B-442 / KONIN
General cargo vessel KONIN (type B-442)
Keel laid: 2 March 1968
Launched: 29 June 1968
Delivered: 31 December 1968
The last type of vessel with a design based directly on the very successful type B-54 general cargo ships, which had been first built at Gdańsk Shipyard 13 years earlier.
Technical specifications:
capacity: 10 063 GRT, 5598 NRT; 12,241 DWT;
dimensions: 154.6 x 20.6 x 9.0 m
propulsion: Sulzer-Cegielski 6RD76 diesel engine with 9,600 hp
speed: 17.6 knots
crew: 44 (+ 7 passengers)
Nine type B-442 vessels were built in 1968-1972: five for Polish shipowners and four for Turkey.
In the first half of the 1960s, Gdańsk Shipyard began the construction of a new type of ships that were an upgrade over the vessels that had been built until then. The new ships were better from the technological and operational point of view. The B-54 general cargo ship design was developed into the somewhat larger B-43, and then the B-44. The last ships to be derived from these 10,000 DWT vessels were the type B-40 general cargo ships for a Soviet shipowner and similar type B-442 vessels built under different technical specifications for a Polish shipowner. Five such vessels were commissioned by Polish Ocean Lines at Gdańsk Shipyard in the second half of the 1960s.
The type B-442 vessels were thoroughly modernised compared to their prototype. With their slightly larger size they could carry more cargo, and the location of the superstructure and engine room closer to the stern made it possible to use the midship, the most capacious part of the vessel, as a hold. They received the names of places where the large industrial factories of the Polish People’s Republic were located; in order of construction these were the Konin, Świecie, Żerań, Turoszów and Puławy. They were to operate a line to the ports of the Middle East on the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf.
However, only the first of them sailed under the Polish Ocean Lines flag. The rest fell victim to the unquenchable thirst for hard currency which distressed Poland’s economy at the time, so in April 1969 the remaining four vessels, which were at various stages of completion, were sold to a Turkish shipowner. The plans to introduce modern tonnage to the Middle Eastern line had to be postponed and resurfaced only in 1970-1971. Four ships were ordered then, two of which (the Świecie and the Ursus) sailed under the Polish Ocean Lines flag, while the Lucjan Szenwald and Władysław Orkan became part of the Chipolbrok fleet.
The prototype Konin sailed without incident. In 1972, it was the first Polish ship to call at Majunga, Madagascar. In March 1994, it was sold to a foreign shipowner who operated the ship under its old name with a Polish crew. In 1996, it was scrapped at Alang beach, India. The other vessels of this type, both Polish and Turkish, also sailed without issue and were scrapped only in 1998-2002.
In the first half of the 1960s, Gdańsk Shipyard began the construction of a new type of ships that were an upgrade over the vessels that had been built until then. The new ships were better from the technological and operational point of view. The B-54 general cargo ship design was developed into the somewhat larger B-43, and then the B-44. The last ships to be derived from these 10,000 DWT vessels were the type B-40 general cargo ships for a Soviet shipowner and similar type B-442 vessels built under different technical specifications for a Polish shipowner. Five such vessels were commissioned by Polish Ocean Lines at Gdańsk Shipyard in the second half of the 1960s.
The type B-442 vessels were thoroughly modernised compared to their prototype. With their slightly larger size they could carry more cargo, and the location of the superstructure and engine room closer to the stern made it possible to use the midship, the most capacious part of the vessel, as a hold. They received the names of places where the large industrial factories of the Polish People’s Republic were located; in order of construction these were the Konin, Świecie, Żerań, Turoszów and Puławy. They were to operate a line to the ports of the Middle East on the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf.
However, only the first of them sailed under the Polish Ocean Lines flag. The rest fell victim to the unquenchable thirst for hard currency which distressed Poland’s economy at the time, so in April 1969 the remaining four vessels, which were at various stages of completion, were sold to a Turkish shipowner. The plans to introduce modern tonnage to the Middle Eastern line had to be postponed and resurfaced only in 1970-1971. Four ships were ordered then, two of which (the Świecie and the Ursus) sailed under the Polish Ocean Lines flag, while the Lucjan Szenwald and Władysław Orkan became part of the Chipolbrok fleet.
The prototype Konin sailed without incident. In 1972, it was the first Polish ship to call at Majunga, Madagascar. In March 1994, it was sold to a foreign shipowner who operated the ship under its old name with a Polish crew. In 1996, it was scrapped at Alang beach, India. The other vessels of this type, both Polish and Turkish, also sailed without issue and were scrapped only in 1998-2002.
