HSK KOMET

HSK Komet: The German Merchant Raider in World War II

HSK Komet, also known as Schiff 45 and Raider B by the Allies, was a German auxiliary cruiser used as a commerce raider in World War II. Komet sailed under the Kriegsmarine flag and was built on a secret order for aggressive operations against Allied merchant shipping. Komet made its mark in WWII, participating in the Arctic Ocean passage using the Northern Sea Route with the Soviet Union’s help. Additionally, Komet participated in a series of Pacific operations that involved successful attacks on enemy vessels. Sinking in October 1942, Komet was one of Germany’s merchant raiders with the most significant impact on Allied shipping in World War II. This paper is going to look at Komet’s build, key features and roles in WWII.

Design

Origins as a Merchant Vessel

Komet was initially the merchant vessel Ems, and it was later converted to serve as a Kriegsmarine auxiliary cruiser in the war. Ems was a German steam merchant raider and relatively small with a gross register tonnage of 3,287 tons. The ship was built in 1937 by the Deschimag A.G. Weser shipyard in Bremen, Germany, for Norddeutscher Lloyd, a German shipping company. Ems was 115.5 meters long, 15.3 meters in breadth, and had a draught of 6.5 meters. The steamer was powered by two diesel engines which could take it up to a maximum speed of 16 knots. Komet was small, slower and much less of a threat than larger merchant raider Kormoran, but more efficient.

Conversion to a Merchant Raider

In 1939, during the beginning of WWII, the Ems was requisitioned by the Kriegsmarine and rebuilt to a commerce raider, HSK 7 (Handelsstörkreuzer 7 or Merchant raider 7). The cruiser was converted in secrecy by Howaldtswerke in Hamburg and was completed on June 2, 1940. The completed Komet had six 15-centimeter (5.9 in) guns, one 7.5-centimeter (3.0 in) gun, one 3.7-centimeter (1.5 in) gun, and four 2-centimeter (0.8 in) anti-aircraft guns. Most of its armament was covered with fake panels. Komet also had six torpedo tubes, and to aid in her mine-laying and boarding operations she was also equipped with a 15-ton LS-2 fast boat, which had been named Meteorit. Komet was further fitted with a seaplane, Arado 196 A-1, used for scouting operations, a feature that was unique in German merchant raiders.

In a bid to complete the conversion before departure, the bow was reinforced, and a propeller for operation in ice-covered waters was added for the upcoming Arctic Ocean passage. Powered by the ship’s diesel engines, Komet had enough range for its raiding purposes but could not carry as much cargo as Kormoran. Komet’s crew numbered 270 men, and her captain was Kapitän zur See Robert Eyssen. Komet could masquerade as neutral or Allied ships such as the Soviet icebreaker Semyon Dezhnev, Japanese merchantman Manyo Maru, and Japanese gunboat Takaoka. After completing her fitting, Komet left for her mission on June 30, 1940, after a full-scale Arctic training at Narvik in northern Norway.

What Made the Komet Special

Komet was one of the nine German merchant raiders deployed by the Kriegsmarine to attack Allied merchant shipping. As Germany did not have the numbers to go head-to-head with the Royal Navy, it turned to commerce raiders, submarines, and U-boats to weaken the enemy supply lines and cause attrition to their resources.

Komet, like the other eight raiders, combined deception and illusion, camouflage and subterfuge to achieve her ends while at the same time having enough firepower to overwhelm most enemy merchant ships and avoid detection and confrontation with enemy warships. It had the deceptive appearance of an ordinary merchant ship, and the range and self-sufficiency to operate independently for years or thousands of miles from home.

Most of the Kriegsmarine’s raiders were too small to resemble real tankers and freighters, but Komet, like the larger and even more effective Kormoran, was even less conspicuous. As a result, Komet could attack Allied shipping and, in conjunction with other raider ships, force the Allies to assign warships to escort Allied merchant shipping. Komet was also in a unique position among raider ships of sailing through the Northern Sea Route, with the permission and help of the Soviet Union.

Key Roles in Battles and Operations

Arctic and Pacific Operations (July 1940–November 1941)

The Komet’s first major voyage started on July 3, 1940, under the command of Robert Eyssen, with the ship departing from Gotenhafen for Bergen in Norway for supplies before leaving for the Arctic Ocean on July 24. On July 25, she changed her flag to that of the Soviet icebreaker Semyon Dezhnev while proceeding to the Norwegian coast and later in Teriberka Bay, she changed to Donau to avoid Soviet security measures. Komet used the Northern Sea Route through the Arctic Ocean with the help of the Soviet Union. With the icebreakers Lenin and Joseph Stalin, the ship transited the Arctic Ocean and then crossed the Bering Strait into the Pacific early in September 1940, at a cost of 950,000 Reichsmarks. After reaching the Pacific, she rendezvoused with the German raider Orion and the supply ship Kulmerland at the Japanese island of Lamutrik in October 1940. The three ships sailed in Japanese guise with the Komet as the Manyo Maru, the Orion as the Mayebashi Maru and Kulmerland as the Tokio Maru and started hunting in the New Zealand-to-Panama route. On November 25, the Komet sank the coaster Holmwood, and two days later 300 miles east of New Zealand, Komet was involved in the sinking of the passenger liner Rangitane and plundered its food supply. By this time, Eyssen had spent 140 days at sea and in his war diary, he expressed his disappointment at the lack of enemy ships that the raiders had encountered so far. Komet, under Japanese disguise as the Manio Maru, resupplied in Japan during the beginning of November. In December 1940, Komet and Orion operated in the waters of Nauru Island where they sank five Allied merchant ships, Triona, Vinni, Komata and two more, with a total tonnage of 41,000. Komet sank three of the ships on December 6–7, 1940, capturing over 500 prisoners, who were later landed on Emirau Island. On December 30, Eyssen made preparations for a minefield at the entrance of the harbor in Rabaul, but the operation was not entirely successful.

Komet continued its circumnavigation through the Pacific Ocean, around Cape Horn and north through the Atlantic. She returned to Hamburg, her home port, on November 30, 1941, after 516 days and some 100,000 nautical miles (190,000 km) at sea, having sunk or captured 10 ships with an estimated 62,915 gross register tons (GRT), often in cooperation with other ships.

Second Raiding Voyage and Sinking (October 1942)

Komet returned to service on October 7, 1942, for a second raiding voyage. At the head was Kapitän zur See Ulrich Brocksien. She left from the Dutch port of Vlissingen, disguised as a minesweeper. The ship tried to break out into the Atlantic for yet another attempt at commerce raiding. The Komet was sighted and attacked on 14 October 1942 in the night west of Cap de la Hague by a British naval force including MTB’s and destroyers. The ensuing engagement was over quickly, and the Komet was sunk by the British forces. Sub-Lieutenant Robert Drayson, in command of MTB 236, spotted the cruiser lit up by a star shell, closed in from the shoreward side and fired two torpedoes, one on each side, at a range of about 500 yards (460 m). Both hit the Komet and as the ship began to sink, a massive secondary explosion from ammunition or fuel tanks blew the stern of MTB 236 up out of the water, causing damage to two of the boat’s three engines. The Komet sank immediately with no survivors, the British were lucky to suffer only slight casualties, and Drayson was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his actions. The wreck was located in July 2006 by nautical archaeologist Innes McCartney, off Cap de la Hague, and was surveyed in 2007, still in two halves, upside down, with significant damage to the central section of the ship.

Aftermath and Legacy

Komet’s demise marked the end of her short but significant raiding career. The raider’s initial voyage and subsequent Arctic journey with the help of the Soviet Union highlighted Kriegsmarine’s determination to send raiders into Pacific waters despite the risky and difficult passage through the Arctic Ocean and the overall lack of resources. In a successful collaborative operation, Komet, Orion, and Kulmerland sank five merchant ships off the coast of Nauru, totalling 41,000 tons, after operating in disguise off Japanese and Russian coastal areas, after which the Komet and Orion cruised the New Zealand-to-Panama run. The Komet’s long voyage back home covered 100,000 nautical miles in both directions, with the vessel as part of the worldwide circumnavigation in 1941, provided material for Kriegsmarine’s propaganda triumph. However, like other German raider ships in later years of the war, the Komet’s second and short final voyage, shows how less effective German raiders were by 1942 as increased patrolling by British forces and increased intelligence made it difficult for the raiders to move undetected at sea. Sinking with no survivors, Komet marked a point of loss and frustration for the Kriegsmarine which still required experience from its skilled sailors.

final thoughts

Komet was a rare and important part of Germany’s naval fleet during World War II. Her build, disguise features, as a converted merchant ship, as well as her special equipment such as the Arado seaplane and LS-2 fast boat made it a flexible and deceptive ship of the sea. Her roles in the Arctic and Pacific Ocean with the help of the Soviet Union and in successful operations against Allied ships and merchant shipping in collaboration with other ships, and individual significant victories in these waters contributed in no small measure to Germany’s commerce-raiding legacy.