SS Amiral Magon (1904)
| History | |
|---|---|
 France | |
| Name | SS Amiral Magon |
| Owner | Chargeurs Réunis, Le Havre |
| Builder | Ateliers et Chantiers de la Loire, Saint-Nazaire |
| Completed | 1904 |
| Fate | Torpedoed and sunk on 28 January 1917 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Ocean liner |
| Tonnage | 5,566 GRT |
| Length | 119 m |
| Beam | 15.2 m |
| Height | 8 m |
| Installed power | 2.900 PS |
| Speed | max. 12 knots |
| Capacity | passengers |
SS Amiral Magon was an French ocean liner converted into a troopship in world War I, which was torpedoed and sunk in the Mediterranean Sea on 28 January 1917 with 203 casualties.
The Amiral Magon was built as an ocean liner for service between France and French Indochina. The ship was operational between 1905 and 1914, when she was requisitioned by the Army and converted into a hospital ship in 1914 and later into a troop ship for use in World War I.
On 28 January 1917 she was sailing from Marseille for Thessaloniki with an other troopship SS Pampa under escort of French destroyer Arc, with some 935 soldiers and 80 crew on board. She was attacked and torpedoed at 11:10 AM by German U-boat SM U-39, commanded by Walther Forstmann. She sank within 10 minutes 160 miles west of Antikythera, causing the death of 203 soldiers. There were also many horses on board. The survivors were rescued by the Arc and by an other French destroyer Bombarde, who arrived at the site at 17:00 PM.
Sources
- 40ème Régiment d'Infanterie: testimonies of soldiers on board
- Technical data, discussions
- Wreck site
- Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: Amiral Magon". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net.