Pan Kraft was a cargo ship built in 1919 by the Western Pipe and Steel Company of California.

On September 10, 1936, the U.S.-flag cargo liner Romance collided with New York at Boston, Massachusetts, and sank without loss of life.

With a deck full of planes and cargo holds full of crated aircraft, Pan Kraft made the first leg of her journey from New York City to Hvalfjordur, Iceland, where she joined with other merchant vessels and a Royal Navy escort to form Convoy PQ 17.

On July 5 she was attacked in the Barents Sea by Junkers Ju 88 bombers, and though she did not suffer a direct hit, her oil and steam lines were ruptured and she had to be abandoned.

The British corvette HMS Lotus then attempted without success to sink the disabled vessel, but at 6:00 am on July 7, 1942, Pan Kraft finally sank after suffering an internal explosion.