HNLMS O 21


O 21, laid down K XXI was an of the Royal Netherlands Navy that saw service during World War II. During the war she sank several ships, among them the German submarine U-95.

Ship history

The submarine was laid down on 20 November 1937 as K XXI at the Koninklijke Maatschappij De Schelde, Vlissingen During construction she was renamed O 21, and was finally launched on 21 October 1939. Following the German invasion of 10 May 1940, the O 21 was hastily commissioned, still incomplete, and sailed for England on 12 May together with her sister and the tugboat B.V. 37, to be finally completed at the Navy yard in Rosyth.
During the war she operated around England, the Mediterranean Sea, Colombo in the Indian Ocean and Fremantle off the west coast of Australia. She survived the war and was decommissioned on 2 November 1957 and sold for scrap the following year.

Summary of raiding history

Ships sunk and damaged by O 21.
DateShip nameNationality/TypeTonnage Fate
28 July 1941ErnestoItalian merchant?missed
3 August 1941?Italian barquentine?Damaged
5 September 1941IsarcoItalian merchant5738Sunk
3 October 1941Oued YquemVichy-French merchant1369Sunk
22 November 1941San SalvatoreItalian schooner92Sunk
28 November 1941U-95German submarine
Sunk
13 March 1943Kasuga Maru No.2Japanese merchant cargo ship3967Sunk
22 April 1943Yamazato MaruJapanese army cargo ship6925Sunk
29 July 1945?Japanese coaster?Damaged
29 July 1945?Japanese coaster?Damaged