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| History | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Name | MSSkaubryn |
| Operator | Skaugen Line |
| Port of registry | Oslo |
| Builder | Öresundsvarvet,Landskrona,Sweden |
| Launched | 7 October 1950 |
| Completed | 22 February 1951 |
| Maiden voyage | 24 February 1951 |
| Homeport | Oslo |
| Identification | IMO 5607733 |
| Fate | Sank after fire, 6 April 1958 |
| General characteristics[1] | |
| Type | Passenger liner |
| Tonnage | 9,786 gross register tons (GRT) |
| Length | 458 ft (140 m) |
| Beam | 57 ft (17 m) |
| Propulsion | Götaverkendiesel engines, 1 shaft |
| Speed | 16knots (30 km/h; 18 mph) |
| Capacity | 16 first class and 1,205 tourist class passengers |
MSSkaubryn was aNorwegianpassenger ship launched in 1950, which sailed between Europe and Australia. She sank in theIndian Ocean in April 1958, after a fire.
Owned by Isak Skaugen,Skaubryn was first intended to be a shelter deck cargo ship for one of his companies,Eikland. She was built by theÖresundsvarvet Shipbuilding Company inLandskrona,Sweden, and launched on October 7, 1950. Whilst being fitted out, Skaugen decided to have her completed as an emigrant liner, and she was transferred to theHowaldtswerke shipyard for completion as apassenger liner. When completed she offered tourist class accommodation for 1,205 passengers, as well as eight twin-bedded cabins accommodating 16 first class passengers on the bridge deck.[1]
Skaubryn's main service was from European ports toSydney,Australia, though she also made a number of sailings to Canada. In 1953 she carriedFrench Foreign Legion troops to fight inIndochina. One of them who escaped the ship, Ensio Tiira, later wrote a book about his subsequent experience on a raft for 32 days.[2] She was chartered several times, once by the French Government in the mid-1950s to bring troops back from Vietnam.Skaubryn was one of the last vessels to pass through theSuez Canal immediately before its closure due to theSuez Crisis of 1956. In late September 1956 the Dutch Government used her for a single voyage from Rotterdam to Halifax and New York. That same year and in early 1957, she was chartered by theBritish Government to transport troops from Singapore to the UK. TheGreek Line chartered her later in 1957 for four round trips from Europe and the UK to Quebec, after which she returned on the Australian emigrant service again.[1]
On March 14, 1958,Skaubryn leftBremerhaven with 1,288 passengers aboard. On March 31, whilst in theIndian Ocean a fire broke out which quickly spread, though all the passengers safely evacuated the ship in her lifeboats. One passenger died due to aheart attack whilst still in a lifeboat. Fortunately the sea was calm. The first ship to come to her rescue was thePolish Ocean Linescargo shipMałgorzata fornalska. The rescued crew and passengers and people was transferred toEllerman Linescargo linerCity of Sydney, but she could not provide accommodation. The next day, theLloyd Triestino passenger linerRoma arrived and all passengers were transferred to her.[1]
The fire on theSkaubryn caused great damage to her forward and central superstructure, whilst her stern remained untouched. An attempt was made to tow her toAden, first byHMS Loch Fada, then by the Dutch TugCycloop, however,Skaubryn slowly took on water and she eventually sank on April 6, 1958.[1]
Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in 1958 | |
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| Shipwrecks |
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| Other incidents |
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