As part of this program, EFC placed orders with nation's shipyards for a large number of vessels of standard designs.

[2] Soon after the end of hostilities, USSB started suspension and cancellation of contracts for ships ordered at war time prices.

Shortly thereafter, the vessel was bought together with three more freighters of approximately the same size by the newly formed Green Star Steamship Co. and immediately renamed Corvus, after one of the constellations.

[18] A shipping crisis that started in 1921 due to overabundance of tonnage and scarcity of cargo hit Green Star Steamship Co. very hard.

After its organization it chose rapid expansion, acquiring close to forty vessels and incurring a large amount of debt.

Corvus remained idle during this period of time, but eventually was sold to Planet Steamship Co. at the end of February 1923 together with several other vessels at the U.S.

[19][20] Following the acquisition, Planet Steamship Co. decided to allocate Corvus and another freighter, SS Santa Cecilia, to intercoastal East to West Coast trade.

On one of such trips in March 1927 she broke and lost one of her propeller blades after striking a submerged object and had to be towed to San Francisco for repairs.

[25] In September 1928 Corvus while on a trip from Rio de Janeiro to Baltimore with a cargo of manganese ore ran out of fuel while in the Caribbean Sea and was drifting helplessly until saved by US Navy minesweeper Grebe who brought her into Trinidad for refueling.

Calmar transported exclusively Bethlehem's products westbound but served as a common carrier carrying lumber and other cargoes on their return voyages eastwards for a variety of shippers.

[39] In November 1934 during one of her usual trips from Los Angeles to Baltimore Flomar became disabled after losing her propeller about forty miles away from the Panama Canal.

At about 01:30 when about seven miles southwest of Stockton, Peter Kerr suddenly lost control of her rudder after hitting a river bank and struck Flomar.

1 hold under the waterline and smashed port bow, however, the freighter was able to proceed to San Francisco under her own power where she was put in Hunter's Point drydock for repairs.

She continued on to Stockton to unload 800 tons of cargo there before also sailing for Oakland where she too was put into Moore's drydock for repairs and evaluation.

Flomar loaded her cargo in New York but was delayed for several days due to a strike by seamen demanding increased payments for travel into a combat zone.

[51] After the strike was settled Flomar sailed from New York on 9 July 1941 arriving in Port Sudan on August 31 via Cape Town and Aden.

[52] Flomar conducted one more voyage to the Red Sea area in 1942 departing Baltimore on 27 December 1941 and arriving at Suez on 3 March 1942.

[note 3] On her third war-time trip the freighter sailed to Panama Canal as part of convoys NG-304 and GZ-4 and from there entered the Pacific and proceeded to South Africa.

[58][59] During 1943 Flomar made two trips between United States, Canada and Liverpool carrying general cargo and war supplies as part of convoys SC-135 and HX-253.

She was mostly involved in short range missions plying trade between East Coast of the United States and various Cuban and Puerto-Rican ports, such as Guantanamo, Nuevitas as well as Curaçao, Aruba and Maracaibo.

There she was evaluated, purchased by WSA and transferred as part of lend-lease agreement to the USSR Far East Shipping Company on 10 January 1945.

[62] An inspection of the vessel took place on June 1 and it was determined that the ship needs stabilization first before any attempt to refloat could be undertaken due to the freighter's position and sustained damage.

Due to the condition and age of the vessel, the Soviet Government returned the ship to the United States effective 11 August 1945.