MS Klipfontein was a Dutch ocean liner launched in March 1939 and delivered 29 July intended for South African service. Declaration of war in Europe, including Britain and South Africa declaring war on Germany, resulted in the ship being transferred to service between the Dutch East Indies and the west coast of North America. After the German invasion of the Netherlands in May 1939, with the Dutch government in exile in London, the ship supported the Allied war effort. After entry of the United States into the war the ship was operated by Dutch agents of the U.S. War Shipping Administration (WSA) from February 1942 to February 1946 as a troopship from the U.S. West Coast to Pacific war zones.