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Escaped |
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Returned by Ship - 1945 |
Returned by Air - 1945 |
Anzac Day March - Sydney
Departed Tjilatjap, Java on
27/2/1942
Arrived Fremantle, WA on 5/3/1942
The MS Abberkerk was a 7,900 ton Dutch merchant freighter
designed for the Holland-Australia route. She was built in 1939 in
Danzig.
In early 1942 she arrived in Singapore as part of Convoy DM01, loaded
with ammunition, guns and aircraft to strengthen the island defences.
Due to increasing attacks from Japanese forces, she was forced to depart
Singapore before she was able to unload all her cargo.
The following details of the voyage are from the
MS Abbekerk
website:
"Abbekerk then sailed alone to Oosthaven were she helped to destroy
(sink) barges and unloaded some more cargo. But she also had to unload
all her bofors guns and the English troops that manned it. Just before
the Japanese invasion she sailed alone to Tjilitjap where she became a
evacuation ship for troops and refugees. With over 1500 evacuees on
board she sailed from Tjilitjap February 27 and was one of the lucky
ships to arrive safely, despite being attacked by a Japanese aircraft."
MS Abbekerk arrived in Fremantle on 5/3/1942.
Photos of MS Abbekerk
(Source:
Across the Sea to War; NAA: B883 Service Records
and MS
Abbekerk website)
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Last updated
29/08/2022 |
