Melbourne Star
Melbourne Star
| Name | Melbourne Star | ||
| Type: | Motor merchant | ||
| Tonnage | 12.806 tons | ||
| Completed | 1936 - Cammell Laird & Co Ltd, Birkenhead | ||
| Owner | Blue Star Line Ltd, London | ||
| Homeport | London | ||
| Date of attack | 2 Apr, 1943 | Nationality:  British | |
| Fate | Sunk by U-129 (Hans-Ludwig Witt) | ||
| Position | 28.05N, 57.30W - Grid DD 9929 - See location on a map - | ||
| Complement | 129 (125 dead and 4 survivors). | ||
| Convoy | |||
| Route | Liverpool (22 Mar) - Greenock (24 Mar) - Cristobal - Melbourne - Sydney NSW | ||
| Cargo | 8285 tons of government stores and general cargo, including ammunition and torpedoes | ||
| History | | ||
| Notes on loss | At 08.23 hours on 2 Apr, 1943, the unescorted Melbourne Star (Master James Bennett Hall) was torpedoed by U-129 about 500 miles east-southeast of Bermuda and blew up 90 seconds after being torpedoed. The master, 82 crew members, eleven gunners and 31 passengers were lost. Four crew members drifted in a lifeboat for 39 days until they were rescued by a US Navy Catalina flying-boat and landed at Bermuda. The four survivors were later each awarded the British Empire Medal (BEM) for their courage and fortitude. | ||
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