Edwin j. O'Hara, a US Merchant Marine Academy engineering cadet aboard the SS Stephen Hopkins, takes over Ensign Willetts post at the 4-inch gun and fires the Hopkins 's remaining shells at
But the German auxiliary cruisers were formidable warships. Behind concealing hinged steel ports were mounted up to eight 5.9-inch guns, capable of firing six seconds after being ordered to do so. Two to four torpedo tubes were situated on deck or below the waterline. Varying arrays of 37mm and 20mm guns were mounted for short-range attacks or antiaircraft purposes. Falsework or screens topside hid the lighter guns and other combat equipment such as searchlights, range finders and smoke generators. Holds were fitted as crews' quarters, mine rooms, aircraft storage, ammunition magazines, reefers, auxiliary power supply storage, fuel bunkers, prisoners' quarters, or dry stores compartments. Most raiders carried one or two disassembled seaplanes, primarily for scouting. No catapults were carried, since it was roo difficult to disguise their offensive nature. German auxiliary cruisers were manned by up to 400 men, who were expected to live aboard for as long as one year. The crews of necessity became versatile and innovative. Most were skilled at changing their vessel's identity and appearance while at sea via false masts, stacks or superstructures. Ships were frequently painted different colors, and sophisticated disguises, such as the imperso nation of female p assengers on deck, became commonplace. Because most voyages involved independent steaming with little logistic support, crews occasionally careened their ships in mid-ocean to clean and paint their hulls. Trained
SEA HISTORY 91, WINTER 1999-2000
Stier. The oil painting by Tom Lovell, "The Last Five Shells, "is on display at the American Merchant Marine Museum, Kings Point NY (Courtesy of the American Merchant Marine Museum)
divers worked on underwater repairs while unavailable spare parts were fabricated in the on-board machine shop. The auxiliary cruiser Stier was officially designated HSK6, Schiff 23, and was assigned the name Raider J by the Royal Navy. Her first and only commanding officer was Captain (Kapiti:in zur See) Horst Gerlach. Stier was originally operated by Adas-Levant Line as the merchant ship Cairo, built by Friedrich Krupp Germania Werft at Kiel in 1936. She was taken over by the German navy in November 1939 for use as an icebreaker. During the summer of 1940 Stier became a minelayer, operating in the Bay of Biscay. She was converted to an auxiliary cruiser at Gdynia during the winter of 1941-42. As an auxiliary cruiser, Stier was a formidable warship. She had an overall length of 439', a beam of nearly 57', and a top speed of 14 knots. H er hull displaced about 11 ,000 tons, resulting in a mean draft of24 feet. Powered by a 17-cylinder diesel engine producing 3,750 horsepower driving a single propeller, Stier had an enormous cruising range of 50,000 statute miles at 12 knots. She possessed a cruising endurance of 173 days carrying a crew of 324 men. Armament fitted board Stier included six 5.9-inch guns with a range ofl8,500 yards, three antiaircraft guns (one 3 7 mm and two 20mm), and two unde1water torpedo tubes. For scouting and observation, Stier carried two Arado 231 seaplanes stored out ofsight in a hold when not in use.
Stier sailed from her home port of Le Verdon on the Bay ofBiscay coast of F ranee for her assigned South Atlantic operating area on 22 May 1942. The following month she sank a British freighter and a Panamanian tanker. From 1 to 9 August, Stier operated without success in company with the auxiliary cruiser Michel.Not until September did Stier sink her third victim, another British freighter. On 26 September 1942, Stier rendezvo used with the German supply ship Tannenfels to replenish food and fuel supplies. Next morning, most of Stier'screw went over the side in inflatable rafts, attempting to clear marine growth from the waterline area of the hull. As fog closed in over the cruiser, her crew was recalled. The patchy fog now restricted visibility to a range of one to two miles. At 0852 Stier's lookouts detected an unidentified merchant vessel approaching at a range of nearly two miles. Captain Horst Gerlach immediately ordered the engine room to make full power available and sounded action stations. Stier confronted her fourth potential victim. Battle at Sea Aboard the Stephen Hopkins, Captain Buck ordered the US ensign to be hoisted when the two unidentified ships appeared out of the fog. Upon sighting this identification, both Stier and Tannen/els ran up German flags, and Stier opened fire with her big guns and lighter antiaircraft weapons at 0855 . The shells were soon on target, and
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