SS Black Osprey SS " Black Osprey was a cargo ship for the American Diamond Lines and the British Cairn Line . She was formerly known as SS " West Arrow when she was launched for the during World War I . The ship was inspected by the United States Navy for possible use as USS " West Arrow " ( ID - 2585 ) but was neither taken into the Navy nor ever commissioned under that name . " West Arrow " was built in 1918 for the , as a part of the " West " boats , a series of steel - hulled cargo ships built on the West Coast of the United States for the World War I war effort . Information about her early career is largely absent , but by the 1920s , news reports revealed that the ship was sailing on the North Atlantic . By the mid - 1920s , " West Arrow " was sailing for American Diamond on their cargo service to Rotterdam and Antwerp . In 1935 , American Diamond changed the ship ' s name to " Black Osprey " and the ship continued in Rotterdam service . After the outbreak of World War II , " Black Osprey " , still under the registry of the still - neutral United States , was detained twice by British authorities , before the U . S . - established " Neutrality Zone " ended " Black Osprey " s Dutch service in late 1939 . Sailing under charter to the Isthmian Line in 1940 , " Black Osprey " called at various ports in the Pacific Ocean . American Diamond sold " Black Osprey " to the British Ministry of War Transport in late 1940 . During the ship ' s first transatlantic crossing under the British flag , she was sunk by on 18 February 1941 , with the loss of 25 men . The 11 survivors were picked up by a Norwegian ship and landed in at Barry . Design and construction . The " West " ships were cargo ship s of similar size and design built by several shipyards on the West Coast of the United States for the for emergency use during World War I . All were given names that began with the word " West " , like " West Arrow " , one of some 24 " West " ships built by Skinner & Eddy of Seattle , Washington . " West Arrow " ( Skinner & Eddy No . 12 ) was laid down on 20 September 1917 under the name " Jas . G . Eddy " , launched as " West Arrow " on 19 January 1918 , and completed on 26 February 1918 . The ship was , and was long ( between perpendiculars ) and abeam . " West Arrow " had a steel hull and a deadweight tonnage of . The ship had a single steam turbine that drove her single screw propeller , and moved the ship at a pace . – = = Career = = " West Arrow " was inspected by the 13th Naval District of the United States Navy after completion and was assigned the identification number of 2585 . Had she been commissioned , she would have been known as USS " West Arrow " ( ID - 2585 ) , but the Navy neither took over the ship nor commissioned her . Little is known of " West Arrow " s early career , with almost no information regarding her World War I activities . During that war , many of the " West " ships carried grain products to the United Kingdom , France , and Italy , but it is not known whether " West Arrow " did so or not . One early mention of " West Arrow " in contemporary news accounts is found in " The Washington Post " , which reported in February 1921 that the cargo ship had delivered 742 " milch cows " to Bremen as a gift from American farmers from Texas and Kansas . " The New York Times " reported in September 1923 that " West Arrow " , heading from Liverpool to Boston , had been struck by the White Star Line ocean liner west of Queenstown , Ireland . " Haverford " , headed from Philadelphia to Liverpool with passengers , struck the cargo ship on the port side , from the bow . A radio dispatch from " West Arrow " reported that she was proceeding under her own power and was not taking on any water . By March 1926 , " West Arrow " was sailing for American Diamond Lines in New York – Rotterdam service on a U . S . government - subsidized mail route . In July 1932 , the ship was moved to a new Baltimore – Antwerp route , but by December 1934 was again sailing to Rotterdam . In 1935 , American Diamond changed the name of " West Arrow " to " Black Osprey " , which remained on the Rotterdam route into 1936 . In March of that year , " The Wall Street Journal " — reporting on a large gold shipment from the United States to Holland — speculated that " Black Osprey " was the ship that had been selected to carry $ 345 , 000 of gold for export . On 24 March 1938 , " Black Osprey " was sailing in a dense fog off St . Catherine ' s Point on the Isle of Wight when she struck the British cargo ship " Chagford " , which sank within five minutes . Three of " Chagford ' s six - man crew were picked up by " Black Osprey " , whose crew searched in vain for three hours for the other three men . After the fog lifted , the " Chagford " survivors were transferred to a fishing vessel that landed the crewmen , and " Black Osprey " resumed her Rotterdam – Philadelphia journey . World War II . After the outbreak of World War II in September 1939 , " Black Osprey " , still registered in the neutral - United States , was seized by British authorities on 6 September and detained at Weymouth . After carefully inspecting the ship for any contraband , the British released the ship after a week . However , on 31 October , the British again seized " Black Osprey " , and had not yet released her by 8 November , when the U . S . State Department released a list of 40 American ships that had been detained by belligerent s . The United States established a " Neutrality Zone " — a zone where American - flagged ships could not enter — in late 1939 . As a result , American Diamond was unable to continue its Dutch route , and chartered the eight vessels it employed in that service ( which included " Black Osprey " ) to other U . S . companies . " Black Osprey " was one of several chartered to the Isthmian Line , and made voyages in the Pacific , calling at ports such as Singapore and Honolulu in 1940 . After a typhoon with winds in excess of hit Wake Island in early October , " Black Osprey " was diverted through heavy seas to check on the welfare of the 35 men on the island , all found to be safe . In November , American Diamond sought the permission of the , a successor to the , to sell " Black Osprey " and seven other ships to the British . The granted the permission , and " Black Osprey " was sold to the Ministry of War Transport for operation by the Cairn Line of Newcastle - upon - Tyne , for about $ 50 per deadweight ton , or around $ 440 , 000 . The deal was completed before " Black Osprey " s 10 December sailing from Philadelphia to Baltimore under the British flag . " Black Osprey " then sailed from Baltimore on 25 January 1941 for Halifax , where she arrived on 30 January . " Black Osprey " , loaded with a cargo of steel , joined convoy HX 107 that sailed from that port for Liverpool on 3 February . After falling behind in the convoy , " Black Osprey " was torpedoed by " U - 96 " under the command of " Fregattenkapitän " Heinrich Lehmann - Willenbrock at 02 : 27 on 18 February south of Iceland , near position . The ship ' s master and 24 crewmen died in the attack . " Black Osprey " s 11 survivors were picked up by the Norwegian refrigerated cargo ship " Mosdale " and landed at Barry .