Previous name: Assistance
Official Number: 168731
Class: KING SALVOR Class Ocean Salvage Ship
Pennant No: W176 / B442 / A499
Laid down: 20 September 1941
Builder: Simons, Renfrew
Launched: 28 August 1942
Into Service: 30 September 1942
Base Port: Portsmouth
Out of service: 1970
Fate: Broken Up
Items of historic interest involving this ship: –
Background Data: There were originally 13 ships in this Admiralty-designed Class, 12 of which saw service as RFA’s. The final unit in the Class was completed as a Submarine Rescue Vessel under the White Ensign. All were basically similar and were used as Ocean Salvage Ships. They had a complement of 72 and during wartime were armed with 4 x 20 mm AA guns.
20 September 1941 laid down as Assistance
April 1942 renamed SALVESTOR
28 August 1942 launched by Wm Simons & Co Ltd, Renfrew as Yard Nr: 753
21 September 1942 registered at Glasgow as SALVESTOR as entry 29/42 in the Registry book
30 September 1942 completed
26 November 1942 sailed the Clyde in escorted convoy KMS 4G for Gibraltar arriving on 8 December 1942
24 December 1942 sailed Gibraltar in escorted convoy KMS 5G for Bone arriving on 27 December 1942
28 December 1942 at the Bay of Algiers with USS Thomas Stone which was aground – ships anchors too light to hold the US vessel
USS Thomas Stone
January 1943 towed the torpedoed anti aircraft cruiser HMS POZANCIA into Bougie for repairs
28 March 1943 arrived at Oran from Algiers – ships in the harbour subjected to an air attack by 4 enemy aircraft
1 April 1943 at Oran salvaging the ss City of Perth
2 July 1943 joined Convoy KMS 17 (Gibraltar – Sfax) for the Algiers to Malta leg arriving 6 July 1943 the convoy included RFA ABBEYDALE, RFA ORANGELEAF (1), RFA PRESTOL and HMS SALVEDA
29 August 1943 joined Convoy MKS 23 (Alexandria to Gibraltar) for the Algiers to Malta leg which also contained RFA DERWENTDALE (1) and HMS SALVEDA
11 January 1944 joined Convoy KMS 37 (Gibraltar to Port Said) for the Algiers to Augusta leg
6 May 1944 C-in-C Med requested that she be manned by the SANF
5 June 1944 Radio Officer Allen G Boyd RFA discharged dead. He is buried in the Naples War Cemetery
Courtesy and © of The War Graves Photographic Project
31 August 1944 commissioned at Naples under South African Navy control under the command of Lieutenant Commander Thomas F. O’Brien SAN
14 September 1944 sailed for Algiers and returned with salvaged stores
13 October 1944 sailed Bagnoli, Augusta and Taranto
17 October 1944 sailed to salvage HMS LARNE which was mined off the Island of Poros and which had been badly damaged the previous day during Operation Edgehill. HMS LARNE was towed into Poros Bay, East Coast of Greece
24 October 1944 sailed Taranto in convoy HP1 for Piraeus arriving 27 October 1944
27 October 1944 arrived Piraeus to carry out salvage work
30 January 1945 arrived Alexandria for refit
24 March 1945 sailed Alexandria for Aden
3 April 1945 sailed Aden for Kilindini. ETA Kilindini 11 April 1945
17 April 1945 arrived Durban enroute to join the British Eastern Fleet
21 April 1945 sailed Durban via Port Louis and Colombo to Trincomalee
12 April 1945 arrived Trincomalee on 12 May 1945 and afterwards sailed to Australia
19 June 1945 sailed Darwin, Australia towing AFD 18 to Milne Bay, New Guinea arriving on the 8 July 1945 assisted by the Royal Australian Naval tug HEROS and escorted by HMAS GOULBOURN and HMAS TAMWORTH. On arrival engaged in repairing damage to the AFD which had been caused by bad weather
An AFD as the same class as AFD18
8 August 1945 went to the assistance of a merchant ship in difficulties more than 200 km from Milne Bay.
11 August 1945 brought the merchant ship into port
August 1945 at Manus the crew played hockey against HMAS TAMWORTH
13 August 1945 with RFA SALVICTOR towing AFD 18 to Manus Naval Base, Admiralty Islands
19 August 1945 arrived with RFA SALVICTOR and AFD 18 at Manus Naval Base, Admiralty Islands
28 August 1945 at Manus Naval Base with HMAS PIRIE berthed alongside
HMAS PIRIE
30 August 1945 sailed Manus Naval Base, Admiralty Islands for Hong Kong
9 September 1945 arrived at Hong Kong where she salvaged a Japanese tug and carried out a number of other salvage tasks
1946 handed back to an RN crew
4 October 1946 the Hampshire Telegraph newspaper reported –
1946 returned to the Admiralty and received the Battle Honour “Pacific 1942-45” the only SAN ship to receive the honour
30 August 1946 offered for charter by the Admiralty to private salavage companies
2 December 1946 the ships company made a donation of £56 to Legacy House Appeal, Sydney, NSW Australia – a charity providing support to War widows in Australia
7 June 1948 sailed from Portsmouth Harbour
24 September 1948 the Hampshire Telegraph reported –
3 June 1949 vide AFO 1872/49 allocated to Portsmouth as her Base Port
1 September 1950 sailed from Portsmouth Harbour
20 November 1956 used to clear Port Said harbour after the Suez Crisis with RFA SEA SALVOUR and RFA UPLIFTER
16 December 1956 while salvaging a bucket dredger in the Suez Canal came under small arms fire
September 1959 laid up at Pembroke Dock
August 1969 on the disposal list at Pembroke Dock
July 1970 broken Up at Briton Ferry, Wales by T.W. Ward Ltd.
Notes:
- Served in the British Pacific Fleet – hence the B pennant number