Help Identifying transport MT227

[Guest DMB-TX]

Hello! What a great forum. New here, son of a WWII Army vet, and needing some help. I recently found out what ship my father's outfit crossed the English Channel on. Late to the invasion, on 8/26/44, they arrived at Southampton Port of Embarkation and boarded MT227 and started across to Utah Beach. Can anyone tell me what MT stands for (Motor Tanker or Military Transport?), and if there is a data base that will further identify vessel 227 specifically? If not, maybe context would help at least suggest what the vessel might have been. My father's outfit was a AAA 90mm gun battalion. Data suggests that each the 5 batteries travelled across separately. However, being in the 95 plus man Hq with less cargo than a firing battery (no big guns and prime mover tractors), they came apparently separate from their trucks and radar as they had to climb down cargo netting into Higgins boats (LCVP) and wade ashore. The latter seemed strange to me at this late a date but I'm sure Utah was bottlenecked, especially after the big mulberry destroying storm. Looking forward to the discussion, and thanks ahead of time y'all!!! 

[j. t. thompson]

MT stands for Motor Transport.  (Also MTV, for Motor Transport Vessel, same thing.) They were developed to transport motor vehicles, and personnel, for the invasion.

 

 

MT 225                                                                                                                                                                      USN Photo

 

Note the sign up by the stack, MT 225.  The bottom line, under the numbers, is a convoy code. The MT's all had these signs, one on each side of the ship.

[j. t. thompson]

Here's a description of the MT's:

 

"...the Transportation Corps devised...the use of converted Liberty ships as motor transport vessels to carry trucks and drivers to Normandy. The conversion, which was accomplished by U.S. military railway shop battalion detachments, involved ballasting and flooring off the lower hold, so as to provide space for vehicles in four of the hatches; the installation of deck latrines; and the conversion of the fifth hatch into living quarters for the drivers who accompanied each shipment. The average vessel lifted approximately 120 loaded vehicles and 500 men on each outbound voyage. The 14th Port at Southampton took the lead in dispatching MTV's to support the invasion force. At first, vehicles were discharged on the far shore by barge or lighter, using the ship's own gear."  (ref. 1)

 

"On 22 March 1945, MTV John Stevenson was loaded with 182 vehicles and 31 personnel and was the last such vessel to be loaded by 14th Port, the MTV loadings originally having started on 7 June 1944. This took the total vehicles loaded on MTV's at Southhampton to 240,900 since D-Day, which with general cargo totaled 542,173 deadweight tons and these MTV's also carried 298,988 persons across the channel. There was considerable praise heaped on the black Port Companies which had handled some 97 percent of the MTV loadings - this was from a start on 7 June 1944, without any training how to load these vessels, but within a few weeks had developed a very efficient methodology, including a record loading of three hours with about 120 vehicles."  (ref. 2)

 

Not all MTV's were Liberty ships.

 

(ref. 1)  U.S. Army in WWII / The Transportation Corps / Operations Overseas / Chapter VI / The Invasion of Normandy / p. 258

 

(ref. 2) 14th Major Port US Army: Southampton / Operational History / p. 11

[j. t. thompson]

 SS George E. Pickett (MT 227)

 

https://ww2talk.com/index.php?threads/motor-transport-vessels-in-operation-neptune.103725/

 

My thanks to Richard Anderson for pointing out the source he used to make this identification.

[j. t. thompson]

ConvoyWeb lists George E Pickett in convoy EPM.48 (Portland - Seine Bay) on August 29, 1944.

[j. t. thompson]

MARAD

[j. t. thompson]

MARAD

[j. t. thompson]

MARAD

 

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