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ssMaritime FrontPage for News Updates & “Ship of the Month”
With Reuben Goossens
Maritime Historian, Cruise‘n’Ship
Reviewer, Author & Maritime Lecturer
Please Note: All ssMaritime and other
related maritime/cruise sites are 100% non-commercial and privately owned. Be
assured that I am NOT associated with any shipping or cruise companies or any
travel/cruise agencies or any other organisations! Although the author has been
in the passenger shipping industry since 1960, although is now retired but
having completed over 700 Classic Liners and Cargo-Passengers Ships features I
trust these will continue to provide classic ship enthusiasts the information
the are seeking, but above all a great deal of pleasure!
Holland-Africa
Line
VNSM - Vereenigde Nederlandsche Scheepvaart Maatschappij

Featuring
MS
Klipfontein, Jagersfontein, Oranjefontein & the MS Randfontein
Including
Royal Interocean Lines MV Nieuw Holland
*******************************
Klipfontein, Jagersfontein &
Oranjefontein
Klipfontein
- The first of the four Fontein combination-passenger liners
The
Fontein sisters exuded an understated luxury which endeared them to the Dutch,
English, and South African travelling public. In those days, many preferred to
sail on smaller liners for a good number of reasons. These ships offered
comfortable accommodations, and delightfully intimate lounges and bars.
Holland-Africa Line and the Fontein ships famed for their superb personalised
Dutch service and fine cuisine. The Fontein interiors were likened to the
larger passenger liners, but missing the crowd.
This trio of ships had four passenger decks,
accommodating 100 First Class and 60 Tourist (Klipfontein 104 First – 42
Tourist). First Class was located amidships, and Tourist aft. All First Class
lounges as well as the swimming pool were located on Promenade deck, with
Tourist facilities on lower decks aft. Cabins ranged from singles and twin
bedded cabins in First Class, some having upper Pullmans.
Just over half of the first class cabins had private facilities. Tourist Class
had some two-berth cabins, but most were four or six berth cabins, all with
shared facilities. Cargo space was considerable, each ship
having four holds, two forward and two aft.
As will be read below, the first three Fontein
ships featured had interesting beginnings, this being due to World War II.
*******************************
Klipfontein - 1939 - 1953

MS
Klipfontein
MS Klipfontein
was the first of a trio of ships to be built between 1939 and 1940. These were
to be a new class of combination passenger liners, offering new standards of
comfort.
March
4, 1939, Klipfontein is launched
Klipfontein career between from the Netherlands
and South Africa
prior to the war was short-lived, as in 1942 she was taken over by the US War
Shipping Administration to be used as a trooper.

Soldiers
seen departing on the Klipfontein on September 3, 1946
She
survived the war and after her duties were completed she was returned to VNSM /
Holland-Africa Line on February 1, 1946. After a comprehensive refit, she
re-commenced her Netherlands,
UK,
South Africa
and Mozambique
service, which continued until a dramatic day in 1953.
January 8, 1953, was a calm day at
sea, but, it was the day the Klipfontein
would strike some submerged rocks off Mozambique,
just five nautical miles off Cape
Barra.
The captain realising the ship was badly damaged and doomed, immediately called
for the ship to be abandoned. Passengers and crew remained calm and went about
the evacuation with great efficiency, which was aided by the calm seas, and the
knowledge they were close to the shore. Klipfontein
sank within an hour after the accident.

MS
Klipfontein goes down
Thankfully,
the Union-Castle liner, RMS
Bloemfontein
Castle
was nearby and she rescued all 234 passengers and crew. Captain of the Bloemfontein
Castle,
Captain J. A. Fergurson and his Senior Officers later received commemorative
gifts from Holland-Afrika Line in thanks for an efficient rescue of all
Klipfontein’s passengers and crew. Bloemfontein
Castle
was later sold to become the Chandris Lines RHMS Patris, a ship that
transported thousands of European and British emigrants to Australia
and New Zealand.
Union
Castle’s
RMS
Bloemfontein
Castle
*******************************
Jagersfontein - 1940 - 1967

MS
Jagersfontein
Jagersfontein was Laid-down as the Rietfontein,
but renamed Elandsfontein
before her launching on 30 March, 1940. Within weeks the Germans invaded the Netherlands.
After the invasion, although unfinished, she was seized by the German Navy, but
was laid up, with her decks cluttered with unassembled machinery parts. Still
idle and unfinished, on March 14, 1945, she was damaged by artillery fire
near Gotehafen, and partially sank at the mouth of the Vistula.
She was raised on March 20, 1947. By August, she was sufficiently
patched up, and towed to the De Schelde Shipyards in Vlissingen
in the Netherlands,
where she was fully repaired and completed. During her completion in 1948, she
was renamed once again and became Jagersfontein.
On March 11,
1950, she was officially returned to Holland-Africa Line and Jagersfontein commenced a successful
career.
In 1967 she
was sold to Embajada Cia Naviera SA Piraeus Greece,
who in turn sold her for scrap. Renamed Devon,
she arrived at Kaohsiung
on December, 23.
*******************************
Oranjefontein – 1940 - 1967

MS
Oranjefontein
The
Oranjefontein was built by P.
Smit Jr, Rotterdam,
and was launched on March 21, 1940 and was completed on December 20. On March 17, 1941,
she was seized by the German navy. Just five months later she was damaged by
bombs that fell nearby. Oranjefontein
was transferred to the renamed German-Africa Lines Hamburg, but strangely
enough, she at one time was used for target practise by the Luftwaffe and
U-Boats, happily she survived.
In 1945, whilst briefly named Pioneer, she was used to transport
refugees from the eastern German territories.
On July 12, 1945, Oranjefontein was returned to VNSN - Holland-Africa Line, and
was taken to Newcastle
in the UK
for a comprehensive refit. She departed on September 12, 1945, heading for the Dutch West Indies
to repatriate Dutch citizens. Upon her return she commenced the Netherlands,
UK,
South Africa
and Mozambique
service.
Like Jagersfontein,
she was also sold in 1967, but unlike the Jagersfontein, VNSM sold her to a Spanish breaker. Renamed Fontein she arrived at the Bilbao
breakers yard on August 11, 1967.
Klip/Jaegers/Oranjefontein Specifications
Length: 528ft.
Beam: 63ft.
Draft: 30.3ft.
GRT: 10,574 tons.
Engines: (Klipfontein) Burmeister &
Wain Diesels 11,800 BHP.
(Jaegers) 2 Sulzer
Type Diesels 1,800 BHP.
(Oranje) B&W type
Diesels 1,800 BHP.
Propellers: Two.
Service
Speed: 17 knots.
Passenger
Decks: 4.
Passengers: Jaegers/Oranjefontein: 100 First - 60
Tourist Class.
Klipfontein:
104 First - 42 Tourist Class.
Crew: Klipfontein 120 –
Jaegers/Oranjefontein 110.
Livery: Black hull, white
superstructure. Black funnel with orange band & red boot topping
*******************************
MS Randfontein
– 1958 - 1971

MS
Randfontein sets sail for South Africa
To
replace the Klipfontein, which has
sunk off Mozambique
in 1953, VNSM - Holland-Africa Line ordered a larger updated
version of the Fontein ships. She would join her two
older sisters, the 10,574-ton Jagersfontein
and Oranjefontein on the Netherlands,
UK,
South Africa
and Mozambique
service.
Built in a
graving dock by Wilton-Fijenoord, Schiedam
in the Netherlands,
the 13,694-ton liner became the largest Holland-Africa Line liner to be built.
On June 28,
1958, she was floated out of her graving dock, and was officially
named Randfontein. The
launching was officiated over by Mrs. Geldenhuys, the wife of the Republic
of South Africa’s
Ambassador to The Hague.
When completed, she was handed over on November 24.
Randfontein departed Amsterdam
for her maiden voyage to Africa in January 1959, calling at Southampton, Las Palmas,
Cape Town,
Port
Elizabeth,
East London, Durban
and return, a service she maintained for the next eleven years.

Randfontein was designed to accommodate a larger number of Tourist Class
passengers, than the two older Fontein ships. All First Class cabins were
located on A Deck, all having private facilities. Most were twin bedded cabins
with a number of singles. In addition some cabins also had upper Pullmans.
Tourist Class offered two, four or six berth cabins, all with shared
facilities. Both classes had a good number of lounges and bars, in addition
both classes had their own fully tiled swimming pool, which was virtually
unknown those days for ships of this kind.
Like her older sisters Randfontein had a large cargo
capacity, including refrigerated ones. Her six holds were distributed, four
forward, two aft. She also had deep tanks to transport vegetable oils.

MS
Randfontein arrives in port
Having
a boutique type atmosphere, Randfontein
became a popular ship with the Dutch, English and South Africans, thus she
enjoyed excellent passenger loadings, until the late sixties. Then, as air
travel became more popular, passenger loadings dropped rapidly and it was
decided to terminate her service mid 1971.
Randfontein Specifications:
Length: 178.3m – 584ft.
Beam: 21.4 m – 70ft.
Draft: 30.1ft.
GRT: 13,694 ton.
Engines: 2 M.A.N. Wilton Diesels
(15,400 BHP).
Propellers: Two.
Service
Speed: 18 knots.
Passenger
Decks: 5.
Passengers: 289 - 123 First – 166 Tourist
Class.
Air-Conditioning: All cabins and both Dinning Rooms.
Livery: Black hull, white
superstructure.
. Black funnel with
orange band & red boot topping.
*******************************
MS Nieuw Holland
1971 - 1974

Royal
Interocean
Lines MS Nieuw Holland
Postcard
from the author’s private collection
Randfontein was sold to RIL - Royal Interocean Lines in July 1971, and she was
dispatched to Hong Kong
where she was given an extensive refit. Notable changes were the removal of a
pair of derrick posts forward, being replaced by a large crane. All cabins she
would commence her duties between Japan
and Australia.

Royal
Interocean
Lines MS Nieuw Holland
MS
Nieuw Holland would replace the smaller RIL MS Tjiluwah, which was lovingly known as the
“Elegant White Yacht” on the Japan
Australia service. Finally she departed Hong Kong on Her maiden voyage to Australia
on January
21, with just 200 or so passengers, and the idea of using her as a
cruise ship was rapidly abandoned, as she was not popular.
With the ever dwindling bookings, the smaller Tjiwangi was also withdrawn from
service in 1974 at the same time the Nieuw
Holland was placed on a new service departing from Adelaide, sailing to
Risdon Tasmania, Sydney, Port Moresby, Bali, Surabaya, Jakarta, Singapore,
Penang Belawan, Singapore, and return to Adelaide. However, this service proved
to be even more unpopular and it was cancelled after just four return voyages.
Sadly time had run out for passenger-Cargo services from Australia to Asia,
which was mostly due to cheap charter air fares and cargo containerisation,
thus the cargoes had radically changed, and the older style of handling was now
out of date.
At the time, P&O’s Chitral and Cathay, operated a similar service to RIL, and P&O, just
like the Nieuw Holland were
also suffering poor passenger loadings, and thus both the delightful Chitral and Cathay were also taken off the market and both were sold. Sadly, the age of
combination-passenger liners has finally come to an
end. Thus the time had come, that RIL finally decided that having been
operating on the Australia-Asian market for much longer than most lines, sadly
the time had come they would have to withdraw from this once profitable
Australian market, and the MS Nieuw
Holland’s final voyage from Australia saw her depart Sydney (her
final Australian port) without any fanfare whatsoever, on October 22, 1974.
This last passenger sailing to Singapore
where her final RIL passengers disembarked. Royal Interocean Lines sent the Nieuw Holland to Hong Kong
without any passengers and upon arrival she was laid
up, and placed on the market and she was within several months.

MS
Nieuw Holland departs for Japan
*******************************
MS Yu Hua – Hai Xing
1974 - 1996
Several months after her
initial arrival in Singapore she was sold to the Peoples
Republic
of China,
who renamed her “Yu Hua.” Accommodating
297 passengers and she was registered at 12,191 GRT, and she was placed
on the China-Africa service, but was later she was transferred to the Shanghai to Hong Kong
service. In 1981, Yu Hua was
transferred to the Shanghai-Hai Xing Shipping
Company, who renamed her “Hai
Xing” and she continued on the Shanghai to Hong Kong service for the next ten years.

Hai
Xing seen here looking very smart in a very rare photograph
taken in 1990
During her ten year China-Hong
Kong service, I would receive occasional information that she had been seen in
either Shanghai or Hong Kong
and at that she looked a well maintained ship, which was very pleasing to hear

The MS Hai Xing is seen in Hong Kong
Harbour
In 1991, the Hai Xing was finally taken out of service and she was laid up at
Hong
Kong,
where she lingered for five years and whilst at anchor, she sadly deteriorated
badly.

MS
Hai Xing is seen here laid up at Hong Kong
in the early days in 1991
She was finally sold to Indian breakers in
1996. For her final voyage to India,
she was registered in St Vincent
and renamed “Herbert.”
By now, looking very much the worse for wear, the Herbert, ex Hai
Xing, Yu Hua, Nieuw Holland, and Randfontein departed Hong Kong undertow
on May 28, 1996, and she arrived at Alang,
India
on June 13, and decommissioned. She was beached four days later and was rapidly
demolished.
The MS
Randfontein/Nieuw Holland as a ship enjoyed
thirty-three years of actual service and five years in her final days in
lay-up, before being broken up. She was sadly the last of an excellent series
of Fontein Liners.
Enter
our Fontein
Photo Page
Read the Visser Family Story (voyage
to South Africa
on MS Jagersfontein in 1965)
“Blue Water Liners sailing to the
distant shores.
I watched them come, I watched them go and I watched them die.”
****************************
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Photographs
on ssmaritime and associate pages are either by the author or from the
author’s private collection. In addition there are some images and
photographs that have been provided by Shipping Companies or private
photographers or collectors. Credit is given to all contributors, however,
there are some photographs provided to me without details regarding the
photographer or owner concerned. Therefore, I hereby invite if owners of these
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be found at the bottom of the page on www.ssmaritime.com), in order
that due credit may be given.
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