O 21, laid down K XXI was an O 21-class submarine of the Royal Netherlands Navy that saw service during World War II. During the war she sank several ships, among them the German submarine U-95.
Ship history
The submarine was laid down on 20 November 1937 as K XXI at the Koninklijke Maatschappij De Schelde, Vlissingen During construction she was renamed O 21, and was finally launched on 21 October 1939.[citation needed] Following the German invasion of 10 May 1940, the O 21 was hastily commissioned, still incomplete, and sailed for England on 12 May together with her sister O 22 and the tugboat B.V. 37, to be finally completed at the Navy yard in Rosyth.[3]
During the war she operated around England, the Mediterranean Sea, Colombo in the Indian Ocean and Fremantle off the west coast of Australia.[4] She survived the war and was decommissioned on 2 November 1957 and sold for scrap the following year to the firm v. Beekum in Alkmaar.[3][5]
Summary of raiding history
Ships sunk and damaged by O 21.[6]
| Date | Ship name | Nationality/Type | Tonnage (GRT) | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 July 1941 | Ernesto | Italian merchant | ? | missed |
| 3 August 1941 | ? | Italian barquentine | ? | Damaged |
| 5 September 1941 | Isarco | Italian merchant | 5738 | Sunk |
| 3 October 1941 | Oued Yquem | Vichy-French merchant | 1369 | Sunk |
| 22 November 1941 | San Salvatore | Italian schooner | 92 | Sunk |
| 28 November 1941 | U-95 | German submarine | 769 tonnes (757 long tons) ↑ 871 t (857 long tons) ↓ |
Sunk 36°24′N 3°20′W / 36.400°N 3.333°W |
| 13 March 1943 | Kasuga Maru No.2 | Japanese merchant cargo ship | 3967 | Sunk |
| 22 April 1943 | Yamazato Maru | Japanese army cargo ship | 6925 | Sunk |
| 29 July 1945 | ? | Japanese coaster | ? | Damaged |
| 29 July 1945 | ? | Japanese coaster | ? | Damaged |
References
- ^ "Onderzeedienst In Rotterdam" (PDF). Klaar Voor Onderwater (in Dutch). Vol. 39, no. 136. Den Helder: Onderzeedienst Reünistenvereniging. June 2016. pp. 5–9. ISSN 2214-6202.
- ^ "Dutch Submarines: The O 21 submarine class". dutchsubmarines.com. 2012. Retrieved 23 July 2013.
- ^ a b "Dutch Submarines: The submarine O 21". dutchsubmarines.com. 2012. Retrieved 23 July 2013.
- ^ "Onderzeeboot en historie: De onderzeedienst in de tweede wereldoorlog - Hr.Ms. "O 21"" (PDF). Klaar Voor Onderwater (in Dutch). Vol. 2, no. 3. Den Helder: Onderzeedienst Reünistenvereniging.
- ^ "Leven in een doorlopende koker" (PDF). Klaar Voor Onderwater (in Dutch). Vol. 35, no. 120. Den Helder: Onderzeedienst Reünistenvereniging. June 2012. p. 14.
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur (2013). "HNMS O 21". uboat.net. Retrieved 23 July 2013.