Sinfra
SHIP PARTICULARS
FIRST NAME: "Fernglen"
TYPE: Ocean liner/Cargo ship
YEAR: 1929
COUNTRY: Norway
FIRST OWNER: Fearnley & Eger, Oslo (old Christiania), Norway
SUBSEQUENT NAMES / OWNERS:
1934: "Sandahamn"/Sven Salen (Rederi A/B Jamaica), Stochholm, Sweden
1939: "Sinfra" / Companie di Navigation A Vapeur Cyprien Fabre & Cie, La Ciotat, France
December 1942: "Sinfra" / German Government
BUILDER: Akers Mekaniske Verksted A/S
LOCATION OF YARD: Oslo (old Christiania), Norway
YARD No: 434
DATE OF LAUNCH: 15-05-1929
DATE OF COMPLETION: July 1929
WEIGHT: 4444 GRT
LENGTH: 122.5 m
BEAM: 16.7 m
HEIGHT: 7.32 m
SCREWS: 2
ENGINE: Diesel
SPEED: 12.5 knots
FATE
Sank by Allied bombers (October 19, 1943).
DETAILS
The Sinfra arrived at the port of Heraklion during the first days of October 1943. For several days convoys of German trucks kept arriving in order to transfer on the ship several tons of bombs from the nearby airport. Those bombs were intended for the operations of the Luftwaffe in North Africa but after the Anglo-American victory they became surplus to requirement, as all the airports of Crete lost much of their stragegic value. On October 19, the loading of the bombs was completed and the ship was almost ready to depart for Pireaus. The last thing to do was to transfer the human "cargo" of thousands of Italian Military Internees from their concentration camps to the port. Many Greeks had gathered on both sides of the road to the port in order to watch the departure of the Italian soldiers. The transfer of the Internees was completed in the evening. As the Sinfra was a cargo ship they were no passenger cabins, so the Italian soldiers were "hosted" in the cargo holds. The Germans allowed the Italian Officers to stay on the open deck or use the small rooms on both sides of a corridor going from bow to stern. Just before sunset, a German Officer
called all the Italian Officers in order to give them life jackets. They were not enough life jackets for every Officer and not a single one was given to the men in the holds. On the ship they were many German soldiers going on leave and a small group of captured Greek partisans (all from Crete) headed for concentration camps in Germany. The hatches of the cargo holds were guarded by four German guards armed with machine guns. The ship was armed with two anti-aircraft guns, one near the bow and one near the stern.
The sea was smooth as glass and there was a full moon when the Sinfra left the port of Heraklion, escorted by at least one ship. No lights were allowed on the ship as the danger of being spotted by enemy planes or submarines was very high. For the same reason even those who wanted to smoke had to go inside. Some of the Italian Officers on deck were trying to control their stress by walking from bow to stern or discussing the situation in small groups. Most of them were asking the same question: would the ship make it to Pireaus? At 23.30, one of the German
guards, started to shout in panic "Flieger alarm!". Almost immediately, the small guns of the Sinfra started firing. Donato Dutto -one of the Italian
Officers who were on the open deck- could not see anything at first, but after a few seconds he saw a group of small lights very low on the horizon. According to the German sources, they were planes of a squadron composed of B-25 Mitchell bombers of the U.S.A.F. and Bristol Beaufighter torpedo bombers of the R.A.F. operating over the Mediterranean from North Africa. As the planes passed over the Sinfra a huge explosion occured. The shock from the explosion was so great that Donato Dutto was thrown several meters from his original position. As he was trying to understand what had just happened, he saw the German guards near the hatch of one of the cargo holds pointing their machine guns inside and opening fire. The sound of the machine guns was very loud but not loud enough to cover the cries of terror coming from below. Enzo Dellarovere, another Italian survivor, stated that a bomb passed through the funnel and exploded inside the ship and that many Italian soldiers were trapped
inside one of the cargo holds when a stairway giving access to the open deck collapsed under their weight. A report found in the archives of the Italian Navy also confirms that a bomb passed through the funnel and that there was much confusion inside the holds. According to this report the German guards initially threw some grenades from the open hatches and used their machine guns later, when the Italian prisoners managed to reach the open deck.
The engines of the Sinfra stopped and soon the ship developed a small list to the starboard side. Those on the open deck started to jump in the water in numbers. At the same time, the Allied bombers made a wide circle around the Sinfra and returned back to finish their work. The ship was hit again and fires started burning from bow to stern. Moments after the second attack, a group of German Officers and two civilians (a diplomat and his wife according to Dutto's account) arrived on deck pushing and shouting. They took one of the lifeboats from the starboard side and left the burning ship as fast as they could. On the port side some Italian Officers were luckier and managed to launch a lifeboat undisturbed by the Germans. The escort ship made continuous light signals to the Sinfra but didn't sail closer in order to help the survivors in the water, until hours later.
Despite the general feeling that the ship was going to sink in minutes, that didn't happen. Sometime after the launching of the two lifeboats the German guards left their posts near the hatches and the men who had survived the massacre in the cargo holds finally made it on the open deck. Many tried to find pieces of wood or other floating debris. The water around the ship was full of survivors, struggling to stay alive. Donato Dutto tried to stay on the burning ship as longer as possible since he couldn't find the force to jump. The solution came when a group of survivors noticed the rope ladder used by the German Officers in order to get into the lifeboat. Dutto used that ladder and managed to escape from the burning vessel. From there watched the Sinfra drifting away slowly, almost totally consumed by the fires. Despite the extreme heat, many people were seen running on the open deck and their cries for help were clearly heard despite the distance. The ship met her fate at 02:30, when the heat from the fires reached the bombs in the cargo hold. The Sinfra was obliterated by a colossal explosion, the force of which was so strong that it was felt several kilometers away.
The next morning a fleet of Greek fishing boats -requisitioned by the Germans at Chania- arrived at the scene and started searching for survivors, assisted by seaplanes of the German 7th Sea Rescue Squadron and by the escort ship. Donato Dutto was one of the few Italians rescued by those fishing boats. It soon became evident to the Italians that their rescue was not a priority. In fact, the orders were to save German troops first. During the search-and-rescue operations a group of Allied fighters attacked and destroyed one of the seaplanes. Soon after the attack the fishing boats
sailed to the port of Chania. Once arrived, the Italian survivors were put on trucks and transferred to prisons near the city (most of the Italian Officers ended at the prison of Panaghia). There they remained confined for four weeks before their transfer to Pireaus on another ship.
LOSS OF LIFE
a) In his book (written 10 years after the events) Donato Dutto stated that 523 Italians survived (aproximately 100 were saved by the fishing boats and at least 400 were saved by the escort ship and the lifeboat launched from the burning ship). In addition, he wrote that only 12 (out of 100) Greek partisans survived. However, these men were later executed because they were held responsible for the deaths of many German soldiers in the water after the sinking. Dutto estimated that there were about 400 German troops on the Sinfra.
Victims: aprox. 2465 + Survivors: 535 (internees + Greek prisoners)
[Total number of passengers: aprox.3000, if we include the German troops]
b) George Duncan's website offers more detailed figures, stating that there were 2664 people on the Sinfra (2389 Italian Military Internees, 71 Greek prisoners, 204 German troops). The total number of survivors was 566 (403 internees + prisoners, 163 Germans).
Victims: 2098 + Survivors: 566 = Total: 2664
c) Greek resercher Manos Mastorakos gives the sames figures as George Duncan but a different number of survivors (757 Italians, 197 Germans).
Victims: 1710 + Survivors: 954 = Total: 2664
d) Gehrard Schreiber's book, gives 1850 dead prisoners (out of 2389).
Victims: 1850 (internees + Greek prisoners) + Survivors: 539 (internees + Greek prisoners) = Total: 2389 internees + Greek prisoners)
e) The archives of the Italian Navy at Rome give a different picture. There is a report (7-8-1946) which states that 5000 Italians boarded the Sinfra on October 18, 1943 and afterwards 500 shells for anti-aircraft guns were loaded on a smaller hold. According to the same report there were about 500 survivors.
Victims: aprox. 5000 (internees) + Survivors: aprox. 500 (internees) = Total: aprox. 4500 (internees)
Webmaster's note:
The figures given by Donato Dutto, regarding the total number of people on the Sinfra, don't seem to be accurate. They are probably estimates discussed between the Italian Officers before boarding the ship, as the numbers are perfectly rounded. The same can be said for the very high numbers mentioned in the Italian report. However, the numbers related to the survivors aren't very different, indicating that they are probably closer to reality. It must be said that the data collected by Gehrard Schreiber -who has examined the official German archives
in great detail- is considered by many Italian researchers the most reliable source of information. The number of Italian and Greek prisoners killed by the German guards during the attempt to reach the open deck remains unknown.
LOCATION OF WRECK
Aproximately 7 miles off the northern coast of Crete (less than 25km north off the port of Chania). Most likely the wreck is not identifiable due to the damage suffered by the explosion.
FIRST NAME: "Fernglen"
TYPE: Ocean liner/Cargo ship
YEAR: 1929
COUNTRY: Norway
FIRST OWNER: Fearnley & Eger, Oslo (old Christiania), Norway
SUBSEQUENT NAMES / OWNERS:
1934: "Sandahamn"/Sven Salen (Rederi A/B Jamaica), Stochholm, Sweden
1939: "Sinfra" / Companie di Navigation A Vapeur Cyprien Fabre & Cie, La Ciotat, France
December 1942: "Sinfra" / German Government
BUILDER: Akers Mekaniske Verksted A/S
LOCATION OF YARD: Oslo (old Christiania), Norway
YARD No: 434
DATE OF LAUNCH: 15-05-1929
DATE OF COMPLETION: July 1929
WEIGHT: 4444 GRT
LENGTH: 122.5 m
BEAM: 16.7 m
HEIGHT: 7.32 m
SCREWS: 2
ENGINE: Diesel
SPEED: 12.5 knots
FATE
Sank by Allied bombers (October 19, 1943).
DETAILS
The Sinfra arrived at the port of Heraklion during the first days of October 1943. For several days convoys of German trucks kept arriving in order to transfer on the ship several tons of bombs from the nearby airport. Those bombs were intended for the operations of the Luftwaffe in North Africa but after the Anglo-American victory they became surplus to requirement, as all the airports of Crete lost much of their stragegic value. On October 19, the loading of the bombs was completed and the ship was almost ready to depart for Pireaus. The last thing to do was to transfer the human "cargo" of thousands of Italian Military Internees from their concentration camps to the port. Many Greeks had gathered on both sides of the road to the port in order to watch the departure of the Italian soldiers. The transfer of the Internees was completed in the evening. As the Sinfra was a cargo ship they were no passenger cabins, so the Italian soldiers were "hosted" in the cargo holds. The Germans allowed the Italian Officers to stay on the open deck or use the small rooms on both sides of a corridor going from bow to stern. Just before sunset, a German Officer
called all the Italian Officers in order to give them life jackets. They were not enough life jackets for every Officer and not a single one was given to the men in the holds. On the ship they were many German soldiers going on leave and a small group of captured Greek partisans (all from Crete) headed for concentration camps in Germany. The hatches of the cargo holds were guarded by four German guards armed with machine guns. The ship was armed with two anti-aircraft guns, one near the bow and one near the stern.
The sea was smooth as glass and there was a full moon when the Sinfra left the port of Heraklion, escorted by at least one ship. No lights were allowed on the ship as the danger of being spotted by enemy planes or submarines was very high. For the same reason even those who wanted to smoke had to go inside. Some of the Italian Officers on deck were trying to control their stress by walking from bow to stern or discussing the situation in small groups. Most of them were asking the same question: would the ship make it to Pireaus? At 23.30, one of the German
guards, started to shout in panic "Flieger alarm!". Almost immediately, the small guns of the Sinfra started firing. Donato Dutto -one of the Italian
Officers who were on the open deck- could not see anything at first, but after a few seconds he saw a group of small lights very low on the horizon. According to the German sources, they were planes of a squadron composed of B-25 Mitchell bombers of the U.S.A.F. and Bristol Beaufighter torpedo bombers of the R.A.F. operating over the Mediterranean from North Africa. As the planes passed over the Sinfra a huge explosion occured. The shock from the explosion was so great that Donato Dutto was thrown several meters from his original position. As he was trying to understand what had just happened, he saw the German guards near the hatch of one of the cargo holds pointing their machine guns inside and opening fire. The sound of the machine guns was very loud but not loud enough to cover the cries of terror coming from below. Enzo Dellarovere, another Italian survivor, stated that a bomb passed through the funnel and exploded inside the ship and that many Italian soldiers were trapped
inside one of the cargo holds when a stairway giving access to the open deck collapsed under their weight. A report found in the archives of the Italian Navy also confirms that a bomb passed through the funnel and that there was much confusion inside the holds. According to this report the German guards initially threw some grenades from the open hatches and used their machine guns later, when the Italian prisoners managed to reach the open deck.
The engines of the Sinfra stopped and soon the ship developed a small list to the starboard side. Those on the open deck started to jump in the water in numbers. At the same time, the Allied bombers made a wide circle around the Sinfra and returned back to finish their work. The ship was hit again and fires started burning from bow to stern. Moments after the second attack, a group of German Officers and two civilians (a diplomat and his wife according to Dutto's account) arrived on deck pushing and shouting. They took one of the lifeboats from the starboard side and left the burning ship as fast as they could. On the port side some Italian Officers were luckier and managed to launch a lifeboat undisturbed by the Germans. The escort ship made continuous light signals to the Sinfra but didn't sail closer in order to help the survivors in the water, until hours later.
Despite the general feeling that the ship was going to sink in minutes, that didn't happen. Sometime after the launching of the two lifeboats the German guards left their posts near the hatches and the men who had survived the massacre in the cargo holds finally made it on the open deck. Many tried to find pieces of wood or other floating debris. The water around the ship was full of survivors, struggling to stay alive. Donato Dutto tried to stay on the burning ship as longer as possible since he couldn't find the force to jump. The solution came when a group of survivors noticed the rope ladder used by the German Officers in order to get into the lifeboat. Dutto used that ladder and managed to escape from the burning vessel. From there watched the Sinfra drifting away slowly, almost totally consumed by the fires. Despite the extreme heat, many people were seen running on the open deck and their cries for help were clearly heard despite the distance. The ship met her fate at 02:30, when the heat from the fires reached the bombs in the cargo hold. The Sinfra was obliterated by a colossal explosion, the force of which was so strong that it was felt several kilometers away.
The next morning a fleet of Greek fishing boats -requisitioned by the Germans at Chania- arrived at the scene and started searching for survivors, assisted by seaplanes of the German 7th Sea Rescue Squadron and by the escort ship. Donato Dutto was one of the few Italians rescued by those fishing boats. It soon became evident to the Italians that their rescue was not a priority. In fact, the orders were to save German troops first. During the search-and-rescue operations a group of Allied fighters attacked and destroyed one of the seaplanes. Soon after the attack the fishing boats
sailed to the port of Chania. Once arrived, the Italian survivors were put on trucks and transferred to prisons near the city (most of the Italian Officers ended at the prison of Panaghia). There they remained confined for four weeks before their transfer to Pireaus on another ship.
LOSS OF LIFE
a) In his book (written 10 years after the events) Donato Dutto stated that 523 Italians survived (aproximately 100 were saved by the fishing boats and at least 400 were saved by the escort ship and the lifeboat launched from the burning ship). In addition, he wrote that only 12 (out of 100) Greek partisans survived. However, these men were later executed because they were held responsible for the deaths of many German soldiers in the water after the sinking. Dutto estimated that there were about 400 German troops on the Sinfra.
Victims: aprox. 2465 + Survivors: 535 (internees + Greek prisoners)
[Total number of passengers: aprox.3000, if we include the German troops]
b) George Duncan's website offers more detailed figures, stating that there were 2664 people on the Sinfra (2389 Italian Military Internees, 71 Greek prisoners, 204 German troops). The total number of survivors was 566 (403 internees + prisoners, 163 Germans).
Victims: 2098 + Survivors: 566 = Total: 2664
c) Greek resercher Manos Mastorakos gives the sames figures as George Duncan but a different number of survivors (757 Italians, 197 Germans).
Victims: 1710 + Survivors: 954 = Total: 2664
d) Gehrard Schreiber's book, gives 1850 dead prisoners (out of 2389).
Victims: 1850 (internees + Greek prisoners) + Survivors: 539 (internees + Greek prisoners) = Total: 2389 internees + Greek prisoners)
e) The archives of the Italian Navy at Rome give a different picture. There is a report (7-8-1946) which states that 5000 Italians boarded the Sinfra on October 18, 1943 and afterwards 500 shells for anti-aircraft guns were loaded on a smaller hold. According to the same report there were about 500 survivors.
Victims: aprox. 5000 (internees) + Survivors: aprox. 500 (internees) = Total: aprox. 4500 (internees)
Webmaster's note:
The figures given by Donato Dutto, regarding the total number of people on the Sinfra, don't seem to be accurate. They are probably estimates discussed between the Italian Officers before boarding the ship, as the numbers are perfectly rounded. The same can be said for the very high numbers mentioned in the Italian report. However, the numbers related to the survivors aren't very different, indicating that they are probably closer to reality. It must be said that the data collected by Gehrard Schreiber -who has examined the official German archives
in great detail- is considered by many Italian researchers the most reliable source of information. The number of Italian and Greek prisoners killed by the German guards during the attempt to reach the open deck remains unknown.
LOCATION OF WRECK
Aproximately 7 miles off the northern coast of Crete (less than 25km north off the port of Chania). Most likely the wreck is not identifiable due to the damage suffered by the explosion.
SOURCES
www.miramarshipindex.org.nz - Online ship index
I MILITARI ITALIANI INTERNATI NEI CAMPI DI CONCENTRAMENTO DEL TERZO REICH 1943-1945: TRADITI, DISPREZZATI, DIMENTICATI - Gehrard Schreiber [Uff.Storico SME, Roma, 1992]
AGAIO 1943 - Manos Mastorakos [Doureios Ippos, Athens, 2004, ISBN 960883550]
Personal archive of Kostas Thoctarides [Italian Navy report signed by Captain Agostino Calosi, Rome, 7/8/1946]
L'AFFONDAMENTO DELLA NAVE SINFRA - Dona' Di San Mauro [Ed.Araba Fenice, 2005, ISBN: 88-86771-41-2]
HISTORICAL FACTS OF WWII- Website by George Duncan.
IO TRA I NOVEMILLA CADAVERI AFFONDATI A CRETA - Alessandro Massobrio [Newspaper article, Il Giornale, 3/6/2005]
www.miramarshipindex.org.nz - Online ship index
I MILITARI ITALIANI INTERNATI NEI CAMPI DI CONCENTRAMENTO DEL TERZO REICH 1943-1945: TRADITI, DISPREZZATI, DIMENTICATI - Gehrard Schreiber [Uff.Storico SME, Roma, 1992]
AGAIO 1943 - Manos Mastorakos [Doureios Ippos, Athens, 2004, ISBN 960883550]
Personal archive of Kostas Thoctarides [Italian Navy report signed by Captain Agostino Calosi, Rome, 7/8/1946]
L'AFFONDAMENTO DELLA NAVE SINFRA - Dona' Di San Mauro [Ed.Araba Fenice, 2005, ISBN: 88-86771-41-2]
HISTORICAL FACTS OF WWII- Website by George Duncan.
IO TRA I NOVEMILLA CADAVERI AFFONDATI A CRETA - Alessandro Massobrio [Newspaper article, Il Giornale, 3/6/2005]