V 1502 ''Wiking 6'' was a German ''

Vorpostenboot ''Vorpostenboot'' (plural ''Vorpostenboote''), also referred to as VP-Boats, flakships or outpost boats, were German patrol boats which served during both World Wars. They were used around coastal areas and in coastal operations, and were tasked w ...

'' built in 1939 as the

whaler A whaler or whaling ship is a specialized vessel, designed or adapted for whaling: the catching or processing of whales. Terminology The term ''whaler'' is mostly historic. A handful of nations continue with industrial whaling, and one, Japa ...

''Wiking 6''. Requisition by the

Kriegsmarine The (, ) was the navy of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The was one of three official branches, along with the a ...

, she served throughout World War II as V 1502 ''Wiking 6'' and the ''Flakjäger'' FlJ 24 ''Wiking 6'' before being seized by the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

Emden Emden () is an independent city and seaport in Lower Saxony in the northwest of Germany, on the river Ems. It is the main city of the region of East Frisia and, in 2011, had a total population of 51,528. History The exact founding date of E ...

on 29 October 1945 and renamed ''Empire Viking VI''. Allocated to the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

in 1946, she was renamed ''Slava II''.

Description

The ship was long, with a beam of and a depth of . She was powered by a

triple expansion steam engine A compound steam engine unit is a type of steam engine where steam is expanded in two or more stages. A typical arrangement for a compound engine is that the steam is first expanded in a high-pressure ''(HP)'' cylinder, then having given up he ...

which had cylinders of 43 cm (16 in), 72 cm (28 in) and 120 cm (47 in) diameter by 68 cm (26 in) stroke. It drove a single screw propeller and was rated at 217

nhp Horsepower (hp) is a unit of measurement of power, or the rate at which work is done, usually in reference to the output of engines or motors. There are many different standards and types of horsepower. Two common definitions used today are the ...

History

''Wiking 6'' was built as a

Deutsche Schiff- und Maschinenbau Deutsche Schiff- und Maschinenbau Aktiengesellschaft (abbreviated Deschimag) was a cooperation of eight German shipyards in the period 1926 to 1945. The leading company was the shipyard AG Weser Aktien-Gesellschaft „Weser" (abbreviated A.G. ...

Wesermünde Bremerhaven (, , Low German: ''Bremerhoben'') is a city at the seaport of the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen, a state of the Federal Republic of Germany. It forms a semi-enclave in the state of Lower Saxony and is located at the mouth of the Rive ...

for Deutsche Ölmülen Rohstoffe GmbH,

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

. Her port of registry was Hamburg and the

Code Letters Code letters or ship's call sign (or callsign) Mtide Taurus - IMO 7626853"> SHIPSPOTTING.COM >> Mtide Taurus - IMO 7626853/ref> were a method of identifying ships before the introduction of modern navigation aids and today also. Later, with the i ...

DKAP were allocated. She was operated under the management of the Hamburger Walfang Kantor GmbH. In 1939, she was requisitioned by the

, serving from 25 October with 15 ''Vorpostenflotille'' as the ''

'' V 1502 ''Wiking 6''. She was redesignated as a ''Flakjäger'' in 1940, serving as the ''Flakjäger'' FlJ 24 ''Wiking 6''. On 29 October 1945, FlJ 24 ''Wiking 6'' was seized by the

as a

prize of war 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 ...

. She was passed to the

Ministry of War Transport The Ministry of War Transport (MoWT) was a department of the British Government formed early in the Second World War to control transportation policy and resources. It was formed by merging the Ministry of Shipping and the Ministry of Transport ...

and renamed ''Empire Viking VI''. The Code Letters GSBX were allocated and her port of registry was changed to London. She was sent to the

Southern Ocean The Southern Ocean, also known as the Antarctic Ocean, comprises the southernmost waters of the World Ocean, generally taken to be south of 60° S latitude and encircling Antarctica. With a size of , it is regarded as the second-small ...

in November 1945. On 7 December, she was allocated to the

by the Tripartite Merchant Marine Commission in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

. She was handed over to the Soviet Union in September 1946 in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. She was renamed ''Slava II''.

Possible fate

''Slava II'' may have been in service until 2012. On 31 October 2012, a ship of that name was severely damaged by fire at

Kachemak, Alaska Kachemak, locally known as Kachemak City, is a small second-class city in the southern portion of the Kenai Peninsula Borough, Alaska, United States. The city consists of several subdivisions and other miscellaneous properties along an approxi ...

, United States when a man tried to commit

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...

on board by pouring flammable liquid over himself and setting fire to it.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:V 1502 Wiking 6 Ships built in Bremen (state) 1939 ships Whaling ships Merchant ships of Germany Steamships of Germany World War II auxiliary ships of Germany Ministry of War Transport ships Empire ships Merchant ships of the United Kingdom Steamships of the United Kingdom Merchant ships of the Soviet Union Steamships of the Soviet Union

Description

History

Possible fate

See also

References