Fort de Vaux
French Steam merchant
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| Name | Fort de Vaux | ||
| Type: | Steam merchant | ||
| Tonnage | 5,186 tons | ||
| Completed | 1918 - Ropner & Sons Ltd, Stockton-on-Tees | ||
| Owner | Co Française de Navigation à Vapeur Chargeurs Réunis, Paris | ||
| Homeport | Le Havre | ||
| Date of attack | 30 Nov 1943 | Nationality:  French | |
| Fate | Sunk by U-68 (Albert Lauzemis) | ||
| Position | 06.32N, 12.20W - Grid ET 6643 | ||
| Complement | 61 (0 dead and 61 survivors). | ||
| Convoy | |||
| Route | Takoradi - Port Bouet, Ivory Coast - Sassandra, Ivory Coast (27 Nov) - Freetown | ||
| Cargo | 5300 tons of coffee, cotton, timber and palm oil | ||
| History | Completed in October 1918 as War Gnat for The Shipping Controller and managed by Miller & Richards Ltd, Glasgow. 1919 sold to France and renamed Fort de Vaux. | ||
| Notes on loss | At 00.13 hours on 30 Nov, 1943, the Fort de Vaux was hit by one of three torpedoes from U-68 off Monrovia. The U-boat had spotted the steamer and an escort several hours earlier and used Aphrodite radar decoys to lure away the escort before attacking. At 00.41 hours, a coup de grâce was fired which missed. The ship then sank slowly by the stern. The escort dropped six depth charges, but the U-boat was not damaged and left the area. | ||
Location of attack on Fort de Vaux.
ship sunk.
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