Hunting New England Shipwrecks

Shipwreck Data
Vessel Name	Pan Pennsylvania
Other Names
Vessel Type	Tanker
Owner	U.S. Maritime Commission
Length / Beam / Draft (feet)	515' / 70' /
Tonnage	11,016 GRT
Hull Construction	Steel
Propulsion	Steam / Screw
Cargo	Gasoline
Built	1943 at Norfolk, VA (Welding Shipyards, Inc.)
Date of Loss	April 16, 1944
Reason for Loss	Torpedoed by the German submarine U-550 when the Pan Pennsylvania lagged behind its wartime convoy.
Fatalities	25 (56 crewmen were rescued)
Location	70 miles south of Nantucket Island (MA), near the wreck of the U-550
Coordinates (Lat/Lon)
Coordinates (Loran C)
Water Depth (feet)	Approximately 300'
Typical Visibility (feet)
Wreck Condition
Diving Considerations
Other Information	Immediately after the U-550 torpedoed the Pan Pennsylvania, the destroyer escorts USS Joyce, USS Peterson and USS Gandy, which were accompanying the convoy, hunted down and depth charged the sub. Following the depth charge attack, the wounded sub surfaced, engaged in a brief gun battle, then sank to the ocean floor. For more information on the U-550, see our U-550 data page.

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Pan Pennsylvania (uboat.net)	U-550 surfaced while Pan Pennsylvania burned (U.S. Navy photo)