index113-1940-1949

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- featuring ships from the following time period -

1940 - 1949

1973-01-027
Unknown freighter
Photographed in Shanghai in 1973
(Photography © Karsten Petersen)

The unknown freighter shown above, I believe to be a British built "Fort" type standard ship from WW2, - but she could be something else, - "Ocean", "Park" or whatever -, since the various standard type ships built on both sides of the Atlantic looked very similar. Unfortunately I do not have any name or number of this great, old ship. Any suggestions???

FLM-1-82-73-Frame-33
"Gang Lei"
Liberty ship photographed on the Huangpu River, - Shanghai -, March 1973
(Photography © Karsten Petersen)

This old Liberty ship is another "mystery" - - -
It is clearly a Liberty ship, - and the name clearly says "Gang Lei", - which means something like "Harbour Mine" in Chinese -, but it has not been possible for me to find out which name the ship originally had when she was built during WW2.
However, - the "Gang Lei" photographed in the beginning of 1973 -, must indeed be one of the oldest surviving Liberty ships in active service.

1973-01-024
"Gang Lei"
Liberty ship photographed on the Huangpu River, - Shanghai -, March 1973
(Photography © Karsten Petersen)

1973-01-025
"Gang Lei"
Liberty ship photographed on the Huangpu River, - Shanghai -, March 1973
(Photography © Karsten Petersen)

"Lu Shan" PF 36
(Photography © Karsten Petersen)
Photographed in Keelung, Taiwan, around 1974 or earlier.
Ex. US Navy Buckley Class destroyer escort "Bull" DE 693, - later converted to a Charles Lawrence class high speed transport, - APD 78.
Transferred to Taiwan in 1966.
Displacement: 1400 standard, 2130 full load, - LOA: 93,3 m, - Beam: 11,3 m, - Draught: 3,2 m.
Armament: 2 x 5" guns, - 6 x 40 mm AA, - 4 x 20 mm AA, - 2 triple tubes for 324 mm torpedoes.
Propulsion: Turbines, - 12000 shp., - 2 shafts, - 23,6 knots.

1972-04-095
"Fjordskär"
(Photography © Karsten Petersen)

Swedish coaster "Fjordskär" passing through Lillebælt, - Denmark -, in 1972.
Commissioned 1949, - DWT: 625, - LOA.: 50,5 m, - Beam: 8,2 m, - Propulsion: Diesel, - 10 knots.
Ex. "Spora", - renamed 1965 "Fjordskär", - 1974 "Jani I", - 1978 "Fjordskär", - 1979 "Sisco", - Wrecked 1981.

1977-09-11.001
USS "Private Leonard G. Brostrom" T-AK 255
US Military Sealift Command
Photographed in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, Sept. 1977
(Photography © Karsten Petersen)

"Lieut. George W. G. Boyse" Class heavy lift cargo ship
Completed: 1943
Displacement: 12.056 tons, full load.
Dimensions: 158,5 x 22 x 10,1 meters
Propulsion: Geared turbine, 9000 shp, 1 shaft, 15,8 knots

1977-09-11.003
"Dang Yang" 966
Taiwan Navy
Photographed in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, Sept. 1977
(Photography © Karsten Petersen)

Ex. US "Gearing" Class Destroyer USS "Lloyd Thomas" DD 764
Commissioned: 1945
Displacement: 2.425 tons standard, 3.500 full load
Dimensions: 119 x 12,6 x 5,8 meters
Aircraft: 1 helicopter
Armament: 4 twin 127 mm guns, 4 - 40 mm AA guns, 3 Hsuing Feng SSM missiles, Hedgehogs and torpedo tubes.
Propulsion: 2 geared turbines, 60.000 shp, 2 shafts, 32,5 knots

1977-09-11.003
"Dang Yang" 966
Taiwan Navy
Photographed in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, Sept. 1977
(Photography © Karsten Petersen)

1977-09-11.005
Destroyer "Kai Yang" 915, - and unknown tug "336"
Taiwan Navy
Photographed in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, Sept. 1977
(Photography © Karsten Petersen)

Ex. US "Gearing" Class Destroyer USS "Richard B. Anderson" DD 786
Commissioned: 1945
Displacement: 2.425 tons standard, 3.500 full load
Dimensions: 119 x 12,6 x 5,8 meters
Aircraft: 1 helicopter
Armament: 4 twin 127 mm guns, 4 - 40 mm AA guns, 3 Hsuing Feng SSM missiles, torpedo tubes.
Propulsion: 2 geared turbines, 60.000 shp, 2 shafts, 32,5 knots

The tug "336" looks like an Ex. US "Cherokee" class
Commissioned: 1942 - 1945
Displacement: 1235 tons standard, 1731 full load.
Dimensions: 62,5 x 11,7 x 3,1 meters
Propulsion: Diesel-electric, 3000 bhp, 1 shaft, 15 knots

1977-09-11.007
Destroyer "Kai Yang" 915, - and unknown tug "336"
Taiwan Navy
Photographed in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, Sept. 1977
(Photography © Karsten Petersen)

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1977-09-11.008
Landing Ship Dock "Cheng Hai" 618, - and unknown LST in front
Taiwan Navy
Photographed in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, Sept. 1977
(Photography © Karsten Petersen)

Ex. US "Cabildo" Class Landing Ship Dock , USS "Fort Marion" LSD 22
Commissioned: 1946
Displacement: 4.790 tons standard, 9.078 full load
Dimensions: 139,6 x 22 x 5,5 meters
Armament: 12 - 40 mm AA guns
Propulsion: 2 geared turbines, 7000 shp, 2 shafts, 15,4 knots

The LST in front looks like an Ex. US "LST 1-510"/"LST 511-1152"
Commissioned: WW2
Displacement: 1653 tons standard, 3640 - 4080 full load.
Dimensions: 100 x 15,2 x 4,3 meters
Armament: Various guns
Propulsion: 2 Diesels, - 1700 bhp, - 2 shaft, - 11,6 knots

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1973-03-014
"Lu Hai 56"
(Photography © Karsten Petersen)

Chinese ship photographed off Tsingtao, China, in August 1973.
Identified as ex. Dutch ship "Borneo", - launched in 1943 and completet in 1948.
DWT: 11999 tons, - LOA.: 158,6 m, - Beam: 19,3 m, - Propusion: Diesel, - 15 knots
Renamed "Azalea" in 1969, - then sold to China for scrapping in 1972, - but as seen on this picture, she was still around in August 1973.
Further history is unknown to me.

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"Seawise University" / RMS "Queen Elizabeth"

Here a series of pictures I took of the wreck of "Seawise University" Ex. RMS "Queen Elizabeth" as she looked in 1973 after she burned the year before in Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong.

This is the remains of one of the most famous ships in the World, - RMS "Queen Elizabeth".
When she was launched, she was the biggest passenger ship ever built, - and remained so for the next 34 years -, although she started her career as a troop carrier during WW2, when she was modified to carry about 15.000 soldiers.
After the war she remained in active service as a passenger liner until she retired 1968, - being replaced by "Queen Elizabeth 2" in 1969.
In 1970 she was sold to wealthy businessman C. W. Tung of Hong Kong and renamed "Seawise University".
However, - in January 1972 -, during the final stages of her conversion to a floating university the ship caught fire, and the former "Queen" burned out completely and ended on the bottom of Hong Kong's Victoria Harbour, - and another great ship was gone forever - - - - -
The reason for the fire?
Well, - the cause of this fire was never established and therefore only rumours remains.
Since the ship apparently burned everywhere from stern to stem at the same time, it is believed that these fires most likely were started on purpose, since it is unlikely that several fires could ignite spontaneously, - from bow to stern -, in a ship more than 300 meters long.
One rumour says insurance fraught, - another rumour says sabotage from communists, since Mr. Tung was not a great supporter of the communist idea, but preferred the democratic system of Kuomintang. It must be kept in mind, that in those days China's economy was not super capitalist as we see it today, - and anything capitalist was in fact considered very, very bad. (Strange how fast things can change!)
Therefore it is quite possible, that fanatic communists from that time would see it as a heroic act if they could do a spectacular strike against a capitalist person and/or symbol, - and it would be even better if it took place right in the middle of a capitalist stronghold on the China coast.
Whatever, - the "Queen" died - - - -

On the World Wide Web there are apparently not so many good pictures of the spectacular wreck of the former "Queen Elizabeth" , - hence I decided to publish a series of my own photos I took in 1973, when the wreck was still intact.
I simply hired a "walla-walla" in Tsimshatsui and sailed out to the wreck site where I circled the impressive wreck, - and took photos - - - -
In 1974 the scrappers arrived and started to cut up the huge hull, - bit by bit -, and in 1975 nothing of the huge ship could be seen, - but still some parts of her, - the keel and some of the bottom section -, should still be resting there in the mud of Victoria Harbour.

Please enjoy my pics of this most spectacular wreck of one of the most famous ships in the World - - - -

1973-04-098
"Seawise University"
Photographed in Hong Kong in 1973
(Photography © Karsten Petersen)

Completed: 1940
Builder: John Brown & Co., Clydebank
Tons: 83673
LOA.: 314,2 m
Beam: 36,2 m.
Propulsion: 4 steam turbines, - 28,5 knots.
Renamed "Seawise University" in 1970, - wrecked by fire in 1972, and scrapped in 1974/1975

1973-04-099
"Seawise University"
Photographed in Hong Kong in 1973
(Photography © Karsten Petersen)

1973-04-100
"Seawise University"
Photographed in Hong Kong in 1973
(Photography © Karsten Petersen)

The Wreck of the "Santa Leonor"
- photographed in the Smyth Channel at Isla Shoal, - the Magellan Strait -, Jan. 19. 1986 -
DWT.: 12595 tons, - LOA.: 150 m., - Beam: 21,2 m., - Propulsion: Steam Turbine, - 16,5 knots
Commissioned 1944 as "Riverside", - Renamed: 1947 "P & T Forrester", - 1957 "Mormacwave", - 1966 "Santa Leonor"
Wrecked in service for Grace Line in the Magellan Strait on march 31. 1968

A great classic from Ben Line, - the "Benarkle" of Liverpool -, photographed in Singapore in 1972.
Completed in 1946 as "City of Poona", - DWT.: 11956 tons, - LOA.: 151,6 m., - Beam: 19,6 m., - Propulsion: Diesel, - 14,5 knots.
Renamed "Benarkle" in 1968, - and scrapped in 1974.

Commissioned in 1948 as "Scottish Trader" under UK flag, and here photographed in the Malacca Strait 1972 as "Silver Coast"
DWT.: 10300 tons, - LOA.: 138,6 bm., - Beam: 17,8 m., - Propulsion: Diesel, - 12 knots.
Renamed: 1960 "North Cambria", - 1963 "Bannercliff", - 1970 "Silver Coast", - 1973 "Granikos", - and scrapped 1974.

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Page Initiated: Dec.01.2010
Page updated: Dec.04.2010, - Dec.18.2010, - Dec.26.2010, - Dec.09.2011, - Jan.16.2011, - Jan.20.2011, - Feb.12.2011