Sadko

Sadko (Russian: Садко) was a Soviet icebreaker known for its role in scientific expeditions in the Arctic. Built as SS Lintrose in 1913 for ferry service in Newfoundland, she was sold to the government of the Russian Empire in 1915 and renamed Sadko. In Russia, she was used as a freighter in the Arctic before sinking in 1916. She was refloated in 1933 by the Soviet government and put back into service as an Arctic science and exploration vessel. She participated in two particularly notable expeditions: one that attempted to reach Kvitøya in 1935 and another that attempted to locate the mythical Sannikov Land in 1937–38. Sadko ran aground and sank for a second time in 1941 during an expedition in the Kara Sea. Early history Construction Sadko was built by Swan, Hunter & Wigham Richardson Ltd. at the Neptune Yard in Low Walker, England in 1912–13, as an icebreaking passenger and freight steamer. Launched on 21 January 1913, the vessel was originally constructed for the Reid Newfoundland Company, which was the main ferry operator in the Dominion of Newfoundland from 1901 to 1923. The ship was a part of the Alphabet Fleet, the company's ferry fleet. The vessel was named the SS Lintrose in line with the fleet's eponymous naming convention, in which each ship was named after a location in Scotland starting with a different letter of the alphabet. The vessel was a part of the last group of ships ordered directly by the company, alongside the SS Kyle and the second SS Bruce.