RMS Mauretania (1906) and launched with passengers. When "Britannic", working as a hospital ship during World War I, sank in 1916 after hitting a mine in the Kea channel the already davited boats were swiftly lowered saving nearly all on board, but the ship took nearly three times as long to sink as "Lusitania" and thus the crew had more time to evacuate passengers. "Mauretania" departed Liverpool on her maiden voyage on 16 November 1907 under the command of Captain John Pritchard, and on the return voyage captured the record for the fastest eastbound crossing of the Atlantic, with an average speed of
German submarine U-218 the last British ship to be sunk as the result of World War II. The steam fishing vessel "Kurd" was sunk on 10 July 1945 after hitting a British mine off Lizard Head The wreck of the U-boat was identified by marine archaeologist Innes McCartney in 2001 off Malin Head. "U-218" took part in seven wolfpacks, namely. German submarine U-218 German submarine "U-218" was a Type VIID mine-laying U-boat of Nazi Germany's "Kriegsmarine" during World War II. Laid down on 17 March 1941 as yard number 650 and launched on 5 December, she was commissioned on 24 January 1942 under