SS Malines

TSS Malines

Company type	Passenger ferry
Industry	Maritime transport
Founded	1921 (1921)
Founder	Armstrong Whitworth and Company
Headquarters	High Walker , United Kingdom
Area served	Harwich-Antwerp route
Products	Passenger ferry service

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TSS Malines was a passenger ferry constructed in 1921 for the Great Eastern Railway.

History

Armstrong Whitworth and Company at High Walker built the vessel, which was launched on 6 January 1921 by Mrs. John Kenneth Foster. She served as a sister ship to the Antwerp and Bruges, both introduced in 1920 for the Harwich-Antwerp route. The vessel embarked on her inaugural journey to Antwerp on 21 March 1922. In 1923, the Great Eastern Railway was absorbed by the London and North Eastern Railway.

In 1932, Malines collided with the tanker Hanseat and was subsequently grounded on a sandbank in the River Scheldt. After being refloated with assistance from six tugs, she was towed upriver to Antwerp for repairs. On 7 May 1933, she was involved in a collision near Flushing with the Swedish steamer Jamaica (945 tons), causing the latter to sink. A further collision occurred in 1936 with the Dutch ship Almkirk (6,810 tons), though no injuries were reported.

Requisitioned by the Royal Navy in 1940, she was renamed HMS Malines and served as an auxiliary convoy escort vessel. On 19 July 1942, German aircraft torpedoed her, leading to her beaching near Port Said, Egypt. Refloated in January 1943, she was repurposed as a training hulk until the conclusion of World War II. In June 1945, she was towed by the Empire tug Susan from Port Said to Falmouth; however, the voyage experienced delays when water ingress occurred between Gibraltar and Lisbon. Ultimately, she returned to the Tyne on 8 November 1945.