Etter
den tyske invasjon av Polen i 1939 var jageren ( ORP ) Grom en av den
Polske marines skip som unnslapp til England. Sammen med flere andre
enheter ankom Grom Leith den 1 september 1939, og i tiden som fulgte
fikk jageren forskjellige moderniseringer i England. Deretter fulgte
patrulje oppdrag i den Engelske kanal og i Nordsjøen, og Grom
fikk ved flere tilfeller erfare krigen på nært hold. Den
22 april seilte Grom opp mot den Norske kysten og deltok raskt i operasjonen
rundt Narvik. Blant annet er Grom kredittert for å ha ødelagt
tre tyske kanonstillinger og jageren la også tyske soldater under
ild ved flere tilfeller. Den 4 mai lå Grom utenfor Narvik da tre
tyske Heinkel 111 fra 2/KG 100 på morgenen går til angrep
på jageren. Seks bomber blir sluppet over Grom fra en høyde
av over fem tusen meter, og mirakuløst nok treffer to av disse
Grom. Grom forsvinner raskt i det kalde vannet ved Orneset utenfor Narvik.
Ombord på Grom er kommandant kaptein Aleksander Hulewicz og en
besetning på 180 menn, og ut av disse omkommer 59 menn i angrepet
og det kalde vannet, mens resten av besetningen blir plukket opp av
to britiske jagere som kommer Grom til assistanse. Idag hviler vraket
av Orp Grom rett utenfor Orneset på sytti til et hundre og fem
meters dyp i to deler. SFT undersøkte vraket i 1999 for olje,
og konstaterte at vraket utgjorde kun en liten trussel mot miljøet
med hensyn til en eventuell forurensing...
After
the German invasion of Poland in 1939 the destroyer ( Orp ) Grom
was one vessels from the Polish navy that got away to England. Together
with several other units Grom arrived at Leith on September 1st
1939, and in the time that followed the destroyer received several
different modernization's in England. Thereafter followed patrol
missions in the English channel and in the North Sea, and Grom got
at several occasions experience the war at close range. On April
22nd Grom sailed up against the Norwegian coast line and participated
in the operation around Narvik. Among other things Grom was given
credits for having destroyed three German canon positions and the
destroyer also put German soldiers under fire at several occasions.
On May 4th Grom laid outside Narvik when three German Heinkel 111
from 2/KG 100 in the morning attacks the destroyer. Six bombs are
released over Grom from an altitude of over five thousand meters,
and by a miracle two of them hits Grom. Grom disappears quickly
in the cold waters at Orneset outside Narvik. On board Grom is commandant
captain Aleksander Hulewicz and a crew of 180 men, and out of these
59 men perish in the attack or the cold water, while the rest of
the crew are picked up by two British destroyers who comes to Groom's
assistance. Today the wreck of Grom rest right outside Orneset on
seventy to one hundred and five meters depth in two pieces. SFT
investigated the wreck in 1999 for oil, and stated that the wreck
was only a small threat to the environment in case of a pollution...
Name:
Former names:
Material:
Dimensions:
Grom
Steel
114,0x 11,3x 3,1m.
Tons:
Built:
Homeport:
Cargo:
2144 grt
Cowes ( UK
) 1936
Rosyth ( UK
)
From Erling Skjold \
NSA ( Norwegian Shipwreck Archive );
The wreck was located 06.10.1986 by the Norwegian naval vessel "Benjamin"
with a ROV. She is resting from 70-105metres depth, broken in two
parts. The wreck has been further exploredby Norwegian environmental
authorities in the 90ties, and they made a good drawing of the wreck.
The wreck is regarded as a war grave, and all diving at her is prohibited.
Orp Grom
Launched on 20.VII.1936 as ORP Grom, in John Samuel White in Cowes,
under command of cpt. Stanislaw Hryniewiecki. After final trials Grom
ship sailed to Gdynia where she arrived on 16.V.1937. On 29.VI.1937
Grom for the first time took part in the Sea Parade. Two months later
together with Burza and Wicher, Grom visited Tallinn and Riga. On
22.VIII.1938 Grom this time with her sister ship Blyskawica is revisiting
the Dutch Navy in Copenhagen. On 28.II.1939 because of the navigation
error ship run aground and slightly damaged both screws. In June 1939
new commander was appointed cpt. Aleksander Hulewicz. On 30.VIII.1939
Grom, Blyskawica and Burza sailed out from Gdynia directing to Leith,
under "Operation Peking". During transition to England,
destroyers were twice spotted by the German U-boats. On 1.IX.1939
squadron reached the shores of England. Two days later Grom, with
other destroyers, was moved to Rosyth, where she received tactical
number H-71. On 7.IX.1939 Blyskawica, Burza and Grom carried out an
unsuccessful attack on a German U-boat U-27, 10 miles to South from
South Uist, at 14:30 hours. Apparently the U-boat attacked the destroyers
but missed when it turned for a counterattack. Possibly the first
attack on a U-boat in the war. Two days later together with Blyskawica,
Grom bombed the possible position of the U-boat near Pembroke. In
the middle of September '39 Grom was patrolling the area of the English
Channel. On 28.X.1939 Grom with Blyskawica again without any success
attacked enemy U-boat. In the end of the October Grom was rebased
to Harwich, from which ship was patrolling the area of the North Sea.
In the beginning of January 1940 Grom was staying in the shipyard
in Chatham for short repairs, where the second torpedo turrent was
removed and one 102 mm AA gun was mounted. Also some small changes
were made in the equipment of the ship. In the April 1940 Grom was
moved to Rosyth. On 17 and 18.IV.1940 Grom was escorting damaged by
Luftwaffe English heavy cruiser Suffolk. On 22.IV.1940 Grom sailed
to Norway, where she was operating Narvik. Grom was bombing enemy
positions in Rombaken Fiord, where the Swedish iron ore from Ulea
to Narvik was transported by train. On 3.V.1940 Grom was damaged by
antitank 88 mm gun, but 3 German batteries were destroyed by Polish
gunfire. Next day at 8 am, two German He-111 bombers were spotted,
and shortly afterwards the third one. The last bomber dropped six
bombs from 5400 m. And miraculously, two bombs hit the target, one
hit torpedo turrent, second one hit the water very close to the board
and ripped of 20 m of plating. With the ship 59 hand were lost.
Etter
den tyske invasjon av Polen i 1939 var jageren ( ORP ) Grom en av den
Polske marines skip som unnslapp til England. Sammen med flere andre
enheter ankom Grom Leith den 1 september 1939, og i tiden som fulgte
fikk jageren forskjellige moderniseringer i England. Deretter fulgte
patrulje oppdrag i den Engelske kanal og i Nordsjøen, og Grom
fikk ved flere tilfeller erfare krigen på nært hold. Den
22 april seilte Grom opp mot den Norske kysten og deltok raskt i operasjonen
rundt Narvik. Blant annet er Grom kredittert for å ha ødelagt
tre tyske kanonstillinger og jageren la også tyske soldater under
ild ved flere tilfeller. Den 4 mai lå Grom utenfor Narvik da tre
tyske Heinkel 111 fra 2/KG 100 på morgenen går til angrep
på jageren. Seks bomber blir sluppet over Grom fra en høyde
av over fem tusen meter, og mirakuløst nok treffer to av disse
Grom. Grom forsvinner raskt i det kalde vannet ved Orneset utenfor Narvik.
Ombord på Grom er kommandant kaptein Aleksander Hulewicz og en
besetning på 180 menn, og ut av disse omkommer 59 menn i angrepet
og det kalde vannet, mens resten av besetningen blir plukket opp av
to britiske jagere som kommer Grom til assistanse. Idag hviler vraket
av Orp Grom rett utenfor Orneset på sytti til et hundre og fem
meters dyp i to deler. SFT undersøkte vraket i 1999 for olje,
og konstaterte at vraket utgjorde kun en liten trussel mot miljøet
med hensyn til en eventuell forurensing... 
After
the German invasion of Poland in 1939 the destroyer ( Orp ) Grom
was one vessels from the Polish navy that got away to England. Together
with several other units Grom arrived at Leith on September 1st
1939, and in the time that followed the destroyer received several
different modernization's in England. Thereafter followed patrol
missions in the English channel and in the North Sea, and Grom got
at several occasions experience the war at close range. On April
22nd Grom sailed up against the Norwegian coast line and participated
in the operation around Narvik. Among other things Grom was given
credits for having destroyed three German canon positions and the
destroyer also put German soldiers under fire at several occasions.
On May 4th Grom laid outside Narvik when three German Heinkel 111
from 2/KG 100 in the morning attacks the destroyer. Six bombs are
released over Grom from an altitude of over five thousand meters,
and by a miracle two of them hits Grom. Grom disappears quickly
in the cold waters at Orneset outside Narvik. On board Grom is commandant
captain Aleksander Hulewicz and a crew of 180 men, and out of these
59 men perish in the attack or the cold water, while the rest of
the crew are picked up by two British destroyers who comes to Groom's
assistance. Today the wreck of Grom rest right outside Orneset on
seventy to one hundred and five meters depth in two pieces. SFT
investigated the wreck in 1999 for oil, and stated that the wreck
was only a small threat to the environment in case of a pollution...