The MV Port Fairy was a notable British merchant vessel built in 1928 by Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson at Wallsend. With a gross register tonnage of 8,072 GRT, she measured approximately 147 meters (482 feet 3 inches) in length and had a beam of 19.3 meters (63 feet 4 inches). The vessel was designed for cargo transportation, with a service speed of around 15 knots. In 1930, her refrigeration equipment was upgraded, enabling her to carry the first cargo of chilled meat from Australia, later working similar cargo routes from New Zealand. During World War II, Port Fairy played an active and sometimes perilous role as an ammunition ship. Her wartime service included participation in convoy operations across the Atlantic and into West Africa. Notably, on October 22, 1940, while sailing in convoy OL8 from Liverpool to Canada, she collided with the Canadian destroyer Margaree in rough seas west of Ireland. Margaree sank rapidly, with significant loss of life, but Port Fairy rescued 34 survivors. In July 1943, she was part of Convoy Faith bound for Sierra Leone. During an attack by German aircraft near Vigo, both troopships Duchess of York and California were destroyed, but Port Fairy rescued 64 RAF personnel from the Duchess of York. Later, during a subsequent attack near Casablanca, she was hit by a bomb that breached her hull and caused a fire, but her crew and escort ship Swale managed to extinguish the blaze, and she safely completed the voyage. Post-war, Port Fairy continued in commercial service, operating on routes such as Montreal to Australia/New Zealand. On December 25, 1953, she experienced engine failure due to contaminated lubrication oil, drifting toward Fatu Hira atoll until repairs allowed her to reach port. By 1965, she was the oldest vessel in her fleet and was sold for scrap for £126,000. Renamed Taishikan, she made her final voyage to Hong Kong, where she was dismantled. Her long service history highlights her resilience and significance in mid-20th-century maritime commerce and wartime logistics.

This description has been generated using GPT-4.1-NANO based on the Vessel's wikidata information and then modified by ShipIndex.org staff.