MVGay Viking

History
United Kingdom
Name	MVGay Viking
Builder	Camper & Nicholson
Fate	Sunk in a collision on 5 February 1945 May have been re-floated and used as civilian vessel until 1973
General characteristics
Class and type	MGB 502Motor gunboat
Displacement	95 long tons (97 t)
Length	117 ft (36 m)
Beam	20 ft 3 in (6.17 m)
Draught	4 ft 1 in (1.24 m)
Propulsion	3 ×PaxmanVEE RB engines 3 × 800 hp = 2400 hp
Speed	28knots(52 km/h) (max.) 25knots(46 km/h) (cruising)
Range	2,000 nautical miles (3,700 km) at 11 kn (20 km/h)
Complement	21
Armament	as intended: 1 ×6 pounder Hotchkiss 1 ×2 pounder autocannon 4 ×20 mm Oerlikon cannons(2 twin) 2 ×depth charges after modification: 4 ×20 mm Oerlikon cannons(2 twin) 8 ×.303 in Vickers MGs(1 quadruple, 2 twin)

Gay Vikingwas ablockade runnerof the BritishMerchant Navy.Originally under construction as aMotor Gun Boat,Gay Vikingwas one of eight vessels that were ordered by theTurkish Navy,but were requisitioned by theRoyal Navyto serve withCoastal Forcesduring theSecond World War.Originally intended to beHMMGB506, the vessel was instead completed as a blockade runner for the Merchant Navy and namedGay Viking.She operated out ofHullon two separate operations to theScandinaviancountries. She was one of the more successful of her group, but was lost in a collision while returning from one of these operations. Reports indicate that she may have been salvaged after this and gone on to sail for a considerable number of years as a civilian vessel.

Construction

Gay Vikingwas built byCamper and Nicholsonas part of an order of eight Motor Gun Boats placed by the Turkish Navy.The outbreak of the Second World War led to the Royal Navy taking over the eight vessels giving them numbers (502–509). The Navy then completed 504, 505, 506, 507 and 508 as merchant vessels to take part in Operation Bridford.

The objective of Operation Bridford was to bring back to Britain quantities ofball bearingsmanufactured by Sweden'sSKF.To do this, the vessels would have to reach Sweden by evading the German blockade of theSkagerrak.Once there, the vessels would load the ball bearings and return to Britain. British engineering plants needed the ball bearings, and other specialist equipment manufactured in Sweden and while some supplies were being flown in, the volumes were not sufficient to meet the demand.

The Navy modified five of the boats from Camper and Nicholson to accommodate cargo: most of the armament were removed, and the bridge moved aft, to make way for an internal cargo bay amidships. The need to conform to Sweden's neutrality meant that the Navy also had to implement a number of other measures. First, it gave the boats names: 504 becameHopewell,505 becameNonsuch,506 becameGay Viking,507 becameGay Corsairand 508 becameMaster Standfast.Second, they sailed under thered ensignof themerchant marine.Third, their crews consisted of civilian sailors drawn fromHulltrawlermen and officers fromEllerman Lines.The operation was organised and led by a civilian steel expert and former Arctic explorer, SirGeorge Binney,who was given the rank ofCommanderin theRoyal Naval Volunteer Reserveto give him the required legal status in case he were captured.

Their mission required the vessels to pass between German-occupied territories in waters habitually patrolled by German aircraft and surface vessels. To minimise the risk of detection, the Navy timed the voyages to pass areas of greatest danger during the hours of darkness.This meant that the vessels could only make their journeys during the winter months when the duration of darkness was sufficient to give the ships the time they needed to traverse the patrolled areas.

Operations

The five boats, includingGay Viking,were first deployed in September 1943. The plan was that having arrived at the Swedish port ofLysekilthey would load their cargoes, before sailing back to theHumber.Each leg of the journey would take two days.

The first attempt was planned for 23 September, but had to be postponed after problems developed with the boats' engines. It instead took place on 26 October, but was plagued with mechanical problems and bad weather.Gay Vikingwas the only vessel to make a successful round trip, returning to Britain on 30 October carrying 40 tons of cargo.Further attempts were made, many of them successfully, despite the loss ofMaster Standfastto the Germans on 2 November, andNonsuchbeing rendered inoperable by continuing engine problems that limited her to making only one successful round trip.

Gay Vikingeventually made three trips, despite damaging her port engine crankshaft on 17 March 1944.The operation was considered a success, but the trips were brought to an end with the return of the shorter nights in 1944. The voyages were resumed in September 1944 under the name ofOperation Moonshine,and involved carrying supplies and munitions to elements of theDanish resistance.Many of these attempts had to be canceled due to poor weather, or recurring difficulties with thePaxmandiesel engines.

Hopewell,NonsuchandGay Corsairall dropped their civilian names and returned to their official designation in 1944. By 1945 the Navy had advanced their numbers to the new numbering scheme and they became No. 2004, 2005 and 2007 respectively. For some reason,Gay Vikingapparently continued to sail under that name.

Loss

Three of the vessels,Hopewell(No. 2004),Nonsuch(No. 2005) andGay Vikingwere deployed on one Moonshine run in early 1945. While making the return voyage on 5 February 1945,Gay VikingandHopewellcollided. The seamen of theGay Vikingwere taken off and she subsequently sank.However she appears to have subsequently been re-floated and returned to service as a civilian vessel. She was sailed under a variety of names and eventually purchased for conversion as a pleasure craft for operation inThe Bahamas,under the nameBahama Viking,although the vessel remained in Denmark as late as 1973.The vessel subsequently sank at wharf in Copenhagen, and was broken up for salvage in the 1990s.

See also

• Operation Rubble

References

• Colledge, J. J.;Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969].Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy(Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing.ISBN978-1-86176-281-8.
• Robert Gardiner, ed. (1980).Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922-1946.Conway Maritime Press.ISBN0-85177-146-7.
• Carr, Richard (2008)."The Blockade Runners".Davey, Paxman & Co of Colchester.Retrieved22 April2009.