Amerika
Photo Courtesy of Library of Contemporary History, Stuttgart
| Name | Amerika | ||
| Type: | Motor merchant | ||
| Tonnage | 10.218 tons | ||
| Completed | 1930 - Burmeister & Wain´s Maskin & Skibsbyggeri A/S, Copenhagen | ||
| Owner | United Baltic Co, London | ||
| Homeport | London | ||
| Date of attack | 22 Apr, 1943 | Nationality:  British | |
| Fate | Sunk by U-306 (Claus von Trotha) | ||
| Position | 57.30N, 42.50W - Grid AJ 2659 - See location on a map - | ||
| Complement | 140 (86 dead and 54 survivors). | ||
| Convoy | HX-234 (straggler) | ||
| Route | Halifax (14 Apr) - Liverpool | ||
| Cargo | 8844 tons of general cargo, including metal, flour, meat and 200 bags of mail | ||
| History | Completed in January 1930 as Amerika for A/S Det Østasiatiske Kompagni, Copenhagen. In May 1940 seized by Britain and transferred to the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT). | ||
| Notes on loss | At 01.54 hours on 22 Apr, 1943, the Amerika (Master Christian Nielsen), a straggler from convoy HX-234, was torpedoed and sunk by U-306 south of Cape Farewell. 42 crew members, seven gunners and 37 passengers (RCAF personnel) were lost. The master, 29 crew members, eight gunners and 16 passengers were picked up by HMS Asphodel (K 56) (Lt H.P. Carse, DSC, RNVR) and landed at Greenock. The master Christian Nielsen was awarded the Lloyds War Medal for bravery at sea. | ||
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