RMS Corfu was a Royal Mail Ship and ocean liner operated by the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company. Known as one of the 'Far East Sisters', she was launched in 1931 to serve the company's India and Far East Mail Service, along with her sister ship, the RMS Carthage. Both ships were built by Alexander Stephen & Sons Ltd in Glasgow, Scotland and served from 1931 until 1961 when they were scrapped in Japan.[1][2]
 SS Corfu in June 1932
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
| Name |
|
| Owner | P&O 1931-1961 |
| Port of registry | London  |
| Route | London, Bombay, China |
| Ordered | 25 June 1930 |
| Builder | |
| Yard number | 534 |
| Laid down | 9 September 1930 |
| Launched | 20 May 1931 |
| Maiden voyage | 16 October 1931 |
| Fate | Scrapped 17 October 1961 by Miyachi Salvage Co Ltd, at Osaka, Japan. |
| General characteristics | |
| Tonnage | 14,293 (GRT) |
| Length | 543ft |
| Beam | 71ft 5in |
| Draught | 29ft 9in |
| Installed power | Six steam boilers, two turbines |
| Propulsion | Twin propellers |
| Speed | 18 knots |
| Capacity |
|
| Notes | Originally proposed name Chefoo |
World War II
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In September 1939 Corfu was requisitioned by the British Admiralty and armed with eight 6-inch guns as part of her conversion to an armed merchant cruiser. She served as in this role as HMS Corfu until February 1944, and as a troop transport from then until the end of World War II. On 10 July 1940 she collided with HMS Hermes in the Atlantic Ocean and was damaged and abandoned. She was reboarded later in the day and subsequently taken in tow by HMS Milford and the Dutch tug Donau and reached Freetown, Sierra Leone on 13 July. She was beached on 19 August for repairs to her bow and re-entered service in early 1941.[3] On 7 October 1945 Corfu docked at Southampton carrying the first 1,500 British prisoners of war to return from Japanese camps in the Far East. In 1947 she was returned to her owners. She operated from Tilbury to Sydney as P&O Corfu in the 1950s
References
edit- ^ "poships.co.uk". www.poships.co.uk. Retrieved 5 September 2024.
- ^ "RMS Corfu". Clydeships. Retrieved 6 November 2019.
- ^ "Naval Events, July 1940, Part 1 of 2, Monday 1st- Sunday 14th". Naval History. Retrieved 23 November 2011.
Bibliography
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