The Life of SS Monterey/Britanis #ship #oceanliner #history #ww2 #troopship #shipwreck #cruiseship

Launched: 10 October 1931 Maiden voyage: 3 June 1932 Out of service: 1996 Fate: Sank on 21 October 2000 SS Monterey was a luxury ocean liner launched on 10 October 1931. The ship was completed April 1932 and is shown in registers as a 1932 ship. Monterey was the third of the four ships of the Matson Lines"White Fleet", which were designed by William Francis Gibbs. During World War II Monterey was used as a troopship operated by Matson as agents of the War Shipping Administration(WSA). Monterey was a large, fast transport capable of sailing independently & was allocated to serving Army troop transport requirements. The ship was involved in an attack on a convoy near Cape Bougaroun. Monterey was built to promote travel to Hawaii & for Pacific Ocean liner service including regular stops in ports along the West Coast of the United States, Samoa, Fiji, New Zealand & Australia. On 12 May 1932 she took 83 passengers from New York City to the West Coast on a positioning cruise. Her maiden voyage officially began 3 June 1932 in San Francisco, California In World War II Monterey served as a fast troop carrier, often operating alone so she would not be slowed by formation navigation in a convoy. The United States Maritime Commission chartered her in 1941 before the US declaration of war to carry 150 Chinese, Korean & Japanese missionaries & stranded US citizens back to San Francisco. Once home, she was quickly refitted to hold 3,500 soldiers. On 16 December 1941 she steamed to Hawaii with 3,349 fresh troops, returning with 800 casualties of the attack on Pearl Harbor. The voyage to Naples was her first taste of combat. On 6 November 1943 in an action off Cape Bougaroun, Algeria, 25 aircraft attacked the convoy. Monterey shot down an enemy bomber which passed over the ship & tore away the radio mast before crashing into the ocean. In convoy, the Grace Line troopship Santa Elena was torpedoed & began to sink. Monterey rescued 1,675 using her boats & nets, taking the survivors to Naples. In 1946 Monterey took Australian war brides from Sydney to San Francisco, stopping along the way at Suva, Fiji & Honolulu, Hawaii. On 26 September 1946 the Monterey arrived at Bethlehem-Alameda Shipyard in Alameda, California for refitting & return to passenger service with Matson. Money ran out on the project after 30% of the work had been completed. For 5 years she sat idle in Alameda, then was purchased by the US Government in August 1952. She was towed to the mothball fleet in nearby Suisun Bay. Matson bought the old mothballed SS Monterey back from the US Government on 3 February 1956 & had to come up with a new name for her: she was rechristened SS Matsonia, replacing their earlier Matsonia which had been sold to Home Lines in 1954 & subsequently renamed. Within 5 years, profits from passenger service had fallen to the point where Matson decided to anchor Matsonia indefinitely in San Francisco Bay. Sister ship Lurline continued to operate but suffered a major turbine problem in February 1963; 1 that would require costly repairs. Instead of repairing Lurline, Matson sold the well-loved ship to Chandris Lines to be rechristened Ellinis. Stung by poor public opinion regarding the maneuver, Matson rechristened the former Matsonia (ex-Monterey) as the new Lurline on 6 December 1963 & returned her to service. On 25 June 1970, Lurline arrived in San Francisco to be sold to Chandris Lines. 5 days later she steamed under new ownership out of the Golden Gate toward Piraeus with the new name Britanis. At Piraeus, Britanis was greatly modified. She re-entered service on 21 February 1971 under the Chandris 'Fantasy Cruises' division, leaving Southampton bound for Sydney & back; a regular round-trip she would make for 3 years. In 1974 she saw service as a cruise ship in the Caribbean during winter & Europe during the summer. Britanis was chartered by the US Government in 1994 as a floating barracks for military personnel at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. She suffered minor damage from an electrical fire, was repaired at US Government expense, then laid up at Tampa, Florida in late 1996. The ship was maintained in anchorage until 24 January 1998 when she was sold to AG Belofin Investments of Liechtenstein & renamed Belofin-1. On June 9, 1999, the SF Chronicle reported that the ship may be turned into a hotel at the San Francisco Bay. Her new owners intended to recoup their investment by selling the ship to scrappers, but a downturn in steel prices held them up for more than a year. On 3 July 2000, Belofin-1 was towed by the Ukrainian tug Iribis out of Tampa Bay with the former CN Marine ferry MV Bluenose lashed to her port side. The ships were bound for ship breakers in India, but Bluenose ended up going to Mexico. Belofin-1 apparently began taking on water. The tugboat crew cut her free & Belofin-1 capsized & sank due to progressive flooding, some 50 nmi (93 km) south of Cape Town, South Africa on 21 October 2000.

#SS Monterey#Ocean liner#Ship#Matson Lines#William Francis Gibbs#World War 2#Troopship#War brides#Chandris Lines#Britanis#Belofin-1#Shipwreck