SS Irish Oak ( 1919 ) The SS " Irish Oak " was an Irish - operated steamship which was sunk in the North Atlantic during World War II by a German submarine . As the West Neris she had been built in the US and operated by the United States Shipping Board . In 1941 , she was chartered by Irish Shipping Limited , to transport wheat and fertilizer from North America to Ireland . Sailing as a clearly marked neutral vessel , not in convoy , she was nonetheless torpedo ed and sunk by on 15 May 1943 midway between North America and Ireland . The crew were rescued . At the time there were conflicting reports that she " had not " and allegations that she " had " warned a nearby convoy of the presence of a U - boat . The British nationality of her captain became an issue in the Irish general election of June 1943 , there were diplomatic exchanges between the United States and Ireland , and questions raised in the British House of Commons . The U - boat ' s captain received a mild reprimand . Construction . Southwestern Shipbuilding of San Pedro , California , was organized in 1918 to build cargo ships for the United States Shipping Board . As Yard No . 11 , the ship was built to Design 1019 , launched on 24 August 1918 and completed in December 1919 . Her displacement was 5 , 589 tons , length , with a beam of , and a depth of . Propelled by a triple expansion steam engine built by the Llewellyn Iron Works of Los Angeles , with cylinders of , and bore and stroke , the ship could make . " West Neris " . West Neris had been built for the United States Maritime Commission ( USMC ) and operated by the United States Shipping Board ( USSB ) , her port of registry being New Orleans . In 1928 , she was sold to the Mississippi Steamship Company . She was sold back to the USSB in 1933 . With the abolition of the USSB , she was transferred to the United States Shipping Board Bureau in 1935 , and laid up in New Orleans . During this period the ship was neglected and the condition of her engine deteriorated . In 1937 she was transferred to the United States Maritime Commission . On 26 September 1941 she was chartered to Irish Shipping Ltd , through United States Lines at £3 , 245 per month . " Irish Oak " . Background . At the outbreak of World War II Ireland had very few ships , and the United States instructed its ships not to enter the " war zone " . Acting for the Irish Government , Minister Frank Aiken negotiated the charter of two oil - burning steamships from the United States Maritime Commission ’ s reserve fleet . These were the " West Neris " and the " West Hematite " . Two Irish crews travelled to New Orleans to take over the ships , which they did on 9 September 1941 . The " West Neris " was renamed " Irish Oak " and " West Hematite " was renamed . Both were chartered by government owned Irish Shipping Limited ( ISL ) and managed by the " Limerick Steamship Company " , with their port of registry changed to Dublin . The " Irish Oak " was captained by Matthew Moran of Wexford ; the " Irish Pine " by Frank Dick of Islandmagee , with Samuel McNamara of Belfast as Chief Engineer . Initial sailing , convoys and delays . Destined to carry wheat and phosphate fertilizer , both ships sailed initially from New Orleans for St John ' s in October 1941 , to take on cargoes of wheat bound for Ireland . Since insurers such as Lloyd ' s of London charged higher premiums for ships not in convoy , the " Irish Oak " and the " Irish Pine " were painted war - time camouflage in preparation for sailing in - convoy . " Irish Pine " joined Convoy SC 56 and arrived in Dublin on 11 December 1941 . In contrast , " Irish Oak " experienced a number of serious mishaps and setbacks : Chief Engineer R . Marsh , of Dublin , suffered a heart attack and was hospitalised in New Orleans ; another engineer , O ’ Keefe of Dún Laoghaire , was severely burned in a boiler room blow - back and hospitalised in St John ; and a locally recruited Greek replacement engineer caused difficulties , was reported to the Canadian authorities by the captain , and jailed . Initially " Irish Oak " sailed with Convoy SC 52 , which departed from Sydney , Nova Scotia on 29 October 1941 . On 3 November the convoy was attacked by and and lost four ships ; it turned back for Sydney and arrived on 5 November . But neglect had left the " Irish Oak " in poor condition . Ships from SC 52 were merged with Convoy SC 53 and " Irish Oak " sailed with it , but had to return to Sydney . Her next attempt was with Convoy SC 55 , which departed Sydney on 16 November 1941 and arrived at Liverpool on 5 December , but again engine problems struck and she was towed to Saint John , New Brunswick . " Irish Oak " remained in St . John for four months while efforts were made to repair her engine . Eventually she had to be towed to Boston for repairs . The voyage from New Orleans to Dublin - including repairs - took nine months : " Irish Oak " berth ed in Dublin on 6 July 1942 . Out of convoy sailings . The crew of the " Irish Oak " became acutely uneasy after her engine failed and she was left behind by SC 55 , dead in the water , to wait for a tugboat ; this , coupled with the experiences of other Irish ships , especially in OG 71 , the " Nightmare Convoy " in August 1941 , resolved Irish crews and owners to sail as neutrals , out - of - convoy . Thereafter Irish ships were clearly marked and fully lit , usually sailing out - of - convoy on a direct course , and they always answered SOS calls for assistance . Irish ships rescued 534 men ; yet lost 20 % of their seamen . Irish Shipping Limited built up its fleet to 15 ships . Two ships were lost , " Irish Oak " , and " Irish Pine " , on which 33 lives were lost . The ISL ships alone saved some 166 lives . The " Stornest " . At 04 : 44 on 14 October 1942 , in very bad weather , " Irish Oak " received a distress call from British ship " Stornest " , a straggler from convoy ONS 136 , torpedoed by . " Irish Oak " answered the call and altered course . Six minutes later " Stornest " radioed " Irish Oak " that they were abandoning ship in life - rafts , having lost their lifeboats in the heavy seas . " Irish Oak " continued to relay " Stormest " s SOS and spent ten hours searching for survivors in a westerly gale . The rescue tug " Adherent " , the anti - submarine trawler " Drangey " and two corvettes from convoy ONS 137 joined the search , to no avail . " Stornest ' s " crew of 29 and ten gunners were lost at sea . A week later Captain Matthew Moran was fatally injured while boarding at the Dublin quayside , when the gangway collapsed beneath him . He was replaced by Captain Eric Jones ( see Crew ) . Encounter with U - 650 . On 14 May 1943 , " Irish Oak " was en route from Tampa , Florida , to Dublin with a cargo of 8 , 000 tons of phosphate fertiliser . Smoke from an allied convoy was visible ahead in the distance ; in general Irish ships were sailing out - of - convoy at this time . At 2 . 23pm German U - boat came alongside . There was no contact or exchange between the vessels . They continued alongside each other all afternoon . At nightfall " Irish Oak " turned on her lights , in accordance with her neutral status . Apparently satisfied , " U - 650 " departed during the night . " Irish Oak " continued sailing astern of convoy SC 129 . As it happened , on the same day " U - 642 " reported that an aircraft carrier was joining the convoy ; in fear of the aircraft , the stalking U - boats were ordered to " break off operations against convoy " . Torpedoed . As dawn broke next morning , 15 May 1943 , a torpedo hit " Irish Oak " at 8 : 19am ( 12 : 19 German Summer Time ) . Two torpedoes were launched , one missed , the other struck her port side and exploded . At the time it was uncertain which submarine had launched the torpedoes . Its periscope remained visible as lifeboats were lowered . The submarine waited until the lifeboats were well clear before firing a coup de grâce at 9 : 31 am . " Irish Plane " , " Irish Rose " and " Irish Ash " responded to the SOS . The survivors were located by " Irish Plane " at 4 : 20 pm . " Irish Oak " lies in position , almost mid - way between Newfoundland and Ireland . Landfall . The survivors landed at Cobh on 19 May . They were welcomed by Samuel Roycroft , a director of both the Limerick Steamship Company and of Irish Shipping Limited . They lunched at the Imperial Hotel , Cork . On arrival in Dublin on 21 May , they were welcomed by Peadar Doyle , the Lord Mayor , and hosted to lunch at Leinster House , home of the Dáil Éireann ( Ireland ' s parliament ) , on 24 May . It was common practice for crews ' wages to be stopped when a ship was sunk . Famed Labour leader James Larkin raised the issue of the survivors ' treatment in the Dáil Éireann . Citing the crew member who was told by the Labour exchange to ' go and get his record card ' , which was lost when " Irish Oak " sank , he suggested that the Dáil Éireann ask the German Consul - General to send a submarine to retrieve it . Aftermath . British . At the time it was not known which submarine had sunk " Irish Oak " . The survivors knew only that it was not " U - 650 " . In the House of Commons Sir William Davidson called for a formal protest , because " Irish Oak " had not warned the convoy , and Douglas Lloyd Savory called for an end of coal exports to Ireland . No official action was taken : Ireland was exporting food to Britain at the time . Also , Paul Emrys - Evans revealed that the convoy knew about the U - boat ; the British stance was that , as it already knew of the presence of both " Irish Oak " and " U - 607 " , there was no need for " Irish Oak " to have warned the convoy . Irish . During World War I the South Arklow Lightvessel " Guillemot " , operated by the Commissioners of Irish Lights , had given warning of a U - boat . In consequence on 28 March 1917 " UC - 65 " surfaced , ordered the crew into their lifeboat , and sank the " Guillemot " . Against this background the sinking of " Irish Oak " became a hotly debated issue . The Irish Government ' s stance was that " Irish Oak " had " not " warned the Allied convoy of a U - boat presence , as stated by Éamon de Valera in the Dáil , and by Irish Shipping Limited . De Valera went on to say that it was " . . . no business of Irish ships to give any information to anyone " . A rumour to the contrary was picked - up by the Irish Labour Party . James Everett asked : " Was information given to the British convoy that a submarine was sighted the night before ? " Discussion in the Dáil during the run - up to the General Election , focused on the possibility that a warning " had " been transmitted and demands were made to know the nationality of the captain ( a British subject ) : Luke Duffy , secretary of the Labour Party , said that the " . . . government was guilty of duplicity and near belligerency behind a facade of neutrality . They had placed foreign nationals on the bridge of Irish ships . . . " . The party issued an advertisement condemning the " criminal conduct of the Fianna Fáil Government in sending brave men to their doom on the " Irish Oak " " . Responding to allegations that " Irish Oak " had acted in such a way as to endanger her neutral status , Irish Shipping Limited stated : " . . . whether . . . any information had been conveyed to a British convoy that a submarine had been sighted . The company states in the most explicit manner that there is no foundation whatever for the suggestion contained in the question . No such message was sent . Seán MacEntee ( Fianna Fáil Party ) placed a counter advertisement in the Irish Times titled " Licence to Sink , " saying that the Labour Party sought to justify the sinking of the " Irish Oak " ; " But for these ships many of our people might have been hungry , would have been idle " . . . " If our people were hungry and idle they would be more ready to listen to their pernicious doctrines " . After the election William Davin complained of " the unfounded allegations and the slanderous and libellous statements made against members of this { " sic " Labour } Party " . . . " had the audacity to charge members of this Party , during the recent election campaign , with having condoned the sinking of the " Irish Oak " . Could anything be more scandalous , or more untrue ? " Although Labour increased its representation and de Valera ' s Fianna Fáil party lost seats in the General Election , Éamon de Valera remained in power with the support of the Farmers ' Party . American . It was not known at the time which submarine had sunk " Irish Oak " , only that it was not " U - 650 " . Irish Shipping Limited was negotiating a lease of the SS " Wolverine " from the United States . The U . S . State Department intervened , asking why Ireland had not protested to Germany for the sinking . The Irish replied that they protested other sinkings when the attacker was known . They protested the attacks on the colliers and . They referred to the attack on the by two unidentified aircraft , initially denied by the British but admitted when shell fragments of British manufacture were found . No further American ships were leased or sold to Ireland . German . Not until after the war was it learned had sunk " Irish Oak " . This action , and " U - 607 " ' s report , were not well received . Her Captain , Oberleutnant zur See Wolf Jeschonnek , claimed " Irish Oak " was a Q - ship with false Irish markings , sailing without lights . " The Second Lieutenant excused the sinking by saying that " IRISH OAK " was obviously a " Q " ship . He alleged that she was sailing at night without lights , zigzagging , and travelling at fourteen knots , although she appeared capable of barely half that speed . " Flag Officer U - boats said it ought not to have happened , but could be attributed to an understandable mistake by an eager captain . " The precise observance of Irish neutrality and of all Flag Officer U - boats ' strict orders in this connection is the duty of all U - boat captains and is in the most immediate and pressing interests of the German Reich " . " U - 607 " was sunk , while in convoy with two other U - boats , in the Bay of Biscay on 13 July 1943 by a Sunderland flying boat of 228 Squadron Royal Air Force , assisted by a Halifax of 58 Squadron . Oberleutnant Jeschonnek and six of his crew were taken prisoner ; the rest perished . Nine days after the sinking of " Irish Oak " , on 24 May 1943 , Admiral Dönitz ordered a U - boat withdrawal from the Atlantic . Of their operational fleet , 41 U - boats - or 25 % - had been lost in Black May , against a total of 50 Allied merchant ships destroyed . The Battle of the Atlantic was over . Crew . The crew of the " Irish Oak " when she was sunk on 15 May 1943 , all of whom were rescued : Eric Jones had been captain of the when it was sunk by gunfire from " U - 46 " on 4 September 1940 . He then captained the , which was bombed on 17 October 1941 . Thomas Donohue ( Second Mate ) went on to captain , replacing Desmond Fortune who was unable to walk following the RAF attack on it . James Burke ( Radio Officer ) had served on which was torpedoed and sunk by " U - 96 " , with 106 lives lost . Official Numbers and Code Letters . Official Numbers , a forerunner to IMO Number s , were : Code Letters : Other ships named " Irish Oak " . In 1949 , Irish Shipping Limited acquired a new ( Official Number 174596 ) . Built for ISL by J . Readhead and Sons Ltd . , South Shields ; Bill Norton complained that it was to be British built . It would be immortalised in Frank McCourt ’ s book “ ’ Tis ” . In 1967 she was sold to Proverde Shipping of Greece and renamed " Vegas " . In 1979 , en route from Piraeus to Vietnam , she ran aground near Jeddah , was re - floated but sold for breaking up . In 1973 , Irish Shipping Limited acquired another , a bulk carrier motor ship with a diesel engine . " Irish Oak " , 16 , 704 GRT , 25 , 649 DWT , was in service with Irish Shipping until 1982 .