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ViewsAMRAFrom SN Guides
[edit] IntroductionAmra was the lead ship of a class of three passenger liners (Amra,Aska and Aronda) built specifically for the Calcutta-Rangoon service of the British India Steam Navigation Company. She was the second BI vessel to carry this name which was derived from the name of a village in Uttar Pradesh, India. Amra could be distinguished from her sister-ship Aronda, by the varnished wooden bridge-front and (bulwark) sides , Aronda having being here, white-painted steel plating [edit] Basic Data
[edit] Pre-war Career HighlightsHer first Master was Albert Edward Carter and her maiden voyage took place on 18th November 1938 to Calcutta from London with 364 crew and 90 passengers (76 adults, 11 children & 3 infants) the full passenger manifest is on www.findmypast.com a subscription site Along with her sisters she was built to replace the aging 'A' Class ships on the Calcutta - Rangoon mail service. For several years prior to her arrival in Calcutta, the Rangoon Mail service had been maintained by ageing steamers of an earlier "A" class, which latterly had been having difficulty in maintaining the mail contract speed. Some sources claim that this Calcutta-Rangoon "Imperial Mail" contract stipulated a speed of 16.5 knots, the fastest such speed of any contemporary contract for the carriage of mails by sea [In the 1930's, the writer understands, that despite the fact that mail was carried by the Cunarders et al, on the North Atlantic routes, at considerably higher speeds,the actual mail contract speed was 11 knots!] The pattern for many years had been for the "English Mail", brought to Bombay by P & O, to arrive by train at Howrah station every Saturday night, in time for the BI vessel sailing from Calcutta at 0900 next morning. Similar pressure on time-keeping existed on the return voyage, where the weekly "English Mail" from Rangoon had to connect with the Thursday evening mail train from Howrah to Bombay, from whence the P & O vessel sailed every Saturday.Apparently, should the ship's Calcutta arrival be too late for this train, a special train had to be laid on, for the Company's account! To save time at the Sandheads, a "special" choice-Hooghly River pilot (Bengal Pilot Service) was assigned to each vessel, with the pilot staying aboard for the round voyage. The provision of the three new A-class ships was aimed at a twice-weekly departure from both Calcutta and Rangoon. This was never to be fulfilled, on account of WW2 and the political upheaval in the East in the war's aftermath. It might be thought anachronistic on the part of the owners, that the boilers were designed for coal-firing with automatic-stokers. Mackinnon Mackenzie, the owners' Managing Agents in India, owned a number of coal-mines in the neighbouring state of Bihar. While not producing particularly good quality coal, its cost was very much lessr than that of imported fuel oil. AMRA was an impressive looking ship, the well-proportioned profile and the rake of the cowl-topped funnel and masts giving the impression of power and speed. [To the rather subjective eye of the writer, she was not unlike a larger version of the IOMSP Co's steamers of that era!] There were four cargo holds, each with lower 'tween decks and two with upper 'tweendecks, the former being available for either cargo or deck passengers, while the UTD's were exclusively used for deck passengers. Nos. 1,2 & 3 hatches were each served by four derricks. with two derricks at No.4, all provided with electric winches. On the foremast was fitted a heavy-lift derrick. LSA included 18 steel lifeboats stowed under Welin quadrant davits On the bridge deck there was accommodation for 45 1st Class passengers, which included 1 de luxe cabin with bathroom, and 13 single-berth cabins, while on the deck below, the upper deck, there were a further 28 1st Class berths, together with cabins accommodating 73 2nd Class passengers. Each class was provided with its appropriate public rooms on the promenade deck.The outfitting introduced to the latter was a distinct departure from the heavy mahogany styling of the previous generation of BI ships, this now venturing into the art deco style. [edit] War Service in WW2After just over a year on her designated service, Amra was requisitioned in 1940 for Trooping duties and completed two tours before being converted to Hospital Ship No. 41 in the December at Bombay. Later that year, in December, after conversion by Garden Reach Workshops Ltd (BI-owned), she appeared as "Hospital Ship No.41". In this new role, she had 385 hospital beds and the complement was increased by 107 medical staff. Initially, the ship was used to evacuate casualties from the operations in Somaliland, to Mombasa and Durban. About this time, the South African government undertook to finance all the operational costs of the ship, as a contribution to the "war effort". In 1943, she moved into the Mediterranean, where, notably, she was involved in the Sicilian (July) and Salerno (September) landings. Prior to the conclusion of her war service she did several voyages from the Mediterranean to Durban, repatriating South African servicemen. After refitting (at Newcastle-upon-Tyne [?]) the vessel returned to her owners in September 1946. (An image of Amra as Hospital Ship No.41 can be found in SN Gallery section) Note: There is a voyage on 20th June 1946 (full passenger list on www.findmypast.com ) for Amra from Southampton to Bombay via Port Sudan. Listed TJ Murphy captain with 75 passengers 61 adults 10 children & 4 infants and 225 crew including a number of crew from other vessels repatriating [edit] Service Post WW2She wasn't released from her war duties until 1946 and after refit which saw her accommodation change to 222 Cabin Class, 737 deck . Amra (and her surviving sister Aronda) were thereafter placed on the Bombay-Durban service, wayports being Seychelles, Mombasa, Zanzibar, Dar-es-Salaam, Mozambique, Lourenco Marques (now Maputo), with occasional passenger calls at Bedi Bunder and Murmagoa - depending on the monsoon season. In October of 1950 she arrived at Durban to have her boilers converted from coal to oil burning After a six-month stay at Durban, the ship emerged in January 1951, having been converted to oil-fuel and in the March of 1951 once more returned to service. While, Aronda, was undergoing a similar conversion, Amra was then engaged in a "cruising" role, carryig 1st Class passengers only (and no cargo). Operating from Durban, she called at Port Louis, Seychelles, Mombasa, Zanzibar and Dar-es-Salaam. Anti-South African feeling particularly in Tanganiyka (Tanzania) soon brought this venture to a halt! Thereafter, Amra, was employed running from Bombay to Mombasa, Zanzibar and Dar-es-Salaaam, augmenting this part of the service provided by Kampala and Karanja en route to Durban. After 1955, in compliance with new Indian Government regulations, a substantial proportion of the area allocated to Deck Passengers (henceforth referred to as Unberthed Passengers) was converted to 3rd Class "berthed accommodation" which introduced "standee" style folding bunks, messrooms and segregated areas for unaccompanied women ,the total eventually being carried being reduced to 222 Saloon and 737 3rd Class. In 1955, in company with the other passenger vessels of the fleet,the original black hull with white ribband was altered to a white hull with black ribband and black boottopping. Typical cargoes carried at this time were copper wire-bars (from Zambia) shipped at at Dar., cloves and cinnamon from Zanzibar, soda ash, sisal, ivory and tea from Mombasa, while from Bombay cotton piece goods were the main commodity shipped. [edit] BreakingAs air travel became more feasible and cheaper, demand for passenger berths, particularly in the Unberthed category, fell away, and so, in 1965, Amra was sold for demolition, delivering to Keelung in December.
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