Concept

MS Klipfontein (1939)

Résumé
MS Klipfontein was a Dutch ocean liner launched in March 1939 and delivered 29 July intended for South African service. Declaration of war in Europe, including Britain and South Africa declaring war on Germany, resulted in the ship being transferred to service between the Dutch East Indies and the west coast of North America. After the German invasion of the Netherlands in May 1939, with the Dutch government in exile in London, the ship supported the Allied war effort. After entry of the United States into the war the ship was operated by Dutch agents of the U.S. War Shipping Administration (WSA) from February 1942 to February 1946 as a troopship from the U.S. West Coast to Pacific war zones. The ship was lost 8 January 1953 in the vicinity of Inhambane during a voyage from Lourenco Marques to Beira, Mozambique. All passengers were saved and the cargo was later in part salvaged. Klipfontein was built as a passenger and cargo vessel by Machinefabriek en Scheepswerf van P. Smit Jr. N.V., Rotterdam, Netherlands for N.V. Vereenigde Nederlandsche Scheepvaartmaatschappij, (United Netherlands Shipping Company) The Hague, Netherlands as hull 517. The steel hull, three deck ship, built for the company's Holland-Africa Line's South African service, was launched 4 March 1939 and delivered on 29 July as the first of three sister ships. In October 1939, after the German Invasion of Poland and war was declared by Britain and South Africa, Klipfontein was transferred to the Java-Pacific Line for operation between the Dutch East Indies and the west coast of North America. Klipfontein, which had been operating for the Allied war effort before the U.S. entry, was one of the Dutch ships taken over by the War Shipping Administration (WSA) 23 February 1942, allocated to U.S. Army with the nature of the operating agreement with the Netherlands Ministry of Shipping changed 23 May 1942 to a time charter extending until 1 February 1946. The operating agreement was with the Army Transportation Corps with the ship sometimes seen as the USAT Klipfontein though it was never under Army administration.
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