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Allied Warships

HMS Petunia (K 79)

Corvette of the Flower class

NavyThe Royal Navy
TypeCorvette
ClassFlower 
PennantK 79 
Built byHenry Robb Ltd. (Leith, U.K.) : Kincaid 
Ordered31 Aug, 1939 
Laid down4 Dec, 1939 
Launched19 Sep, 1940 
Commissioned13 Jan, 1941 
End service 
Loss position
 
History

Sold to the Chinese Navy in January 1946 and renamed Fu Po.
Sunk on 19 March 1947.

Commanding Officers:
Lt.Cdr. George Victor Legassick, RNR
16 December 1940 – 15 January 1942

Lt.Cdr. John Merrick Rayner, RD, RNR
15 January 1942 – 5 December 1942

A/Lt.Cdr. George Edward Newey, RNR
5 December 1942 – 14 October 1943

Lt. Roland Maurice Roberts, RNR
14 October 1943- 13 April 1944

T/Lt. G.L. Coles, RNVR
13 April 1944 – still in command in April 1945 according to the Navy List

HMS Petunia is not listed in the July 1945 Navy List 


Noteable events involving Petunia include:

24 Feb, 1941
HMS Petunia (Lt.Cdr. G.V. Legassisk, RNR) picks up 3 survivors from the British merchant Jonathan Holt and 17 survivors from the British merchant Mansepool that were torpedoed and sunk by the German submarine U-97 in the North Atlantic south-west of the Faröe Islands in position 61º10'N, 11º55'W.

HMS Petunia also picks up 41 survivors from the British tanker British Gunner that was also torpedoed and sunk by the German submarine U-97 in the North Atlantic south-west of the Faröe Islands in position 61º09'N, 12º04'W.

23 Sep, 1942
The German submarine U-125 torpedoed and sinks the British merchant Bruyère southwest of Freetown in position 04º55'N, 17º16'W.

The survivors were later picked up by the British corvette HMS Petunia (Lt.Cdr. J.M. Rayner, RD, RNR) and the British armed trawler HMS Sir Wistan (Lt. W.H. Forster).

7 Oct, 1942
HMS Petunia (Lt.Cdr. J.M. Rayner, RD, RNR) picks up 251 survivors from the British passenger ship Andalucia Star that was torpedoed and sunk by the German submarine U-107 about 180 nautical miles south-west of Freetown in position 06º38'N, 15º46'W.

11 Oct, 1942
HMS Petunia (Lt.Cdr. J.M. Rayner, RD, RNR) picks up 124 survivors from the British merchant Agapenor that was torpedoed and sunk by the German submarine U-87 about 180 nautical miles south of Freetown in position 06º53'N, 15º23'W.


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