TRANSPORT SUNK

Manawatu Standard, Volume LX, Issue 252, 21 September 1940, Page 7

TRANSPORT SUNK

BIG ENEMY SHIP

SUBMARINE’S SUCCESS

(United Press Association—Copyright.) (British Official Wireless.) (Rec. 10 a.m.) RUGBY, Sept. 20. An Admiralty communique issued at 1.45 p.m. states it can now be stated that H.M. submarine Sturgeon successfully attached a heavily-laden enemy transport oh; the northern point of Denmark on the evening of September 2, The enemy transport was a ship of about 10,000 tons.

She was escorted by small naval vessels and aircraft.

The Sturgeon carried out a successful attack in spite of difficult conditions with bad light and heavy weather. Torpedoes hit the enemy transport, from which came brilliant flashes of flame and a dense column of smoke. A few minutes later thp whole ship burst into flames.

When the Sturgeon came to the surface some time later the transport had sunk and German escort vessels were sweeping the water with their searchlights in a search for survivors. The transport, which was hit at a range of five to six thousand yards, was due north of Oslo Fiord and was stated by Swedish sources to have carried three to four thousand men.

It will be remembered that reports from Stockholm stated that a German transport had been sunk by a British submarine off the Skaw on the evening of September 2, a very large number 1 of German troops being killed. This was denied by the German wireless and official news agencies.

H.M.S. Sturgeon is a submarine of the Swordfish class, 1929 programme. In this class a return was. made to moderate dimensions, the size being between the “H” and “L” classes, with a speed of little more than in the former. As originally designed the 3-inch gun was mounted on a breakwater forward of the conning-tower, but this was removed and for a time only machine-guns were carried. A new type of 3-in. gun is now mounted. All the torpedo-tubes are in the how's. Its armament consists of one 3-in. gun, one machine-gun and six 21-in. torpedo tubes. It carries a complement of 40, and has a speed of 13| knots.