Steamer of 718 GRT – 56.65 meters long and 8.62 meters wide.
The ship was built in 1913 by A.G. Weser in Bremen was built as No. 196 and was originally named MINOS. It had an identical sister ship (No. 195) called URANUS, which was launched on the same day. On February 27, 1937, Minos was sold to the Bissmark line and renamed Helfrid Bissmark.
As early as the spring of 1939, the Germans had laid mines in Danish waters, but these would not only prove to be a danger to the enemy, but also to the German ships.
On September 8, 1939, the steamer was on its way from Kiel to Malmo with a cargo of saltpeter and was sailing through the sound. They had no barrage pilot on board to guide them safely past the mine barrage. So they came across a mine in Mönsklint/Faxebucht that detonated shortly before the bridge. Of the 15-person crew, 7 men were taken on board from the Stettin steamer “Regina”. 8 sailors went down with the ship.
Construction plans
I found construction plans in the German Maritime Museum. For example, you can see the layout of the ship and the cabin occupancy.
The dive
We dived the wreck on August 16th 2024 during the Marine Research Germany project. The dive quite easy, because it wasn’t too deep (28m) and the wreck just 57m long.
Spelling – names
For convenience, divers often call the wreck by its old name, MINOS.
But you can also find the Spellings: HELFID BISSMARCK, or HELFRIES BISSMARK.
Lloyds London shows the correct spelling 😉
The model
I made the model from three pieces. You can find it in my Download area.
