11/10/1939 Caribbean Sea 91st day at sea
With the camouflage complete Ship 77 sets sail for the Port of Kingston. She arrived 2 days later and 10km southeast of Wreck Reef Ship 77 launched the Leichte Schnellboote to lay mine fields and afterwards conduct reconnaissance. 2 Arado Ar 196 A-1 are launched for reconnaissance.
At 17:30 hrs. Ship 77 entered Kingston Harbor and made for the main anchorage, shortly before opening fire 3 V-boats were sent with a detachment of the 8.Marine Stosstrupp Kompanie to raid the harbor where they destroyed oil storage tanks and dockyard facilities., at 17:55 hrs. the Kriegsmarine flag was hoisted, camouflage dropped, and at 18:00 hrs. the entire battery opened fire, shuttering the 616ft ship from stem to stern. Soon searchlights illuminated the entire harbor, however she continued to pump salvo after salvo as it turns out well over a dozen ships were in the harbor awaiting an escort to arrive from Freetown to escort them to England. By 04:00 hrs. the shelling stopped, with torpedoes, artillery, and the raids conducted by the 8.Marine Stosstrupp Kompanie as well as her Leichte Schnellboote which laid 2 small minefields at the harbor entrance. The merchant raider sank 16 ships for 118,430 grt, destroyed 6 oil tanks for 150,000 tons of fuel, 3 cranes, railroad tracks, 69 railroad cars, and 3 vehicles.
Freighter 7,066 grt
7,016 grt
2,366 grt
2,316 grt
3,426 grt
3,419 grt
7,173 grt
AMC 14,463 grt
14,314 grt
Tanker 17,397 grt
17,397 grt
4,077 grt
4,500 grt
4,500 grt
4,500 grt
4,500 grt
Total: 118,430 grt
6 x oil tanks (25,000 tons ea.) 150,000 tons of oil burned.
3 x 6 ton cranes
6 x railroad lines coming into the harbor and a small marshaling yard
2 x Steam locomotives
69 x Railroad cars
3 x vehicles (trucks)
(449 shells and 6 torpedoes fired.)
Ship 77 departed the harbor at 06:00 hrs. As she was departing a Royal Navy vessel attempted to pursue but ran aground, she was the trawler HMS UNSTOPPABLE 4,000 grt, on the bridge was Admiral Norrington commander of Port Kingston who to say the least, was infuriated, helpless he watched the mystery raider sail away. Ship 77 pressed on stopping 10km south of Wreck Point to recover 2 Arado Ar 196 A-1 aircraft and the Leichte Schnellboote. For the next 4 days she sailed at full speed, with the Kriegsmarine flag hoisted high on the mainmast, she stopped once again in the middle of the Caribbean she changed her disguise once again to a neutral Mexican freighter, the 8,700 grt steamer TAMPICO home port Acapulco belonging to the Mexican Aztec Shipping Co.Ltd, Mexico City
Changes made to the auxiliary cruiser,
1. Outer hull painted black.
2. Superstructure painted white, upper bridge and signal deck painted brown.
3. On deck hatches, ventilators, winches, etc. painted light brown.
4. Awning from signal deck partially removed.
5. 2 derricks added aft of the superstructure, both painted brown
6. Funnel lowered, painted top black with dark red bottom, 2 thin white bands.
7. Deck house built on aft part of the boat deck; 2 ventilators added.
8. 2 derricks added aft of the mainmast booms.
9. Mexican neutrality markings painted on the hull amidships, TAMPICO and MEXICO along with 2 Mexican flags one to port one to starboard.
10. 2 derricks added ahead of the foremast booms.
11. 2 large lifeboats added between boats V and VI and the bridge.
Kapitan.z.S Hartmann as usual takes a V-Boat out to inspect the ships camouflage and is once again satisfied with the work, Ship 77 will now proceed for the Aruba area once again before making for the Yucatan Channel and the Gulf of Mexico. After that Ship 77 will make for the Atlantic via the Straits of Florida and proceed to operate between England, France and the Azores. By the end of the year the Seekriegslietung is expected to give clearance for Ship 77 to make for the South Atlantic.
Captions for pictures,
1.Ship 77 in the Caribbean shortly after the raid
2.Ship 77 photographed by L.z.S(PK) Sons aboard Leichte Schnellboote (LS 33)
3-7.Following 5 pictures taken by the men of the 8.Marine Stosstrupp Kompanie Kommandant Oblt.z.S(MA.E) von Lindner
9.Current disguise of Ship 77
10.Ship 77 painted in her special camouflage with flags flown during the raid
