HMS Hecla (F 20)
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| Name | HMS Hecla (F 20) | ||
| Type: | Destroyer tender (Hecla) | ||
| Tonnage | 10.850 tons | ||
| Completed | 1941 - John Brown & Co Ltd, Clydebank | ||
| Owner | The Admiralty | ||
| Homeport | |||
| Date of attack | 12 Nov, 1942 | Nationality:  British | |
| Fate | Sunk by U-515 (Werner Henke) | ||
| Position | 35.43N, 09.54W - Grid CG 8830 - See location on a map - | ||
| Complement | 847 (279 dead and 568 survivors). | ||
| Convoy | Torch | ||
| Route | Simonstown - North Africa | ||
| Cargo | |||
| History | On 15 May 1942, HMS Hecla (F 20) struck a mine laid by Doggerbank off Capetown. The explosion hit amidships, put the steering gear out of action and caused a big leak. The ship was towed by HMS Gambia (48) to Simonstown, where she was repaired for 18 weeks. 24 crew members were lost. | ||
| Notes on loss | At 00.15 hours on 12 Nov, 1942, U-515 fired a spread of four torpedoes at HMS Hecla (F 20), which was misidentified as a Birmingham class cruiser and hit her in the engine room. Two torpedoes were surface-runner and the last also malfunctioned and was a circle-runner. The U-boat then hit the ship with three coups de grāce at 01.28, 01.49 and 02.06 hours, sinking the vessel. At 02.11 hours, U-515 fired two torpedoes and badly damaged the escorting HMS Marne (G 35). | ||
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