was to sail south to the city of Bodø
Bodø
is a city and a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Salten region.The city of Bodø was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 . Bodin was merged with Bodø on 1 January 1968. Skjerstad was merged with Bodø on 1 January 2005...
in Nordland
Nordland
is a county in Norway in the North Norway region, bordering Troms in the north, Nord-Trøndelag in the south, Norrbottens län in Sweden to the east, Västerbottens län to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. The county was formerly known as Nordlandene amt. The county administration is...
county for further orders.
Operations in Nordland
After Honningsvåg arrived at Bodø the naval district commander there stationed the trawler at SandnessjøenSandnessjøen
Sandnessjøen is the centre of the municipality of Alstahaug in the county of Nordland, Norway, with a population of over 9,000. It was made a township in 1788....
for local patrol missions. While stationed in Sandnessjøen fenrik Plyhn was promoted to løytnant. In April and May 1940 Honningsvåg was one of two Norwegian naval vessels patrolling the southern coastline of Helgeland
Helgeland
Helgeland is the most southerly district in Northern Norway. Generally speaking, Helgeland refers to the part of Nordland county that is located south of the Arctic Circle. The district covers an area of about , with nearly 79,000 inhabitants...
, keeping German forces away from the coastal areas even as they advanced northwards along Norwegian national road 50 further inland towards Narvik. The other warship on the Helgeland coast was the 192 ton requisitioned local steamer Heilhorn
Aiding British landings
On 9 May the British troopship
Troopship
A troopship is a ship used to carry soldiers, either in peacetime or wartime...
Royal Watch arrived at Bodø carrying a 600 men-strong force of two companies codenamed Scissorforce to help block the German advance northwards from Trondheim
Trondheim
Trondheim , historically, Nidaros and Trondhjem, is a city and municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. With a population of 173,486, it is the third most populous municipality and city in the country, although the fourth largest metropolitan area. It is the administrative centre of...
. Honningsvåg, two local coastal steamers and three fishing vessels were assigned to help land the British forces. By the morning of 10 May all the British soldiers and their equipment had been brought ashore by the Norwegian vessels.
Capturing German air crews
14 May saw Honningsvåg being despatched to the Vefsnfjord
Vefsnfjord
The Vefsnfjord is a fjord in the Helgeland traditional district of Nordland county, Norway. It is about long, reaching a maximum depth of about . The fjord flows through the municipalities of Alstahaug, Leirfjord, and Vefsn....
to deal with a German twin-engined seaplane that was grounded on the shoreline near Kvalnes at the island of Alsten
Alsten
Alsten is an island in Alstahaug municipality off the coast of Nordland county, Norway. The Seven Sisters mountain range and the town Sandnessjøen are situated on the island.Its area is 153 km². The highest point is Botnkrona, 1072 m....
. When Honningsvåg arrived on the scene the crew found that since the aircraft had landed a local militia unit had attacked the Germans, killing one and capturing the other two crew members, one of whom had been wounded. The seaplane was found to be loaded with tins of food that were probably destined for the surrounded German forces at Narvik. Honningsvåg loaded the aircraft's machine guns and ammunition as well as the food cargo and brought the German airmen with her back to Sandnessjøen. The dead German was handed over to the hospital while the two prisoners
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
were taken into police custody. HNoMS Honningsvåg proceeded to Dalsvåg in Dønna
Dønna
Dønna is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland region.Outer Helgeland, consists of the municipalities Leirfjord, Alstahaug, Herøy as well as Dønna. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Solfjellsjøen. The municipality has a large...
and was anchored there when five German bombers attacked Sandnessjøen later in the day.
On 15 May a German land aircraft made an emergency landing at Alstahaug
Alstahaug
Alstahaug is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Sandnessjøen....
where it was approached by a local militia force. After the German aircrew refused to surrender, the Norwegians opened fire, wounding one of the crew and forcing the four airmen to capitulate. The wounded German was brought to the hospital in Sandnessjøen while the other three were taken by fishing boat to a prisoner-of-war camp.
Honningsvåg became involved in the episode later the same day when a Heinkel He 59
Heinkel He 59
|-See also:-Bibliography:* Green, William.War Planes of the Second World War: Volume Six: Floatplanes. London: Macdonald, 1962.* Green, William. Warplanes of the Third Reich. New York: Doubleday, 1972. ISBN 0-385-05782-2....
D-AKUK, an ambulance seaplane of the German Seenotflugkommand
Seenotdienst
The Seenotdienst was a German military organization formed within the Luftwaffe to save downed airmen from emergency water landings...
o 1 (Sea Emergency Command 1), responded to emergency calls that the downed German aircrew had made before being captured. At Alstahaug the German officer in charge of the rescue operation, Oberstleutnant
Oberstleutnant
Oberstleutnant is a German Army and Air Force rank equal to Lieutenant Colonel, above Major, and below Oberst.There are two paygrade associated to the rank of Oberstleutnant...
Branger, was told by the local population that the crew of the German aircraft had been moved and that there were German wounded and prisoners in nearby Sandnessjøen.
After encountering rifle fire from armed guards at the Alstahaug plane wreck Branger decided to continue on to Sandnessjøen to free the wounded Germans held there. Landing at Sandnessjøen at 1730hrs, Branger and an Unteroffizier
Unteroffizier
Unteroffizier is both a specific military rank as well as a collective term for non-commissioned officers of the German military that has existed since the 19th century. The rank existed as a title as early as the 17th century with the first widespread usage occurring in the Bavarian Army of the...
armed themselves and went to the hospital where they demanded the release of the wounded Germans held there. Although the chief physician refused to release the Germans the police commissioner
Police commissioner
Commissioner is a senior rank used in many police forces and may be rendered Police Commissioner or Commissioner of Police. In some organizations, the commissioner is a political appointee, and may or may not actually be a professional police officer. In these circumstances, there is often a...
at nearby Nesna
Nesna
Nesna is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Nesna....
ordered him to comply with the Germans' demands. While the Germans attempted to gain the release of their comrades Honningsvåg arrived at Sandnessjøen. Løytnant Plyhn contacted the district commander in Bodø and was ordered to seize the He 59 and capture the Germans. Oberstleutnant Branger and the Unteroffizier were the first to be taken prisoner, while the two Germans remaining with the seaplane refused to budge and stayed on board until Plyhn approached them alone and after firing a warning shot took them prisoner. The captured Germans were handed over to the police. The He 59 proved impossible to remove due to low tide. After attempts to pull it free had damaged the pontoons and wings beyond repair, it was towed out on the Leirfjord
Leirfjord
Leirfjord is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Leland....
and sunk on 18 May.
The Albion
The next engagement involving Honningsvåg occurred four days later, on 19 May. The SS Albion, a 192 ton fishing trawler seized by the Germans at Trondheim, had landed 25 German soldiers at Rørvik
Rørvik
Rørvik is a port village in the municipality of Vikna in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The village also serves as the administrative centre of the municipality. It is on the eastern side of the Vikna archipelago on the island of Inner-Vikna. The village has a population of 2,721. The...
on 18 May and continued northwards with a cargo of food and other supplies. The cargo was intended to be landed at Mosjøen
Mosjøen
-History:Mosjøen was founded in the 17th century as local farmers met here to trade, and has been growing since then. Sawmills were built here in 1866 by a British company, and Mosjøen got township rights in 1875. It is the oldest town in the Helgeland region and the second oldest town in Nordland...
or Mo i Rana
Mo i Rana
Mo i Rana is a town in the municipality of Rana, Nordland, Norway, located just south of the Arctic Circle and in the region Helgeland. The town is called "Mo i Rana" to distinquish it from other places named Mo - most notably the town of Mosjøen, also in Helgeland - though locally the town is...
, to supply troops of the German 2nd Mountain Division that were advancing northwards in the direction of Narvik. Albion
Hurtigruten
Hurtigruten or Hurtigruta is a Norwegian passenger and freight line with daily sailings along Norway's western and northern coast. Sometimes referred to in English as Norwegian Coastal Express, Hurtigruten ships sail almost the entire length of the country, completing the roundtrip journey in 11...
passenger-cargo vessel Nordnorge to land troops in Hemnesberget
Hemnesberget
Hemnesberget is a small town in the municipality of Hemnes, Norway. Its population is 1,337....
on 10 May and bypass strong Allied defensive lines in Nordland. Before Albion could reach her designation she was spotted by civilian observers on Mount Sundsfjellet in Vik, who reported her to Norwegian authorities. Honningsvåg and Heilhorn were ordered on 19 May by the commander at Bodø to intercept and sink the armed German-operated steamship. By the evening of 19 May the Norwegian warships found Albion riding at anchor at the Strømøyene islands some 5 nautical miles (9.3 km) north of Brønnøysund
Brønnøysund
is a town and the administrative centre of the municipality of Brønnøy, Norway. It is also a former municipality in Nordland county. The village of Brønnøysund received town status in 2000. The city lies along the coast and is often called "the coastal town in the middle of Norway." Brønnøysund...
. Locals in rowing boats met the Norwegian warships and told them where to find the Albion. After Honningsvåg had closed to less than 1000 metres (3,280.8 ft), Heilhorn to even less of a distance, the Norwegians opened fire at around 2200hrs and sank Albion. The German crew jumped overboard, swam ashore, and were quickly captured by a waiting militia unit of volunteers from Brønnøysund and Velfjord
Velfjord
Velfjord is a former municipality in Nordland county, Norway. Velfjord is located in the present-day municipality of Brønnøy. The administrative centre was the village of Hommelstø. The municipality surrounded the large fjord, Velfjorden, after which the municipality is named...
. Of the ten Germans crewing the Albion two were killed and one wounded. The prisoners and the dead bodies were handed over to Honningsvåg for transportation to Sandnessjøen where they arrived in the early hours of 20 May. A Norwegian pilot
Maritime pilot
A pilot is a mariner who guides ships through dangerous or congested waters, such as harbours or river mouths. With the exception of the Panama Canal, the pilot is only an advisor, as the captain remains in legal, overriding command of the vessel....
was also rescued from the sunken ship. While the Norwegian pilot accompanied the warships back to Bodø, the German prisoners were handed over to a Royal Navy 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...
the Norwegian ships encountered off Sandnessjøen. The Albion was the last German blockade runner
Blockade runner
A blockade runner is usually a lighter weight ship used for evading a naval blockade of a port or strait, as opposed to confronting the blockaders to break the blockade. Very often blockade running is done in order to transport cargo, for example to bring food or arms to a blockaded city...
to attempt to break through the coastal areas under Norwegian control, with parts of the Helgeland coastline remaining unoccupied until early June.
Air attacks
As the Norwegian Campaign
Norwegian Campaign
The Norwegian Campaign was a military campaign that was fought in Norway during the Second World War between the Allies and Germany, after the latter's invasion of the country. In April 1940, the United Kingdom and France came to Norway's aid with an expeditionary force...
continued and work on the German airfield at Værnes in Central Norway progressed with the help of some 2,000 Norwegian collaborationist
Collaborationism
Collaborationism is cooperation with enemy forces against one's country. Legally, it may be considered as a form of treason. Collaborationism may be associated with criminal deeds in the service of the occupying power, which may include complicity with the occupying power in murder, persecutions,...
workers, attacks by the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
increased in number and intensity.
Honningsvåg was subjected to her first attack on 20 May when she was strafed
Strafing
Strafing is the practice of attacking ground targets from low-flying aircraft using aircraft-mounted automatic weapons. This means, that although ground attack using automatic weapons fire is very often accompanied with bombing or rocket fire, the term "strafing" does not specifically include the...
by a single German aircraft while out on patrol in the Ranafjorden, suffering no damage. The next day Sandnessjøen was bombed while Honningsvåg was nearby. This time also being attacked with bombs, as well as strafed, Honningsvåg made evasive manoeuvres and returned fire with her two anti-aircraft
Anti-aircraft warfare
NATO defines air defence as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action." They include ground and air based weapon systems, associated sensor systems, command and control arrangements and passive measures. It may be to protect naval, ground and air forces...
machine guns. Suffering minor damage from machine gun hits, she had her first casualty of the war when one of her gunners was lightly wounded.
The following days saw steadily increasing German air activity and Honningsvåg was bombed and strafed repeatedly. Skilled manoeuvring and good gunners enabled the trawler to avoid direct hits until she evacuated the area on 24 May. Being completely out of machine gun ammunition, and suffering from major leaks after several near misses from bombs, Honningsvåg sailed to Harstad
Harstad
is the second largest city and municipality by population, in Troms county, Norway – the city is also the third largest in North Norway. Thus Harstad is the natural centre for its district. Situated approximately north of the Arctic Circle, the city celebrated its 100th anniversary in...
where she was placed on a slipway
Slipway
A slipway, boat slip or just a slip, is a ramp on the shore by which ships or boats can be moved to and from the water. They are used for building and repairing ships and boats. They are also used for launching and retrieving small boats on trailers and flying boats on their undercarriage. The...
for repairs.
Evacuation to the UK
As the repairs on Honningsvåg were being completed her commander, løytnant Plyhn, was amongst the Norwegian naval officers that received orders on 7 June to sail their vessels to the UK as the AlliesAllies of World War II
The Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
had decided to evacuate from Norway
Operation Alphabet
Operation Alphabet was an evacuation, authorized on May 24, 1940, of Allied troops from the harbour of Narvik in northern Norway marking the success of Nazi Germany's Operation Weserübung of April 9 and the end of the Allied campaign in Norway during World War II...
in response to the German invasion of France
Battle of France
In the Second World War, the Battle of France was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, beginning on 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War. The battle consisted of two main operations. In the first, Fall Gelb , German armoured units pushed through the Ardennes, to cut off and...
. Initially the orders specified Shetland as the first designation for the Royal Norwegian Navy ships, but after British requests this was changed to Tórshavn
Tórshavn
Tórshavn is the capital and largest town of the Faroe Islands. It is located in the southern part on the east coast of Streymoy. To the north west of the town lies the high mountain Húsareyn, and to the southwest, the high Kirkjubøreyn...
on the Faroe Islands
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands are an island group situated between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, approximately halfway between Scotland and Iceland. The Faroe Islands are a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, along with Denmark proper and Greenland...
where the Norwegian commanders were to contact British naval authorities there
British occupation of the Faroe Islands in World War II
The British occupation of the Faroe Islands in World War II, also known as "Operation Valentine," was implemented immediately following the German invasion of Denmark and Norway....
to be given recognition signals to identify themselves during their further journey to the UK. The Norwegian Naval Command in Tromsø
Tromsø
Tromsø is a city and municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Tromsø.Tromsø city is the ninth largest urban area in Norway by population, and the seventh largest city in Norway by population...
also ordered the ships to sail as westerly as possible to avoid German air attacks.
Honningsvåg departed Harstad on 7 June 1940 to begin five years in exile, leaving the Norwegian coast at Fugløy and joining the westbound allied convoy on 10 June. On 12 June she and several other Norwegian naval vessels arrived at Tórshavn. As the Royal Norwegian Navy assembled in the UK later in the month its total force was 13 warships and five seaplanes manned by 80 officers and 520 men.
Repair work in the UK
After arrival in the UK Honningsvåg had a number of repairs carried out and was rearmed with a 4 inches (101.6 mm) main gun, a 2 pounder pom-pomQF 2 pounder naval gun
The 2-pounder gun, officially designated the QF 2-pounder and universally known as the pom-pom, was a 1.575 inch British autocannon, used famously as an anti-aircraft gun by the Royal Navy. The name came from the sound that the original models make when firing...
autocannon
Autocannon
An autocannon or automatic cannon is a rapid-fire projectile weapon firing a shell as opposed to the bullet fired by a machine gun. Autocannons often have a larger caliber than a machine gun . Usually, autocannons are smaller than a field gun or other artillery, and are mechanically loaded for a...
, four 12.7 mm Colt Browning
Browning machine gun
Any of the following designs by John Browning, a prolific weapon designer, may be referred to as a Browning machine gun:*M1895 Colt-Browning machine gun*M1917 Browning machine gun, a family of water-cooled machine guns in .30-'06...
AA machine guns, 50 depth charge
Depth charge
A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare weapon intended to destroy or cripple a target submarine by the shock of exploding near it. Most use explosives and a fuze set to go off at a preselected depth in the ocean. Depth charges can be dropped by either surface ships, patrol aircraft, or from...
s as well as an Asdic
Sonar
Sonar is a technique that uses sound propagation to navigate, communicate with or detect other vessels...
Type 123A sonar system.
Iceland Group
She was declared war ready on 31 August 1940 and joined the Iceland Group of the RNoN on 6 September 1940 after arriving at ReykjavíkReykjavík
Reykjavík is the capital and largest city in Iceland.Its latitude at 64°08' N makes it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói Bay...
. Honningsvåg remained with the Iceland Group for the duration of the war, until 16 May 1945. The Iceland Group, under the overall command of the Admiral Commanding, Iceland Command, initially consisted of Honningsvåg, HNoMS Fridtjof Nansen
HNoMS Fridtjof Nansen OPV
HNoMS Fridtjof Nansen was the first ship in the Norwegian armed forces to be built specially to perform coast guard and fishery protection duties in the Arctic...
and HNoMS Nordkapp
HNoMS Nordkapp OPV (1937)
The lead ship of the Nordkapp class of fishery protection vessels, Nordkapp was launched 18 August 1937 at Horten naval shipyard, with yard number 123. She had one sister ship, HNoMS Senja. Nordkapp was named after the North Cape in Finnmark. As was typical of her class Nordkapp was very unstable...
, later being joined by more Norwegian patrol vessels. The unit's mission was to patrol the Icelandic coastline and the areas of the Arctic Ocean
Arctic Ocean
The Arctic Ocean, located in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Arctic north polar region, is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceanic divisions...
between the islands of Iceland, Jan Mayen
Jan Mayen
Jan Mayen Island is a volcanic island in the Arctic Ocean and part of the Kingdom of Norway. It is long and 373 km2 in area, partly covered by glaciers . It has two parts: larger northeast Nord-Jan and smaller Sør-Jan, linked by an isthmus wide...
and Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
. Although the Iceland Group had been operational since August 1940 the official establishment of the unit only occurred in June 1941 when a formal RNoN administration was put in place in Reykjavik.
Jan Mayen
In November 1940 Honningsvåg was sent on a rescue mission to the Norwegian ArcticArctic
The Arctic is a region located at the northern-most part of the Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean and parts of Canada, Russia, Greenland, the United States, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The Arctic region consists of a vast, ice-covered ocean, surrounded by treeless permafrost...
island of Jan Mayen to retrieve the shipwrecked crew of the Fridtjof Nansen, the latter ship having hit an uncharted underwater reef off the island's southern coast and sunk on 8 November. The crew of the Fridtjof Nansen had managed to abandon ship in lifeboats and land at the nearby island of Eggøya, from where they were picked up by the Honningsvåg on 12 November and brought back to Iceland. April 1941 saw Honningsvåg return to Jan Mayen in order to re-establish the weather station
Weather station
A weather station is a facility, either on land or sea, with instruments and equipment for observing atmospheric conditions to provide information for weather forecasts and to study the weather and climate. The measurements taken include temperature, barometric pressure, humidity, wind speed, wind...
on the small volcanic island. Honningsvåg and the other vessels of the Iceland Group returned regularly to Jan Mayen with replacement crews and supplies throughout the war. During the visit the crew of Honningsvåg spotted the remnants of two German Heinkel He 115
Heinkel He 115
The Heinkel He 115 was a World War II Luftwaffe seaplane with three seats. It was used as a torpedo bomber and performed general seaplane duties, such as reconnaissance and minelaying. The plane was powered by two 720 kW BMW 132K nine-cylinder air-cooled radial engines...
seaplanes that had been wrecked during a failed October 1940 attempt at establishing a floating seaplane base off the island to provide for meteorological operations.
Anti-submarine patrols
During patrols and convoy escorting in the Denmark StraitDenmark Strait
The Denmark Strait or Greenland Strait |Sound]]) is an oceanic strait between Greenland and Iceland...
Honningsvåg and fellow Norwegian patrol vessels Namsos, Farsund and Svolvær repeatedly attacked German U-boat
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
s. These attacks led to numerous unconfirmed claims of U-boat sinkings. On 10 November 1944 the UK - Reykjavik convoy UR-142 was attacked by U-boats off western Iceland. The British steam tanker Shirvan and the Icelandic merchant vessel Godafoss were both torpedoed and sunk by U-300
Unterseeboot 300
German submarine U-300 was a Type VIIC/41 U-boat of the German Kriegsmarine during World War II.The U-boat was laid down on 9 April 1943 by the Bremer Vulkan yard at Bremen-Vegesack, launched on 23 November 1943, and commissioned on 29 December 1943 under the command of Oberleutnant zur See Fritz...
. In response Honningsvåg and a Royal Navy escort vessel counter-attacked with depth charges, claiming a sinking after hearing a large underwater explosion, seeing oil slicks on the surface, and losing the Asdic contact. Following the attack Honningsvåg picked up 25 survivors from the Shirvan and the Godafoss.
Post-Second World War
After returning to Norway in the second half of May 1945 Honningsvåg continued in naval service until she was decommissioned and transferred to Naval Command TrøndelagTrøndelag
Trøndelag is the name of a geographical region in the central part of Norway, consisting of the two counties Nord-Trøndelag and Sør-Trøndelag. The region is, together with Møre og Romsdal, part of a larger...
on 23 August 1946. The next year she was sold to a civilian trawler company in Kristiansund
Kristiansund
Kristiansund is a city and municipality on the western coast of Norway, in the Nordmøre district of Møre og Romsdal county. It was officially awarded township status in 1742, and it is still the major town for the region. The administrative center of the municipality is the city of Kristiansund...
and was converted back to her original role as a fishing trawler. In 1973 she was sold for scrapping
Ship breaking
Ship breaking or ship demolition is a type of ship disposal involving the breaking up of ships for scrap recycling. Most ships have a lifespan of a few decades before there is so much wear that refitting and repair becomes uneconomical. Ship breaking allows materials from the ship, especially...
in Tjeldsund
Tjeldsund
Tjeldsund is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Ofoten traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Hol i Tjeldsund. Tjeldsund was separated from the municipality of Lødingen in 1909....
.