Pajala
Photo courtey of Tomas Johanneson collection
| Name | Pajala | ||
| Type: | Motor merchant | ||
| Tonnage | 6,873 tons | ||
| Completed | 1924 - A/B Götaverken, Gothenburg | ||
| Owner | Trafik-A/B Grängesberg-Oxelösund, Stockholm | ||
| Homeport | Stockholm | ||
| Date of attack | 18 Jan 1940 | Nationality:  Swedish | |
| Fate | Sunk by U-25 (Viktor Schütze) | ||
| Position | Grid AM 3488 - See estimated map location (59.34N05.10W) * | ||
| Complement | 35 (0 dead and 35 survivors). | ||
| Convoy | |||
| Route | Buenos Aires - Kirkwall - Gothenburg | ||
| Cargo | 9150 tons of grain and cattle food | ||
| History | Completed in October 1924 | ||
| Notes on loss | At 16.25 hours on 18 Jan, 1940, the neutral Pajala was hit in the bow by one torpedo from U-25, after the ship had been spotted 20 minutes earlier together with an escort. A first coup de grâce at 16.50 hours missed due to bad visibility, but the second at 17.03 hours hit in the stern and caused the ship to sink 10 miles 72° from North Rona, Hebrides. The escort observed was the armed boarding vessel HMS Northern Duke, escorting the ship to Kirkwall for contraband inspection. She picked up the crew, forced the U-boat to submerge by gunfire and attacked unsuccessfully with depth charges. | ||
* Estimated position shown here is based on positions of losses in a roughly the same German grid code. It may be a bit off but should give a good idea as to where the attack took place.
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