SS ''Armonia'' was a

cargo ship A cargo ship or freighter is a merchant ship that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year, handling the bulk of international trade. Cargo ships are usu ...

built in Britain in 1924 for the Moor Line as ''SS Tullochmoor''. Scrapped in 1960, she had eight sets of owners, managers and names over her 26-year career. She is known today by her sixth name, ''Armonia'', which she bore in April 1958 when a

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...

aircraft involved in a covert mission against the

Sukarno Sukarno). (; born Koesno Sosrodihardjo, ; 6 June 1901 – 21 June 1970) was an Indonesian statesman, orator, revolutionary, and nationalist who was the first president of Indonesia, serving from 1945 to 1967. Sukarno was the leader of ...

government bombed and damaged her in the

Molucca Islands The Maluku Islands (; Indonesian: ''Kepulauan Maluku'') or the Moluccas () are an archipelago in the east of Indonesia. Tectonically they are located on the Halmahera Plate within the Molucca Sea Collision Zone. Geographically they are located eas ...

in eastern

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

Service history

The ship was launched by Blyth Shipbuilding & Drydock Co Ltd as ''Tullochmoor'' at Blyth, Northumberland and completed in October 1924. She was owned by Moor Line and managed by Walter Runciman and Company. In 1936 she was sold to Franz L Nimitz of

Stettin Szczecin (, , german: Stettin ; sv, Stettin ; Latin language, Latin: ''Sedinum'' or ''Stetinum'') is the capital city, capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the Po ...

, Germany, who renamed her ''Brigitte''. In May 1945 she was at

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

where she was seized as an Allied

war prize A prize of war is a piece of enemy property or land seized by a belligerent party during or after a war or battle, typically at sea. This term was used nearly exclusively in terms of captured ships during the 18th and 19th centuries. Basis in inte ...

. The UK Ministry of War Transport (MoWT) took her over, named her ''Empire Soar'' and placed her under the management of Sir Robert Ropner & Co. In 1946 she was sold to the Greek government, which renamed her ''Preveza''. In 1948 she was sold to Synodinos Brothers of Greece who renamed her ''Danapris''. In 1957 she was sold to A. Angelicoussis & Co of Greece who renamed her ''Armonia''. In 1959 she was sold to Keanyew Shipping Co who renamed her ''Keanyew'' and registered her in Panama. In 1960 she was sold to Southern Commercial Co who renamed her ''Charlie''. Later in 1960 she was scrapped in Hong Kong.

Bombing

At the end of April or beginning of May 1958 ''Armonia'' was in Amboina Harbour in Indonesia. On 28 April a

Douglas B-26 Invader The Douglas A-26 Invader (designated B-26 between 1948 and 1965) is an American twin-engined light bomber and ground attack aircraft. Built by Douglas Aircraft Company during World War II, the Invader also saw service during several major Col ...

bomber aircraft, operated by the

and painted black and with no markings, bombed her. In the same attack, the same aircraft hit and sank the merchant ships and . One source asserts that all three ships were off the port of Donggala near Palu in

Central Sulawesi Central Sulawesi (Indonesian: ''Sulawesi Tengah'') is a province of Indonesia located at the centre of the island of Sulawesi. The administrative capital and largest city is located in Palu. The 2010 census recorded a population of 2,635,009 for ...

(at least west of Ambon) when they were hit. This now appears doubtful, as ''Aquila''s wreck seems to have been identified in Ambon Bay. There is also some discrepancy over the date of the attack: one source states that the three ships were bombed on 28 April; another states that ''Armonia'' was attacked on 1 or 2 May.

References

Sources

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Armonia, SS 1924 ships Steamships of the United Kingdom Merchant ships of the United Kingdom Ministry of War Transport ships Steamships of Germany World War II merchant ships of Germany Steamships of Greece Cargo ships of Greece Steamships of Panama Merchant ships of Panama Maritime incidents in Indonesia Maritime incidents in 1958 1958 in Indonesia 1958 in the United States Central Intelligence Agency operations Ships sunk by US aircraft Ships built on the River Blyth