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Notable events involving Wrestler include:

2 Sep 1939

Convoy AB 1/1.

This convoy departed Gibraltar on 2 September 1939 and arrived at Capetown on 29 September 1939.

The convoy was made up of the following merchant vessels;British Ardour (British (tanker), 7124 GRT, built 1928),British Loyalty (British (tanker), 6993 GRT, built 1928),British Motorist (British (tanker), 6891 GRT, built 1924),British Princess (British (tanker), 7019 GRT, built 1917),British Progress (British (tanker), 4581 GRT, built 1927),City of Hereford (British, 5101 GRT, built 1927),City of Shanghai (British, 5828 GRT, built 1917) andRowanbank (British, 5159 GRT, built 1919).

On departure from Gibraltar the convoy was escorted by the light cruisersHMS Dauntless (Capt. G.D. Moore, RAN) andHMS Despatch (Commodore 2nd cl. A. Poland, RN). Shortly after sailing four destroyers joined for A/S escort. These wereHMS Douglas (Cdr. R.F.B. Swinley, RN),HMS Watchman (Cdr.(Retd.) V. Hammersley-Heenan, RN),HMS Wishart (Cdr. E.T. Cooper, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt.Cdr. E.N.V. Currey, RN) and they remained with the convoy until 0800/3.

At 1300/11,HMS Dauntless parted company with the convoy and proceeded to Freetown where she arrived around 1100/13.

At 0830/13,HMS Despatch turned over the convoy toHMS Durban (Capt. A.H. Maxwell-Hyslop, RN) which had departed Freetown around 1900/12 to join the convoy.HMS Despatch arrived at Freetown around 0615/14.

At 1045/29, the convoy was dispersed near Capetown after which most of the ships proceeded into Capetown harbour.HMS Durban arrived at Simonstown around 1700/29. (1)

22 May 1940
HMS Cornwall (Capt. C.F. Hammill, RN) andHMS Dorsetshire (Capt. B.C.S. Martin, RN) departed Gibraltar for Freetown and Plymouth respectively. In the approaches to Gibraltar they were escorted by the destroyersHMS Keppel (Lt.Cdr.(Emgy.) E.G. Heywood-Lonsdale, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt.Cdr. E.N.V. Currey, RN) until 2345 hours. Both cruisers then set course for their destinations. (2)

2 Jul 1940

Operations Catapult and Lever.

Operations agains the French Fleet at Mers-el-Kebir.

Timespan: 2 to 6 July 1940.

Polical situation June / July 1940.

The situation created by the collapse of French military resistance in June 1940 brought to the forefront the question of the disposal of the powerful modern French Fleet. With France eliminated from the contest, Great Britain would stand virtually alone, separated only by the English Channel from the triumphant German Army and threatened by the largest Air Force in the World. On her command of the sea depended her very existence. Suddenly to lose the co-operation of the French Fleet would be a severe blow, but it was a matter of life and death that it should not be added to those of her opponents and used against her.

In circumstances of increasing chaos the marsh of events was swift. On 11 June 1940 the French Prime Minister and the French Government retired to Tours, and three days later moved on to Bordeaux. On the same day the Germans entered Paris.

It was the French Prime Minister who had declared ‘We shall fight before Paris, we shall fight behind Paris. We shall shut ourselves up in one of our provinces and if they drive us out we shall go to north Africa and, if need be, to our American possessions. It was the French Prime Minister who asked the British Government on 16 June to release France from her treaty obligations. The Cabinet refused to do so asked for French warships to be despatched to British ports and offered an Act of Union. The offer fell on deaf ears. The French Prime Minister (Mr. M Reynaud) was no longer in power. He had been displaced in the night of 16/17 June by a defeatist group headed by Marshal Pétain, General Weygand, Admiral Darlan, Mr. Laval, Mr. Baudouin and other politicians.

Negotiations with Germany were opened on 17 June, when Marshal Pétain, in a letter to Hitler, asked if he was ready to sign with him, as between soldiers after the fight and in honour, terms that would put an end to the hostilities.

The British Government, receiving the news ‘with grief and amazement’ refused to release France from her treaty obligations, and announced its intention to continue the fight. Every effort was made to persuade the French Government to order the French Fleet to British ports, or to sink itself before armistice terms were discussed. But the situation was very confusing and no guarantees could be obtained. At the same time it was determined that, if all other courses failed, action should be taken to prevent any important French ships falling into the enemy’s hands. British offers of assistance to the French authorities in arranging for an evacuation from Marseilles to North African ports were declined.

The terms of the armistice signed by France were not made public until 25 June, the day on which the hostilities ended. The clauses effecting the French sea forces stated that the French Fleet was to be assembled in ports under German or Italian control and demilitarized.

It seemed clear to the British Government that in these clauses the enemy had merely provided themselves with a pretext for keeping the whole French Fleet in a state of readiness for action against us when an opportunity accurred. The British Government had evidence, too, that from 20 June the Germans were in possession of, and were using, French naval codes.

The first reactions to the armistice terms of the French naval, military and colonial authorities indicated a determination to fight on. This attitude, however, in face of instructions was however soon abandoned. The British Government consequently decided to offer the French Naval Commanders the following alternatives: to continue the fight; complete immobilisation in certain ports; to demilitarise or sink their ships. By no other means could the French Fleet be prevented from falling into the hands of the enemy.

Reports received from various sources indicated that, the senior French Naval Officers had elected to obey their central government, most junior Officers desired to continue the struggle. The men, divided in their loyalties and lacking firm leadership, were chiefly influenced by the fear of reprisals to their families.

The French Fleet at Oran, coast defences, etc.

The bulk of the French Fleet was distributed between Toulon and the French North African ports in the Western Mediterranean. A squadron of one battleship, four cruisers and a few destroyers was at Alexandria; operating with Admiral Sir Andrew Cunningham’s Mediterranean Fleet. The new battleshipsRichelieu andJean Bart which had been completing at Brest had sailed a few days before respectively for Dakar and Casablanca. But by far the most important concentration of French warships was at Mers-el-Kebir, under Vice-Admiral Gensoul.

The shore defences of Mers-el-Kebir cosisted of a battery of two 7.5” guns on top of a hill to the west of the harbour. The harbour entrance was protected by an anti-torpedo boom and anti-submarine booms. A mine net stretched from Cape Falcon to a point one mile north of Cape Canastel. The breakwater (30 feet high) and Fort Mers-el-Kebir (100 feet high) afforded a certain amount of protection to the side armour of the ships inside the harbour from short range gunfire. Also in the vicinity of Oran there was a battery of two 9.2” guns at Cape Canastel.

Assembly of ‘Force H’ at Gibraltar.

In order to fill the Allied vacuum in the Western Mediterranean, caused by the defection of the French Fleet, the Admiralty decided to assemble a strong force, to be known as Force H, at Gibraltar. On 27 June Vice-Admiral J.F. Somerville was ordered to hoist his flag in the light cruiserHMS Aretusa and to proceed there to take command of ‘Force H’. His immediate task was to secure the transfer, surrender or destruction of the French ships at Mers-el-Kebir and Oran, so as to ensure that they could not fall into German or Italian hands. It was hoped that the employment of force would be unnecessary, but every preparation to use it was to be made. This was explained to him in an interview with the First Lord and the First Sea Lord.

The Vice-Admiral sailed from Spithead inHMS Arethusa on 28 June. During his passage to Gibraltar he was in constant communication with the Admiralty. On the 29th he received Admiralty message 0435/29, stating certain alternatives which it was proposed to offer the French. (a) to steam their ships to a British port. (b) to sink their ships. (c) to have their ships sunk by gunfire. Later in the day the Admiralty directed the submarines HMS Pandora and HMS Proteus to patrol off Algiers and Oran respectively in order to report any French movements, but not to attack. On the 30th they ordered the Vice-Admiral, Aircraft carriers (Vice-Admiral L.V. Wells) to establish a destroyer patrol 30 nautical miles to the west of Oran and that should the French battlecruisersDunkerque andStrasbourg proceed to the westward, they were to be captured and taken to the United Kingdom.

Vice-Admiral Somerville arrived at Gibraltar on 30 June where he transferred his flag to the battlecruiserHMS Hood. He lost no time with discussing the matter with the Vice-Admiral North Atlantic (Vice-Admiral Sir D.B.N. North) and later with Vice-Admiral Wells, his senior officers and with two officers who had recently been attached to the French as liaison officers. All were strongly opposed to the use of force, believing that this would alienate the French completely and turn them from a defeated ally into an active enemy. So impressed was Vice-Admiral Somerville by these views that he communicated them to the Admiralty at 1230 hours on 1 July together with certain alternative proposals. He received a reply that evening that it was the firm intention of His Majesty’s Government that if the French would not accept (any of) the alternatives then being sent to him, their ships must be destroyed.

Meanwhile a plan of operation had been drawn up, and the Admiralty was informed that the earliest date for it’s execution would be A.M. 3 July. The operation was named ‘Catapult’.

Admiralty instructions to Vice-Admiral Somerville.

At 0426, 2 July, Vice-Admiral Somerville received his final instructions from the Admiralty in dealing with the French Fleet at Mers-el-Keber. These may be summarised as follows:
A)Four alternatives were to be offered to the French:
(1)To sail their ships to a British port to continue the fight with us.
(2)To sail their ships with reduced crews to a British port from which the crews would be repatriated whenever desired.
(3)To sail their ships with reduced crews to a French port in the West Indies. After arrival there they would either be demilitarised to our satisfaction, if so desired or to be entrusted to U.S.A. jurisdiction for the remainder of the war. The crews would be repatriated.
(4)To sink their ships.

In case of alternatives 1 or 2 being adopted the ships were to be restrored to France at the conclusion of the war, or full ompensation would be paid if they were damaged meanwhile. If the French Admiral accepted alternative 2 but asked that the ships would not be used during the war, we would accept this condition for so long Germany and Italy observed the armistice terms. We particularly did not want to raise this point ourselves.

B)If the French Admiral refused to observe all the above alternatives and suggested demilitarisation of his ships to our satisfaction at their present berths acceptance of this further alternative was authorised, provided that the Flag Officer, ‘Force H’ was satisfied that the measures for demilitarization could be carried out under his supervision within six hours, so as to prevent the ships being brought to service for at least one year, even at a fully equipped dockyard port.

C)If none of the alternatives were accepted by the French, the Flag Officer ‘Force H’ was to endeavour to destroy the ships in Mers-el-Kebir, particularly theDunkerque andStrasbourg, using all means at his disposal. Ships at Oran should also be destroyed, if this did not entail any considerable loss of civilian life.

As it was undesirable to have to deal with the French Fleet at sea, the Flag Officer ‘Force H’ was instructed to arrive in the vicinity of Oran at his selected time, to send emissaries ashore, and to take such action as he considered fit in the period before the given time limit expired.

A further signal timed 0108 contained the terms in which these demands were to delivered to Admiral Gensoul.

Plan for ‘Operation Catapult’.

A meeting of Flag and Commanding Officers was held during the forenoon of 2nd July, at which the orders for ‘Operation Catapult’ were explained and discussed.

Capt. C.S. Holland, of theArk Royal, who had recently been Naval Attaché at Paris, had been selected to act as emissary assisted by Lt.Cdr’s A.Y. Spearman and G.P.S. Davies, lately employed as liaison officers. The destroyerHMS Foxhound was detailed to embark these officers. Captain Holland was instructed, if necessity arose, to question the French concerning their plan for demilitarisation at two hours’ notice which had been mentioned to Vice-Admiral North at Gibraltar, and to enquire whether the proposed measures would render the ships ‘ineffective for service during 12 months, even with dockyard assistance.’

The intention of the Flag Officer ‘Force H’, if he was obliged to use force was:a)To destroy morale, damage AA equipment and induce the French crews to abandon their ships by means of long range gunfire with the main armaments of his capital ships, assisted by aircraft spotting.
b)Bombing by the aircraft ofHMS Ark Royal with the same object.
c)Torpedo attack by aircraft fromHMS Ark Royal in order to cripple those ships exposed to torpedo fire.
d)Sinking of ships still afloat by demolition parties from destroyers.
e)The cruisers were to engage light craft or shore batteries as ordered.

The orders drawn up did not propose the laying of magnetic mines by aircraft fromHMS Ark Royal, which was held to interference with the first two alternatives offered to the French but if needed this measure could be resorted to.

Attempts to Communicate with Admiral Gensoul.

At 1500 hours, 2nd July, destroyers sailed to carry out an A/S sweep in Gibraltar Bay and approaches and ‘Force H’ cleared harbour at 1700A/2.

The composition of ‘Force H’ was as follows; battlecruiserHMS Hood (Capt. I.G. Glennie, RN, flying the flag of Vice-Admiral J.F. Somerville, KCB, DSO, RN), battleshipsHMS Valiant (Capt. H.B. Rawlings, OBE, RN),HMS Resolution (Capt. O. Bevir, RN), aircraft carrierHMS Ark Royal (Capt. C.S. Holland, RN, flying the flag of Vice-Admiral L.V. Wells, CB, DSO, RN) [as Capt. Holland had been embarked on the destroyerHMS Foxhound, it was probably Cdr. R.M.T. Taylor, RN who was temporary in command], light cruisersHMS Arethusa (Capt. Q.D. Graham, RN),HMS Enterprise (Capt. J.C. Annesley, DSO, RN) and the destroyersHMS Faulknor (Capt. A.F. de Salis, RN),HMS Fearless (Cdr. K.L. Harkness, RN),HMS Foresight (Lt.Cdr. G.T. Lambert, RN),HMS Forester (Lt.Cdr. E.B. Tancock, RN),HMS Foxhound (Lt.Cdr. G.H. Peters, RN),HMS Escort (Lt.Cdr. J. Bostock, RN),HMS Active (Lt.Cdr. E.C.L. Turner, RN),HMS Keppel (Lt.Cdr.(Emgy.) E.G. Heywood-Lonsdale, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt.Cdr. E.N.V. Currey, RN),HMS Vortigern (Lt.Cdr. R.S. Howlett, RN) andHMS Vidette (Cdr.(Retd.) D.R. Brocklebank, RN).

The submarinesHMS Pandora (Lt.Cdr. J.W. Linton, RN) andHMS Proteus (Lt.Cdr. R.T. Gordon-Duff, RN) were then nearing their patrol areas.

The operations orders referred to the possibility of interference but the only evidence of them being even remotely on the alert was that at 2247A/2 in position 36°12’N, 03°05’WHMS Vortigern reported a torpedo exploding ahead of her. This was indeed an attack by an Italian submarine, theMarconi.HMS Vortigern andHMS Vidette hunted the submarine for a little over an hour but without success.

At 0300A/3,HMS Foxhound was sent ahead and arrived of Cape Falcon at 0545A/3. Communication was established with the Port War Signal Station and at 0620 hours the following message was passed. ‘To Admiral Gensoul, The British Admiralty had sent Captain Holland to confer with you. The British Navy hopes that their proposals will enable you and the valiant and glorious French Navy to be by our side. In these circumstances your ships would remain yours and no one need to have anxiety for the future. A British fleet is at sea off Oran waiting to welcome you.’

Permission forHMS Foxhound to enter the port of Mers-el-Kebir was received at 0742 hours. She anchored at 0805A/3, outside the net defence, in a position 1.6 nautical miles, 115° from Mers-el-Kebir lighthouse. Five minutes later the French Flag Lieutenant came alongside and informed Capt. Holland that Admiral Gensoul was unable to see him, but would sent his Chief of Staff.

Admiral’s Gensoul refusal to confer with Capt. Holland was emphasized when at 0847 hoursHMS Foxhound received a signal from him requisting her to sail immediately. She weighted accordingly, leaving Capt. Holland and Lt.Cdr’s Spearman and Davies behind in her motor boat. Meeting the French Flag Lieutenant off the entrance, Capt. Holland handed him the written British proposals to be given to Admiral Gensoul, saying that he would await a reply. It was around 0935 hours when they reached Admiral Gensoul. The French ships were reported by air reconnaissance to be raising steam. At 1000 hours the Flag Lieutenant returned and handed over a written reply from Admiral Gensoul. It stated the same that had earlier been said to Vice-Admiral North that the French Fleet would never be surrendered and that force would be met by force.

Then followed a further exchange of written statements and a discussion with the French Chief of Staff who came out at 1109 hours. As it was evident that Admiral Gensoul was resolved not to see Capt. Holland, the latter returned on boardHMS Foxhound to communicate with Vice-Admiral Somerville.

Meanwhile ‘Force H’ had arrived off Mers-el-Kebir at 0910A/3 and by means of projectors transferred the following message (in French) ‘To Admiral Gensoul from Admiral Somerville. We hope most sincerely that the proposals will be acceptable and hat we shall ave you by our side.’

’Force H’ then proceeded to steam to and from across the bay whileHMS Ark Royal, with a destroyer screen, was acting independently for flying off aircraft.

At 1140A/3 Lt.Cdr. Spearman was sent in with a message from the Flag Officer ‘Force H’ that the French ships would not be allowed to leave harbour unless the terms were accepted. It was at this time that Capt. Holland signalled to the French Admiral, fromHMS Foxhound, information of the action taken by Admiral Godfroy at Alexandria to demilitarise his ships.HMS Foxhound then proceeded outside the outer boom to a position inside visual signalling range.

British delegate received and terms refused.

Admiral Gensoul’s reply reachedHMS Hood at 1227A/3 and Vice-Admiral Somerville considering that it was unsatisfactory and indicated an intention to put to sea and fight, gave the order to mine the harbour entrance. Five mines were accordingly laid by aircraft inside the booms guarding the entrance to Mers-el-Kebir harbour.

It was Vice-Admiral Somerville’s first intention to open fire at 1330 hours but the time for a final answer was extended to 1500 hours on the strength of air reports that there was no immediate indication of the French ships proceeding to sea. In order to ensure the least possible delay, a signal was passed to Admiral Gensoul requisting him to hoist a large square flag at the masthead if he accepted the British terms.

These measures appeared to be effective, for at 1440 hours Admiral Gensoul signalled that he would receive a delegate for honourable discussion. This message forstalled, only by a few minutes, the despatch of a signal from Vice-Admiral Somerville notifying that he would proceed to destroy the French ships at 1530 hours. Despite Vice-Admiral Somerville’s suspicion that the French Admiral was temporizing, he authorised Capt. Holland to proceed, and the latter, in the motor boat fromHMS Foxhound and accompanied by Lt.Cdr. Davies, reached theDunkerque at 1615A/3.

Captain Holland’s reception on board theDunkerque was coldly formal. Admiral Gensoul was extremely indignant and angry. A lengthy discussion ensued, in which he emphasised that the use of force would range the whole French Navy against the British, and that in effect he rejected all conditions proposed stating that he would only obey orders from his Government and Admiral Darlan. It was evident to Captain Holland that it was only during this discussion that Admiral Gensoul began to realise that force might actually be used.

Whilst the discussion was proceeding an Admiralty message was received at 1646 hours byHMS Hood instructing Vice-Admiral Somerville to settle matters quickly or he would have reinforcements to deal with. A signal accordingly passed by visual and wireless at 1715 hours to Admiral Gensoul informing him that if one of the alternatives was not accepted by 1730 hours his ships would be sunk. At the same time action stations was sounded in the ships of the British Fleet.

A summary of Admiral Gensoul’s final statement was passed by signal from Capt. Holland to Vice-Admiral Somerville. It read ‘Admiral Gensoul says crews being reduced and if threatened by enemy would go Martinique or U.S.A. but this is not quite our proposition. Can get no nearer.’

This signal was received on boardHMS Hood at 1729 hours. As it did not comply with any of the alternatives laid down, the air striking force fromHMS Ark Royal was ordered to fly off and the battleships stood in towards the coast.

Captain Holland left theDunkerque at 1725 hours. As he left ‘Action stations’ was being sounded in the French ships, all of which were by that time in an advanced state of readiness for sea, with tugs standing by and control positions manned.

Meanwhile signs of movement of French ships in adjacent harbour of Oran having been reported by air reconnaissance, two mines were laid in it’s entrance, and the destroyerHMS Wrestler was ordered to relieveHMS Vortigern on patrol there.

Action against the French ships at Mers-el-Kebir.

At 1754A/3 fire was opened at 17500 yards. Aircraft were spotting. The line of fire was from the north-west, so that fire from the French ships was blanked to some extent by Mers-el-Kebir Fort, and risk of damage to civilian life and property reduced.

The four French capital ships and aviation transport were moored stern-on to the mole in the following order, from north-west to south-east;Dunkerque,Provence,Strasbourg,Bretagne andCommandant Teste while the remaining ships were moored on the west side of the harbour. The destroyers, according to an aircraft report, were underway inside the booms.

The effect of the opening salvoes was observed from theFoxhound’s motor boat. The first salvo fell short. The second hit the breakwater, sending large fragments of concrete flying through the air, which probably caused casualties amongst the crews of the ships. The third salvo fell amongst the ships and the battleshipBretagne blew up, a column of orange flame leaping into the sky, followed by an immense column of smoke several hundred feet high. Another smaller explosion indicated that a destroyer had blown up (Mogador). By this time the harbour was shrouded in smoke from explosions and fires. Direct spotting was almost impossible and air spotting most difficult. The French shore batteries andDunkerque andStrasbourg opened fire about a minute after the first British salvo. The shore batteries were promptly engaged byHMS Arethusa, the older guns ofHMS Enterprise being outranged. Heavy projectiles were soon falling near the British battleships as the French fire, at first very short, began to improve in accuracy. The observers inFoxhound’s motor boat recorded several direct hits on the French ships, another explosion with a sheet of orange flame from a battleship, and a direct hit on a large destroyer as she was leaving harbour.

None of the French projectiles hit, though a number of them fell close to – and in some cases straddled – the British ships. Some splinters caused some minor superficial damage inHMS Hood and injured one officer and a rating. After thirty-six salvoes of 15” the fire of the French ships died down, but hat of the forts became increasingly accurate. To avoid damage from the latter, course was altered 180° to port together and the ships were ordered to make smoke.

At 1803A/3 as the French ships were no longer firing, ‘cease fire’ was ordered. Vice-Admiral Somerville considered that this would give them an opportunity to abandon their vessels and as the entrance to the harbour had been mined they would make no attempts to put to sea. Repeated signals were being receive inHMS Hood from the shore visual and wireless stations requisting fire to be discontinued, to which the reply was made: ‘unless I see your ships sinking, I shall open fire again’. Vice-Admiral Somerville then proceeded to the westward to take up a position from which, if necessary, the bombardment could be renewed without causing casualties to men in boats or exposing the British ships to unduly fire from the forts. He also deemed it prudent to stand out to sea to avoid the possibility of a surprise attack by aircraft under cover of the clouds of smoke then laying between his ships and the shore.

When the pall of smoke over Mers-el-Kebir harbour cleared away, the scene viewed fromHMS Foxhound’s boat showed theDunkerque, which had slipped from the mole, lying stopped in the harbour. TheProvence appeared to have been hit, fires were burning in theCommandant Teste, while nothing could be seen of theBretagne. Clear of the harbour and gathering speed fast were theStrasbourg and two destroyers (thought to be Mogador-class), steering eastward close under the land.

Chase of, and F.A.A. attacks on, theStrasbourg.

Vice-Admiral Somerville received an air report at 1820A/3 that one of the Dunkerque-class battlecruisers had put to sea and was steering east. This report was confirmed 10 minutes later. An air striking force of six Swordfish aircraft of no. 818 Squadron armed with 250-lb. bombs and escorted by Skua’s was flow off byHMS Ark Royal at 1825 hours to attack the ships in Mers-el-Kebir but they were then diverted to attack the fleeing ship which was accompanied by eight destroyers. ‘Force H’ altered course to the eastward at 1838 hours and commenced a chase.

During this period,HMS Wrestler, which was patrolling of Oran, was heavily engaged by shore batteries. At least 100 shells fell near her before she withdrew in accordance with orders.

At 1843 hours the cruisers and destroyers withHMS Hood were ordered to proceed ahead. Both battleships following behind at their best speed without a destroyer screen. Every ships worked up to full speed.

The bombing attack on theStrasbourg was well pressed home, and, although it was met with heavy opposition, was believed to have obtained at least one hit. Two Swordfish aircraft failed to return, but the crews were picked up byHMS Wrestler.

At 1914A/3HMS Wrestler picked up Capt. Holland and Lt.Cdr.’s Spearman, Davies and the crew from the motor boat ofHMS Foxhound. The motor boat was then abandoned.

Between 1933 and 1945 hours a French destroyer, steering west close inshore, was engaged at ranges of 12000 and 18000 yards by theArethusa andEnterprise. Later theHood andValiant fired a few 15” salvoes at her. At least three hits were observed before the destroyer turned back to Oran. The British ships were obliged to alter course to avoid torpedoes.

at 1950A/3 six Swordfish aircraft of no. 820 Squadron, armed with torpedoes were flown off fromHMS Ark Royal, with orders to press home their attack, making use of the failing light. They attacked at 2055 hours, twenty minutes after sunset. Approaching from the land, with their target silhouetted against the afterglow, they were able to deliver the attack unseen, only the last two attacking aircraft encountered some machine gun fire from the screening destroyers. The observation of results was rendered difficult by darkness and funnel smoke, but an explosion was seen under theStrasbourg’s stern and there was some evidence of a hit amidships. All the aircraft returned safely, through one came under machine gun fire from a group of destroyers seven miles astern of the target.

Chase abandoned and return to Gibraltar.

Meanwhile Vice-Admiral Somerville had abandoned the chase about half-an-hour before the torpedo attack took place. At 2020A/3 theStrasbourg with her attendant destroyers, was some 25 nautical miles ahead of him. By that time the French Algiers force with several 8” and 6” cruisers was known to be at sea and was calculated to be able to join theStrasbourg shortly after 2100 hours.

Vice-Admiral Somerville considered that a night contact and engagement was not justified. His destroyers had not had recent experience of shadowing, and the French would be numerically superior. Besides that there were more reasons to disengage.

Accordingly at 2025A/3 course was altered to the westwards and the Admiralty was informed that ‘Force H’ would remain to the west of Oran during the night with the intention to carry out air attacks on the ships at Mers-el-Kebir at dawn.

Between 1930 and 2100 hours French reconnaissance and bomber aircraft were fired on. These dropped a few bombs which all fell wide except for four bombs which fell close toHMS Wrestler. The attacks were not pressed home.

At 2150A/3 the submarineHMS Proteus, which had been ordered to keep clear of ‘Force H’ to the northward during the day, was ordered to patrol north of 35°55’N off Cape de l’Aiguille or Abuja Point (15 nautical miles east of Oran). At the same time she andHMS Pandora (off Algiers) were ordered to sink any French ships encountered. The latter, which had reported six cruisers and four destroyers making to the westward at 1745A/3, was warned that theStrasbourg might arrive off Algiers at 2300A/3.

During the night of 3 / 4 July. ‘Force H’ steered to reach position 36°12’N, 01°48‘W (about 60 nautical miles west-north-west of Mers-el-Kebir) at 0430A/4. It was intended to then fly off 12 Swordfish and 9 Skua aircraft to finish off the ships remaining in the harbour. Shortly after 0400A/4, however dense fog was encountered. This rendered flying impossible. As Vice-Admiral Somerville had received a message from Admiral Gensoul the evening before (2250A/3) stating that his ships were ‘hors de combat’ (‘out of action’) and that he had ordered the crews to evacuate them, Vice-Admiral Somerville decided to return to Gibraltar where ‘Force H’ arrived at 1900A/4.

Review of the operation by Vice-Admiral Somerville.

Reviewing the operation, Vice-Admiral Somerville remarked that it was clear he committed an error of judgement in proceeding so far to the westward after ceasing fire, and gave his reasons for his decision.

He considered that the mines laid in the harbour entrance were sufficient to prevent any French ships from leaving and also he was under the impression that the French crews were abandoning their ships due to the signals to ‘cease shelling’ and the heavy explosions observed. The though uppermost in his mind was how to complete his task without causing further loss of life to the very gallant but ill-advised Frenchmen, and without exposing his fleet to damage by the shore batteries or to submarine attack. He was also under the impression that a torpedo flight, to complete the destruction of ships afloat, had either taken off or was about to do so. In fact, however, the repeated postponement of the attack by gunfire had, unknown to him, seriously upset theArk Royal’s flying on and off programme.

Vice-Admiral Somerville went into question whether the use of force might have been avoided had Admiral Gensoul agreed at once to receive Capt. Holland. The French Admiral’s final offer differed, unfortunately, from the British proposals in the single proviso that the disablement of ships would only be carried into effect if there was a danger of the French ships falling into enemy hands. Admiral Gensoul maintained that this danger was not imminent, whereas we maintained that it was. Had more time been available Capt. Holland might possibly have converted Admiral Gensoul to the British point of view, but when he made his offer it was already too late, for the discussion could not be continued beyond 1720 hours as French reinforcements were approaching and the ordered of His Majesty’s Government were explicit that a decision had to be reached before dark.

’ I consider ‘ wrote Vice-Admiral Somerville, ‘ that Capt. Holland carried out his most difficult task with the greatest tact, courage and perseverance. That he failed in his mission was not his fault – that he nearly succeeded is greatly to his credit ‘.

Preparations to renew the attack on theDunkerque.

After the arrival of ‘Force H’ at Gibraltar the ships were immediately completed with fuel and ammunition so to be able to carry out operations against the French battleshipRichelieu at Dakar if required.

Vice-Admiral Somerville informed the Admiralty that it was not possible from aircraft observation positively to assess the damage done to the battlecruiserDunkerque, but that she was aground. Consequently the Admiralty directed that unless Vice-Admiral Somerville was certain that theDunkerque could not be refloated and repaired in less then a year, she was to be subjected to further destruction by bombardment. This was to precede any operation against theRichelieu.

To put this decision into effect, plans were drawn up for another operation (Operation Lever), and the Admiralty was informed that a further bombardment would be carried out at 0900A/6 by ‘Force H’.

At 2005A/4 a signal was received from the Admiralty. It contained instructions with regard to the attitude to be adopted towards French warships, which stated that ‘ships must be prepared for attack, but should not fire the first shot’. After confirmation at 2045A/5 that this applied to the submarines operating of Oran and Algiers, the instructions were passed on toHMS Pandora andHMS Proteus. It was however already too late.

Proceeding by British submarines 4-6 July 1940.

When ‘Force H’ returned to Gibraltar on 4 July, the submarinesHMS Pandora andHMS Proteus remained on patrol off the North African coast.

At 1126A/4,HMS Pandora, off Algiers, sighted three destroyers 065° about 1 nautical mile from the shore, but she was unable to get within range. Three and a half hours later (1458A/4), however, she sighted a French cruiser thought at that time to be of the La Galissoniere class. In fact it was the sloopRigault de Genouilly.HMS Pandora turned immediately to a firing course and at 1507A/4HMS Pandora fired four torpedoes from about 3800 yards. Two certain and one probable hits were obtained. The French ship stopped at once and soon after she was observed to be on fire. Closing inHMS Pandora saw that there was no chance this ship could be saved. At 1632A/4 she was seen to sink by the stern and a few seconds later an extremely heavy explosion occurred, probably her magines blowing up.

For some time from 1718A/4HMS Pandora was hunted by aircraft and a destroyer or patrol craft, explosions of bombs and or death charges were heard at intervals.

The Admiralty expressed deep regret to the French Ambassy for the tragic happening, which was ascribed to the fact that on completion of the operation at Mers-el-Kebir on 3 July, the instructions that French ships were no longer to be attacked did not reach one submarine.

The seaplane carrierCommandant Teste was more fortunate. She was sighted byHMS Proteus at 1447A/4. The weather was foggy and before an attack could be started the French ship altered course to the eastward and was soon lost out of sight.

At 2200A/5, in obedience to instructions,HMS Proteus proceeded to patrol off Cape Khamis, about 65 nautical miles east of Oran. At 0243A/6 a signal from the Flag Officer Commanding North Atlantic (F.O.C.N.A.) was received that French ships were not to be attacked unless they attacked first.

TheCommandant Teste was again sighted at 1734A/6. This time she was accompanied by two destroyers. Shorty afterwardsHMS Proteus was ordered to proceed to Gibraltar.

HMS Pandora remained on patrol until July 7th when she too was ordered to proceed to Gibraltar.

F.A.A. attack on theDunkerque, 6 July 1940.

Meanwhile ‘Force H’ sailed from Gibraltar at 2000A/5. They first proceeded westwards but turned to the east at 2200 hours and proceeded at 22 knots towards Oran.

’Force H’ was now made up of the battlecruiserHMS Hood, battleshipHMS Valiant, aircraft carrierHMS Ark Royal, light cruisersHMS Aurora,HMS Enterprise and the destroyersHMS Fearless,HMS Forester,HMS Foxhound,HMS Escort,HMS Active,HMS Velox (Cdr.(Retd.) J.C. Colvill, RN),HMS Vidette,HMS Vortigern andHMS Wrestler.

At 0250A/6, Vice-Admiral Somerville received a signal from the Admiralty which instructed him to cancel the bombardment. He was ordered to attack the Dunkerque from the air until she was sufficiently damaged.

In position 36°19’N, 02°23’W (about 90 nautical miles from Oran) at 0515A/6, the first striking force was flown off. The attack on the Dunkerque was made in three waves. The aircraft taking part were armed with torpedoes, carrying Duplex pistols, set for depth 12 feet, speed 27 knots.

The first wave of six Swordfish of no. 820 Squadron took of from theArk Royal at 0515 hours. It made landfall at Habibas Island (about 20 nautical miles west of Mers-el-Kebir) and then shaped course at 7000 feet to keep 15 miles from the coast in order to gain up-sun position from the target as the sun rose. The attack achieved complete surprise, only one aircraftbeing fired upon during the get-away. As the first rays of the sun, rising above thick haze, struck theDunkerque, the flight commenced a shallow dive in line ahead down the path of the sun. Coming in low over the breakwater, the aircraft attacked in succession. The first torpedo hit theDunkerque amidships, glanced off without exploding and continued it’s run. It had probably been released inside pistol safety range. The second was thought at the time to have hit and exploded under the bridge on the starboard side. The third torpedo to have missed and exploded ashore and the remaining three torpedoes to have hit and exploded near ‘B’ turret. In the light of later information, it seems that no torpedo in this or subsequent attacks actually hit and damaged her. The first (as noticed by the British) glanced off without exploding. The second exploded underneath the stern of a trawler, theTerre Neuve, which – apparently unnoticed by the aircraft – was about 30 yards to starboard of the battlecruiser and sank the trawler. Of the remainder three torpedoes may have hit without exploding or run into shallow water, and one missed. One torpedo exploded ashore against a jetty.

The second attack was made by three Swordfish of no. 810 Squadron with a fighter escort of six Skua’s. They took off at 0545 hours. This sub-flight manoeuvred to a position up-sun at 2000 feet. At 0647 hours they tuned to attack in line astern. They came under heavy AA fire and had to take avoiding action during their approach and they made their attack from over the breakwater. The torpedo of the first aircraft was not released. The second and third torpedoes are thought to have hit the starboard side of theDunkerque. During the get-away a large explosion was observed, smoke and spray rising in a great column over 600 feet high which was thought to have possibly been a magazine explosion in theDunkerque. Actually, one torpedo hit the wreck of theTerre Neuve, detonating about 24 to 28 depth charges with which she was loaded, and thereby causing considerable damage to theDunkerque. The other torpedo missed astern and exploded ashore. No enemy aircraft were encountered, but the 6” and 4” batteries from the east of Oran to Mers-el-Kebir Point kept up continuous fire throughout the attack.

The third wave was also made up of three Swordfish from no. 810 Squadron. These too were escorted by six Skua’s. They wre flown off at 0620 hours. They made landfall at a height of 4000 feet at 0650 hours over Cape Falcon. In line astern the sub-flight made a shallow dive with avoiding action as theProvence and shore batteries opened fire. This sub-flight then came in low over the town of Mers-el-Kebir for its attack. The first torpedo is reported to have struck theDunkerque amidships on her port side but it did not explode. The second, which would have hit the ship, exploded under a tug close to her which blew the tug into the air. The third torpedo was dropped too close and did therefore not explode, although it appeared to be going to hit. While making its get-away this sub-flight was engaged by French fighter aircraft. The Skua escorts had many dog fights with the French fighters which easily out-manoeuvred our aircraft but they did not press home their attacks. One Skua, damaged in combat, had to make a forced landing on the water on its return. The crew was rescued by a destroyer. There were no casualties although several aircraft were damaged by gunfire.

Vice-Admiral Somerville was satisfied with the results as it appeared that the Dunkerque for sure would be out of action for more then a year. ‘Force H’, having completed its task returned to Gibraltar at 1830A/6. After temporary repairs theDunkerque arrived at Toulon only on 19 February 1942 having made the passage under her own power escorted by five destroyers. (3)

8 Jul 1940
The battlecruiserHMS Hood (Capt. I.G. Glennie, RN, flying the flag of Vice-Admiral J.F. Somerville, KCB, DSO, RN), battleshipsHMS Valiant (Capt. H.B. Rawlings, OBE, RN),HMS Resolution (Capt. O. Bevir, RN), aircraft carrierHMS Ark Royal (Capt. C.S. Holland, RN, flying the flag of Vice-Admiral L.V. Wells, CB, DSO, RN), light cruisersHMS Arethusa (Capt. Q.D. Graham, RN),HMS Enterprise (Capt. J.C. Annesley, DSO, RN) and the destroyersHMS Faulknor (Capt. A.F. de Salis, RN),HMS Fearless (Cdr. K.L. Harkness, RN),HMS Forester (Lt.Cdr. E.B. Tancock, RN),HMS Foxhound (Lt.Cdr. G.H. Peters, RN),HMS Escort (Lt.Cdr. J. Bostock, RN),HMS Active (Lt.Cdr. E.C.L. Turner, RN),HMS Douglas (Cdr.(Retd.) J.G. Crossley, RN),HMS Velox (Cdr.(Retd.) J.C. Colvill, RN),HMS Vortigern (Lt.Cdr. R.S. Howlett, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt.Cdr. E.N.V. Currey, RN) departed Gibraltar as a diversion during operation in the central and eastern Mediterranean. They were also to conduct and air attack against Cagliary, Sardinia but this air attack was later cancelled.

In the late afternoon and early evening of the 9th Force H came under air attack by Italian aircraft.HMS Resolution andHMS Hood were near missed with bombs.

While on the way back to Gibraltar the destroyerHMS Escort was torpedoed by the Italian submarineMarconi around 0220A/11 in position 36°20'N, 03°46'W. She was heavily damaged and was taken in tow byHMS Forester while being screened byHMS Faulknor.

Force H meanwhile had arrived at Gibraltar around 0830A/11. The destroyersHMS Keppel (Lt.Cdr.(Emgy.) E.G. Heywood-Lonsdale, RN),HMS Foresight (Lt.Cdr. G.T. Lambert, RN) andHMS Foxhound were then sent out to escort the damagedHMS Escort but she later foundered while under tow.

13 Aug 1940
At 1630A/13,HMS Renown (Capt. C.E.B. Simeon, RN, flying the flag of Vice-Admiral J.F. Somerville, KCB, DSO, RN), departed Scapa Flow for Gibraltar. She was escorted until 1025A/14 by the destroyersHMS Bedouin (Cdr. J.A. McCoy, DSO, RN),HMS Mashona (Cdr. W.H. Selby, RN),HMS Punjabi (Cdr. J.T. Lean, DSO, RN) andHMS Tartar (Capt. C. Caslon, RN). On their return to Scapa Flow the destroyers were to conduct an A/S sweep. They arrived back at Scapa Flow at 0630A/15.

At 1059A/15 Vice Admiral Somerville received a signal from the Admiralty timed 1031A/15 ordering him to patrol off Iceland. It was thought German ships might be leaving Norway in that direction but this later proved to be incorrect andHMS Renown was ordered to continue her passage to Gibraltar at 0102A/16.

At 2235A/16,HMS Ark Royal (Capt. C.S. Holland, RN, flying the flag of Vice-Admiral L.V. Wells, CB, DSO, RN),HMS Enterprise (Capt. J.C. Annesley, DSO, RN),HMS Hotspur (Cdr. H.F.H. Layman, DSO, RN),HMS Greyhound (Cdr. W.R. Marshall A'Deane, DSO, DSC, RN),HMS Gallant (Lt.Cdr. C.P.F. Brown, RN),HMS Encounter (Lt.Cdr. E.V.St J. Morgan, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt.Cdr. E.N.V. Currey, RN) departed Gibraltar to make rendezvous withHMS Renown.

At 1615A/18, rendezvous was effected.

At 0215A/19, a shore broadcast was received stating that the merchant vesselRowallan Castle (British, 7801 GRT, built 1939) was being shelled by a raider. The destroyer screen was ordered to return to Gibraltar whilstHMS Renown andHMS Ark Royal proceeded to go the aid of theRowallan Castle.HMS Enterprise proceeded independently.

The raidar report later proved to be false as it had been the armed merchant cruiserHMS Circassia (Capt.(Retd.) H.G.L. Oliphant, DSO, RN) who had been shellingRowallan Castle thinking it was an enemy ship.HMS Renown andHMS Ark Royal shaped course for Gibraltar at 1150A/19, earlier had not been possible as aircraft operating fromArk Royal first had to be recalled and landed on.

The destroyers meanwhile had arrived at Gibraltar to fuel and they departed from there again at 0215A/20 although it were not all the same destroyers that had been sent out earlier (see below), rejoiningHMS Renown andHMS Ark Royal around 1100A/20.

HMS Renown,HMS Ark Royal,HMS Hotspur,HMS Greyhound,HMS Griffin (Lt.Cdr. J. Lee-Barber, DSO, RN),HMS Gallant,HMS Encounter andHMS Velox (Cdr.(Retd.) J.C. Colvill, RN) arrived at Gibraltar at 2000A/20.HMS Enterprise had already arrived in the morning.

Upon return to Gibraltar Vice-Admiral Wells struck his flag inHMS Ark Royal. (4)

4 Sep 1940
Around 1200A/4,HMS Tetrarch (Lt.Cdr. R.G. Mills, DSC, RN) andHMS Triton (Lt. G.C.I.S.B. Watkins, RN) departed from Rosyth for Gibraltar. They were to join the Mediterranean Fleet.

They were escorted byHMS White Bear (Cdr.(Retd.) C.C. Flemming, RN) until 2130A/7 when they all parted company.

Around 1600A/12, east of Lissabon, the submarines rejoined company.

The following morning, around 0800A/13, in position 36°00'N, 09°23'W, the submarines were joined by the destroyerHMS Wrestler (Lt.Cdr. E.N.V. Currey, RN).

HMS Wrestler,HMS Tetrarch andHMS Triton arrived at Gibraltar around 0430A/14. (5)

17 Sep 1940
Around 0330/17,HMS Renown (Capt C.E.B. Simeon, RN, flying the flag of Vice-Admiral J.F. Somerville, KCB, DSO, RN), escorted byHMS Griffin (Lt.Cdr. J. Lee-Barber, DSO, RN),HMS Encounter (Lt.Cdr. E.V.St J. Morgan, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt.Cdr. E.N.V. Currey, RN) andHMS Vidette (Lt. E.N. Walmsley, RN), departed Gibraltar for a patrol to the west-south-west of Casablanca.

At 0800/18,HMS Renown and her escorting destroyers were joined by the destroyersHMS Gallant (Lt.Cdr. C.P.F. Brown, RN) andHMS Firedrake (Lt.Cdr. S.H. Norris, DSC, RN) which came from Gibraltar. These two destroyers had not been ready to sail withHMS Renown when she departed.HMS Wrestler andHMS Vidette then parted company and proceeded to Gibraltar where they arrived at 1900/18.

At 1945/19,HMS Renown was ordered by the Admiralty to return to Gibraltar which they did at 0700/20. (6)

24 Sep 1940
Early in the afternoon Gibraltar was bombed by the Vichy-French airforce, therefore it was decided to put to sea to avoid the risk of being damaged while in harbour so at 1550/24,HMS Renown (Capt C.E.B. Simeon, RN, flying the flag of Vice-Admiral J.F. Somerville, KCB, DSO, RN), screened byHMS Hotspur (Cdr. H.F.H. Layman, DSO, RN) andHMS Gallant (Lt.Cdr. C.P.F. Brown, RN) departed Gibraltar and proceeded eastwards. They were joined in Gibraltar Bay by two more destroyers,HMS Griffin (Lt.Cdr. J. Lee-Barber, DSO, RN) enHMS Encounter (Lt.Cdr. E.V.St J. Morgan, RN), which had been on patrol in the Straits.

After dark course was changed to the west andRenown and her escorts passed the Straits westbound before moonrise.

At 0500/25, a report was intercepted fromHMS Wrestler (Lt.Cdr. E.N.V. Currey, RN), which was on patrol in the Straits, that she had been attacked by four Vichy-French destroyers (these were theEpée,Fleuret,Fougueux andFrondeur.HMS Wrestler had returned fire but she had not been hit. The French had departed Casablanca on 24 September. They arrived at Oran on 25 September.

At 0805/27, when in position 35°50'N, 09°26'W,HMS Renown and her escorts were joined by the destroyersHMS Firedrake (Lt.Cdr. S.H. Norris, DSC, RN) andHMS Wishart (Cdr. E.T. Cooper, RN) after whichHMS Griffin andHMS Encounter proceeded to Gibraltar to refuel.

At 0830/28,HMS Griffin andHMS Encounter rejoined the screen so thenHMS Hotspur andHMS Gallant were sent to Gibraltar to refuel. Later that morning,HMS Renown was ordered to return to Gibraltar.

At 1045/28, a vessel was sighted at a range of about 10 miles, it was at first thought to be a small vessel but was later seen to be a surfaced submarine soHMS Wishart was detached to hunt it. Position was 36°00'N, 08°10'W. At 1051/28 the submarine dived.HMS Wishart commenced depth charge attacks at 1123/28. At 1230/28,HMS Wishart reported a good contact and four patterns were dropped. A large amount of oil was reported as having come to the surface. At 1355/28 a flying boat arrived to assist in the hunt. The submarine in question was the ItalianLeonardo da Vinci which did not report any damage.

On entering the Bay of Gibraltar at 1732/28,HMS Griffin was detached to go to the aid ofHMS Wishart which had reported that she had only four depth charges left.

HMS Renown withHMS Firedrake andHMS Encounter arrived at Gibraltar at 1745/28. (6)

18 Oct 1940
The Italian submarineDurbo was sunk east of Gibraltar by the British destroyersHMS Firedrake (Lt.Cdr. S.H. Norris, DSC, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, RN) and 2 London flying boats (RAF 202Sqn.)

5 Nov 1940

Hunt for the German pocket battleshipAdmiral Scheer after the attack on convoy HX 84.

Timespan: 5 to 23 November 1940.

In response to the attack on convoy HX 84 by the German pocket battleshipAdmiral Scheer the Admiralty acted quickly.

The battlecruisersHMS Hood (Capt. I.G. Glennie, RN, flying the flag of Vice-Admiral W.J. Whitworth, CB, DSO, RN),HMS Repulse (Capt. W.G. Tennant, CB, MVO, RN), light cruisersHMS Naiad (Capt. M.H.A. Kelsey, DSC, RN, flying the flag of Rear-Admiral E.L.S. King, CB, MVO, RN),HMS Phoebe (Capt. G. Grantham, RN),HMS Bonaventure (Capt. H.J. Egerton, RN) and the destroyersHMS Somali (Capt. C. Caslon, RN),HMS Eskimo (Cdr. St. J.A. Micklethwait, DSO and Bar, RN),HMS Mashona (Cdr. W.H. Selby, RN),HMS Matabele (Cdr. R.St.V. Sherbrooke, DSO, RN),HMS Punjabi (Cdr. J.T. Lean, DSO, RN) andHMS Electra (Lt.Cdr. S.A. Buss, MVO, RN) departed Scapa Flow at 2330A/5 to proceed to the last reported position of the German pocket battleship 52°50'N, 32°15'W at 2003A/5.

At 1050A/6 the force split up;HMS Hood,HMS Naiad,HMS Phoebe,HMS Somali,HMS Eskimo andHMS Punjabi proceeded to patrol off the Bay of Biscay to cover the approaches to Brest and Lorient.

HMS Repulse,HMS Bonaventure,HMS Mashona,HMS Matabele andHMS Electra towards theAdmiral Scheer's last known position.

At 0700A/6 the battleshipsHMS Nelson (Capt. G.J.A. Miles, RN, flying the flag of Admiral of the Fleet C.M. Forbes, GCB, DSO, RN) andHMS Rodney (Capt. F.H.G. Dalrymple-Hamilton, RN), light cruiserHMS Southampton (Capt. B.C.B. Brooke, RN) and the destroyersHMS Cossack (Capt. P.L. Vian, DSO, RN),HMS Maori (Cdr. H.T. Armstrong, RN),HMS Brilliant (Lt.Cdr. F.C. Brodrick, RN),HMS Douglas (Cdr.(Retd.) J.G. Crossley, RN),HMS Keppel (Lt. R.J. Hanson, RN) andHMS Vimy (Lt.Cdr. D.J.B. Jewitt, RN) departed Scapa Flow to cover the patrols in the Iceland-Faroes Channel.

Shortly before midnight during the night of 6/7 NovemberHMS Rodney was detached to escort to escort convoy HX 83 and once this convoy was safe, HX 85 from Halifax.

Three armed merchant cruisers, which were on patrol were recalled to port on the 8th. These wereHMS Chitral (Capt.(Retd.) G. Hamilton, RN), which was to the northwest of Iceland andHMS California (Capt. C.J. Pope, RAN) andHMS Worcestershire (A/Capt. J. Creswell, RN), which were to the south of Iceland. The light cruiserHMS Southampton was ordered to take over the place ofHMS Chitral. She split off fromHMS Nelson at 1600A/8.HMS Worcestershire joinedHMS Nelson and her escorting destroyers around 1500A/9.

There were also the destroyersHMS Churchill (Cdr.(Retd.) G.R. Cousins, RN),HMS Lewes (Lt.Cdr. J.N.K. Knight, RN),HMS Lincoln (Cdr. A.M. Sheffield, RN) andHMS Ludlow (Cdr. G.B. Sayer, RN). They were en-route to the U.K. and had departed Halifax on 31 October and refuelled at St. Johns on 3 November. After receiving distress signals from ships in convoy HX 84 they rushed to the reported location. The only thing they found was an empty lifeboat. They then continued their Atlantic crossing and arrived at Londonderry on 9 November.

The destroyerHMS Stanley (A/Lt.Cdr. R.B. Stannard, VC, RNR) had departed Halifax on 1 November and St. Johns on 5 November. Now she and the Canadian destroyerHMCS St.Francis (Lt.Cdr. H.F. Pullen, RCN) escorted convoy HX 85, which had been recalled, back to Nova Scotia.

On 8 November, after machinery defects had been repaired, the heavy cruiserHMAS Australia (Capt. R.R. Stewart, RN) departed the Clyde to protect convoys.

The battlecruiserHMS Renown (Capt C.E.B. Simeon, RN) and the destroyersHMS Encounter (Lt.Cdr. E.V.St J. Morgan, RN),HMS Forester (Lt.Cdr. E.B. Tancock, RN) andHMS Gallant (Lt.Cdr. C.P.F. Brown, RN) departed Gibraltar at 0500A/6 to provide cover for convoys HG 46 and SL 53.

At 1225A/6, off Cape St Vincent, the submarineHMS Utmost (Lt. J.H. Eaden, DSC, RN) was identified as enemy byHMS Encounter which then rammed the submarine which was en-route to Gibraltar.HMS Encounter was escorted to Gibraltar byHMS Forester. They arrived at 0800A/7.

On 11 November,HMAS Australia relievedRenown from covering convoy HG 46 andRenown arrived back at Gibraltar around 1515A/12.Renown had been joined at 0807A/12 by the destroyersHMS Duncan (Cdr. A.D.B. James, RN) andHMS Forester.

Aircraft carrierHMS Argus (Capt. E.G.N. Rushbrooke, DSC, RN), light cruiserHMS Despatch (Commodore 2nd cl. C.E. Douglas-Pennant, DSC, RN) and the destroyersHMS Verity (Cdr. R.H. Mills, RN),HMS Vesper (Lt.Cdr. W.F.E. Hussey, DSC, RN) andHMS Windsor (Lt.Cdr. G.P. Huddart, RN) departed the Clyde on 7 November for Gibraltar and were also ordered to keep a look out for the German pocket battleship. The destroyers were later detached;HMS Windsor around 0100A/9 andHMS Verity andHMS Vesper around 0600A/9.HMS Despatch was detached at 1000A/13 and proceeded to Gibraltar where she arrived around noon the next day. Shortly beforeHMS Despatch was detached the destroyersHMS Wishart (Cdr. E.T. Cooper, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) had joined followed later in the day byHMS Vidette (Lt. E.N. Walmsley, RN).HMS Argus,HMS Vidette,HMS Wishart andHMS Wrestler arrived at Gibraltar very late on the 14th.

BattlecruiserHMS Repulse escorted by the destroyersHMS Matabele andHMS Electra arrived at Scapa Flow for refuelling around 1100A/11.

Light cruiserHMS Bonaventure and destroyerHMS Mashona arrived at Scapa Flow around 1130A/11 for refuelling.

BattlecruiserHMS Hood, light cruisersHMS Naiad,HMS Phoebe and the destroyersHMS Somali,HMS Eskimo andHMS Punjabi returned to Scapa Flow around 1400A/11 for refuelling.HMS Eskimo had suffered weather damage to her asdic dome and had some forecastle deck plates buckled. She was docked for repairs in the floating drydock at Scapa Flow from 13 to 16 November.HMS Phoebe had also sustained weather damage for which she was later taken in hand for repairs at Glasgow.

After fuellingHMS Bonaventure departed Scapa Flow at 2300A/11 to continue to search for survivors from convoy HX 84. Armed merchant cruiserHMS Chitral was also back at sea to search for survivors. She had departed from Reykjavik, Iceland around 2330A/10.

HMS Bonaventure returned to Scapa Flow on the 19th with weather damage.

The armed merchant cruiserHMS Letitia (A/Capt. E.H. Longsdon, RN) departed the Clyde around 1300A/11 for the Northern Patrol.

HMS Repulse,HMS Naiad departed Scapa Flow around 1330A/12 for patrol and also to provide cover for ships of the Northern Patrol. They were escorted by the destoyersHMS Sikh (Cdr. G.H. Stokes, RN),HMS Mashona,HMS Matabele andHMS Punjabi.

HMS Naiad parted company on the 13th to proceed to Jan Mayen Island where a German weather / wireless station in Jameson Bay was to be raided.

HMS Repulse returned to Scapa Flow at 0015A/19 being escorted by the destroyersHMS Ashanti (Cdr. W.G. Davis, RN),HMS Mashona andHMS Matabele. They had provided cover forHMS Naiad during her raid on Jan Mayen Island.

The battleshipHMS Nelson arrived at Scapa Flow around 1630A/13 escorted by the destroyersMaori,HMS Beagle (Lt.Cdr. R.H. Wright, RN),HMS Bulldog (Lt.Cdr. F.J.G. Hewitt, RN) andKeppel.

BattleshipHMS Rodney only arrived at Scapa Flow around 1500A/23. She had been joined at dawn the previous day by the destroyersHMS Beagle,HMS Brilliant,HMS Bulldog andHMS Electra. (7)

15 Nov 1940
HMS Vidette (Lt. E.N. Walmsley, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt.Cdr. E.N.V. Currey, RN) departed Gibraltar to make rendez-vous with the battleshipHMS Royal Sovereign (Capt. H.B. Jacomb, RN) which was coming north from Freetown and which they were to escort to Gibraltar. (8)

16 Nov 1940
In the early afternoon,HMS Royal Sovereign (Capt. H.B. Jacomb, RN), made rendezvous with her escorts towards Gibraltar,HMS Vidette (Lt. E.N. Walmsley, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt.Cdr. E.N.V. Currey, RN). (9)

18 Nov 1940
HMS Royal Sovereign (Capt. H.B. Jacomb, RN),HMS Vidette (Lt. E.N. Walmsley, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt.Cdr. E.N.V. Currey, RN) arrived at Gibraltar. (10)

7 Dec 1940
Around 1600A/7, the troopshipFranconia (British, 20175 GRT, built 1923) departed Gibraltar for the U.K. She was escorted the battleshipHMS Ramillies (Capt. A.D. Read, RN), aircraft carrierHMS Argus (Capt. E.G.N. Rushbrooke, DSC, RN) and the destroyersHMS Kelvin (Cdr. J.H. Allison, DSO, RN),HMS Eclipse (Lt.Cdr. I.T. Clark, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) andHMS Velox (Lt.Cdr. E.G. Roper, DSC, RN). (11)

8 Dec 1940
At 1825A/8,HMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN), parted company with the troopshipFranconia (British, 20175 GRT, built 1923), battleshipHMS Ramillies (Capt. A.D. Read, RN), aircraft carrierHMS Argus (Capt. E.G.N. Rushbrooke, DSC, RN) and the destroyersHMS Kelvin (Cdr. J.H. Allison, DSO, RN),HMS Eclipse (Lt.Cdr. I.T. Clark, RN) andHMS Velox (Lt.Cdr. E.G. Roper, DSC, RN).

HMS Wrestler was to proceed to the U.K. independently as a more economical speed. (12)

12 Dec 1940
At 1507/12 an aircraft reported an enemy submarine in position 50°26'N, 05°20'W (to the west of Newquay on the north coast of Cornwall).

To hunt the submarine the destroyersHMS Jersey (Lt.Cdr. W. Evershed, RN),FSS Le Triomphant (Cdr. P.M.J.R. Auboyneau) departed Plymouth andHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) departed from Falmouth.

The hunt was discontinued at 1730/13.HMS Jersey andHMS Wrestler then proceeded to cover shipping during the night between the Lizard and Start Point.FFS Le Triomphant proceeded to the Clyde where she arrived in the evening of December, 14th.

HMS Jersey returned to Plymouth at 1122/14.

HMS Wrestler proceeded to Portsmouth where she arrived in the morning of the 15th.

8 Mar 1941

At 2145/8,HMS Renown (Capt. R.R. McGrigor, RN, flying the flag of Vice-Admiral J.F. Somerville, KCB, DSO, RN),HMS Ark Royal (Capt. C.S. Holland, RN),HMS Arethusa (Capt. A.C. Chapman, RN),HMS Velox (Lt.Cdr. E.G. Roper, DSC, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) departed Gibraltar for the Canary Islands area. Speed was set to 27 knots. The German battlecruisersScharnhorst andGneisenau had been reported in that area byHMS Malaya (Capt. A.F.E. Palliser, DSC, RN) trying to attack convoy convoy SL 67.

At 0015/9, the destroyers were detached being unable to keep up with the larger ships in the current weather conditions.

A reconnaissance of six aircraft was flow off byHMS Ark Royal at 1500/9 to search from 180° through west to 360° to a depth of 130 miles. The visibility was 30 miles. Two ships were sighted, one Ocean Boarding Vessel and a British tanker.

At 1030/9, Vice-Admiral Somerville received instructions from the Admiralty thatHMS Arethusa was to return to Gibraltar and thatHMS Renown andHMS Ark Royal were to take over the escort of convoy SL 67 fromHMS Malaya p.m. 10th March after whichHMS Malaya was to return to Freetown.HMS Arethusa was then detached in position 32°42'N, 13°08'W.

Course was altered to 230° at 1900/9.

At 0830/10, course was altered to 220° to rendezvous withHMS Malaya and an A/S and security patrol were flown off in low visibility. A reconnaissance of six aircraft was flown off at 0950/10 to search from 180° through west to 360° to a relative depth of 70 miles but nothing was sighted. The visibility was 15 miles.

A further reconnaissance was of six aircraft was flown off at 1330/10 to search from 090° through south to 270° to a depth of 80 miles. The convoy having been located by the air search, course was altered to 160° and at 1720/10HMS Renown andHMS Ark Royal joined the convoy which was being escorted byHMS Malaya,HMS Cilicia (Capt.(Retd.) V.B. Cardwell, OBE, RN),HMS Faulknor (Capt. A.F. de Salis, RN) andHMS Forester (Lt.Cdr. E.B. Tancock, DSC and Bar, RN), in position 26°12'N, 19°38'W. At 1730/10,HMS Malaya was detached to return to Freetown. [For more info on this convoy see the event ' Convoy SL 67 ' for 1 March 1941.]

A dusk reconnaissance to a depth of 45 miles sighed nothing in a visibility of 8 to 15 miles.

A reconnaissance was flown off at a.m. and p.m. on the 11th but nothing was sighted. Two aircraft armed with depth charges and one without broke their undercarriages while landing on. There was a moderate swell and wind force 6. A/S bombs were therefore carried till conditions improved.

At 0700/12, A/S and security patrols were flown off followed an hour later by a reconnaissance of nine aircraft to carry out an all round search to a depth of 90 miles. Visibility was 10 - 15 miles. The only ships sighted were the ones that had been detached from the convoy earlier.

The p.m. reconnaissance carried out an all round search to a depth of 90 miles sighted nothing.

At 0700/13 the A/S patrol was flown off. Later a reconnaissance was flown off which conducted an all round search for a depth of 120 miles. Visibility was 10 miles but was deteriorating.

At 1000/13,HMS Faulknor andHMS Forester were detached for Gibraltar.

During the forenoonHMS Renown andHMS Ark Royal conducted exercises with aircraft fromArk Royal which then also conducted practice attacks on ships in the convoy.

The evening reconnaissance on the 13th from position 32°12'N, 21°07'W, searched to a depth of 120 miles but sighted nothing exceptHMS Faulknor andHMS Forester returning to Gibraltar.

At 0650/14, an A/S patrol was flown off and an all round reconnaissance an hour later. They searched to a depth of 100 miles from position 33°27'N, 21°27'W but they sighted nothing of interest. During the forenoon some flying exercises were carried out.

The afternoon reconnaissance was flown off and searched for a depth of 1000 miles again sighted nothing of interest.

At 2200/14, a signal was received with instructions thatHMS Renown andHMS Ark Royal were to leave the convoy at dusk on 19 March.

At 0250/15, when in position 35°24'N, 22°18'W, a darkened ship was sighted crossing ahead of the convoy.HMS Cilicia was ordered to investigate and it turned out to be the merchant vesselSt.Clair II (British, 3753 GRT, built 1929) bound for Freetown.

At 0650/15, the A/S patrol was flown off. Ten minutes later the merchant vesselNew Westminster City (British, 4747 GRT, built 1929) was sighted in position 35°46'N, 22°09'W. On sightingHMS Renown she made a raider report but cancelled it 22 minutes later.

In the forenoon more flying exercises were carried out andHMS Cilicia was ordered to proceed to the tankerRoxane (British, 7813 GRT, built 1929) which had straggled from the convoy. The forenoon reconnaissance to a depth of 110 miles sighted noting.

The afternoon reconnaissance searched to a depth of 120 miles from position 36°50'N, 22°25'W. They sighted a Spanish tanker but nothing further of interest. One Swordfish aircraft failed to return and was considered lost with its crew.

Around dawn on the 16th the usual A/S patrol and reconnaissance aircraft were flown off. They searched to a depth of 100 miles but nothing was sighted.

The afternoon reconnaissance also searched to a depth of 100 miles (from position 39°30'N, 23°05'W) sighted five merchant vessels but nothing further.

At 2200/16, a signal was received from the Admiralty in which Vice-Admiral Somerville was informed of the fact that the German heavy cruiserAdmiral Hipper had departed Brest.

A darkened ship was sighted at 0140/17 which was found on investigatation byHMS Cilicia to be merchant vesselRiver Lugar (British, 5423 GRT, built 1937) bound for Freetown.

The A/S and security patrol flew off at dawn and at 0950/17 they reported they sighted the armed merchant cruiserHMS Bulolo (Capt.(Retd.) R.L. Hamer, RN) which was en-route to Freetown.

A full reconnaissance was carried out at 1100/17 to a depth of 130 miles with average visibility of 20 miles. The only ship sighted was the ocean boarding vesselHMS Hilary (Cdr. T.L. Owen, RD, RNR) in position 43°08'N, 24°38'W. She passed the convoy at 1800/17.

At 1700/17, a reconnaissance was flown off to the north and east to a depth of 100 miles but nothing was sighted.

At 0700/18, the A/S and security patrols were flown off. At 0800/18 the forenoon reconnaissance was flown off from position 43°25'N, 23°48'W to search to a depth of 140 miles. Only one merchant vessel was sighted.

The afternoon reconnaissance sighted nothing in a search to a depth of 140 miles between 325° and 045° and 135° and 225° from position 44°40'N, 23°40'W.

At 0700/19 an A/S patrol was flown off followed at 0745/19 by a reconnaissance to a depth of 160 miles from position 45°40'N, 23°40'W. This reconnaissance informedHMS Kenya (Capt. M.M. Denny, CB, RN) of the position, course and speed of the convoy, which she joined at 1000/19. Also a merchant vessel was sighted which appeared somewhat suspicious andHMS Cilicia was ordered to investigate and then return to Freetown.

Meanwhile information had been received that the German tankerAntarktis (10711 GRT, built 1939) had sailed from Vigo during the night 17/18 March and it was Vice-Admiral Somervilles intention to search for this ship to the north-east and south-east of the Azores before returning to Gibraltar.

HMS Renown andHMS Ark Royal parted company with the convoy at 1600/19. Also a reconnaissance was flown off to locate the suspicious merchant vessel. At 1906/19 a report was received that it had been sighted in position 45°15'N, 23°48'W at 1800/19 steering 280° at slow speed. This information was passed on toHMS Cilicia. Shortly afterwards a second merchant vessel was sighted which also fitted the discription of the suspicious merchent vessel (close observation was not possible, the aircraft had been ordered to remain out of sight). This too was passed on toHMS Cilicia.

The evening reconnaissance reported the Norwegian tankerBianca (5688 GRT, built 1926) in position 45°22'N, 23°35'W at 1740/19, steering 090°, 12 knots, half laden. An Admiralty signal had been intercepted at 1800/15 containing the names of 14 outward bound tankers estimated to be within 150 miles from where raider signals had been received on that day. AsBianca was one of these ships mentioned, and as she was evidently in ballast and steering for Bordeaux, Vice-Admiral Somerville concluded that she must have a German price crew on board. He therefore decided to intercept in the morning before starting the search for theAntarktis.

At 0655/20 an A/S patrol was flown off followed at 0740/20 by a reconnaissance to a depth of 120 miles from south through west to north. At 0857/20, theBianca was reported to be in postion bearing 180°, 68 miles fromHMS Renown andHMS Ark Royal.HMS Renown then set course to intercept parting company withHMS Ark Royal which continued her flying operations.

At 1147/20 an aircraft dropped a message on boardHMS Renown that the British tankerSan Casimiro (8046 GRT, built 1936) had been sighted in position 44°50'N, 22°15'W, steering 076° at 11 knots. An hour later another aircraft reported having sighted the Norwegian tankerPolykarp (6405 GRT, built 1931) at 0920/20 in position 45°40'N, 23°26'W, steering east at 7 knots and that she had altered course to 010° on being sighted. Both these tankers were included in the Admiralty's signal referred to earlier so it was thought these tankers were also under German control. Vice-Admiral Somerville decided to try to intercept theBianca andsSan Casimiro today and thePolykarp with the help of an air search the following morning.

TheBianca was sighted at 1210/20 in position 44°16'N, 19°21'W.HMS Renown closed and sent a boarding party. The weather was perfect for boarding . WhenRenown was still 6 miles fromBianca she was seen to be abandoning ship, and as the boats pulled clear scuttling charges exploded and fire broke out in the engine room aft and also on the bridge. The boarding party proceeded on board and the launch rounded up theBianca's boats and ordered them to return to their ship. The fires were extinguished but the ship was low in the water with a considerable list to port and down by the stern. It soon became apparent that the ship could not be saved.

By 1500/20Bianca's ship's company, the German prize crew and the boarding party had returned on boardHMS Renown and a course of 340° was shaped at 24 knots to intercept theSan Casimiro.

Vice-Admiral Somerville gave orders toHMS Ark Royal that whenHMS Renown appeared in sight of theSan Casimiro the shadowing aircraft was to close and deter the prise crew from scuttling the ship.

TheSan Casimiro was sighted at 1715/20 in position 45°12'N, 19°42'W. Immediately afterwards she abandoned ship and scuttling charges were fired. The bridge of the ship was soon engulfed in flames. By the timeHMS Renown was near her she was low in the water and was listing to port.

The tankers boats were closingHMS Renown and the boarding party were in the act of transferring some ofSan Casimiro's officers from the boats to the launch in order to return to their ship and see if anything could be done to save the ship when an enemy report was received by V/S from a Fulmar at 1815/20 that two enemy battlecruisers had been sighted at 1730/20 in position 45°56'N, 21°36'W, steering north at 20 knots. This position was 110 miles north-west ofHMS Renown. At this timeHMS Ark Royal was in sight fromRenown bearing 215°.

Boats were immediately recalled and clearedso at 1850/20HMS Renown proceeded to closeHMS Ark Royal. As it was obvious nothing could be done to save theSan Casimiro a few rounds of 4.5" were fired into her whenHMS Renown passed.

The W/T installation of the Fulmar had malfunctioned therefore she had to closeHMS Renown to pass the enemy report.HMS Ark Royal was informed by the Fulmar at 1825/20. The distance of the enemy ships toHMS Ark Royal at this moment was estimated to be 147 miles. At 1844/20HMS Ark Royal reported that she had shadowers ready on deck but they would be unable to make contact before dark.

At 1830/20, an enemy report was sent to the Admiralty together with the position, course and speed ofHMS Renown andHMS Ark Royal. By 1915/20,HMS Renown had closedHMS Ark Royal and a course of 340° was shaped at 25 knots to overhaul the enemy. A Fulmar to search for the enemy was flown off at 1930/20.

This Fulmar reported at 2040/20, 'thick weather, nothing sighted', having searched to a depth of 168 miles and having encountered thick cloud down to the sea level between bearing 320° and 070° with further cloud patches to the westward, and eventually returned soon after 2100/20 and made a perfect arrival without any aid. This was a most creditable piece of work on behalf of the pilot and his observer.

Although it seemed unlikely, owing to the poor visibility to the northward, that the enemy could have ben kept under observation Vice-Admiral Somerville consider thatHMS Ark Royal should have flown off a fighter to shadow as soon as possible after the receipt of the enemy report.

At 2110/20, Vice-Admiral Somerville informed the Admiralty that night shadowing and to attack was impracticable due to low visibility and that he intended a dawn search in the direction of convoy SL 67 and to the westward of that convoy. If nothing was sighted he told the Admiralty it was his intention to return to Gibraltar.

His choices to search this sector were based on the following.
1) Shore based air and surface reconnaissance from the UK could cover to some extent the area to the eastward but not to the westward.
2) It was considered possible but unlikely that the enemy would make for Brest, France in view of its proximity to the UK.
3) A more probable course of action by the enemy appeared to be an attack on convoy SL 67 or, after starting off to the westward, a run to the south to be followed by an attack on the trade routes at prestent being used by convoys in this area.

Course was altered at 2200/20 to 003° to reach the best possible position for the dawn reconnaissance.

At 0345/21, Vice-Admiral Somerville was informed thatHMS Malaya, escorting convoy SL 68 had been torpedoed.

At 0645/21, a reconnaissance of nine Swordfish flew off from position 49°25'N, 19°50'W, to search between 250° through north to 040°. The depth of the search was limited to appoximately 50 miles by a heavy fog bank extending to a height of 3000 feet and nothing was sighted.

All reconnaissance aircraft landed on at 1100/21 and course was then altered to 150° and speed reduced to 19 knots.

At 1630/21, A Swordfish armed with depth charges, cashed over the bows ofHMS Ark Royal when being accelerated for an A/S patrol. The aircraft appeared to break in half across the rear cockpit and fell straight into the sea immediately ahead of the ship. The depth charges fired under 35 station and some damage was caused. The crew of the aircraft was killed.

The afternoon reconnaissance flew off from position 50°05'N, 18°50'W an searched from 110° through south to 230° to a depth of 160 miles without sighting anything.

At 0630/22, an A/S patrol was flown off followed at 0700/22 by a reconnaissance from position 45°52'N, 17°39'W. This covered the area between 280° and 050° to a depth of 70 miles and from 050° to 100° to a depth of 135 miles. Nothing was sighted.

The p.m. reconnaissance searched to a depth of 150 miles from position 44°10'N, 16°50'W from 100° through south to 280°. Nothing was sighted. Course was then set as to arrive at Gibraltar early on the 24th.

On 23 March the usual A/S patrol was maintained during the day. Instructions were received from the Admiralty that on return to Gibraltar,HMS Renown andHMS Ark Royal were to fuel as soon as possible to return to the Atlantic and continue operations against the enemy battlecruisers.

At 1335/23, the destroyersHMS Fearless (Cdr. A.F. Pugsley, RN),HMS Forester,HMS Velox andHMS Wrestler made rendezvous.

HMS Renown arrived at Gibraltar around 0700/24.HMS Ark Royal escorted byHMS Fearless,HMS Forester,HMS Velox andHMS Wrestler entered the harbour around 0945/24 first having replacement aircraft being flown on from North Front. (13)

21 Mar 1941
Around 1940A/21, the aircraft carrierHMS Argus (Capt. T.O. Bulteel, RN), light cruiserHMS Sheffield (Capt. C.A.A. Larcom, RN), armed merchant cruiserHMS Dunnottar Castle (Capt.(Retd.) C.T.A. Bunbury, RN) and the submarine tenderHMS Maidstone (Capt. G.A.W. Voelcker, RN) departed the Clyde for Gibraltar. With them was also the troopshipsHighland Monarch (British, 14139 GRT, built 1928) andLargs Bay (British, 14182 GRT, built 1921). They were escorted by the destroyersHMAS Napier (Capt. S.H.T. Arliss, RN),HMAS Nizam (Lt.Cdr. M.J. Clark, RAN),HMCS Ottawa (Cdr. E.R. Mainguy, RCN) andORP Garland (Lt.Cdr. K.F. Namiesniowski, ORP).

Around 0800A/22, the destroyerHMCS St.Francis (Lt.Cdr. H.F. Pullen, RCN) joined.

Around 1425A/22, the destroyerHMS Ripley (Lt.Cdr. J.A. Agnew, RN) joined.

At 1030A/24,HMCS Ottawa andORP Garland were detached.

At 1800A/24,HMS Ripley andHMCS St. Francis were detached.

At 2050A/26,HMS Dunnottar Castle and theLargs Bay were detached to Freetown.

At 0830A/28, the destroyersHMS Velox (Lt.Cdr. E.G. Roper, DSC, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) joined. (14)

24 Mar 1941

Convoy HG 57.

This convoy departed Gibraltar on 25 March 1941.

It was made up of the following merchant vessels;Aghios Spyridon (Greek, 3338 GRT, built 1905),Aldergrove (British, 1974 GRT, built 1918),Anneberg (Finnish, 2537 GRT, built 1902),Ardeola (British, 2609 GRT, built 1912),Baltallinn (British, 1303 GRT, built 1920),Baron Newlands (British, 3386 GRT, built 1928),Bollsta (Norwegian, 1832 GRT, built 1934),Caledonia (British, 1268 GRT, built 1913),Cantal (British, 3178 GRT, built 1916),Cervantes (British, 1810 GRT, built 1916),Chantilly (British, 9986 GRT, built 1923),Egyptian (British, 2868 GRT, built 1920),Empire Strait (British, 2841 GRT, built 1940),Gothland (British, 1286 GRT, built 1932),Marvia (British, 1989 GRT, built 1914),Mimosa (Greek, 3071 GRT, built 1905),Moscha D. Kydoniefs (British, 3874 GRT, built 1915),Newton Pine (British, 4212 GRT, built 1925),Octane (British (tanker) (former French), 2034 GRT, built 1939),Polo (British, 1950 GRT, built 1919),Runa (British, 1575 GRT, built 1930),Scania (Swedish, 1980 GRT, built 1901),Scottish Monarch (British, 4719 GRT, built 1938) andTrio (Swedish, 1482 GRT, built 1922).

On departure from Gibraltar the convoy was escorted by the destroyerHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN), sloopHMS Rochester (Lt.Cdr. C.B. Allen, RN), corvettesHMS Gentian (Lt.Cdr. R.O. Yeomans, RD, RNR),HMS Jonquil (Lt.Cdr. R.E.H. Partington, RNR),HMS La Malouine (Lt.Cdr.(Retd.) R.W. Keymer, RN),HMS Verbena (Lt.Cdr. D.A. Rayner, DSC, RNVR) and the submarineHrMs O 23 (Lt.Cdr. G.B.M. van Erkel, RNN).

TheAghios Spyridon returned to Gibraltar the same day the convoy had sailed.

On 27 March,HMS Wrestler,HMS Gentian andHMS Jonquil were detached.

At 1115Z/3,HrMs O 23 was detached to join convoy OG 57.

At 1430Z/3, in position 45°27'N, 22°00'W, the light cruiserHMS Nigeria (Capt. J.G.L. Dundas, RN joined.

At 0920Z/4,HMS La Malouine was detached to proceed ahead to the U.K. with a dangerous medical case.

At 0845Z/5, the armed boarding vesselHilary (Cdr. T.L. Owen, RD, RNR) joined the convoy.

At 1930Z/5, the armed boaring vesselCavina (Cdr. C.B. Osborne, RD, RNR) joined the convoy.

P.M. on 8 April the destroyersHMS Broke (Cdr. B.G. Scurfield, RN),HMS Douglas (Cdr. W.E. Banks, DSC, RN),HMS Roxborough (Lt. V.A. Wight-Boycott, OBE, RN),HMS Salisbury (Lt.Cdr. H.M.R. Crichton, RN), corvettesHMS Abelia (T/Lt. F. Ardern, RNR),HMS Clarkia (Lt.Cdr. F.J.G. Jones, RNR) and auxiliary A/S trawlersHMS St. Elstan (T/Lt. G. Butcher, RNVR),HMS St. Kenan (T/Lt. R.R. Simpson, RNR),HMS St. Zeno (T/Lt. J.K. Craig, RNVR) andHMS Vizalma (T/Lt. M.M. Firth, RNVR). With these escorted the rescue shipZamalek (British, 1567 GRT, built 1921) also joined. The local A/S escort was to have joined on 6 April but bad weather conditions delayed their joining for about 48 hours.

Around 1900A/9, in position 55°41'N, 10°08'W,HMS Nigeria parted company with the convoy to proceed to Scapa Flow.

On 10 April the following merchant vessels arrived at Oban;Baron Newlands,Cervantes,Empire Strait,Gothland andScottish Monarch.

On 10 April the following merchant vessels arrived in Belfast Lough;Caledonia,Cantal,Chantilly,Marvia,Mimosa,Moscha D. Kydoniefs,Octane andScania.

On 11 April the following merchant vessels arrived in the Clyde;Aldergrove,Anneberg,Newton Pine and the rescue shipZamalek.

On 11 April theBollsta arrived at Workington.

On 11 April theEgyptian arrived at Preston.

On 11 April the following merchant vessels arrived at Liverpool;Ardeola,Baltallinn,Polo,Runa andTrio.

The escorts arrived in U.K. ports as follows;On 9 April 1941,HMS Broke arrived at Londonderry.

On 10 April 1941,HMS Douglas,HMS Roxborough,HMS Abelia,HMS St. Elstan,HMS St. Kenan,HMS St. Zeno andHMS Vizalma arrived at Londonderry.

On 11 April 1941,HMS Salisbury arrived at Londonderry.

On 11 April 1941,HMS Rochester andHMS Verbena arrived at Liverpool. (15)

29 Mar 1941
Around 1530A/29,HMS Argus (Capt. T.O. Bulteel, RN),HMS Sheffield (Capt. C.A.A. Larcom, RN),HMS Maidstone (Capt. G.A.W. Voelcker, RN),HMAS Napier (Capt. S.H.T. Arliss, RN),HMAS Nizam (Lt.Cdr. M.J. Clark, RAN),HMS Velox (Lt.Cdr. E.G. Roper, DSC, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) arrived at Gibraltar. (14)

1 Apr 1941
HMS Highlander (Cdr. S. Boucher, RN),HMS Velox (Lt.Cdr. E.G. Roper, DSC, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) departed Gibraltar for escort duty. (16)

3 Apr 1941
The battlecruiserHMS Repulse (Capt. W.G. Tennant, CB, MVO, RN) and aircraft carrierHMS Furious (Capt. A.G. Talbot, DSO, RN), troopshipNarkunda (British, 16632 GRT, built 1920) escorted by the destroyersHMS Highlander (Cdr. S. Boucher, RN),HMS Velox (Lt.Cdr. E.G. Roper, DSC, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) arrived at Gibraltar. They had been joined by the destroyers in approximate position 35°50'N, 12°00'W around 1130A/2.

15 Apr 1941
Around 2215A/15, the battleshipHMS Queen Elizabeth (Capt. C.B. Barry, DSO, RN) departed Gibraltar for Freetown. She is escorted by the destroyersHMS Fury (Lt.Cdr. T.C. Robinson, RN),HMS Velox (Lt.Cdr. E.G. Roper, DSC, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN).

Around 1000A/17,HMS Wrestler was detached for an RD/F exercise withHMS Queen Elizabeth. On completion of the exercise,HMS Wrestler set course to return to Gibraltar.

Around 1500A/17,HMS Velox parted company to return to Gibraltar.

Around 1930A/17,HMS Fury parted company to return to Gibraltar.

Around 0830Z/19, the destroyersHMS Foxhound (Cdr. G.H. Peters, DSC, RN) andHMS Duncan (Lt.Cdr. A.N. Rowell, RN) joined coming from Freetown.

Around 0800N/21,HMS Queen Elizabeth,HMS Foxhound andHMS Duncan arrived at Freetown.HMS Queen Elizabeth then commenced cleaning her boilers. (17)

20 Apr 1941
Around 1830A/20, the light cruiserHMS Sheffield (Capt. C.A.A. Larcom, RN) and the destroyersHMS Faulknor (Capt. A.F. de Salis, RN,HMS Fortune (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Sinclair, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) departed Gibraltar to make rendezvous with the aircraft carrierHMS Argus (Capt. T.O. Bulteel, RN) and her current escort, the heavy cruiserHMS London (Capt. R.M. Servaes, CBE, RN). (18)

22 Apr 1941
Around 1130A/22, the aircraft carrierHMS Argus (Capt. T.O. Bulteel, RN) and the heavy cruiserHMS London (Capt. R.M. Servaes, CBE, RN) made rendezvous with the light cruiserHMS Sheffield (Capt. C.A.A. Larcom, RN) and the destroyersHMS Faulknor (Capt. A.F. de Salis, RN,HMS Fortune (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Sinclair, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) coming from Gibraltar.

The new arrivals then took over the escort of the carrier towards Gibraltar.HMS London then parted company for escort duty with northbound convoy SL 71. (19)

23 Apr 1941

Convoy CF 1.

This convoy departed Capetown on 23 April 1941.

It was made up of the troopships;Empress of Japan (British, 26032 GRT, built 1930) andMonarch of Bermuda (British, 22424 GRT, built 1931).

The (damaged) aircraft carrierHMS Illustrious (Cdr. G.S. Tuck, RN) was also part of the convoy.

The convoy was escorted by the heavy cruiserHMS Dorsetshire (Capt. B.C.S. Martin, RN).

On 27 April 1941, the convoy made a short stop at St. Helena where both warships fuelled.

Around 1030Z/29, the light cruiserHMS Dunedin (Capt. R.S. Lovatt, RN) joined.HMS Dorsetshire andHMS Illustrious then parted company.

The convoy arrived at Freetown on 1 May 1941.

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The convoy departed Freetown on 2 May 1941.

Escort was provided by the light cruiserHMS Dunedin and the destroyersHMS Highlander (Cdr. S. Boucher, RN) andHMS Boreas (Lt.Cdr. D.H. Maitland-Makgill Crichton, DSC, RN).

At 1310Z/4,HMS Highlander andHMS Boreas parted company to proceed to Bathurst.

At 1645A/7, the destroyersHMS Velox (Lt.Cdr. E.G. Roper, DSC, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) joined coming from Gibraltar.

The convoy arrived at Gibraltar in the morning of the 8th.

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The convoy departed Gibraltar on 8 May 1941.

The convoy was now escorted by the battlecruiserHMS Repulse (Capt. W.G. Tennant, CB, MVO, RN) and the aircraft carrierHMS Argus (Capt. T.O. Bulteel, RN). No A/S escort could be provided.

Around 1400B/13, the AA cruiserHMS Cairo (A/Capt. I.R.H. Black, RN) and the destroyersHMCS Ottawa (Cdr. E.R. Mainguy, RCN),HMCS Restigouche (Cdr. H.N. Lay, OBE, RN),HMCS Saguenay (Lt. P.E. Haddon, RCN),HMS Beagle, (Lt.Cdr. R.T. White, DSO and Bar, RN),HMS Wanderer (Cdr. A.F.St.G. Orpen, RN) andHMS Ripley (Lt.Cdr. J.A. Agnew, RN) joined.

At 0730B/15,HMS Beagle was detached.

At 1115B/15, theMonarch of Bermuda,HMS Cairo,HMCS Saguenay andHMS Ripley were detached to Liverpool where they arrived on 15 May 1941.

The remainder of the convoy arrived in the Clyde on 15 May 1941.

24 Apr 1941
Around 0700A/24,HMS Argus (Capt. T.O. Bulteel, RN),HMS Sheffield (Capt. C.A.A. Larcom, RN),HMS Faulknor (Capt. A.F. de Salis, RN,HMS Fortune (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Sinclair, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) arrived at Gibraltar. (20)

25 Apr 1941
Around 0700N/25, the battleshipHMS Queen Elizabeth (Capt. C.B. Barry, DSO, RN) departed Freetown for Gibraltar. She was escorted by the destroyersHMS Foxhound (Cdr. G.H. Peters, DSC, RN) andHMS Duncan (Lt.Cdr. A.N. Rowell, RN).

At 0900Z/27,HMS Foxhound andHMS Duncan parted company to proceed to Bathurst.

Around 1345A/29, the destroyersHMS Fearless (Cdr. A.F. Pugsley, RN),HMS Fury (Lt.Cdr. T.C. Robinson, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) joined coming from Gibraltar which they had departed on the 28th.

Around 0800A/30,HMS Queen Elizabeth,HMS Fearless,HMS Fury andHMS Wrestler arrived at Gibraltar. (17)

5 May 1941

Operation Tiger, supply convoy from Gibraltar to Alexandria and reinforcements for the Mediterranean Fleet and Operation MD 4, supply convoy from Alexandria to Malta and taking up the reinforcements for the Mediterranean Fleet.

Timespan: 5 to 12 May 1941.

Western Mediterranean.

Part of Convoy WS 8A was approaching Gibraltar from the west. This part of convoy WS 8A was to proceed to Malta during operation ‘Tiger’.

It was made up of five transports;Clan Campbell (7255 GRT, built 1937),Clan Chattan (7262 GRT, built 1937),Clan Lamont (7250 GRT, built 1939),Empire Song (9228 GRT, built 1940) andNew Zealand Star (10740 GRT, built 1935). During the passage from the U.K. it had been escorted by the battlecruiserHMS Repulse (Capt. W.G. Tennant, CB, MVO, RN), light cruiserHMS Naiad (Capt. M.H.A. Kelsey, DSC, RN, flying the flag of Rear-Admiral E.L.S. King, CB, MVO, RN) and the destroyersHMS Harvester (Lt.Cdr. M. Thornton, DSC, RN),HMS Havelock (Cdr. E.H. Thomas, DSC, RN) andHMS Hesperus (Lt.Cdr. A.A. Tait, RN) (with the additional local escorts when still close to the U.K.)

Around 0700A/5,HMS Repulse,HMS Harvester,HMS Havelock andHMS Hesperus were relieved from the escort by the battleshipHMS Queen Elizabeth (Capt. C.B. Barry, DSO, RN) and the destroyersHMS Fearless (Cdr. A.F. Pugsley, RN) ,HMS Foresight (Cdr. J.S.C. Salter, RN) ,HMS Fortune (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Sinclair, RN) andHMS Velox (Lt.Cdr. E.G. Roper, DSC, RN). TheRepulse and the three H-class destroyers then proceeded to Gibraltar to refuel where they arrived shortly before 1800 hours. It had originally been intended to includeRepulse in the upcoming operation but she was left at Gibraltar due to her inadequate anti-aircraft armament.

HMS Naiad had already arrived at Gibraltar around 0900/4, having been relieved shortly after noon on the 2nd of May byHMS Mauritius (Capt. W.D. Stephens, RN). Around the same timeHMS Naiad arrived at Gibraltar the cruiserHMS Fiji (Capt. P.B.R.W. William-Powlett, RN) arrived, she had been part of the escort of convoy SL 72.

Around 0930A/5, the battlecruiserHMS Renown (Capt. R.R. McGrigor, RN, flying the flag of Vice-Admiral J.F. Somerville, KCB, DSO, RN), aircraft carrierHMS Ark Royal (Capt. L.E.H. Maund, RN), light cruisersHMS Sheffield (Capt. C.A.A. Larcom, RN),HMS Fiji and the destroyersHMS Kashmir (Cdr. H.A. King, RN),HMS Kipling (Cdr. A. St. Clair-Ford, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN).Kashmir andKipling had departed a little earlier and carried out an A/S sweep in Gibraltar Bay first.

For the upcoming operation two groups were formed; The cover force which was formed onRenown was group I, the close escort, which was to remain with the transports was group II. When they arrived near the convoy at 1800A/5, group I was formed and was made up ofRenown,Queen Elizabeth,Ark Royal,Sheffield,Fiji, Kashmir andKipling. Group II remained with the convoy and was (for the moment) made up ofFearless,Foresight,Fortune,Velox andWrestler. Group II and the convoy proceeded towards the Straits of Gibraltar at 13 knots while Group I proceeded to the south until 2130 hours when course was changed to 074°. At 1930 hours, Group I, had been joined byHMS Naiad. This cruiser had sailed from Gibraltar at 1300 hours.

Eastern Mediterranean.

Convoy MW 7B departed Alexandria for Malta this day. It was made up of the Norwegian tankersHoegh Hood (9351 GRT, built 1936) andSvenor (7616 GRT, built 1931). These tankers were able to proceed at 10 knots. Escort was provided by the AA-cruisersHMS Carlisle (Capt. T.C. Hampton, RN),HMS Coventry (Capt. D. Gilmour, RN), destroyersHMS Defender (Lt.Cdr. G.L. Farnfield, RN), HMSHMS Greyhound (Cdr. W.A. Marshall-A’Deane, DSO, DSC, RN) andHMS Hasty (Lt.Cdr. L.R.K. Tyrwhitt, DSC, RN). Also part of the escort of this convoy was the corvetteHMS Gloxinia (Lt.Cdr. A.J.C. Pomeroy, RNVR) which was to serve as minesweeper at Malta and the whalerHMS Swona which was to be outfitted as minesweeper (LL-sweep) at the Malta Dockyard.

Western Mediterranean.

The convoy with Group II passed through the Straits of Gibraltar between 0130 and 0330 hours followed by Group I between 0300 and 0430 hours. Although the moon did not set until 0314 hours the sky was completely overcast and visibility was low.

At 0330 hours,HMS Faulknor (Capt. A.F. de Salis, RN),HMS Forester (Lt.Cdr. E.B. Tancock, DSC and Bar, RN),HMS Fury (Lt.Cdr. T.C. Robinson, RN),HMS Harvester,HMS Havelock andHMS Hesperus departed Gibraltar followed at 0420 hours byHMS Gloucester (Capt. H.A. Rowley, RN) which had completed her repairs and undocking shortly before.

By 0550 hours, Group I was about 32 miles to the east of Gibraltar with the convoy and Group II 10 miles to the north. At this timeFaulknor,Forester andFury joined Group I. At 0615 hoursQueen Elizabeth withKashmir andKelvin was detached to join Group II, followed thirty minutes later byNaiad.

At 0625 hours,Gloucester joined Group I and speed was then increased to 24 knots to draw well ahead of the convoy. During the day Group I steered 060°. Group II was steering parallel to the Spanish coast at 13 knots.Velox andWrestler were detached from Group II to arrive at Gibraltar after dark to avoid being sighted returning from the East.

At 1740 hoursRenown, in position 37°05’N, 00°21’W sighted a French merchant ship most likely en-route to Oran. On sighting the British ships she immediately steered clear to the westward. Shorty afterwards Group I reduced speed to 17 knots as to not get too far ahead of Group II and the convoy.

By midnight Group I was about 150 nautical miles east-north-east of Group II.

Eastern Mediterranean.

The Mediterranean Fleet departed Alexandria in the forenoon, it was made up of the battleshipsHMS Warspite (Capt. D.B. Fisher, CBE, RN, flying the flag of Admiral Sir A.B. Cunningham, GCB, DSO and 2 Bars, RN),HMS Barham (Capt. G.C. Cooke, RN),HMS Valiant (Capt. C.E. Morgan, DSO, RN), aircraft carrierHMS Formidable (Capt. A.W.la T. Bisset, RN), light cruisersHMS Orion (Capt. G.R.B. Back, RN, flying the flag of Vice-Admiral H.D. Pridham-Whippell, CB, CVO, RN),HMS Ajax (Capt. E.D.B. McCarthy, RN),HMAS Perth (Capt. P.W. Bowyer-Smith, RN), destroyers (D.14)HMS Jervis (Capt. P.J. Mack, DSO, RN),HMS Jaguar (Lt.Cdr. J.F.W. Hine, RN),HMS Juno (Cdr. St. J.R.J. Tyrwhitt, RN),HMS Kandahar (Cdr. W.G.A. Robson, DSO, RN),HMS Kimberley (Lt.Cdr. J.S.M. Richardson, DSO, RN),HMS Kingston (Lt.Cdr. P. Somerville, DSO, DSC, RN), (D.7)HMAS Napier (Capt. S.H.T. Arliss, RN),HMAS Nizam (Lt.Cdr. M.J. Clark, RAN),HMS Imperial (Lt.Cdr. C.A.de W. Kitcat, RN),HMS Havock (Lt. G.R.G. Watkins, RN),HMS Hotspur (Lt.Cdr. C.P.F. Brown, DSC, RN) andHMS Griffin (Lt.Cdr. J. Lee-Barber, DSO, RN). The fast minesweeperHMS Abdiel (Capt. E. Pleydell-Bouverie, MVO, RN) and the naval transportHMS Breconshire (9776 GRT, built 1939) also sailed with the Fleet.HMS Abdiel was to lay a minefield off Lampedusa.HMS Breconshire had on board oil and petrol for Malta as well as oil to supply this to destroyers at sea.Abdiel took station in the destroyer screen whileBreconshire took station in the battleship line. After sailing the fleet proceeded to the northwest. No aircraft were flown off byHMS Formidable due to a dust storm and very limited visibility.

After the Fleet sailed, convoy MW 7A departed Alexandria. It was made up of four transport vessels;Amerika (10218 GRT, built 1930),Settler (6202 GRT, built 1939),Talabot (6798 GRT, built 1936) andThermopylae (6655 GRT, built 1930). These were able to proceed at 14 knots. Escort was provided by the light cruisersHMS Dido (Capt. H.W.U. McCall, RN),HMS Phoebe (Capt. G. Grantham, RN), AA-cruiserHMS Calcutta (Capt. D.M. Lees, DSO, RN) and the destroyers (D.2)HMS Ilex (Capt. H.St.L. Nicholson, DSO and Bar, RN),HMS Isis (Cdr. C.S.B. Swinley, DSC, RN),HMS Hereward (Lt. W.J. Munn, RN) andHMS Hero (Cdr. H.W. Biggs, DSO, RN).

One of the destroyers from the escort of convoy MW 7B,HMS Defender, that had sailed on the 5th had to return to Alexandria due to condenser problems.

Western Mediterranean.

At 0400 hours, Group II, which was approximately 30 nautical miles east of Cape Palos, altered course to the south for about two hours before turning eastwards for the run to Malta.

Group I meanwhile had altered course to the northward at 0130 hours to pass between Ibiza and Majorca in order to carry out a diversion to the north of the Baleares during the day should this appear desirable.

By 0715 hours there was no indication that Group I had been sighted, and as visibility varied from poor to moderate, course was altered to pass again between Ibiza and Majorca to reach a position well ahead of Group II so as to divert any attention of any enemy aircraft from Group II and the convoy.

At 1000 hours, when 33 nautical miles south-west of Malta, Group I encountered a small Spanish fishing vessel which was seen to proceed towards Palma de Majorca.

At noon, Group I altered course to 140°. At 1630 hours course was altered to 100° to keep about 40 nautical miles to the eastward of Group II. Group I streamed paravanes at 1800 hours.

At 1945 hours, two Sunderland flying boats flying east passed north of the force and did not identify themselves till challenged. At the same time smoke was sighted astern and shortly afterwards a fighter aircraft reported that it was the convoy at a distance of 26 nautical miles.

At 2100 hours, Group I altered course to the north-east until dark in order to mislead any hostile aircraft. The sky had been overcast all day but towards the evening the visibility improved considerably and the convoy was clearly visible to the southwestward making a great deal of smoke.

At 2225 hours, RD/F inFiji detected a group of aircraft bearing 170°, range 30 miles. The bearing changed to 154° and the range opened to 40 miles until the echo faded at 2230 hours. Group I altered course to 080° at 2300 hours.

Eastern Mediterranean.

All forces continued on their way during the day without incident. Destroyers were being fuelled fromBreconshire one at a time.

The submarineHMS Triumph reported three transports proceeding towards Benghazi. AccordinglyHMS Ajax,HMS Havock,HMS Hotspur andHMS Imperial were detached to attack Benghazi during the night of 7/8 May.

The Vice-Admiral Malta reported that the harbour had been mined and that the destroyers based at Malta were therefore unable to leave the harbour and participate in the convoy operations.

Western Mediterranean.

Soon after midnight Group I had to alter course to avoid being sighted by a lighted merchant ship steering a course of 110°.

At 0535 hours,HMS Ark Royal launched three reconnaissance A.S.V. aircraft in position 38°06’N, 06°26’E to search to the eastward south of Sardinia. At 0700 hours a fourth aircraft was flown off to search to the west of Sardinia. These aircraft returned at 0800 hours and had nothing to report. They had covered 140 miles to the eastward and 50 miles to the westward. Group I then proceeded to join the convoy. The first fighter patrol was flown off byArk Royal at 0830 hours.

By 1000 hours, Group I had joined the convoy, which was proceeding on a course of 085° at 14 knots. This was theClan Campbell’s best speed.Renown andArk Royal took station on the starboard side of the convoy in order to facilitate flying operations and at the same time provide AA protection for the convoy.Queen Elizabeth took station astern ofArk Royal to provide AA protection for this vulnerable ship.Gloucester andFiji formed on the transport ships.

At 1115 hours an enemy signal was intercepted that our forces had been sighted at 0800 hours.Naiad detected an enemy aircraft approaching at 1133 hours and three minutes later a large float-plane emerged from the clouds ahead of the convoy.Naiad opened fire and the aircraft retreated into the clouds. Fighters were sent in pursuit but failed to intercept. At noon a full and accurate report was made by this float-plane on the composition of our forces.

The sky cleared to some extent at noon, it had been overcast all morning. Visibility continued to improve all day although considerable cloud prevailed until the evening.

At 1345 hours, eight aircraft were seen approaching very low, fine on the starboard bow. These were engaged as they approached, but the AA fire appeared to be not very well directed. Torpedoes were dropped from outside the destroyer screen, which was roughly 3000 yards ahead of the convoy and extended to starboard to coverRenown,Ark Royal andQueen Elizabeth. The four Fulmar fighters on patrol at this time were engaging CR. 42 fighters that had accompanied these torpedo aircraft.

Torpedoes were evidently aimed atRenown andArk Royal but by very skilful handling by the Commanding Officers of these two ships all tracks were combed or avoided. Two torpedoes passed close toRenown. A third which was being successfully combed made a sudden alteration of 60° towardsRenown and a hit forward seemed inevitable when the torpedo reached the end of it’s run and sank. Two torpedoes passed to port and two to starboard ofArk Royal.

Of the eight aircraft which attacked one was brought down during the approach, probably by AA fire from the destroyers. Two others were seen to fall from the sky during their retirement. The destroyers were disappointingly slow in opening fire on the approaching torpedo-bombers and a full barrage never developed. During the action between the Fulmar’s and the CR. 42’s one Fulmar was brought down and the crew of two was lost.

At 1400 hours a few bomb splashes were observed on the horizon to the northwestward.

At 1525 hours, two sections of Fulmar’s attacked and shot down in flames an S.79 shadower. On returning from this attack one Fulmar had to make a forced landing on the water about 9 nautical miles from the fleet.HMS Foresight closed the position and was able to pick up the crew of two. At this time the fleet was about 28 nautical miles north of Galita Island.

At 1600 hours, as the wind had backed from south of east to north of east. The starboard column;Renown,Ark Royal andQueen Elizabeth, was moved over to the port quarter of the convoy and the destroyer screen was readjusted accordingly. This allowed freedom of manoeuvre for flying operations and enabled the column to increase speed and snake the line whenever a bombing attack developed, in order to hamper the bombers and at the same time remain in a position to afford full AA support of the convoy.

The first high level bombing attack of the day developed at 1622 hours when three S.79’s approached from astern at about 5000 feet, i.e. just under the cloud level. One, diverted by AA fire, jettisoned his bombs and subsequently crashed astern of the Fleet. The other two dropped twelve bombs close ahead ofArk Royal and escaped into the clouds. It is probable that both of these were hit by the concentrated AA fire with which they were met. About 10 minutes later a single aircraft approached from astern and encountering heavy AA fire turned across the stern of the Fleet, dropping its bombs well clear.

At 1710 hours, another S.79 shadower was shot down in flames on the port quarter of the Fleet by a Fulmar fighter. Twenty minutes later five S.79’s attacked the fleet from south to north. Two broke formation under gunfire and the remainder delivered a poor attack, bombs falling near the destroyer screen. A similar attack by three S.79’s took place at 1800 hours, when bombs were again dropped near the destroyer screen.

The provision a adequate fighter protection for the Fleet was a difficult problem with the small numbers of fighters available. Aircraft returned to the carrier at various times with damage and failure of undercarriage, and every opportunity was taken, whenever the RD/F screen cleared to land on, refuel and rearm the Fulmars, sometimes singly and sometimes two or three at a time. There were occasions when no more then two fighters were in the air, but whenever an attack appeared to be impending every fighter that could be made serviceable was sent up.

At 1910 hours enemy aircraft were detected at a range of 70 miles approaching from Sicily. At this time only seven Fulmars remained serviceable of which only three were in the air. The other four were immediately flown off. The total number of hostile aircraft is uncertain, but the Fulmars sighted three separate formations of sixteen Ju.87’s, twelve Ju.87’s and six Me.110’s. One formation was seen fromRenown for a short time at 1933 hours in a patch of clear sky. RD/F indicated several formations circling to the northwest of the Fleet for nearly one hour and several bomb splashes were seen well away to the northward and northwestward. During this period Fulmars intercepted the enemy and, although greatly outnumbered, fought several vigorous and gallant actions, resulting in the certain destruction of one Ju.87 and damage to several others, including at least one Me.110. These attacks disorganised the enemy and forced them to the northward with the result that they probably missed sighting the Fleet. They then entered thick cloud and it is possible that the groups became separated and all cohesion in the attack disappeared. Whatever the reason RD/F showed these groups retiring to the northward and no attack on the Fleet developed.

The Fleet reached the entrance to the Skerki Channel at 2015 hours. ‘Force B’ then turned westwards. It was made up ofRenown,Ark Royal,Sheffield,Harvester,Havelock andHesperus.Queen Elizabeth was ordered to join ‘Force F’.

The turn to the west was just being completed when ‘Force B’ was attacked at 2030 hours by three torpedo-bombers which came from right ahead. The destroyers were still manoeuvering to take up their screening positions and did not sight the enemy aircraft in time to put up a barrage of AA fire. This attack was pressed home by the enemy with great determination. All three aircraft were heavily engaged and two were seen to be hit.Renown combed the torpedo tracks, two passing close down the port side and one down the starboard side.

During this attack No. P (port) 3, 4.5” gun turret inRenown malfunctioned and fired two round into the back of No. P 2 gun turret. This resulted in five ratings killed, five seriously wounded of which one later died and one officer and twenty-five ratings wounded.

Speed was increased to 24 knots at 2038 hours and a westerly course was maintained throughout the night.

As a result of the day’s air attacks, seven enemy aircraft were destroyed, two probably destroyed and at least three, probably more, damaged. Of the seven destroyed AA fire accounted for four and feighters for three. No hits, either by bomb or torpedo were obtained on our ships, nor were there any casualties besides than caused by the accident inRenown. Two Fulmars were lost, the crew of one of them was saved.

Meanwhile the convoy continued eastwards escorted now byHMS Queen Elizabeth,HMS Naiad,HMS Gloucester,HMS Fiji,HMS Faulknor,HMS Fearless,HMS Foresight,HMS Forester,HMS Fortune,HMS Fury,HMS Kashmir andHMS Kipling.

Eastern Mediterranean.

Visibility was still poor with patches of heavy rain. This helped the Fleet and convoy from being detected by the enemy and attacked by aircraft. On the other hand it resulted in the loss of two Albacore aircraft. One Fulmar was lost in combat with enemy aircraft.

HMS Ajax,HMS Havock,HMS Hotspur andHMS Imperial rejoined the Fleet at 1700 hours. Their attack on Benghazi had been successful although there was little shipping in the harbour two transports were intercepted after the bombardment. The largest blew up, and the other was ran aground and was left on fire after several explosions. These were the ItalianTenace (1142 GRT, built 1881) andCapitano A. Cecchi (2321 GRT, built 1933).

The Fleet remained with convoy MW 7A during the day and at dark moved to the southward.HMS Dido,HMS Phoebe,HMS Calcutta,HMS Carlisle andHMS Coventry were detached from their convoy’s to join the Tiger convoy coming from Gibraltar.

Both MW convoy’s made direct for Malta escorted byHMS Hotspur,HMS Havock andHMS Imperial. All other destroyers had been oiled fromBreconshire during the past two days.

Western Mediterranean.

Further torpedo-bomber attacks were expected and a screen made up ofSheffield and the three destroyers was stationed ahead, astern and on either beam ofRenown andArk Royal at 5000 yards. The night was however uneventful and at 0800 hours speed was reduced to 20 knots and screening diagram no.4 was resumed by the escorts.

A shadower was detected, bearing 115°, range 12 nautical miles at 1027 hours. Two fighters were flown off but failed to intercept the enemy. An enemy sighting report was intercepted inRenown.

At 1100 hours a merchant vessel was sighted in position 37°54’N, 03°30’E about 8 nautical miles to the northward. At the same timeArk Royal reported that a periscope had been sighted about 4000 yards away. No further action was taken as detaching a single destroyer to search for the submarine was thought to be of little use and it was not thought wise to detach more then one destroyer as there were only three present.

At 1300 hours course was altered to 145° and speed reduced to 16 knots to conserve fuel in the destroyers.

At 1700 hours five search aircraft were flown off from position 37°27’N, 01°29’E to search between bearings 045° and 340° from Oran and south of parallel 38°45’N. Nothingwas sighted except for a merchant vessel. A Fulmar was also flown off to carry out a reconnaissance of Oran. This aircraft took photographs and reported the battlecruiserDunkerque in her usual position at Mers-el-Kebir surrounded by nets, with lighters alongside and a pontoon gangway to the shore. One large and two small destroyers were sighted inside Oran harbour and probably six or seven submarines.

The six destroyers from the 8th Destroyer Flotilla which had taken part in getting the ‘Tiger’ convoy to as far as Malta sailed from there at 2000B/9 for their return passage to Gibraltar.HMS Foresight however had to return to Malta with an engine problem.

At 2200 hours ‘Force B’ altered course to the eastward as to be in a position to support the destroyers during their passage west at daylight the next day when they were passing south of Sardinia.

The Tiger convoy and it’s escort.

Shortly after midnight the transportEmpire Song was mined and damaged. Initially she was able to remain with the convoy but around 0140 hours she was slowly sinking having also been on fire. The destroyersHMS Foresight andHMS Fortune were detached to stand by her. In the endEmpire Song blew up during whichForesight was damaged.

The transportNew Zealand Star was also damaged but she was able to remain with the convoy as her speed was not affected.

The convoy was attacked by torpedo-bombers early in the night but no damage was done by them. One torpedo passed very close toHMS Queen Elizabeth.

Around 0700 hours the Tiger convoy was joined byHMS Dido andHMS Phoebe. An hour laterHMS Calcutta,HMS Carlisle andHMS Coventry also joined.

At 1515 hours the Tiger convoy made rendez-vous with the Mediterreanean Fleet about 50 nautical miles south of Malta.

Eastern Mediterranean.

Convoy’s MW 7A and MW 7B both arrived safely at Malta. Both were swept in byHMS Gloxinia who succeeded in exploding a number of mines. The 5th Destroyer Flotilla was then also able to leave the harbour and they joined the Mediterranean Fleet; these wereHMS Kelly (Capt. L.F.A.V.N. Mountbatten, GCVO, DSO, RN),HMS Kelvin (Cdr. J.H. Allison, DSO, RN) ,HMS Jackal (Lt.Cdr. R.McC.P. Jonas, DSC, RN) andHMS Janus (Cdr. J.A.W. Tothill, RN)

Also Breconshire arrived at Malta where she fuelledHMS Hotspur,HMS Havock andHMS Imperial.

As said above, at 1515 hours the Tiger convoy made rendez-vous with the Mediterreanean Fleet about 50 nautical miles south of Malta.HMS Queen Elizabeth then joined the battleship column. The Fleet then turned eastward but remained near the convoy for the remainder of the day. During the night he Fleet covered the convoy from a position to the north-eastward of it.

Western Mediterranean.

At 0700 hours, when in position 37°35’N, 03°02’E, course was altered to the westward at 15 knots. This being the most comfortable speed for the destroyers in the rising westerly gale.

At 1000 hours, the Capt. (D) 8th Destroyer Flotilla, reported he was in position 37°18’N, 08°45’E steering 275° at 28 knots. He also reported hat his ships were being shadowed by enemy aircraft. The enemy aircraft report was intercepted at 1025 hours. Course was then altered by ‘Force B’ to the eastward to reduce the distance between the two forces.

At 1100 hours, the Capt. (D) 8th Destroyer Flotilla, reported he was in position 37°22’N, 07°54’E, still steering 275° at 28 knots. The destroyers were still being shadowed.

At noon ‘Force B’ altered course to the westward. The wind was by then force 8 with a rising sea. Ten minutes later the enemy aircraft was again heard to report the position of the 8th Destroyer Flotilla and it’s course and speed.

At 1300 hours, the Capt. (D) 8th Destroyer Flotilla, reported he was in position 37°25’N, 07°01’E, steering 270° at 28 knots and that his ships were still being shadowed. At this time ‘Force B’ was 134 nautical miles to the westward and they could only maintain 13 knots in the sea without suffering damage. In view of the weather conditions and the fact thatHMS Ark Royal had now only four serviceable fighters available it was not possible to afford the 8th Destroyer Flotilla any fighter protection without hazardingArk Royal unduly. It was hoped that if an attack would develop the destroyers were able to avoid damage by high speed manoeuvring.

At 1430 hours a signal was received that the 8th Destroyer Flotilla was being bombed in position 37°25’N, 06°18’E and thatHMS Fortune had been hit and her speed had been reduced to 8 knots. ‘Force B’ immediately altered course to the eastward and ran before the sea at 24 knots the maximum safe speed for the destroyers in the prevailing weather conditions.

An unidentified aircraft that had been detected by RD/F overtook the force at 1530 hours and was fired at byHMS Sheffield. The aircraft retired to the northward before resuming it’s easterly course. A reconnaissance of three aircraft was flown off at 1600 hours to cover the area to the northward and eastward of the 8th Destroyer Flotilla to maximum depth, in case enemy surface units were out in pursuit. These aircraft reported having sighted nothing on their return.

At 1750 hours a signal was received that the 8th Destroyer Flotilla had been subjected to another bombing attack but that no damage had been done. ‘Force B’ continued eastwards to provide close support in case of more air attacks.

At 1820 hours rendes-vous was made with the 8th Destroyer Flotilla and all ships proceeded westwards steering 280° at 12 knots. This was the best course and speedHMS Fortune could maintain. By this time this destroyer was down by the stern with seas breaking continually over her quarterdeck.

Five search aircraft were flown off byArk Royal to search to maximum depth between 025° and 090°. Nothing was sighted except for one enemy aircraft. By 2030 hours all aircraft had returned.

As a speed of 12 knots subjectedFortune’s bulkhead to undue strain,HMS Fury was ordered to escortFortune and proceed at 8 knots for the night. The remainder of the force zig-zagged, clear of these two destroyers, at higher speed.

It became also clear thatFortune had not received a direct hit but that five near misses had bent one shaft and caused flooding in several compartments aft, and minor flooding in the engine room.

Eastern Mediterranean.

The Battlefleet remained near the convoy for the entire day. Visibility improved throughout the day although conditions were still difficult for the enemy to attack from the air. One Ju.88 aircraft was shot down and another one was damaged. One Fulmar was lost when taking off fromFormidable.

No enemy air attacks developed until dark when a number of aircraft, probably torpedo bombers, endeavoured to attack the convoy and battlefleet. A very heavy blind barrage of AA fire however kept them off and no torpedoes were seen.

At 1700 hours, Capt. D.5 inHMS Kelly was detached with the ships of the 5th Destroyer Flotilla (besidesKelly these wereKashmir,Kelvin,Kipling andJackal) to bombard Benghazi before returning to Malta. The bombardment was carried out successfully. Following the bombardment they were dive bombed by German aircraft and all butKipling were near missed. The Flotilla reached Malta p.m. on the 11th.

Western Mediterranean.

At 0532 hours, Vice-Admiral Somerville sent a signal to the Vice-Admiral commanding the North Atlantic station at Gibraltar reporting the position, course and speed of his forces. He also requested a tug to be sent for the assistance ofHMS Fortune.

The wind eased considerably during the morning and at daylightFortune andFury were sighted about 4 nautical miles in advance of the Fleet and making good about 10 knots.

A reconnaissance of six aircraft were flown off at 0700 hours. These searched for a depth of about 140 miles between 030° and 085°. Visibility was reported as being 10 to 20 miles. Also a search was conducted for a depth of about 100 miles between 085° and 110° with a visibility of 3 to 5 miles. Only a few French merchant vessels were sighted.

Nothing happened during the day.

At 1700 hours a reconnaissance was flown of from position 36°54’N, 01°11’E to a depth of 180 nautical miles between north and east and to a depth of 90 nautical miles between north and 290°. The visibility was reported as being 10 to 15 nautical miles. Nothing was sighted.

The Fleet turned to the eastward for an hour before dark to take up a position well astern ofFortune andFury during the night.

Eastern Mediterranean.

The Tiger convoy and the Fleet continued eastwards. Enemy aircraft were in the vicinity all day but no attacks developed. One Ju.88 was shot down and another one was damaged, one Fulmar was lost. At dark the cruisers were detached to proceed to Alexandria and the Fleet went on ahead of the convoy.

Western Mediterranean.

Just before daylight contact was made by the Fleet withFortune andFury. At dawn the tugHMS St. Day and four ML’s arrived from Gibraltar.

HMS Sheffield,HMS Harvester,HMS Hesperus and the four ML’s then remained withHMS Fortune andHMS Fury.Fortune was now able to make 12 knots.

HMS Renown andHMS Ark Royal, screened byHMS Faulknor,HMS Fearless,HMS Forester,HMS Foresight andHMS Havelock, then proceeded ahead to conduct flying exercises east of Gibraltar before entering harbour.

A reconnaissance was flown off at 0800 hours to search to the east but nothing was sighted. On their return these aircraft made a practice attack onRenown andArk Royal. More exercises were carried out during the day.

The Fleet arrived at Gibraltar at 1800 hours.Renown berthed in no.1 dock to enable her damaged 4.5” gun turret to be hoised out.

HMS Sheffield entered harbour at 2030 hours followed shortly afterwards by the damagedFortune and her escorts.

Eastern Mediterranean.

The bulk of the Fleet arrived at Alexandria around 1000 hours. The convoy arrived later, around 1300 hours. Some ships had been detached from the fleet to arrive early, fuel and then depart again for escort duties. (21)

8 May 1941
HMS Dunedin (Capt. R.S. Lovatt, RN),HMS Velox (Lt.Cdr. E.G. Roper, DSC, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) arrived at Gibraltar with convoy CF 1.

HMS Dunedin was then taken in hand for repairs to her boilers. (22)

16 May 1941
Around 2000A/16,HMS Renown (Capt. R.R. McGrigor, RN),HMS Ark Royal (Capt. L.E.H. Maund, RN, temporary flying the flag of Vice-Admiral J.F. Somerville, KCB, DSO, RN),HMS Sheffield (Capt. C.A.A. Larcom, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN),HMS Fearless (Cdr. A.F. Pugsley, RN),HMS Forester (Lt.Cdr. E.B. Tancock, DSC and Bar, RN) andHMS Fury (Lt.Cdr. T.C. Robinson, RN) departed Gibraltar westwards for exercises.

They returned to Gibraltar between 1930A/17 and 2045A/17. (23)

26 May 1941

Convoy OG 63.

This convoy was assembled to the west of the North Channel on 26 May 1941 and was made up of ships from four sections; the Milford Haven, Liverpool, Clyde and Oban sections.

The Milford Haven section (sailed 24 May 1941) was made up of the following merchant vessels;
Dimitrios Inglessis (Greek, 5275 GRT, built 1918),Disa (Swedish, 2002 GRT, built 1918),Fjord (Norwegian, 4032 GRT, built 1914),Katvaldis (British, 3163 GRT, built 1907),Lapwing (British, 1449 GRT, built 1920),Osric (Swedish, 1418 GRT, built 1919),Pandis (Greek, 4981 GRT, built 1912) andPelayo (British, 1346 GRT, built 1927). They were escorted by the escort destroyersHMS Vivien (Lt.Cdr. S.H. Beattie, RN),HMS Woolston (Lt.Cdr. K.W. Michell, RN) and the A/S trawlerHMS Paynter (Lt. R.H. Nossiter, RANVR).

The Liverpool section (sailed 25 May 1941) was made up of the following merchant vessels;
Avoceta (British, 3442 GRT, built 1923),Empire Dunlin (British, 6323 GRT, built 1919),Leonidas N. Condylis (Greek, 3923 GRT, built 1912),Lublin (Polish, 1409 GRT, built 1932),Marionga D. Thermiotis (Greek, 4784 GRT, built 1904),Solitaire (Norwegian, 3350 GRT, built 1920) andVernon City (British, 4748 GRT, built 1929). With them the destroyersHMS Vanquisher (Cdr. N.V. Dickinson, DSC, RN),HMS Winchelsea (Lt.Cdr. W.A.F. Hawkins, OBE, DSC, RN),HMS Reading (Lt.Cdr. D.V. Clift, RN) and the corvettesHMS Hibiscus (Lt. H. Roach, RNR) andHMS Pimpernel (Lt. F.H. Thornton, RNR) also departed Liverpool. With the Liverpool section the M/S trawlersHMS Runswick Bay (T/Lt. S. Sparrow, RNVR) andHMS St. Melante (T/A/Lt.Cdr. L.C. Gilbert, RNR) also sailed for passage to the South Atlantic Station via Gibraltar.

From Preston the following merchant vessels sailed on the 25th;
Como (British, 1295 GRT, built 1910),Cortes (British, 1390 GRT, built 1919) andErato (British, 1335 GRT, built 1923).

The Milford Haven section, Liverpool section and Preston section joined company around 1820B/25.

On the 26th,HMS Vivien,HMS Woolston andHMS Paynter arrived at Belfast.

The Clyde section (sailed 26 May 1941) was made up of the following merchant vessels;
Christine Marie (British, 3895 GRT, built 1919),Delilian (British, 6423 GRT, built 1923),Glen Head (British, 2011 GRT, built 1909),King Edward (British, 5224 GRT, built 1919),Mars (Dutch, 1662 GRT, built 1925) andTaberg (Swedish, 1392 GRT, built 1920). The sloopHMS Wellington (Lt.Cdr. W.F.R. Segrave, RN) and armed boarding vesselHMS Corinthian (A/Cdr. E.J.R. Pollitt, RNR) also sailed with the Clyde section.

The Oban section (sailed 26 May 1941) was made up of the following merchant vessels;
Baron Lovat (British, 3395 GRT, built 1926),Belgravian (British, 3136 GRT, built 1937),Blairdevon (British, 3282 GRT, built 1925),Campus (British, 3667 GRT, built 1925),Dago II (British, 1993 GRT, built 1917),Empire Brook (British, 2852 GRT, built 1941),Empire Strait (British, 2841 GRT, built 1940),Shuna (British, 1575 GRT, built 1937),Tintern Abbey (British, 2471 GRT, built 1939),Waziristan (British, 5135 GRT, built 1924) andWilliam Wilberforce (British, 4013 GRT, built 1930).

Around the time of the final assembly of the convoy the destroyersHMS Reading,HMS Vanquisher andHMS Winchelsea topped off with fuel at Londonderry while the corvetteHMS Freesia (Lt.Cdr. T.P.G. Crick, RN) also joined having departed Londonderry on 27 April.

HMS Vanquisher however arrived back at Londonderry on 29 May 1941 after having parted company with the convoy.

Around 0800A/30, in position 51°00'N, 21°40'W,HMS Reading,HMS Winchelsea,HMS Freesia,HMS Hibiscus andHMS Pimpernel parted company with the convoy.

Around 1130A/30, in position 50°50'N, 21°40'W, ships with destinations in North America and Caribbean parted company. This were the following merchant vessels;
Blairdevon (arrived at Clarke City on 9 June),Campus (arrived at Three Rivers on 9 June),Delilian (arrived at Quebec on 9 June),Dimitrios Inglessis (arrived at Montreal on 10 June),Empire Dunlin (arrived at Philadelphia on 13 June),Fjord (arrived at Wabana on 11 June),Katvaldis (arrived at Halifax on 9 June),King Edward (arrived at Three Rivers on 11 June),Marionga D. Thermiotis (arrived at Sorel on 11 June),Solitaire (arrived at New York on 15 June) andVernon City (arrived at Philadelphia on 13 June).

Around 1900A/1, in position 44°00'N, 21°30'W, ships with destinations in the South Atlantic area parted company. This were the following merchant vessels;
Belgravian (arrived at Bathurst on 9 June [which seem a bit fast !?]),Christine Marie (arrived at Freetown on 18 June),Dago II (arrived at Bathurst on 13 June),Leonidas N. Condylis (arrived at Freetown on 14 June),Mars (arrived at Bathurst on 13 June),Waziristan (arrived at Pernambuco on 19 June) andWilliam Wilberforce (arrived at Freetown on 13 June).

Around 2330A/1, the submarineHrMs O 23 (Lt.Cdr. G.B.M. van Erkel, RNN) and A/S trawlerHMS Lady Hogarth (T/Lt. S.G. Barnes, RNR) joined the convoy.

At 1825A/5, the Italian submarineVelella sighted and reported the convoy in position 35°38'N, 11°22'W.

At 2312A/5, the Italian submarineMarconi also sighted the convoy.

At 0422A/6, theMarconi commenced to attack the convoy. A total of 6 (3x2) torpedoes were fired and the merchant vesselsBaron Lovat andTaberg were hit and sunk in these attacks.

At 0604A/6, theVelella also attacked with torpedoes but no hits were obtained. Following this attack she was fired upon byHMS Wellington which claimed a hit near the conning tower but this was not the case.

At 0825A/6, a German Focke Wulf Condor aircraft attacked the convoy in position 35°58'N, 10°35'W, and managed to hit the merchant vesselGlen Head with one ore more bombs. She sank in two minutes.

At 1016A/6, the Italian submarineEmo sighted the smoke of a convoy in position 35°45'N, 10°15'W and six minutes later she sent out an enemy report. The submarine then closed to the attack.

At 1400A/6, in position 35°53'N, 09°46'W, theEmo made a submerged attack in which two torpedoes were fired and two ships were claimed sunk but this was not the case. TheTintern Abbey was in fact hit in No.4 hold but the torpedo failed to explode and only caused a small leak.HMS Wellington andHMS Lady Hogarth then searched for the attacked but were unable to gain contact.

Around 2045A/6, the motor launchesML 129 andML 134 joined the convoy escort and were placed on either beam of the convoy.

Around 0140A/7, the corvetteHMS Azalea (Lt. G.C. Geddes, RNR) joined the convoy escort.

Around 0600A/7, the motor launchesML 132 andML 135joined the convoy escort.

Around 0842A/7, the destroyerHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) joined the convoy escort. She parted company around 1237A/7.

Around 1240A/7, near Cape Trafalgar, the following merchant vessels parted company with the convoy to proceed directly to ports in Portugal and south-west Spain. This were the following merchant vessels;
Cortes (arrived at Lisbon on 9 June),Empire Strait (arrived at Lisbon on 8 June),Erato (arrived at Oporto on 9 June),Osric (arrived at Lisbon on 9 June) andShuna (arrived at Huelva on 8 June).

The remainder of the convoy arrived at Gibraltar around 1630A/7. (24)

7 Jun 1941

At 2230A/7, ' Force H ', made up ofHMS Renown (Capt. R.R. McGrigor, RN, flying the flag of Vice-Admiral J.F. Somerville, KCB, DSO, RN),HMS Ark Royal (Capt. L.E.H. Maund, RN),HMS Sheffield (Capt. C.A.A. Larcom, RN),HMS Faulknor (Capt. A.F. de Salis, RN (Capt. D.8)),HMS Fearless (Cdr. A.F. Pugsley, RN),HMS Foresight (Cdr. J.S.C. Salter, RN),HMS Forester (Lt.Cdr. E.B. Tancock, DSC and Bar, RN),HMS Foxhound (Cdr. G.H. Peters, DSC, RN) andHMS Fury (Lt.Cdr. T.C. Robinson, RN) departed Gibraltar to the westward to be clear of the harbour as Vichy-French reprisals (air attacks) were expected after the start of the Syrian campaign. The aircraft carrierHMS Furious (Capt. A.G. Talbot, DSO, RN) was also with ' Force H '. Also rendezvous was to be made with the aircraft carrierHMS Victorious (Capt. H.C. Bovell, RN) coming from the UK.

A speed of 17 knots was maintained, with the object of economising fuel in the destroyers and of ensuring efficient Asdic operating.

HMS Victorious was ordered to remain outside the submarine danger area and to pass through position 37°05'N, 13°48'W, at 0700A/9 steering 155° making good 16 knots.

Two outer and one inner A/S patrols were flown off at dawn on the 8th and maintained throughout the day. During the day a westerly wind enabledHMS Ark Royal to carry out deck landing training from inside the screen and full advantage was taken of this.

At 1800A/8, when in position 35°10'N, 11°08'W, a signal was received from a Catalina that she had unsuccessfully attacked a submarine at 1615A/8 in position 35°50'N, 13°00'W. Two relief A/S patrols were being ranged at tis time and these were flown off to search for and attack this submarine if she surfaced after the Catalina's attack. At 1845A/8 the Catalina, who returned to base after the attack, signalled that the submarine dived in position 36°02'N, 11°50'W. This latter position was based on a fix obtained at 1800A/8, presumably from the land and was some 60 miles further eastward then initially reported. The A/S striking force landed on at 1925 having sighted northing.The submarine attacked was the ItalianVelella. The bombs were close but caused no damage.

At 2030A/8, ' HMS Force H ' entered a patch of very low visibility which lased for about an hour. Course was altered to 330° at 2200A/8 when in position 35°00'N, 12°21'W to make rendzvous withHMS Victorious at dawn.

Throughout the dayHMS Sheffield kept RDF watch, and fighters were kept at short notice in bothHMS Furious andHMS Ark Royal in case Vichy-French aircraft should take offensive action. No aircraft were seen or detected.

At 0600A/9HMS Ark Royal flew off two outer and one inner A/S patrol with instructions to locateHMS Victorious. At 0630A/9 one of these aircraft reportedHMS Victorious to the northward and course was altered to close.HMS Victorous, screened byHMS Vansittart (Lt.Cdr. R.L.S. Gaisford, RN),HMS Wild Swan (Lt.Cdr. C.E.L. Sclater, RN),HMS Wivern (Cdr. M.D.C. Meyrick, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) was sighted at 0650A/9 andHMS Furious,HMS Sheffield andHMS Fury were detached to join her and form ' Group II '. The remaining ships of ' Force H ' formed ' Group I '.

HMS Victorious then transferred 5 Fulmars toHMS Ark Royal who flew off 6 Swordfish to ferry the Hurricane erecting personnel fromHMS Furious toHMS Victorious.

HMS Wivern, who was short of fuel and had a leaking fuel tank was detached at 1030A/9 to return to Gibraltar.

The transfer of 75 members of the Hurricane ercting party was completed by noon under somewhat unfavourable weather conditions.HMS Furious, escorted byHMS Sheffield, was detached to overtake and rendezvous withHMS Argus (Capt. T.O. Bulteel, RN) in position 47°00'N, 24°00'W, at 1200A/11.HMS Sheffield was ordered to part company fromHMS Furious in latitude 45°N and patrol an area between that latitue and 44°N, and between longitudes 23°W and 25°W, till dusk on the 14th with the object of intercepting enemy shipping. She was also with convoy SL 76 between 1130Z/14 and 2200Z/16.

Around noon,HMS Vansittart,HMS Wild Swan andHMS Wrestler were detached to return to Gibraltar.

HMS Renown,HMS Ark Royal,HMS Victorious screened by the six 'F'-class destroyers, steered to the south-west at 16 knots, to keep clear of the submarine concentration to the eastward. At 1500A/9,HMS Ark Royal flew off a reconnaissance of six aircraft from position 37°06'N, 15°06'W, to search from 130° through south to 310° to a depth of 80 miles to locate enemy shipping and submarines. These aircraft landed on at 1730A/9 having sighted nothing.

At 0100A/10, Admiralty's instructions were received that the next ferry trip of fighter aircraft to Malta was to be carried out as soon as possible. Course was therefore altered to 090° and speed increased to 20 knots and an hour later to 26 knots. Two out and one inner A/S patrols were flown off at dawn.

At 0750A/10 one of the outer A/S patrols flying at 800 feet sighted a submarine breaking surface heading south-west about 1500 yards distant. The aircraft attacked and dropped a stick of 6 100lb. A/S bombs from a height of 150 feet. All bombs missed over and failed to explode, the low height being insufficient for aiming. The submarine was submerged by the time the bombs were released. This incident occurred in position 35°31'N, 14°12'W. On receipt of the W/T report from the aircraft the course of the Fleet was altered to clear. This was probably the Italian submarineVeniero which was operating in the area but did not report being attacked though although she did report sighting an aircraft at 0850A/10 (Rome time) an also at 1050A/10 (Rome time) during which he dived.

At 1000A/10, information was received that ' Force H ' had been sighted at 0038 by an enemy submarine.

At 1610A/10, four corvettes were sighted in position 35°50'N, 10°30'W, carrying out an A/S sweep in conjunction with five ML's who were working 30 miles to the southward.

' Force H ' arrived in Gibraltar Bay at 0330A/11 and then entered harbour. (25)

12 Jun 1941
HMS Severn (Lt.Cdr. A.N.G. Campbell, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Gibraltar together with the Dutch submarineO 23 (Lt.Cdr. G.B.M. van Erkel, RNN) and the British destroyersHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) andHMS Vansittart (Lt.Cdr. R.L.S. Gaisford, RN). (26)

12 Jun 1941
HrMs O 23 (Lt.Cdr. G.B.M. van Erkel, RNN) carried out exercises off Gibraltar with, first, the British submarineHMS Severn (Lt.Cdr. A.N.G. Campbell, RN) and, then, the British destroyersHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) andHMS Vansittart (Lt.Cdr. R.L.S. Gaisford, RN)

2 Aug 1941

Convoy WS 10

This convoy assembled in the Clyde area on 2 August 1941 destined for the middle east area.

The convoy was made up of the following troop transports;Andes (25689 GRT, built 1939),Britannic (26943 GRT, built 1930),Cameronia (16297 GRT, built 1920),Highland Monarch (14139 GRT, built 1928),Indrapoera (Dutch, 10825 GRT, built 1925),Nea Hellas (16991 GRT, built 1922),Orcades (23456 GRT, built 1937),Rangitiki (16698 GRT, built 1928),Reina del Pacifico (17702 GRT, built 1931),Stirling Castle (25550 GRT, built 1936),Strathallan (23722 GRT, built 1938),Volendam (Dutch, 15434 GRT, built 1922),Warwick Castle (20107 GRT, built 1930),Windsor Castle (19141 GRT, built 1922) and the following transports;Diomed (10374 GRT, built 1922),Indian Prince (8587 GRT, built 1926),Manchester Port (7071 GRT, built 1935),Nigerstroom (Dutch, 4639 GRT, built 1939) andPhemius (7406 GRT, built 1921),

Escort was initially provided by the heavy cruiserHMS London (Capt. R.M. Servaes, CBE, RN) (2 – 10 August), armed merchant cruiserHMS Worcestershire (A/Capt.(Retd.) E.H. Hopkinson, RN) (2 – 6 August), the light cruiserHMS Cairo (A/Capt. I.R.H. Black, RN) (2 – 5 August), the destroyersHMS Winchelsea (Lt.Cdr. W.A.F. Hawkins, OBE, DSC, RN) (2 – 5 August),HMS Witch (Lt.Cdr. C.H. Holmes, RN) (2 – 5 August),HMS Whitehall (Lt.Cdr. A.B. Russell, RN) (2 – 5 August),HMS Broadway (Lt.Cdr. T. Taylor, RN) (2 – 6 August),HMS Gurkha (Cdr. C.N. Lentaigne, RN) (2 – 6 August),HMS Lance (Lt.Cdr. R.W.F. Northcott, RN) (2 – 6 August),HMS Legion (Cdr. R.F. Jessel, RN) (2 – 6 August),HrMs Isaac Sweers (Cdr. J. Houtsmuller, RNN) (2 – 6 August),ORP Piorun (Cdr. S. Hryniewiecki) (2 – 6 August) andHMS Jupiter (Lt.Cdr. N.V.J.T. Thew, RN) (2 August – 17 August).

On 5 August, around 2200 hours,HMS Cairo,HMS Winchelsea,HMS Witch andHMS Whitehall parted company with the convoy.

On 6 August, around 2300 hours,HMS Worcestershire,HMS Broadway,HMS Gurkha,HMS Lance,HMS Legion,HrMs Isaac Sweers andORP Piorun parted company with the convoy. Shorty afterwards the troopshipsWarwick Castle andWindsor Castle collided. Due to this theWarwick Castle was detached and was escorted to Halifax, Nova Scotia byHMS Worcestershire.Windsor Castle dropped astern and was brought back to the convoy the next day byHMS Jupiter who had been despached to search for her.Jupiter

Very early on the 9thHMS Jupiter was detached to fuel at Ponta Delgada, Azores.HMS Jupiter re-joined the convoy around 0700 on the 10th.

Around noon on 10 August,HMS London, was relieved by the light cruiserHMS Edinburgh (Capt. H.W. Faulkner, RN, flying the flag of Rear-Admiral E.N. Syfret, RN) which had departed Gibraltar on the 8th.HMS Edinburgh remained with the convoy until it reached Freetown on the 17th.

When approaching Freetown A/S escorts joined the convoy. On 14 August 1941 two destroyers and a corvette joined, these were;HMS Velox (Lt.Cdr. E.G. Roper, DSC, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) andHMS Bergamot (T/A/Lt.Cdr. R.P. Chapman, RNR). The next day the corvetteHMS Cyclamen (Lt. H.N. Lawson, RNR) also joined.

On 21 August 1941 the convoy departed Freetown for South Africa. Escort was provided by the light cruiserHMS Edinburgh until 2 September 1941, when part of the convoy (TroopshipsBritannic,Indrapoera,Reina Del Pacifico,Striling Castle,Strathallan,Volendam,Windsor Castle and the transportsNigerstroom andPhemius) arrived at Capetown.HMS Edinburgh then went to Simonstown. On departure from Freetown A/S escort was provided until dawn on the 24th by the destroyerHMS Jupiter and the corvettesHMS Anchusa (Lt. J.E.L. Peters, RNR),HMS Clematis (Cdr. Y.M. Cleeves, DSO, DSC, RD, RNR),HMS Crocus (Lt.Cdr. E. Wheeler, RNR) andHMS Cyclamen (Lt. H.N. Lawson, RNR). The corvettes then returned to Freetown whileHMS Jupiter proceed to St. Helena.

The light cruiserHMS Hawkins (Capt. H.P.K. Oram, RN) then took over the remainer of the convoy and took these towards Durban were they arrived on 5 September 1941. These were the troopshipsAndes,Cameronia,Highland Monarch,Nea Hellas,Rangitiki and the transportsDiomed,Indian Price andManchester Port.

On 6 September 1941 the part of the convoy (minusReina del Pacifico) that had entered Capetown on 2 September departed from Capetown escorted by the armed merchant cruiserHMS Carnarvon Castle (Capt.(Retd.) H.N.M. Hardy, DSO, RN). On 8 September theBritannic split off and proceeded to Durban to embark troops that had been on theCameronia.Britannic rejoined the next day escorted byHawkins. The troop transportAronda (9031 GRT, built 1941) was also with them and joined the convoy. After these ships had joinedHMS Carnavon Castle then split off with theIndrapoera,Volendam,Nigerstroom andPhemius and took these ships to Durban.

The convoy (by now called WS 10B), now made up of the troopshipsAronda,Britannic,Stirling Castle,Strathallan andWindsor Castle, and escorted byHMS Hawkins proceeded to Bombay where it arrived on 20 September 1941. En-route, in position 03.25’S, 51.12’E and on September 13th,HMS Hawkins had been relieved by the light cruiserHMS Emerald (Capt. F.C. Flynn, RN).

[Other ships that had been part of convoy WS 10 later proceeded to their destinations in other convoys.]

15 Aug 1941

Convoy WS 10X

This convoy departed U.K. ports on 14/15 August 1941 for Suez where the ships arrived between 1 to 4 October 1941.

The convoy assembled in the Clyde area on 15 August 1941.

The convoy was made up of the following troop transports;Brisbane Star (12791 GRT, built 1937),Orion (23371 GRT, built 1935),Strathmore (23428 GRT, built 1935),Strathnaver (22283 GRT, built 1931), And the transportsPalma (5419 GRT, built 1941) andPort Jackson (9687 GRT, built 1937).

Escort was initially provided by the heavy cruiserHMS Dorsetshire (Capt. A.W.S. Agar, VC, DSO, RN) (joined at sea on 17 August 1941 until 28 August when the convoy arrived at Freetown), the AA (light) cruiserHrMs Jacob van Heemskerck (Cdr. E.J. van Holte, RNN) (15 – 17 August) and the destroyersHMS Whitehall (Lt.Cdr. A.B. Russell, RN) (15-17 August),HMS Witch (Lt.Cdr. C.H. Holmes, RN) (15-17 August),HMS Gurkha (Cdr. C.N. Lentaigne, RN) (17-19 August),HMS Lance (Lt.Cdr. R.W.F. Northcott, RN) (17-19 August),HrMs Isaac Sweers (Cdr. J. Houtsmuller, RNN) (17-19 August) andORP Piorun (Cdr. S. Hryniewiecki) (17-19 August).

When approaching Freetown the convoy was joined on 26 August by a local escort made up of the destroyersHMS Brilliant (Lt.Cdr. F.C. Brodrick, RN),HMS Velox (Lt.Cdr. E.G. Roper, DSC, RN) (left the convoy before noon on 27 August),HMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) and the corvettesHMS Clematis (Cdr. Y.M. Cleeves, DSO, DSC, RD, RNR) andHMS Crocus (Lt.Cdr. E. Wheeler, RNR). The convoy arrived at Freetown on 28 August 1941.

The convoy departed Freetown for Capetown on 1 September 1941. Escort was now provided by the battleshipHMS Revenge (Capt. L.V. Morgan, CBE, MVO, DSC, RN) and the corvettesHMS Amaranthus (T/Lt. W.S. Thomson, RNR),HMS Armeria (T/Lt. H.N. Russell, DSC, RNR),HMS Mignonette (Lt. H.H. Brown, RNR) andHMS Woodruff (T/Lt. T. Muir, RNVR).

HMS Amaranthus parted company with the convoy around 1445Z/2 to return to Freetown due to defects.

Around 2133Z/2,HMS Revenge was rammed by the transportOrion. Damage toHMS Revenge was only minor but damage to the bow of theOrion was more serious. She dropped out of the convoy for a while but was later able to catch up again and was able of a speed of 15 knots.

At 1237Z/3,HMS Armeria,HMS Mignonette andHMS Woodruff parted company with the convoy to proceed to Takoradi.

The convoy arrived at Capetown on 11 September 1941.

The convoy departed Capetown for Suez on 14 September 1941. Escort was still provided byHMS Revenge until 22 September 1941 when the light cruiser,HMS Ceres (Capt. E.G. Abbott, AM, RN) took over until the dispersal of the convoy on 27 September 1941 when it was near Aden. The ships of the convoy then continued independently towards Suez where they arrived between 1 and 4 October 1941.

29 Aug 1941
Around 0830N/29, the aircraft carrierHMS Eagle (Capt. E.G.N. Rushbrooke, DSC, RN), heavy cruiserHMS Dorsetshire (Capt. A.W.S. Agar, VC, DSO, RN), light cruiserHMS Newcastle (Capt. E.A. Aylmer, DSC, RN) departed Freetown to patrol in the mid-Atlantic off St. Paul's Rocks. They were escorted until 1800N/30 by the destoyersHMS Brilliant (Lt.Cdr. F.C. Brodrick, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN).HMS Newcastle parted company withHMS Eagle andHMS Dorsetshire around 0430N/31.HMS Newcastle was to make rendezvous with the troopshipDurban Castle (17388 GRT, built 1938) and the armed merchant cruiserQueen of Bermuda (Capt. A.T.G.C. Peachey, RN) that were en-route from Capetown to Trinidad.

The RFA oilerEchodale (8150 GRT, built 1941), was to fuelHMS Eagle andHMS Dorsetshire at given times while at sea. TheEchodale was escorted by the corvetteHMS Calendula (Lt.Cdr. A.D. Bruford, RNVR). (27)

31 Aug 1941

Convoy WS 11

This convoy assembled in the Clyde area on 31 August 1941 for the far east.

The convoy was made up of the following merchant ships;Abosso (11330 GRT, built 1935),Barrister (6348 GRT, built 1939),Bhutan (6104 GRT, built 1929),City of Edinburgh (8036 GRT, built 1938),City of Manchester (8917 GRT, built 1935),Duchess of York (20021 GRT, built 1929),Empress of Australia (21833 GRT, built 1914),Glaucus (7596 GRT, built 1921),Glenorchy (8982 GRT, built 1939),Kina II (9823 GRT, built 1939),Largs Bay (14182 GRT, built 1921),Manchester Progress (5620 GRT, built 1938),Mooltan (20952 GRT, built 1923),Northumberland (11558 GRT, built 1915),Orontes (20097 GRT, built 1929),Otranto (20026 GRT, built 1925),Scythia (19761 GRT, built 1920),Viceroy of India (19627 GRT, built 1929). The netlayerHMS Guardian (A/Capt. H.A.C. Lane, RN) also sailed in this convoy.

Escort was initially provided by the battlecruiserHMS Repulse (Capt. W.G. Tennant, MVO, RN), the aircraft carrierHMS Furious (Capt. A.G. Talbot, DSO, RN), the light cruiserHMS Sheffield (Capt. A.W. Clarke, RN) (31 August – 2 September), the anti-aircraft cruiserHMS Cairo (A/Capt. I.R.H. Black, RN) (31 August – 2 September), the armed merchant cruiserHMS Derbyshire (Capt.(Retd.) E.A.B. Stanley, MVO, DSO, RN), the destroyersHMS Cossack (Capt. E.L. Berthon, DSC and Bar, RN) (31 August – 4 September),HMS Zulu (Cdr. H.R. Graham, DSO, RN) (31 August – 4 September),HMS Legion (Cdr. R.F. Jessel, RN) (31 August – 4 September),HMS Lively (Lt.Cdr. W.F.E. Hussey, DSC, RN) (31 August – 4 September),HMS Highlander (Cdr. S. Boucher, RN),HMS Winchelsea (Lt.Cdr. W.A.F. Hawkins, OBE, DSC, RN) (31 August – 2 September),HrMs Isaac Sweers (Cdr. J. Houtsmuller, RNN) (31 August – 2 September),ORP Piorun (Kmdr.por. (Cdr.) E.J.S. Plawski) (31 August – 3 September),ORP Garland (Kmdr.por. (Cdr.) K.F. Namiesniowski) (31 August – 3 September), the sloopsHMIS Sutlej (Capt. P.A. Mare, RIN),HMS HMS Sennen (Lt.Cdr. D.C. Kinloch, RN) andHMS Totland (Lt.Cdr.(Emgy.) S.G.C. Rawson, RN).

Around 1530A/31,HMS Furious was detached to Bangor due to an engine room defect.HMS Lively accompanied the carrier. They arrived at Bangor around 1930A/31. The defect could be repaired quickly and they left again around 0430A/1 to rejoin the convoy which they did around around noon on 2 September. Meanwhile they had been joined around 1000A/1 byHrMs Isaac Sweers which had been detached from the convoy to joinHMS Furious.

HMS Cairo andHrMs Isaac Sweers parted company with the convoy on 2 September and proceeded to Northern Ireland.HMS Sheffield also left the convoy later this day.

ORP Piorun andORP Garland parted company with the convoy shortly after noon on 3 September to assist a merchant vessel that was being bombed by German aircraft. By thenHMS Winchelsea had also left the convoy.

HMS Furious was destined for Gibraltar and operated mainly a little away from the convoy. She left the convoy around 1100 hours on 4 September arrived at Gibraltar on 7 September escorted byHMS Cossack,HMS Zulu,HMS Legion andHMS Lively.

Shortly afterwards around 1300 hours on 4 September the convoy split into two sections, these were;
WS 11F (Fast); This convoy was made up of the merchantsBhutan,City of Edinburgh,Duchess of York,Empress of Australia,Glenorchy,Kina II,Largs Bay,Mooltan,Orontes,Otranto,Scythia,Viceroy of India. HMS Guardian was also part of this convoy.

Escort for this part of the convoy was provided by;HMS Repulse,HMIS Sutlej (Later went to the escort of convoy WS 11S),HMS Highlander (detached to fuel at the Azores),HMAS Nestor (Cdr. A.S. Rosenthal, RAN) (joined around noon on 4 September coming from Gibraltar) andHMS Encounter (Lt.Cdr. E.V.St J. Morgan, RN) (joined around 0800 hours on 7 September coming from Gibraltar).

Most of these ships oiled at sea from the RFA tankerRapidol (2648 GRT, built 1917) (Master Lt.Cdr. A.E. Curtain, OBE, RNR).Rapidol later joined convoy WS 11S. At leastHMS Highlander oiled at Ponta Delgada, Azores, she rejoined the convoy around noon on 6 September.

Around 0730 hours on 8 September 1941,HMAS Nestor parted company to fuel at Bathurst where she arrived around 0930 hours on 11 September 1941. She departed again around 1430 hours to rejoin the convoy. However at 1640 hours on 11 SeptemberHMAS Nestor obtained a firm A/S contact and attack with depth charges which resulted in a heavy explosion which shook the ship considerably. She the resumed course to rejoin the convoy but 30 minutes later a lubrication oil leak was reported. Course was then set to proceed direct to Freetown for repairs. Further damage was discovered afterwards which made it necessary to reduce speed.

In the morning of 11 September 1941 two destroyers coming from Freetown joined the escort, these wereHMS Velox (Lt.Cdr. E.G. Roper, DSC, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN). Later that day, around 1400 hours, the corvetteHMS Starwort (Lt.Cdr. N.W. Duck, RD, RNR) also joined the escort. Shortly afterwardsHMS Highlander parted company with the convoy and proceeded to Bathurst.

This part of the convoy arrived at Freetown on 13 September 1941.

The other section of the convoy was WS 11S (Slow); This convoy was made up of the merchantsAbosso,Barrister,City of Manchester,GlaucusManchester Progress andNorthumberland.

Escort for this part of the convoy was provided by;HMS Derbyhire,HMS Sennen andHMS Totland.

This part of the convoy arrived at Freetown on 15 September 1941.

At Freetown the convoy (now called WS 11B) was re-grouped and departed from there on 18 September 1941 for the Cape.

The convoy was now made up of the merchantsBarrister,Bhutan,City of Edinburgh,City of Manchester,Duchess of York,Empress of Australia,Glaucus,Glenorchy,Kina II,Largs Bay,Manchester Progress,Mooltan,Orontes,Otranto,Scythia,Viceroy of India and the Dutch liner (troopship)Nieuw Zeeland (11069 GRT, built 1928) joined the convoy at Freetown.

Escort was provided by the battlecruiserHMS Renown and the armed merchant cruiserDerbyshire. A/S escort was provided until 1800 hours 20 September 1941 by the destroyersHMS Velox andHMS Wrestler after which these returned to Freetown.

On 30 September the following ships put into Capetown escorted byHMS Derbyshire;Bhutan,City of Edinburgh,City of Manchester,Duchess of York,Glaucus,Glenorchy,Kina II,Largs Bay,Orontes,Viceroy of India andNieuw Zeeland.

The other ships;Barrister,Empress of Australia,Manchester Progress,Mooltan,Otranto andScythia arrived at Durban on 3 October escorted byHMS Repulse.

On 3 October 1941,Bhutan,City of Edinburgh,City of Manchester,Duchess of York,Glaucus,Glenorchy,Kina II,Largs Bay,Orontes,Viceroy of India andNieuw Zeeland departed Capetown still escorted byHMS Derbyshire.

On 7 October 1941,Barrister,Manchester Progress,Mooltan,Otranto as well as the transportsCity of Canterbury (8331 GRT, built 1922),Dilwara (11080 GRT, built 1936),Eastern Prince (10926 GRT, built 1929),Johan de Witt (Dutch, 10474 GRT, built 1920),Llandaff Castle (10799 GRT, built 1926),Nieuw Holland (Dutch, 11066 GRT, built 1927) andPulaski (Polish, 6516 GRT, built 1912). They were escorted by the battlecruiserRepulse until 13 October when she was relieved byHMS Ceres (Capt. H.H. McWilliam, RN). On 8 October these ships joined up with the ships coming from Capetown.HMS Derbyshire then left the convoy and returned to Capetown.

In the afternoon of 17 October 1941,HMS Glasgow (Capt. H. Hickling, DSO, RN) made rendez-vous with the convoy and then parted company taking the following ships with her;Barrister,City of Edinburgh,Duchess of York,Glaucius,Glenorchy,Johan de Witt,Kina II,Largs Bay,Orontes,Otranto,Nieuw Zeeland,Viceroy of India.

The other ships continued withHMS Ceres towards Aden where they arrived on 19 October 1941.

The ships taken over byHMS Glasgow proceeded to Bombay where they arrived on 22October 1941. Three ships taken over byHMS Glasgow however were destined for Basra. One of these, theBarrister was unable to keep up with the convoy and was detached on 18 October. This ship arrived at Basra on 25 October. The other two ships destined for Basra,City of Edinburgh andGlenorchy were detached on 19 October and both arrived at Basra on 23 October 1941.

On 27 October 1941 the convoy departed Bombay for Colombo escorted by the armed merchant cruiserHMS Hector (Capt.(Retd.) F. Howard, DSC, RN). The convoy was now made up of the transports;Glaucus,Johan de Witt,Kina II,Largs Bay,Nieuw Zeeland,Orion (23371 GRT, built 1935) andEllenga (5196 GRT, built 1911).

They arrived at Colombo on 30 October 1941, minus theKina II which had been detached at 1815(EF) on 29 October 1942, in position 07°52'N, 76°29'E, and proceeded independently to Trincomalee.

On 31 October 1941 the convoy, now made up ofEllenga,Glaucus,Johan de Witt,Largs Bay,Nieuw ZeelandOrion andRangitiki (16698 GRT, built 1929) departed Colombo for Singapore. The convoy was escorted by the light cruiserHMS Mauritius (Capt. W.D. Stephens, RN). They arrived at Singapore on 6 November 1941. (28)

29 Sep 1941

Convoy WS 12

This convoy departed U.K. ports on 29 / 30 September 1941.

The convoy assembled assembled at sea near Orsay Island on 1 October 1941.

The convoy was made up of the following troop transports / transports;Almanzora (15551 GRT, built 1914),City of Paris (10902 GRT, built 1922),Clan Campbell (7255 GRT, built 1937),Clan Lamont (7250 GRT, built 1939),Dominion Monarch (27155 GRT, built 1939),Duchess of Richmond (20022 GRT, built 1928),Empire Pride (9248 GRT, built 1941),Empire Trust (8143 GRT, built 1941),Empress of Canada (21517 GRT, built 1922),Empress of Russia (16810 GRT, built 1913),Franconia (20175 GRT, built 1923),Highland Brigade (14134 GRT, built 1929),Highland Princess (14133 GRT, built 1930),Prince Badouin (3219 GRT, built 1933),Leopoldville (11509 GRT, built 1929),Mendoza (8233 GRT, built 1919),Narkunda (16632 GRT, built 1920),Ormonde (14982 GRT, built 1917),Perseus (10272 GRT, built 1923),Perthshire (10496 GRT, built 1936), HMS Royal Ulsterman (T/Cdr. H.F. Jackson, RNR) (3244 GRT, built 1936),Samaria (19597 GRT, built 1921),Sarpedon (11321 GRT, built 1923) andStrathaird (22281 GRT, built 1932).

The aircraft carrierHMS Argus (Capt. T.O. Bulteel, RN) was also with the convoy in an aircraft ferry role. She was able to operate aircraft for A/S patrol though.

On assembly off Oversay around 1200A/1, the convoy was escorted by the heavy cruiserHMS Devonshire (Capt. R.D. Oliver, DSC, RN), AA cruiserHMS Cairo (A/Capt. I.R.H. Black, RN), armed merchant cruiser,HMS Cathay (A/Capt.(Retd.) C.M. Merewether, RN), auxiliary minelayerHMS Agamemnon (Capt.(Retd.) F. Ratsey, RN), destroyersHMS Sikh (Cdr. G.H. Stokes, RN),HMCS Assiniboine (A/Lt.Cdr. J.H. Stubbs, RCN),HMCS Saguenay (Lt. P.E. Haddon, RCN),HMS Lancaster (A/Cdr. N.H. Whatley, RN),HMS Newark (Lt.Cdr. R.H.W. Atkins, RN),HMS Stanley (Lt.Cdr.(Retd.) D.B. Shaw, OBE, RN) and the escort destroyerHMS Blankney (Lt.Cdr. P.F. Powlett, DSC, RN).

The destroyerHMS Bradford (Lt.Cdr. J.N.K. Knight, RN) was also to be part of the escort. She did sail from Londonderry but had to return to that port soon after departure owning to defects.

Around 1745A/1, the destroyersHMS Verity (Cdr. R.H. Mills, RN),HMS Whitehall (Lt.Cdr. A.B. Russell, RN),HMS Witch (Lt.Cdr. C.H. Holmes, RN) joined the convoy coming from Londonderry.

Around 1715A/2, the destroyerHMS Beverley (Lt.Cdr. J. Grant, RN) joined the convoy.

Around 0940A/3, a German Focke Wolf reconnaissance aircraft was sighted to be shadowing the convoy.HMS Cairo opened fire but the aircraft, which was flying very low, kept out of range. Shadowing ceased around 1040A/2 when the convoy disappeared into a patch of fog.

Around 1800A/3,HMS Lancaster andHMS Newark were detached to proceed to Londonderry. They had reached the limit of their endurance.

Around 0100A/4,HMS Verity andHMS Witch were detached to join the battleshipHMS Resolution (Capt. A.R. Halfhide, CBE, RN) which was on passage from Bermuda to the Clyde.

Around 0800A/4,HMS Whitehall parted company with the convoy to proceed to Londonderry as she had reached the limit of her endurace.

Around 0930A/4,in position 50°16'N, 26°10'W, the troop tranportHighland Princess and auxiliary minelayerHMS Agamemnon were detached to proceed to Halifax. They formed convoy CT 3. They were escorted byHMS Cathay,HMCS Assiniboine andHMCS Saguenay.

Around 1400A/4,HMS Cairo was detached. She was to overtakeHMS Whitehall and then return to Londonderry in company.

In the early hours of the 5th,HMS Beverley was detached as she had not been able to fuel fromHMS Devonshire as the weather conditions had prevented this. She was also unable to fuel at the Azores as she had already done so in August.

Around 1700A/5, in position 44°18'N, 27°20'W, the destroyersHMS Cossack (Capt. E.L. Berthon, DSC and Bar, RN) andHMS Zulu (Cdr. H.R. Graham, DSO, RN) were met. They then tookHMS Argus andHMS Sikh with them to proceed to Gibraltar.HMS Argus maintained A/S air patrol over the convoy until 1800A/5.

Around 2030A/5,HMS Royal Ulsterman and thePrince Badouin were detached to Ponta Delgada, Azores.

Around 1255A/7, the destroyer i>HrMs Isaac Sweers (Cdr. J. Houtsmuller, RNN) joined the convoy.

Around 2000A/7, in position 35°36'N, 26°31'W,HMS Stanley andHMS Blankney were detached to Ponta Delgada, Azores.

Around 1700A/8, the destroyerHMS Gurkha (Cdr. C.N. Lentaigne, RN) joined the convoy after having failed to find it the previous day.

Around 1430A/10,HMS Royal Ulsterman and thePrince Badouin rejoined the convoy.

Around 1250A/11, in position 18°12'N, 22°25'W, the destroyerHMS Velox (Lt.Cdr. E.G. Roper, DSC, RN) joined the convoy.

Around 1600A/11, in position 17°38'N, 21°59'W, the destroyerHMS Wrestler (Lt.Cdr. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) joined the convoy.

Around 0800Z/12, the heavy cruiserHMS Dorsetshire (Capt. A.W.S. Agar, VC, DSO, RN) joined the convoy.

Around 1120N/12, the destroyerHMS Vimy (Lt.Cdr. H.G.D. de Chair, RN) joined the convoy.

Around 1145N/13, the destroyerHMS Vansittart (Lt.Cdr. R.L.S. Gaisford, RN) and the corvettesHMS Amaranthus (T/Lt. W.S. Thomson, RNR) andHMS Armeria (T/Lt. H.N. Russell, DSC, RNR) joined the convoy.

The convoy arrived at Freetown early in the afternoon on 14 October 1941.

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The convoy, minus theNarkunda departed Freetown for South Africa on 19 October. Escort was provided by the heavy cruiserHMS Devonshire which joined the convoy early on 20 October after having patrolled south of Freetown since 16 October.

Local A/S escort out of Freetown was provided from 19 to 21 October 1941 and consisted of the destroyersHMS Velox,HMS Wrestler and the corvettesHMS Anchusa (Lt. J.E.L. Peters, RNR),HMS Calendula (Lt.Cdr. A.D. Bruford, RNVR) andHMS Mignonette (Lt. H.H. Brown, RNR).

Around 1815Z/21,HMS Wrestler parted company with the convoy.

Around 1830Z/21, in position 02°00'N, 08°30'W,HMS Royal Ulsterman andUlster Monarch were detached and proceeded to Takoradi. They were escorted byHMS Anchusa andHMS Calendula.

Around 1900Z/21,Prince Badouin parted company to proceed to St. Helena.

Around 1925A/22, in approximate position 02°10'S, 06°12'W,HMS Velox andHMS Mignonette parted company.

On 30 October 1941 the convoy was off Capetown and the following ships of the convoy then split off to proceed into that port;Clan Campbell,Dominion Monach,Empire Pride,Empire Trust,Empress of Canada,Leopoldville,Mendoza,Perthshire,Sarpedon andStrathaird as didHMS Devonshire which went to Simonstown.

The other ships of the convoy;Empress of Russia,Franconia,Highland Brigade,Ormonde,Perseus,Richmond andSamaria then proceeded to Durban where they arrived on 3 November escorted by the armed merchant cruiserHMS Derbyshire (Capt.(Retd.) E.A.B. Stanley, DSO, MVO, RN) which had joined them off Capetown early on 31 October.

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On 4 November 1941 theStrathaird departed Capetown for Durban where she arrived on 7 November.

On 5 November 1941 the following ships departed Capetown to continue their passage;Dominion Monarch,Empire Pride,Empire Trust,Empress of Canada,Leopoldville,Mendoza andPerthshire. They were escorted by the armed merchant cruiserHMS Dunnottar Castle (Capt.(Retd.) C.T.A. Bunbury, RN).

On 8 November the following ships departed Durban and joined the Capetown group at sea;Almanzora,City of Paris,Clan Campbell,Clan Lamont,Duchess of Richmond,Empress of Russia,Franconia,Nieuw Amsterdam (36287 GRT, built 1938),Nova Scotia (6791 GRT, built 1926),Perseus,Samaria andStrathaird. The escort of the Capetown groupHMS Dunnottar Castle was relieved by the battlecruiserHMS Repulse (Capt. W.G. Tennant, CB, MVO, RN) which escorted the convoy from then on to until 0800C/14 when she was relieved in position 08°14'S, 40°34'E, by the battleshipHMS Revenge (Capt. L.V. Morgan, CBE, MVO, DSC, RN) which then escorted the convoy until it arrived off Aden on 20 November. The convoy then dispersed and all ships proceeded to Suez independently.

On 14 November the convoy was joined by theAscania (13900 GRT, built 1925) which came from Mombasa.

Around 0900C/17,HMS Glasgow (Capt. H. Hickling, DSO, RN) made rendezvous with convoy WS 12 in approximate position 06°06'N, 50°30'E. TheDominion Monarch,Duchess of Richmond,Empress of Canada andPerseus then split off from the convoy and continued on as convoy WS 12J towards Colombo, escorted byHMS Glasgow. This convoy arrived at Colombo on 23 November.

On 24 November theDominion Monarch andEmpress of Canada departed Colombo for Singapore as convoy WS 12V. They were escorted byHMS Glasgow until 26 November whenHMS Dragon (Capt. R.J. Shaw, MBE, RN) took over the escort. The convoy arrived at Singapore on 28 November 1941. (28)

14 Apr 1942

Operation Calender.

Spitfire fighters to be flown off to Malta.

Around 0700A/14, ' Force W ' made up of the battlecruiserHMS Renown (Commodore C.S. Daniel, CBE, DSO, RN), aircraft carrierUSS Wasp (Capt. J.W. Reeves, Jr., USN) and the destroyersHMS Inglefield (Capt. P. Todd, DSO, RN),HMS Echo (Lt.Cdr. N. Lanyon, RN),HMS Ithuriel (Lt.Cdr. D.H. Maitland-Makgill-Crichton, DSC, RN),HMS Partridge (Lt.Cdr. W.A.F. Hawkins, DSC, OBE, RN),USS Lang (Lt.Cdr. E.A. Seay, USN) andUSS Madison (Lt.Cdr. W.B. Ammon, USN) departed the Clyde for a mission to fly off Spitfire fighters to Malta.

At 2020A/15, ' Force W ' made a 90° emergency turn to port asHMS Partidge had obtained an A/S contact and attacked it with depth charges. The original course was resumed a little over 20 minutes later. At 2045A/15,HMS Partridge dropped more depth charges. ' Force W ' then commenced zig-zagging.HMS Partridge rejoined the screen at 2305A/15.

Around 1915A/17 all destroyers were detached to refuel at Gibraltar after they had been relieved, temporary, by the destroyersHMS Antelope (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Sinclair, RN),HMS Vidette (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Walmsley, RN),HMS Westcott (Cdr. I.H. Bockett-Pugh, DSO, RN),HMS Wishart (Cdr. H.G. Scott, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN). These destroyers had departed Gibraltar around 0001A/16.

HMS Inglefield,HMS Echo,HMS Ithuriel,HMS Partridge,USS Lang andUSS Madison arrived at Gibraltar around 1500A/18. After fuelling they departed to conduct an A/S patrol to the east of Gibraltar and then rejoin ' Force W '.

Around 0700/19 the original screen rejoined from Gibraltar as did the cruisersHMS Cairo (A/Capt. C.C. Hardy, DSO, RN) andHMS Charybdis (Capt. L.D. Mackintosh, DSC, RN) also coming from Gibraltar. The cruisers had departed from Gibraltar at 0145A/19 and joined with the destroyers that were on A/S patrol at 0230A/19.HMS Antelope,HMS Westcott,HMS Wishart andHMS Wrestler were detached around 0630A/19 to return to Gibraltar where they arrived at 1100A/19.HMS Vidette for now remained with ' Force W '. She left the formation at 1900A/19 and proceeded to Gibraltar independently.

After fuellingHMS Antelope andHMS Westcott departed Gibraltar to rejoin ' Force W ' at 1415A/19 as didHMS Wishart andHMS Wrestler at 1545A/19. They rejoined ' Force W ' around 0900A/20.

At 0500A/20, in position 37°30'N, 03°20'E,USS Wasp commenced flying off 11 F4F Wildcat fighters to provide a combat air patrol whilst the Spitfires were launched. At 0545A/20 the flying off of 47 Spitfires commenced. All were successfully launched and the combat air patrol landed on around 0715A/20 when ' Force W ' reversed course and steered for Gibraltar.

At 1620A/20,HMS Vidette arrived at Gibraltar to fuel. She sailed again to rejoin ' Force W ' at 0130A/21.

At 0250A/21,HMS Cairo,HMS Inglefield,HMS Echo,USS Lang andUSS Madison arrived at Gibraltar. After fuelling they departed again at 0625A/21 to rejoin theUSS Wasp at sea.

At 1630A/21,HMS Renown,HMS Charybdis,HMS Antelope,HMS Vidette,HMS Westcott,HMS Wishart,HMS Wrestler,HMS Ithuriel andHMS Partridge arrived at Gibraltar after playing their part in Operation Calender.

USS Wasp now escorted byHMS Cairo,HMS Inglefield,HMS Echo,USS Lang andUSS Madison set course for Scapa Flow.

Around 1645A/25, the destroyersUSS Plunkett (Lt.Cdr. W.H. Standley, Jr., USN) andUSS Wainwright (Lt.Cdr. R.H. Gibbs, USN) joined. Shortly afterwardsHMS Cairo parted company and proceeded to Bangor Bay near Belfast, Northern Ireland arriving there around 0800A/26.

USS Wasp,HMS Inglefield,HMS Echo,USS Lang,USS Madison,USS Plunkett andUSS Wainwright arrived at Scapa Flow around 1200A/26. (29)

21 Apr 1942
At 1630A/21,HMS Renown (Commodore C.S. Daniel, CBE, DSO, RN),HMS Charybdis (Capt. L.D. Mackintosh, DSC, RN),HMS Antelope (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Sinclair, RN),HMS Vidette (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Walmsley, RN),HMS Westcott (Cdr. I.H. Bockett-Pugh, DSO, RN),HMS Wishart (Cdr. H.G. Scott, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN),HMS Ithuriel (Lt.Cdr. D.H. Maitland-Makgill-Crichton, DSC, RN) andHMS Partridge (Lt.Cdr. W.A.F. Hawkins, DSC, OBE, RN) arrived at Gibraltar from operations. (30)

29 Apr 1942

Operation Bowery.

Spitfire fighters to be flown off to Malta.

On 29 April 1942 the aircraft carrierUSS Wasp (Capt. J.W. Reeves, Jr., USN), destroyersUSS Lang (Lt.Cdr. E.A. Seay, USN),USS Sterett (T/Cdr. J.G. Coward, USN) and the escort destroyerHMS Blackmore (Lt. H.T. Harrel, RN) departed Scapa Flow for the Clyde.

On 30 April 1942,USS Wasp,USS Lang,USS Sterett andHMS Blackmore arrived at Greenock whereUSS Wasp embarked Spitfire fighters for Malta.

Around 0600A/3,USS Wasp,USS Lang,USS Sterett,HMS Echo (Lt.Cdr. N. Lanyon, RN) andHMS Intrepid (Lt.Cdr. J.H. Lewes, DSC, RN) departed the Clyde on operation Bowery.

At 0001A/5 the destroyersHMS Antelope (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Sinclair, RN),HMS Westcott (Cdr. I.H. Bockett-Pugh, DSO, RN),HMS Wishart (Cdr. H.G. Scott, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN) departed Gibraltar to make rendesvous withUSS Wasp and her escorting detroyers. They joined around 1730A/6.USS Lang,USS Sterett,HMS Echo andHMS Intrepid then parted company and proceeded to Gibraltar fuel. They arrived at Gibraltar around 1800B/7.

Around 0130B/8, ' Force W ' made up of the battlecruiserHMS Renown (Commodore C.S. Daniel, CBE, DSO, RN), aircraft carrierHMS Eagle (Capt. E.G.N. Rushbrooke, DSC, RN), light cruiserHMS Charybdis (Capt. L.D. Mackintosh, DSC, RN) and the destroyersUSS Lang,USS Sterret,HMS Echo,HMS Intrepid,HMS Ithuriel (Lt.Cdr. D.H. Maitland-Makgill-Crichton, DSC, RN),HMS Partridge (Lt.Cdr. W.A.F. Hawkins, DSC, OBE, RN),HMS Vidette (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Walmsley, RN),HMS Georgetown (Lt.Cdr. P.G. MacIver, RNR) andHMS Salisbury (Lt.Cdr. M.H.R. Crichton, RN) departed Gibraltar to joinUSS Wasp and her escorting destroyers. They joined around 0800B/8 after whichHMS Antelope,HMS Westcott,HMS Wishart andHMS Wrestler were detached to fuel at Gibraltar. They arrived at Gibraltar at 1250/8 exceptHMS Wrestler which only arrived at 1425/8. After fuelling the departed as follows,HMS Antelope andHMS Westcott at 1720B/8,HMS Wishart at 1800/8 and finallyHMS Wrestler at 2205B/8. They were to rejoin ' Force W '.

Around 0945B/8,HMS Georgetown was detached to return to Gibraltar with defects (excessive vibration). She arrived at Gibraltar at 1630B/8.

Between 0630B/9 and 0800B/9 a total of 17 Spitfires were launched fromHMS Eagle and 47 fromHMS Wasp. Course was then set to the westwards. One aircraft had crashed on taking off, one returned toUSS Wasp, one landed in North-Africa and one landed on the sea near Malta.

At 1030B/9,HMS Antelope,HMS Westcott andHMS Wishart rejoined ' Force W '.HMS Wrestler presumably joined later.

At 1130B/9,HMS Intepid,HMS Echo andHMS Salisbury parted company with ' Force W ' to proceed to Gibraltar.

At 1300B/9,USS Lang andUSS Sterret parted company with ' Force W '.

Between 0015B/10 and 0100B/10,HMS Intrepid,HMS Echo,HMS Salisbury,USS Lang andUSS Sterett arrived at Gibraltar to fuel. En-route to GibraltarHMS Salisbury had attacked an A/S contact with depth charges.

At 0120B/10,HMS Ithuriel was detached to Gibraltar.

Around 0330B/10,HMS Eagle andHMS Wrestler parted company. They arrived at Gibraltar around 0500B/10.

Around 0500B/10,HMS Intepid,HMS Echo,HMS Salisbury andUSS Lang departed Gibraltar to rejoin ' Force W '.USS Sterett was unable to sail with them due to defects. She departed at 1100B/10.HMS Intrepid,HMS Echo andUSS Lang rejoined ' Force W ' around 0815B/10 followed one hour later byHMS Salisbury. Around 0815B/10,HMS Vidette was detached to Gibraltar followed byHMS Partridge,HMS Antelope,HMS Westcott andHMS Wishart around 0945B/10. Around 1200/10,HMS Charybdis was detached to Gibraltar.

At 0645B/11,USS Sterett rejoined.

At 0915B/12,HMS Salisbury was detached to proceed independently. She was unable to keep up with ' Force W ' in the current weather conditions without sustaining more damage then she had already did up to that point.

' Force W ',HMS Renown,USS Wasp,HMS Echo,HMS Intrepid,USS Lang andUSS Sterett arrived at Scapa Flow around 0700B/15. (29)

2 May 1942
German U-boatU-74 was sunk by depth charges from the British destroyersHMS Wishart (Cdr. H.G. Scott, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN) east of Cartagena, Spain, in position 37°16'N, 00°01'E.

10 May 1942
Around 0500B/10,HMS Eagle (Capt. E.G.N. Rushbrooke, DSC, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN) arrived at Gibraltar from operation Bowery. (31)

17 May 1942

Operation LB.

Aircraft to be flown to Malta.

At 0950B/17, the destroyersHMS Wishart (Cdr. H.G. Scott, RN),HMS Ithuriel (Lt.Cdr. D.H. Maitland-Makgill-Crichton, DSC, RN) andHMS Partridge (Lt.Cdr. W.A.F. Hawkins, DSC, OBE, RN) departed Gibraltar for an A/S sweep of the harbour before the departure of the other ships.

At 1015B/17, the aircraft carrierHMS Argus (Capt. G.T. Philip, DSC, RN) and AA cruiserHMS Charybdis (Capt. L.D. Mackintosh, DSC, RN) departed Gibraltar and joined the destroyers.

At 1330B/17, the aircraft carrierHMS Eagle (Capt. E.G.N. Rushbrooke, DSC, RN) and the destroyersHMS Antelope (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Sinclair, RN),HMS Westcott (Cdr. I.H. Bockett-Pugh, DSO, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN) departed Gibraltar to overtake the other ships. The destroyerHMS Vidette (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Walmsley, DSC, RN) was unable to sail with them due to defects. After repairs she sailed at 1535B/17 to overtake and join the other ships but later turned back as it was considered she was in an unreliable condition.

Around 1815B/17, all ships were now in company with each other.

At At 0830B/18 in position 37°07'N, 01°03'E,HMS Charybdis andHMS Partidge sighted three torpedo tracks.HMS Partidge then combed the tracks and gained a firm contact and then carried out a depth charge attack, but with no visible results. At 1007B/18, the doubtful report of a submarine periscope resulted inHMS Ithuriel dropping one depth charge and an investigation byHMS Westcott, but no confirmation of the presence of a submarine was obtained.

The attack at 0830B/18 was carried out by the Italian submarineMocenigo which intended to attackHMS Eagle but was unable to do so therefore three stern torpedoes were fired at the cruiser from 1200 meters. Two torpedo explosions were heard and were thought to be hits. The counter attack byHMS Partridge caused damage which forced her to abandon her patrol and return to base for repairs.

At 1320B/18 an attempt was made to fly off the Spitfires, but low wind velocity precluded it. At 1440B/18, the first flight of Spitfires was flown off from position 37°32'N, 01°58'E and the second flight at 1515B/18 from position 37°33'N, 03°02'E. The take offs were without incident.

Six Albacores were flown off at 1930B/18 in position 37°39'N, 04°02'E, but they all returned and landed on defective.

The force had frequently been reported by enemy aircraft, and shadowing aircraft were intermittently seen and engaged when within range. Between 2130B/18 and 2215B/18 the force was attacked by torpedo carrying aircraft believed to be Italian SM 79's.HMS Eagle andHMS Argus were near missed.

Enemy reconnaissance aircraft were again sighted at 0949B/19 and 1119B/19, the latter aircraft being observed in the vicinity until 1315B/19. All were engaged by gunfire when within range.

All ships arrived back at Gibraltar in the early morning around 0530B/20. (32)

21 May 1942
P 44 (Lt. T.E. Barlow, RN) conducted exercises off Gibraltar together withHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon DSC, RN) andHMS Partridge (Lt.Cdr. W.A.F. Hawkins, DSC, OBE, RN). (33)

28 May 1942
Around 2000B/28, the light cruiserHMS Charybdis (Capt. L.D. Mackintosh, DSC, RN) and the destroyersHMS Westcott (Cdr. I.H. Bockett-Pugh, DSO, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN) departed Gibraltar to search for an enemy submarine reported by a Sunderland aircraft, this was aircraft 'R' of 10 Squadron (RAAF), which had sighted and depth charged the Italian submarineArgo in position 38°04'N, 02°22'E.

They did not find the enemy and returned to Gibraltar around 2000B/30. (34)

7 Jun 1942

Operation Salient.

Aircraft to be flown to Malta.

Around 2130B/7, the AA cruiserHMS Charybdis (Capt. L.D. Mackintosh, DSC, RN) departed Gibraltar and proceeded to the westward so as to mislead enemy spies. She later proceeded eastwards to re-enter the Mediterranean.

Around 0920B/8, the aircraft carrierHMS Eagle (Capt. E.G.N. Rushbrooke, DSC, RN), AA cruiserHMS Cairo (A/Capt. C.C. Hardy, DSO, RN) and the destroyersHMS Westcott (Cdr. I.H. Bockett-Pugh, DSO, RN),HMS Wishart (Cdr. H.G. Scott, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN),HMS Antelope (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Sinclair, RN),HMS Ithuriel (Lt.Cdr. D.H. Maitland-Makgill-Crichton, DSC, RN) andHMS Partridge (Lt.Cdr. W.A.F. Hawkins, DSC, OBE, RN) departed Gibraltar and proceeded to the eastward.

At 1200B/8,HMS Charybdis joined the other ships.

All 32 Spitfires were flown off in ffrom position 37°18'N, 02°30'E between 0600B/9 and 0730B/9. All aircraft arrived safely at Malta.

The Force was shadowed by an enemy aircraft, and reported by an enemy submarine, but no attack followed and the Force arrived safely back at Gibraltar around 1000B/10. (35)

12 Jun 1942

Operation Harpoon. Supply convoy to Malta from Gibraltar.

Timespan: 12 to 18 June 1942.

During March and April 1942 Malta had been attacked very heavily by the German and Italian air forces and was in much need of supplies. It was therefore decided that two convoy’s were to be sent, one from the west (Harpoon) and one from the east (Vigorous). This was to increase the chance of success as the enemy would have to split force if they want to attack both convoys. Also a group of minesweepers were to be sent to Malta.

Below we will give the events regarding the Harpoon convoy in chronological order.

Western Mediterranean (Harpoon convoy)

During the night convoy WS 19 Z passed the Straits of Gibraltar. This convoy had departed the Clyde on June 6th. It was made up of five merchant vessels;Burwan (British , 6069 GRT, built 1928),Chant (American, 5601 GRT, built 1938),Orari (British, 10350 GRT, built 1931),Tanimbar (Dutch, 8169 GRT, built 1930) andTroilus (British, 7422 GRT, built 1921).

Off Gibraltar the tankerKentucky (American , 9308 GRT, built 1942) joined the convoy.

Close escort was provided by ‘Force X’ which was made up of the AA-cruiserHMS Cairo (A/Capt. C.C. Hardy, DSO, RN), destroyersHMS Bedouin (Cdr. B.G. Scurfield, OBE, RN),HMS Marne (Lt.Cdr. H.N.A. Richardson, DSC, RN),HMS Matchless (Lt.Cdr. J. Mowlam, RN),HMS Partridge (Lt.Cdr. W.A.F. Hawkins, DSC, OBE, RN),HMS Ithuriel (Lt.Cdr. D.H. Maitland-Makgill-Crichton, DSC, RN), escort destroyersHMS Badsworth (Lt. G.T.S. Gray, DSC, RN),HMS Blankney (Lt.Cdr. P.F. Powlett, DSO, DSC, RN),HMS Middleton (Lt.Cdr. D.C. Kinloch, RN),ORP Kujawiak (Kpt.mar. (Lt.Cdr.) L. Lichodziejewski), minesweepersHMS Hebe (Lt.Cdr. G. Mowatt, RD, RN),HMS Speedy (Lt. J.G. Brookes, RN),HMS Rye (Lt. J.A. Pearson, DSC, RN),HMS Hythe (Lt.Cdr. L.B. Miller, RN) and the motor launches (ML’s)ML 121 (group commander Lt.Cdr. E.J. Strowlger, RNVR),ML 134,ML 135,ML 168,ML 459 andML 462.

Also operating with ‘Force X’ was the fast minelayerHMS Welshman (Capt. W.H.D. Friedberger, RN) which was to carry stores and personnel to Malta.

Distant cover was provided by ‘Force W’ which was made up of the battleshipHMS Malaya (Capt. J.W.A. Waller, RN), aircraft carriersHMS Eagle (Capt. E.G.N. Rushbrooke, DSC, RN),HMS Argus (Capt. G.T. Philip, DSC, RN), light cruisersHMS Kenya (Capt. A.S. Russell, RN, flying the flag of Vice-Admiral A.T.B. Curteis, CB, RN),HMS Liverpool (Capt. W.R. Slayter, DSC, RN), AA-cruiserHMS Charybdis (Capt. L.D. Mackintosh, DSC, RN), destroyersHMS Onslow (Capt. H.T. Armstrong, DSC and Bar, RN),HMS Icarus (Lt.Cdr. C.D. Maud, DSC and Bar, RN),HMS Escapade (Lt.Cdr. E.N.V. Currey, DSC, RN),HMS Antelope (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Sinclair, RN),HMS Wishart (Cdr. H.G. Scott, RN),HMS Westcott (Cdr. I.H. Bockett-Pugh, DSO, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN) andHMS Vidette (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Walmsley, DSC, RN). This force was to cover the convoy until off the Skerki Channel, the entrance to the Sicily-Tunis Narrows. The cover forces for this convoy were however rather weak. For instance the aircraft carriers were rather old and had hardly enough fighters available to provide a decent air patrol.

Then there was also a tanker force to fuel the escorts ‘Force Y’. It was made up of the RFA oilerBrown Ranger (3417 GRT, built 1941), escorted by two corvettes;HMS Geranium (T/Lt. A. Foxall, RNR) andHMS Coltsfoot (T/Lt. the Hon. W.K. Rous, RNVR).

Besides these forces four submarines were on patrol in the western Mediterranean. They were stationed between Sardinia and Sicily. These wereHMS P 211 (Cdr. B. Bryant, DSC, RN),HMS P 42 (Lt. A.C.G. Mars, RN),HMS P 43 (Lt. A.C. Halliday, RN) andHMS P 46 (Lt. J.S. Stevens, DSC, RN).

By 0800B/12 the force was in full strength and proceeded eastwards at 12 to 13 knots.

The remainder of the day was uneventful except for the sighting of a Spanish merchant vessel in the evening.

On this day the convoy was shadowed continuously by German and Italian aircraft. Also it was thought an Italian submarine might have spotted the convoy but was not the case as of yet.

HMS Cairo and almost all the destroyers and escort destroyers oiled fromBrown Ranger andHMS Liverpool. This was completed late in the evening.

Italian warships reported to be at sea.

Two Italian cruisers and five destroyers had been reported at daybreak (actually six detroyers were present). These were the light cruisersEugenio di Savoia,Raimondo Montecuccoli and the destroyersAlfredo Oriani,Vincenzo Gioberti,Ascari,Ugolino Vivaldi,Nicolò Zeno andPremuda. They had sailed on the 13th from Cagliari, Sardinia. The most western British submarine on patrolHMS P 43 had attacked them at 1931 hours on the 13th. She claimed to have hit a cruiser but this was obviously not the case. Two hours later the next submarine on the patrol lineHMS P 211 also sighted this Italian force but was too far off to attack.

During the night the force was spotted and reported by an Italian submarine. In fact two Italian submarines made attacks on the convoy during the night. These were theUarsciek at 0152B/14 which fired two torpedoes at a destroyer in position 38°02'N, 05°06'E. Both torpedoes missed. Then at 0505B/14, theGiada fired four torpedoes at an aircraft carrier (probablyHMS Eagle although this carrier did not report hearing torpedo explosions andHMS Argus did) and a cruiser or battleship in position 37°55'N, 06°12'E. She claimed two hits but in fact all torpedoes missed.

At dawn enemy shadowing aircraft appeared once more. The convoy was approaching the danger area for air attacks coming from Sardinia. At 1000B/12 the first radar warning came and at about the same time fighters fromEagle shot down an Italian torpedo aircraft. More of these aircraft were seen gathering about 20 miles from the convoy and form up for attack.

It was a bright and clear morning with hardly a cloud in the sky. There was little wind but such as there was came from the west and this made it difficult for the British fighter crews, especially for those from the 25-year oldArgus with her small margin of speed, unless she would turn into the wind and leave the destroyer screen.

The convoy was steering east in two columns in line ahead.HMS Kenya was leading the port column whileHMS Liverpool was leading the starboard one. Astern of the convoy wasHMS Malaya withHMS Welshman astern of her. The aircraft carriers were operating independently to port of the convoy. Each carrier had an AA cruiser and a destroyer as escort.HMS Eagle was withHMS Cairo andHMS Wishart whileHMS Argus was withHMS Charybdis andHMS Vidette.

The remaining fifteen destroyers and four minesweepers formed an all-round screen spread from three to three and a half miles from the convoy. This was done on purpose so that all ships could fire outward but also inward with a freedom that would have been impossible with a closer screen.

The air attacks began at 1030B/14. The first was a shallow dive-bombing attack by two groups, each of four or five Italian fighter-bombers (CR. 42). One group approached from astern at 12000 feet and diving to 6000 feet. The other group came from ahead at 6000 feet and dropped their bombs from 3000 to 4000 feet. Their target wasHMS Argus and her consorts on the port beam ofHMS Malaya. No damage was done, only one bomb fell close toHMS Charybdis. Two of the enemy planes were shot down after their attack by Fulmar’s fromEagle which were controlled by theArgus and afterwards landed aboard her. It was the policy to employ the Hurricanes fromEagle as high fighter force and the Fulmar’s fromArgus as low fighter force.

A much more serious attack followed half an hour later when 28 Savoia torpedo aircraft escorted by 20 Macchi fighters conducted a combined attack with 10 Cant. high level bombers. The Savoia approached from the northward in two waves of equal strength. The first wave came in at 1110B/14 and the second soon afterwards. The first wave passed through the destroyer screen at 500 feet above the water, rounded the rear of the convoy, and attacked from the starboard side, splitting into groups before firing. They dropped their torpedoes from a height of 100 feet at a range of 2000 yards. They hitHMS Liverpool, which was leading the starboard column, when she was turning to meet the attack. Also the Dutch merchantTanimbar was hit in the rear and she sank within a few minutes in position 36°58’N, 07°30’E.

The second wave attacked the port column dropped their torpedoes at longer range. All torpedoes missed. The Cant. bombers also came in two formations, coming from ahead out of the sun at a height of about 10000 feet. Their targets seemed to beEagle andArgus but none of their bombs hit.

A little before 1200B/14 several torpedo planes made harmless attacks from long range. They were probably stragglers turned back by gunfire during the earlier attacks and anxious to get rid of their torpedoes before turning back to base.

Upon the whole the Italians seem to have attacked gallantly. The British fighters claimed to have shot down three enemy fighters and three torpedo aircraft. Three British fighters were lost ofwhich one was shot down in error by a ship in the screen. The convoy and escort claim to have shot down seven enemy aircraft, all Savoia SM 79’s.

HMS Liverpool was hit in the engine room and badly damaged. She could only make 3 to 4 knots on one shaft. She was ordered to return to Gibraltar being towed byHMS Antelope and screened byHMS Westcott. A long voyage during which the first 24 hours she was attacked from the air. At 1640B/14, five CR. 42 fighter-bombers attacked from astern out of the sun, luckily without hitting, though one or two bombs fell close enough to increase the ships list. At 1800B/14, the tow having parted, there was a harmless attempt by eleven high-level bombers followed by an equally harmless attempt by seven torpedo aircraft which were heavily escorted by fighters. TheLiverpool andWestcott each claimed to have destroyed a torpedo plane.

At 2015B/14, now once more in tow, fife high-level bombers attacked but their bombs fell wide.

At 2230B/14, six torpedo bombers made a twilight attack from very long range only to loose one of their number to the barrageHMS Liverpool put up.

The fruitless attacks on the damagedLiverpool in the afternoon and evening of the 14th evidently occupied the remaining aircraft available to the enemy in Sardinia for as the convoy was able to continue without being attacked. It was however still being shadowed and came within range of the Sicilian air bases in the evening.

HMS Welshman had replacedHMS Liverpool at the head of the starboard column of the convoy. She however parted company with the convoy around 2000B/14 to continue the passage to Malta on her own at high speed.

At 1820B/14 German bombers appeared, about ten Ju. 88’s approached the convoy from astern at 10000 feet and then dived to 6000 feet to make the attack. Both carriers had narrow escapes,Argus in particular. A bomb pitched fine on her port bow, dived under the ship and exploded on the starboard bow. No ship was damaged however. No enemy aircraft were shot down. Six British fighters however harassed the enemy and forced several of them to release their bombs prematurely. One Fulmar was lost.

As in the morning the shallow dive-bombing attack preluded a heavy combined torpedo and bombing attack but in the evening the lapse of time was greater and dive-bombers as well as high level-bombers took part in the massed attack. It was a combination of Italians and Germans. 16 Savoia 79 bombers heavily escorted by Macchi fighters with 10 Ju 88’s and 15 Ju 87’s. The first to appear were the Savoia’s which approached from the north-east to port at about 2000B/14. They were flying well above the water. Worked their way around the stern of the convoy outside gun range to glide down and attack on the starboard side. In the meantime, a few minutes after the Savoia’s had been sighted, two groups of Ju 88’s came in from ahead at 12000 feet and dropped their bombs without effect as they flew across the screen and along the columns of the convoy. Next the Ju 87’s arrived on the port bow and attacked the port wing of the screen, diving from 7000 to 1000 feet. They narrowly missedHMS Icarus andHMS Wrestler, though they had probably hoped to reachHMS Eagle. These dive bombers took most of the attention of the screen but then at 2020B/14 the Italian torpedo-bombers came in. Most of them concentrated onHMS Malaya,HMS Argus,HMS Charybdis andHMS Vidette. They managed to drop three torpedoes within 300 yards from the carrier but she still managed to avoid them.

Around the time of these attacksHMS Middleton sighted a periscope and dropped a depth charge. Two other destroyers then hauled out of the screen and dropped depth charges. The periscope was next sighted byHMS Malaya after whichHMS Speedy obtained an Asdic contact and attacked with depth charges in position 37°39’N, 09°35’E, claiming to have destroyed the enemy submarine.

This was the last encounter with the enemy before ‘Force W’ would separate from the convoy which was then to continue on to Malta only escorted by ‘Force X’.

As the convoy reached the entrance of the Narrows at 2100B/14, four Beaufighters arrived from Malta to relieve the hard worked naval aviators of the carriers. Around this time the Italian submarineAlagi attacked an aircraft carrier with two stern torpedoes in position 37°36'N, 09°53'E which both missed. The attack was not reported by either of the carriers and was probably not observed. Half an hour later ‘Force W’ turned westwards. The convoy continued eastwards with A/Capt. Hardy ofHMS Cairo in command. For the passage of the Tunisian coast the five remaining merchant vessels formed a single line ahead with ‘Force X’ screening them.

At 2205B/14, as it was getting dark, eight Ju 88’s made a shallow dive-bombing attack dropping down from 6000 to 3000 feet to release their bombs. No hits were obtained. They lost two aircraft, one was shot down by a Beaufighter and the ther by gunfire from the ships. This was the end of this day’s fighting.

The Italian ships that had been reported to be at sea the previous day.

On receiving the submarines reports Vice-Admiral Leatham at Malta arranged for a striking force of Wellington aircraft to attack the enemy. Aircraft again sighted the enemy north-west of Cape San Vito, Sicily at 0255/14. At 0525/14 the enemy was sighted off Palermo. At 1800/14 two cruisers were reported to be in the harbour there. At dusk, at 2125B/14, two cruisers and four destroyers were reported to be leaving Palermo harbour but their course was not reported. Vice-Admiral Leatham judged that they were proceeding to the east to join the main Italian battlefleet that had left Taranto that same evening to operate against the ‘Vigorous-convoy’ in the eastern Mediterranean. Accordingly he stationed a naval air patrol over the Strait of Messina, with a naval air striking force at Malta standing by to attack.

‘Force W’

Vice-Admiral Curteis, who was taking ‘Force W’ westwards, also received the report of the enemy leaving Palermo and had to decide whether to strengthen ‘Force X’ with either one or both his cruisers,HMS Kenya andHMS Charybdis. He was then, at 2315/24, in position 37°30’N, 09°30’E, over 50 nautical miles from the convoy, which would be a further 100 nautical miles further on to the east by dawn on the 15th. He also judged that the Italian ships would be unlikely to be danger to the convoy and that the escort would be strong enough ‘to deter them from doing any harm’ escpecially as it would be expected that the Italians would be attacked from the air by aircraft from Malta. Apart from this he was anxious for the safety of his aircraft carriers, which would need the cruisers support while within striking distance from the enemy air bases in Sardinia. Furthermore there was barely time to overtake the convoy before by the morning. With the force available a decision either way was a gamble this might have been different hadLiverpool not been torpedoed. He therefore decided against sending any reinforcement to the convoy.

Action south of Pantellaria

A/Capt. Hardy, the convoy escort commander inHMS Cairo first knew of the presence of the enemy through the report of a Beaufighter which was on it’s way to patrol above the convoy and which at 0620B/15 reported two cruisers and four destroyers to be 15 nautical miles on the port beam of the convoy. The convoy at that time was stearing at 12 knots to the south-east. The merchantmen were formed in two columns again, withHMS Cairo ahead, the five ‘Fleet’ destroyers in the screen to starboard and the four ‘Hunt’s’ to port. The minesweepers and the ML’s were astern of the convoy. A few minutes later the Italian ships were sighted hull down against the brightening sky to the eastward. They were broad on the port bow and drawing ahead of the convoy at high speed. It was now also seen that there were five destroyers present instead of the reported four. Commander Scurfield (inHMS Bedouin led out the ‘Fleet’ destroyers to attack whileHMS Cairo and the remainder of the convoy escort started making smoke to cover the merchant ships, which were ordered to turn to starboard and to seek shelter in Tunisian waters. It was A/Capt. Hardy’s intention to gain as much time as possible to enable an air striking force from Malta to attack the enemy.

At 0640B/15, the Italian cruisers opened fire at a range of over 20000 yards. Their second salvo straddledHMS Cairo and others fell near the convoy before the smoke screen could take effect. The British ships could not yet reply as the enemy was still out of range. As the ‘Fleet’ destroyers gathered way, they became strung out in a loose line of bearing, nearly line ahead, in the orderHMS Bedouin,HMS Partridge,HMS Ithuriel,HMS Marne andHMS Matchless, though the last ship worked up to 32 knots in the endeavour to keep up. The first to destroyers opened fire on the enemy cruisers at 0645B/15 with their guns at maximum elevation but in a quarter of an hour bothBedouin andPartridge were badly hit and stopped and the fight passed them by.Ithuriel held her fire till she got within 15000 yards, then she engaged a cruiser, which she eventually hit at a range of 8000 yards.Marne also engaged a cruiser, opening fire at over 18000 yards. In the meantime the Italian destroyers had fallen astern of the cruisers, three of them, in fact, soon left the line and disappeared to the northward. The last two enemy destroyers opened fire on theMarne from her port beam at around 0700B/15 and she andMatchless, which was astern of her, replied. Both British destroyers soon found the range and hit one of the enemy (Ugolino Vivaldi) and drove them off. They then pressed on to engage the enemy cruisers which kept their distance and were zig-zagging and making smoke to upset the aim of the British ships.

As soon as the convoy was well behind the smoke screen and on it’s way to the westward.HMS Cairo and the four Hunt class escort destroyers were proceeding south and now also engaged the two enemy destroyers which had been engaged byMarne andMatchless. At about 0700B/15HMS Cairo came under fire from the enemy cruisers again. They were using two turrets each to engage theCairo and two turrets to engage the ‘Fleet’ destroyers.HMS Cairo was hit by a 6” shell. She herself fired her 4” guns occasionally, though without much hope of doing real damage to the enemy.

At 0715B/15, A/Capt. Hardy decided to concentrate the remaining three ‘Fleet’ destroyers onHMS Cairo and orderedHMS Ithuriel to join him.HMS Marne andHMS Matchless continued to engage the enemy for about half an hour. Though fire from both sides was accurate no hits were obtained on either side. At 0745B/15 the Italians turned to port on which A/Capt. Hardy turned north and ordered all destroyers to join him.

Meanwhile, the convoy, 15 nautical miles away to the north-west, steering westwards, now turned to the south-east again. At 0705B/15, now deprived of the support ofHMS Cairo, all destroyers and escort destroyers, and without air support, the convoy was attacked by eight German JU 87 dive bombers. They sank theChant and disabled theKentucky.HMS Hebe took theKentucky in tow. The convoy then went on until 0745B/15 when course was changed to rejoin the escorts. The Italians however meanwhile where following the British escorts and kept them under fire.

At 0834B/15, A/Capt. Hardy, ordered the convoy to reverse course whileCairo and the destroyers laid a smokescreen across it’s track. This seems to have baffled the Italians which first turned to the south-west and then at 0840B/15 hauled round to the north-eastward and stood away. A/Capt. Hardy then sent the ‘Hunt’-class escort destroyers to rejoin the convoy and then led the ‘Fleet’ destroyers after the enemy. At this timeHMS Cairo was hit for the second time. For the present however the Italians had given up the game. By 0930B/15 they were out of sight and the British ships then turned to rejoin the convoy.

At 1030B/15 the merchant vessel were back on their proper course to Malta, with the escort at full strength except forHMS Bedouin andHMS Partridge. Long-range Spitfires from Malta were patrolling overhead.

At 1040B/15 a few German bombers appeared but these were driven off before they could drop their bombs. The fighters were able to shot one down. Unfortunately this exhausted fuel and ammunition of the Spitfires which were operating at their extreme range so when at 1120B/15 another attack started they were not able to repel it. Their relief had not yet arrived.

It was a combination of high-level and dive bombing by Ju. 88’s and Ju. 87’s. Gunfire destroyed one of the German’s. One or two were shot down afterwards by the relieving Spitfires which had arrived during the attack. By then however the merchant vesselBurdwan was disabled. There was still 150 nautical miles to go, with the likelihood of further attacks from the air and with Italian ships nearby. A/Capt. Hardy therefore decided that he had no other choice then to sacrifice the damagedKentucky andBurdwan as the best way to save the rest of the convoy whose speed would otherwise be reduced to six knots. He orderedHMS Hebe andHMS Badsworth to sink the cripples which enabled the remaining two merchant ships to continue at their best speed.

At 1315B/15, dive-bombers attacked yet again. And again there was no fighter cover present over the convoy. This time however the German’s were unsuccessful. One bomber out of twelve was shot down by the ships AA fire while the relief flight of Spitfires came in time to shoot down two more as the enemy retired. This was the last time the convoy was attacked from the air before it arrived at Malta under the protection from short-range Spitfires. The next threat of attack came from the Italian warships which closed the convoy once more.

After the engagement in the morning the Italian cruisers had gone back to join up with their destroyers, one of wich had been badly damaged byHMS Marne andHMS Matchless. While preparing to take this destroyer in tow the Italians were disrupted by British aircraft. Malta had been able to sent a small torpedo aircraft force to attack them. Four Albacores followed by two Beauforts attacked them about 12 nautical miles south of Pantelleria at 1030B/15. Unfortunately without success.

The two cruisers with two destroyers then went south again hoping to find stagglers from the convoy. They foundHMS Hebe, which was on her way back to rejoin the convoy, having left the tankerKentucky in a sinking condition astern.HMS Hebe sighted the enemy a long way to the north at 1255B/15. In the next half an hour the enemy was able to close as to open fire on the small minesweeper and eventually she was hit.

On receivingHebe’s enemy report, A/Capt. Hardy, left the convoy inHMS Cairo taking the three remaining ‘Fleet’ destroyers with him;HMS Ithuriel,HMS Marne andHMS Matchless. Besides theHebe to protect there were other ships coming back from the scuttled merchantmen and alsoHMS Bedouin andHMS Partridge which, A/Capt. Hardy believed to be following the convoy.

At 1355B/15 the Italians gave up the chase, presumably on sightingHMS Cairo and turned to engage a target to the westward. This could only beHMS Bedouin andHMS Partridge but A/Capt. Hardy felt bound to return to the convoy, then nearly 15 nautical miles off, though it meant leaving the damaged destroyers to their fate.

These two ships had been had been striving to preserve themselves for the King’s service ever since they had been crippled in the morning.HMS Partridge was ready to steam again by 0745B/15, three-quarters of an hour after being put out of action. She prepared to takeHMS Bedouin in tow as that ship was entirely disabled. These preparations were disrupted by two Italian destroyers which had to be driven away. By 1000B/15 howeverBedouin was being towed byPartridge and the two ships were proceeding slowly towards the convoy which they had orders to join. They met it at 1145B/15. There was still hope to get one engine going inHMS Bedouin but later on it became evident that this hope had to be abandoned. It was then thought best to try to make it to Gibraltar.

At 1320B/15, the Italian Squadron came into sight again and two destroyers were apparently closing the two British destroyers while there were also enemy dive-bombers flying around.HMS Partridge therefore had no choice then to slip the tow and to lay smoke aroundHMS Bedouin. As the enemy cruisers approached, after their chase ofHMS Hebe,HMS Partridge stood away to draw their fire and in this she succeeded. She was straddled from long range at 1400B/15. It was the intention the return toHMS Bedouin later but the latter ship was torpedoed by an Italian torpedo bomber at 1425B/15 and she sank within a few minutes but not before shooting down the attacker. The enemy surface ships also sank the derelictKentucky andBurdwan around the same time.Kentucky was finished off by theOriani whileBurdwan was possibly sunk by theAscari.

A/Capt. Hardy rejoined the convoy at 1530B/15 after the last encounter with the Italian squadron. At 1730B/15,HMS Welshman rejoined the convoy south of Linosa coming from Malta. She had arrived there in the morning and was sent out again by Vice-Admiral Leatham as soon as she had landed her cargo.

Then at 1910B/15, there was another air attack. Upon that time the enemy had been kept away by the strong fighter escort from Malta directed by the radar inHMS Cairo. Twelve German bombers managed to close and near misses were obtained onHMS Welshman,HMS Matchless and the merchantTroilus.

A last attempt was foiled at 2040B/15 by the fighters from Malta and the ships guns. There was now only one danger to be overcome, enemy mines.

HMS Liverpool

At 1420B/15, three torpedo aircraft made a final unsuccessful attempt to attackHMS Liverpool after which she,HMS Antelope andHMS Westcott were not again molested. That afternoon the tugHMRT Salvonia arrived from Gibraltar and they took over the tow.Antelope then joinedWestcott as A/S screen. WithSalvonia came also the A/S trawlerHMS Lady Hogarth (T/Lt. S.G. Barnes, RNR).

'Force Y'.

At 2345B/15 the Italian submarineBronzo sighted an enemy escort vessel of the 'Kingfisher-class' which opened fire on the submarine in position 36°50'N, 00°10'E. This wasHMS Coltsfoot. The submarine was depth-charged and escaped by going down to 117 metres.

It had been intended that the minesweepers would be ahead of the convoy when approaching Malta but owning to mistakes the convoy arrived first. The result was that one of the two remaining merchant vessels, theOrari, the destroyerHMS Matchless, two escort destroyersHMS Badsworth,ORP Kujawiak and the minesweeperHMS Hebe hit mines. Fortunately damage was light except forORP Kujawiak which unfortunately sank in three minutes.

After having taken on board ammunition at Malta,HMS Cairo,HMS Ithuriel,HMS Marne,HMS Middleton andHMS Blankney departed the island in the evening to return to Gibraltar.

HMS Liverpool

Shortly after 0800B/16, the destroyerHMS Panther (Lt.Cdr. R.W. Jocelyn, RN) joined the A/S screen of the disabledHMS Liverpool. Two more vessels came out from Gibraltar to join the A/S screen, these were the corvetteHMS Jonquil (Lt.Cdr. R.E.H. Partington, RD, RNR) which joined around 0940B/16. At 1530B/16, the motor launchML 458 joined.

AsHMS Cairo and the two destroyers and two escort destroyers were skirting along the African coast they were shadowed from sunrise onward. They were however not attacked until midday, when they were passed the Galita bank. From then until 2030B/17 that evening, German bombers pestered them continuously. The Germans came sometimes in flights of six, though generally in flights of two and three. Main target seems to have beenHMS Ithuriel which had a tough time and sustained some minor damage due to leaks from near misses. During the attacks one enemy bomber was shot down byHMS Cairo.

At 2017B/17, they joined with Vice-Admiral Curteis withHMS Kenya andHMS Charybdis in position 37°30’N, 04°30’E. After leaving the convoy in the evening of the 14th, the Vice-Admiral had taken ‘Force W’ some 400 nautical miles to the west of Sardinia in order to avoid observation and attack while waiting for the return of ‘Force X’. His ships had however been shadowed on the 15th and was then attacked by two small groups of torpedo aircraft. Hurricanes fromHMS Eagle forced them to drop their torpedoes from long range. They were also able to shoot down one of the attackers.

From the morning of the 16th to noon on the 17th, Vice-Admiral Curteis, cruised withHMS Kenya andHMS Charybdis near the rendez-vous position.HMS Malaya both aircraft carriers and the remaining destroyers had been sent to Gibraltar around 0800/16. They arrived at Gibraltar around 1030/17.

Around noon on the 17th, Vice-Admiral Curteis, with his two cruisers proceeded eastwards to meet up with A/Capt. Hardy’s force after which they proceeded in company to Gibraltar where they arrived in the early evening of the 18th.

HMS Liverpool

HMS Liverpool and her escorts safely arrived at Gibraltar late in the afternoon of the 17th. (36)

29 Jun 1942
HMS P 222 (Lt.Cdr. A.J. MacKenzie, RN) conducted exercises off Gibraltar together withHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon DSC, RN) andHMS Jonquil (Lt.Cdr. R.E.H. Partington, RD, RNR). (37)

14 Jul 1942

Operation Pinpoint.

Aircraft to be flown to Malta.

Around 0500B/14, the aircraft carrierHMS Eagle (Capt. L.D. Mackintosh, DSC, RN), AA cruisersHMS Charybdis (Capt. G.A.W. Voelcker, RN),HMS Cairo (A/Capt. C.C. Hardy, DSO, RN) and the destroyersHMS Westcott (Cdr. I.H. Bockett-Pugh, DSO, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN),HMS Vansittart (Lt.Cdr. T. Johnston, RN),HMS Antelope (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Sinclair) andHMS Ithuriel (Lt.Cdr. D.H. Maitland-Makgill-Crichton, DSC, RN) departed Gibraltar and proceeded eastwards.

Between 0613B/15 and 0753B/15, 32 Spitfires were flown off in four flights from approximate position 37°59'N, 03°05'E. One aircraft crashed on flying off, the pilot being saved. The remaining 31 Spitfires landed safely at Malta.

The force was reported by enemy aircraft at 0830B/19 and again at 0845B/19 but no enemy air attacks followed.

The Force returned to Gibraltar in the morning of 16 July 1942. (38)

20 Jul 1942

Operation Insect.

Aircraft to be flown to Malta.

Around 0530B/14, the aircraft carrierHMS Eagle (Capt. L.D. Mackintosh, DSC, RN), AA cruisersHMS Charybdis (Capt. G.A.W. Voelcker, RN),HMS Cairo (A/Capt. C.C. Hardy, DSO, RN) and the destroyersHMS Westcott (Cdr. I.H. Bockett-Pugh, DSO, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN),HMS Vansittart (Lt.Cdr. T. Johnston, RN),HMS Antelope (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Sinclair) andHMS Ithuriel (Lt.Cdr. D.H. Maitland-Makgill-Crichton, DSC, RN) departed Gibraltar and proceeded eastwards.

At 0332B/21, in position 37°48'N, 02°05'E four heavy underwater explosions were heard, one very close toHMS Eagle, and a green flash was seen. It was presumed that these were caused by torpedoes from a submarine attack. This was indeed correct as the Italian submarineDandolo had fired four torpedoes during a surface attack from 2000 yards. On firing the submarine had dived and two explosions were heard within three seconds from each other which were though to be hits but in fact all torpedoes had missed.

29 Spitfires were flown off from position 38°01'N, 03°05'E, between 0726B/21 and 0850B/21. One was unserviceable and did not take off, and the long range petrol tank of another developed a defect after the plane had taken off. The pilot was ordered to bail out, but his parachute failed to open and he was killed. The remaining 28 Spitfires, proceeded in four flights. All landed safely at Malta.

The Force was sighted by enemy aircraft at 0830B/21 and 0900B/21. The former was engaged by gunfire and the latter was damaged by Sea Hurricane flown off fromHMS Eagle. The Force arrived back at Gibraltar on 22 July 1942. (38)

2 Aug 1942

Convoy WS 21S and Operation Pedestal.

Convoy WS 21S and the concentration of the escort forces

Convoy WS 21S departed the Clyde on 2 August 1942. The convoy was made up of the following ships;
American freighters;
Almeria Lykes (7773 GRT, built 1940),Santa Elisa (8379 GRT, built 1941),British freighters;
Brisbane Star (12791 GRT, built 1937),Clan Ferguson (7347 GRT, built 1938),Deucalion (7516 GRT, built 1930),Dorset (10624 GRT, built 1934),Empire Hope (12688 GRT, built 1941),Glenorchy (8982 GRT, built 1939),Melbourne Star (11076 GRT, built 1936),Port Chalmers (8535 GRT, built 1933),Rochester Castle (7795 GRT, built 1937),Waimarama (12843 GRT, built 1938),Wairangi (12436 GRT, built 1935), and the American tanker;
Ohio (9264 GRT, built 1940).

These ships were escorted by light cruisersHMS Nigeria (Capt. S.H. Paton, RN, flying the flag of the Rear-Admiral 10th C.S., H.M. Burrough, CB, DSO, RN),HMS Kenya (Capt. A.S. Russell, RN) and the destroyersHMS Wishart (Cdr. H.G. Scott, RN),HMS Venomous (Cdr. H.W. Falcon-Stewart, RN),HMS Wolverine (Lt.Cdr. P.W. Gretton, OBE, DSC, RN),HMS Malcolm (A/Cdr. A.B. Russell, RN),HMS Amazon (Lt.Cdr.(Emgy) Lord Teynham, RN),HMS Derwent (Cdr. R.H. Wright, DSC, RN) andHMS Zetland (Lt. J.V. Wilkinson, RN).

A cover force made up of departed Scapa Flow on the same day. This force was made up of the battleshipsHMS Nelson (Capt. H.B. Jacomb, RN, flying the flag of Vice-Admiral E.N. Syfret, CB, RN) andHMS Rodney (Capt. J.W. Rivett-Carnac, DSC, RN). They were escorted by the destroyersHMS Ashanti (Cdr. R.G. Onslow, DSO, RN),HMS Eskimo (Cdr. E.G. Le Geyt, RN),HMS Somali (Cdr. E.N.V. Currey, DSC, RN),HMS Tartar (Cdr. St.J.R.J. Tyrwhitt, DSC, RN),HMS Pathfinder (Cdr. E.A. Gibbs, DSO and Bar, RN),HMS Penn (Lt.Cdr. J.H. Swain, RN) andHMS Quentin (Lt.Cdr. A.H.P. Noble, DSC, RN). They were to rendez-vous with convoy WS 21S at sea on 3 August.HMS Penn was delayed by a defect and after topping off with fuel at Moville, Northern Ireland overtook the force and joined at sea.

The aircraft carrierHMS Victorious (Capt. H.C. Bovell, CBE, RN, flying the flag of Rear Admiral A.L.St.G. Lyster, CB, CVO, DSO, RN) and the light cruiserHMS Sirius (Capt. P.W.B. Brooking, RN) meanwhile had already left Scapa Flow on 31 July 1941 to rendez-vous with the convoy. They were escorted by the destroyersHMS Intrepid (Cdr. C.A.deW. Kitcat, RN),HMS Icarus (Lt.Cdr. C.D. Maud, DSC and Bar, RN),HMS Fury (Lt.Cdr. C.H. Campbell, DSC and Bar, RN) andHMS Foresight (Lt.Cdr. R.A. Fell, RN). These ships were joined at sea on 1 August 1942 by the aircraft carrierHMS Argus (Capt. G.T. Philip, RN), loaded with spare fighter aircraft for the operation, and her two escorts the destroyersHMS Buxton (Lt.Cdr. I.J. Tyson, RD, RNR) andHMS Sardonyx (Lt.Cdr. A.F.C. Gray, RNR).HMS Argus and her two escorting destroyers had departed the Clyde on 31 July.HMS Buxton later split off and proceeded towards Canada andHMS Sardonyx proceeded to Londonderry.

The last ships to take part in the operation to depart the U.K. (Clyde around midnight during the night of 4/5 August) were the aircraft carrierHMS Furious (Capt. T.O. Bulteel, RN), loaded with Hurricane fighters for Malta, and her escorts, the light cruiserHMS Manchester (Capt. H. Drew, DSC, RN) and the Polish destroyerORP Blyscawica (Kpt.mar. (Lt.Cdr.) L. Lichodziejewski). They were joined at sea, around dawn, byHMS Sardonyx coming from Londonderry. The destroyers parted company around midnight during the night of 5/6 August. They arrived at Londonderry on 7 August.HMS Furious andHMS Manchester then joined convoy WS 21S around midnight of the next night butHMS Manchester parted company shortly afterwards to proceed ahead of the convoy and fuel at Gibraltar.

On 1 August 1942 the aircraft carrierHMS Indomitable (Capt. T.H. Troubridge, RN), light cruiserHMS Phoebe (Capt. C.P. Frend, RN) and the destroyersHMS Laforey (Capt. R.M.J. Hutton, RN),HMS Lightning (Cdr. H.G. Walters, DSC, RN) andHMS Lookout (Lt.Cdr. A.G. Forman, DSC, RN) departed Freetown to proceed to a rendez-vous position off the Azores.

On 5 August 1942, the aircraft carrierHMS Eagle (Capt. L.D. Mackintosh, DSC, RN), light cruiserHMS Charybdis (Capt. G.A.W. Voelcker, RN) and the the destroyersHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN),HMS Westcott (Cdr. I.H. Bockett-Pugh, DSO, RN) andHMS Vansittart (Lt.Cdr. T. Johnston, RN) departed Gibraltar also to the rendezvous position off the Azores.

The convoy conducted maneuvering and AA exercises with the escorts between the Azores and Gibraltar during the period of 6 to 9 August. (Operation Berserk). Also dummy air attacks were carried out by aircraft from the carriers.

Passage of the Straits of Gibraltar and organization of escort forces.

The convoy then passed the Straits of Gibraltar during the night of 9/10 August 1942 in dense fog but despite this the convoy was detected by German and Italian spies and reported.

After passing the Straits of Gibraltar the convoy was organized as follows;
The actual convoy was protected a large force of warships until the whole force would split up before entering the Sicilian narrows after which ‘Force X’ under command of Rear-Admiral Sir H.M. Burrough, CB, DSO, RN was to accompany the convoy to the approaches to Malta where they would be met by the Malta Minesweeping Flotilla, which was then to sweep the convoy into the harbour. Force X was made up of the following ships:
Licht cruisers:HMS Nigeria (flagship),HMS Kenya,,HMS Manchester.
AA cruiser:HMS Cairo (A/Capt. C.C. Hardy, DSO, RN).
Destroyers:HMS Ashanti,HMS Fury,HMS Foresight,HMS Icarus,HMS Intrepid,HMS Pathfinder andHMS Penn.
Escort destroyers:HMS Derwent,HMS Bicester (Lt.Cdr. S.W.F. Bennetts, RN),HMS Bramham (Lt. E.F. Baines, RN),HMS Ledbury (Lt.Cdr. R.P. Hill, RN) andHMS Wilton (Lt. A.P. Northey, RN).Also the rescue tugHMRT Jaunty was to be part of this force.

After the escort was to be split up cover was provided by ‘Force Z’ under Vice-Admiral E.N. Syfret, CB, RN. This force was made up of the following ships:
Battleships:HMS Nelson (flagship) andHMS Rodney.
Aircraft carriers:HMS Victorious,HMS Indomitable andHMS Eagle.
Light cruisers:HMS Phoebe,HMS Sirius andHMS Charybdis.
Destroyers:HMS Laforey,HMS Lightning,HMS Lookout,HMS Eskimo,HMS Somali,HMS Tartar,HMS Quentin,HMS Ithuriel (Lt.Cdr. D.H. Maitland-Makgill-Crichton, DSC, RN),HMS Antelope (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Sinclair),HMS Wishart andHMS Vansittart.Escort destroyer:HMS Zetland.Also attached were the aircraft carrierHMS Furious (for Operation Bellows, the launching of Hurricane fighters for Malta. HMS Furious only carried four Albacore aircraft for A/S searches after the Hurricanes had been launched) and the ‘spare’ destroyersHMS Keppel (Cdr. J.E. Broome, RN),HMS Malcolm,HMS Venomous,HMS Vidette (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Walmsley, DSC, RN), HMS Westcott,HMS Wolverine,HMS Wrestler andHMS Amazon. These ‘spare’ destroyers were to take the place of destroyers in the screen ‘Force Z’ if needed, escortHMS Furious during her return passage to Gibraltar after she had completed Operation Bellows and / or strengthen the escort of ‘Force R’.

Then there was also ‘Force R’, the fuelling force. This force was made up of the following ships:
Corvettes:HMS Jonquil (Lt.Cdr. R.E.H. Partington, RD, RNR),HMS Spiraea (Lt.Cdr. R.S. Miller, DSC, RNR),HMS Geranium (T/Lt. A. Foxall, RNR) andHMS Coltsfoot (T/Lt. the Hon. W.K. Rous, RNVR).
Rescue tug:HMS Salvonia.
RFA tankers:RFA Brown Ranger (3417 GRT, built 1941, Master D.B.C. Ralph) andRFA Dingledale (8145 GRT, built 1941, Master R.T. Duthie).

Before we give an account of the passage of the main convoy we will now first describe the operations taking place in the Eastern Mediterranean (Operations MG 3 and MG 4), the launching of the Hurricane fighters for Malta byHMS Furious (Operation Bellows) and the return convoy from Malta (Operation Ascendant) as well as on submarine operations / dispositions.

Diversion in the Eastern Mediterranean.

As part of the plan for Operation Pedestal the Mediterranean Fleet had to carry out a diversion in the Eastern part of the Mediterranean. Before we go to the operations in the Western Mediterranean we will first give an account of the events in the Eastern Mediterranean.

It was at this time not possible to sent any supplies from Egypt to Malta as all supplies and forces were much needed for the upcoming land battle at El Alamein it was agreed that ‘a dummy convoy’ would be sent towards Malta with the object of preventing the enemy to direct the full weight of their air and naval power towards the Western Mediterranean.

In the evening of 10 August 1942 a ‘convoy’ (MG 3) of three merchant ships departed Port Said escorted by three cruisers and ten destroyers. Next morning one more merchant ship departed Haifa escorted by two cruisers and five destroyers. The two forces joined that day (the 11th) and then turned back dispersing during the night. The Italian fleet however did not go to sea to attack ‘the bait’.

The forces taking part in this operation were:
From Port Said:
Merchant vesselsCity of Edinburgh (8036 GRT, built 1938),City of Lincoln (8039 GRT, built 1938) andCity of Pretoria (8049 GRT, built 1937) escorted by the light cruisersHMS Arethusa (Capt. A.C. Chapman, RN, flying the flag of Rear-Admiral I.G. Glennie, RN),HMS Euryalus (Capt. E.W. Bush, DSO, DSC, RN), the AA cruiserHMS Coventry (Capt. R.J.R. Dendy, RN) and the destroyersHMS Jervis (Capt. A.L. Poland, DSO and Bar, DSC, RN),HMS Kelvin (Cdr. M.S. Townsend, OBE, DSC and Bar, RN),HMS Pakenham (Capt. E.B.K. Stevens, DSO, DSC, RN),HMS Paladin (Cdr. A.F. Pugsley, RN) and the escort destroyersHMS Dulverton (Lt.Cdr. W.N. Petch, OBE, RN),HMS Hurworth (Lt.Cdr. J.T.B. Birch, RN),HMS Eridge (Lt.Cdr. W.F.N. Gregory-Smith, DSC, RN),HMS Hursley (Lt. W.J.P. Church, DSC, RN),HMS Beaufort (Lt.Cdr. S.O’G Roche, RN) andHMS Belvoir (Lt. J.F.D. Bush, DSC and Bar, RN).

From Haifa:
Merchant vesselAjax (7797 GRT, built 1931) escorted by the light cruisersHMS Cleopatra (Capt. G. Grantham, DSO, RN, flagship of Rear-Admiral P.L. Vian, KBE, DSO and 2 Bars, RN),HMS Dido (Capt. H.W.U. McCall, RN), the destroyersHMS Sikh (Capt. St.J. A. Micklethwait, DSO and Bar, RN),HMS Zulu (Cdr. R.T. White, DSO and Bar, RN),HMS Javelin (Cdr. G.E. Fardell, RN) and the escort destroyersHMS Tetcott (Lt. H.R. Rycroft, RN) andHMS Croome (Lt.Cdr. R.C. Egan, RN).

After dark on 11 August 1942 the force turned back and theCity of Pretoria returned to Port Said escorted byHMS Eridge andHMS Hursley. TheCity of Edinburgh, escorted byHMS Beaufort andHMS Belvoir proceeded to Haifa. TheCity of Lincoln escorted byHMS Dulverton andHMS Hurworth proceeded to Beirut and finally theAjax, escorted byHMS Tetcott andHMS Croome returned to Haifa.HMS Dido had to return to Port Said with hull defects. She was escorted byHMS Pakenham,HMS Paladin andHMS Jervis.

HMS Cleopatra,HMS Arethusa,HMS Sikh,HMS Zulu,HMS Javelin andHMS Kelvin then proceeded to carry out another diversion (Operation MG 4). They bombarded Rhodes harbour and the Alliotti Flour Mills during the night of 12/13 August but did little damage. On the way backHMS Javelin attacked a submarine contact in position 34°45’N, 31°04’E between 0654 and 0804 hours. She reported that there was no doubt that the submarine was sunk but no Axis submarines were operating in this area so the attack must have been bogus. This force returned to Haifa at 1900B/13.

Operation Bellows.

During operation Bellows, the aircraft carrierHMS Furious, started 37 Spitfire which were to proceed to Malta, when south of the Balearic Islands. The Admiralty had decided to carry out this operation at the same time as Operation Pedestal.

HMS Furious remained with the convoy until 1200B/11. She then launched the Spitfires for Malta in 5 batches between 1230 and 1515 hours. During these flying off operations she acted independently with the destroyersHMS Lookout andHMS Lightning. After having launched the last batch of Spitfires she briefly re-joined to convoy until around 1700 hours when she split off and set course for Gibraltar escorted by the destroyersHMS Malcolm,HMS Wolverine andHMS Wrestler. These were joined shortly afterwards byHMS Keppel andHMS Venomous.

Around 0100B/12,HMS Wolverine, rammed and sank the Italian submarineDagabur which was trying to attackHMS Furious. Around 0200 hours,HMS Wolverine reported that she was stopped due to the damage she had sustained in the ramming.HMS Malcolm was detached to assist her.

At 1530B/12, the destroyerHMS Vidette joined the screen. The force then entered Gibraltar Bay around 1930B/12. The damagedHMS Wolverine arrived at Gibraltar at 1230B/13 followed byHMS Malcolm around 1530B/13.

Operation Ascendant

On 10 August 1942 the empty transportsTroilus (7648 GRT, built 1921) andOrari (10107 GRT, built 1931) departed Malta after dark for Gibraltar. They were escorted by the destroyerHMS Matchless (Lt.Cdr. J. Mowlam, RN) and the escort destroyerHMS Badsworth (Lt. G.T.S. Gray, DSC, RN). They first proceeded to the south of Lampedusa, then hugged the Tunisian coast as far as Galita Island. Near Cape Bon they encountered the Italian destroyer Lanzerotto Malocello that was laying a minefield. They had a brief gunfight but this was soon ended as both sides were thinking the enemy was Vichy-French. The remained of the passage to Gibraltar was uneventful and the convoy arrived at Gibraltar shortly before noon on 14 August 1942.

Submarine operations / dispositions.
Eight submarines took part in the operation; these wereHMS Utmost (Lt. A.W. Langridge, RN),HMS P 31 (Lt. J.B.de B. Kershaw, DSO, RN),HMS P 34 (Lt. P.R.H. Harrison, DSC, RN),HMS P 42 (Lt. A.C.G. Mars, RN),HMS P 44 (Lt. T.E. Barlow, RN),HMS P 46 (Lt. J.S. Stevens, DSC, RN),HMS P 211 (Cdr. B. Bryant, DSC, RN),HMS P 222 (Lt.Cdr. A.J. MacKenzie, RN). Two of these were to carry out normal dived patrol to the north of Sicily, one off Palermo, the other off Milazzo which is futher to the east. The other six submarines were given alternative patrol lines south of Pantelleria, one od which they were to take up at dawn on 13 August 1942, according to the movements of enemy surface ships that might threathen the convoy from the westward. When the convoy had passed the patrol line, which it should have done by that time, the submarines were to proceed on the surface parallel to the convoy as a screen and to dive away clear of the convoy at noon. It was expressly intended that they should be seen on the surface and reported by enemy aircraft in order to deter enemy warships from attacking the convoy.

Enemy warships did go to sea but as soon as it was clear that the enemy ships could not reach the convoy the sunmarines were ordered to dive and retire. These six sumarines had no contact with the enemy. One of the the two submarines off the north coast of Sicily,HMS P 42, managed to torpedo two Italian cruisers near Stromboli on the morning of 13 August 1942.

Now we return to the main convoy to Malta.

Passage eastwards after passing the Straits of Gibraltar.

10 and 11 August 1942.

After passing through the Straits of Gibraltar in the early hours of 10 August 1942, in dense fog, the convoy was first sighted by an Italian passenger aircraft, which sighted the convoy in the afternoon of the same day. German reconnaissance aircraft started shadowing the convoy from dawn on the 11th, and thereafter they or Italian aircraft kept the convoy under continuous observation, despite the effort of the fighters from the carriers to shoot them down or drive them off. At 1315 hours,HMS Eagle, was hit an sunk by torpedoes from the German submarineU-73 which had penetrated the destroyer screen. At that moment there were thirteen destroyers in the screen, the remainder was away from the main convoy, escortingHMS Furious during the flying off operations of the Hurricane fighters for Malta or oiling from and screening ‘Force R’ which was several miles away. Between 1430B/10 and and 2030B/11 no less then three cruisers and twenty-four destroyers fuelled from the two oilers of ‘Force R’.

At the time of the torpedoing ofHMS Eagle the convoy was in four columns, zigzagging at 13 knots, with the heavy ships stationed close round it and a destroyer screen ahead.HMS Eagle was on the starboard quarter of the convoy. She was hit on her starboard side by four torpedoes which had dived through the destroyer screen and the convoy columns undetected and then torpedoed and sank theEagle in position 38°05’N, 03°02’E (Another source gives 03°12’E but this might be a typo). The carrier sank quickly in about 8 minutes, 926 of her crew, including the Commanding Officer, were rescued by the destroyersHMS Laforey andHMS Lookout and the rescue tugHMS Jaunty. At the time of her sinking,HMS Eagle had four aircraft on patrol. These landed on the other carriers. All other aircraft were lost with the ship. The survivors picked up were later transferred to the destroyersHMS Keppel,HMS Malcolm andHMS Venomous that were to escortHMS Furious back to Gibraltar. The tugHMS Jaunty that had been involved in picking up survivors was never able to rejoin the convoy due to her slow speed.

Late in the afternoon air attacks were expected so Vice-Admiral Syfret ordered the destroyer to form an all-round screen. Indeed the air attacks started around sunset, 2045 hours. The last destroyers had just returned from oiling from ‘Force R’. The enemy aircraft that were attacking were 36 German bombers and torpedo aircraft, Ju 88’s and He 111’s, most of which attacked the convoy but a few attacked ‘Force R’ to the southward. The Junkers arrived first, diving down from 8000 feet to 2000 / 3000 feet to drop their bombs. They claimed to have hit an aircraft carrier and one of the merchant ships. Then the Heinkels attacked, they claimed to have torpedoed a cruiser but during the attacks no ship was hit. The British fighter cover was unable to attack / find the enemy in the failing light. Four enemy aircraft were claimed shot down by the ships AA fire but it appears only two JU 88’s were in fact shot down.

12 August 1942

At 0915B/12 another wave of German aircraft attacked the convoy. Some twenty or more JU 88’s approached the convoy out of the sun ahead. They were intercepted by fighters about 25 miles from the convoy. About a dozen got through to the convoy, making high-level or shallow dive-bombing attacks individually but without any result. Eight German aircraft were claimed to be shot down by the fighters and two more by AA guns from the ships. The fighters meanwhile were also busy dealng with shadowers, three of which are claimed to have been shot down before the morning attack. Around this time destroyers were also busy with numerous submarine contact which were attacked by depth charges.

Around noon the enemy launched heavy air attacks from the Sardinian airfields. Seventy aircraft approached which were heavily escorted by fighters. They attacked in stages and employed new methods.

First ten Italian torpedo-bombers were each to drop some sort of circling torpedo or mine a few hundred yards ahead of the British force, while eight fighter bombers made dive-bombing and machine-gun attacks. The object at this stage was clearly to dislocate the formation of the force and to draw anti-aircraft fire, making the ships more vulnerable to a torpedo attack which soon followed with over forty aircraft. They attacked in two groups, one on either bow of the convoy. The next stage was a shallow dive-bombing attack by German aircraft, after which two Italian Reggiane 2001 fighters, each with a single heavy armour-piercing bomb were to dive bomb on one of the aircraft carriers, whilst yet another new form of attack was to be employed against the other carrier, but defects in the weapon prevented this attack from taking place.

The enemy attack went according to plan besides that the torpedo attack was only made half an our after the ‘mines’ were dropped instead of five minutes. British fighters met the minelaying aircraft, they shot down one of them as they approached. The remaining nine aircraft dropped their ‘mines’ at 1215 hours in the path of the force, which turned to avoid the danger. The mines were heard to explode several minutes later. Only three of the fighter-bombers of this stage of the attack appear to have reached as far the screen, butHMS Lightning had a narrow escape from their bombs.

The torpedo-aircraft appeared at 1245 hours. Their number were brought down a bit due to British fighters. The remaining aircraft, estimated at 25 to 30 machines, attacked from the port bow, port beam and starboard quarter. They dropped their torpedoes well outside the screen some 8000 yards from the merchant ships which they had been ordered to attack. The force turned 45° to port and then back to starboard to avoid the attack.

In the next stage, around 1318 hours, the German bombing attack, the enemy scored their one success. These aircraft were also intercepted on their way in but about a dozen of about twenty aircraft came through. They crossed the convoy from starboard to port and then dived to 3000 feet. They managed to damage the transportDeucalion which was leading the port wing column. More bombs fell close to several other ships.

Finally, at 1345 hours, the two Reggiane fighters approachedHMS Victorious as if to land on. They looked like Hurricanes andHMS Victorious was at that time engaged in landing her own fighters. They managed to drop their bombs and one hit the flight deck amidships. Fortunately the bomb broke up without exploding. By the timeHMS Victorious could open fire both fighters were out of range.

TheDeucalion could no longer keep up with the convoy and was ordered to follow the inshore route along the Tunisian coast escorted byHMS Bramham. Two bombers found these ships late in the afternoon, but their bombs missed. At 1940 hours, however, near the Cani Rocks, two torpedo aircraft attacked and a torpedo hit theDeucalion. She caught fire and eventually blew up.

The convoy passed some 20 miles north of Galita Island and spent the afternoon avoiding enemy submarines which were known to be concentrated in these waters. There were innumerable reports of sightings and Asdic contacts and at least two submarines proved dangerous. At 1616 hours,HMS Pathfinder andHMS Zetland attacked one on the port bow of the convoy and hunted her until the convoy was out of reach.HMS Ithuriel, stationed on the quarter, then attacked, forced the enemy to surface and finally rammed her. She proved to be the Italian submarineCobalto. MeanwhileHMS Tartar, on the starboard quarter, saw six torpedoes fired at close range at 1640 hours, and the next destroyer in the screen,HMS Lookout sighted a periscope. Together they attacked the submarine, continuing until it was no longer dangerous. There was no evidence this submarine was sunk.

At 1750 hours,HMS Ithuriel, which was on her way back to the convoy after sinking the Italian submarineCobalto was attacked by a few dive-bombers, when still a dozen miles astern of the convoy. At this time the convoy came under attack by aircraft stationed on Sicily. This force numbered nearly 100 aircraft. Ju.87 dive-bombers as well as Ju.88’s and SM-79’s all with a strong escort of fighters. The enemy started attacking at 1835 hours, the bombers attacking from both ahead and astern which last was the direction of the sun. The torpedo aircraft came from ahead to attack on the starboard bow and beam of the convoy.

The Italian SM-79’s torpedo bombers dropped their torpedoes from ranges of about 3000 yards outside the destroyer screen, and once again the convoy turned away to avoid them. However the destroyerHMS Foresight was hit by a torpedo and disabled. The bombers choseHMS Indomitable as their main target. She was astern ofHMS Rodney at the time on the port quarter of the convoy. Four Ju.88’s and eight Ju.87’s came suddenly out of the sun and dived steeply towardsHMS Indomitable from astern. Some of the Ju.87 came down to 1000 feet and the carrier received three hits and her flight deck was put out of action. Her airborne fighters eventually had to land onHMS Victorious.HMS Rodney meanwhile had a narrow escape when a bomber attacked from ahead. One enemy aircraft was claimed to have been shot down by AA fire from the ships while the fighters claimed nine more although there were about twice as much enemy fighters in the air then British.

HMS Tartar took the damagedHMS Foresight in tow and proceeded westward for Gibraltar. Next day, as they were shadowed by enemy aircraft, and enemy submarines were known to be in the area, it was decided to scuttle the cripple before both ships might be lost.HMS Tartar then torpedoedHMS Foresight a few miles from Galita Island.

Passage through the narrows, 12-13 August 1942, and the loss offHMS Manchester.

These last air attacks took place about 20 nautical miles west of the Skerki Channel and at 1900 hours, when the attacks were clearly over, Vice-Admiral Syfret turned away with ‘Force Z’. It was now up to Rear-Admiral Burrough with ‘Force X’ to take the convoy to Malta.

At 2000 hours, when the convoy was changing it’s formation from four to two columns, the convoy was attacked by Italian submarines. The submarineDessiè attacked a freighter with four torpedoes and claimed three hits. The sound of the torpedo hits was however not caused by her attack but by an attack by theAxum which hit three ships,HMS Nigeria,HMS Cairo and the tankerOhio.

HMS Nigeria had to turn back to make for Gibraltar escorted by the escort destroyersHMS Derwent,HMS Wilton andHMS Bicester. Rear-Admiral Burrough transferred his flag to the destroyerHMS Ashanti. The stern ofHMS Cairo had been blown off and she had to be sunk as she was beyond salvage with both engines also out of action. She was scuttled byHMS Pathfinder. TheOhio meanwhile managed to struggle on.

At this time the convoy was still trying to form up the the submarine attacks messed things up and right at thus time the convoy was once more attacked from the air in the growing dusk at 2030 hours. About 20 German aircraft, Ju-88’s made dive bombing and torpedo attacks, hitting theEmpire Hope with a bomb and theClan Ferguson andBrisbane Star with torpedoes. The first of these ships had to be sunk (byHMS Bramham, the second blew up but the last eventually reached Malta. Soon after this attack, at 2111 hours,HMS Kenya was torpedoed by the Italian submarineAlagi. She was able to evade three of the four torpedoes but was hit in the bow by the fouth. She was however able to remain with the convoy.

The situation was then as follows.HMS Kenya andHMS Manchester with two merchant ships, and with the minesweeping destroyersHMS Intrepid,HMS Icarus andHMS Fury sweeping ahead, had passed the Skerki Channel and were steering to pass Zembra Island on the way to Cape Bon.HMS Ashanti, with Rear-Admiral Burrough on board was fast overhauling these ships. The other two destroyersHMS Pathfinder,HMS Penn and the escort destroyerHMS Ledbury, were rounding up the remaining nine merchant ships. The escort destroyerHMS Bramham was also catching up after having escorted the single Deucalion until she sank.

On learing about the fate ofHMS Nigeria andHMS Cairo, Vice-Admiral Syfret detachedHMS Charybdis,HMS Eskimo andHMS Somali to reinforce Rear-Admiral Burrough. It would take these ships several hourse to catch up with the convoy.

The main body of the convoy passed Cape Bon around midnight. Fourty minutes later enemy Motor Torpedo Boats appeared and started to attack. Their first victim wasHMS Manchester which was torpedoed at 0120B/13 by the ItalianMS 16 orMS 22. She had to be scuttled by her own crew. Many of her ships company landed in Tunisia and were interned by the Vichy-French but about 300 were picked up by destroyers (first byHMS Pathfinder, and later byHMS Eskimo andHMS Somali. These last two destoyers then set off towards Gibraltar.)

Four and possibly five of the merchant ships were also hit by the Motor Torpedo Boats. These were theWairangi,Rochester Castle,Almeria Lykes,Santa Elisa and probably theGlenorchy. They were attacked between 0315 and 0430 hours about 15 nautical miles south-east of Kelibia whilst taking a short cut to overhaul the main body of the convoy. Four were lost, only theRochester Castle survived and she managed to catch up with the main body of the convoy at 0530 hours. TheGlenorchy was sunk by the ItalianMS 31, the other four, of which theRochester Castle survived as mentioned earlier, were hit by the GermanS 30 andS 36 as well as the ItalianMAS 554 andMAS 557.

Shortly before 0530 hoursHMS Charybdis,HMS Eskimo andHMS Somali had joined the main body of the convoy making the force now two cruisers and seven destroyers with the transportsRochester Castle,Waimarama andMelbourne Star. The damaged tankerOhio was slowly catching up. With her was the escort destroyerHMS Ledbury. Astern of the main body was thePort Chalmers escorted by the destroyerHMS Penn and the escort destroyerHMS Bramham. The destroyers recued the crew of theSanta Elisa when the passed by the abandoned ship which was afterwards finished off by a German bomber. TheDorset was proceeding without escort and lastly the damagedBrisbane Star was still keeping close to the Tunisian coast independently, intending to steer towards Malta after nightfall.

At 0730 hours, Rear-Admiral Burrough, sent backHMS Tartar andHMS Somali to Kelibia to assistHMS Manchester and then go to Gibraltar. When they arrived they found out that theManchester had been scuttled several hours earlier so they rescued those of her crew that had not reached the shore yet and then made off to Gibraltar as ordered. Besides crew of theManchester they also picked up survivors from theAlmeria Lykes andWairangi.

The next encounter with the enemy was an air attack on the main body of the convoy at 0800 hours by German bombers. About 12 Ju.88’s made a shallow diving attack coming down from 6000 feet to 2000 feet to drop their bombs. Two dived on theWaimarama hitting her several times and she blew up immediately, one of the bombers was even destroyed in the explosion.HMS Ledbury saved some of her crew out of the blazing sea. At 0925 hours, when theOhio,Port Chalmers andDorset where with the main body again, a few Ju.87’s escorted by Italian fighters attacked. They dived down to 1500 to 1000 feet.HMS Kenya leading the port column, and theOhio last ship but one in the starboard column, had narrow escapes. One of the enemy aircraft crashed on board theOhio just after having released it’s bomb after being damaged by gunfire from theOhio andHMS Ashanti. Another aircraft was claimed to have been shot down by fighters from Malta that had been patrolling overhead since daybreak.

Arrivals at Malta 13-15 August 1942.

At 1050 hours, about 20 bombers, mostly Ju.88’s with a few Ju.87’s, came in to attack. Target was theOhio and she received four or five near misses and her engines were disabled.At the same time theRochester Castle in the port column was near-missed and set on fire but she continued with the convoy. TheDorset which was astern of her was hit and stopped. The convoy went on leaving theDorset behind with the Ohio and two destroyers.

At 1125 hours the last air attack on the main body took place. Five Italian SM.79’s attacked with torpedoes and almost hit thePort Chalmers as the torpedo got stuck in the paravane. Further attacks on the main body were held of by fighters from Malta. At 1430 hours, four minesweepers from Malta joined the main body of the convoy, these wereHMS Speedy (Lt.Cdr. A.E. Doran, RN, with the group’s commander A/Cdr. H.J.A.S. Jerome, RN on board),HMS Hebe,HMS Rye andHMS Heyte. Also with them were seven Motor Launches;ML 121,ML 126,ML 134,ML 135,ML 168,ML 459 andML 462.HMS Rye and two of the ML’s were sent towards the damagedOhio which was ‘vital for Malta’, according to A/Cdr. Jerome.

At 1600 hours, Rear-Admiral Burrough, set course to the west with his two cruisers and with five destroyers. ThePort Chalmers,Melbourne Star andRochester Castle arrived in Grand Harbour around 1800 hours with the force of A/Cdr. Jerome. The Rochester Castle was by that time very low in the water, she had just made it into port on time.

Out were still theOhio,Dorset and theBrisbane Star. The valuableOhio had been helpless withHMS Penn andHMS Bramham. WhenHMS Rye arrived at 1730 hours,HMS Penn took theOhio in tow. MeanwhileHMS Bramham was sent to theDorset but soon afterwards German bombers came again and the ships were attacked repeatedly until dark. Both merchantman were hit around 1900 hours and theDorset sank.

At daylight on the 14thHMS Ledbury arrived to help bringing theOhio to Malta.HMS Speedy also soon arrived on the scene with two ML’s. The rest of his force he had sent to search for theBrisbane Star. At 1045 hours, enemy aircraft made their last attempt, causing the parting of the tow. Fighter from Malta shot down two of the attackers. The tow was passed again and the slow procession went on and in the morning of the 15th the vital tanker finally reached Malta.

TheBrisbane Star had by then also arrived. She left the Tunisian coast at dusk on the 13th. Aircraft had attacked her unsuccessfully and one of the attackers was shot down by a Beaufighter escort that had been sent from Malta. She arrived at Malta in the afternoon of the 14th.

Italian surface ships to operate against the convoy ?

The convoy had experienced the violence of the enemy in every shape except that of an attack by large surface ships. Yet Italian cruisers and destroyers had been at sea to intercept and attack it. Two light cruiser had left Cagliari in the evening of 11 August 1942 and the heavy cruisersGorizia andBolzano from Messina, and a light cruiser from Naples had sailed on the morning of the 12th. That evening reconnaissance aircraft reported one heavy and two light cruisers with eight destroyers about 80 nautical miles to the north of the western tip of Sicily and steering south. It would have been possible for this force to meet the convoy at dawn on the 13th so the shadowing aircraft was therefore ordered in plain language to illuminate and attack. This apparently influenced the Italians as they had limited air cover and they turned back at 0130B/13 when near Cape San Vito. At 0140 hours the aircraft reported that it had dropped its bombs but no hits had been obtained. Similar orders were signalled, in plain language, to relief shadowers and to report the position of the enemy force to the benefit of imaginary Liberator bombers in case the Italians would change their minds and turn back. They however held on to the eastward.

The submarineHMS P 42 sighted them around 0800B/13 off Stromboli and attacked with four torpedoes claiming two hits. She had in fact hit the heavy cruiserBolzano which was able to proceed northwards and the light cruiserMuzio Attendolo which managed to reach Messina with her bows blown off. The other cruisers went to Naples. Following the attackP 42 was heavily depth charged by the destroyers but managed to escape.

In fact the following Italian ships had been at sea; heavy cruisersGorizia,Trieste,Bolzano, light cruisersEugenio di SavoiaRaimondo Montecuccoli,Muzio Attendolo. They were escorted by eleven destroyers;Ascari,Aviere,Camicia Nera,Corsaro,Fuceliere,Geniere,Legionaro,Vincenzo Gioberti,Alfredo Oriani,Grecale andMaestrale.

The return to Gibraltar.

The British ships returning to Gibraltar had better fortune. Having left the convoy off Malta in the afternoon of the 13th, they rounded Cape Bon around 0130B/14 and from that point until past Zembra Island they successful ran the gauntled of E-boats laying in wait.

at 0450B/14, near the Fratelli Rocks, a submarine fired torpedoes atHMS Ashanti from the surface. She was nearly rammed byHMS Kenya, which was next astern of the ‘flagship’ (Rear-Admiral Burrough was still inHMS Ashanti). The inevitable shadowers arrived soon after daylight to herald their air attacks that began at 0730 hours. They lasted until around 1315 hours. German bombers came in first with three attemps by a few Ju.88’s. This was followed by a more severe attack with about 30 bombers, Ju-88’s and Ju-87’s between 1030 and 1050 hours. An hour later 15 Savoia high-level bombers attacked followed until 1315 hours by torpedo-carrying Savoia’s. Around 20 aircraft attacking single or in pairs. Also aircraft are though to be laying mines ahead. Several ships were near missed, but no further damage was sustained. After these attacks the British were left alone and in the evening they joined ‘Force Z’.

Vice-Admiral Syfret had gone as far west as 01’E where he ordered the damaged carrierHMS Indomitable to proceed to Malta withHMS Rodney and a destroyer screen made up ofHMS Ithuriel,HMS Antelope,HMS Amazon,HMS Westcott,HMS Wishart andHMS Zetland. He then turned back to the east to make rendez-vous with Rear-Admiral Burrough.HMS Rodney,HMS Indomitable,HMS Ithuriel,HMS Antelope,HMS Amazon,HMS Westcott,HMS Wishart andHMS Zetland arrived at Gibraltar in the evening of the 14th.

A few hours before they arrived the damagedHMS Nigeria and her escort had also entered port, as hadHMS Tartar,HMS Eskimo andHMS Somali. On her way backHMS Nigeria had been attacked by torpedo-bombers and a submarine but she had not been hit.

Conclusion.

Out of the fourteen ships that had sailed only five arrived ‘safe’ at Malta. This was not a very high score also given the very heavy escort that had been provided also taken in mind that an aircraft carrier, a light cruiser, an AA cruiser an a destroyer had been lost and two heavy cruiser had been damaged. But the convoy had to meet very heavy air attacks by over 150 bombers and 80 torpedo aircraft, all in the space of two days. Also these aircraft were protected by fighter in much greater strength that the carriers and Malta could provide. And there were also the enemy submarines and E-boats.

The spirit in which to operation was carried out appears in Vice-Admiral Syfret’s report:‘ Tribute has been paid to the personnel of His Majesty’s Ships, both the officers and men will desire to give first place to the conduct, courage, and determination of the masters, officers, and men of the merchant ships. The steadfast manner in which these ships pressed on their way to Malta through all attacks, answering every maneuvering order like a well trained fleet unit, was a most inspiring sight. Many of these fine men and their ships were lost. But the memory of their conduct will remain an inspiration to all who were privileged to sail with them. ‘ (39)

5 Aug 1942
Around 0300B/5, the aircraft carrierHMS Eagle (Capt. L.D. Mackintosh, DSC, RN), light cruiserHMS Charybdis (Capt. G.A.W. Voelcker, RN) and the the destroyersHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN),HMS Westcott (Cdr. I.H. Bockett-Pugh, DSO, RN) andHMS Vansittart (Lt.Cdr. T. Johnston, RN) departed Gibraltar to the rendezvous position off the Azores with forces coming from the U.K. for operation Pedestal.

[For more info on this operation see the event ' Convoy WS 21S and Operation Pedestal ' for 2 August 1942.] (40)

12 Aug 1942
Around 1830A/12, the aircraft carrierHMS Furious (Capt. T.O. Bulteel, RN) and the destroyersHMS Keppel (Cdr. J.E. Broome, RN),HMS Venomous (Cdr. H.W. Falcon-Stewart, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN) arrived at Gibraltar from operations. They had been joined around 1545A/12 by the destroyerHMS Vidette (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Walmsley, DSC, RN) as additional escort. (41)

5 Oct 1942

Convoy WS 23.

This convoy was formed off Oversay on 5 October 1942.

It consisted of the following transports / troopships;Capetown Castle (British, 27002 GRT, built 1938),Empress of Russia (British, 16810 GRT, built 1913),Highland Monarch (British, 14139 GRT, built 1928),Kina II (British, 9823 GRT, built 1939),Moreton Bay (British, 14193 GRT, built 1921),Port Jackson (British, 9687 GRT, built 1937),Silverandal (British, 6770 GRT, built 1930) andStraat Malakka (Dutch, 439 GRT, built 1939).

Initial escort consisted of the light cruisersHMS Despatch (Capt. W.R.C. Leggatt, RN),HMS Durban (Capt. G.F. Stevens-Guille, DSO and Bar, OBE, RN), armed merchant cruiserHMS Queen of Bermuda (A/Capt.(Retd.) A.D. Cochrane, DSO, RN), destroyersHMS Beagle (Cdr. R.C. Medley, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN) and the escort destroyersHMS Bicester (Lt.Cdr. S.W.F. Bennetts, RN),HMS Puckeridge (Lt. J.C. Cartwright, DSC, RN),HMS Zetland (Lt. J.V. Wilkinson, RN) andRHS Kanaris.

At 2200Z/6,HMS Durban parted company with the convoy to proceed to Ponta Delgada to fuel.

At 1850Z/8,HMS Beagle parted company with the convoy to return to the UK.HMS Zetland had a leaking Asdic dome and was apparently also detached on the 8th to return to the UK for a docking and repairs.

At 1000Z/9,HMS Puckeridge arrived at Ponta Delgada to refuel. She departed to rejoin the convoy at 1345Z/9.RHS Kanaris arrived at 1100Z/9 and departed again at 1430Z/9. [It is currently not known to us when they had left the convoy to proceed to Ponta Delgada.]

At 1545Z/9,HMS Durban rejoined the convoy.HMS Despatch was then detached to fuel at Ponta Delgada.

At 1900Z/9,HMS Puckeridge andRHS Kanaris rejoined the convoy.

At 0100Z/10,HMS Wrestler andHMS Bicester parted company with the convoy to fuel at Ponta Delgada after which they were to return to the UK.

At 0810/Z/13,HMS Antelope (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Sinclair, RN) joined the convoy shorly afterwards followed byHMS Velox (Lt. G.B. Barstow, RN).

On 16 October 1942 the convoy arrived at Freetown escorted byHMS Despatch,HMS Durban,HMS Queen of Bermuda,HMS Antelope,HMS Velox,HMS Puckeridge andRHS Kanaris.

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The convoy departed Freetown for Durban on 20 October 1942.

The same ships made up the convoy plus the merchant vesselsHai Lee (Norwegian, 3616 GRT, built 1934) andTamesis (Norwegian, 7256 GRT, built 1939).

On departure from Freetown the convoy escort was made up of the light cruisersHMS Despatch,HMS Durban, armed merchant cruiserHMS Carthage (A/Capt.(Retd.) W.V.H. Harris, DSC, MVO, RN), escort destroyersHMS Avon Vale (Lt.Cdr. P.A.R. Withers, DSO, RN),RHS Kanaris, sloopHMS Milford (Cdr.(Retd.) the Hon. V.M. Wyndham-Quin, RN) and the corvetteHMS Tamarisk (Lt. S. Ayles, RNR).

At 1020A/23,HMS Avon Vale parted company.HMS Southern Gem (T/Lt. D.C. Hayes, RNVR) had joined just before. She had sailed from Takoradi on the 22nd.

At 1842A/23,HMS Durban parted company with the convoy to proceed to Takoradi to repair a defect. She arrived at Takoradi around 0745/24 and departed again around 0230A/25. She rejoined the convoy around 0945A/27.

Also detached on 23 October were the two Norwegian merchant vessels and the corvetteHMS Tamarisk. These were also to proceed to Takoradi.

The corvetteHMS Amaranthus (T/Lt. W.S. Thomson, RNR) joined on the 25th coming from Ponte Noire. After she joinedHMS Southern Gem was detached to Ponte Noire due to engine trouble.

On the 26th,HMS Amaranthus parted company to join convoy CF 7.

On 30 October the destroyerHMAS Norman (Cdr. H.M. Burrell, RAN) and the corvettesHMS Rockrose (Lt. E.J. Binfield, DSC, RNR) andHMS Thyme (Lt. H. Roach, RNR) joined the convoy. These ships had sailed from Walvis Bay, the corvettes at 0600Z/29 andHMAS Norman at 2000Z/29.HMAS Norman joined the convoy around 1300B/30 and the corvettes around 1530B/30.

At 2100B/30,HMS Durban,HMS Despatch andHMS Milford were detached to fuel at Walvis Bay where they arrived around 0840/30.HMS Durban departed Walvis Bay aroud 1845B/31 and she rejoined the convoy around 1800B/1

On 2 November the transport / troopshipRimutaka (British, 16576 GRT, built 1923) joined the convoy coming from Capetown.

At 1330C/2, the destroyerHMS Express (Lt.Cdr. F.J. Cartwright, RN) and escort destroyerHMS Catterick (Lt. A. Tyson, RN) joined coming from Simonstown.

Around 1545C/2,RHS Kanaris parted company to refuel at Simonstown. She rejoined the convoy around 0100C/3.

At 2215C/2,HMS Rockrose andHMS Thyme were detached to search for survivors from ships that had been torpedoed by German submarines.

At 1950C/4,HMS Express was detached to search for survivors from a ship that had been torpedoed by a German submarines.

At 0530C/5, the escort destroyerHMS Derwent (Cdr. R.H. Wright, DSC, RN) joined.

The convoy arrived at Durban in the early afternoon of 5 November escorted byHMS Durban,HMS Carthage,HMAS Norman,HMS Catterick,HMS Derwent andRHS Kanaris.

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The convoy departed Durban around noon on 9 November 1942, now made up ofCapetown Castle,Empress of Russia,Highland Monarch,Kina II,Port Jackson,Silversandal andStraat Malakka.

On departure from Durban the convoy was escorted by the light cruiserHMS Dauntless (Cdr.(Retd.) N.G. Leeper, RN), armed merchant cruiserHMS Carthage, destroyersHMAS Norman,HMS Inconstant (Lt.Cdr. W.S. Clouston, RN), escort destroyersHMS Blackmore (Lt. H.T. Harrel, RN),RHS Kanaris and the corvettesHMS Genista (Lt.Cdr. R.M. Pattinson, DSC, RNR) andHMS Jasmine (Lt.Cdr.(Retd.) C.D.B. Coventry, RNR).

At 1700C/10,HMS Insconstant,HMS Genista andHMS Jasmine were detached.

At 1500D/11,HMS Dauntless,HMAS Norman,HMS Blackmore andRHS Kanaris were detached.

At 1830D/11, the cruiserHMS Hawkins (Capt. G.A. French, RN) joined.

At 1600E/16,HMS Mauritius (Capt. W.D. Stephens, RN) joined and at 1230E/16,HMS Hawkins parted company with the convoy to proceed to Kilindini taking theEmpress of Russia with her. They arrived at Kilindini around 1700D/18.

At 1800E/17, the convoy was split up into the ' Aden section ' and the ' Bombay section '.

The ' Aden section ' was made up of theHighland Monarch,Kina II,Port Jackson and theStraat Malakka. They were escorted byHMS Carthage and arrived at Aden around 1300C/21. They had earlier been joined by the destroyerRHS Panther around 0615/20.

The ' Bombay section ' was made up of the other transports escorted byHMS Mauritius. They arrived at Bombay around 1000FG/24 except for theSilversandal which had been detached on November 22nd to proceed to Karachi where she also arrived on the 24th. (42)

22 Oct 1942

Convoys KMS 1, KMF 1 for the landings at Algiers and Oran during Operation Torch.

Convoy KMS 1.

This convoy was assembled off Oversay on 23 October 1942.

It was made up of the following transports;Alcinous (Dutch, 6189 GRT, built 1925),Alphard (Dutch, 5483 GRT, built 1937),Ardeola (British, 2609 GRT, built 1912),Benalbanach (British, 7153 GRT, built 1940),Charles H. Cramp (American, 6220 GRT, built 1920),Chattanooga City (American, 5687 GRT, built 1921),City of Worcester (British, 5469 GRT, built 1927),Clan MacTaggart (British, 7622 GRT, built 1920),Delilian (British, 6423 GRT, built 1923),Edward Ruthledge (American, 7177 GRT, built 1942),Empire Confidence (British, 5023 GRT, built 1925),Empire Mordred (British, 7024 GRT, built 1942),Fort McLoughlin (British, 7129 GRT, built 1942),Glenfinlas (British, 7479 GRT, built 1917),Havildar (British, 5401 GRT, built 1940),Hopecrown (British, 5180 GRT, built 1937),Jean Jadot (Belgian, 5859 GRT, built 1929),Lalande (British, 7453 GRT, built 1920),Lochmonar (British, 9412 GRT, built 1924),Lycaon (British, 7350 GRT, built 1913),Macharda (British, 7998 GRT, built 1938),Manchester Port (British, 7071 GRT, built 1935),Mark Twain (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942),Maron (British, 6487 GRT, built 1930),Mary Slessor (British, 5027 GRT, built 1930),Ocean Rider (British, 7178 GRT, built 1942),Ocean Viceroy (British, 7174 GRT, built 1942),Ocean Volga (British, 7174 GRT, built 1942),Ocean Wanderer (British, 7178 GRT, built 1942),Pacific Exporter (British, 6734 GRT, built 1928),Recorder (British, 5981 GRT, built 1930),Salacia (British, 5495 GRT, built 1937),Sobo (British, 5353 GRT, built 1937),St. Essylt (British, 5634 GRT, built 1941),Stanhill (British, 5969 GRT, built 1942),Tadorna (British, 1947 GRT, built 1928),Theseus (British, 6527 GRT, built 1908),Tiba (Dutch, 5239 GRT, built 1938),Urlana (British, 6852 GRT, built 1941),Walt Whitman (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942),William M. Floyd (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942),William Wirt (American, 7191 GRT, built 1942) andZebulon B. Vance (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942).

Also part of the convoy were the landing shipsDerwentdale (8390 GRT, built 1941),Dewdale (8265 GRT, built 1941) andEnnerdale (8280 GRT, built 1941).

On assembly the convoy was escorted by the escort carrierHMS Avenger (Cdr. A.P. Colthurst, RN), AA shipHMS Alynbank (A/Capt.(Retd.) H.F. Nash, RN), destroyerHMS Vansittart (Lt.Cdr. T. Johnston, RN), sloopsHMS Deptford (Lt.Cdr. H.R. White, RN),HMS Stork (Cdr. G.N. Brewer, RN), corvettesHMS Convolvulus (A/Lt.Cdr. R.F.R. Yarde-Buller, RNVR),HMS Gardenia (T/Lt. M.M. Firth, RNVR),HMS Marigold (Lt. J.A.S. Halcrow, RD, RNR),HMS Pentstemon (Lt.Cdr.(Retd.) J. Byron, DSC, RNR),HMS Rhododendron (Lt.Cdr. L.A. Sayers, RNR),HMS Samphire (Lt.Cdr. F.T. Renny, DSC, RNR),HMS Vetch (T/A/Lt.Cdr. H.J. Beverley, DSO, DSC, RNR),HMS Violet (Lt. C.N. Stewart, RNR) and the minesweepersHMS Acute (Lt.Cdr. D. Lampen, DSO, RN),HMS Alarm (T/Lt.Cdr. R. Patterson, SANF(V)),HMS Albacore (Lt.Cdr. J.D.L. Williams, RN) andHMS Cadmus (Lt.Cdr. J.B.G. Temple, DSC, RN).

Around 1000A/4, the convoy was split up into two sections KMS A1 and KMS O1. KMS A1 was destined for Algiers and KMS O1 was destined for Oran. KMS O1 then proceeded to the westwards so as to pass the Straits of Gibraltar later.

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Convoy KMS A 1.

Convoy KMS A 1 was to pass the Strait of Gibraltar around 2345A/5; it was made up of the transports;City of Worcester,Glenfinlas,Jean Jadot,Lalande,Lochmonar,Macharda,Manchester Port,Maron,Ocean Rider,Ocean Viceroy,Ocean Volga,Ocean Wanderer,Sobo,Stanhill,Tiba andUrlana.

The landing shipsDewdale andEnnerdale were also part of the convoy.

The convoy was escorted by the sloopHMS Stork, corvettesHMS Convolvulus,HMS Marigold,HMS Pentstemon,HMS Samphire [this corvette might have already parted company though, see below] and the minesweepersHMS Acute,HMS Alarm,HMS Albacore andHMS Cadmus.

Around 0700A/5, the corvetteHMS Samphire arrived at Gibraltar with defects from convoy KMS A1.

Around 0800A/5, the minesweepersHMS Algerine (Lt.Cdr. W.A. Cooke, RN),HMS Hussar (Lt. R.C. Biggs, DSO, DSC, RN) andHMS Speedwell (Lt.Cdr. T.E. Williams, RNR) departed Gibraltar to join convoy KMS A1.

Around 1830A/5, the M/S trawlersHMS Cava (T/Lt. R.L. Petty-Major, RNVR),HMS Juliet (Lt. L.B. Moffatt, RNR),HMS Othello (T/Lt. S.C. Dickinson, RNVR),HMS Stroma (Skr. J.S. Harper, RNR),HMS Hoy (T/Lt. G.H. McNair, MBE, RNVR),HMS Inchcolm (Skr. A.C. Whitcombe, RNR),HMS Mull (Lt. J. Plomer, RCNVR),HMS Rysa (T/Lt. J.H. Cooper, RNVR) and the motor launchesML 238,ML 273,ML 283,ML 295,ML 307,ML 336,ML 338,ML 444 departed Gibraltar to join convoy KMS A1.

Around 2230A/5, the monitorHMS Roberts (Capt. J.G.Y. Loveband, RN), escort destroyersHMS Bicester (Lt.Cdr. S.W.F. Bennetts, RN),HMS Bramham (Lt. E.F. Baines, DSO, RN),HMS Cowdray (Lt.Cdr. C.W. North, RN),HMS Zetland (Lt. J.V. Wilkinson, RN) and the corvetteHMS Samphire (with her repairs completed) departed Gibraltar to join convoy KMS A1.

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Convoy KMS O 1.

Convoy KMS O 1 was to pass the Strait of Gibraltar around 1630A/6; it was made up of the transports;Alcinous,Alphard,Benalbanach,Charles H. Cramp,Chattanooga City,Clan Mactaggart,Delinlian,Edward Rutledge,Empire Confidence,Empire Mordred,Havildar,Lycaon,Mark Twain,Mary Slessor,Pacific Exporter,Recorder,Salacia,St. Essylt,Thesues,Walt Whitman,William Floyd,William Wirt andZebulon B. Vance.

The landing shipDerwentdale was also part of this convoy.

The convoy was escorted by the AA shipHMS Alynbank, sloopHMS Deptford, corvettesHMS Gardenia,HMS Rhododendron,HMS Vetch andHMS Violet.

Around 1500A/6, the minesweepersHMS Brixham (Lt. G.A. Simmers, RNR),HMS Bude (Lt. F.A.J. Andrew, RN),HMS Clacton (A/Lt.Cdr.(Retd.) L.S. Shaw, RNR) andHMS Felixstowe (T/Lt. C.G. Powney, RNVR) departed Gibraltar to join the convoy KMS O1.

After dark on the 6th, the M/S trawlersHMS Coriolanus (T/Lt. N. Hunt, RNVR),HMS Eday (T/Lt. W.Y. Surtees, RNR),HMS Inchmarnock (T/Lt. C.G.V. Corneby, RNR),HMS Kerrera (Skr. R.W. Slater, RNR) and the motor launchesML 280,ML 458,ML 463,ML 469,ML 471,ML 480,ML 483 andHDML 1127,HDML 1128 andHDML 1139 departed Gibraltar to join convoy KMS O1.

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Operation Crupper.

Two ships from Convoy KMS 1, theArdeola andTadorna formed part of Convoy KMS 1A after the convoy had split up. They were to proceed to Malta unescorted. The Admiralty had decided to make use of the expected confusion of the landings in North Africa to run two 'small' merchant ships with important cargo to Malta. These ships were considered expendable. They parted company with convoy KMS 1A on 8 November. They did not reach Malta however. When off Cape Bon on 9 November, they were taken under fire by Vichy French coastal batteries, despite the darkness, and then captured by motor torpedo boats. They were brought into Bizerta where their cargo was unloaded. The ships were later taken over by the Italians.

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Convoy KMF 1.

This convoy was assembled off Oversay on 26 October 1942.

It was made up of the following (troop) transports;Awatea (British, 13482 GRT, built 1936),Batory (Polish, 14287 GRT, built 1936),Cathay (British, 15225 GRT, built 1925),Dempo (Dutch, 17024 GRT, built 1931),Derbyshire (British, 11660 GRT, built 1935),Duchess of Bedford (British, 20123 GRT, built 1928),Durban Castle (British, 17388 GRT, built 1938),Ettrick (British, 11279 GRT, built 1938),Exceller (American, 6597 GRT, built 1941),Leinster (British, 4302 GRT, built 1937)Letitia (British, 13595 GRT, built 1925),Llangibby Castle (British, 11951 GRT, built 1929),Marnix van St. Aldegonde (Dutch, 19355 GRT, built 1930),Monarch of Bermuda (British, 22424 GRT, built 1931),Mooltan (British, 20952 GRT, built 1923),Nieuw Zeeland (Dutch, 11069 GRT, built 1928),Orbita (British, 15495 GRT, built 1915),Otranto (British, 20026 GRT, built 1925),Reina del Pacifico (British, 17702 GRT, built 1931),Sobieski (Polish, 11030 GRT, built 1939),Strathnaver (British, 22283 GRT, built 1931),Tegelberg (Dutch, 14150 GRT, built 1937),Viceroy of India (British, 19627 GRT, built 1929),Warwick Castle (British, 20107 GRT, built 1930) andWinchester Castle (British, 20012 GRT, built 1930).

The headquarters shipsHMS Bulolo (Capt.(Retd.) R.L. Hamer, RN),HMS Largs (Cdr. E.A. Divers, OBE, RNR), the landing shipsHMS Glengyle (Capt.(Retd.) D.S. McGrath, RN),HMS Karanja (Lt.Cdr.(Emgy.) D.S. Hore-Lacy, RN),HMS Keren (A/Cdr. S.E. Crewe-Read, RN),HMS Princess Beatrix (Cdr.(Retd.) T.B. Brunton, DSC, RN),HMS Queen Emma (Capt.(Retd.) G.L.D. Gibbs, DSO and Bar, RN),HMS Royal Scotsman (Lt.Cdr. J.D. Armstrong, DSC, RD, RNR),HMS Royal Ulsterman (A/Lt.Cdr. W.R.K. Clark, DSC, RD RNR) andHMS Ulster Monarch (Lt.Cdr. N.A.F. Kingscote, RNR) and the attack transportsUSS Almaack (T/Capt. C.L. Nichols, USN),USS Leedstown (Cdr. D. Cook, USNR),USS Samuel Chase (Capt. R.C. Heimer, USCG) andUSS Thomas Stone (Capt. O.R. Bennehoff, USN) were also part of the convoy.

On assembly off Oversay on the 27th the convoy was escorted by the light cruiserHMS Sheffield (Capt. A.W. Clarke, RN, flying the flag of Rear-Admiral C.H.J. Harcourt, CBE, RN), escort carrierHMS Biter (Capt. E.M.C. Abel Smith, RN), destroyerHMS Clare (Lt.Cdr. L.H. Landman, RN), sloopsHMS Aberdeen (Lt.Cdr. H. Day, RN),HMS Enchantress (Lt.Cdr. A.E.T. Christie, OBE, RN),HMS Ibis (Lt.Cdr. H.M. Darell-Brown, RN), cuttersHMS Hartland (Lt.Cdr. G.P. Billot, RNR),HMS Walney (Lt.Cdr. P.C. Meyrick, RN), frigatesHMS Exe (A/Cdr. M.A.O. Biddulph, DSC, RN),HMS Rother (Lt.Cdr. R.V.E. Case, DSC and Bar, RD, RNR),HMS Spey (Cdr. H.G. Boys-Smith, DSO and Bar, RD, RNR),HMS Swale (Lt.Cdr. J. Jackson, RNR) andHMS Tay (Lt.Cdr. R.E. Sherwood, RNR).

Around 1120A/2, the destroyersHrMs Isaac Sweers (Capt. W. Harmsen, RNN) andHMS Escapade (Cdr. E.N.V. Currey, DSC, RN) joined coming from the Azores.

Around 0200A/3, the AA shipsHMS Palomares (A/Capt.(Retd.) J.H. Jauncey, RN),HMS Pozarica (Capt.(Retd.) L.B. Hill, DSO, OBE, RN) and the destroyersHMS Achates (Lt.Cdr. A.H.T. Johns, RN),HMS Antelope (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Sinclair, RN),HMS Amazon (Lt.Cdr.(Emgy.) Lord Teynham, RN),HMS Velox (Lt. G.B. Barstow, RN),HMS Verity, (Lt.Cdr. R. Horncastle, RN),HMS Westcott (Cdr. I.H. Bockett-Pugh, DSO, RN) andHMS Wishart (Cdr. H.G. Scott, RN) departed Gibraltar to join the convoy. At 1045A/3, the destroyerHMS Wivern (Cdr. M.D.C. Meyrick, RN) also departed to join the convoy. She had been unable to depart earlier due to defects.

Around 0800A/3, the destroyerHMS Marne (Lt.Cdr. H.N.A. Richardson, DSO, DSC, RN) joined the convoy coming from the Azores.

Around 1300A/3, the light cruiserHMS Jamaica (Capt. J.L. Storey, RN) also departed Gibraltar to join the convoy.

Around 1830Z/3,HMS Sheffield parted company with the convoy to proceed to Gibraltar where she arrived at 0815A/3, she was to fuel and then join ' Force O '.

Around noon on 4 November 1942, the convoy was split up into two sections KMF A1 and KMF O1. KMF A1 was destined for Algiers and KMF O1 was destined for Oran. KMF O1 then proceeded to the westwards so as to pass the Straits of Gibraltar later.

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Convoy KMF A 1.

Convoy KMF A 1 was to pass the Strait of Gibraltar around 0100A/6; it was made up of the (troop) transports;Almaack,Awatea,Cathay,Dempo,Ettrick,Exceller,Leedstown,Marnix van St. Aldegonde,Otranto,Sobieski,Strathnaver,Viceroy of India andWinchester Castle.

The headquarters shipHMS Bulolo and the landing shipsHMS Karanja,HMS Keren,HMS Royal Scotsman,HMS Royal Ulsterman andUlster Monarch and the attack transportsUSS Samuel Chase andUSS Thomas Stone were also part of the convoy.

[exactly which ships of the escort went on with this part of the convoy will have to be researched further.]

In the morning of 5 November,HrMs Isaac Sweers parted company with the convoy to join ' Force H '.HMS Escapade andHMS Marne were apparently detached to Gibraltar on the convoy passing the Strait of Gibraltar.

Also on 5 November, the corvettesHMS Spiraea (Lt.Cdr. R.S. Miller, DSC, RNR) andHMS Jonquil (Lt.Cdr. R.E.H. Partington, RD, RNR) departed Gibraltar to join convoy KMF A1.

Around 0200A/6, the destroyersHMS Broke (Lt.Cdr. A.F.C. Layard, RN),HMS Malcolm (A/Cdr. A.B. Russell, RN),HMS Vanoc (A/Cdr. C.F.H. Churchill, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN) departed Gibraltar to join convoy KMF A1 and relieveHMS Achates,HMS Antelope,HMS Amazon andHMS Wivern. After having been relieved these destroyers arrived at Gibraltar around 0545A/6. Also arriving at Gibraltar were theLeinster,HMS Royal Scotsman,HMS Royal Ulsterman andUlster Monarch.

Around 1000A/6,HMS Broke,HMS Malcolm,HMS Vanoc andHMS Wrestler joined ' Force O ' while the screen on ' Force O ' joined the convoy, the destroyers / escort destroyers involved wereORP Blyskawica (Lt.Cdr. L. Lichodziejewski, ORP),HMS Lamerton (Lt.Cdr. C.R. Purse, DSC, RN),HMS Wheatland (Lt.Cdr. R. de L. Brooke, DSC, RN) andHMS Wilton (Lt. A.P. Northey, DSC, RN). The AA shipHMS Tynwald (Capt.(Retd.) P.G. Wodehouse, DSO, RN) also joined the convoy from ' Force O ' at the same time.

Around 0535A/7, in position 37°34'N, 00°01'W, the attack transportUSS Thomas Stone was torpedoed and damaged by an enemy aircraft.HMS Spey remained with the damaged ship. At 2040A/7, the destroyersHMS Wishart andHMS Velox joined and the ship was taken in tow byHMS Wishart.HMS Spey by that time had departed with the ships 24 landing craft in which the ships troops had embarked. She was to escort them to Algiers but all had to be scuttled and the troops were taken on boardHMS Spey. At 0535A/8 the tugSt. Day joined which also passed a tow. The damaged ship anchored off Algiers around 1030A/11 being towed there byHMS Wishart andHMS St. Day.

Around 0725Z/7,HMS Clare parted company to join ' Force O ' which she did around 0913Z/7.

Around 1815A/7, the section destined for ' C Sector ' (Charlie Sector) parted company with the convoy. It was made up of theUSS Almaack,USS Leedstown,USS Samuel Chase,Exceller andDempo. With them were also transports from convoy KMS A1. They were escorted by the AA shipHMS Tynwald, escort destroyersHMS Cowdray,HMS Zetland, sloopHMS Enchantress, minesweepersHMS Algerine,HMS Hussar,HMS Speedwell, corvettesHMS Pentstemon,HMS Samphire, MS trawlersHMS Cava,HMS Othello and the motor launchesHMS ML 273 andHMS ML 295. At 2135A/7, the beacon submarineHMS P 45 (Lt. H.B. Turner, RN) made contact with the force and the ships were guided to their positions for the landings. From convoy KMS A1 the transportsMacharda andMaron were destined for Charlie sector. They were escorted by the sloopHMS Stork and the corvettesHMS Pentstemon andHMS Samphire.

Around 1900A/7, The remainder of convoy KMF A1 split into two sections, one for ' A Sector ' (Apple Sector) and one for ' B Sector ' (Beer Sector).

The force for ' A Sector ' was made up ofHMS Karanja and theMarnix van St. Aldegonde andViceroy of India. With them were also transports from convoy KMS A1. They were escorted by the AA shipHMS Pozarica, escort destroyersHMS Bicester,HMS Bramham, frigateHMS Rother, minesweeperHMS Cadmus, MS trawlersHMS Juliet,HMS Rysa,HMS Stroma and the motor launchesHMS ML 283,HMS ML 336 andHMS ML 338. At 2214A/7, the made contact with their beacon submarineHMS P 221 (Lt. M.F.R. Ainslie, DSC, RN). A few minutes later they stopped and the landings commenced. From convoy KMS A1 the following ships were assigned to ' A Sector ';Dewdale,Lalande,Manchester Port,Ocean Viceroy andOcean Wanderer. They were escorted by the corvettesHMS Convolvulus andHMS Marigold.

The force for ' B Sector ' was made up ofHMS Bulolo,HMS Keren and theAwatea,Cathay,Otranto,Sobieski,Strathnaver andWinchester Castle. With them were also transports from convoy KMS A1. They were escorted by the AA shipHMS Palomeres, destroyerORP Blyskawica, escort destroyersHMS Lamerton,HMS Wheatland,HMS Wilton, minesweepersHMS Acute,HMS Alarm,HMS Albacore, MS trawlersHMS Hoy,HMS Incholm,HMS Mull and the motor launchesHMS ML 238,HMS ML 307 andHMS ML 444. They made contact with their beacon submarineHMS P 48 (Lt. M.E. Faber, RN) around 2220A/7 hours and landing operation commenced shortly afterwards. From convoy KMS A1 the following ships were assigned to ' A Sector ';City of Worcester,Ennerdale,Glenfinlas,Jean Jadot,Lochmonar,Ocean Rider,Ocean Volga,Sobo,Stanhill,Tiba andUrlana. They were escorted by the sloopHMS Stork and the corvettesHMS Pentstemon andHMS Samphire which then went on with the ships for the ' Charlie sector '.

On 9 November the ships involved in the landings anchored in Algiers Bay.

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Convoy KMF O 1.

Convoy KMF O 1 was to pass the Strait of Gibraltar around 2230A/6; it was made up of the (troop) transports;Batory,Duchess of Bedford,Durban Castle,Letitia,Llangibby Castle,Monarch of Bermuda,Mooltan,Nieuw Zeeland,Orbita,Reina del Pacifico,Tegelberg andWarwick Castle.

The headquarters shipHMS Largs and the landing shipsHMS Glengyle,HMS Princess Beatrix andHMS Queen Emma were also part of the convoy.

Around 1950A/4, the light cruiserHMS Aurora (Capt. W.G. Agnew, CB, RN) departed Gibraltar to join convoy KMF O1.

For the landings at Oran three main beaches were selected. ' X ', ' Y ' and ' Z ' beach. There was also one subsidiary beach, ' R '.

The fast convoy, KMF O1, would, after passing through the Straits of Gibraltar make rendezvous with the slow convoy, KMS O1 in position 36°26'N, 01°15'W.

The convoys would then be diverted into nine groups, these were;
For ' X ' beach
Group I, 1st Division; Batory,HMS Princess Beatrix,Queen Emma, 2nd Division;Benalbenach,Mark Twain,Mary Slessor andWalt Whitman. They were escorted by the light cruiserHMS Aurora, destroyerHMS Wivern, corvettesHMS Gardenia,HMS Vetch and the motor launchHMS HDML 1139.
Group VIII, LSTHMS Bachaquero (A/Lt.Cdr.(Retd.) A.W. McMullan, RNR) escorted by the M/S trawlerHMS Horatio (T/Lt. C.A. Lemkey, RNR).

For ' Y ' beach
Group II;HMS Glengyle,Monarch of Bermuda,Llangibby Castle,Clan Mactaggart andSalacia. They were escorted by the destroyers Brilliant,HMS Verity, M/S trawlersHMS Coriolanus,HMS Eday,HMS Inchmarnock,HMS Kerrera and the motor launchesHMS ML 458,HMS ML 463,HMS ML 469,HMS ML 471 andHMS HDML 1128.

For ' Z ' beach
Group III, 1st Division;Duchess of Bedford,Durban Castle,Ettrick,Warwick Castle. 2nd Division;Derwentdale,Reina del Pacifico andTegelberg. They were escorted by the light cruiserHMS Jamaica, escort destroyersHMS Calpe (Lt.Cdr. H. Kirkwood, DSC, RN),HMS Farndale (Cdr. D.P. Trentham, RN), minesweepersHMS Brixham,HMS Bude,HMS Clacton,HMS Felixtowe,HMS Polruan (Lt.Cdr.(Retd.) J.S. Landers, RNR),HMS Rothesay (Cdr. A.A. Martin, DSC, RD, RNR),HMS Rhyl (Cdr. L.J.S. Ede, DSO, RN),HMS Stornoway (T/A/Lt.Cdr. C.R. Fraser, RNR) and the motor launchesHMS ML 280,HMS HDML 1127.

Group V;Alcinous,Alphard,Charles H. Cramp,Chatanooga City,Delilian,Recorder andZebulon B. Vance. They were escorted by the sloopHMS Deptford, cuttersHMS Hartland,HMS Walney, corvettesHMS Rhododendron,HMS Violet and the motor launchesHMS ML 480 andHMS ML 483.

Group VI, 1st division;Derbyshire,Letitia,Mooltan andNieuw Zeeland. 2nd division,Empire Confidence,Lycaon andTheseus.

Group VII, 1st division,Empire Mordred,Havildar,Pacific Exporter andSt. Essylt. 2nd division;Edward Rutledge,William Floyd andWilliam Wirt. Groups VI and VII were escorted by the light (AA) cruiserHMS Delhi (Capt. A.T.G.C. Peachey, RN), destroyerHMS Vansittart, sloopHMS Aberdeen and the frigatesHMS Exe andHMS Swale.

Group IX; LST'sHMS Misoa (T/Lt. K.G. Graham, RNR) andHMS Tasajera (Lt.Cdr. W.E. Gelling, DSC, RD, RNR). They were escorted by the M/S trawlersHMS Fluellen (T/Lt. B.J. Hampson, RNR),HMS Ronaldsay (T/Lt. A. Stirling, RNR) andHMS Shiant (T/Lt. A.C. Elton, RNR).

For ' R ' beach
Group IV;HMS Royal Scotsman,HMS Royal Ulsterman andHMS Ulster Monarch. They had the same escort as Group III.

Two submarines were stationed off the beaches as beacons, these wereHMS Ursula (Lt. R.B. Lakin, DSC, RN) andHMS P 54 (Lt. C.E. Oxborrow, DSC, RN).

5 Nov 1942
Around 2030A/5, ' Force O ', made up of the light cruiserHMS Sheffield (Capt. A.W. Clarke, RN, flying the flag of Rear-Admiral C.H.J. Harcourt, CBE, RN), aircraft carrierHMS Argus (Capt. G.T. Philip, RN), AA cruisersHMS Charybdis (Capt. G.A.W. Voelcker, RN),HMS Scylla (Capt. I.A.P. Macintyre, CBE, RN), AA shipHMS Tynwald (Capt.(Retd.) P.G. Wodehouse, DSO, RN), destroyerORP Blyskawica (Kmdr.ppor. (Cdr.) Ludwik Lichodziejewski) and the escort destroyersHMS Lamerton (Lt.Cdr. C.R. Purse, DSC, RN),HMS Wheatland (Lt.Cdr. R. de L. Brooke, DSC, RN) andHMS Wilton (Lt. A.P. Northey, DSC, RN) departed Gibraltar to provide cover for ships of the Eastern Task Force, en-route to and during the landings near Algiers.

Around 1000A/6,HMS Tynwald,ORP Blyskawica,HMS Lamerton,HMS Wheatland andHMS Wilton joined convoy KMF A 1 while the destroyersHMS Broke (Lt.Cdr. A.F.C. Layard, RN),HMS Malcolm (A/Cdr. A.B. Russell, RN),HMS Vanoc (A/Cdr. C.F.H. Churchill, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN) which had been with the convoy joined ' Force O '. Around the same time the escort carrierHMS Avenger (Cdr. A.P. Colthurst, RN), which had been with convoy KMS A1, joined ' Force O '.

Around 0913Z/7, the destroyerHMS Clare (Lt.Cdr. L.H. Landman, RN) joined ' Force O '.

The escorts varied from time to time until their return to Gibraltar.

Around 1500A/8,HMS Sheffield was detached for bombardment duties. The target she was to bombard however surrendered shortly before fire would be opened.HMS Sheffield then rejoined ' Force O ' around 1800A/8.

Around 1600A/9,HMS Sheffield parted company to join the Force destinated for a landing at Bougie (Operation Perpetual) but as this landing was postponed due to unsuitable weather conditions she rejoined ' Force O ' temporarily. In the afternoon of the 10th she parted company again for this operation.

Shortly after 1700A/9, ' Force O ' was attacked by enemy aircraft but no damage was sustained.HMS Avenger reported being missed by two torpedoes fired by an HE 111 aircraft.

Around 0615A/10,HMS Avenger,HMS Charybdis andHMS Clare were ordered to proceed to Algiers Bay. BothHMS Avenger andHMS Clare had reported engine defects and they were therefore sent to Algiers Bay to try to effect repairs.

Around 0625A/10,HMS Sheffield rejoined, the landings at Bougie having been postponed.

Around 1430A/10, the sloopHMS Ibis (Lt.Cdr. H.M. Darell-Brown, RN) joined.

Around 1530A/10,HMS Sheffield parted company again for the landings at Bougie.

Around 1645A/10, a formation of enemy aircraft was reported to be about 70 miles to the north-east of ' Force O ' and closing. At 1705A/10, 11 Ju-88's were sighted and they started dive bombing attacks. At 1717A/10,HMS Argus was straddled and then hit by one bomb. Damage was done but it was not serious and she was able to continue to operate. At 1727A/10,HMS Ibis was observed to be hit by a torpedo and she sank in about five minutes. After darkHMS Scylla proceeded to the spot and was able to pick up 5 officers and 102 ratings. Around 2030A/10,HMS Clare arrived in the area and she picked up another 3 ratings.

Around 2200A/10, ' Force O ' set course to the eastwards so as to be off Bougie by dawn on 11 November.

Around 1300A/11,HMS Sheffield rejoined and ' Force O ' proceeded back to the westwards.

Around 1720A/11, a few torpedo bombers attacked ' Force O ' but no damage was done. A torpedo exploded in the wake ofHMS Scylla.

At 1855Z/12, the destroyerHMS Clare, attacked a submarine in position 37°41'N, 00°10'W and she considered to have destroyed it. It was later classified as probably destroyed. The submarine on the receiving end was the GermanU-596 who managed to escape without damage.

At dawn on the 13th, ' Force O ' left the operations area to return to Gibraltar.HMS Avenger had rejoined coming from Algiers having taken three fast transports with her.HMS Avenger had departed Algiers around 1800A/12, with the attack transportUSS Samuel Chase (10812 GRT, built 1941), transportAlmaack (American, 9902 GRT, built 1940) and the troop transportDempo (Dutch, 17024 GRT, built 1931) in company. They were escorted out by the destroyersHMS Wishart (Cdr. H.G. Scott, RN),HMS Velox (Lt. G.B. Barstow, RN) and the escort destroyerHMS Zetland (Lt. J.V. Wilkinson, RN).HMS Zetland however did not join ' Force O '.

Around 0830A/14, ' Force O ', now made up of light cruiserHMS Sheffield, aircraft carrierHMS Argus, escort carrierHMS Avenger, AA cruisersHMS Charybdis,HMS Scylla and the destroyersHMS Wishart,HMS Wrestler,HMS Vanoc,HMS Velox andHMS Clare returned to Gibraltar. (43)

14 Nov 1942
Around 0830A/14, ' Force O ', now made up of light cruiserHMS Sheffield (Capt. A.W. Clarke, RN, flying the flag of Rear-Admiral C.H.J. Harcourt, CBE, RN), aircraft carrierHMS Argus (Capt. G.T. Philip, RN), escort carrierHMS Avenger (Cdr. A.P. Colthurst, RN), AA cruiserHMS Charybdis (Capt. G.A.W. Voelcker, RN),HMS Scylla (Capt. I.A.P. Macintyre, CBE, RN) and the destroyersHMS Wishart (Cdr. H.G. Scott, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN),HMS Vanoc (A/Cdr. C.F.H. Churchill, RN),HMS Velox (Lt. G.B. Barstow, RN) andHMS Clare (Lt.Cdr. L.H. Landman, RN) arrived at Gibraltar from operations. (44)

15 Nov 1942
German U-boatU-98 was sunk in the North Atlantic west of Gibraltar in position 36°09'N, 07°42'W, by depth charges from the British destroyer HMS Wrestler (Lt. R.G.B. Lacon, DSC, RN).

3 Jun 1943
HMS Universal (Lt. C. Gordon, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Londonderry withHMS Wear (Cdr. E. Wheeler, RD, RNR),HMS Spey (Cdr. H.G. Boys-Smith, DSO and Bar, DSC, RD, RNR),HMS Aberdeen (Lt.Cdr. H. Day, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN) and a trawler. (45)

4 Jun 1943
HMS Universal (Lt. C. Gordon, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Londonderry withHMS Pelican (Cdr. G.N. Brewer, RN),HMS Jed (Lt.Cdr. R.C. Freaker, DSO, RD, RNR),HMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN),HMS Spey (Cdr. H.G. Boys-Smith, DSO and Bar, DSC, RD, RNR) andHMS Vanquisher (Lt.Cdr. G.A.G. Ormsby, RN). (45)

5 Jun 1943
HMS H 33 (Lt. J.A. Spender, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle withHMS Aberdeen (Lt.Cdr. H. Day, RN),HMS Vanquisher (Lt.Cdr. G.A.G. Ormsby, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN) andHMS Mansfield (Lt.Cdr. L.C. Hill, OBE, RNR). (46)

6 Jun 1943
HMS H 33 (Lt. J.A. Spender, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle withHMS Aberdeen (Lt.Cdr. H. Day, RN),HMS Vanquisher (Lt.Cdr. G.A.G. Ormsby, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN). (46)

8 Jun 1943
HMS H 33 (Lt. J.A. Spender, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle with andHMS Inconstant (Lt.Cdr J.H. Eaden, DSC, RN),HMS Honeysuckle (Lt. H.H.D. MacKillican, DSC and Bar, RNR),HMS Vanquisher (Lt.Cdr. G.A.G. Ormsby, RN),HMS Wanderer (Lt.Cdr. R.F. Whinney, RN) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN). (46)

14 Jul 1943

Convoy MKF 18.

This convoy departed Malta on 11 July 1943.

This convoy was made up of the following troop transports;Duchess of Bedford (British, 20123 GRT, built 1928),Durban Castle (British, 17388 GRT, built 1938),Llangibby Castle (British, 11951 GRT, built 1929),Marnix van St. Aldegonde (Dutch, 19355 GRT, built 1930),Monarch of Bermuda (British, 22424 GRT, built 1931),Orontes (British, 20097 GRT, built 1929),Otranto (British, 20026 GRT, built 1925),Reina del Pacifico (British, 17702 GRT, built 1931),Ruys (Dutch, 14155 GRT, built 1937),Strathnaver (British, 22283 GRT, built 1931) andTegelberg (Dutch, 14150 GRT, built 1937).

On departure from Malta the convoy was escorted by the destroyerHMS Anthony (Lt.Cdr. J.H. Wallace, DSC, RN) and the escort destroyersHMS Farndale (Cdr. D.P. Trentham, RN),HMS Calpe (Lt.Cdr. H. Kirkwood, DSC, RN),HMS Puckeridge (Lt. J.C. Cartwright, DSC, RN),ORP Krakowiak (Kpt.mar. (Lt.Cdr.) W. Maracewicz),HMS Haydon (Lt. R.C. Watkin, RN),HMS Cleveland (Lt. J.K. Hamilton, RN) andHMS Tynedale (Lt. J.J.S. Yorke, DSC, RN).

The convoy arrived at Algiers on 13 July 1943.Empress of Russia (British, 16810 GRT, built 1913),Nea Hellas (British, 16991 GRT, built 1922),

The convoy, now joined by the (troop) transportsEmpress of Russia (British, 16810 GRT, built 1913) andNea Hellas (British, 16991 GRT, built 1922) departed Algiers on 14 July 1943 and was now escorted by the destroyersHMS Wanderer (Lt.Cdr. R.F. Whinney, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN),HMS Inconstant (Lt.Cdr J.H. Eaden, DSC, RN) and the frigatesHMS Bann (Lt.Cdr. F.A. Shaw, RNR) andHMS Plym (T/A/Lt.Cdr. A. Foxall, RNR).

Around 0700B/15, the convoy arrived in Oran / Mers-el-Kebir anchorage where POW's were embarked.

The convoy departed for Gibraltar around 2000B/15 minus theEmpress of Russia which remained behind to coal.

At 1100B/16,HMS Wanderer parted company with the convoy to proceed ahead of it to Gibraltar to effect repairs to her machinery. She arrived at Gibraltar around 1630B/16. She was then taken in hand for repairs but these could not be completed on time and it was decided that she was replaced in the escort by the frigateHMS Teviot (Lt.Cdr. T. Taylor, DSC, RN).

The convoy arrived at Gibraltar around 1900B/16.

The convoy departed Gibraltar for the U.K. around 0630B/17 minus theNea Hellas and with the addition of two other ships;Samaria (British, 19597 GRT, built 1921) andFort Lee (American (tanker), 10198 GRT, built 1943).

The escort was reinforced by the AA cruiserHMS Scylla (Capt. I.A.P. Macintyre, CBE, DSO, RN).

Between around 2020B/18 and 2155B/18, in approximate position 38°15'N, 13°25'W, the convoy was attacked by two or three FW 200 aircraft but no damage was done by these enemy aircraft.

Between around 1035B/19 and 1105B/19, in position 39°30'N, 16°20'W, the convoy was attacked again by a FW 200 aircraft but no damage was done due to effective AA fire fromHMS Scylla.

Around 0920B/20, in position 43°00'N, 19°30'W, the light cruiserHMS Bermuda (Capt. T.H. Back, RN) joined the convoy.

Around 1500B/20, in position 44°10'N, 19°30'W,HMS Scylla parted company with the convoy to return to Gibraltar.

Around 2200B/21, in position 50°00'N, 16°30'W,HMS Bermuda parted company with the convoy to proceed to Scapa Flow.

The convoy arrived in U.K. waters on 23 July 1943.

11 Aug 1943
HMS H 32 (Lt. J.A.R. Troup, DSC, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle withHMS Alisma (Lt. G. Lanning, RANVR) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN). (47)

12 Aug 1943
HMS H 32 (Lt. J.A.R. Troup, DSC, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle withHMS Leith (Lt.Cdr.(Retd.) A.W. Preston, RN),HMS Sandwich (T/A/Lt.Cdr. A.J. Clemence, RNR) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN). (47)

12 Aug 1943
HMS P 511 (Lt. R.H. Bull, DSC, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle together withHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN). (48)

13 Aug 1943
HMS P 511 (Lt. R.H. Bull, DSC, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle together withHMCS Trillium (T/Lt. P.C. Evans, RCNR),HMS Totland (T/A/Lt.Cdr. H.E. Tourtel, RNR) andHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN). (48)

17 Aug 1943

Combined convoy WS 33 / KMF 22.

This convoy was assembled off Oversay on 18 August 1943.

On assembly the combined convoy was made up of the following (troop) transports;Antenor (British, 11174 GRT, built 1925),Arundel Castle (British, 19118 GRT, built 1921),Boissevain (Dutch, 14134 GRT, built 1937),Cameronia (British, 19297 GRT, built 1920),Duchess of Bedford (British, 20123 GRT, built 1928),Duchess of Richmond (British, 20022 GRT, built 1928),Durban Castle (British, 17388 GRT, built 1938),Empress of Australia (British, 21833 GRT, built 1914),Glenartney (British, 9795 GRT, built 1940),Indrapoera (Dutch, 10825 GRT, built 1925),Johan de Witt (Dutch, 10474 GRT, built 1920),Marnix van St. Aldegonde (Dutch, 19355 GRT, built 1930),Monarch of Bermuda (British, 22424 GRT, built 1931),Orduna (British, 15507 GRT, built 1914),Ormonde (British, 14982 GRT, built 1917),Otranto (British, 20026 GRT, built 1925) andTegelberg (Dutch, 14150 GRT, built 1937).

The convoy was escorted by the escort carrierHMS Hunter (Capt. H.H. McWilliam, RN), heavy cruiserHMAS Shropshire (Capt. J.A. Collins, CB, RAN), destroyerHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN), sloopsHMS Weston (Lt.Cdr. E. Gleave, RNR),HMS Chanticleer (Lt.Cdr. R.H. Bristowe, DSO, RN),HMIS Narbada (A/Cdr. A.W. Beeton, RIN), cutterHMS Totland (T/A/Lt.Cdr. H.E. Tourtel, RNR) and the frigatesHMS Barle (Lt.Cdr. A.H. Davies, RNVR),HMS Ettrick (Lt.Cdr. J.E. Woolfenden, RD, RNR) andHMS Usk (Lt.Cdr. R.M. Pattinson, DSC, RNR).

The AA cruiserHMS Charybdis (Capt. G.A.W. Voelcker, RN) joined the convoy around 0955B/20.

HMS Charybdis parted company with the convoy around 2210B/21 and proceeded to Gibraltar arriving there on 22 August.

Around 1230B/22,HMAS Shropshire parted company with the convoy to proceed to Freetown.

The entire combined convoy arrived at Gibraltar on 24 August 1943.

From Gibraltar the convoys continued on as KMF 22 and WS 33.

23 Sep 1943
During 23/24 September 1943,HMS Fencer (Capt. E.W. Anstice, RN) conducted flying exercises in the Clyde area. These included night flying exercises. In the morning of the 24th an oiling at sea exercise was carried out during which the destroyerHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN) was fuelled. (49)

28 Sep 1943

Operation Alacrity.

The object of this operation was to land at the Azores (Portugese territory) and establish air bases there.

Negotiations with the Portugese were still ongoing to effect this through diplomatic ways and eventually this succeeded and the airbases were established with Portugese consent.

For this operations three convoys left the U.K., these were the following;
Convoy UA 1.
This convoy departed the Clyde on 28 September 1943 and was made up of the following transports / tankersCorfell (British, 1802 GRT, built 1934),Dux (Norwegian, 1590 GRT, built 1934) andEmpire Garden (British (tanker), 8966 GRT, built 1920) which were to proceed to Horta and theCorfirth (British, 1803 GRT, built 1934) andCrane (British, 785 GRT, built 1937) as well as the landing shipHMS LST 13 (Lt.Cdr. R.A. Crozier, RD, RNR) which were to proceed to Angra. TheCorfith andHMS LST 13 were however unable to sail with the convoy and remained behind.

Escort for this convoy was made up of the destroyerHMS Volunteer (Lt.Cdr. G.J. Luther, RN), corvetteHMS Lavender (Lt. L.G. Pilcher, RNR), A/S trawlersHMS Cape Portland (T/Lt. K.F. Rasmussen, RNR),HMS Saon (T/Lt. J.C. Payne, RNVR),HMS Vascama (T/Lt. H.A.R. Twomey, RNR) and the M/S trawlersHMS Bruray (T/Lt. G.H. Clark, DSC, RNVR),HMS Hayling (T/Lt. G.F. Bryant, RNVR),HMS Mangrove (T/Lt. J.K.M. Warde, RNVR) andHMS Whalsay (T/Lt. F.J.S. Crawford, RNVR).

Convoy UA 2.
This convoy departed the Clyde on 30 September 1943 and was made up of the following transportsEmpire Outpost (British, 6978 GRT, built 1943) andScottish Monarch (British, 7004 GRT, built 1943). The landing shipsHMS Bachaquero (Lt.Cdr. P.G. Britten, RD, RNR) and (RFA)Dewdale (8265 GRT, built 1941) were also part of this convoy.

Convoy UA 2 was escorted by the destroyersHMS Havelock (Cdr. R.C. Boyle, DSC, RN),HMS Warwick (Cdr. Y.M. Cleeves, DSO, DSC, RD, RNR), corvettesHMS Buttercup (T/Lt. R.J. Jonckheere, RNR),HMS Godetia (T/Lt. M.A.F. Larose, RNR), A/S trawlersHMS Kingston Agate (Lt. J. Simms, RNR),HMS Kingston Amber (T/Lt. R. Adams, RNR),HMS St. Elstan (Lt. R.M. Roberts, RNR) andHMS Vizalma (T/Lt. B. James, RNVR).

Convoy UA 3.
This convoy departed Liverpool on 2 October 1943 and was made up of the troop transportFranconia (British, 20175 GRT, built 1923). She was escorted by the destroyersHMS Inconstant (Cdr. R.H. Mills, RN) andORP Garland (Kmdr.ppor. (Cdr.) S. Biskupski). These ships were fist to proceed to Belfast Lough were the destroyers were to be fuelled and then on 3 October 1943 they were to rendezvous with the escort carrierHMS Fencer (Capt. E.W. Anstice, RN) and the destroyersORP Burza (Kmdr.ppor. (Cdr.) F. Pitulko) andHMS Whitehall (Cdr. C.L.de H. Bell, RD, RNR) coming from the Clyde which they had departed also on 3 October 1943. The destroyersHMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN) andHMS Viscount (Lt.Cdr. L.E. Woodhouse, RN) joined coming from Londonderry which they had departed also on 3 October 1943.

The convoys arrived near the Azores on or around 8 October 1943. [Further research is required regarding the exact movements of the convoys and the ships in it.]

31 Oct 1943
HMS Wrestler (Lt. R.G.B. Lacon, DSC, RN) picks up 3 survivors from the Norwegian merchantHallfried that was torpedoed and sunk north-east of the Azores in position 46°05'N, 20°26'W by German U-boatU-262.

12 Dec 1943

Operation FV, passage of convoys JW 55A and JW 55B to Northern Russia and RA 55A and RA 55B from Northern Russia and the sinking of the German battleship Scharnhorst.

Convoy JW 55A

This convoy departed Loch Ewe in the afternoon of 12 December 1943 for Northern Russia.

It was made up of the following merchant vessels;Collis P. Huntington (American, 7177 GRT, built 1942),Daniel Willard (American, 7200 GRT, built 1942),Empire Archer (British, 7031 GRT, built 1942),Empire Pickwick (British, 7068 GRT, built 1943),Fort Astoria (British, 7189 GRT, built 1943),Fort Hall (British, 7157 GRT, built 1943),Fort Missanabie (British, 7147 GRT, built 1943),Fort Thompson (British, 7134 GRT, built 1942),George Weems (American, 7191 GRT, built 1942),James A. Farrell (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),James Woodrow (American, 7200 GRT, built 1942),Lapland (British, 2897 GRT, built 1942),Lewis Emery Jr. (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Lucerna (British (tanker), 6556 GRT, built 1930),Philip Livingston (American, 7176 GRT, built 1941),San Ambrosio (British (tanker), 7410 GRT, built 1935),Stage Door Canteen (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Thistledale (British, 7241 GRT, built 1942) andThomas Scott (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942).

On departure from Loch Ewe the convoy was escorted by the destroyerHMS Westcott (Lt.Cdr.(Retd.) H. Lambton, RN), minesweepersHMS Harrier (Cdr. H.E.H. Nicholls, RN),HMS Speedwell (Lt.Cdr. T.E. Williams, RD, RNR),HMS Cockatrice (A/Lt.Cdr. C.W. Armstrong, RNR) and the corvetteHNoMS Acanthus (?).

Around 1430A/15, the destroyersHMS Milne (Capt. I.M.R. Campbell, DSO, RN),HMS Matchless (Lt. W.D. Shaw, RN),HMS Meteor (Lt.Cdr. D.J.B. Jewitt, RN),HMS Musketeer (Cdr. R.L. Fisher, OBE, RN),HMS Opportune (Cdr. J. Lee-Barber, DSO and Bar, RN),HMS Virago (Lt.Cdr. A.J.R. White, RN),HMS Ashanti (Lt.Cdr. J.R. Barnes, RN) andHMCS Athabaskan (Lt.Cdr. J.H. Stubbs, RCN) joined the convoy coming from Skaalefjord, Faeroer Islands.HMS Harrier andHMS Cockatrice were then detached with orders to proceed to Skaalefjord.

During 16/17 attempts were made to refuel destroyers from theSan Ambrosio but the weather conditions were unsuitable.

On 18 December,HMS Musketeer was able to take on board 70 tons of fuel before the hose parted.

At 1605A/18,HMCS Athabaskan obtained a radar contact ahead of the convoy. She proceeded to investigate firing star shell. The radar contact then faded and nothing was disclosed by the illumination.

At 1610A/18,HMCS Athabaskan obtained an A/S contact and attacked it with a full pattern of depth charges. Contact was subsequently lost and not regained. This was indeed a German submarine, theU-354 but she managed to slip away without being damaged.

Around 1100A/20, in position 69°34'N, 35°20'E, and in thick snow, the local escort for the White Sea section joined. This was made up of the minesweepersHMS Hussar (Lt.Cdr. R.C. Biggs, DSO, DSC, RN),HMS Halcyon (T/A/Lt.Cdr. L.J. Martin, RNVR), the Russian destroyersGromkiy,Grozniy,Valerian Kyubishev as well as three Russian minesweepers.

The White Sea section was made up of the following merchant vessels;Empire Archer (destination Molotovsk),Fort Astoria (destination Port Ekonomiya),Fort Missanabie (destination Molotovsk),Fort Thompson (destination Port Ekonomiya),George Weems (destination Molotovsk),James A. Farrell (destination Molotovsk),James Woodrow (destination Molotovsk) andLucerna (destination Molotovsk). The White Sea section arrived at it's destination on 22 December.

The Murmansk section, made up of the remaining merchant vessels and escorts arrived at its destination during the night of 20/21 December.HMS Milne andHMS Westcot had detached shortly before arrival and had entered port ahead of the convoy.

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Convoy JW 55B

This convoy departed Loch Ewe in the afternoon of 20 December 1943 for Northern Russia.

It was made up of the following merchant vessels;Bernard N. Baker (American, 7191 GRT, built 1943),British Statesman (British (tanker), 6991 GRT, built 1923),Brockhorst Livingston (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942),Cardinal Gibbons (American, 7191 GRT, built 1942),Fort Kullyspell (British, 7190 GRT, built 1943),Fort Nakasley (British, 7132 GRT, built 1943),Fort Verscheres (British, 7128 GRT, built 1942),Harold L. Winslow (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),John J. Abel (American, 7191 GRT, built 1943),John Vining (American, 7191 GRT, built 1942),John Wanamaker (British, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Norlys (Panamanian (tanker), 9892 GRT, built 1936),Ocean Messenger (British, 7178 GRT, built 1942),Ocean Pride (British, 7173 GRT, built 1942),Ocean Valour (British, 7174 GRT, built 1942),Ocean Viceroy (British, 7174 GRT, built 1942),Thomas U. Walter (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943) andWill Rogers (American, 7200 GRT, built 1942).

On departure from Loch Ewe the convoy was escorted by the destroyersHMS Whitehall (Lt.Cdr. P.J. Cowell, DSC, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN), minesweepersHMS Gleaner (Lt.Cdr. F.J.G. Hewitt, DSC and Bar, RN),Hound (A/Cdr.(Retd.) A.H. Wynne-Edwards, RN),Hydra (T/A/Lt.Cdr. C.T.J. Wellard, RNR) and the corvettesHMS Borage (Lt. W.S. MacDonald, DSC, RNVR),HMS Honeysuckle (Lt. H.H.D. MacKillican, DSC, RNR),HMS Oxlip (Lt. C.W. Leadbetter, RNR) andHMS Wallflower (Lt. G.R. Greaves, RNR).

Around 1515A/22, in position 64°28'N, 03°55'W, the destroyersHMS Onslow (Capt. J.A. McCoy, DSO, RN),HMS Onslaught (Cdr. W.H. Selby, DSC, RN),HMS Orwell (Lt.Cdr. J.M. Hodges, DSO, RN),HMS Impulsive (Lt.Cdr. P. Bekenn, RN),HMS Scourge (Lt.Cdr. G.I.M. Balfour, RN),HMCS Iroquois (Cdr. J.C. Hibbard, DSC, RCN),HMCS Haida (Cdr. H.G. De Wolf, RCN) andHMCS Huron (Lt.Cdr. H.S. Rayner, DSC, RCN) joined the convoy coming from Skaalefjord, Faeroer Islands.HMS Hound,HMS Hydra,HMS Borage andHMS Wallflower were detached to Skaalefjord shortly afterwards.

Around 1600A/22, the merchant vesselOcean Gipsy (British, 7178 GRT, built 1942), which had sailed late, overtook and joined the convoy P.M. on 22 December.

On 23 December,HMS Wrestler was fuelled.

From 23 December onwards the convoy was shadowed by enemy aircraft, U-boats joined them the following day.

On 24 December,HMCS Haida was fuelled.

On 24 December, the convoy reversed it's course for a few hours in order to have the battle cover force ' Force 2 ' close the distance due to the threat to the convoy of the German battlecruiserScharnhorst [see below for more info in the resulting ' Battle of the North Cape '.]

Around 1250A/25, in position 72°20'N, 08°00'E, the destroyersHMS Musketeer,HMS Matchless,HMS Opportune andHMS Virago joined the convoy having detached from convoy RA 55A. They took position ahead of the convoy. They were detached around 0445A/26 to conduct a sweep from which they returned around 0815A/26.

On 26 December the convoy was diverted to the north to evade theScharnhorst. A signal to do so was received around 0605A/26 (C-in-C, Home Fleet's signal timed 0401A/26). At 0705A/26 (C-in-C, Home Fleet's signal timed 0628A/26), the convoy was ordered to proceed to the north-east.

Around 0930A/26, a brisk gun action developed to the south-eastwards. The majority of the destroyers immediately proceeded in that direction at full speed to engage the enemy but they returned to the convoy around 1330A/26 as the enemy was retiring. The convoy meanwhile was ordered to proceed northwards. Around 0951A/26,HMS Musketeer,HMS Matchless,HMS Opportune andHMS Virago were ordered to join ' Force 1 '.

Later in the day, following the sinking of the German ship the convoy resumed its normal course.

Around 1200A/28,HMCS Iroquois,HMCS Haida andHMCS Huron, having the least fuel remaining, were detached to proceed ahead of the convoy to the Kola Inlet.

Around 1830Z/28, in position 70°38'N, 38°30'W, the convoy split into two sections, one for the Kola Inlet with the original escort and one for the White Sea for which the minesweepersHMS Hussar,HMS Halcyon,HMS Speedwell, the Russian destroyersRazyarenniy,Razumniy,Valerian Kyubishev as well as four Russian minesweepers had just joined. The White Sea section was made up of following merchant vessels;British Statesman (destination Molotovsk),Fort Nakasley (destination Port Ekonomiya),Harold L. Winslow (destination Molotovsk),John J. Abel (destination Molotovsk),Ocean Messenger (destination Molotovsk),Ocean Pride (destination Port Ekonomiya),Ocean Valour (destination Molotovsk) andThomas U. Walter (destination Molotovsk).

TheOcean Gipsy was no longer with the convoy as she had straggled. her destination was Molotovsk, and she later arrived safely.

The Kola Inlet section arrived at its destination late in the morning of 29 December 1943.

The White Sea section arrived at it's destination a day later.

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Convoy RA 55A

This convoy departed the Kola Inlet (Murmansk) in the morning of 22 December 1943.

It was made up of the following merchant vessels;Arthur L. Perry (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Daniel Drake (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Edmund Fanning (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Empire Carpenter (British, 7025 GRT, built 1943),Empire Celia (British, 7025 GRT, built 1943),Empire Nigel (British, 7067 GRT, built 1943),Fort McMurray (British, 7133 GRT, built 1942),Fort Yukon (British, 7153 GRT, built 1943),Gilbert Stuart (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Henry Villard (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942),James Smith (American, 7181 GRT, built 1942),Junecrest (British, 6945 GRT, built 1942),Mijdrecht (Dutch (tanker), 7493 GRT, built 1931),Ocean Strength (British, 7173 GRT, built 1942),Ocean Vanity (British, 7174 GRT, built 1942),Ocean Verity (British, 7174 GRT, built 1942),Park Holland (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),San Adolfo (British (tanker), 7365 GRT, built 1935),Thomas Kearns (American, 7194 GRT, built 1943),Thomas Sim Lee (American, 7191 GRT, built 1942),William L. Marcy (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942) andWilliam Windom (American, 7194 GRT, built 1943).

The rescue vesselRathlin (British, 1600 GRT, built 1936) was also with the convoy.

On departure from the Kola Inlet the convoy was escorted by the destroyersHMS Milne,HMS Matchless,HMS Meteor,HMS Musketeer,HMS Opportune,HMS Virago,HMS Ashanti,HMCS Athabaskan,HMS Westcott,HMS Beagle (Lt.Cdr. N.R. Murch, RN), minesweeperHMS Jason (Cdr. H.G.A. Lewis, RN) and the corvettesHMS Dianella (T/Lt. J.F. Tognola, RNR) andHMS Poppy (T/Lt. D.R.C. Onslow, RNR).

Around 1830A/22, in position 69°29'N, 34°42'E, the merchant vesselThomas Kearns had to return to the Kola Inlet with engine defects.

Around 0100A/25, south of Bear Island, in position 73°57'N, 19°04'E,HMS Musketeer,HMS Matchless,HMS Opportune andHMS Virago were detached to join JW 55B. Shortly afterwards the convoy was ordered to proceed to the north-west.

On 26 December the convoy got partially scattered during a gale but later reassembled.

Around 1140A/26, in position 74°00'N, 09°05'E,HMCS Athabaskan (with condenser defects) andHMS Beagle were detached to Skaalefjord, Faeroer Islands to fuel where they arrived on the 29th. It had been impossible to fuel at sea.

On the 27th, attempts to fuel escorts were still unsuccesful.

Around 1200A/28, in position 69°18'N, 00°35'E,HMS Ashanti was detached to the Faeroer Islands to fuel.

In the early afternoon of the 29th,HMS Milne andHMS Meteor were detached to Scapa Flow.

Around 1941A/31, the minesweepersHMS Hound,HMS Hydra and the corvettesHMS Borage andHMS Wallflower finally joined the convoy. They had departed Skaalefjord around 1900A/29. They had been unable to make rendezvous with the convoy earlier due to the bad weather conditions.

On 31 DecemberHMS Westcott rejoined the convoy after fuelling at Skaalefiord.

AfterHMS Hound took over as Senior Officer of the escort in the evening of 31 December,HMS Seagull was detached for Scapa Flow.

The convoy arrived at Loch Ewe on 1 January 1944, escorted byHMS Acanthus,HMS Borage andHMS Wallflower.

HMS Hound andHMS Hydra had been detached to return to Skaalefiord where they arrived on 2 January 1944.

HMS Westcott,HMS Dianella andHMS Poppy had been detached to proceed to east coast ports to rejoin the Western Approaches Command. They arrived at their destinations on 2 January 1944.

Convoy RA 55B

This convoy departed the Kola Inlet (Murmansk) on 31 December 1943 for the U.K.

It was made up of the following merchant vessels;Empire Stalwart (British, 7045 GRT, built 1943),Fort Columbia (British, 7155 GRT, built 1942),Fort Poplar (British, 7134 GRT, built 1942),James Gordon Bennett (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942),San Ambrosio (British (tanker), 7410 GRT, built 1935) andThomas Kearns (American, 7194 GRT, built 1943).

On departure from the Kola Inlet the convoy was escorted by the destroyersHMS Onslow,HMS Onslaught,HMS Orwell,HMS Impulsive,HMCS Iroquois,HMCS Haida,HMCS Huron,HMS Whitehall,HMS Wrestler and the corvettesHMS Honeysuckle,HMS Oxlip andHMS Rhododendron (T/Lt. O.B. Medley, RNVR).

Around 1100A/1, in position 70°40'N, 38°42'E, the merchant vesselsDaldorch (British, 5571 GRT, built 1930) andLucerna (British (tanker), 6556 GRT, built 1930) joined coming from the White Sea. They were escorted by the minesweepersHMS Halcyon,HMS Hussar,HMS Speedwell which did not join the convoy but proceeded to the Kola Inlet where they arrived the following day.

Around 1100A/6, in position 65°44'N, 03°37'W,HMCS Huron,HMS Honeysuckle,HMS Oxlip andHMS Rhododendron fuelled at Skaalefjord and then departed to rejoin the convoy, exceptHMCS Huron which joined the destroyers listed below that parted company with the convoy on 7 January to proceed direct to Scapa Flow.

Around 0830A/7, the minesweepersReady (Cdr. A.V. Walker, RN) andOrestes (Lt.Cdr. A.W.R. Adams, RN) joined the convoy coming from Skaalefjord, Faeroer Islands.

Around 0830A/7, the minesweepersReady (Cdr. A.V. Walker, RN) andOrestes (Lt.Cdr. A.W.R. Adams, RN) joined the convoy coming from Skaalefjord, Faeroer Islands which they had departed around 0400A/7.

Around 1215A/7,HMS Onslow,HMS Onslaught,HMS Orwell,HMS Impulsive,HMCS Iroquois andHMCS Haida parted company with the convoy to proceed to Scapa Flow where they arrived later the same day.HMCS Huron had joined them around 1430A/7 after having fuelled at the Faeroer Islands.

Around 1920A/7,HMS Honeysuckle,HMS Oxlip andHMS Rhododendron rejoined the convoy after fuelling at the Faeroer Islands.

In the early afternoon of 8 January 1944, the convoy arrived at Loch Ewe escorted byHMS Ready andHMS Orestes.

HMS Whitehall,HMS Wrestler,HMS Honeysuckle,HMS Oxlip andHMS Rhododendron had parted company shortly before arrival to proceed to East coast ports to rejoin the Western Approaches Command.

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' Force 1 '

' Force 1 ' was the cruiser cover force for these convoy's. It was made up of the light cruisersHMS Belfast (Capt. F.R. Parham, RN, flying the flag of Vice-Admiral R.L. Burnett, CB, DSO, OBE, RN),HMS Sheffield (Capt. C.T. Addis, RN) and the heavy cruiserHMS Norfolk (Capt. D.K. Bain, RN).

Around 2100A/15, ' Force 1 ', departed Seidisfjord, Iceland to provide cover for Convoy JW 55A.

Around 0010C/20, ' Force 1 ', arrived in the Kola Inlet.

Around 0330C/23, ' Force 1 ', departed the Kola Inlet to provide cover for convoys RA 55A and JW 55B.

Around 1230C/26, ' Force 1 ', was joined by the destroyersHMS Musketeer,HMS Matchless,HMS Opportune andHMS Virago and ' Force 1 ' was in action with the German battlecruiserScharnhorst during whichHMS Sheffield andHMS Norfolk were damaged [see below for more info.]

Around 1700C/27, ' Force 1 ' arrived in the Kola Inlet to fuel and make temporary repairs to the damaged ships.

Around 2300C/29, ' Force 1 ' (HMS Belfast,HMS Sheffield andHMS Norfolk) departed the Kola Inlet for Scapa Flow where they arrived around 2315A/1.

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' Force 2 '

' Force 2 ' was the battle cover force for these convoy's. It was made up of the battleshipHMS Duke of York (Capt. G.H.E. Russell, CBE, RN, flying the flag of A/Admiral B.A. Fraser, KCB, KBE, RN), light cruiserHMS Jamaica (Capt. J. Hugh-Hallett, DSO, RN) and the destroyersHMS Savage (Cdr. R.C. Gordon, DSO, RN),HMS Saumarez (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Walmsley, DSC, RN),HMS Scorpion (Lt.Cdr. W.S. Clouston, RN) andHNoMS Stord (Lt.Cdr. S.V. Storheill).

Around 1300A/12, ' Force 2 ' had departed Scapa Flow for the Kola Inlet where it arrived around 1300C/16.

Around 0900C/18, ' Force 2 ', departed the Kola Inlet to provide cover from convoy JW 55A.

Around 1145Z/21, ' Force 2 ', arrived at Akureyri, Iceland. ' Force 2 ' was swept in by the minesweepersHMS Loyalty (Lt.Cdr. James Edward Maltby, RNR).

Around 2145Z/23, ' Force 2 ', departed Akureyri to provide cover for convoys JW 55B and RA 55A.

On 26 December 1943, ' Force 2 ' was in action with the German battlecruiserScharnhorst [see below for more info.]

Around 1245C/27, ' Force 2 ' arrived in the Kola Inlet to fuel and to make some repairs.

Around 1700C/28, ' Force 4 ', made up ofHMS Duke of York,HMS Jamaica,HMS Musketeer,HMS Matchless,HMS Opportune,HMS Virago,HMS Savage,HMS Scorpion andHNoMS Stord departed the Kola Inlet for Scapa Flow.HMS Saumarez was unable to sail, her action damage some more repairs.

Around 0930A/1, ' Force 4 ' arrived at Scapa Flow.

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Action with and sinking of the German battlecruiserScharnhorst, 26 December 1943.

Dispositions at 0400A/26.

At 0400A/26, the situation in the Bear Island area was as follows;

Westbound convoy RA 55A was about 220 nautical miles to the westward of Bear Island in approximate position 74°42'N, 05°27'E, steering 267°, speed 8 knots. This convoy was apparently still not detected by the enemy.

Eastbound convoy JW 55B was about 50 miles south of Bear Island in approximate position 73°31'N, 18°54'E, steering 070°, speed 8 knots.

' Force 1 ', the cruiser force, was in position 73°52'N, 27°12'E (some 150 nautical miles to the eastward of convoy JW 55B. They were steering 235° at 18 knots.

' Force 2 ', the battle force, was in position 71°07'N, 10°48'E, some 350 miles to the south-west of the cruisers. They were proceeding on course 080° at 24 knots. In the weather conditions the destroyers had difficulty keeping up and the bow ofHMS Duke of York was almost constantly under water.

Convoy JW 55B had been sighted and shadowed by aircraft for a while and when flying conditions deteriorated U-boats had been in contact with the convoy. Admiral Fraser had no doubt that this convoy would be the target for the German battlecruiserScharnhorst and the destroyersZ 29,Z 30,Z 33,Z 34 andZ 38 which were known to be at sea. He therefore decided to divert the convoy to the northward in order to increase the enemy's difficulties in finding it. This would entail breaking wireless silence and revealing the presence of covering forces but the decided that the safety of the convoy must be the primery object. At 0628A/26, Convoy JW 55B was ordered to steer 045° and ' Force 1 ' was ordered to close it for support.

' Force 1 ' altered course to 270° at 0712A/26 in order to approach the convoy from the southward and thus, in the event of action, to avoid steaming into the strong south-westerly wind and heavy seas. Course was held for an hour, and after receiving the position, course and speed of the convoy, course was altered to 300° at 0815A/26. Speed was increased to 24 knots.

Meanwhile the German battlegroup had continued to proceed northwards and at 0730 hours was in estimated position 73°52'N, 23°10'E. Soon afterwards the destroyers were detached to form a reconnaissance line 10 miles ahead of theScharnhorst. Some of the destroyers did not receive this order and as a result they moved ahead but the area of their search was not the one intended. At 0800 hours the German battlegroup altered course to 230°, probably on account of a submarine report on the position of the convoy. At this time the destroyers were some 10 miles ahead of the battlecruiser, spread approximately in line abreast but it seems that soon afterwards theScharnhorst turned to the north-eastward, and all communication between her and the destroyers broke down. Communication was restored two hours later but the destroyers never rejoined the battlecruiser.

First contact with the enemy.

At 0840A/26,HMS Belfast picked up a radar contact at 35000 yards, bearing 295°. TheBelfast's estimasted position was then 73°35'N, 23°21'E and Vice-Admiral Burnett reckoned the convoy was bearing 287°, 48 nautical miles from him. At the same time Capt. McCoy inHMS Onslow placed the enemy about 36 nautical miles, bearing 125°, from the convoy.

In theBelfast the range of the main echo decreased rapidly, and twenty minutes later - at 0900A/26 - a second echo was obtained, bearing 299°, 24500 yards. This second echo remained on a steady bearing till 0930A/26, when, from its estimated speed of 8-10 knots, the Vice-Admiral considered that it was probably a merchant ship from the convoy, and disregarded it. It may well have been, however, one of the enemy destroyers, detached to shadow the convoy.

At 0915A/26 the main echo bore 250°, 13000 yards, speed approximately 18 knots. At this time ' Force 1 ' was formed on a line of bearing 180°, in the orderHMS Belfast,HMS Sheffield andHMS Norfolk,HMS Belfast being the northern ship. The line of bearing had just been altered to 160°, when at 0921A/26,HMS Sheffield reported ' enemy in sight ' bearing 222°, 13000 yards. At 0924A/26,HMS Belfast opened fire with starshell and at 0929A/26, ' Force 1 ' was ordered to engage with main armament, course being altered 40° towards the enemy, to 265°.HMS Norfolk opened fire at a range of 9800 yards, but had to drop back to clear theBelfast's range. She continued firing till 0940 and obtained one git, with her second or third salvo, either on the crow's nest of the bridge port director, which caused several casualties, and possible a hit on the forecastle. The 6" cruisers did not fire during this phase of the action, nor did the enemy, whole altered course to about 150°, steaming at 30 knots. ' Force 1 ' altered to 105° at 0938A/26 and to 170° at 0946A/26 by which time the range had opened to 24000 yards and chased to the southward, but the enemy drew away and the range continued to increase.

At 0955A/26, theScharnhorst altered course to the north-east, and Vice-Admiral Burnett at once appreciated that she was trying to work round to the northward of the convoy for a second attempt to attack it. Possibly this was the result of an exhortation from Admiral Dönitz which appears to have been received and read to her ship's company around this time. In the prevailing weather conditions - wind force 7 to 8 from the southwest - ' Force 1's ' maximimum speed was 24 knots, and as that of the enemy appeared to be 4 to 6 knots faster the Vice-Admiral decided that he must get between theScharnhorst and the convoy. He therefore altered course to 305° at 1000A/26, and to 325° at 1014A/26, with result that six minutes later contact was lost with the enemy bearing 078°, 36000 yards, and steering to the north-east at about 28 knots.

Meanwhile the Commander-in-Chief had ordered Capt. McCoy, the escort commander, to turn the convoy to the northward at 0930A/26, and to send four destroyers to join ' Force 1 ' at 0937A/26.HMS Musketeer,HMS Matchless,HMS Opportune andHMS Virago were detached at 0951A/26. They joined Vice-Admiral Burnett at 1024A/26. By 1030A/26, when it was clear to the Commander-in-Chief that ' Force 1 ' had lost touch with the enemy, and he was again closing the convoy, he ordered convoy JW 55B to resume course 045°.

Second engagement of ' Force 1 '.

Half an hour after losing touch with the enemy ' Force 1 ' made radar contact with the convoy, bearing 324°, 28000 yards, at 1050A/1, and the cruisers commenced zigzagging 10 miles ahead of it, with the four destroyers disposed ahead as a screen.

At 1058A/1, the Commander-in-Chief informed Vice-Admiral Burnett that ' Force 2 ' wound have little chance of finding the enemy unless some unit regained touch with him and shadowed, but in view of the enemy's advantage in speed under the prevailing weather conditions, the Vice-Admiral ' rightly considered it undesirable to split his force by detaching one or more ships to search, feeling confident that the enemy would return to the convoy from the north or north-east '. An hour went by, and the Commander-in-Chief found himself faced with the difficult question of the destroyers fuel situation. He had ' either to turn back or go to the Kola Inlet, and if theScharnhorst had already turned for home, these was obviously no chance of catching him. This latter contingency was by no means improbable, for ' Force 2 ' had been shadowed from the starboard quarter by three enemy aircraft since about 1000A/26, and their reports had presumably been passed to theScharnhorst. Then, at 1205A/26, came a signal fromHMS Belfast reporting radar contact again with the enemy, and he knew that there was every prospect of cutting him off.

The convoy had remained on a course of 045° till just before noon, when Capt. McCoy, who had been ordered by the Commander-in-Chief at 1122 hours to use his discretion as to its course, altered to 125° in order to keep ' Force 1 ' between the convoy and the probable direction of the enemy.HMS Norfolk had reported a radar contact at 27000 yards at 1137A/26, but had lost it a few minutes later, and by noon, when the convoy was turning to 125°, ' Force 1 ' was in position 74°11'N, 22°18'E, steering 045°, 18 knots, with the convoy about 9 miles on the port quarter. Five minutes later (1205A/26),HMS Belfast radar picked up the enemy bearing 075°, 30500 yards. Vice-Admiral Burnett concentrated his four destroyers on his starboard bow, and at 1219A/26, altered course to 100°. The enemy course and speed was estimated at 240°, 20 knots. A minute later theScharnhorst appeared to alter course slightly to the westward and at 1221A/26,HMS Sheffield reported ' enemy in sight '. ' Force 1 ' immediately opened fire, and the destroyers were ordered to attack with torpedoes, but were unable to reach a firing position owing to the weather conditions, and the enemy's hurried retirement.

This second action, fought by the cruisers at ranges from 9000 to 16000 yards, lasted about 20 minute, and again theScharnhorst was ' most effectively driven off the convoy by Force 1's determined attack '. The enemy altered course from west round to south-east, increasing speed to 28 knots, and the range soon began to open. Several hits were claimed by the cruisers, but only one, which struck the port side aft and apparently failed to explode, was subsequently confirmed by prisoners.HMS Musketeer, however, which was herself engaging the enemy at a range of 4500 yards, consided there were others, and the prisoners agreed that the cruisers fire was unpleasantly accurate and filled the air with fragments.

At 1233A/26, 12 minutes after the action started,HMS Norfolk received two hits, one through the barbette of 'X' turret, which was put out of action, and one amidships. All radar, except Type 284, became unsericeable and these were several casualties. One officer and six ratings were killed and five seriously wounded. At the same time an 11" salvo straddledHMS Sheffield, and several pieces of shell, came inboard, fragments penetrated the ship at various points.

By 1241A/26, the enemy was on a course of 110° steaming 28 knots, and the range had opened to 12400 yards. Vice-Admiral Burnett decided to check fire, and to shadow with his whole force until theScharnhorst could be engaged by ' Force 2 '. He therefore increased speed to 28 knots, and at 1250A/26, the enemy range and bearing were steady at 13400 yards, 138°. The destroyers, to the westward of the cruisers, continued to pursue the enemy in line ahead, their range opeing to 20000 yards and then remaining steady.

Shadowing operations.

TheScharnhorst had by this time given up all idea of attacking the convoy and for the next three hours her course was to the south-east and south. As she was retiring on a course so favourable for interception by ' Force 2 ', Vice-Admiral Burnett did not re-engage, and kept his cruisers concentrated, shadowing by radar from just outside visual range, about 7.5 nautical miles and slightly to the eastward of the enemy's course. The four destroyers of ' Force 1 ', which owing to the heavy sea had been unable to close the enemy sufficiently to attack with torpedoes, was stationed to the westward by the Commander-in-Chief at about 1600A/26 to guard against theScharnhorst breaking back in that direction towards the convoy or Alten Fjord.

Despite her damageHMS Norfolk kept up with ' Force 1 ' throughout the afternoon, but at 1603A/26, she was obliged to reduce speed to fight a fire and a few minutes later, at 1607A/26,HMS Sheffield dropped back, reporting her port inner shaft out of action and speed reduced to 10 knots. By 1621A/26, she was able to proceed at 23 knots, but the delay and reduction of speed prevented her from rejoiningHMS Belfast until about 2100A/26. For the rest of the action she remained some 10 miles astern.HMS Norfolk was able to rejoinHMS Belfast around 1700A/26.

Movements of the German destroyers.

All this time, while theScharnhorst was being gradually haunded to her doom, the German destroyers had played a singularly ineffective part. After losting contact soon after 0800A/26, they continued on the south-westerly course (230°) to which the force had just turned, spread approximately five miles apart. No orders were received from the Flag Officer, Battle Group, until 1009A/26 - just after the close of the first action with Vice-Admiral Burnett's cruisers - when a signal was received directing the destroyers ' to advance into the immediate vicinity of the convoy '. To thisZ 29, the Flotilla Leader, replied that they were advancing according to plan, course 230°, speed 12 knots. Twenty minutes later, Admiral Bey had apparently come to the conclusion that the convoy was further to the north then that he had previously supposed, and at 1027 he ordered the Flotilla to alter course to 070° and to increase speed to 25 knots, an hour later (1135A/26) he ordered a further change of course to 030°.

At 0945A/26, a report from the submarineU-277 had been received in theScharnhorst placing the convoy in position 73°58'N, 19°30'E, but this seems to have been disregarded by Admiral Bey and it was not until two-and-a-half hours later (1218A/26), that he ordered the destroyers to operate in this area. Course was accordingly altered to 280° and the flotilla concentrated on the northern ship but it was too late and the convoy was well to the north-eastward of the position reported by the U-boat, though the destroyers must have passed within 10 miles of it at about 1300A/26 on passage to the new area, owing to Capt. McCoy's turn to the south-eastward at noon. On this Admiral Bey was unaware, and at 1418A/26, he ordered the destroyers to break off the operation and make for the Norwegian coast. With the excetion ofZ 33, which had become separated in the bad weather, the Flotilla - then some 16 nautical miles south-east of Bear Island - at once altered course to 180° and eventually entered Norwegian coastal waters at about 0200A/27.

Z 33 made her own way back, at 1810A/26, she sighted what was believed to be a straggler from the convoy. At this target she fired four torpedoes, which missed, and continued on her way to her base.

Movements of the Commander-in-Chief, Home Fleet ' Force 2 '.

Meanwhile ' Force 2 ', acting on reports of Vice-Admiral Burnett's cruisers, had been steering throughout the day to intercept. During the first two cruiser engagements the composition of the enemy's force was not clear to the Commander-in-Chief, but on confirmation by the Vice-Admiral that only one heavy unit was present, he decided to engage on similar courses, withHMS Jamaica in support, opening fire at about 13000 yards and detaching his destroyers to make a torpedo attack. At 1400A/26 he estimated that if the enemy maintained his course and speed, ' Force 2 ' would engage him at about 1715A/26, but theScharnhorst altered to the south soon afterwards, and at 1617A/26 theDuke of York's Type 273 radar picked her up at 45500 yards bearing 020°. The range closed rapidly, and soonHMS Belfast was picked up astern of the target. At 1632A/26, a quarter of an hour after the first contact, theDuke of York's Type 284 found the enemy at 29700 yards, apparently zig-zagging on a mean course of 160°. Five minutes later, the destroyers, which had formed sub-divisions on either bow of the flagship shortly after first contact, were ordered to take up most advantageous position for torpedo attack, but not to attack until ordered to do so. The destroyers had formed sub-divisions as follows,HMS Savage withHMS Saumarez andHMS Scorpion withHNoMS Stord.

At 1642A/26, the enemy seemed to alter course slightly to port and two minutes later ' Force 2 ' altered to 080° in order to open 'A' arcs. At 1647A/26,HMS Belfast opened fire with starshell, followed at 1648A/26 byHMS Duke of York. Those from the latter illuminated the enemy at 1650A/26. The Commander-in-Chief then made an enemy report and ' Force 2 ' opened fire with their main armament.

' Force 2 ' engages, 1650-1844 hours, 26 December 1943.

WhenHMS Duke of York andHMS Jamaica opened fire at 12000 yards. There was every indication that theScharnhorst was completely unaware of their presence, her turrets were reported trained fore and aft, she did not immediately reply to the fire of ' Force 2 ' and when she did her fire was erratic. Prisoners subsequently confirmed that she had made no radar contact during the approach of ' Force 2 '. They had been told they would not have to engage anything larger then a cruiser and were badly shaken when informed that a capital ship to the southward was engaging them.

TheScharnhorst altered round at once to the northward, and theDuke of York to 360° to follow and also to avoid torpedoes which the enemy, had he been on the alert, might have been fired. On this,HMS Belfast prepared to fire torpedoes, but theScharnhorst altered away to the eastward, probably with the double object of avoiding ' Force 1 ' and opening 'A' arcs, andHMS Belfast andHMS Norfolk then engaged her with their main armamant, steering northerly and north-easterly courses in order to prevent her breaking back to the north-westward, until 1712A/26, when she ran out of range, after firing two ineffective salvoes at the cruisers. Vice-Admiral Burnett continued to the north-north-west until 1720A/26, and it was then apparent that the enemy meant to escape to the eastward, gradually altered round to follow. Just then orders were received from the Commander-in-Chief to ' steer 140° ' and join him, and the cruisers steadied on a south-easterly course at 1727A/26.

The hunt was up, and for the next hour there was a chase to the eastward,HMS Duke of York andHMS Jamaica engaging at ranges which gradually increased, as the enemy's superior speed began to tell. By 1708A/26, theScharnhorst was steadily on an easterly course and engagingHMS Duke of York andHMS Jamaica with her main armamant. Her tactics were to turn to the southward, fire a broadside, and then turn on end-on away to the east till ready to fire the next salvo, making theDuke of York's gunners a problem.

By 1730A/26, the situation was as follows. To the south-west of the enemyHMS Duke of York andHMS Jamaica were engaging him and pursuing similar tactics. ' Force 2's ' destroyers - still well astern of him - were endeavouring to gain bearing to attack with torpedoes, taking individual avoiding action when fired on,HMS Savage andHMS Saumarez edging over to get on his port side whileHMS Scorpion andHNoMS Stord remained on the starbord side. To the north-west,HMS Musketeer,HMS Matchless,HMS Opportune andHMS Virago, which had turned at 1700A/26, was creeping up on a easterly course roughly parallel to that of the enemy and some miles to the northward. Further to the north-westHMS Belfast andHMS Norfolk were steering to the south-eastward to join the Commander-in-Chief, withHMS Sheffield some distance astern, and dropping owing to her reduced speed. What the German Admiral though of the situation may be judged from his signal to the German War Staff (timed 1724 hours); ' Am surrounded by heavy units '.

HMS Duke of York probably obtained hits with her first and third salvoes, which, accordingly to prisoners, were on the quarter deck close to ' C ' turret, and low down forward. This latter may have put ' A ' turret out of action as it did not fire again. Little is known about other hits during this first engagement, but it seems certain thatHMS Duke of York had obtained hits which may have caused some underwater damage that eventually reduced theScharnhorst speed.HMS Jamaica claimed on hit.

TheScharnhorst's gunfire was erratic to begin with but later improved as the range increased. Between ranges of 17000 - 20000 yardsHMS Duke of York was straddled several times. Her hull was not hit but both masts were shot through by 11" shells which fortunately did not explode.

By 1742A/26, the range had opened to 18000 yards andHMS Jamaica then ceased fire, her blind fire at this range considered of doubtful value and liable to confuse theDuke of York's radar spotting. At this time all the cruisers were out of range, and the destroyers had not yet been seriously engaged by the enemy. The gun duel betweenHMS Duke of York and theScharnhorst continued till 1820A/26 when the enemy ceased firing at 20000 yards, and reduced speed, though this was not immediately apparent. At the same time the Commander-in-Chief decided to turn south-eastward towards the Norwegian coast, in the hope she would also lead round and so to give his destroyers a chance to attack. At 1824A/26, the range having opened to 21400 yards,HMS Duke of York checked fire. She had fired 52 broadsides, of which 31 have been reported as straddles and 16 as within 200 yards of the enemy.

Just at this moment theScharnhorst was sending her final signal - a message from Admiral Bey to the Führer - ' We shall fight to the last shell '. This was the last report the German Naval Staff received from her as to her fate, though no doubt they were able to draw their conclusions three-quarters of an hour later (1919A/26) when they intercepted a British signal ' Finish her off with torpedoes '.

First destroyer attack, 1850 hours, 26 December 1943.

At 1824A/26, the Commander-in-Chief was of the opinion that theScharnhorst might escape and much depended on the four 'S-class' destroyers to damage of sink her. Since 1713A/26, when they had been ordered to attack, they had been gradually gaining bearing on theScharnhorst, but their progress was very slow and their chances of attack depended on a radical alteration of course by their quarry. Then, at 1820A/26, when they had closed to 12000 yards they started to forge ahead. The enemy had reduced speed. By 1840A/26, the first sub-division (HMS Savage andHMS Saumarez), astern of the enemy, and the second sub-division (HMS Scorpion andHNoMS Stord), on his starboard beam, had each closed to about 10000 yards. Some three minutes earlier, the Commander-in-Chief, observing on his radar plot the enemy's reduction of speed, had altered course directly towards her, and was beginning to close rapidly.

TheScharnhorst opened a fairly heavy, though ineffective, fire onHMS Savage andHMS Saumarez, which they returned when the range closed to 7000 yards. As these two approached from the north-westward, drawing the enemy's fire,HMS Scorpion andHNoMS Stord were closing in apparently unseen, and certainly unengaged from the south-eastward. At 1849A/26, starshells fromHMS Savage illuminated the enemy, and she was seen to be turning to the southward. TheScorpion andStord immediately swung to starboard, each firing eight torpedoes at 2100 and 1800 yards respectively.HMS Scorpion claimed one hit,HNoMS Stord none, probably due to theScharnhorst combing the latter's tracks. Both destroyers were engaged by the enemy's secondary and light armament while retiring, the the firing was wild and inflicted no damage. They returned the fire and scored several hits on the superstructure. TheScharnhorst continued to alter round to starboar after this attack till on a south-westerly course, thus placingHMS Savage andHMS Saumarez in an excellent position on her starboard bow. Her movements could be followed clearly in the light of their starshell, andHMS Savage withHMS Saumarez on her starboard quarter, hastily training their torpedo tubes to starboard, turned in to attack at 1855A/26, coming under heavy fire from the enemy's entire armament as they did so.HMS Savage fired eight torpedoes from 3500 yards, butHMS Saumarez received damage which prevented her training one set of tubes, and got off only four from 1800 yards. Subsequent analysis credited there attacks with three hits altogether. The destroyers then withdrew to the northward, engaging theScharnhorst as they did so. Fortunately damage toHMS Saumarez was all above the waterline. Shells had passed through her director and rengefinders without exploding, but she had suffered considerably from splinters which reduced her speed to 10 knots on one engine only. One officer and ten ratings were killed and eleven ratings were wounded.

Second engagement of ' Force 2 '.

As the destroyers withdrew to the northward,HMS Duke of York andHMS Jamaica coming up from the south-west, re-engaged at a range of 10400 yards, opening fire at 1901A/26. Hits were immediately scored, while the enemy continued to fire at the retiring destroyers.HMS Norfolk, too joined in from the northward, but had difficulty in finding the right target, and checked fire after a couple of salvoes. After five minutes, when theScharnhorst had been repeatedly hit and fires and flashes from exploding ammunition were flaring up, she shifted her secondary armament fire toHMS Duke of York at a range of about 8000 yards. During this second action she apparently engagedHMS Duke of York andHMS Jamaica with only part of her main armament, and that intermittently.

The battle was then approaching its end. Between 1901A/26 and 1926A/26 the enemy's speed fell drastically from 20 to about 5 knots. At 1915A/26,HMS Belfast opened fire on her at a range of 17000 yards, and a few minutes later she steadied on a northerly course. About this time (1919A/26) the Commander-in-Chief orderedHMS Jamaica andHMS Belfast to close the enemy, who was then almost stationary, and to sink her with torpedoes.HMS Duke of York continued firing - getting of 25 broadsides, of which 21 were straddles - till 1928A/26, when she checked fire to enable the cruisers, which had altered course towards the enemy to diliver their torpedo attacks. According to prisonersHMS Duke of York had obtained at least 10 hits.

Torpedo attacks byHMS Belfast andHMS Jamaica.

In theScharnhorst - battered by gunfire and crippled by four torpedoes - resistance was pracically at an end as the cruisers closed in from north and south. Prisoners subsequently stated that after sending their final signal to Hitler, assuring him that theScharnhorst would fight to the last shell, the Admiral and Captain had shot themselves on the bridge but this could not be confirmed.

HMS Jamaica fired three torpedoes to port (one of which misfired) at 1925A/26 from 3500 yards but claimed no hits as the enemy's speed appeared to have been underestimated. Two minutes laterHMS Belfast also fired three torpedoes, one of which may have git, though this was subsequently considered unlikely. Both cruisers then hauled round to fire their remaining tubes. MeanwhileHMS Jamaica scored several hits with her main and secondary armamant. TheScharnhorst replied with wild fire from her secondary armamant and light weapons which did no damage and had ceased firing altogether when at 1937A/26, at a range of 3750 yards,HMS Jamaica fired three torpedoes to starboard at the enemy, broadside on and almost stopped. The result could not be seenm as the target was completely hidden by smoke, but underwater explosions were heard after the correct time interval, and it is probable that two torpedoes took effect. Two minutes earlier (1935A/26),HMS Belfast had turned to fire her port torpedoes but thenHMS Musketeer,HMS Matchless,HMS Opportune andHMS Virago arrived at the scene andHMS Belfast retired to the south to await developments.

Torpedo attacks by the 36th Destroyer Division.

The 36th Division, made up ofHMS Musketeer,HMS Matchless,HMS Opportune andHMS Virago, starting the chase well to the westward of the other forces, had been tracking the enemy by radar and slowly gaining bearing on a parallel course to the northward throughout the action. The destroyers now closed in sub-divisions (HMS Musketeer withHMS Matchless andHMS Opportune withHMS Virago) from the north and astern. At 1930A/27 they commenced their attacks,HMS Musketeer andHMS Matchless from the port side andHMS Opportune andHMS Virago from the starboard side.HMS Opportune fired two salvoes of four torpedoes each at 1931A/26 and 1933A/26 from range of 2100 and 2500 yards. She claimed two hits.HMS Virago followed her in, and at 1934A/26 fired seven torpedoes from 2800 yards. Two hits were observed and the sub-division then retired to the westward withHMS Virago firing on the enemy as long as possible.

On the port side,HMS Musketeer fired four torpedoes from 1000 yards at 1933A/26 and observed two and possibly three hits and then withdrew to the westward.HMS Matchless could not fire as her torpedo tubes training had been effected by a heavy sea. She therefore hauled round without firing and then came in to attack again from the enemy's port bow, but before she could fire theScharnhorst had sunk. She then joinedHMS Scorpion in picking up survivors. The German ship was last seen around 1938A/26 though no ship saw her actually sinking. This most probably occured at 1945A/26 when a large underwater explosion was felt.

For the next hour,HMS Belfast,HMS Norfolk and most of the destroyers searched the area for survivors. In all only thirty were picked up in the heavy weather from the icy waters byHMS Scorpion and six byHMS Matchless. No officer was among them. The most senior was the equivalant rating of Acting Petty Officer.

Conclusion.

Around 2100A/26,HMS Sheffield rejoined ' Force 1 ' and all forces in the area were ordered to proceed independently to the Kola Inlet where they all arrived unmolested the next day.

(50)

31 Dec 1943
The destroyersHMS Onslow (Capt. J.A. McCoy, DSO, RN),HMS Onslaught (Cdr. W.H. Selby, DSC, RN),HMS Orwell (Lt.Cdr. J.M. Hodges, DSO, RN),HMS Impulsive (Lt.Cdr. P. Bekenn, RN),HMCS Iroquois (Cdr. J.C. Hibbard, DSC, RCN),HMCS Haida (Cdr. H.G. De Wolf, RCN) andHMCS Huron (Lt.Cdr. H.S. Rayner, DSC, RCN),HMS Whitehall (Lt.Cdr. P.J. Cowell, DSC, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN), minesweepersHMS Halcyon (T/A/Lt.Cdr. L.J. Martin, RNVR),HMS Hussar (Lt.Cdr. R.C. Biggs, DSO, DSC, RN),HMS Speedwell (Lt.Cdr. T.E. Williams, RD, RNR) and the corvettesHMS Honeysuckle (Lt. H.H.D. MacKillican, DSC, RNR),HMS Oxlip (Lt. C.W. Leadbetter, RNR) andHMS Rhododendron (T/Lt. O.B. Medley, RNVR) departed the Kola Inlet as escorts for convoy RA 55B.

[For more information, see the event ' Operation FV, passage of convoys JW 55A and JW 55B to Northern Russia and RA 55A and RA 55B from Northern Russia and the sinking of the German battleship Scharnhorst ' for 12 December 1943.] (51)

12 Jan 1944

Operation FW, passage of convoys JW 56A and JW 56B from the U.K. to Northern Russia as well as convoy RA 56 from Northern Russia to the U.K.

Convoy JW 56A

This convoy departed Loch Ewe on 12 January 1944 for Northern Russia.

It was made up of the following merchant vessels;Aert van der Neer (Dutch, 7170 GRT, built 1942),Andrew G. Curtin (American, 7200 GRT, built 1943),Charles Bulfinch (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Charles Scribner (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Edwin L. Drake (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Empire Ploughman (British, 7049 GRT, built 1943),Fort Bellingham (British, 7153 GRT, built 1942),Fort Slave (British, 7134 GRT, built 1942),Jefferson Davis (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942),John A. Quitman (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Joseph N. Nicollet (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Nathaniel Alexander (American, 7177 GRT, built 1942),Noreg (Norwegian (tanker), 7605 GRT, built 1931),Penelope Barker (American, 7177 GRT, built 1942),Richard H. Alvey (American, 7191 GRT, built 1942),San Adolfo (British (tanker), 7365 GRT, built 1935),San Cirilo (British (tanker), 8012 GRT, built 1937),Thorstein Veblen (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),William Tyler Page (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943) andWoodbridge N. Ferris (American, 7200 GRT, built 1943).

On departure from Loch Ewe the convoy was escorted by the destroyerHMS Inconstant (Lt.Cdr J.H. Eaden, DSC and Bar, RN), sloopHMS Cygnet (Lt.Cdr.(Retd.) F.B. Proudfoot, RN), corvettesHMS Borage (Lt. W.S. MacDonald, DSC, RNVR),HMS Dianella (T/Lt. J.F. Tognola, RNR),HMS Poppy (T/Lt. D.R.C. Onslow, RNR),HMS Wallflower (Lt. G.R. Greaves, RNR) and the minesweepersOrestes (Lt.Cdr. A.W.R. Adams, RN) andReady (Cdr. A.V. Walker, RN).

On 15 January 1944,HMS Cygnet was detached to Skaalefjord, Faeroer Islands with a defective propeller. She arrived at Skaalefjord the following day.

Also on the 15th, the convoy got badly scattered in a heavy gale.

On 16 January 1944, the destroyersHMS Savage (Cdr. R.C. Gordon, DSO, RN) andHNoMS Stord (Lt.Cdr. S.V. Storheill) joined the convoy from Seidisfjord which they had departed earlier the same day.

Also on the 16th, the merchant vesselsCharles Bulfinch,Jefferson Davis,John A. Quitman,Joseph N. Nicollet andNathaniel Alexander turned back to Loch Ewe.

Also on the 16th the destroyersHMS Hardy (Capt. W.G.A. Robson, DSO, DSC, RN),HMS Venus (Cdr. J.S.M. Richardson DSO, RN),HMS Vigilant (Lt.Cdr. L.W.L. Argles, RN),HMS Virago (Lt.Cdr. A.J.R. White, RN),HMS Offa (Lt.Cdr. R.F. Leonard, RN) andHMS Obdurate (Lt.Cdr. C.E.L. Sclater, DSO and Bar, RN) left Seidisfiord to join the convoy.

On the 17th,HMS Savage returned to Seidisfjord to fuel, sailing A.M. to rejoin the convoy.

Later on the 17th,HMS Inconstant also returned to Seidisfjord to fuel, sailing P.M. to rejoin the convoy.

Also on the 17th, all merchant ships and were escorts ordered to proceed to Akureyri to reassemble the convoy and await better weather.HMS Hardy,HMS Venus,HMS Vigilant,HMS Virago,HMS Offa andHMS Obdurate returned to Seidisfiord to fuel as did the corvettesHMS Dianella andHMS Poppy arrived Seidisfiord to fuel.

On the 18th,HMS Hardy,HMS Venus,HMS Vigilant,HMS Virago,HMS Offa andHMS Obdurate departed Seidisfjord for Akureyri as didHMS Dianella andHMS Poppy.

Also on the 18thHMS Savage,HNoMS Stord andHMS Inconstant arrived at Akureyri, possible ahead of the convoy. The convoy also arrived at Akureyi escorted byHMS Borage,HMS Wallflower,HMS Orestes andHMS Ready.

On 21 January 1944, the convoy (now made up of 15 ships) and escorted byHMS Hardy,HMS Venus,HMS Vigilant,HMS Virago,HMS Savage,HNoMS Stord,HMS Offa andHMS Obdurate,HMS Inconstant,HMS Dianella,HMS Poppy,HMS Orestes andHMS Ready left Akureyri to continue it's passage to Northern Russia.

On 22 January 1944,HMS Orestes andHMS Ready parted company with the convoy for Skaalefjord where they arrived the following day.

On 25 January 1944, German submarines made contact with the convoy. Several attacks of which most were made with T-5 homing torpedoes on the escort vessels. The following German submarines made contact with the convoyU-278,U-314,U-360,U-425,U-601,U-716,U-737 andU-957. The results of these attacks were that first,HMS Obdurate was damaged when a T-5 torpedo, fired byU-360 exploded in her wake, one shaft was out of action. She was however to remain with the convoy. Later, on her return to England for repairs it was found out that damage was more severe then initially thought and she was out of action for more then a year. Later in the evening the merchant vesselPenelope Barker was torpedoed and sunk byU-278,HMS Savage picked up 56 surivors.

On 26 January, shortly after midnight, the merchant vesselFort Bellingham was torpedoed and damaged byU-360 and shortly afterwards the merchant vesselAndrew G. Curtin was torpedoed and sunk byU-716, 68 survivors were picked up byHMS Inconstant. The damagedFort Bellingham fell behind the convoy and was later finished off byU-957. The survivors were picked up byHMS Offa.

Also on 26 January 1944, a local escort made up of the Russian destroyersGremyashchiy,Gromkiy,Razyarenniy, British minesweepersHMS Gleaner (Lt.Cdr. F.J.G. Hewitt, DSC and Bar, RN),HMS Speedwell (Lt.Cdr. T.E. Williams, RD, RNR) and the Russian minesweepersT-111,T-114 andT-117 departed the Kola Inlet to join the convoy.

On the 27th, the local escort joined the convoy and took over the White Sea section of 9 ships which was to proceed to Archangelsk where they arrived on the 29th.

The Murmansk section of 3 ships with the original escort arrived in the Kola Inlet on the 27th.

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Convoy JW 56B

This convoy departed Loch Ewe on 22 January 1944 for Northern Russia.

It was made up of the following merchant vessels;Abner Nash (American, 7177 GRT, built 1942),Albert C. Ritchie (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Charles A. McAllister (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Edward L. Grant (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Empire Tourist (British, 7062 GRT, built 1943),Fort Crevecoeur (British, 7191 GRT, built 1943),Fort Norfolk (British, 7131 GRT, built 1943),Henry Bacon (American, 7177 GRT, built 1942),Henry Lomb (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Henry Wynkoop (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942),John H.B. Latrobe (American, 7191 GRT, built 1942),John La Farge (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Paul Hamilton Hayne (American, 7177 GRT, built 1942),Robert Lowry (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Samuel McIntyre (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Willard Hall (American, 7200 GRT, built 1943) andWinfred L. Smith (American, 7191 GRT, built 1943).

On departure from Loch Ewe the convoy was escorted by the destroyersHMS Westcott (Lt.Cdr.(Retd.) H. Lambton, RN),HMS Whitehall (Lt.Cdr. P.J. Cowell, DSC, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt.Cdr. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN), sloopHMS Cygnet, corvettesHMS Honeysuckle (Lt. H.H.D. MacKillican, DSC, RNR),HMS Oxlip (Lt. C.W. Leadbetter, RNR),HMS Rhododendron (T/Lt. O.B. Medley, RNVR) and the minesweepersHydra (T/A/Lt.Cdr. C.T.J. Wellard, RNR) andHMS Onyx (T/A/Lt.Cdr. C.C.L. Gaussen, RNVR).

Shortly after departure the merchant vesselHenry Lomb returned to Loch Ewe.

On the 24th, the destroyersHMS Mahratta (Lt.Cdr. E.A.F. Drought, DSC, RN) andHMS Scourge (Lt.Cdr. G.I.M. Balfour, RN) departed Seidisfjord to join the convoy.

On the 25th,HMS Westcott andHMS Whitehall were detached and arrived at Seidisfiord to fuel. AlsoHMS Mahratta andHMS Scourge returned to Seidisfiord.

On the 26th,HMS Rhododendron was detached from the convoy and arrived at Seidisfiord. She was not to rejoin the convoy.

Having completed fuellingHMS Westcott andHMS Whitehall departed from Seidisfiord and rejoined the convoy.

The destroyersHMS Milne (Capt. I.M.R. Campbell, DSO, RN),HMS Mahratta,HMS Musketeer (Cdr. R.L. Fisher, OBE, RN),HMS Opportune (Cdr. J. Lee-Barber, DSO and Bar, RN),HMS Scourge andHMCS Huron (Lt.Cdr. H.S. Rayner, DSC, RCN) departed Seidisfiord and joined the convoy.

HMS Wrestler andHMS Onyx were detached and proceeded to Seidisfiord. They arrived there on the 27th.

HMS Honeysuckle was detached from the convoy to the Clyde

HMS Hydra was detached from convoy to Scapa Flow.

Also on the 26th, the convoy sighted and reported by enemy aircraft.

On the 27th, the destroyerHMS Meteor (Lt.Cdr. D.J.B. Jewitt, RN) departed Skaalefjord. She joined the convoy on the 28th.

On the 28th, the destroyersHMS Hardy,HMS Venus,HMS Vigilant,HMS Virago,HMS Savage,HNoMS Stord andHMS Offa departed the Kola Inlet to the convoy. They joined the convoy on the 29th.

On the 29th, German U-boats were in contact with the convoy. These wereU-472,U-636 andU-956. Of theseU-636 was depth charged byHMS Inconstant andHMS Offa, they claimed to have possibly destroyer a U-boat but in factU-636 was not damaged.U-956 twice attacked escort vessels with a T-5 homing torpedo but both did not hit a target. She was twice taken under fire, first byHMS Mahratta andHMS Whitehall and later byHMS Inconstant. She was also depth charged byHMS Inconstant andHMS Offa.

On 30 January 1944, U-Boats continued to attack the convoy.HMS Hardy was heavily damaged byU-278 with a T-5 Gnat acoustic torpedo. This hit was also claimed byU-957 andU-472 which had also fired T-5 torpedoes aroud the same time.U-472 in fact missedHNoMS Stord.HMS Hardy could not be salvaged and she was scuttled with a torpedo fromHMS Venus. The detonation of the torpedo was heard byU-601 which had fired a T-5 torpedo around this time and thought her torpedo had hit one of the escorts.

More action with U-boats on the 30th included, depth charging ofU-278 byHMS Whitehall.U-313 attacked an escort vessel with a T-5 torpedo and was subsequently depth charged byHMS Vigilant andHMS Savage, she managed to escape without damage.U-314 was sunk by depth charges fromHMS Inconstant.U-425 twice attacked escort vessels with a T-5 torpedo. After the second attack she was depth charged byHMS Venus.U-601 attacked the convoy with two torpedoes but no hits had been obtained. This was before the attack lised above.U-737 attacked the destroyerHMS Milne with a T-5 torpedo which did not hit the target. Later in the day she made another attack with a T-5 torpedo but this torpedo also failed to hit a target. Following this attack she was depth charged byHMS Inconstant andHNoMS Stord.U-739 was depth charged byHMS Inconstant andHMS Offa, she managed to escape without damage.U-965 attacked an escort vessel with a T-5 torpedo which did not hit, following this attack she was depth charged byHMS Venus but she escaped without damage.

On 31 January attacks by U-boats continued.U-278 was detected and depth charged by escorts but was not damaged.U-472 was depth charged byHMS Virago but was not damaged.U-956 attack an escort vessel with a T-5 torpedo but no hit was obtained, following the attack she was depth charged but was not damaged.U-957 was detected on the surface byHMS Inconstant which then opened fire on her, the U-boat submerged and was then attacked with depth charges but she managed to escape without damage.U-990 attacked an escort vessel with a T-5 torpedo but it missed.

On 1 February the convoy split. The White Sea (Archanglesk) section of 6 merchant vessels proceeded with a local escort which had joined from the Kola Inlet. This local escort was made up of the Russian destroyersGremyashchiy,Grozniy,Razyarenniy, British minesweeperHMS Gleaner, Russian minesweepersT-111 andT-117 and the Russian patrol vesselsBO-201 andBO-210.

The other merchant vessels (10) made up the Kola Inlet (Murmansk) section (10 ships) arrived in the Kola Inlet with the British escort.

On 2 February the White Sea section arrived at Archangel.

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Convoy RA 56

This convoy departed the Kola Inlet on 3 February 1944 for Loch Ewe.

It was made up of the following merchant vessels;British Statesman (British (tanker), 6991 GRT, built 1923),Brockholst Livingston (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942),Cardinal Gibbons (American, 7191 GRT, built 1942),Collins P. Huntington (American, 7177 GRT, built 1942),Daniel Willard (American, 7200 GRT, built 1942),Empire Archer (British, 7031 GRT, built 1942),Empire Lionel (British, 7030 GRT, built 1942),Empire Pickwick (American, 7068 GRT, built 1943),Eugene Field (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Fort Astoria (British, 7189 GRT, built 1943),Fort Hall (British, 7157 GRT, built 1943),Fort Kullyspell (British, 7190 GRT, built 1943),Fort Missanabie (British, 7147 GRT, built 1943),Fort Nakasley (British, 7132 GRT, built 1943),Fort Thompson (British, 7134 GRT, built 1942),Fort Verscheres (British, 7128 GRT, built 1942),George Weems (American, 7191 GRT, built 1942),Harold L. Winslow (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Horace Gray (American, 7200 GRT, built 1943),James A. Farrell (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),James Woodrow (American, 7200 GRT, built 1942),John Fitch (American, 7181 GRT, built 1942),John J. Abel (American, 7191 GRT, built 1943),John Vining (American, 7191 GRT, built 1942),John Wanamaker (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Lewis Emery Jr. (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Noreg (Norwegian (tanker), 7605 GRT, built 1931),Norlys (Panamanian (tanker), 9892 GRT, built 1936),Ocean Gypsy (British, 7178 GRT, built 1942),Ocean Messenger (British, 7178 GRT, built 1942),Ocean Pride (British, 7173 GRT, built 1942),Ocean Valour (British, 7174 GRT, built 1942),Ocean Viceroy (British, 7174 GRT, built 1942),Philip Livingston (American, 7176 GRT, built 1941),Stage Door Canteen (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Thistledale (British, 7241 GRT, built 1942),Thomas Scott (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942),Thomas U. Walter (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943) andWill Rogers (American, 7200 GRT, built 1942).

On departure from the Kola Inlet the convoy was escorted by the destroyersHMS Inconstant,HMS Westcott,HMS Whitehall,HMS Milne,HMS Mahratta,HMS Meteor,HMS Musketeer,HMS Offa,HMS Opportune,HMS Savage,HMS Scourge,HNoMS Stord,HMS Venus,HMS Vigilant,HMCS Huron, sloopHMS Cygnet, minesweepersHMS Gleaner, Halcyon,HMS Hussar (Lt.Cdr. R.C. Biggs, DSO, DSC, RN),HMS Seagull (T/A/Lt.Cdr. R.W Ellis, DSC, RNR),HMS Speedwell and the corvettesHMS Dianella,HMS Oxlip andHMS Poppy.

The destroyersHMS Verulam (Lt.Cdr. W.S. Thomas, DSC, RN),HMS Swift (Lt.Cdr. J.R. Gower, RN) andHMS Obedient (Lt.Cdr. H. Unwin, DSC and Bar, RN) left Skaalefiord to rendezvous with convoy RA 56 near Bear Island.

On 5 December, two merchant ships of the convoy, theEmpire Pickwick andPhilip Livingston, which were unable to keep up, returned to Kola Inlet withHMS Gleaner andHMS Seagull.

On 6 December,HMS Verulam,HMS Swift andHMS Obedient joined the convoy.

On 7 DecemberHMS Venus,HMS Vigilant,HMS Savage,HMS Offa andHMS Opportune were detached from the convoy to proceed to Scapa Flow.

On 8 December the destroyerHMS Wrestler, corvettesHMS Borage,HMS Honeysuckle,HMS Wallflower and the minesweepersHMS Cockatrice (A/Lt.Cdr. C.W. Armstrong, RNR),HMS Loyalty (Lt.Cdr. James Edward Maltby, RNR),HMS Ready andRattlesnake (Lt.Cdr. A.E. Coles, RD, RNR) departed Skaalefiord to join the convoy which they did on the 9th.

Also on the 9th,HMS Milne,HMS Mahratta,HMS Meteor,HMS Musketeer,HMS Verulam,HMS ScourgeHNoMS Stord,HMS Swift,HMS Obedient,HMCS Huron andHMS Inconstant were detached to Scapa Flow.

On 10 February 1944, the convoy was split up off Cape Wrath with most of the ships arriving at their destinations the following day.

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Cover for convoy JW 56A and JW 56B was provided by ' Force 1 ' which was made up of the heavy cruisersHMS Kent ((Capt. G.A.B. Hawkins, DSC, MVO, RN, flying the flag of Rear Admiral A.F.E. Palliser, CB, DSC, RN),HMS Berwick (Capt. H.J. Egerton, RN) and the light cruiserHMS Bermuda (Capt. T.H. Back, RN). They departed Akureyri on 23 January.HMS Berwick however returned later the same day due to defects.

On 28 January 1944,HMS Kent andHMS Bermuda returned to Akureyri.

On 3 February ' Force 1 ', includingHMS Berwick which had completed repairs, departed Akureyri to cover convoy RA 56 between meridians 28'E and 5'E keeping to west of 15'E.

They patrolling in their assigned area from 5 to 7 February.

On 9 February 1944, ' Force 1 ' arrived at Scapa Flow. (52)

1 Mar 1944
HMS Sealion (Lt.Cdr. N.J. Coe, DSC, RNR) conducted attack exercises for the C.O.Q.C. (Commanding Officers Qualifying Course) in the Clyde area withHMS Wrestler (Lt.Cdr. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN) andHMS Kingfisher (T/Lt. F.D. Betts, RNR). (53)

2 Mar 1944
HMS Sealion (Lt.Cdr. N.J. Coe, DSC, RNR) conducted night attack exercises for the C.O.Q.C. (Commanding Officers Qualifying Course) in the Clyde area withHMS Proteus (Lt. H.D. Verschoyle, DSC, RN).These night attack exercises were follewed by attack exercises during whichHMS Wrestler (Lt.Cdr. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN) andHMS Kingfisher (T/Lt. F.D. Betts, RNR) served as the targets. (53)

27 Mar 1944

Convoy JW 58.

This convoy departed Loch Ewe on 27 March 1944 and arrived in the Kola Inlet on 4 April 1944.

On departure the convoy was made up of the following merchant vessels;Andrew Carnegie (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942),Arunah S. Abell (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Barbara Frietchie (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Benjamin H. Latrobe (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942),Benjamin Schlesinger (American, 7176 GRT, built 1944),Charles Gordon Curtis (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942),Charles Henderson (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Dolabella (British, 8142 GRT, built 1939),Edward P. Alexander (American, 7201 GRT, built 1943),Empire Prowess (British, 7058 GRT, built 1943),Fort Columbia (British, 7155 GRT, built 1942),Fort Hall (British, 7157 GRT, built 1943),Fort Kullyspell (British, 7190 GRT, built 1943),Fort Vercheres (British, 7128 GRT, built 1942),Fort Yukon (British, 7153 GRT, built 1943),Francis Scott Key (American, 7191 GRT, built 1941),Francis Vigo (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),George Gale (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942),George M. Cohan (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),George T. Angell (American, 7176 GRT, built 1944),Grace Abbott (American, 7191 GRT, built 1942),Hawkins Fudske (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Henry Villard (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942),James Smith (American, 7181 GRT, built 1942),John B. Lennon (American, 7198 GRT, built 1943),John Carver (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942),John Davenport (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942),John McDonogh (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Joseph N. Nocollet (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Joshua Thomas (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Joyce Kilmer (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Julien Poydras (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Lacklan (British (tanker), 8670 GRT, built 1929),Morris Hillquit (American, 7210 GRT, built 1944),Nicholas Biddle (American, 7191 GRT, built 1942),Noreg (Norwegian (tanker), 7605 GRT, built 1931),Pierre S. Dupont (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942),Thomas Sim Lee (American, 7191 GRT, built 1942),Townsend Harris (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),W.R. Grace (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),William D. Byron (American, 7210 GRT, built 1944),William Matson (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),William McKinley (American, 7200 GRT, built 1943),William Moultrie (American, 7177 GRT, built 1942),William Pepper (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943) andWilliam S. Thayer (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943).

The rescue vesselRathlin (British, 1600 GRT, built 1936) was also with the convoy.

On departure from Loch Ewe the convoy was escorted by the destroyersHMS Westcott (Cdr.(Retd.) H. Lambton, RN),HMS Whitehall (Lt.Cdr. P.J. Cowell, DSC, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt.Cdr. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN),HMS Inconstant (Lt.Cdr J.H. Eaden, DSC and Bar, RN), minesweepersRattlesnake (Lt.Cdr. A.E. Coles, RD, RNR),Orestes (Lt.Cdr. A.W.R. Adams, RN),HMS Onyx (T/A/Lt.Cdr. C.C.L. Gaussen, RNVR) and the corvettesHMS Bluebell (Lt. G.H. Walker, DSC, RNVR),HMS Honeysuckle (T/Lt. J.A. Wright, RNR),HMS Lotus (Lt. C.S. Thomas, RNR),HMS Rhododendron (T/Lt. O.B. Medley, RNVR) andHMS Starwort (Lt. A.H. Kent, RNR).

On 28 March 1944, the light cruisersHMS Diadem (Capt. E.G.A. Clifford, RN, flying the flag of flying the flag of Rear-Admiral F.H.G. Dalrymple-Hamilton, CB, RN),USS Milwaukee (T/Capt. C.F. Fielding, USN), escort carriersHMS Activity (Capt. G. Willoughby, RN),HMS Tracker (A/Capt. J.H. Huntley, RN) and the destroyersHMS Venus (Cdr. J.S.M. Richardson DSO, RN),HMS Scorpion (Lt.Cdr. W.S. Clouston, RN),HMS Serapis (Lt.Cdr. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) andHNoMS Stord (Lt.Cdr. S.V. Storheill) departed Scapa Flow to join the convoy which they did on 29 March.

The sloopsHMS Starling (Capt. F.J. Walker, CB, DSO and 2 Bars, RN),HMS Wild Goose (Lt.Cdr. D.E.G. Wemyss, DSC and Bar, RN),HMS Whimbrel (Lt.Cdr. W.J. Moore, DSC, RNR),HMS Wren (Lt.Cdr. S.R.J. Woods, RNR) andHMS Magpie (Lt.Cdr. R.S. Abram, RN) departed Scapa Flow also on 28 March to join the convoy which they too did on 29 March.

On 29 March 1944, the destroyersHMS Saumarez (Capt. P.G.L. Cazalet, DSC, RN),HMS Onslow (Capt. J.A. McCoy, DSO, RN),HMS Oribi (Lt.Cdr. J.C.A. Ingram, DSC and Bar, RN),HMS Offa (Lt.Cdr. R.F. Leonard, RN),HMS Obedient (Lt.Cdr. H. Unwin, DSC and Bar, RN),HMS Opportune (Cdr. J. Lee-Barber, DSO and Bar, RN),HMS Orwell (Lt.Cdr. J.M. Hodges, DSO, RN),HMS Impulsive (Lt.Cdr. P. Bekenn, RN),HMS Beagle (Lt.Cdr. N.R. Murch, RN),HMS Boadicea (Lt.Cdr. F.W. Hawkins, RN),HMS Keppel (Cdr. I.J. Tyson, DSC, RD, RNR) andHMS Walker (Lt.Cdr. A.N. Rowell, RN) departed Skaalefiord, Iceland and joined the convoy.

On 29 March 1944, the German submarineU-961 was sunk near the convoy byHMS Starling.

Also on 29 March, two more merchant ships joined the convoy, these were theGilbert Stuart (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943) andJohn T. Holt (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943) coming from Reykjavik, Iceland. The merchant vesselEloy Alfaro (American, 7176 GRT, built 1944) had also sailed with them but had to return and proceeded to Seidisfjord before she could join the convoy due to ice damage. She arrived at Seidisfjord on the 30th. These ships were escorted by the frigateHMS Fitzroy (Lt. C.D.C. McNeil, RNVR) and the minesweepersHMS Chamois (T/A/Lt.Cdr. D.P. Richardson, RNVR) andHMS Chance (T/Lt. P.P. Lees, RNVR). These escorts did not join the convoy.

Also on 29 March the minesweepersHMS Rattlesnake,HMS Onyx,HMS Orestes and the corvetteHMS Starwort parted company with the convoy. The minesweepers proceeded to Skaalefjord, Faeroer Islands arriving there later the same day.HMS Starwort proceeded to Londonderry arriving the on the 30th.

On 30 March four German shadowing aircraft were shot down by fighters from the escort carriers which themselves lost two aircraft.

On 31 March the German submarineU-673 was damaged byHMS Beagle and aircraft fromHMS Tracker.

On 2 April two German shadowing aircraft were shot down by fighters from the escort carriers. Also the German submarineU-360 was sunk by Hedgehog attack fromHMS Keppel.

On 3 April the German submarineU-288 was sunk by aircraft from the escort carriers.

ON 4 April, the convoy (39 ships) was split into two sections, one proceeded to the Kola Inlet arriving later the same day with the original escort. The other (with 10 ships), with a local escort which joined on this day to the White Sea where it arrived on the 6th. This local escort was made up of the Russian destroyersGremyashchiy,Razumniy,Razyarenniy andValerian Kyubishev.

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Distant cover for this convoy was provided by a battleforce known as ' Force 1 ', it departed Scapa Flow around 1200A/30 and was made up of the battleshipsHMS Duke of York (Capt. G.H.E. Russell, RN, flying the flag of Admiral B.A. Fraser, GCB, KBE, RN),HMS Anson (Capt. E.D.B. McCarthy, DSO and Bar, RN flying the flag of Vice-Admiral H.R. Moore, KCB, DSO, CVO, RN), aircraft carrierHMS Victorious (Capt. M.M. Denny, CB, CBE, RN), light cruiserHMS Belfast (Capt. F.R. Parham, DSO, RN) and the destroyersHMS Onslaught (Cdr. the Hon. A. Pleydell-Bouverie, RN),HMS Javelin (Lt.Cdr. P.B.N. Lewis, DSC, RN),ORP Piorun (Kmdr.ppor. (Cdr.) T. Gorazdowski),HMCS Algonquin (Lt.Cdr. D.W. Piers, DSC, RCN) andHMCS Sioux (A/Lt.Cdr. E.E.G. Boak, RCN).

Around 0250A/31, the destroyersHMS Milne (Capt. I.M.R. Campbell, DSO, RN),HMS Marne (Lt.Cdr. P.A.R. Withers, DSO, RN),HMS Matchless (Lt.Cdr. E.N. Walmsley, DSC and Bar, RN),HMS Meteor (Lt.Cdr. D.J.B. Jewitt, RN),HMS Undaunted (Lt.Cdr. A.A. Mackenzie, RD, RNR) andHMS Ursa (Cdr. D.B. Wyburd, DSC, RN) joined coming from Skaalefjord, Faeroer Islands.

Around 0340A/31, the original destroyer screen were detached to Skaalefjord arriving there later the same day.

On 2 April ' Force 1 ' proceeded to join ' Force 2 ' coming from Scapa Flow for the upcoming Operation Tungsten. (52)

4 Apr 1944
The light cruiserHMS Diadem (Capt. E.G.A. Clifford, RN, flying the flag of flying the flag of Rear-Admiral F.H.G. Dalrymple-Hamilton, CB, RN),USS Milwaukee (T/Capt. C.F. Fielding, USN), escort carriersHMS Activity (Capt. G. Willoughby, RN),HMS Tracker (A/Capt. J.H. Huntley, RN), destroyersHMS Venus (Cdr. J.S.M. Richardson DSO, RN),HMS Scorpion (Lt.Cdr. W.S. Clouston, RN),HMS Serapis (Lt.Cdr. E.L. Jones, DSC, RN) andHNoMS Stord (Lt.Cdr. S.V. Storheill),HMS Saumarez (Capt. P.G.L. Cazalet, DSC, RN),HMS Onslow (Capt. J.A. McCoy, DSO, RN),HMS Oribi (Lt.Cdr. J.C.A. Ingram, DSC and Bar, RN),HMS Offa (Lt.Cdr. R.F. Leonard, RN),HMS Obedient (Lt.Cdr. H. Unwin, DSC and Bar, RN),HMS Opportune (Cdr. J. Lee-Barber, DSO and Bar, RN),HMS Orwell (Lt.Cdr. J.M. Hodges, DSO, RN),HMS Impulsive (Lt.Cdr. P. Bekenn, RN),HMS Beagle (Lt.Cdr. N.R. Murch, RN),HMS Boadicea (Lt.Cdr. F.W. Hawkins, RN),HMS Keppel (Cdr. I.J. Tyson, DSC, RD, RNR),HMS Walker (Lt.Cdr. A.N. Rowell, RN),HMS Westcott (Cdr.(Retd.) H. Lambton, RN),HMS Whitehall (Lt.Cdr. P.J. Cowell, DSC, RN),HMS Wrestler (Lt.Cdr. R.W.B. Lacon, DSC, RN),HMS Inconstant (Lt.Cdr J.H. Eaden, DSC and Bar, RN), sloopsHMS Starling (Capt. F.J. Walker, CB, DSO and 2 Bars, RN),HMS Wild Goose (Lt.Cdr. D.E.G. Wemyss, DSC and Bar, RN),HMS Whimbrel (Lt.Cdr. W.J. Moore, DSC, RNR),HMS Wren (Lt.Cdr. S.R.J. Woods, RNR),HMS Magpie (Lt.Cdr. R.S. Abram, RN) and the corvettesHMS Bluebell (Lt. G.H. Walker, DSC, RNVR),HMS Honeysuckle (T/Lt. J.A. Wright, RNR),HMS Lotus (Lt. C.S. Thomas, RNR) andHMS Rhododendron (T/Lt. O.B. Medley, RNVR) arrived in the Kola Inlet with convoy JW 58.

7 Apr 1944

Convoy RA 59 / Operation FY.

This convoy departed the Kola Inlet on 7 April 1944. The passage of this convoy to the U.K. was known as Operation FY.

The convoy was made up of the following merchant vessels;Alexander White (American, 7191 GRT, built 1942),British Valour (British (tanker), 6952 GRT, built 1927),Byron Darnton (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Caesar Rodney (American, 7191 GRT, built 1942),Charles Bulfinch (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943,Charles M. Schwab (American, 7191 GRT, built 1943),Daphnella (British (tanker), 8078 GRT, built 1938),Edward Sparrow (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Empire Celia (British, 7025 GRT, built 1943),Fort McMurray (British, 7133 GRT, built 1942),Fort Romaine (British, 7131 GRT, built 1943),Henry B. Brown (American, 7200 GRT, built 1943),Henry Lomb (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Jefferson Davis (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942),John A. Donald (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),John A. Quitman (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),John Ruthledge (American, 7181 GRT, built 1942),John Sharp Williams (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),John Stevenson (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),John W. Powell (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),John Woolman (American, 7191 GRT, built 1943),Joshua W. Alexander (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Lord Delaware (American, 7200 GRT, built 1942),Louis D. Brandeis (American, 7200 GRT, built 1943),Lucerna (British (tanker), 6556 GRT, built 1930),Marie M. Meloney (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Mijdrecht (Dutch (tanker), 7493 GRT, built 1931),Nathan Towson (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Nathaniel Alexander (American, 7177 GRT, built 1942),Ocean Strength (British, 7173 GRT, built 1942),Philip F. Thomas (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Richard M. Johnson (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Robert J. Collier (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Stevenson Taylor (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943),Thomas Hartley (American, 7176 GRT, built 1942) andWilliam H. Webb (American, 7176 GRT, built 1943).