USAT Van der Lijn
From Our Contribution
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| History | |
|---|---|
| Name | SS Van der Lijn |
| Owner | Koninklijke Pakketvaart Maatschappij (KPM), Holland |
| Builder | Nederlandsche Scheepsbouw Mij., Amsterdam |
| Launched | 1929 |
| Fate | scrapped 1958 in Hong Kong |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Coastal trader |
| Tonnage | 2,302 tons |
Remarks
Named after an early Dutch Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies (Indonesia), she was owned by the Dutch Royal Parcel Shipping Company. Her normal route was Singapore-Bawean-Soerabaja-East Borneo-Soerabaja-Bali-Lombok-Java-Singapore. In 1942 she was able to get away from the Japanese to Australia, and was one of the Dutch ships managed by the US, but chartered to carry Australian troops to and from the islands. On 4 Sep 1942, while in Townsville in a convoy that included Cremer and Van Heutsz, 'Van der Lijn was damaged in a collision with Perthshire.
In 1945 it was released back to its owners and in 1958 it was sold to Hong Kong for scrapping.
Soldiers carried
Cairns to Milne Bay 7 - 11 August 1943
2/28th Battalion boarded 4 August