Court Line - the company and its ships

Dorington Court (4)

 

Court Line used the name Dorington Court for five ships:

 

· Dorington Court (1) - a cargo ship completed in 1908

· Dorington Court (2) - a cargo ship completed in 1915

· Dorington Court (3) - a cargo ship completed in 1939

· Dorington Court (4) - a cargo ship completed in 1940 and originally named Empire Meteor

· Dorington Court (V) - a cargo ship completed in 1957

 

Dorington Court (4) had a service life of 21 years during which she served in a large number of WW2 convoys. After the war she changed hands on a number of occasions and was sent for scrap after running aground and being declared a total loss in 1961.

Basic Data

Type: Cargo ship

Registered owners,managers and operators:

Ministry of War Transport (MOWT)

Managers Mungo Campbell & Co. Ltd.

Builders: Joseph .L.Thompson & Sons Ltd.

Yard: Dundee

Country: UK

Yard number: 602

Registry: N/K

Official number: 168661

Signal letters: N/K

Call sign: N/K

Classification society: N/K

Gross tonnage: 7,483

Net tonnage: 4,517

Deadweight: N/K

Length: 426 ft

Breadth: 59.9 ft

Depth: 35 ft

Draught: N/K

Engines: 3 cylinder triple expansion steam engine

Engine builders: George Clark (1938) Ltd.

Works: Sunderland

Country: UK

Power: N/K

Propulsion: Single screw

Speed: 10 knots

Cargo capacity: N/K

Crew: N/K

Service during WW2 as Empire Meteor

 

Dorington Court (4) (then called Empire Meteor) took part in 77 convoys according to information shown in the table below which is provided courtesy of Convoyweb   - see  Ext. Ref. #5.

Service Post WW2

 

No information is available apart from the changes in name and ownership shown in the Career Highlights section.

 

Dorington Court (4) ran ashore at Kita Daito Jima (25.50N/131.15E) and broke in two on 2.10.61. She was a total lost and sent for scrap.

 

Images

 

1. Image #1 by permission of Clive Malvern

Image 1

Career Highlights

Date

Event

3 Sep 1940

Launched as Empire Meteor

Dec 1940

Completed

1946

Acquired by the United British Steam Ship Co. Ltd. - Managers Haldin & Phillipps Ltd.) and renamed Dorington Court

1947

Owners restyled Court Line Ltd. - Managers Haldin & Co. Ltd.

1956

Sold to INSA Soc de Nav. Genoa, Italy and renamed Giada

1960

Sold to Phoebus D Kyprianou, Beirut, Lebanon and renamed Sheikh

2 Oct 1961

Ran ashore and became a total loss and sold for scrap

Convoy No.

Route

Convoy No.

Route

FN.371

Dec 1940: Southend - Methil

EN.50/1

Jan 1941: Methil - Oban

OB.272

Jan 1941: Liverpool - Dispersed

HX.110

Feb 1941: Halifax - Liverpool

HX.111

Feb 1941: Halifax - Liverpool

OB.309

Apr 1941: Liverpool - Dispersed 50N 23.50W

SC.32

May 1941: Halifax - Liverpool

WN.138

Jun 1941: Oban - Methil

FN.486

Jun 1941: Southend - Methil

FS.514

Jun 1941: Methil - Southend

EC.61

Aug 1941: Southend - Clyde

ON.12

Sep 1941: Liverpool - Dispersed 53.34N 36.14W

SC.50

Oct 1941: Sydney CB - Liverpool

ON.33

Nov 1941: Liverpool - Dispersed 43.30N 55.20W

PQ.4

Nov 1941: Hvalfjord - Archangel

QP.13

Jun 1942: Archangel - Reykjavik

FS.853

Jul 1942: Methil - Southend

WN.307

Jul 1942: Loch Ewe - Methil

EN.141

Sep 1942: Methil - Loch Ewe

FN.819

Sep 1942: Southend - Methil

WN.347

Oct 1942: Loch Ewe - Methil

EN.159

Nov 1942: Methil - Loch Ewe

JW.51A

Dec 1942: Loch Ewe - Kola Inlet

RA.52

Jan 1943: Kola Inlet - Loch Ewe

FS.1036

Feb 1943: Methil - Southend

WN.393

Feb 1943: Loch Ewe - Methil

FN.958

Mar 1943: Southend - Methil

FN.961

Mar 1943: Southend - Methil

EN.206

Mar 1943: Methil - Loch Ewe

ON.175

Mar 1943: Liverpool - NYC

XB.44A

Apr 1943: Halifax - Boston

JH.47

Apr 1943: St johns nf - Halifax

WN.433

May 1943: Loch Ewe - Methil

BX.49

May 1943: Boston - Halifax

FS.1128

May 1943: Methil - Southend

SC.130

May 1943: Halifax - Liverpool

FN.1052

Jun 1943: Southend - Methil

EN.247

Jun 1943: Methil - Loch Ewe

ONS.12

Jul 1943: Liverpool - Halifax

SQ.60

Jul 1943: Sydney cb - Father pt

QS.66

Aug 1943: Red islet - Sydney cb

SC.141

Sep 1943: Halifax - Liverpool

WN.481

Sep 1943: Loch Ewe - Methil

EN.302

Nov 1943: Methil - Loch Ewe

AH.10

Nov 1943: Augusta - Brindisi

KMS.32

Nov 1943: Gibraltar - Port Said

OS/KMS.58KM

Nov 1943: Liverpool - Convoy Split

KMS.32G

Nov 1943: Ex OS58/ KMS32 - Gibraltar

AH.12

Dec 1943: Augusta - Bari

HA.10A

Dec 1943: Bari - Augusta

HA.15

Dec 1943: Bari - Augusta

MKS.36

Dec 1943: Port Said - Gibraltar

KMS.49

May 1944: Gibraltar - Port Said

KMS.49G

May 1944: Ex OS75/ KMS49 - Gibraltar

MKS.50

May 1944: Port Said - Gibraltar

MKS.50G

May 1944: Gibraltar - Rendezvous with SL.159

OS/KMS.64

Jan 1944: Ex OS64/ KMS38 - Freetown

LTS.10

Feb 1944: Lagos - Freetown

SL/MKS.150

Feb 1944: Freetown - Rendezvous with MKS.41

ST.78

Feb 1944: Freetown - Takoradi

SL/MKS.150MK

Mar 1944: Rendezvous of SL150 with MKS41 - Liverpool

OS/KMS.75KM

Apr 1944: Liverpool - Convoy Split

SL/MKS.159MK

May 1944: Rendezvous of SL159 with MKS50 - Liverpool

OS/KMS.84KM

Jul 1944: Liverpool - Convoy Split

HA.64

Aug 1944: Bari - Augusta

AH.60

Aug 1944: Augusta - Bari

KMS.58

Aug 1944: Gibraltar - Port Said

KMS.58G

Aug 1944: Ex OS84/ KMS58 - Gibraltar

MKS.60

Aug 1944: Port Said - Gibraltar

OS/KMS.88

Sep 1944: Ex OS88/ KMS62 - Freetown

SL/MKS.173

Oct 1944: Freetown - Rendezvous with MKS.64

SL/MKS.173MK

Oct 1944: Rendezvous of SL173 with MKS64 - Liverpool

FN.1526

Oct 1944: Southend - Methil

FS.1657

Dec 1944: Methil - Southend

OS/KMS.98KM

Dec 1944: Liverpool - Dispersed 46.40N 09.12W

TBC.1

Dec 1944: Southend - Milford Haven

JMA.2BS

(Aug 1945: Bombay - Pt dickson/pt swettenham)