VESSEL FOUND BY R.A.F.

Southland Times, Issue 24056, 21 February 1940, Page 7

VESSEL FOUND BY R.A.F.

Pilot’s Story Of

SearcH

NAME PAINTED ON STERN

(British (Official Wireless) RUGBY, February 19. It is now possible to give a fuller account of the location of the Altmarck by the Royal Air Force Coastal Command aircraft on February 16. The leader of the formation of three aircraft which went to find the Altmarck said: “I was roused at 6 a.m. and in the station operations room was told that a very special job was in hand. When I heard the name Altmarck I looked up Lloyds Register but found the name was not there. I was given a verbal picture of the ship. I was told she was a 20,000-tonner of the tanker type and that when last seen she was painted black, with yellow or white upperworks. The distinguishing feature of the ship was that her large single funnel was aft.

“We set off Tor the opposite coast. Visibility was not too good, but our crews had done this journey a number of times since the war began and there was never any likelihood of any of us wandering from our course or losing touch for long. It later became a beautiful day, with gorgeous sunshine and visibility increased to more than 40 miles. “Near the coast we found the sea frozen over. It looked like pack-ice, with great tracks of clear water through it where the ice had been broken uo by currents or ships. The coast of Norway was visible more than 30 miles away. We proceeded to comb most thoroughly the area from the extreme south point of Norway northwards.

“Flying well outside the territorial waters, I examined every mile with binoculars. Then, 15 miles ahead, I saw a smudge of smoke and, a minute later, a ship with a black hull and cream upperworks steaming directly towards us.

“We swung out slightly to get a broadside view of her. My heart sank when I recognized from her lines that she could not be our quarry, but 15 seconds later I spotted something else —a grey shape with a funnel aft, the distinctive feature. It was the Altmarck. “We flew up to her at 1000 feet and inspected her through the glasses at a mile range. Then we turned in on top of her for a close inspection. “WHOOP OF JOY” “As we dived, my eyes were rivetted on the stern searching for the name. I saw letters about Ift high. Because of the speed at which we were diving the letters seemed to dance in a jumble. I expected that when they could be read they would spell a Norwegian name. I could not suppress a whoop of joy when I saw they read ‘Altmarck.’ “Of course, we know now that the German ship reverted to her own name earlier in the week. The pilot of one of our aircraft told me afterwards that he saw the Altmarck’s name on the stern below what appeared to be a Norwegian flag. “All the members of my crew saw the word Altmarck. As we swept across the Altmarck’s decks at funnel height I could see only one man on the deck. He was hanging over the rail as if he was seasick or looking for mines. “There was no other sign of life aboard and not the slightest evidence of any alarm. No shot was fired from the Altmarck’s hidden guns, but we could guess that after our three aircraft had flashed over the ship the German crew must have been feeling a bit uneasy. We took note of the Altmarck’s position and, having accomplished the task of finding her, headed for home.”