SS Arabic (1920)

auxiliary cruiser with the Imperial German Navy as a minelayer

North German Lloyd shipping line, and saw service on the Genoa to New York City

Kaiserliche Werft ( KWW ) in Wilhelmshaven

KzS Hans Pfundheller, the ship's first mission was laying a mine field off the north-west coast of Ireland against British trade. This she succeeded in doing, laying 200 mines on 23 October off Tory Island. The first victim of Berlin's minefield was the British cargo ship SS Manchester Commerce of 5,363 GRT. By chance the Grand Fleet had evacuated Scapa Flow under the threat of U-boat attacks (the Flow being undefended at that time) and were stationed temporarily at Lough Swilly.^[4] On 27 October vessels of the Grand Fleet sailed into Berlin’s minefield; the new dreadnought battleship HMS Audacious was struck and damaged, sinking later as efforts were made to tow her to safety. The trans-Atlantic liner RMS Olympic was also in the area, with a full complement of passengers, but she escaped hitting any of Berlin’s mines, thus avoiding a major diplomatic incident.^[5]

P&O Line. About a year later in 1920 she was purchased by the White Star Line, based in Liverpool and was refitted in Portsmouth, it was then she was renamed the SS Arabic. In September 1921 she made her maiden voyage as a White Star Line ship, via the Southampton to New York route. Afterwards, she sailed on the Mediterranean to New York service until 1924 when she was moved to the Hamburg to New York route, later that year her passenger accommodation was modified, and on 29 October 1926 Arabic made her first voyage under charter to the Red Star Line and resumed doing so until 1930 when she reverted to the White Star Line