At 1230 hrs on 25 November 1943, Rohna and four other troop ships left Oran in French Algeria.
At sea three hours later they joined Convoy KMF 26 which was passing on its way from Britain to Alexandria.

About 1630 hrs the next day off Bougie the convoy was attacked by 14 Luftwaffe Heinkel He 177A heavy bombers escorted by Junkers Ju 88 aircraft, followed by between six and nine torpedo bombers.
At the time the convoy had a limited air escort of four land-based Free French Air Force Spitfires.
Later in the course of the attack they were relieved by RAF Spitfires.

The He 177As carried Henschel Hs 293 radio-guided, rocket-boosted glide bombs, almost 30 of which they launched at the convoy.
The convoy's combined anti-aircraft fire seems to have impeded most of the attackers' attempts to guide their glide bombs onto their targets.
Rohna's DEMS gunners contributed with her machine guns, Oerlikon autocannons and about 20 rounds from her 12-pounder gun.
The convoy shot down at least two aircraft and damaged several others.

Rohna was the only casualty.
About 1715 or 1725 hrs a He 177A piloted by Hans Dochtermann released a glide bomb that hit Rohna on her port side, at the after end of her engine room and Number Six troop deck.
Men poured on deck, many of them badly wounded.

The impact was about 15 feet (5 m) above the water line but it flooded the engine room, knocked out all electrical equipment including her pumps, and set the ship ablaze.
The impact demolished the number four bulkhead.
It also destroyed six of her 22 lifeboats and forced out the plates of her hull so that none of her surviving port boats could be lowered past them.
Troops cut the falls of some of the boats, causing them to fall in the sea and be swamped.
Only eight boats were launched; they became overloaded with troops and most became waterlogged or capsized.
The number one deck serang (boatswain), Bhowan Meetha, helped the chief officer to launch the boats.
Other members of the lascar crew launched the two aft lifeboats and abandoned ship without remaining to help to launch the other boats.
With number four hold afire and all communications severed, the crewmen aft had lost contact with the bridge and had no way to reach the boat deck to help with the other boats.
They disobeyed orders, and acted on their own.

As Rohna listed 12 degrees to starboard, her crew launched most of her 101 liferafts.
By 1750 hrs only a few rafts remained so they took the hatch boards from number three hold and threw them overboard too.
By now number four hold, just aft of the engine room, was on fire.
The Auk-class minesweeper USS Pioneer and cargo ship Clan Campbell fell behind the convoy to rescue survivors, protected by the Hunt-class destroyer HMS Atherstone, which made a smokescreen and gave anti-aircraft cover.
Clan Campbell had a high freeboard so she lowered a cargo net for survivors to use as a scramble net.
The climb was about 30 feet (9 m) from the sea to the deck, which was difficult for many of the exhausted survivors.
The wind was only Force 4, but there was a 15-to-20-foot (5 to 6 m) swell that prevented the rescue ships from launching their own boats.

Among the last people to leave the ship were her master, Captain TJ Murphy, the chief, second and third officers, the senior medical officer and four US soldiers.
This group remained on the foredeck for about 30 minutes after the other soldiers and crew had abandoned ship.
About 90 minutes after the missile hit the ship there was a rending noise, probably from the collapse of a bulkhead aft.
Clouds of smoke came from number three hold and the ship settled by the stern.
The group threw the last four rafts overboard and abandoned ship.

After night fell, Atherstone switched from anti-aircraft cover to rescuing survivors and the tug Mindful arrived from Bougie and joined the operation.
The rescue continued until 0215 hrs on 27 November.
In total, 819 survivors were taken to Philippeville: 602 on Pioneer, about 110 on Clan Campbell and about 70 on Atherstone.

Of the 1,138 men who were killed, 1,015 were US personnel.
The
At 1230 hrs on 25 November 1943, Rohna and four other troop ships left Oran in French Algeria. At sea three hours later they joined Convoy KMF 26 which was passing on its way from Britain to Alexandria.
About 1630 hrs the next day off Bougie the convoy was attacked by 14 Luftwaffe Heinkel He 177A heavy bombers escorted by Junkers Ju 88 aircraft, followed by between six and nine torpedo bombers. At the time the convoy had a limited air escort of four land-based Free French Air Force Spitfires. Later in the course of the attack they were relieved by RAF Spitfires.
The He 177As carried Henschel Hs 293 radio-guided, rocket-boosted glide bombs, almost 30 of which they launched at the convoy. The convoy's combined anti-aircraft fire seems to have impeded most of the attackers' attempts to guide their glide bombs onto their targets. Rohna's DEMS gunners contributed with her machine guns, Oerlikon autocannons and about 20 rounds from her 12-pounder gun. The convoy shot down at least two aircraft and damaged several others.
Rohna was the only casualty. About 1715 or 1725 hrs a He 177A piloted by Hans Dochtermann released a glide bomb that hit Rohna on her port side, at the after end of her engine room and Number Six troop deck. Men poured on deck, many of them badly wounded.
The impact was about 15 feet (5 m) above the water line but it flooded the engine room, knocked out all electrical equipment including her pumps, and set the ship ablaze. The impact demolished the number four bulkhead. It also destroyed six of her 22 lifeboats and forced out the plates of her hull so that none of her surviving port boats could be lowered past them. Troops cut the falls of some of the boats, causing them to fall in the sea and be swamped. Only eight boats were launched; they became overloaded with troops and most became waterlogged or capsized. The number one deck serang (boatswain), Bhowan Meetha, helped the chief officer to launch the boats. Other members of the lascar crew launched the two aft lifeboats and abandoned ship without remaining to help to launch the other boats. With number four hold afire and all communications severed, the crewmen aft had lost contact with the bridge and had no way to reach the boat deck to help with the other boats. They disobeyed orders, and acted on their own.
As Rohna listed 12 degrees to starboard, her crew launched most of her 101 liferafts. By 1750 hrs only a few rafts remained so they took the hatch boards from number three hold and threw them overboard too. By now number four hold, just aft of the engine room, was on fire. The Auk-class minesweeper USS Pioneer and cargo ship Clan Campbell fell behind the convoy to rescue survivors, protected by the Hunt-class destroyer HMS Atherstone, which made a smokescreen and gave anti-aircraft cover. Clan Campbell had a high freeboard so she lowered a cargo net for survivors to use as a scramble net. The climb was about 30 feet (9 m) from the sea to the deck, which was difficult for many of the exhausted survivors. The wind was only Force 4, but there was a 15-to-20-foot (5 to 6 m) swell that prevented the rescue ships from launching their own boats.
Among the last people to leave the ship were her master, Captain TJ Murphy, the chief, second and third officers, the senior medical officer and four US soldiers. This group remained on the foredeck for about 30 minutes after the other soldiers and crew had abandoned ship. About 90 minutes after the missile hit the ship there was a rending noise, probably from the collapse of a bulkhead aft. Clouds of smoke came from number three hold and the ship settled by the stern. The group threw the last four rafts overboard and abandoned ship.
After night fell, Atherstone switched from anti-aircraft cover to rescuing survivors and the tug Mindful arrived from Bougie and joined the operation. The rescue continued until 0215 hrs on 27 November. In total, 819 survivors were taken to Philippeville: 602 on Pioneer, about 110 on Clan Campbell and about 70 on Atherstone.
Of the 1,138 men who were killed, 1,015 were US personnel. The 
HMT Rohna