Le Donateur
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One of the most beautiful dives we made was on the Donator. The ship lays in 48 meter of water. Here is a small historical review:

 

The Prosper Schiaffino better known the Donator was a freighter. She had a length of 78.30m, 12.0m at the beam and a draught of 5.54m. She was powered by engines developing 1800hp giving her a maximum speed of 14 to 15 knots. Her crew was made of 30 men. 

She was built in 1931 at Bergen Mak Verksted A/S shipyard in Norway and launched under the name Donator as an Italian freighter. In october 1933 she is sold to the Compagnie Générale d'Armement Maritime and becomes a banana freighter known as Petite Terre. In 1939, she is purchased by the Compagnie Algérienne de Navigation (Schiaffino Cie) and renamed Prosper Schiaffino. On the 11th of October 1945, she leaves Marseille with a cargo of vegetables heading for Alger. Their she unloads and goes back to sea with a cargo of barrels and on deck tanks of wine. Taking cover of the Mistral (northern wind) she heads for Spain following the coast. At the level of Porquerolles she meat a mine field not yet disarmed. The explosion happened on the 10th of November 1945 and nearly ripped off the bow. 11 of the 30 crew where recovered by a fighter 111.

 

Maximum depth: 48 meters
Duration: 85 minutes
Diluent: Tx 13/38
Bailout: Tx 13/38 and EAN 40 (7 ltrs)
Bottom time: 40 minutes

 
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