SS Plancius
 Plancius in 1924 as a passenger ship
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
| Name | Plancius |
| Namesake | Petrus Plancius |
| Owner | Koninklijke Paketvaart-Mij |
| Operator |
|
| Port of registry | 1924:  Batavia |
| Route | Dutch East Indies |
| Builder | Nederlandsche SM, Amsterdam |
| Yard number | 166 |
| Launched | 1922 |
| Completed | 3 March 1924 |
| Commissioned | April 9, 1942 as Submarine Depot ship |
| Reclassified | 1942, as Submarine depot ship |
| Fate | sold in 1958 for scrapping to a company in Hong Kong |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | passenger ship |
| Displacement | 5,955 long tons (6,051 t) |
| Length | 128.11 m (420.3 ft) |
| Beam | 16.83 m (55.2 ft) |
| Decks | 3 |
| Installed power | 5,800 ihp (4,300 kW) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 15.5 kn (28.7 km/h) |
| Boats & landing craft carried | |
| Crew | 363 during war operations |
| Armament |
|
| Notes | sister ship: Op Ten Noort |
SS Plancius was a passenger steamship that was launched in the Netherlands in 1922. She was built for the Koninklijke Paketvaart-Maatschappij (KPM, the "Royal Packet Navigation Company"), who operated her in the Dutch East Indies. Plancius was named after Petrus Plancius, a famous Dutch-Flemish astronomer, cartographer and clergyman.
In 1942, after the fall of Java, the Royal Netherlands Navy requisitioned her, initially to serve as a command ship for the navy in Ceylon. After the loss of the former MS Columbia however, it was decided to convert the Plancius into a Submarine tender.
Building
[edit]In the 1920s Nederlandsche Scheepsbouw Maatschappij in Amsterdam built a pair of passenger ships for KPM. The first was built as yard number 166, launched in September 1923 as Plancius, and completed in February 1924, entering service from the 3rd of March that year.[1] A sister ship was built as yard number 185, launched on 12 February 1927 as Op Ten Noort, and completed in August 1927.[2]
Both Plancius and Op Ten Noort had twin screws. However, Plancius had a pair of conventional quadruple-expansion engines, Op Ten Noort had a pair of four-cylinder compound engines built by Werkspoor.[2] Plancius had a maximum speed of 15.5 knots (28.7 km/h).[2]
Service History
[edit]Plancius would serve from 1924 untill the start of World War II in the pacific as a passenger, mail and cargo transport ship.
From the outbreak of hostilities between Japan and the Netherlands, Plancius served in a passenger transport role where it transferred German POW's from Java to Bombay, and evacuated personnell from the Dutch East Indies to Australia before retreating to Ceylon itself.[3]
Once arrived in Ceylon the ship was militarized by the Royal Netherlands Navy to serve as a command ship for Vice-Admiral Helfrich and the rest of navy command. Upon the loss of the Submarine Tender HNLMS Columbia, the HNLMS Plancius would be converted and serve as a submarine tender in its place.[4]
Throughout the war the ship would frequently serve Royal Netherlands Navy, Royal Navy and even Italian Navy submarines later in the war.[5]
The Plancius would be returned to the KPM in 1946 after which it would serve as a passenger ship untill being sold to a scrapping company in Hong Kong in 1958.[6]
References
[edit]- ^ "Plancius – ID 5178". Stichting Maritiem-Historische Databank (in Dutch). Retrieved July 12, 2023.
- ^ a b c "Op Ten Noort – ID 4925". Stichting Maritiem-Historische Databank (in Dutch). Retrieved July 12, 2023.
- ^ Mark, Chris (1997). Schepen van de Koninklijke Marine in W.O. II. Alkmaar: De Alk. ISBN 978-90-6013-522-8.
- ^ Helfrich, Conrad Emile Lambert (1950). Memoires van Admiraal Helfrich Amsterdam: Elsevier.
- ^ Von Münching, L.L. (1978). Schepen van de Koninklijke Marine in de 2e wereldoorlog Alkmaar: De Alk. ISBN 9060139038.
- ^ Bezemer, K.W.L. (1967). Verdreven doch niet verslagen Hilversum: Uitgeversmaatschappij W. de Haan N.V. ISBN 9026920415.
Bibliography
[edit]- Hardy, AC (1954) [1948]. Modern Marine Engineering. Vol. I (revised ed.). London: Caxton Publishing.
- Lloyd's Register of British and Foreign Shipping. Vol. II – Steamers and Motorships. London: Lloyd's Register of Shipping. 1928 – via Internet Archive.
- Lloyd's Register of Shipping (PDF). Vol. II – Steamers and Motorships of 300 Tons Gross and Over. London: Lloyd's Register of Shipping. 1934 – via Southampton City Council.
External links
[edit]
Media related to Plancius (ship, 1924) at Wikimedia Commons