Empire Portia
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| Name | Empire Portia | ||
| Type: | Steam merchant | ||
| Tonnage | 7.058 tons | ||
| Completed | 1942 - Swan, Hunter & Wigham Richardson Ltd, Wallsend-on-Tyne | ||
| Owner | Common Brothers Ltd, Newcastle-upon-Tyne | ||
| Homeport | London | ||
| Date of attack | 29 Jun, 1944 | Nationality:  British | |
| Fate | A total loss by U-988 (Erich Dobberstein) | ||
| Position | 50.33N, 00.35W - Grid BF 3246 - See location on a map - | ||
| Complement | 47 (5 dead and 42 survivors). | ||
| Convoy | FMT-22 | ||
| Route | Normandy beaches - Portsmouth | ||
| Cargo | Ballast | ||
| History | Built for Ministry of War Transport (MoWT) | ||
| Notes on loss | About 16.00 hours on 29 Jun, 1944, the Empire Portia (Master Thomas Kirby Suttie) in convoy FMT-22 was badly damaged by an explosion off Selsey Bill. The vessel was taken in tow by the British landing ship HMS LST-416, but the tow parted and she grounded with a broken back on Peel Bank near Ryde, Isle of Wight. The forward section was towed to Falmouth, the aft section to Briton Ferry, South Wales and subsequently broken up. The master and 41 crew members were saved, but five crew members were lost. U-988 did not return from patrol, so it is not clear whether this ship was torpedoed or mined. | ||
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