Background
Events - June-November 1941
Invasion of
Russia, Malta Convoys, Japan prepares for war
1941
Monday,
1 September
Heavy cruiser SHROPSHIRE
with destroyers SOMALI, MATABELE, and PUNJABI
(Force L) arrived off Seidisfjord at 0500, but in heavy
fog only PUNJABI was
able to enter port, arriving at 1045. The others ships
proceeded to
rendezvous with Force M (heavy cruiser DEVONSHIRE group)
in 74N 8E. PUNJABI departed Seidisfjord at
1300 to rejoin Force L.
_____
Light cruiser NIGERIA,
destroyers ICARUS, ANTELOPE, ANTHONY with liner
EMPRESS OF CANADA arrived at Gronfjord
from Archangel to embark Norwegians from Spitzbergen.
_____
Convoy ON.12 departed
Liverpool
1 September, escorts:
|
|
joined
|
detached
|
|
1st
|
corvette
HEARTSEASE, anti-submarine
trawlers ANGLE, CAPE WARWICK, ST
APOLLO.
|
|
|
2nd
|
anti-submarine
trawler DANEMAN
|
|
|
4th
|
destroyers
AMAZON, AMBUSCADE, BELMONT, BULLDOG,
corvettes ACONIT, AUBRETIA, NIGELLA
|
AMBUSCADE
|
|
7th
|
destroyer
BROADWAY, corvettes COBALT, POLYANTHUS
|
HEARTSEASE,
ANGLE, CAPE
WARWICK, ST APOLLO, DANEMAN, AMAZON,
BELMONT,
BULLDOG, ACONIT, AUBRETIA, NIGELLA
|
|
10th
|
destroyer
RAMSEY, armed merchant cruiser
WORCESTERSHIRE, corvettes BUTOUCHE, GALT
|
BROADWAY,
COBALT,
POLYANTHUS
|
|
14th
|
|
RAMSEY,
WORCESTERSHIRE, BUTOUCHE, GALT
|
|
convoy dispersed 14 September
|
_____
British trawler HAZEL,
Belgian trawler VAN OOST and
tanker OLIGARCH arrived at Sveagruva, and departed on
the 3rd.
Following operations EGV One and Two, these ships,
plus destroyer
ESCAPADE arrived at Reykjavik on the 14th.
_____
Destroyer BEDOUIN arrived
at Scapa Flow at 1830 after refitting.
_____
Destroyer ASHANTI was
docked at Rosyth to correct a defect developed
on passage to Scapa Flow.
_____
The United States Navy
assumed patrol of the Denmark
Strait with battleships IDAHO, MISSISSIPPI, NEW MEXICO
(two of these were on patrol at a time),
heavy cruisers WICHITA, TUSCALOOSA, and destroyers of
Destroyer Squadron 2 -
MORRIS (Flag), ANDERSON, HAMMANN, RUSSELL, SIMS, WALKE,
CHARLES F HUGHES,
O'BRIEN, MUSTIN and Destroyer Division 22, GWIN
(Flag), GRAYSON,
MEREDITH and MONSSEN.
_____
The flag of Commander in
Chief, Mediterranean
Fleet, was transferred to the battleship QUEEN
ELIZABETH, while Vice Admiral
Commanding First Battle Squadron transferred to
battleship BARHAM.
_____
Motor torpedo boats MTB.68
and MTB.215 arrived at Alexandria from Haifa, but
both were out of action due to numerous
serious defects. Trawler VULCAN, the MTB's depot ship,
arrived at Alexandria on the 2nd.
_____
Submarine UPHOLDER arrived
at Malta from patrol.
_____
An Italian convoy of
steamers ANDREA GRITTI
(6338grt), RIALLTO (6099grt), VETTOR PISANI (6339grt),
FRANCESCO BARBARO
(6343grt), SABASTIANO VENIER (6311grt) departed Naples
escorted by destroyers DA RECCO, DARDO, FOLGORE,
and STRALE. At 0025/3rd, ANDREA GRITTI was sunk
in an attack by nine
British Swordfish of 830 Swordfish from Malta south,
southeast of Cape
Spartivento. In the same
attack, FRANCESCO BARBARO was
damaged by 830 Squadron Swordfish, but taken in tow by
destroyer DARDO and
escorted by destroyers ASCARI and LANCIERE to Messina.
The remainder of the convoy arrived at Tripoli on the
4th.
_____
Submarine OTUS departed
Malta with stores, mail and 15 passengers, and later
that day, unsuccessfully attacked an armed merchant
cruiser in 35-40N,
18-07E. She arrived at Alexandria on the 11th.
Tuesday,
2 September
Force M, aircraft carrier
VICTORIOUS, heavy
cruisers SUFFOLK, DEVONSHIRE and destroyers ECLIPSE,
ESCAPADE, INGLEFIELD,
ELECTRA, ACTIVE and IMPULSIVE departed Sardam Bay after
refuelling for a raid
on a German convoy off Hammerfest on the 3rd. Senior
Officer Force M
transferred his flag from DEVONSHIRE to
VICTORIOUS from 1 to 4
September when he returned to the heavy cruiser. At
0540/3rd, the force was
sighted by German reconnaissance and the rendezvous with
Force L was changed
to 75-25N, 6-50E.
_____
Light cruiser NIGERIA with
destroyers ICARUS, ANTELOPE, ANTHONY and
liner EMPRESS OF CANADA arrived at Isfjord from
Archangel.
Light cruiser AURORA
departed Sveagruva on the 2nd
for Gronfjord.
Trawler ELM with four
Norwegian prizes departed
Gronfjord on the 3rd for Akureyri. The ships all arrived
on the 10th to coal.
They departed Akureyri on the 12th for Reykjavik,
arriving on the 14th.
The Spitzbergen community
was embarked on the
EMPRESS OF CANADA and the town demolished. On the
3rd, the cruisers,
destroyers, and the liner departed Spitzbergen for the
Clyde.
On the 4th, the cruisers
were detached from the
force.
At 0100/6th, light cruiser
PENELOPE departed Scapa Flow to rendezvous with the
ships in 62N, 05W at 1800.
Destroyer LIGHTNING
departed Scapa Flow at 2200/6th to rendezvous with the
force.
LIGHTNING and ICARUS escorted the liner to the Clyde, arriving at 2300/7th. ANTELOPE and ANTHONY were detached to
Scapa Flow, arriving at
1000/7th. Off Cape Wrath, PENELOPE was detached and
returned to Scapa Flow, arriving on the 7th.
_____
Heavy cruiser LONDON
arrived at Hvalfjord from Scapa Flow, via Akureyri.
_____
Light cruiser SHEFFIELD
was detached from convoy WS.11 and proceeded to Scapa
Flow, arriving on the 4th.
_____
Light cruiser EURYALUS
departed Scapa Flow for Rosyth to change a propeller,
and arrived on
the 3rd.
_____
Destroyer ESKIMO departed
London at 1500 on completion of refitting and arrived at
Sheerness at 1845. On the 5th, she departed
Sheerness for Scapa Flow, arriving at 1515/6th.
_____
Free French destroyer LA
CORDELIERE ran aground in
Scottish waters and damaged her anti-submarine dome.
_____
P/T/Midshipman (A) J. F.
Williams RNVR, was killed
when his Hurricane of 759/760 Squadron crashed near
North Petherton.
_____
Anti-submarine trawler
CAPE
PALLISER (497grt) on Northern Patrol reported an enemy ship 20 miles 25° from
62N, 17W. Heavy cruiser BERWICK and light cruiser
KENYA at
Scapa Flow was
brought to one hour's notice and heavy cruiser LONDON at
Hvalfjord was ordered to stand by. This was
later cancelled when it was determined the ship was a
motor vessel.
_____
Convoy OS.5 departed
Liverpool, escorted by destroyers MANSFIELD and
WOLVERINE
which were detached on the 8th.
Sloop ENCHANTRESS and
escort vessel HARTLAND joined
on the 3rd and were detached on the 17th. Escort vessel
WALNEY joined on the
6th and was detached on the 17th.
On the 17th, destroyer
BRILLIANT, corvettes
AMARANTHUS and ASPHODEL, and anti-submarine trawler
SARABANDE joined. The
destroyer, corvette AMARANTHUS, and the trawler were
detached on the 18th.
Corvette ASPHODEL was detached on the 20th. The convoy
arrived at Freetown on the 21st.
_____
German steamer OSLEBSHAUSEN
(4989grt) was
sunk by a torpedo near Obrestad. As this does not
correspond to any noted
sinking, she was presumably lost on a mine.
_____
Convoy HG.72 departed
Gibraltar escorted by
destroyers BOREAS, FARNDALE, VIDETTE, and WILD SWAN,
sloop LEITH, fighter
catapult ship MAPLIN, and corvettes CAMPION, CAMPANULA,
BLUEBELL, WALLFLOWER,
and HYDRANGEA.
The catapult ship and
destroyer VIDETTE were
detached later on the 2nd.
Destroyer BOREAS was
detached to refuel at Ponta Delgada, then rejoined and
escorted the convoy to Londonderry.
Destroyers CROOME and VIMY
departed Gibraltar on the 4th to join the convoy.
Destroyer CROOME
then to convoy OG.73.
On the 7th, destroyers
FARNDALE and WILD SWAN were
detached to refuel at Ponta Delgada and then join convoy OG.73. Sloop
ROCHESTER and corvettes
CARNATION, LA MALOUINE, HELIOTROPE,
and MALLOW departed Gibraltar on the 4th and joined the
convoy on the 8th.
Sloop DEPTFORD joined the
convoy on the 10th, sloop
SANDWICH, French sloop COMMANDANT DOMINE, and
anti-submarine yacht PHILANTE joined on the 11th.
Destroyers CALDWELL,
VANOC, VOLUNTEER, and WALKER
joined on the 12th.
On the 14th, a Hurricane
from catapult ship MAPLIN
drove off a German Fw.200 bomber one hundred miles south
of Ireland. Sub Lt C. W. Walker baled out and was picked
up
by sloop ROCHESTER.
On the 15th, sloop
DEPTFORD was detached.
The convoy arrived at
Liverpool on the 17th.
_____
Submarine URSULA arrived
at Malta from patrol east of Tripoli.
_____
Submarine TRIUMPH arrived
at Malta from patrol off the north coast of Sicily.
_____
Convoy ST.2 departed
Freetown, escorted by corvettes ARMERIA and ASPHODEL,
and arrived
at Takoradi on the 7th.
Wednesday,
3 September
Aircraft carrier
VICTORIOUS's air strike in
Operation EGV.1 against Tromso was canceled due to the
lack of cloud cover.
_____
Minelayer MANXMAN arrived
from Loch Alsh. The
minelayer, escorted by light cruiser KENYA and destroyer
LIGHTNING, departed
Scapa Flow at 1000 to laid minefield EH off Stadtlandet
during the night of
3/4 September.
The force arrived back at
Scapa Flow at 0015/5th.
The minelaying cruiser
departed Scapa Flow later on the 5th to return to Loch
Alsh.
_____
Submarine TRIDENT,
returning to Polyarnoe,
unsuccessfully attacked U.566.
_____
Destroyer WOLFHOUND was
damaged by a near miss of a
German air bomb in the North
Sea.
The destroyer was under
repair for nineteen months
at Chatham.
_____
U.567 sank British steamer
FORT
RICHEPANSE (3485grt) in 52-15N, 21-10W.
The steamer was slightly
damaged by German bombing
seven hours before U.567's attack.
Thirty six crew and five
passengers were lost on
the steamer. Polish destroyer PIORUN picked up twenty
six survivors and
destroyer GARLAND one survivor.
_____
Destroyer ENCOUNTER
departed Gibraltar for South Africa, via the Cape. She
refuelled at Ponta
Delgada and
then joined battlecruiser REPULSE escorting convoy
WS.11.
The destroyer operated off
East Africa for a time.
Destroyer ENCOUNTER
arrived at Alexandria on 16 October for operations with
the
Mediterranean Fleet.
_____
Battleship VALIANT, light
cruiser HOBART, and
destroyers were at sea exercising from Alexandria during
the day.
_____
Submarine OTUS attacked a
southbound convoy in
35-40N, 18-07E.
The submarine reported two
hits on a steamer.
_____
Dutch submarine O.23
departed Gibraltar for
Dundee for
refitting from 23 September to 4 February 1942.
_____
Greek submarine
PAPANICOULIS, on passage from Alexandria to Port Said
for docking, broke down.
The submarine was towed
back to Alexandria arriving during the night of 3/4
September. It was
determined the submarine would be out of action for at
least two months.
_____
Greek destroyer PANTHER
departed Port Said to return to Alexandria after repairs
at Suez.
_____
Italian steamer COMMANDANT
BAFILE (1790grt) was
lost when she ran aground near Cape
Comino, Sardinia.
Thursday,
4 September
Forces M and L
rendezvoused for Operation STRENGTH.
_____
Destroyers BEDOUIN and
VIVACIOUS departed Scapa
Flow at 2100 to meet battleship KING GEORGE V at Oxcars
Gate and provide
escort for her to Scapa Flow on the 5th.
_____
Minelayer PORT QUEBEC,
escorted by destroyer NEWARK, laid minefield SN.23 A.
_____
Destroyer RIPLEY ran
aground off Flamborough Head.
The destroyer was towed
off the same day. She
received temporary repairs at Grimsby until 25 September
and permanent repairs at Middlesbrough to 15 March.
_____
British steamer ABBAS
COMBE (489grt) was sunk by
German bombing five miles north, northwest of Bardsey
Island.
Four crew were missing on
the steamer.
_____
Dutch steamer TON S.
(466grt) was damaged by German
bombing in 52-58N, 4-55W.
The steamer arrived at
Newport on the 6th for drydocking.
_____
American destroyer GREER
was cooperating with a
British aircraft west, southwest of Iceland.
The aircraft dropped two
depth charges at U.652
which took them to be from the destroyer.
The submarine fired a
torpedo at destroyer GREER.
Destroyer WATCHMAN joined
briefly at 1415 and was
then detached.
_____
An Italian convoy of
steamers SIRENA (974grt),
SPARVIERO (498grt), and IMPERIA (222grt), escorted by
torpedo PALLADE and
CENTAURO, departed Tripoli for Benghazi.
Torpedo boat PALLADE was
detached on the 5th.
On the 7th, Submarine
THUNDERBOLT sank steamer
SIRENA fifty miles west of Benghazi.
_____
Australian destroyer
VENDETTA arrived at Port Said for escort duties to
Famagusta.
The destroyer escorting
British steamer SALAMAUA
arrived on the 6th. The destroyer then proceeded to
Haifa.
_____
Destroyers KINGSTON and
HASTY departed Beirut for Haifa.
_____
British steamer HARPALYCUS
(5629grt) was damaged by
German bombing off Ashrafi Reef, Gulf of Suez.
British
steamers
CITY OF AUCKLAND (8336grt), ROSS (4978grt), and KING
EDGAR (4536grt) were also
attacked, but were not damaged.
Steamer HARPALYCUS arrived
at Suez on the 5th.
_____
Corvettes FLEUR DE LYS and
AZALEA departed Gibraltar escorting tanker CORDELIA and
steamer DEUCALIOIN
westwards, then meeting tanker INVERLEE for inward
escort.
The corvettes and tankers
INVERLEE and BRITISH
FREEDOM arrived at Gibraltar on the 13th.
_____
Anti-submarine trawlers
LADY SHIRLEY and LADY
HOGARTH departed Gibraltar to meet tanker NOREG for
inward escort.
The trawlers arrived at
Funchal on the 9th; LADY
SHIRLEY under tow with condenser problems.
The tanker arrived at
Gibraltar on the 10th, escorted by corvette JONQUIL.
_____
Submarine
SEVERN arrived at Gibraltar
from Atlantic patrol.
_____
Submarine UNBEATEN arrived
at Malta from patrol in the Straits of Messina.
_____
Convoy SL.86 departed
Freetown escorted by sloop EGRET to 24 September and
corvettes ASTER and BURDOCK to 7 September. On the 7th,
escort vessel BANFF joined to to 24 September and on the
8th, escort vessel
FISHGUARD joined to 24 September.
Ocean boarding vessel
HILARY joined on the 18th to
25 September.
Destroyers BROKE, CHELSEA,
and MANSFIELD joined on
the 22nd to 26 September. Destroyer VANSITTART escorted
the convoy on the
24th only.
The convoy arrived at
Liverpool on the 26th.
_____
Convoy HX.148 departed
Halifax, escorted by armed merchant cruiser ALAUNIA and
corvettes LETHBRIDGE, SHEDIAC, and SHERBROOKE. The
corvettes were relieved on7 September by
destroyer RICHMOND and corvettes BITTERSWEET, CANDYTUFT,
and FENNEL.
Corvettes BITTERSWEET and CANDYTUFT were detached on the
10th and destroyer RICHMOND and corvette FENNEL on the
11th. On the 12th,
destroyers MONTGOMERY, WHITEHALL, WINCHELSEA, and WITCH, corvettes ABELIA, ANEMONE, and VERONICA, and
anti-submarine trawler ST ZENO joined the escort.
Destroyer BOADICEA joined
on the 13th and destroyer WITCH was detached. Destroyers
BEAGLE and SHIKARI
joined on the 14th and destroyer MONTGOMERY was
detached. On the 15th,
destroyer BOADICEA, the armed merchant cruiser and
corvette ANEMONE was
detached. Destroyers BEAGLE and SABRE and corvettes
ABELIA and VERONICA were
detached. The convoy arrived at Liverpool on the
17th.
Friday,
5 September
Battleship KING GEORGE V
with destroyers BEDOUIN,
VIVACIOUS, and VERDUN departed Rosyth at 0930 for Scapa
Flow.
Destroyer LAFOREY departed
Scapa Flow at 1230 to relieve destroyer VERDUN off
Kinnaird Head. Destroyer VERDUN, on relief, returned to
Rosyth.
The battleship and
destroyers BEDOUIN, VIVACIOUS,
and LAFOREY arrived at Scapa
Flow at 2012.
_____
Light cruisers NIGERIA and
AURORA refuelled from oiler OLIGARCH and
departed Seidisfjord to operate against German shipping
off Norway.
On the 7th at 0130, they
attacked a German convoy
of German steamers BARCELONA (3101grt) and TRAUTENFELS
(6418grt), escorted by
German gunnery ship BREMSE, in an inlet east of North
Cape.
German ship BREMSE was
sunk in the action.
Light cruiser NIGERIA was
badly damaged during the engagement, probably striking
a Soviet mine.
Light cruiser NIGERIA was
able to proceed only at eight knots.
Destroyers BEDOUIN and
ESKIMO departed Scapa Flow at 0230for Seidisfjord and
proceeded from that
port to meet the cruisers. The destroyers met the
cruisers at 2000/9th.
Heavy cruiser LONDON
departed Hvalfjord at 0430/9th to assist cruiser
NIGERIA, but was recalled at 2322 to return to Hvalfjord
for operations against German heavy cruiser ADMIRAL
SCHEER.
All four ships arrived at
Scapa Flow at 2000/10th.
At 1700/11th, cruiser
NIGERIA, escorted by destroyers LAMERTON and BADSWORTH
departed Scapa Flow for the Tyne. En route,
destroyers HOLDERNESS and MEYNELL, which departed
Sheerness at 1100/11th,
relieved the destroyers off May Island at 0600/12th.
The damage to NIGERIA was
arrived in the Tyne on the 12th. She was repaired at
Newcastle, completing on
15 December.
_____
Destroyers ELECTRA and
ACTIVE arrived at Murmansk at 0730/5th. The destroyers
sailed at 1800 that
day for Archangel.
_____
Monitor EREBUS, escorted
by motor launch ML.188,
departed Scapa Flow at 1600 for Lerwick to carry out
special trials in
the Shetlands.
The two ships arrived at
Lerwick at 1530/6th for
trials expected to take six days.
_____
Convoy ON.13 departed
Liverpool eoscted by corvette VERONICA. The convoy was
joined on the 6th by destroyers DOUGLAS, LEAMINGTON,
SALADIN, SKATE, and VETERAN, corvettes ABELIA and
ANEMONE, and anti-submarine trawlers ST KENAN, ST ZENO,
and VIZALMA.
Destroyer LEAMINGTON and trawler VIZALMA were detached
on the 8th and
destroyers DOUGLAS, SALADIN, SKATE, and VETERAN on the
9th. The remaining
escorts remained with the convoy until it was dispersed
on the 11th.
_____
Destroyer LINCOLN arrived
at Scapa Flow at 1700 after escort duty in convoy ON.10
to refuel
and carry out degaussing trials.
Destroyer LINCOLN departed
Scapa Flow at 1330/6th to join convoy FS 588 and provide
additional escort to the Thames.
_____
U.501 sank Norwegian
steamer EINVIK (2000grt),
which was straggling behind convoy SC.41,at 60-38N,
31-18W. The entire crew
were rescued.
_____
Italian submarine BARACCA
sank Panamanian steamer TRINIDAD (434grt) in 46-06N, 17-04W.
Ten crew reached Oporto
after twenty days in open boats.
_____
Dutch submarine O.21 sank
Italian steamer ISARCO
(5738grt) twenty eight miles southeast of Ischia in 42-48N, 9-58E.
The submarine picked up
twenty two survivors from
the steamer and arrived back at Gibraltar on the
12th.
_____
Submarine PERSEUS damaged
Italian tanker MAYA
(3867grt) from a convoy of Rumanian steamer BALCIK and
tanker MAYA, escorted
by torpedo boat SIRIO, which departed Piraeus for the
Dardanelles on the
4th, off the Dardanelles in 39-43N, 25-57E.
Because the steamer could
not be towed, she was
beached.
_____
An Italian convoy of
steamers ERNESTO (7272grt),
COL DI LANA (5891grt), and POZARICA (7751grt) departed
Tripoli for Naples, escorted by destroyers DA RECCO,
FRECCIA,
FOLGORE, and STRALE. The escort was joined on the 7th by
torpedo boat CIRCE.
Twenty miles north of
Pantelleria, on the 7th,
steamer ERNESTO was damaged by Dutch submarine O.21.
Steamer ERNESTO with
destroyer STRALE and torpedo
boat CIRCE arrived at Trapani
on the 8th. The convoy arrived at Naples later on the
8th.
_____
Submarine OSIRIS departed
Malta for Alexandria with stores and twelve passengers.
The submarine arrived on
the 12th.
_____
American steamer STEEL
SEAFARER (5718grt) was sunk
by German bombing two hundred miles south of Suez near
Shadwan
Island.
Twenty four survivors had
reached Shadwan
Island by boat. These survivors were picked up by anti-aircraft ship
COVENTRY. A further twelve
crewman had reached Hurghada by
boat. No crew were lost.
_____
South African
anti-submarine trawler PROTEA arrived
at Suez from South Africa to join the 22nd Anti
Submarine Trawler Group.
_____
Convoy SC.43 departed
Sydney, CB, escorted by armed
merchant cruiser AUSONIA and corvettes ARVIDA, BARRIE,
DAUPHIN, and HEPATICA. The armed merchant cruiser
was detached on the 8th and destroyer READING and
corvette PRESCOTT joined. On the 16th, destroyer READING
and
corvettes HEPATICA and PRESCOTT
were detached. Destroyers KEPPEL, SABRE, and VENOMOUS
joined on the 16th and
destroyers CAMPBELTOWN, ST
ALBANS, and WESTCOTT
joined on the 18th. The convoy arrived at Liverpool on
the 20th.
_____
Heavy cruiser HAWKINS
arrived at Durban.
_____
New Zealand light cruiser
LEANDER departed Sydney with British liner AQUITANIA
(45,747grt).
The ships arrived at
Wellington on the 8th.
Saturday,
6 September
Minesweeping trawler
STRATHBORVE (216grt, T/Lt A.
W. Johnston RNR) was sunk on a mine in the Humber.
Johnston and three ratings
were killed. T/Lt W. G. Lewis
RNVR, died of wounds. Ten ratings were
missing.
_____
Destroyers CHESTERFIELD
and BURNHAM collided in St John's Harbour.
There was no serious
damage to destroyer CHESTERFIELD. The destroyer departed
St Johns with convoys HX.149/SC 44 to Iceland. The
destroyer arrived at Portsmouth on 6 October for
refitting.
Destroyer BURNHAM was sent
to Boston for refit and repairs. She arrived on the 17th
and
repairs were completed on 23 October. The destroyer
departed Boston on 1 November, when she sailed for
Halifax.
_____
British trawler BRORA
(530grt) was lost in a
grounding in the Hebrides.
_____
British steamer EMPIRE
GUNNER (4492grt) was badly
damaged by German bombing in 52-08N, 5-18W.
The steamer sank early on
the 7th in 52-09N, 5-16W.
The entire crew were rescued.
_____
British steamer STANMOUNT
(4468grt) was damaged by
German bombing off 54D Buoy off Great Yarmouth.
The steamer arrived at
Immingham the next day.
_____
U.141 sank British fishing
trawler KING ERIK
(228grt) near Iceland.
The submarine reported
sinking a second trawler the
day before.
_____
In an German air raid on
Alexandria
Harbour, destroyer KANDAHAR and
destroyer depot ship WOOLWICH were damaged by
near misses.
The destroyer had no time
out of action.
Hospital ship MAINE was
near missed. Surgeon Cdr R. W. Nesbitt, MB,
FRCPI, and four ratings were killed. Fifteen ratings
were wounded.
_____
Destroyer GRIFFIN departed
Alexandria to relieve destroyer KINGSTON at Haifa.
Destroyer KINGSTON arrived back at Alexandria on the
7th.
_____
Australian sloop
PARRAMATTA departed Alexandria to reinforce sloop
FLAMINGO operating in the Gulf of Suez. The sloop passed
through the Canal on the 7th.
_____
Submarine
CLYDE departed Gibraltar on
patrol. The submarine arrived back from the
Atlantic patrol on the 9th.
_____
Dutch submarine O.24
attacked Italian anti-aircraft
barque CARLA (347grt) off La Spezia in 43-45N, 9-21E.
The barque was forced
aground by gunfire.
_____
Dutch submarine O.21
unsuccessfully attacked an
armed merchant cruiser in the Tyrrhenian Sea.
Sunday,
7 September
Aircraft carrier ARGUS
flew two Squadrons of twelve
Hurricanes each to an airfield at Vaegna at 1100/7th in
Operation STRENGTH.
Forces L of heavy cruiser
SHROPSHIRE and destroyers SOMALI, MATABELE, and PUNJABI
and
M.of heavy cruisers DEVONSHIRE and SUFFOLK, aircraft
carrier VICTORIOUS, and destroyers
INGLEFIELD, ECLIPSE, and ESCAPADE operated nearby.
_____
Light cruiser PENELOPE
departed Scapa Flow for the Clyde to escort
battleship DUKE OF YORK.
The cruiser arrived on the
8th.
_____
Destroyer ASHANTI departed
Rosyth after repairs developed on passage
to Scapa Flow.
The destroyer arrived at
Scapa Flow at 1545/7th to work up after long repairs.
_____
Destroyers ANTELOPE and
ANTHONY departed Scapa Flow for Rosyth for boiler
cleaning.
The destroyers arrived at
0930/8th.
_____
Convoy ON.14 departed
Liverpool. It was joined on the 8th by corvettes
LOBELIA,
NARCISSUS, and RENONCULE and anti-submarine trawlers
ARAB, AYSHIRE, and LADY
MADELEINE. Destroyers BEAGLE, BOADICEA, and SALISBURY
and corvette HEATHER joined on the 9th. On the
11th, destroyer SALISBURY and trawlers AYRSHIRE and LADY
MADELEINE were
detached and on the 12th destroyers BEAGLE and BOADICEA
were detached. The
remaining escorts were with the convoy until dispersed
on the 14th.
_____
Minelayer AGAMEMNON,
escorted by destroyer
CASTLETON, laid minefield SN.61.
After the operation,
destroyer CASTLETON departed
Loch Alsh for Scapa Flow at 2100/8th. The destroyer
arrived at 0700/9th to
dock and effect repairs to her anti-submarine fittings.
_____
German motor torpedo boats
S.48, S.49, S.50, S.52,
and S.107 of the 4th Motor Torpedo Boat Flotilla
attacked a Convoy off the Norfolk coast.
British steamer DUNCARRON
(478grt) was sunk three
miles east of Sheringham.
Six crew and three gunners
were lost on the
steamer.
Norwegian steamer EIKHAUG
(1436grt) was sunk in
53-05-52N, 1-20-50E.
Fifteen crew were lost.
Four survivors were picked
up.
_____
British steamer MARCREST
(4224grt) was sunk by
German bombing in the vicinity of 54D Buoy, two miles
90° from Yarmouth. The entire crew were rescued.
_____
British steamer TRSAT
(1369grt) was sunk by German
bombing seven miles northeast by east of Kinnaird Head.
Two crew and a gunner were
lost on the steamer.
_____
British fishing trawler
OPHIR II (213grt) was sunk
by a mine four miles northeast of Humber Light Vessel.
Five crew were missing.
_____
British steam trawler
NAIRANA (225grt) was damaged
by German bombing seven to eight miles off Myggenaes,
Faroes.
_____
Soviet destroyer SPOSOBNY
was damaged by the near
misses of German bombing in the Black Sea.
_____
A German convoy of German
steamers LIVORNO (1829grt) and SPEZIA (1825grt), escorted by torpedo boat FABRIZI,
departed Naples
for Benghazi.
At Messina, torpedo boat
FABRIZI was relieved by torpedo
boats POLLUCE and CENTAURO.
On the 11th, Submarine
THUNDERBOLT sank steamer LIVORNO off Bougie in 31-58N, 19-23E.
The convoy arrived at
Benghazi on the 11th.
_____
Light cruiser NAIAD and
destroyers HAVOCK and
HOTSPUR were at sea during the night of 6/7 September to
control night
fighters operating against enemy aircraft which might
attack Alexandria or the Canal area.
_____
Submarine
TORBAY reported an
enemy submarine in 32-42N, 28-55E.
Destroyers GRIFFIN and
HASTY departed Haifa, destroyer VENDETTA departed Port
Said, and destroyers HERO, HAVOCK, HOTSPUR, and KINGSTON
departed Alexandria to carry out anti-submarine searched
in the area.
The search ended
unsuccessfully. The destroyers
returned to their respective ports of departure on the
10th.
_____
Dutch submarine O.21
unsuccessfully attacked an
auxiliary minelayer in the Tyrrhenian
Sea.
_____
Aircraft carrier FURIOUS
with destroyers COSSACK,
LEGION, ZULU, and LIVELY arrived from England.
_____
Destroyer WIVERN departed
Gibraltar for refitting in the UK.
Monday,
8 September
Destroyer VIVACIOUS
departed Scapa Flow at 0800 to join destroyers LIGHTNING
and ICARUS at
the Clyde to escort battleship DUKE OF YORK from the
Clyde to Rosyth on
the 9th.
Destroyer VIVACIOUS
arrived in the Clyde at 0600/9th.
At 0600/9th, battleship
DUKE OF YORK, light cruiser PENELOPE, and destroyers
LIGHTNING,
ICARUS, and VIVACIOUS departed the Clyde for Rosyth
to complete her working up.
Destroyers LIGHTNING and
ICARUS were released from
the escort at 1600/10th. Destroyer LIGHTNING returned to
Scapa Flow and destroyer ICARUS proceeded to the Humber to commence a refitting at Immingham, arriving at 1015/11th.
Battleship DUKE OF YORK
and destroyer VIVACIOUS arrived at Rosyth on the
10th. At 1900/10th, destroyer VIVACIOUS departed Rosyth
to return to Scapa Flow, arriving at 0800/11th.
_____
Mine destructor ship
CORFIELD (Lt Cdr W. J. Tucker RNVR ) was sunk on a
mine
two miles south of the Humber Light Vessel.
There were no casualties
on the vessel.
_____
Sloop ROSEMARY was damaged
in a collision with
Polish destroyer BURZA inside Milford
Haven Harbour.
The sloop was repaired at
Milford Haven completing
on the 15th.
The destroyer was repaired
at Glasgow completing on the 20th.
_____
Aircraft carrier FURIOUS
arrived at Gibraltar at 1500/7th. Twenty six Hurricanes
were
transferred to aircraft carrier ARK ROYAL.
Aircraft carrier ARK ROYAL
and destroyers GURKHA, FORESTER,
LIVELY, and LANCE departed Gibraltar on Operation
STATUS. They joined light cruiser
HERMOINE which had departed to the westward the evening
before.
One flight of Hurricanes
were flown off on the 9th.
Force H returned to Gibraltar at 0900/10th.
At 1900/10th, aircraft
carrier FURIOUS with
destroyers LEGION, FORESIGHT, and FORESTER departed
Gibraltar. At 2100/10th, aircraft carrier ARK ROYAL,
battleship NELSON, light cruiser HERMIONE, and
destroyers ZULU, GURKHA,
LANCE, and LIVELY departed Gibraltar. On the 13th,
aircraft carriers ARK ROYAL flew off
twenty six Hurricanes and FURIOUS flew off nineteen
Hurricanes.
_____
Destroyers KIPLING,
JAGUAR, and DECOY departed Alexandria to carry supplies
to Tobruk.
Destroyers DECOY and
KIPLING were damaged by near
misses of German air bombs near Tobruk.
Neither destroyer spent
any time out of action.
Destroyer KIMBERLEY at sea
covering this operation was also near
missed by bombing. The destroyer also spent no time out
of action.
The destroyers arrived
back at Alexandria on the 9th.
_____
Anti-aircraft ship
CARLISLE departed Suez to relieve
anti-aircraft ship COVENTRY at Anchorage F at 27-49N,
33-57E.
_____
Light cruiser NAIAD with
destroyers NAPIER and
NIZAM were at sea from Alexandria controlling night fighters during the night of 8/9 September.
_____
Italian submarine MAGGIORE
BARACCA was sunk by
destroyer CROOME by gunfire and ramming east of the
Azores, 40-30N, 21-15W. The Captain, five officers, and twenty eight ratings
were picked up.
The destroyer sustained
damage to her stern.
Destroyer CROOME arrived at Gibralta on the 10th and was
under repair from 12
September to 4 October at Gibraltar.
_____
Dutch submarine O.21
unsuccessfully attacked a
convoy in the Tyrrhenian
Sea.
_____
An American convoy
departed Argentia for Reykjavik.
The convoy was escorted by
battleships IDAHO and NEW MEXICO, heavy cruiser
VINCENNES, and destroyers
MORRIS, SIMS, HUGHES, HAMMANN, MUSTIN, and O'BRIEN of
the 2nd Destroyer
Squadron, NIBLACK, HILARY P. JONES, GLEAVES, CHARLES F.
HUGHES, MADISON, and
LANSDALE of the 7th Destroyer Squadron, and SIMPSON,
MACLEISH, TRUXTON,
OVERTON, REUBEN JAMES, and BAINBRIDGE.
The convoy and escort
arrived on the 16th.
_____
Vichy French light cruiser
LAMOTTE PICQUETT departed
Saigon for Osaka, where she arrived on the 15th for
urgent repairs.
She departed on the 27th escorting French steamer KINDIA
(1972grt) to Saigon, where they both arrived on 9 October.
Tuesday,
9 September
Battleship PRINCE OF WALES
and destroyers LAFOREY, PUCKERIDGE, ASHANTI, CASTLETON,
LAMERTON, and BADSWORTH were brought
to half hour's notice and battleship KING GEORGE V to
one hour's notice on
the report that German heavy cruiser ADMIRAL SCHEER had
departed Oslo. It was later found that she was returning
to
Swinemunde after two unsuccessful bombing raids on her
while at Oslo on the
5th and 8th.
_____
German
steamer TRIFELS (6198grt,
former French SAINTE LOUISE recaptured at the fall of
France, former German
TRIFELS captured on 14 November 1939) was sunk by motor
torpedo boat MTB.54 off Boulogne, which was part of a
force of
MTB.35 (SO), MTB.218 and MTB.54 (Norwegian crew
commanded by Lt P E
Danielsen). MGB.43 and MGB.52 were also at sea in
the Varne area.
German escorting patrol vessels Vp.202 (trawler HERMANN
BOSCH, 470grt)
and Vp.208 (trawler WALTER DARRE, 391grt) rescued the
crew.
_____
Force M of heavy cruiser
DEVONSHIRE, aircraft carrier VICTORIOUS, and destroyers
SOMALI, MATABELE, and PUNJABI refuelled at Bell Sound.
Force L had been detached,
accompanied for a time
by heavy cruiser SUFFOLK, and was proceeding to
Seidisfjord.
Force M departed Bell
Sound for Operation EGV.2 on
the 10th. Before sailing, the Commander of the Force
transferred from heavy
cruiser DEVONSHIRE to aircraft carrier VICTORIOUS.
Heavy cruiser SUFFOLK
rejoined Force M on the 10th.
Aircraft carrier ARGUS,
heavy cruiser SHROPSHIRE, and destroyers INGLEFIELD,
IMPULSIVE, and ECLIPSE
arrived Seidisfjord for refuel on the 12th. The ships
departed at 2000 that
day for Scapa Flow.
Force L arrived at Scapa
Flow on the 14th at 0730.
_____
Corvette CANDYTUFT,
escorting convoy HX.148 with
destroyer RICHMOND and corvettes BITTERSWEET and FENNEL,
was damaged
in 51-20N, 39-08W. Lt D. M. Hall RNR, and T/Sub
Lt H. F. T. Davies RNVR, and nine
ratings were killed when the ship's starboard boiler
exploded.
The corvette was taken in
tow by corvette
BITTERSWEET and arrived at St Johns on the 14th. She was
later taken from St Johns on 2 October for Halifax
arriving on 6 October. Beyond the capacity of the
Halifax repair facilities, the corvette was towed from
Halifax on 8 October for New York where she arrived on
11 October.
The corvette was repaired
from 11 October
1941 to February 1942 at
New York Navy Yard.
_____
U.81 sank British steamer
EMPIRE SPRINGBUCK
(5591grt), straggling behind convoy SC.42, in 61-38N,
40-40W.
There were no survivors on
the steamer from a crew
of thirty four and five gunners.
_____
U.85 attacked British
steamer JEDMOOR (4392grt) in
convoy SC.42, but did not damage her.
_____
German steamer ERNA
OLDENDORFF (2095grt) was sunk
in a collision with a tanker off St Nazaire.
_____
Battleship BARHAM,
minelaying cruisers ABDIEL and LATONA,
and destroyers NAPIER and NIZAM were at sea from
Alexandria for exercises.
A Swordfish of 815
Squadron from Dekheila ditched
offshore. Minelayer ABDIEL picked up the pilot, Sub Lt
D. W. Phillips and his
crew after five and a half hours in the water.
The light cruisers AJAX,
NEPTUNE, and HOBART of the 7th Cruiser Squadron
were also at sea exercising.
_____
British gunboat GNAT
departed Mersa Matruh for
Tobruk, but returned when her engines broke down.
The gunboat later
proceeded to Alexandria for repairs.
_____
Dutch submarine O.24 sank
Italian steamer ITALO
BALBO (5114grt) ten miles west of Elba in 42-47N, 9-57E.
Wednesday,
10 September
Battleship PRINCE OF WALES
departed
Scapa Flow at 1300
with destroyers LAMERTON, BADSWORTH, and PUCKERIDGE to
exercise west of Hoy.
At 1330, minelaying
cruiser WELSHMAN and destroyers
LAFOREY and ASHANTI departed
Scapa Flow to
relieve the HUNT destroyers in the battleship PRINCE OF
WALES' screen. The
battleship and screen would then proceed to Havlfjord to
prepare for
operations against the German heavy cruiser ADMIRAL
SCHEER which was expected
to attempt a break through into the Atlantic.
Heavy cruiser LONDON was
ordered to patrol the western approaches to Denmark
Strait.
At 1430, battleship PRINCE
OF WALES was ordered to
remain in her practice area and at 2212 was ordered to
return to Scapa Flow.
The ships were ordered to
revert to normal notice
at 2025/11th. At 2051, heavy cruiser LONDON was ordered
to return to Hvalfjord.
The ships arrived back at
Scapa Flow on the 11th when the operation was canceled.
Heavy cruiser LONDON
arrived back at Hvalfjord on the 12th.
_____
Minelaying cruiser MANXMAN
departed Scapa Flow for Loch Alsh.
_____
Light cruiser SHEFFIELD
departed
Scapa Flow for the
Clyde in her return to Gibraltar.
The cruiser arrived at the
Clyde on the 11th.
_____
Destroyer LIGHTNING, en
route to Scapa Flow from
escorting battleship DUKE OF YORK, was in
a collision with minesweeping trawler STRATHGELDIE
(192grt) in 58-12N, 2-21W.
The destroyer was damaged
and the trawler was badly
damaged. Destroyer LIGHTNING escorted the trawler to
Wick before continuing
on to Scapa Flow, where she arrived at 0530/11th.
Destroyer LIGHTNING
departed Scapa Flow at 1730/15th for the Clyde for repairs.
_____
Canadian corvettes CHAMBLY
and MOOSEJAW, en route
to join convoy SC.42, sank U.501 in the Denmark Strait
in 62-50N, 37-50W.
Thirty seven of the crew were rescued, but eleven of the
German crew were
lost. One Canadian rating was lost after boarding the
submarine prior to
sinking.
U.432 sank British steamer
MUNERIC (5229grt) from
convoy SC.42 in 61-38N, 40-40W. The submarine claimed
sinking a second
steamer. The entire crew of steamer MUNERIC were lost.
U.81 made three attacks on
convoy SC.42 on the 10th
and claimed sinking one steamer and damaging two
steamers.
U.652 damaged British
steamers TAHCHEE (6508grt)
and BARON PENTLAND (3410grt) in 61-15N, 41-05W.
Steamer BARON PENTLAND was
sunk on the 19th by
U.372.
Two crew were lost on
steamer BARON PENTLAND.
Tanker TAHCHEE arrived at
Iceland on the 15th in tow of corvette ORILLA.
U.432 sank Dutch steamer
WINTERSWIJK (3205grt)
61-38N, 40-40W and Norwegian steamer STARGARD (1113grt)
in 61-3oN, 40-30W
from convoy SC.42.
Twenty crew were missing
from steamer WINTERSWIJK.
Two crew were lost on
steamer STARGARD. The
survivors were rescued by Norwegian steamer REGIN
(1386grt).
U.81 sank British steamer
SALLY MAERSK (3252grt)
from the convoy in 61-40N, 40-30W. The submarine claimed
sinking two
additional steamers. The entire crew from steamer SALLY
MAERSK was rescued.
U.82 sank British CAM ship
EMPIRE HUDSON (7465grt) from the convoy in
61-28N, 39-46W.
Four crew were lost on the
steamer.
U.85 sank British steamer
THISTLEGLEN (4748grt)
from the convoy in 61-59N, 39-46W. The submarine claimed
damaging another
steamer.
Three crew were missing
from steamer THISTLEGLEN.
U.85 made two attacks on
the convoy and claimed
sinking two steamers.
Canadian corvette KENOGAMI
of convoy SC.42 attacked
U.85.
On the 11th, U.85 sank
British tanker BULYSSES
(7519grt) in 62-40N, 38-50W and steamer GYPSUM QUEEN
(3915grt) in 63-05N,
37-50W.
Four crew were lost on the
tanker.
Nine crew and one gunner
were missing on steamer
GYPSUM QUEEN.
U.432 sank Swedish steamer
GARM from the convoy on
the 11th in 63-02N, 37-51W.
Six crew were lost on the
Swedish steamer.
U.433 damaged Norwegian
steamer BESTUM (2215grt)
from the convoy on the 11th in 63N, 37W.
U.207 sank British steamer
STONEPOOL (4815grt) in
63-05N, 37-50W, British steamer BERURY (4924grt) in
62-40N, 38-50W, and
Canadian steamer RANDA (1558grt) in 63N, 37W from the
convoy on the 11th.
Forty two crew were lost
on steamer STONEPOOL.
One crewman was lost on
steamer BERURY. The steamer
was scuttled by a British warship.
U.82 sank British steamer
EMPIRE CROSSBILL
(5463grt) and damaged Swedish steamer SCANIA (1980grt)
in 63-14N, 37-12W from
the convoy. The entire crew on steamer EMPIRE CROSSBILL
were lost.
U.202 sank damaged Swedish
steamer SCANIA
(1980grt), straggling behind the convoy, in 63-14N,
37-12W on the 11th.
There were no casualties
on the steamer SCANIA.
Corvettes CHAMBLY and
MOOSEJAW joined the convoy on the 11th. Later
in the morning, the convoy was joined by Canadian
corvette WETASKIWIN,
Corvettes MIMOSA and GLADIOLUS, and anti-submarine
whaler BUTTERMERE.
During the afternoon of 11
September, the 2nd
Escort Group joined the convoy with destroyers DOUGLAS
(SO ), VETERAN,
SALADIN, SKATE, and LEAMINGTON.
On the 11th, destroyers
LEAMINGTON and VETERAN sank U.207 in the Denmark Strait
in 63-59N, 34-48W. The entire crew of forty one
were lost in the submarine.
Destroyers ST CROIX from convoy SC.41 and COLUMBIA
from convoy HX.147 joined the convoy on the 12th.
On the 12th, U.84 attacked
and reported damaging a
steamer in the convoy.
US destroyers SIMS,
CHARLES F. HUGHES, and RUSSELL
joined the convoy to allow the destroyers of the 2nd
Escort Group to refuel on
the 13th.
On the 16th, U.98 sank
British steamer JEDMOOR
(4392grt) in 59N, 10W and reported damaging another
steamer.
Thirty one crew, including
five gunners, were lost
on the steamer JEDMOOR.
On the 19th, U.372 sank
British steamer BARON
PENTLAND (3410grt), straggling behind the convoy after
being torpedoed on the
10th, in 61-15N, 41-05W.
_____
U.111 sank Dutch steamer
MARKEN (5719grt) at 1-36N,
36-55W. The entire crew were rescued.
_____
British drifter CHRISTINE
ROSE (T/Skipper R. W.
Griffiths RNR) was lost when she grounded on Knap Rock,
Argyll.
Griffiths was lost in the
trawler.
_____
German steamer JULIUS HUGH
STINNES 27 (2530grt) was
lost on a mine near Kolberg.
_____
German auxiliary
minesweeper M.1102 (trawler H. A.
W. MULLER, 460grt) was sunk by an RAF aerial torpedo in
58-08N, 6-38E.
_____
Battleship QUEEN
ELIZABETH, minelaying cruisers
ABDIEL and LATONA, and destroyers JACKAL and NIZAM were
exercising from Alexandria.
_____
Light cruiser NAIAD with
destroyers JACKAL and HOTSPUR
were at sea to direct night fighters.
Destroyer JACKAL rescued a
party of two Army
officers, three soldiers, and nine Greeks which had
escaped from Greece in a caique and were making for
Alexandria.
_____
Submarine THUNDERBOLT sank
Italian steamer SVAM I
(388grt) in the Gulf of Sirte.
_____
Panamanian steamer
HONDURAS (4524grt) was damaged by German bombing at
28-04N,
33-29E off Suez.
The steamer was able to
arrive under her own power
at Zafarana.
_____
Italian submarine TOPAZIO
sank British ferry
MUREFTE (691grt) in 33-12N, 34-35E.
One crewman was lost on
the ferry. The survivors
were picked up by Egyptian steamer TALODI (1585grt).
Destroyers KIPLING,
JACKAL, HASTY, and HOTSPUR
departed Alexandria and destroyers HERO and GRIFFIN
departed Haifa to hunt for this submarine.
Destroyers KIPLING and
HASTY returned to Alexandria on the 13th.
Destroyers HERO, GRIFFIN,
JACKAL, and HOTSPUR arrived at Haifa on the 14th.
_____
Submarine
TORBAY damaged
German steamer NORBURG (2392grt) in Candia
Harbour.
_____
Submarine PROTEUS arrived
at Gibraltar from refitting at Portsmouth from December
1940 to 17 August. The submarine had
departed Holy Loch on the 3rd.
_____
RAF bombers from Malta
damaged Italian heavy cruiser BOLZANO at Messina. Twelve
crew were killed and 30 wounded.
_____
Convoy HX.149 departed
Halifax, escorted by destroyers ANNAPOLIS and HAMILTON
andarmed merchant cruiser ASCANIA. Destroyer
CHURCHILL joined on the 12th. Destroyers ANNAPOLIS and
HAMILTON were relieved on the 13th by corvettes
ARROWHEAD,
CAMELLIA, CELANDINE, and EYEBRIGHT. Destroyer CHURCHILL
and the four
corvettes were relieved on the 20th by destroyers
MALCOLM and WATCHMAN,
corvettes ARABIS and PETUNIA, and anti-submarine
trawlers NORTHERN GEM, NORTHERN PRIDE, and NORTHERN
SPRAY. Corvette
MONKSHOOD joined on the 22nd. The armed merchant cruiser
and corvette PETUNIA
were detached on the 24th. The convoy arrived at
Liverpool on the 25th.
Thursday,
11 September
Light cruiser KENYA
departed
Scapa Flow for repairs
in the Clyde.
These repairs were to
complete repairs to damage
from her collision with destroyer BRIGHTON on 25
June.
The light cruiser arrived
in the Clyde on the 12th. The flag of CS.10 was transferred to light cruiser
SHEFFIELD.
_____
Convoy ON.15 departed
Liverpool, escorted by destroyers KEPPEL, SABRE,
SHIKARI,
and VENOMOUS, corvettes ALISMA, DIANELLA, and SUNFLOWER,
and anti-submarine
trawlers LADY ELSA, MAN O.WAR, and NORTHERN DAWN.
Destroyer VENOMOUS and
corvette SUNFLOWER were detached on the 13th, destroyer
SABRE on the 14th,
and destroyer KEPPEL on the 15th. The remainder of the
escorts remained with
the convoy until it was dispersed on the 16th.
_____
T/Sub Lt M. S. Mills
RCNVR, was killed in motor
gunboat MGB.67 in "action. "
_____
British steamer CORMEAD
(2848grt) was damaged by
German bombing in 52-33N, 2-05E.
The steamer anchored at
Great Yarmouth Roads on the
12th.
_____
British steamer trawler
WAR GREY (246grt) was damaged by German bombing off
Sunderland.
_____
U.105 sank Panamanian
steamer MONTANA (1549grt) in 63-40N, 35-50W.
Eighteen crew were lost on
the steamer.
_____
Destroyers NAPIER,
KINGSTON, and HAVOCK departed Alexandria for Tobruk with
supplies.
On their return, Senior
Naval Officer, Inshore Squadron,
Captain A. L. Poland DSO DSC, took passage to Mersa
Matruh in destroyer
NAPIER.
The destroyers returned to
Alexandria on the 12th.
_____
Italian steamer ALFREDO
ORIANI (3059grt) was sunk
by British Blenheim bombers in 35-05N, 20-16E.
The steamer which had
departed Petrasso on the 11th
was escorted by torpedo boat CANTORE.
_____
Light cruiser EDINBURGH
(CS 18) departed Simonstown
after escorting convoy WS.10 to Capetown.
The cruiser arrived at
Freetown on the 17th and Gibraltar on the 21st for
Operation HALBERD.
_____
Australian destroyer
NESTOR was damaged by the
premature explosion of a depth charge off Bathurst.
Destroyer NESTOR arrived
at Freetown on the 12th. After temporary repairs at
Freetown, the destroyer proceeded to Gibraltar, arriving
on the 25th. The destroyer departed Gibraltar on the
26th and proceeded to Devonport for
permanent repairs, completing on 5 December.
_____
Convoy SC.44 departed
Sydney, CB, escorted by armed merchant cruiser WOLFE and
corvettes LETHBRIDGE, NAPANEE, and SHEDIAC. Corvette
AGASSIZ joined on the 12th. The escort which left with the convoy on the 11th
were detached on the 14th when relieved by destroyer
CHESTERFIELD and corvettes
ALYSSE, HONEYSUCKLE, LEVIS, and MAYFLOWER. Corvette
LEVIS was lost on the 20th. Corvettes ARROWHEAD and
EYEBRIGHT joined on the 20th. Corvette HONEYSUCKLE was
detached on the 21st
and destroyer CHESTERFIELD and corvettes AGASSIZ, ALYSSE, ARROWHEAD, EYEBRIGHT, and MAYFLOWER were detached on the
22nd. Destroyers AMAZON, BELMONT, BULLDOG, and
GEORGETOWN and corvettes
ACONIT and HEARTSEASE, and anti-submarine trawlers
ANGLE, CAPE WARWICK,
DANEMAN, NOTTS COUNTY, and ST APOLLO joined on the 22nd.
Destroyers AMAZON
and BULLDOG and corvettes ACONIT and HEARTSEASE were
detached on the 27th.
Destroyers BELMONT
and GEORGETOWN and the trawlers were detached on the
28th. The
convoy arrived at Liverpool on the 30th.
_____
British steamer ELLENGA
departed Singapore for Penang. The
steamer departed Penang on the 13th, escorted by light
cruiser DAUNTLESS
to 10N, 84E.
Steamer ELLENGA arrived at
Madras on the 20th.
_____
Norwegian steamer
SILVAPLANA (4793grt) was captured
by German raider ATLANTIS at 26-16S, 164-25W.
Friday,
12 September
Heavy cruiser DEVONSHIRE
(SO Force M), aircraft carrier VICTORIOUS, heavy
cruiser SUFFOLK, and destroyers SOMALI, MATABELE, and
PUNJABI
carried out operation EGV.2 when VICTORIOUS launched
aircraft against
northern Norway.
The planes reported
torpedoing a 2000 ton ship and
attacked several small ships at Bodo and damaged the
power station in
Glomfjord.
An Albacore aircraft of
832 Squadron with a crew of
Lt P. F. King, Lt T. L. Seccombe, and Leading Airman W.
F. Lovell was damaged
by flak. The airman was slightly wounded.
_____
Monitor EREBUS and motor
launch ML.188 departed
Lerwick at 0500 on completion of trials.
The monitor arrived at
Scapa Flow at 1700/12th.
_____
Heavy cruiser BERWICK
departed Scapa Flow to complete machinery repairs at
Rosyth.
The cruiser arrived later
that day.
_____
Light cruiser SHEFFIELD,
carrying 300 service personnel, departed Greenock at 2230 for Gibraltar,
arriving on the 17th at 1500.
_____
Destroyer BADSWORTH,
returning to Scapa Flow from escorting damaged cruiser
NIGERIA, was ordered at 0850 to search for a downed
British aircraft off Kinnaird. The search was not
successful and the
destroyer later arrived at Scapa
Flow.
_____
Destroyer PUCKERIDGE
departed Scapa Flow at 1700 for Portsmouth following
working up exercises.
the destroyer arrived at
Portsmouth at 1400/14th to join the 1st Destroyer
Flotilla.
_____
Convoy OG.74 departed
Liverpool and the
Clyde escorted by
escort aircraft carrier AUDACITY, sloop DEPTFORD, and
corvettes PENTSTEMON,
MARIGOLD, and VETCH.
Ocean boarding vessel
CORINTHIAN and destroyer
ROCKINGHAM joined on the 13th and corvettes ARBUTUS and
RHODODENDRON joined
on the 14th. The ocean boarding vessel was detached on
the 18th.
Martlet aircraft, piloted
by Sub Lt (A) N. H.
Patterson and Sub Lt (A) G. R. P. Fletcher RNVR,
of 802 Squadron from aircraft carrier
AUDACITY shot down the carrier's first Fw.200/21st.
Sloop DEPTFORD arrived at
Gibraltar on the 25th. Corvette COWSLIP which had
proceeeded
independently from the UK after failing to meet the
convoy also arrived on
the 25th. Aircraft carrier AUDACITY and corvettes
ARBUTUS and MARIGOLD
arrived on the 26th with survivors from the sunken
ships. The convoy arrived
at Gibraltar later on the 26th with destroyer
ROCKINGHAM,
corvettes PENTSTEMON, VETCH, and RHODODENDRON and
anti-submarine trawler
LAUREL.
_____
Convoy OS.6 departed
Liverpool, escorted by destroyer CAMPBELTOWN, which was
detached on the 15th.
On the 13th, destroyers
WESTCOTT and ST ALBANS and
sloops STORK and WELLINGTON joined the convoy. The
destroyers were detached on
the 17th and the sloops on the 29th.
Indian sloop JUMNA joined on the 17th and was detached on the 29th. On 1 October,
corvettes CLOVER and CYCLAMEN joined and escorted the
convoy into
Freetown arriving on 3
October. Destroyer BRILLIANT joined
on 3 October outside Freetown.
_____
An Italian convoy of
steamers TEMBIEN, CAFFARO,
NIRVO, BAINSIZZA, NICOLO ODERO, and GIULA departed
Naples on the 10th,
escorted by destroyers ORIANI and FULMINE and torpedo
boats PROCIONE, PEGASO,
ORSA, and CIRCE from Trapani, and OERSEO which joined at
0600/13th.
Italian steamer CAFFARO
(6476grt) was sunk by
British Swordfish of 830 Squadron from Malta 105°
northwest of Tripoli in 34-14N, 11-54E.
Italian steamer TEMBIEN
(5584grt) was damaged by
830 Squadron attack.
Italian steamer NICOLO
ODERO (6003grt) was damaged
in the attack. She was sunk on the 14th by RAF bombing
in 32-51N, 12-18E
after the convoy arrived at Tripoli on the 13th.
_____
Submarine UTMOST departed
Malta to search for a crew of a downed Blenheim.
The crew was rescued and
UTMOST returned to Malta on the 14th.
_____
Tug TAI KOO (688grt) was
sunk by a mine at 16-45N,
40-05E, between Aden and Massawa.
Twenty six crew were lost.
Cdr J. R. Stenhouse DSO,
OBE, DSC, RD RNR Rtd, on
passage to HMS SHEBA, was also lost. Thirty seven crew
were rescued.
_____
Australian troop convoy
US.12A departed Fremantle
with liners QUEEN ELIZABETH (83,673grt) and QUEEN MARY
(81,235grt).
Saturday,
13 September
Aircraft carrier
VICTORIOUS, heavy cruisers SUFFOLK and DEVONSHIRE, and
destroyers SOMALI, MATABELE, and PUNJABI arrived at
Scapa Flow at 1900/13th.
_____
Light cruiser EURYALUS
departed Rosyth for Scapa Flow, arriving later that day.
_____
Destroyer ANTHONY arrived
at Scapa Flow at 2130 from Rosyth following boiler
cleaning.
_____
Convoy ON.16 departed
Liverpool, escorted by destroyers MALCOLM, SARDONYX, and
WATCHMAN. The convoy was joined on the 14th by
anti-submarine trawlers
NORTHERN GEM, NORTHERN PRIDE, and NORTHERN SPRAY.
Corvettes
ARABIS and PETUNIA joined on the 15th. Destroyers
BADSWORTH and LAMERTON were
with the convoy on 17 and 18 September when they were
detached. Destroyers
MALCOLM, SARDONYX, and WATCHMAN were detached on the
19th. Destroyer COLUMBIA joined on the 19th. Destroyer
SKEENA and corvettes ORILLIA,
RIMOUSKI, and WETASKIWIN joined on the 20th and the
corvettes ARABIS and PETUNIA and the trawlers were
detached. Destroyer COLUMBIA was detached on the 24th.
The convoy was dispersed
on the 27th.
_____
P/T/A/Sub Lt (A) J. A.
Dowling RNVR, and Naval Airman W. Sands were
killed when
their Proctor of 755/756 Squadron crashed near Stratford
on
Avon.
_____
British steamer BLOOMFIELD
(1417grt) was sunk by German bombing in 61-50N,
6W. The entire crew were rescued.
_____
Submarine
TIGRIS sank
Norwegian steamer RICHARD WITH (905grt) off Breisund in
70-50N, 23-57E.
_____
German auxiliary patrol
boat VP 308 (trawler OSCAR
NEYNABER:314grt) was sunk by a Soviet motor torpedo boat
off Porkkala in
Finnish waters.
_____
Finnish coastal defense
ship ILMARINEN was mined
and sunk in the Gulf of
Finland.
Thirteen officers and two
hundred and fifty eight
men were lost on the ship. One hundred and thirty two
survivors were picked
up by patrol boats.
_____
Corvette PEONY arrived at
Alexandria from Beirut.
_____
British steamer EMPIRE
GUILLEMOT, which had arrived
at Gibraltar in convoy OG.73, departed Gibraltar for
Malta escorted through the day by corvettes GENTIAN and
JASMINE in Operation PROPELLER.
The steamer safely arrived
on the 19th.
_____
Submarine THUNDERBOLT
unsuccessfully attacked
Italian minesweeper ZIRONA off Benghazi.
_____
Submarine THRASHER
unsuccessfully attacked a
steamer in the Gulf of Sirte.
_____
Corvettes JONQUIL and
SPIRAEA departed Gibraltar ecorting tanker NOREG.
_____
Light cruiser MANCHESTER
and destroyer FIREDRAKE departed Gibraltar for repairs
received during the SUBSTANCE
operation.
The ships proceeded for
Philadelphia and Boston, respectively. They were given
local escort by
destroyer HEYTHROP to 25W.
_____
Submarine TRUSTY arrived
at Gibraltar from Holy Loch, where she had departed on
the 6th.
Sunday,
14 September
Heavy cruiser LONDON
departed Hvalfjord for Scapa Flow, arriving on the 16th.
_____
Light cruiser PENELOPE
departed Scapa Flow for Akureyri, arriving on the 16th.
_____
Minelaying cruiser
WELSHMAN departed Scapa Flow at 0900 on completion of
gunnery and
anti-submarine working up.
The minelaying cruiser
proceeded to Loch Alsh.
_____
Destroyers JACKAL and
HOTSPUR departed Haifa for an anti-submarine sweep.
The destroyers returned to
Haifa on the 16th.
_____
Australian destroyer
VENDETTA and Corvette SALVIA
arrived at Famagusta with British steamer SALAMAUA.
The destroyer remained
with the steamer to escort
it to Haifa. The corvette proceeded to Beirut.
_____
Submarine THUNDERBOLT
unsuccessfully attacked
German steamer TINOS, escorted by torpedo boat POLLUCE
thirty miles
northwest of Benghazi.
_____
Submarine PROTEUS departed
Gibraltar with stores for Malta.
When she did not send a
message after her test
dive, destroyer VIDETTE was dispatched to search for
her. However, the
submarine arrived back at Gibraltar on the 15th with
radio problems.
The submarine was able to
proceed later on the
15th.
_____
Convoy SL.87 departed
Freetown escorted by destroyer BRILLIANT, corvettes
AMARANTHUS and ASPHODEL, and anti-submarine trawler
SARABANDE to 16
September.
French sloop COMMANDANT
DUBOC joined on the 15th
and escorted to 22 September. Sloop BIDEFORD, corvette
GARDENIA, and escort
vessels GORLESTON and LULWORTH joined on the 16th and
escorted to 6 October.
The convoy arrived at Liverpool on 6 October.
