Empire Gull
British Steam merchant
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| Name | Empire Gull | ||
| Type: | Steam merchant | ||
| Tonnage | 6,408 tons | ||
| Completed | 1919 - Skinner & Eddy Corp, Seattle WA | ||
| Owner | Crosby, Son & Co, Stockton-on-Tees | ||
| Homeport | London | ||
| Date of attack | 12 Dec 1942 | Nationality:  British | |
| Fate | Sunk by U-177 (Robert Gysae) | ||
| Position | 26° 15'S, 34° 40'E - Grid KP 6167 | ||
| Complement | 46 (2 dead and 44 survivors). | ||
| Convoy | |||
| Route | Port Sudan (23 Nov) - Aden (27 Nov) - Lourenço Marques - Durban - Baltimore | ||
| Cargo | Ballast | ||
| History | Built as American Brave Coeur for US Shipping Board, Seattle; 1937 transferred to US Maritime Commission, Seattle and laid up as reserve. On 14 Nov 1941 given to Britain and renamed Empire Gull by Ministry of War Transport (MoWT). | ||
| Notes on event | At 21.51 hours on 12 Dec 1942 the unescorted Empire Gull (Master William James Escudier) was hit in the bow by one of two torpedoes from U-177 in the Mozambique Channel west of Maputo, Portuguese East Africa. The ship had been spotted at 10.29 hours and missed with a first torpedo at 17.22 hours. At 22.03 hours, the U-boat surfaced and allowed the crew to abandon ship after the first hits with the deck gun. The Germans continued to shell the ship with 70 incendiary and 100 high-explosive rounds and scored about 140 hits, which caused her to sink at 00.28 hours on 13 December. Two crew members were lost. The master and 43 crew members were picked up by HMS Inconstant (H 49) (LtCdr W.S. Clouston) and HMS Freesia (K 43) (Lt R.A. Cherry) and landed at Durban on 16 December. | ||
| On board | We have details of 19 people who were on board. | ||
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