B
a t t l
e H o n o u r s
ARMADA
1588 - CADIZ 1596
- DARDANELLES 1915 - NORWAY
1940 - SPARTIVENTO
1940 - MEDITERRANEAN 1940-41
-
BISMARCK Action
1941 - MALTA CONVOYS
1941
H
e r a l d i c D a
t a
Badge:
On a Field Blue, an Ark Silver, crowned Gold
upon 5 wavelets Gold.
M
o t t
o
Desire
n'a
pas Repos:
'Desire has not rest'
D e
t a i l s o
f W a r S e r v i c
e
(for more
ship information,
go
to
Naval History Homepage
and
type name in Site Search
1 9
3 9
SEPTEMBER
3rd
to
10th - ARK
ROYAL, CO J
A Power RN, (Flag Vice Admiral
Lionel V Wells, Vice Admiral Aircraft
Carriers) at Scapa Flow
[The
aircraft carried by ARK
ROYAL were:
The
Blackburn Skua, which was
a two seat
fighter/dive bomber, max speed 225 mph at
6700 ft, 204 mph at sea level, maximum range
approximately 760 miles. Armament
was four Browning .303" machine guns in the
wings with 600 rounds per gun.
One Lewis .303" machine
gun in rear cockpit (whenever
possible the gunner would try to replace
this with a Vickers K gun which was
more reliable and had a higher rate of
fire). Bomb load was 500 lb.
The
Blackburn Roc was a two
seat fighter/bomber development of the Skua,
performance similar to Skua but a
shorter range, fitted with a Bolton Paul
rotating electrically powered turret
mounting four Browning .303" machine-guns. Bomb
load
250lb.
The
Fairy Swordfish was a
three seat torpedo spotter reconnaissance aircraft,
max speed 139 mph at 4750 ft, 132 mph at sea
level ,maximum range with 1500 lb
bomb load 545 miles, without bomb load 770
miles. Armament, one fixed forward
firing Vickers .303" machine gun and one in
the rear cockpit. Ordnance one
18" dia. x 1610 lb torpedo or 1500 lb bomb
load]
11th
-
At 2030N the ARK ROYAL
(Flag Vice Admiral Lionel V Wells) with
Blackburn Skuas of 800 Sqd, Blackburn
Skuas and Rocs of 803 Sqd, Fairy Swordfish
of 810, 818, 820 and 821 Sqds
embarked, escorted by the destroyers
FAULKNOR (D8), FIREDRAKE, FORTUNE and
FOXHOUND sailed from Scapa Flow as a hunting
group to carry out an
anti-submarine patrol in the western
Atlantic. After leaving the western swept
channel, course was shaped towards the
position in which the S.S FIRBY was
reported sunk by a submarine, 59-49N,
13-50W.
[The
SS FIRBY 4869grt was sunk
by U-48 earlier on 11/9/39. The position
of the sinking had been transmitted by
U-48 with a request to save the crew]
[On
3/9/39 Winston Churchill was appointed
First Lord of the Admiralty.
At the outbreak of war the Admiralty
immediately instituted the convoy system
as proven method of defeating U-Boats, but
the convoy system was essentially
defensive, which didn't suit Churchill.
Therefore one of Churchill's first
moves was to promote an offensive strategy
against U-Boats through the use of
hunting groups based on an aircraft
carrier. It was also believed that this
strategy would help to protect the many
merchant ships that were on passage to
the UK when war was declared]
At
2100 hours the destroyer ESKIMO joined
so
that
D/F guard could be kept on 488 kc/s
and
FORTUNE detached.
12th
-
At 0630,
the
weather
was fine and clear with south
westerly breeze
and overcast sky, ARK
ROYAL
launched Swordfish to carry out an all round air search to a depth of 60
miles with the object of locating enemy
submarines on the surface.
At
0700
a submarine was reported
by aircraft, 39 miles, 323
degrees from ARK ROYAL, in a position 59-48
N, 9-22W. The aircraft attacked
with six 100lb A/S bombs, the nearest of
which missed by 30 yards. The
submarine dived.
On
receipt
of the report the FAULKNOR and FIREDRAKE
were detached to hunt the U-Boat while
ARK ROYAL continued to the westward to land
on aircraft as the barometer was
falling rapidly.
By
1100
it was blowing hard from the south
west and weather
was thick and unsuitable for flying.
At
1300
FAULKNOR and FIREDRAKE rejoined having
obtained no contact as the aircraft had
been unable to keep touch with the submarine
and conditions were also difficult
for asdic contact.
At
1310 course
was altered to the southward towards
position 55-00N, 15-00W, this course
alteration resulted from Admiralty message
0658 of 11/9/39.
By
1600
the weather and visibility had much improved
and a further air search was
carried out to the south and west to a depth
of 80 miles.
13th
-
At 0630 ARK
ROYAL launched nine Swordfish to carry out
an all round search to a depth of 70
miles.
At
0741,
a submarine was reported
by aircraft, 39 miles,
188 degrees from ARK ROYAL in position
56-19N, 13-30W. The aircraft attacked
with 100lb A/S bombs, one of which fell
directly on top of the submarine
which was diving at the time.
On
receipt
of the report ESKIMO and FOXHOUND were
detached to hunt and a striking
force of three Swordfish were launched by
ARK ROYAL to attack the submarine,
but the destroyers failed to find any trace
of the submarine as the aircraft
had lost touch.
During
the
afternoon, ARK ROYAL launched two further
searches, each by six Swordfish to
depths of up to 65 miles to search for the
submarine without success.
ARK
ROYAL
also maintained a constant bearing patrol by
two Skuas to a depth of 40
miles.
These
searches
covered the area in which the submarine was
sighted and also to the northward
of it as it was considered that he might be
homeward bound; as he was steering
north when sighted.
Ground
was
made to the northward during the night.
14th
-
At 0630 the
weather was fine and clear with good
visibility, ARK ROYAL launched 12
Swordfish to carry out an all round search
to a depth of 100 miles. This search
was just short of the position in which SS.
FANAD HEAD was torpedoed 3 ½
hours later, and no merchant ships were
sighted.
At
0635
the destroyers TARTAR, BEDOUIN and PUNJABI
joined. These destroyers together
with ESKIMO, who formed the 12th division of
6th Destroyer Flotilla, were then stationed
20 miles from ARK ROYAL on the bearings 045
degrees, 135 degrees, 225 degrees,
and 315 degrees.
At
0945
ARK ROYAL launched two Skuas to search the
western seaboard of the Hebrides. Two
Skuas were also flown off for constant
bearing patrol on each side of the mean
line of advance to a depth of 25 miles.
At
0950
the 12 Swordfish returned having sighted
nothing.
During
the
forenoon, ARK ROYAL launched nine Swordfish
to carry out an air search over
the Rosemary Bank area.
At
1240
Vice
Admiral Wells received
information that the SS FANAD HEAD had been
torpedoed
at 1100
in position 56-45N, 15-21W, this was about
200 miles to the southwestward of
the ARK ROYAL. All aircraft were immediately
recalled and TARTAR and PUNJABI
were ordered to proceed at full speed to the
position given.
At
1250
TARTAR and PUNJABI detached with all
dispatch for the position given by FANAD
HEAD.
At
1300
ARK ROYAL turned northerly into the wind to
land on her aircraft. After landing
on her aircraft she steered toward the
position given by the SS FANAD HEAD.
[At
1100N the SS FANAD HEAD
5200grt on passage from Montreal to
Belfast sighted a surfaced U-Boat, U-30,
(U-30 was the submarine that had sunk the
liner SS ATHENIA 13500grt on 3/9/39) closing
her
and sent off a submarine attack signal. At
1225 the U-30 stopped the FANAD
HEAD with a shot across her bows. The
master, 33 crew
members and eight passengers then
abandoned ship in two
lifeboats. The lifeboats were towed clear
of the ship by U-30. The submarine
then sent a four man boarding party on to
the FANAD HEAD to obtain food,
particularly bread since all their tinned
bread when opened was found to be
milk, and water to extend the patrol and
to sink the ship by laying charges and
opening the sea cocks, thus saving an
expensive torpedo]
[As
the distance to the position given by the
FANAD HEAD was reducing
Vice Admiral Wells decided to fly off a
strike force of three Skuas, but before
this could happen it was necessary for the
ARK ROYAL to turn 180 degrees into
the wind. ARK ROYAL's screen of FAULKNOR,
FIREDRAKE and FOXHOUND who were
disposed ahead of the carriers were
allowed to proceed on course at 24 knots
whilst ARK ROYAL turned into wind]
At 1400 hours
BEDOUIN
and
ESKIMO were detached to proceed with
dispatch to join TARTAR and PUNJABI.
At 1440 when the
approximate distance to the FANAD HEAD's
position was 180 miles, ARK ROYAL
launched thee Skuas of 803 Sqd, A7A, A7M(L2873)
and
A7K(L2957) each armed with one 100 lb A/S
bomb and four 20 lb Cooper bombs. The
Skuas set course for Rockall.
[The
100 lb A/S bomb was fitted because the
distance was outside their
range when fitted with a 500 lb bomb. The
distance was also beyond the range of
the Swordfish aircraft. The 100 lb A/S
bomb was too small to be effective
against submarines. This was proven on
3/12/39 when an Anson of Coastal Command
dropped a 100 lb A/S bomb on the submarine
HMS SNAPPER, scoring a direct hit
and no damage was caused to the SNAPPER.
The Cooper bomb was a hang over from
the First World War, it actually weighed
24 lb, 20 lb casing and 4 lb of
explosive, again a completely ineffective
weapon against submarines]
At
1512
ARK ROYAL was back on a south
westerly course and
making 26 knots to catch up with her screen
who were now about two miles ahead.
When Leading Signalman Joseph Ernest Hall,
Official Number P/J 42557, who was
on watch, observed the commencement of
torpedo tracks and his very prompt and
accurate report enabled the Officer of the
Watch to put the helm over to port
causing the torpedoes to miss astern and
detonated about half a cable on the
port quarter. It was noted that the tracks
were very evident, much more so than
those of our own torpedoes.
ARK
ROYAL
signaled FAULKNER informing her of the
submarine attack. The FAULKNOR,
FIREDRAKE and FOXHOUND then
reversed course and proceeded to join the
ARK ROYAL.
[At
1507 the submarine U-39,
sailed from Wilhelmshaven on 18/8/39,
fired three G7a, torpedoes at the ARK
ROYAL each torpedo was fitted with a
magnetic pistol. What had happened was
that the faulty magnetic pistols had
caused the torpedoes to prematurely
explode.
Between the wars the Germans had
completely changed their torpedoes and
they had moved away from the simple
impact detonator to the magnetic detonator
which was
designed to explode under the target ship
causing the target to break its back.
Because of the lack of extensive testing
before putting the new torpedo into
service they had problems with the
magnetic pistol because they forgot
that the magnetic field is different in
different regions on earth. They also
had problems with the depth setting
because the depth gauge was not fully
sealed off from the atmosphere. These
errors saved the ARK ROYAL]
[The
FAULKNOR,
FIREDRAKE
and FOXHOUND returned to ARK ROYAL's
position and were given
the course of the torpedoes and ordered to
locate and attack the submarine. D8 spread
his destroyers and swept
accordingly.
At 1534, FOXHOUND obtained contact
by asdic and attacked by D/Cs, followed
immediately by FAULKNOR. Shortly
afterwards, FIREDRAKE obtained
contact and made a third attack.
Within two minutes, the submarine broke
surface and all destroyers
opened fire. Fire ceased
as men appeared on the deck of the
submarine and they
all abandoned ship. The whole crew
of 43 was picked up and they reported all
three depth charge attacks took
effect, the last one bursting the foremost
tanks. Submarine sank, in
position 58-28N, 11-50W, bow first in about ten minutes after
surfacing. Number U-39 was obtained
from marking on conning tower and on gear
picked up]
[At
1555 hours Skua
A7M piloted by Lt. R P
Thurston, Observer Petty Officer J Simpson
came upon the FANARD HEAD stopped
with U-30 alongside in the process of
transferring supplies via rubber dinghy. Lt
Thurston immediately attacked dropping
his bombs onto the submarine from an
extremely low altitude, the only chance of
catching the submarine before it could
crash-dive. The 20lb Cooper
bombs exploded immediately on contact with
the water causing fragments of
shrapnel to pierce the fuel tank and the set
the Skua on fire. Lt Thurston was
forced to crash land the Skua onto the sea a
considerable distance from the
ship. Badly burnt, Lt Thurston and P.O.
Simpson set out to swim to the FANAD
HEAD.
At
1600, after trying to get
as many men below as possible, U-30 dived,
but unbeknown to Kapitanleutnant
Fritz-Julius Lemp,
her captain, U-30 still had the
dinghy attached.
The
attack by A7M was
witnessed by Skua A7A piloted by Lt Cdr Dennis
Royle Farquharson
Campbell, the
CO of 803 Sqd, observer Lt Michael Charles
Edward Hanson. A
sighting report was sent off by Hanson
and A7A went to investigate what
was happening around the FANAD HEAD.
At
about 1605 A7A arrived
over the FANAD HEAD, the derelict was sighted lying stopped and heading
south with her lifeboats about 3000 yards on
her starboard quarter. On the
steamer's port bow was a patch of oil some
50 yards in diameter with a black
object in the center of it,
the crew took this to be a conning tower of
a submarine. Diving to attack, they
made two passes, in the first they dropped
their Cooper bombs, in the second
the 100 LB A/S bomb, which did not appear to
explode (probably due to a faulty
fuse). The object they had attacked had
disappeared. They flew around the FANAD
HEAD and spotted two swimmers in the water.
They interpreted these as two
members of the crew of the U-boat left
behind when it crash-dived. In fact it
was Lt Thurston and PO Simpson, swimming
towards the merchant ship. The object
Lt Cdr Campbell and LT Hanson had attacked
earlier was almost certainly the
remains of Skua A7M floating on the surface.
Lemp
ordered U-30 to periscope depth and
through the scope; he saw the line running
directly over the conning
tower. Lemp
ordered full rise and as the tower
broke the surface, a crewman threw the hatch
cover open, dashed out onto the
tower and slashed the line, he dropped back
into the U-Boat, and she dived.
When
U-30 surfaced, A7A had
no bombs left so Lt Cdr Campbell fired on
the submarine with the wing machine
guns, expending
1150 rounds in one continuous burst.
A7A
was now low on fuel, so
it was time to return to ARK ROYAL but
before leaving the scene A7A flew over
the lifeboats, flashing them the signal
"Help Coming" by Aldis
lamp before heading back to the carrier at
1645.
In
the mean time Lt Thurston
had swam to the FANAD HEAD but because he
was injured he was unable to climb
aboard so one on the German boarding party,
Gefr Ohse,
dived in and helped him aboard. PO Simpson
was not
with Lt Thurston and was not seen again.
U-30
now re-surfaced and was
closing the FANAD HEAD to take off the
boarding party, but during the manoeuvre
the freighted rolled on to the bow of U-30
causing damage to her torpedo tubes,
then suddenly a third Skua appeared and
attacked.
The
third Skua A7K, piloted
by Lt Guy Griffiths RM with observer Petty
Officer George McKay having
completed its assigned search was heading
back to the ARK ROYAL when P.O. McKay
spotted a ship in the distance and A7K
closed to investigate. A7K came in low
to flying close to the stern so that they
could read the name and registration.
Then In a re-run of the events that had
bought down A7M, Lt Griffiths was
startled to see a submarine appear from
behind the merchant ship. Again, a
split second decision was made to drop the
bombs straight away before the
submarine could crash-dive. Lt Griffiths
dropped both the Cooper bombs and A/S
bomb together. The bombs failed to cause
damage to U-30 but the explosion of
the bombs so close to A7M caused it to crash
into the sea, ripping off the
engine and nose of the aircraft forward of
the cockpit. Lt Griffiths was lucky
to get free, but PO George McKay was still
inside the aircraft when it sank.
After
A7M crashed U-30 closed
the FANAD HEAD and took off the boarding
party. Then moved away to torpedo the
FANAD HEAD.
Lt
Griffiths swam to the FANAD
HEAD and boarded her and joined the injured
Lt Thurston.
Before
Lemp
could torpedo the FANAD HEAD he was made
aware that their were two aviators on
the ship, so Lemp
closed the freighter and told them
he was preparing to fire torpedoes into the
ship, so they jumped into the water
and swam to U-30 and were taken aboard.
At
about 1820 hours Lemp
had dived and finally torpedoed and sank the
FANAD
HEAD with a G7a torpedo from one of the
stern tubes. Shortly after firing
U-30 was attacked by Swordfish aircraft who
failed to cause damage also
unbeknown to Lemp,
TARTAR and PUNJABI
were fast approaching U-30's
position]
At
1655,
when ARK ROYAL was approximately 120 miles
from the position given by the FANAD
HEAD, a striking force of six Swordfish,
A3A, A3F and A3M from 810 Sqd and A5G,
A5K and A5L from 821 Sqd, each armed with
six 100 lb A/S bombs was flown off to
attack the submarine which one of the Skuas
had already reported and was
shadowing.
[On
passage to the FANAD HEAD, Swordfish A5L
dropped her bombs on what
she believed to be a submerged submarine
about two miles from Rockall.
This aircraft was consequently able to
witness the
attacks by the other Swordfish.
At
about 1830 the Swordfish strike force
arrived on the scene just in
time to see the FANAD HEAD torpedoed at
1834. An attack was carried out on the submarine
which could be seen underwater.
A5L
was observing from a height of 700 feet at a
distance of Ό
mile and observed eleven 100 lb A/S bombs
land on or very close to the
submarine and reported that the submarine
was probably destroyed or severely
damaged (U-30 was not damaged in
this
attack). The Swordfish then returned to the
ARK ROYAL]
By
1816
Skua A7A had
returned to ARK ROYAL but there was no
sign of the other two nor had they been
heard on W/T.
By
2000
all the striking force of six Swordfish had
returned to ARK ROYAL.
[At
1920 TARTAR and PUNJABI
arrived on the scene of the sinking. On
arrival TARTAR picked up the passengers
and crew from the FANAD HEAD. The two
destroyers then commenced an asdic search
for the submarine.
At 2000 hours ESKIMO and BEDOUIN
joined TARTAR and PUNJABI and the four
destroyers continued searching for the
remainder of the night, without success]
Throughout
the
night ARK ROYAL with the destroyers FAULKNOR, FIREDRAKE and FOXHOUND cruised to the west of Rockall
Bank.
15th
-
At 0615 ARK ROYAL flew
off nine Swordfish to carry out a further
search of the area in which the FANAD
HEAD had been sunk, but nothing was seen.
[At
daylight the 12th division of TARTAR,
BEDOUIN, PUNJABI
and ESKIMO extended their search for U-30
to the east (U-30 had actually
steered north westerly heading for
Reykjavik, where
she arrived on 19/9/39).
At 0830 a steamer was sighted to
the north eastward.
ESKIMO was detached to investigate.
She proved to be the SS MANCHESTER
REGIMENT 5989grt bound for Manchester from
Montreal with general cargo. 12th
Division were then spread 4 miles
apart and followed this ship some 12 to 15
miles astern, course made good 120
degrees. At 1300 TARTAR closed the
MANCHESTER
REGIMENT to ascertain whether a report
emanating from the Boatswain of the
FANAD HEAD could be confirmed,
namely that 'he had heard that MANCHESTER
REGIMENT, laying astern of them at
Montreal, had loaded with ammunition and
aircraft'. This was not confirmed
and 12th Division continued affording
her cover until 1630 when the course was
altered to the southward.
At 1910 ESKIMO detached for Loch
Ewe.
During the night TARTAR,
BEDOUIN
and PUNJABI steered westerly]
During
the day, ARK ROYAL steered to the
eastward to meet the destroyers FEARLESS,
FORESTER, FURY and FORTUNE who were
coming from Loch Ewe to relieve FAULKNOR,
FIREDRAKE and FOXHOUND.
At
1750 ARK ROYAL flew off six Swordfish
to carry out a search to the south
eastward to a depth
of 90 miles, but nothing was sighted.
At
1800 the destroyers FEARLESS, FORESTER,
FURY and FORTUNE joined from Loch Ewe and
FAULKNOR, FIREDRAKE detached for Loch
Ewe and FOXHOUND detached for Kirkwall.
16th
- At 0715 ARK ROYAL flew off ten
Swordfish to carry out a search over the
Rockall Bank and the area in which the
FANAD HEAD had been sunk, to a depth of 100
miles, but nothing was seen.
During
the forenoon TARTAR, BEDOUIN and
PUNJABI rejoined.
At
approximately 1100 ARK ROYAL flew off
further Swordfish to carry out a search to
the south easterly to within 30
miles of the Northwest Coast of Ireland, but
nothing was sighted.
At
approximately 1430 ARK ROYAL had
recovered all her aircraft and course was
shaped for Loch Ewe.
At
1628 TARTAR was detached to Mallaig
to land the survivors from the FANAD HEAD.
At
1710 ARK ROYAL flew off four Swordfish and
three Skuas to carry out a search to the
westward of the Hebrides but nothing
was sighted.
At
1729 PUNJABI detached to Loch Ewe.
At
2130 hours TARTAR rejoined from Mallaig.
Overnight
ARK ROYAL and her escort cruised
in the Minches.
17th
- At 0700 ARK ROYAL with the destroyers
TARTAR,
BEDOUIN, FORESTER, FORTUNE, FURY and
FEARLESS in company entered Loch Ewe to
refuel.
[In
his report on ARK ROYAL's first mission
Vice Admiral Wells stated;-
Apart from the results achieved in
this operation, the five days' flying has
been of the greatest value. At times,
there has been considerable motion on the
ship but the deck landing has been
consistently good.
The large number of successful reconnaissance
flights carried out on several occasions
in conditions when the weather would
have been considered too bad for flying in
peace time, have given me increased
confidence in the Observers, and in
general ARK ROYAL's operational efficiency
has definitely been increased.
As a result of this operation, I am
of the opinion that to obtain the best
results in A/S work at least six
destroyers are required. Of these
four, would be used for screening and the
remainder as a striking force.
In view of the small striking power
of one aircraft (six 100 lb A/S
bombs) it is highly desirable to
send
them in pairs, but this naturally requires
a very large number of aircraft in
an all round search and is seldom
practicable.
The shortage of Observers in ARK
ROYAL was felt during this operation and
there is no doubt until it can be
remedied, the ship will be working much
below her operating capacity.
The whole essence of success in
this type of operation lied in striking at
once an effective blow at any
submarine reported. This is almost
impossible with an armament of 100 lb A/S
bombs, as only large numbers of these
bombs can be expected to give a decisive
result.
I consider that, although the
theory of 'stick' bombing with a large
number of small bombs as opposed to a
small number of large bombs is correct so
far as likelihood of obtaining one
hit is concerned, the damage likely to
accrue from one 100 lb bomb hit is
insufficient to ensure destruction.
I recommend that immediate
investigation be undertaken to discover a
suitable means of carrying three
depth charges on a T.S.R. aircraft,
preferable on the torpedo rack. A charge
with a very large explosive content is
required and it must be capable of
withstanding a drop from 2-300 feet at
200-250 miles per hour.
The procedure I have in mind is
that the aircraft should fly so low over
the submarine as to make quite certain
of dropping the charges very close to it.
There would be no necessity for
special sights or accurate ballistic
properties.
Unless something can be produced at
an early date on the lines I have
suggested, we shall miss opportunities for
the destruction of enemy submarines]
At around 1100 whilst at Loch Ewe the ARK
ROYAL was visited by the First Sea Lord,
Winston Churchill.
[At
1113 Vice Admiral Wells received
a report from the Admiralty of a submarine
in the vicinity of Tory Island. He
had then ordered the destroyers SOMALI
(D6) and MATABELE to proceed at 30 knots
to investigate the report]
At
1345
ARK ROYAL screened by the destroyers FEARLESS, FORTUNE, FORESTER and FURY sailed from Loch Ewe and set
course south ward
through the Minches.
At
1556 when approximately 150 miles from
Tory Island, ARK ROYAL flew off a searching
striking force of six Swordfish to
locate and attack any submarine in the
vicinity of Tory Island.
At
1716, a report was received on routines
(N.R. AN.729) stating that trawler ROGER (?
ROBERT) KIPLING
had been sunk by a submarine at
1600 in a position 5 miles west of Rathlin
O'Birne Island.
[Note:
This information was
subsequently amended by the CINC Western
Approaches' signal times 182517/9/39,
which showed that the trawler had been
sunk on 16/9/39 in a position some 90
miles further south and west.
On receipt of the information at 1716 the SOMALI, MATABELE, and
aircraft were ordered by W/T to proceed to
the position indicated off Rathlin
O'Birne Island]
At
1800
the destroyer FORESTER was detached to
proceed southward to join SOMALI and
MATABELE.
At
1855, a suspicious object
which
might have been a periscope was
sighted by one of the search
aircraft approximately 20 miles north east
of Eagle Island.
At
1915 all aircraft were recalled and all
had landed on by 2017.
[At
2100 SOMALI reached the vicinity of Tory
Island and carried out a
sweep to the south westward as far as Rathlin
O'Birne
Island. During the night, she continued
searching
this part of the coast and next morning
searched to the west of Tory Island
without success]
18th
- At 0605 in approximate position 56N,
9-30W ARK ROYAL flew off six Swordfish to
search the Irish Coast between Inishtrahull
and Eagle Island and in the sector 118
degrees
to 189 degrees. Nothing was sighted.
At
1040 in approximate position 56-06N,
10-06W ARK ROYAL flew off six Swordfish to
search between 190 degrees and 290
degrees to a depth of 100 miles nothing was
sighted.
At
1441 Vice Admiral Wells received an
order to return to Loch Ewe (CINC, Home
Fleet's signal timed 1400/18/9/39).
[At
2000/17/9/39 the aircraft carrier
COURAGEOUS, who like ARK ROYAL
formed the nucleus of a submarine hunting
group, was torpedoed and sunk by U-39
south west of Ireland. Following the
sinking and the 'near miss' on ARK ROYAL,
the Admiralty re-assessed the use of
aircraft carriers for submarine hunting
and decided to immediately cease the
practice. Hence the recalling of ARK ROYAL]
At
1545 the destroyers SOMALI, MATABELE and
FORESTER rejoined.
At
2047 SOMALI and MATABELE were detached
to proceed with all despatch to the
assistance of trawler LORD MINTO, who was
reported to have been attacked to the north
westward
of St Kilda.
[At
approximately 1830 the U-35 stopped a
group of three Fleetwood
trawlers west
northwest of the Isle of St.Kilda,
in position 57-51N, 9-28W. These were the
ARLITA
326grt, the LORD MINTO 295grt and the
NANCY HAGUE 299grt. The ARLITA and LORD
MINTO were sunk by gunfire and the NANCY
HAGUE, which was 28 years old, was
allowed to proceed with the survivors of
the other two. Before being sunk the
LORD MINTO sent off a submarine attack
report. (the
NANCY HAGUE was later requisitioned by the
Admiralty for use as bomb
defence vessel at Loch Alsh)]
19th
- At 0610 in approximate position 58-30N,
6-18E, ARK ROYAL flew off six Swordfish to
carry out a search from the vicinity
of the Butt of Lewis between bearings 290
degrees and 55 degrees to a depth of
65 miles. Nothing was sighted.
Between
0630 and 0715 ARK ROYAL flew of an
anti-submarine patrol to search the east
coast of the Isle of Lewis, to
investigate the submarine report given in SO
(I) Rosyth's
signal 2139/18/9/39.
All
aircraft were landed back on and ARK
ROYAL proceeded to Loch EWE.
At
0930 hours ARK ROYAL with the
destroyers FEARLESS, FORTUNE and FURY
arrived at Loch Ewe.
20th
- At
1915 the battleships NELSON (Flag CINC Home
Fleet), RODNEY, the battlecruisers
HOOD (Flag Rear Admiral William J Whitworth
CinC
Battle Cruiser Squadron) and REPLUSE, the
aircraft carrier ARK ROYAL (Flag
Vice Admiral Lionel V Wells) escorted
by the
destroyers FAULKNOR (D8), FOXHOUND, FURY,
FORESTER, FORESIGHT, FIREDRAKE,
FORTUNE, TARTAR and PUNJABI sailed from Loch
Ewe for Scapa.
En
route
the FOXHOUND had problems with her depth
charge thrower, which had been
damaged during the U-27 hunt and she
detached to proceed ahead to Scapa to
effect repairs.
En
route
the Fleet was joined by
the destroyers ESKIMO,
MATABELE, MASHONA and BEDOUIN
21st - At 0915 off Dunnet Head the destroyers
FIREDRAKE
and FORTUNE detached from the screen to
pursue a suspected submarine contact.
At
0945
the Home Fleet arrived at Scapa.
22nd At 1100 the Home Fleet comprising NELSON (Flag CINC HF),
RODNEY, HOOD, REPULSE, ARK ROYAL (Flag VA
Aircraft Carriers) with
Blackburn Skuas of 800 Sqd, Blackburn
Skuas and Rocs
of 803 Sqd, Fairy Swordfish of 810, 818,
820 and 821 Sqds embarked, and the
destroyers FAME, FORESIGHT, FIREDRAKE,
FORTUNE, FAULKNOR (D8), FOXHOUND,
FEARLESS, MATABELE, MASHONA and SOMALI (D6)
sailed from Scapa Flow to provide
cover for Operation SK.
[Operation
SK
was an operation by the cruisers of the
2nd CS and destroyers to penetrate deep
into the Skagerrak. The major objective
was to draw out heavy German Fleet
units and lead them towards the Home Fleet
covering force. The secondary
objectives were to investigate reports
that a boom had been laid across the
entrance to the Kattegat, to sink any
German ships encountered and exercise
contraband control]
[At
0400/22/9/39
the cruisers SOUTHAMPTON (Flag) and
GLASGOW of 2nd CS, AURORA and SHEFFIELD of
18th CS escorted by destroyers TARTAR,
BEDOUIN, PUNJABI and ESKIMO of 6th DF
and JERVIS, JERSEY, JAVELIN and JUPITER of
the 7th DF sailed from Rosyth.
At
1400 hours
in position 57-09N, 03-08E the destroyer
JERSEY collided with JAVELIN.
At
2222/22/9/39
the VA commanding the 2nd CS abandoned the
operation due to the
collision between JERSEY and JAVELIN]
23rd At 0617 the Home Fleet reversed course and steered for Scapa
Flow.
At
1333
in position 58-11N, 00-26W an explosion was
felt and observed
approximately 4 miles distant. The
destroyers FORTUNE, FIREDRAKE, MASHONE and
MATABELE were detached to investigate.
1910
the
Home Fleet arrived back at Scapa Flow.
[On
24/9/39 the
submarine SPEARFISH whilst operating in
the German Bight,
was heavily damaged by German warships off Horns Reef in
the shallow water of the Heligoland Bight.
The submarine's periscope had been
blown away, the wireless was smashed, the
engines disabled and seawater
threatened to reach the batteries and
start a release of chlorine gas. Knowing
that if he surfaced he would be unable to
dive again her captain Lt. John Eaden
RN surfaced and in the darkness made for
Danish territorial waters and crept
north on the submarine's one remaining
electrical motor. At 1510/25/9/39, after
making temporary repairs to the wireless
Eaden was able to signal his plight.
SPEARFISH estimated her position at
0630/25/9/39 would be 56-46N, 08-00E. The
Admiralty then set in operation a rescue
plan. At 0723/25/9/39 the Humber Force
cruisers SOUTHAMPTON and
GLASGOW departed Rosyth to assist
SPEARFISH and
the destroyers SOMALI, MATABELE, MASHONA,
and ESKIMO, already off the Norwegian
coast at 60N
proceeded
to join the
CinC HF]
25th
At 0830 the Home Fleet comprising
battleships NELSON (Flag CINC
HF) and RODNEY, aircraft carrier ARK ROYAL
(Flag VA Aircraft Carriers) with
Blackburn Skuas of 800 Sqd, Blackburn
Skuas and Rocs
of 803 Sqd, Fairy Swordfish of 810, 818,
820 and 821 Sqds embarked, and
destroyers BEDOUIN, PUNJABI, TARTAR, FURY
sailed from Scapa Flow and steered
westerly to provide cover the Humber Force
returning with the damaged submarine
SPEARFISH. The destroyers FAME and FORESIGHT
who were at sea joined the NELSON
force at sea. The destroyers SOMALI, ESKIMO,
MASHONA and MATABELE also later
joined at sea.
FORESIGHT
attacked
a submarine contact north of the Orkneys.
At
1724,
MATABELE was detached to investigate Danish
steamer OVE TOFT (2135grt)
and did not rejoin the Fleet until after
dark.
At
1925,
SOMALI and ESKIMO were detached to join
SPEARFISH, reaching her in
position 57‑04N, 06‑40E at 0100/26/9/39.
26th At 1100 the Fleet were in position 57-36N, 03-18E, steering
285Ό, with Swordfish from the ARK ROYAL
patrolling above the Fleet. At this
time three large aircraft were sighted,
later identified as Luftwaffe Dornier
18D flying boats of Kstenstaffel
1./KGr
506, from Harnum
See, Isle of Sylt.
Immediately
on
receiving the sighting report the ARK ROYAL
flew off three Skuas A7A, A7B
and A7K of 803 Sqd to intercept the Dornier
18D's.
[The
Skuas initially had difficulty in locating
the Dorniers
but eventually claimed one damaged near
position
57.36N 02.36E]
At
1130
ARK ROYAL flew off a further three Skuas
A7C, A7F and A7M of 803 Sqd to
help in the interception of the Dornier
Do18D's
[One
Dornier was shot down by A7C piloted by Lt
BS
McEwen with observer acting PO BM Seymour.
The Dornier landed on the sea and
the 4 crewmen of the stricken aircraft were
picked up by the destroyer SOMALI.
This
shooting down of the Dornier 18
is often cited as the first kill by a
British Aircraft in World War II,
but iIn fact
the first was
by Sgt F.A. Letchford,
an observer/gunner in a Fairy
Battle Bomber of 88 Sqd RAF on the 20/9/39.
But Sgt Letchford's
claim was not confirmed straight away; so Lt
McEwen's was the first confirmed]
At
1230
ARK ROYAL flew off a further three Skuas
L2879, L2934 and L2935 of 800 Sqd
to help in the interception of the Dornier
Do18D's
[The
remaining Dornier was driven off. But one or
more
of the Dornier's had managed to send off a
sighting report and this lead to the
Luftwaffe launching a strike force of bomber
aircraft]
By
1330 the ARK ROYAL had recovered all her
aircraft
and struck them below.
[The
CINC Home
Fleet would have known that the Dornier
18's had sent off a sighting report and
therefore there was a strong possibility
of the Luftwaffe mounting an attack on
the Fleet. Royal Navy philosophy for
dealing with an air attack in 1939 was to
leave the defence of the Fleet to the AA
weapons of the Fleet. When an aircraft
carrier was present the operating
procedure was to defuel the aircraft and
strike them below into the protected
hanger for the duration of the air attack]
At
approximately
1345 RODNEY's Type 79Y radar reported two or
three groups of
aircraft, Nine He 111H bombers of 1/KG 26
from Lbeck
Blankensee
airfield and four Ju 88A-1 bombers of
Stab1/KG 30 from Jever
airfield, at 6000 ft and approximately
80 miles range and closing.
RODNEY
kept
the CINC HF informed of the in coming attack
by flag signals. Even so the
Fleet was unprepared for the attack; RODNEY
felt that her radar reports had not
been taken seriously.
At
1420
the Fleet was in position 58-49N, 1-55E when
they were subjected to an air
attack from the He 111H's and Ju 88A-1's.
During the attacks all the heavy
ships opened fire on their attackers with
both long and close range weapons but
their fire was ineffective at shooting down
the attackers but was effective in
preventing any ships from being hit.
The
four
Ju 88A-1's made ARK ROYAL their target and
one of the last aircraft to
attack was a Ju 88A-1 piloted by
Lieutenant Adolf Francke and he singled out the ARK ROYAL
for a dive bomber
attack. Captain Power managed to
maneuver the ARK ROYAL so that when Francke
released his 500Kg bomb it missed
the ship and landed about 1000 ft off the
port bow. The explosion of the bomb
produced a huge column of water that rose
above the level of the flight deck
and caused the ship to whip and list.
[As
Francke
piloted his aircraft away from ARK
ROYAL his bomber crew was trying to see if
their bomb has hit the carrier. It's
difficult to tell; but Sgt. Bewermeyer
yells, 'Water
fountain hard beside the ship!' Francke
glanced
downward and saw the waterspout and a
flash. Is it a hit or is it AA fire? He
can't tell. But he doesn't want to linger
for a better look so he clears the
area and heads for home.
Francke
radios his
news to Germany, saying, 'Dive-attack with
two SC 500 bombs on aircraft carrier;
first a near miss by ship's side, second a
possible hit on bows. Effect not
observed.' When Francke
lands at his base, everyone
thinks he's hit and sunk ARK ROYAL.
Everyone, that is, except his CO colonel.
Siburg. He
asks Francke,
point
blank, 'Did you actually see her sink?',
'no,
colonel,' Francke
replies.
'In that
case, you didn't hit her either,' Siburg
says,
grinning. A former naval officer, Siburg
knows that a
flash or smoke from a surface target is no
proof of a hit by one's own guns.
But Berlin wants a report on the sinking
of ARK ROYAL. Why hasn't the report
been sent?
Because
nothing
about such a sinking is known here, is the
answer. Berlin is unhappy.
More reconnaissance planes are sent out to
find the ARK ROYAL. They find the
British Fleet, but no aircraft carrier.
The reconnaissance planes are told to
look for oil patches. That
the German find.
This
thin
evidence is enough for Goering, Milch,
Udet, and
others to believe that the carrier has
been sunk.
German radio then claims to have sunk the
ARK ROYAL with a single bomb, and
damaged a battleship for good measure. The
British do not deny the claim]
27th In the early hours of the morning the Fleet arrived back at
Scapa.
28th
to 30th -
The ARK ROYAL was at Scapa Flow.
[At
1200O/30/9/39
the panzerschiff
ADMIRAL GRAF SPEE was
in position 9-21S, 33-40W.
At
1300 the
GRAF SPEE sighted the British freighter
the SS CLEMENT 5051grt on passage from
New York to Salvador, Brazil, with 20000
cases of kerosene.
At
1315 the
CLEMENT sights the GRAF SPEE, shortly
after GRAF SPEE's Arado
Ar 196
seaplane circles the CLEMENT and signals,
'stop, no
wireless transmitting'. Captain Harris of
the
CLEMENT stops his ship but ignores the
warning and at 1400 sends off a RRR
signal with the ships position, 9-05S, 34-05W.
Captain
Langsdorff the
CO of the GRAF SPEE sends over a boarding
party, to fool the British crew the boat
has the name ADMIRAL SCHEER painted on
and its crew have cap badges with the same
name. Captain Harris and his Chief
Engineer Bryant were taken on board the
GRAF SPEE; the remaining crew of the
CLEMENT took to the lifeboats.
At
1530 the
GRAF SPEE finally sank the CLEMENT.
At
1800 the
GRAF SPEE sighted the Greek freighter SS
PAPALEMOS 3478grt and orders her to
stop. Captain Harris and his Chief
Engineer Bryant are then transferred to
the
PAPALEMOS and got her master to promise
not to use her wireless within 600
miles of her present position.
At
2000 Langsdorff
sent a signal to the radio station at Pernambuco,
using the ADMIRAL SCHEER call-sign,
he signalled, please save the crew of the
SS CLEMENT, and giving the position
of Lifeboats.
The
panzerschiff
ADMIRAL GRAF SPEE had sailed from
Wilhelmshaven on 21/8/39, with orders to
take up a position in the South
Atlantic and await orders. On 26/9/39 Langsdorff
received his orders. He was to commence
hostilities immediately, but with
several restrictions; he was to attack
only British ships. Actions with enemy
warships were to be avoided, so as to not
risk his ship. The CLEMENT was Langsdorff's
first victim]
OCTOBER
1st
-
[In
the early
hours of the 1/10/39 The Admiralty
received a signal from the Naval Control
Staff Officer at Pernambuco;
informing them that the
British ship SS CLEMENT had been sunk by a
surface raider 75 miles southeast of
Pernambuco at
1400 local time yesterday. The
Admiralty immediately organise the
deployment of forces to hunt down the
raider. One of the hunting groups is to be
the battlecruiser RENOWN and ARK
ROYAL. Orders were sent out to ARK ROYAL
to re-organise her squadrons and to land
one Skua squadron which will not be
required in the South Atlantic]
At
1430
the ARK ROYAL (Flag, Vice Admiral Lionel
Victor Wells VA Aircraft
Carriers) and the destroyers FORTUNE and
FIREDRAKE sailed from Scapa Flow and
proceeded to the west of the Orkney's to fly
off 803 Sqd Skuas
and Rocs and 818 Sqd Swordfish to RNAS
Hatson and to
land on 820 Sqd Swordfish from RNAS Hatson
At 1900 the ARK ROYAL, FORTUNE
and
FIREDRAKE RVed with the Home Fleet
comprising battleships NELSON (Flag CINC
Home Fleet) and RODNEY, battle cruiser HOOD
and REPLUSE and light cruiser
NEWCASTLE and the destroyers ASHANTI,
MASHONA, MATABELE, SOMALI, FAME and
FORESIGHT
who had sailed from Scapa Flow at 1700 on
passage for Loch Ewe.
[The
movement of
the Fleet was
in accordance with Admiralty instructions
and in pursuance of the policy of
evading air attack on Scapa Flow]
2nd
-
[The
Admiralty
ordered ARK ROYAL and RENOWN to sail for
Freetown where they were to form the
Hunting Group Force K]
At
2030
the ARK ROYAL (Flag, Vice Admiral Lionel
Victor Wells VA Aircraft
Carriers) and the destroyers ASHANTI and
FORESIGHT sailed from Loch Ewe and
steered for the Butt of Lewis.
3rd
-
At 0010 the ARK ROYAL, ASHANTI and
FORESIGHT RVed
with the battlecruiser RENOWN and the
destroyers BEDOUIN and TARTAR.
The Force then headed out into the Atlantic
before
turning south for Freetown
4th
ASHANTI, BEDOUIN, FORESIGHT and TARTAR
detached and returned to Scapa.
9th
When ARK ROYAL and RENOWN were passing east
of the Cape Verde Islands a Swordfish
from ARK ROYAL sighted the German supply
tanker ALTMARK to the west of the Cape
Verde Islands. When the ALTMARK was
challenged Captain Dau
gave her identity as the US tanker the SS
DELMAR 5107grt, (the ALTMARK was
10750grt). Vice Admiral Wells decided not to
investigate as he had no
destroyers with him and he was keen to press
on to Freetown. Later it was
learned that the DELMAR was in New Orleans.
11th
At 0430 hours in position 11-50N, 21W
ARK ROYAL and RENOWN
were joined by destroyers HARDY, HASTY and
HOSTILE from Freetown.
12th
At 0900 hours ARK ROYAL, RENOWN, HARDY,
HASTY and HOSTILE arrived at Freetown.
14th
At 1800 hours ARK ROYAL, RENOWN the light
cruiser NEPTUNE and the destroyers HARDY,
HERO and HEREWARD, now known as Force K,
sailed from Freetown to patrol towards
St Paul's Rocks.
[22/10/39
the British freighter MV TREVANION
5299grt, which was on passage from Port
Pirie Australia to Swansea UK with
a cargo of zinc ore, sighted a warship
flying a
large French Ensign. When the warship was
two miles away, the TREVANION was
told to heave to and not use her radio, at
the same time the German Ensign was
run up in place of the French. TREVANION's
wireless operator immediately transmitted
a RRR with her position. The warship was
the GAFF SPEE who then opened fire on
the TREVANION. The signal that was picked
up by the liner the SS
LLANSTEPHAN CASTLE 11293grt and she
reported to Freetown, that she had
intercepted a signal from an
unidentified steamer stating that she was
being shelled in a position 19S,
4-03E at 1400Z.
After
taking off the crew the TREVANION
was sunk in position 19-40S, 4-02E. This
position was approximately 1750 NM
south west of Force K]
24th
Force K arrived back at Freetown.
28th
At 2000 Force K comprising ARK ROYAL,
RENOWN, NEPTUNE, HARDY, HASTY, HERO,
HEREWARD and HOSTILE sailed from Freetown to
patrol to the south as far as
Ascension Island.
NOVEMBER
1st
HERO detached for escort duties.
5th
- In position
6N, 17 W, 300 miles WSW of Freetown a
Swordfish from ARK ROYAL sighted the
German freighter SS UHENFELS 7603grt, which
had departed Lourenco Marques on
13/10/39 with a cargo of opium, cotton and
hides. HEREWARD was detached from
the screen to investigate, the UHENFELS
attempted to scuttle herself, however, she
was captured by a
boarding party from HEREWARD.
6th
Force K less HEREWARD arrived back at
Freetown.
7th
The
destroyer HEREWARD arrived at Freetown with
the UHENFELS. She was taken for
British service and renamed SS EMPIRE
ABILITY.
14th
At Freetown where Vice Admiral Wells
transferred his flag the RENOWN.
ARK
ROYAL then sailed for the
UK to exchange her aircraft, particularly
the Swordfish, which were in urgent
need of a major overall.
[On
15/11/39 the British tanker SS AFRICA
SHELL 706grt, in approximate position
24-44S, 35-15E, on passage from Quelimane,
Mozambique, to Lourenco Marques, sighted a
warship approaching at speed. The master
Captain Dove quickly identified the
warship as the DEUTSCHLAND, it was in fact
the GRAF SPEE, and turned towards
the coast in an attempt to reach
Mozambique territorial waters. The AFRICA
SHELL was soon stopped by the GRAF SPEE,
the crew
took to the lifeboats and Captain Dove was
taken on board the GRAF SPEE. The
AFRICA SHELL was then sunk in position
24-40S, 35-12E. Captain Langsdorff
wanted his presence in the Indian Ocean to
be
known, as he intended to immediately
return to the Atlantic. So the crew of the
AFRICA SHELL were allowed to row to the
coast and shortly after landing they
were met by a Portuguese patrol.
When
the news of the sinking reached the
Admiralty, the ARK ROYAL was ordered to
immediately return to Freetown]
17th
The ARK ROYAL arrived back at Freetown.
18th
Force K comprising
the ARK ROYAL (Flag Vice Admiral
Wells), RENOWN, NEPTUNE and the
destroyers HARDY, HASTY, HERO and HOSTILE
sailed from Freetown heading south
for the Cape of Good Hope.
Two
hours after leaving
Freetown HARDY, HASTY, HERO and HOSTILE
detached to patrol between Freetown and
Pernambuco.
21st
At 0842 when Force K were 150 miles north
east of Ascension Island when they
picked up a signal from the freighter MV
WAIMARAMA 12843grt stating that she
had sighted the German blockade runner the
SS ADOLF WOERMANN 8577grt in
position 250 miles north of St Helena
Island.
Force
K altered course and
NEPTUNE was detached and sent ahead at full
speed to close the position given
by the WAIMARAMA, who was continuing to
shadow the ADOLF WOERMANN.
22nd
At 0800, 366 miles north of St Helena Island
the NEPTUNE
intercepted
the ADOLF WOERMANN. On sighting the
cruiser the German ship was evacuated and
the sea cocks opened and despite
strenuous efforts to save her, the German
ship was scuttled and the NEPTUNE
returned to FREETOWN 162 prisoners.
The
search for the German ship had taken Force
'K' nearly 200 miles to the
eastward and, to save fuel, it proceeded
towards the Cape by the route east of
St. Helena.
[At
1200/25/11/39 Force K and GRAF SPEE were
steaming on opposing courses and came
within 300 miles of each other. the GRAF
SPEE. The Commander-in-Chief South
Atlantic subsequently expressed the view
that this might have been the reason for
Force K missing the ALTMARK which
was awaiting for the ADMIRAL GRAF
SPEE away from the Cape shipping routes
through which Force 'K' would otherwise
have passed. The reason the CINC South
Atlantic held this opinion was, had
Force K followed the intended course,
before being diverted by the ADOL
WOERMANN they would have passed within 130
miles of the GRAF SPEE]
28th
The ARK ROYAL and RENOWN arrived at Simonstown.
[On 27
November the Admiralty ordered Force K
with Force H (the heavy
cruisers
SUSSEX and SHROPSHIRE)
to
form a patrol line south
of the Cape of Good Hope on the meridian
of 20 degrees East]
29th
The ARK ROYAL and RENOWN
sailed from Simonstown to commence their
patrol along the 20 degree meridian
between longitude 38 and 40 south. The
weather conditions were too adverse for
ARK ROYAL to operate aircraft.
DECEMBER
1st
Early in the morning
Forces K and H, RVed in the patrol area. The
weather continued to be unsuitable
for flying such that only once in the five
day patrol was flying possible. This
precluded the patrol being extended far
enough to the south to intercept a
raider bent on evasion. In any case, the
ADMIRAL GRAF SPEE had returned to the
Atlantic on 21/11/39 a week before the
patrol commenced.
2nd
At 1030 hours Force K
received a sighting report from a Junkers Ju
86Z of 15 Sqd SAAFof
a suspicious vessel in the area south of
Cape
Agulhas, 74 miles, 167‘ from Cape of Good
Hope. Approximate position 35-44S,
18-47E.
Force
K then steered for the
position of the suspicious vessel.
[The
vessel sighted by the Ju 86Z of 15 Sqd
piloted
by Captain Boshoff,
was the German liner the SS
WATUSSI 9521grt. The WATUSSI had sailed
from Lourenco Marques, Mozambique, on
22/11/39. She had on board 43 passengers
and 155crew, and was believed to be
attempting to return to Germany.
Force
H comprising the SUSSEX and
SHROPSHIRE had recently completed fuel at
Simonstown
and were returning to the patrol area.
When Force H received the sighting
report they also steered for the poison of
the suspicious vessel and being
nearer they arrived first. On the approach
of SUSSEX,
Captain Stamer, the master of the
WATUSSI set
his vessel on fire and set the scuttling
charges and the crew and passengers
abandoned
ship. The 155crew and 42 passengers were
picked up by SUSSEX.
When
Force K arrived on the scene the
WATUSSI was well on fire but still afloat.
RENOWN then sank the hulk with
gunfire from her B turret]
3rd
Force K arrived back at Cape Town.
[At
1300/2/12/39south east of St Helena the
SS DORIC STAR 10086grt, on passage to the
UK, was attacked by the ADMIRAL GRAF
SPEE, Captain Langsdorff
opened fire with his main
armament from long range, which allowed
the DORIC STAR to send a distress call
before being overwhelmed, giving her
position as 650 miles east south east of
St Helena. The DORIC STAR eventually
stopped and the crew taken off and sunk in
position 19-15S, 5-05E. When
the CINC South Atlantic
received the DORIC STAR's raider signal he
at once decided to abandon the
patrol south of the Cape. Force K was
ordered to sweep direct from the Cape
towards Pernambuco]
4th
At 0800 Force K sailed
from Cape Town to carry out their assigned
patrol.
12th
At 1000 Force K were off
Pernambuco in approximate position 9S, 33W.
13th
At 0700 Force K was off
Pernambuco when they received the news of
the battle off the River Plate where
Force G was in action with the ADMIRAL GRAF
SPEE. On receipt of the news Force
K immediately steered for Rio de Janeiro to
refuel.
17th
At 0800 Force K arrived
at Rio de Janeiro and immediately commenced
refueling.
[At 2054/17/12/39
the ADMIRAL GRAF SPEE blew herself up in
the River Plate estuary off
Montevideo. Part of the reason for the
decision was because Captain Langsdorff
thought that RENOWN and ARK ROYAL were off
the Plate]
18th
At 0500 ARK ROYAL,
RENOWN, NEPTUNE, HARDY, HASTY, HEREWARD and
HOSTILE sailed from Rio de Janeiro
for Freetown.
27th
At 0900 Force K arrived
at Freetown.
28th
to 31st
- ARK ROYAL was at
Freetown.
1 9
4 0
JANUARY
1st
to 2nd
-
ARK ROYAL at Freetown.
3rd
-
The ARK ROYAL with the
destroyers HASTY and HERO sailed from
Freetown for Dakar.
4th
-
The ARK ROYAL with the
destroyers HASTY and HERO arrived at Dakar
for a good will visit.
8th
-
Early in the morning the ARK
ROYAL with the destroyers HASTY and HERO
sailed from Dakar.
In
approximate position 11N, 19W the ARK ROYAL
with the destroyers HASTY
and HERO RVed with RENOWN and the destroyers
HARDY and HOSTILE from Freetown.
HARDY
and HOSTILE then detached and returned to
Freetown.
ARK
ROYAL, RENOWN, HASTY and HERO then commenced
patrolling hoping to sight
the ALTMARK.
9th
The destroyer DAINTY from
Gibraltar RVed with the force to transfer
mail to RENOWN before proceeding to
Freetown.
10th
- HASTY and HERO detached for
refueling.
15th
In mid Atlantic ARK ROYAL
and RENOWN, RVed with the cruiser AJAX and
escorted her to Freetown.
19th
- ARK ROYAL, RENOWN and AJAX
arrived at Freetown.
24th
ARK ROYAL, RENOWN and
destroyers DAINTY and DIAMOND sailed from
Freetown towards Pernambuco to RV
with the heavy cruiser EXETER, who having
completed emergency repairs at Port
Stanley, was sailing northward escorted by
the cruisers DORSETSHIRE and
SHROPSHIRE.
29th
In position 200 miles
east of Pernambuco the ARK ROYAL force RVed
with the EXETER force. DORSETSHIRE
and SHROPSHIRE then detached for Buenos
Aires
and Montevideo, respectively. The ARK ROYAL force escorting the EXETER set course for
Freetown.
FEBRUARY
3rd
-
ARK ROYAL, RENOWN, EXETER, DAINTY and DIAMOND arrived at Freetown.
Awaiting EXETER was the heavy repair ship
RESOURCE and further repairs were
carried out to EXETER.
6th
At 1800N ARK ROYAL, RENOWN, EXETER, DAINTY
and DIAMOND sailed from Freetown and
set course for Plymouth.
9th
- At
1800N in position 23-30N, 21-20W, RENOWN
and EXETER detached to proceed to
rendezvous 'B' 48N, 13-30W.
The destroyers DAINTY and DIAMOND were
detached to Dakar to refuel.
[During
the night of the 9-10/2/39 the
Admiralty received information that six
German merchant ships had sailed from Vigo,
Spain to attempt to return to Germany. The
operation
to intercept these vessels was known as
Operation VO and for the duration of
the operation the ARK ROYAL was placed
under the command of the CINC Western
Approaches]
11th
At 1830N in position 41N, 16-30W, steering
015Ό, speed 19 knots, steering for
position 'X', 45N, 15W
in accordance with CINC Western
Approaches signal timed 1351/11/2/40.
Clocks
were advanced to G.M.T. during the night of
11-12
February
12th
At 0800 in position 44-47N, 15-03W, ARK
ROYAL flew off three Swordfish to
guarantee and if possible, expedite the RV
with the destroyers despatched by
CINC Western Approaches. The aircraft were
sent to the North East with instructions
to act as visual link.
At
0846 aircraft sighted the
destroyers KEITH, VETERAN and WAKEFUL and
vectored them towards ARK ROYAL.
At
0849 the destroyers
ANTELOPE joined company, having been acting
independently on passage. She reported
that she had not sighted
the other destroyers.
At
0900 ARK ROYAL flew off twelve
Swordfish to carry out an all round relative
diverging search to a depth of 120
miles and course was altered to West. The
visibility at this time was about 10
miles and deteriorating, with extensive low
cloud at a height of 600 to 800
feet. Two aircraft in the North
East sector, where conditions were worst,
were forced to return early.
At
0945 the destroyers KEITH,
VETERAN and WAKEFUL sighted
At
0955 the three Swordfish
flown off at 0800 were landed back on.
At
1000 speed of advance 14
knots.
At
1045 KEITH, VETERAN and
WAKEFUL were on station in the screen.
At
1200 position was 45-12N,
15-24W.
At
1324 the remaining
aircraft were landed back on. During their
patrol they had sighted the French
destroyer LE TRIOMPHANT, the Dutch freighter
ship SS LINGE 2114grt, and a small
tanker.
At
1355 the VA A/C received a
signal from the CINC WA, 1238/12, giving the
position of one of the German
freighters, the SS WAHEHE 4683grt.
At
1440 ARK ROYAL flew off
six Swordfish to carry out a diverging
search to cover the WAHEHE's possible
movements.
At
1610 aircraft sighted the
LE TRIOMPHANT.
At
1640 aircraft sighted the
destroyer HASTY.
At
1700 aircraft sighted the
destroyer HERO.
Between
1800 and 1825 the six
Swordfish were landed back on. No sighting
of the WAHEHE had been made.
[On
the 21/2/40 the WAHEHE was intercepted and
boarded in position 62-50N, 14-20W by the
light cruiser MANCHESTER and the
destroyer KIMBERLY]
At
2000 position was 44-23N,
15-50W.
13th
-
At
0800 ARK ROYAL was in position 44-39N,
17-21W. The weather was unsuitable for
flying.
At
0815 the VETERAN detached
to investigate the Dutch tanker the MV DEN
HAAG 8971grt, on passage from New
York to Amsterdam.
At
0930 the weather improved
and ARK ROYAL flew off 9 Swordfish to carry
out a diverging search to the south
west.
At
1125 aircraft sighted the
RENOWN, EXETER and HASTY.
At
1200 ARK ROYAL was in
position 45-20N, 16-27W.
Between
1305 and 1340 the 9
Swordfish were landed back on. Weather
conditions now deteriorated and flying
was suspended.
At
1600 the ARK ROYAL passed
the Norwegian freighter SS VECHT 1695grt, on
passage to Rotterdam.
At
1648 the sea state was too
rough for the destroyers to keep station so
speed was reduced to 14 knots.
At
2000 ARK ROYAL was in
position 46-15N, 14-07W
At
2005 speed was reduced to
12 knots.
14th
-
At
0800 ARK ROYAL was in position 47-23N,
11-33W.
At
1200 ARK ROYAL was in
position 47-56N, 10-16W.
At
1800 the destroyers
ANTELOPE and VETERAN were detached to
Plymouth.
15th
At 0730 ARK ROYAL was 12 miles south of St
Catherine's Point, Isle of Wight.
At
0745 ARK ROYAL commenced
flying off her air group, the Swordfish went
to RNAS Lee-on-Solent and the
Skuas went to RNAS Hatson.
At
0927 ARK ROYAL anchored at
Spithead.
Later
in the day ARK ROYAL
went into Portsmouth for a short refit
16th
to 29th -
ARK ROYAL at Portsmouth.
MARCH
1st
to 15th -
ARK ROYAL at Portsmouth.
16th
-
At
1700 ARK ROYAL sailed from Portsmouth
Dockyard and anchored in Spithead.
17th
-
The
ARK ROYAL carried out demagnetisation trials
in Spithead,
this was to test the degaussing that had
been fitted during the refit.
19th
-
At
1500 ARK ROYAL and the destroyers ARROW,
SHIKARI and ISIS sailed from Spithead
and steered west down the Channel.
At
1630 the ARROW, SHIKARI
and ISIS detached.
At
1943 the ARK ROYAL
anchored in Portland Harbour.
20th
-
The
ARK ROYAL sailed from Portland Harbour to
operate in Weymouth Bay where she
flew on Swordfish Sqds 810 from RNAS
Lee-on-Solent and 820 and 821 from RNAS
Ford.
After
flying on the aircraft
the ARK ROYAL returned to Portland Harbour.
[The
Admiralty regained control of the Fleet
Air Arm on 24/5/39
which was only 14 weeks before
the
out break of war. Now six months into the
war, when the FAA was being expanded
and the RAF contingent being replaced by
RN staff, there was an urgent need for
intensive training for aircrew. So it was
decided to deploy the ARK ROYAL to
the Mediterranean to join the GLORIOUS in
carrying out training in a more
benign climate]
22nd
-
At
1100 hours the ARK ROYAL (Flag Vice Admiral
Wells, Vice Admiral Aircraft
Carriers) sailed from Portland Harbour
escorted by the destroyers IMOGEN and
ISIS. Course was set for Lizard Head.
23rd
-
At
1800 in position 46-47N, 13-44W the
destroyers IMOGEN and ISIS detached for
Plymouth.
The
ARK ROYAL continued
unescorted for Gibraltar.
25th
- At
1205
in position 36-02N, 9-36W the destroyers
BULLDOG and ACTIVE joined from
Gibraltar.
At
1915 the destroyer VOYAGER
joined from Gibraltar.
At
2010 the ACTIVE detached.
At
2115 when off Gibraltar
the ARK ROYAL passed the homebound convoy HG
24F.
[The
convoy which consisted of 22 merchant
ships escorted by the destroyer WRESTLER,
the French destroyer CHACAL and the
French trawler CAPITAINE ARMAND was
in the process of departing from
Gibraltar. Included in the convoy was ex
German freighter UHENFELS, captured on
5/11/39 as a result of a sighting by a
Swordfish from ARK ROYAL, and now
re-named EMPIRE ABILITY]
26th
-
During the morning flying exercises were
carried out.
At
1200 in
position 36-35N, 00-00.
27th
-
During the morning flying and gunnery
exercises were carried out.
At
1200 in position 37-52N,
7-01E
28th
-
At
1000 the ARK ROYAL, BULLDOG and VOYAGER
arrived at Valetta harbour.
29th
&
30th - ARK ROYAL at Malta.
31st
-
At
1030 the aircraft carriers ARK ROYAL and
GLORIOUS and the destroyers BULLDOG,
VOYAGER and WESTCOTT sailed from Valetta
harbour.
At
1200 in
position 35-41N, 14-41E.
During
the afternoon flying
exercises were carried out.
APRIL
1st
-
Flying
exercises were carried out during the day.
At
1200 in
position 34-05N, 21-52E.
2nd
-
At
0700 the GLORIOUS and WESTCOTT detached
for independent flying practice.
During
the morning ARK ROYAL
flew off two of her Swordfish Sqds to the
Egyptian Air Force base at Dekheila
for flying training ashore.
At
1330 VOYAGER detached to
Alexandria for escort duties.
At
1500 ARK ROYAL and BULLDOG
arrived at Alexandria.
3rd
to 9th
-
The ARK ROYAL in company with GLORIOUS
carried out flying exercises off Alexandria
during the day and returned to harbour at
night.
[Late
on 9/4/40 Vice Admiral Wells received a
signal from the Admiralty ordering
immediate return of the ARK ROYAL and
GLORIOUS to the UK. This was because of
the German invasion of Norway]
10th
-
At
0600 the ARK ROYAL, GLORIOUS with the
destroyers BULLDOG and WESTCOTT sailed
from Alexandria.
At
0730 ARK ROYAL and
Glorious commenced landing on their
Swordfish squadrons from Dekheila.
After
all the aircraft were
landed on course was set for Gibraltar at 25
knots.
11th
- At
1200 the force was in position 35-26N,
16-59E.
At
1630 the destroyers HMAS
STUART and WATERHEN joined from Malta.
At
1645 the GLORIOUS,
WESTCOTT and BULLDOG detached to Malta to
refuel.
Overnight
to the south of
Sicily the ARK ROYAL carried out night
flying exercises.
12th
-
At
0630 the GLORIOUS, WESTCOTT and BULLDOG
joined from Malta.
At
0700 the WATERHEN was
detached to return to Malta.
At
1200 the ARK ROYAL,
GLORIOUS, WESTCOTT, BULLDOG and STUART were
in position 37-44N, 8-21E.
13th
-
At
1200 the ARK ROYAL, GLORIOUS, WESTCOTT,
BULLDOG and STUART were in position
36-29N, 2-45W.
At
1830 the ARK ROYAL,
GLORIOUS, WESTCOTT, BULLDOG and STUART
arrived at Gibraltar.
14th
At
2100
the flag of Vice Admiral, Aircraft Carriers
transferred from ARK ROYAL to
GLORIOUS.
[The
admiralty ordered the GLORIOUS to join
the Home Fleet with all despatch. At
2130/14/4/40 the GLORIOUS and the
destroyers STUART, VELOX and WATCHMAN
sailed from Gibraltar for Greenock. ARK
ROYAL was ordered to remain at Gibraltar
to continue with flying exercises]
15th
-
ARK
ROYAL carried out exercises in the vicinity
of Alboran
Island.
16th
- At
0800 whilst off Alboran
Island the ARK ROYAL was
recalled to Gibraltar.
At
1700 the ARK ROYAL
escorted by the destroyers VORTIGERN,
WESTCOTT and BULLDOG sailed from Gibraltar
for Greenock.
17th
-
At
2200 off Cape Finisterre VORTIGERN detached
and returned to Gibraltar.
19th
- At
2000 the destroyer SALADIN joined from
Plymouth.
At
2030 the destroyers
BULLDOG and WESTCOTT detached for Plymouth.
20th
- At
1100 hours in approximate position 55-30N,
9W, ARK ROYAL and SALADIN were
joined by the destroyers JUNO and HASTY from
the Clyde.
At
2200 arrived off Greenock
with JUNO, HASTY and SALADIN.
21st
-
ARK
ROYAL was moored off Greenock.
22nd
-
At
0600 the ARK ROYAL (Flag Vice Admiral Wells,
Vice Admiral Aircraft Carriers)
and the destroyers SIKH, JUNO and MASHONA
sailed from Greenock for Scapa.
At
0930 the ARK ROYAL landed
on six Skuas and five Rocs of 800 and 801
Sqds from Prestwick.
[En
route
to ARK ROYAL a Skua flown by Lt Cdr DTR
Martin suffered engine failure
and crashed into a field at Troon]
23rd
-
At
0300 the destroyer JUNO detached for Scapa.
At
0600 in the Pentland Firth
ARK ROYAL flew off the Swordfish of 821 Sqd
to RNAS Evanton.
Following which she flew on the remainder of
800 and 801 Sqds from Hatson.
At
0730 the ARK ROYAL with
SIKH and MASHONA arrived at Scapa.
At
0900 the ARK ROYAL (Flag
Vice Admiral Wells, Vice Admiral Aircraft
Carriers), with 18 Skuas & 5 Rocs
of 800 & 801 and 21 Swordfish of 810
& 820 embarked, GLORIOUS, with 18
Sea Gladiators of 802 & 804 and 11 Skuas
of 803 plus 18 RAF Gladiators of 263
Sqd embarked, the heavy cruiser BERWICK, the
anti-aircraft cruiser CURLEW
(fitted with a Type 79 radar with a range,
in ideal conditions, of 80 miles) screened
by the destroyers HYPERION, HEREWARD, HASTY,
FEARLESS, FURY and JUNO sailed
from Scapa on Operation DX. This was the
first carrier task force in the
history of the RN.
[By
21/4/40
it had become clear that if
the military expeditions operating from Andalsnes
and
Namsos were to continue to make progress
fighter support must be given to them.
Operation DX was an operation to fly off
RAF Gladiator fighters, from GLORIOUS,
and to provide defensive air cover for
shipping operating off the Norwegian
coast and for the Allied forces in Norway.
The
Carriers were to provide cover for
British landings at Namsos and Aandalsnes.
These two
forces were then to take the port of
Trondheim in a pincer movement from
the north and south.
The
Sea Gladiators were to provide
protection for the fleet (CAP)
while
the longer range Skuas would operate as
both bombers and fighters and the
Swordfish would provide a bomb or torpedo
strike capability]
24th
-
The
Force was on passage to Norwegian waters.
[From
0300 until 2100 two Sea Gladiators from
the GLORIOUS maintained a rolling two
hour CAP over
the force]
At
1600 the ARK ROYAL was in
position 65-00N, 5-24E. Weather
was overcast with frequent snow
squalls.
Wind N.E. Force 3. Sea
and swell 25.
At
1625 ARK ROYAL flew off
three Skuas 6K, 6L & 6M of 800 Squadron
and three Skuas 7C, 7K & 7L of
801 Squadron to Andalsnes
and up the valley to Kvam
to attack enemy aircraft that were bombing
our troops.
[At
1700 the 18 RAF Gladiators of 263 Squadron
led by two Skuas of 803 Sqd, were flown
off the GLORIOUS to
an improvised landing strip built by Norwegian volunteers
on the frozen lake Lesjaskogsvatnet in
Oppland]
[REPORT of 800 and 801 Sqd
The
two
Skua sections from ARK ROYAL, three from 800
and three from 801, proceeded
independently towards the Norwegian coast
making a landfall at Bud. The weather
which was indifferent over
ARK ROYAL, improved on reaching the coast
with extreme visibility.
Each
section
went over Aandalsnes
and proceeded up the narrow
valley towards Dombas.
It was observed that the railway had been
heavily bombed but
it appeared that direct hits had only been
registered in two places. The damage
done in these two places had
been made good.
Passing
over
the frozen lake at Lesjaskogsvatnet
no Gladiator
aircraft were seen, but the swept runway was
most conspicuous.
At
Otta there was
no activity of any sort. Near Dombas
many engines and rolling stock were observed
on a siding. Smoke was seen further up
the valley
where the enemy had been bombing.
No hostile aircraft were sighted.
Many houses were seen burning and fires had
been started in the woods
near Kvam and
further up.
A
bridge over the river at Kvam
had been recently
repaired and considerable motor transport
was seen in this area, the majority
of which was moving inland.
However, one pilot reported that he saw guns
being transported towards Otta.
Aircraft
now
descended to 2000 feet and fired several
recognition signals remaining the
vicinity until time to return. No
opposition was encountered, so sections
turned down the valley towards Andalsnes.
Having
taken
departure from Bud and when approaching the
ship, the weather
deteriorated and there were heavy storms.
While
circling
the ship before landing on, aircraft 6M,
L3050 and 7K, L2877, both
force landed in the sea owing to engine
failure due to running out of fuel. The
crews of both aircraft were rescued]
By
2045 the other four Skuas,
6K, 6L, 7C & 7L, had been landed on.
Later
the force was joined by
the destroyer MAORI.
25th
-
At
0300 the ARK ROYAL was in position 65-12N,
8-24E.
[The
weather
conditions were, cloud ten tenths stratus
and stratocumulus at 3000
feet over sea, rising to 5000 feet over the
land, visibility, good, wind NW
force 2.
The
tasks
for the day were:-
820
Squadron
were to attack Vaernes aerodrome, east of
Trondheim, bomb hangers, and
aircraft.
810
Squadron
were to attack Aircraft reported to be on
the frozen Jonsvatnet
lake, SE of
Trondheim
where German transport aircraft had been
observed the previous day and the D/F
hut reported on NE corner. Failing suitable
targets on the lake squadron to
attack Vaernes aerodrome.
800
and
801 squadrons were to attack shipping in
Trondheim harbour]
At
0310 six Swordfish 4A, 4B,
4C, 4F, 4G & 4H of 820 Sqd each armed
with four 250lb GP bombs and eight
20lb Cooper bombs, took from ARK ROYAL.
At
0315 eight Swordfish 2A,
2B, 2C, 2G, 2K, 2P, 2Q & 2R of 810 Sqd
each armed with four 250lb GP bombs
and eight 20lb Cooper bombs, took from ARK
ROYAL. Swordfish 2K, L2768, crashed
on take off the crew were rescued by the
guard destroyer.
[REPORT of 820 Sqd ATTACK
The
squadron
took off at 0310, formed up over ship, and
steered so as to make
landfall ten miles south of Kya
Lighthouse.
Landfall
was
made as expected at 0415 and the Squadron
then set a SE course so as to
approach Trondheimsfjord
passed over the south end of
Beitstadfjorden.
The squadron flew at 5000 feet, at which
height the aircraft
was just below the cloud layer.
Trondheimsfjord was reached at 0441 and Vaernes aerodrome was approached from the NW,
across the East end of Asenfjord.
The squadron then formed into line
astern of sub flights. At
0448, the Squadron Commander, Lieut.
Cdr G S Hodgkinson,
in 4A put the leading sub flight into
echelon left and this sub flight dived to
attack at 0450. The intention was
for each aircraft of each sub flight to take
one strip across the aerodrome,
attacking from west to east.
This
plan
was followed as far as practicable and the
second sub flight attacked in a
similar manner some thirty seconds later.
Intense
A.A.
fire was experienced from short
range weapons
immediately after starting the dive.
Shooting appeared accurate, tracer
ammunition coming very close. There
appeared to be three positions
from which the fire was coming, one near
hangers, one on East side of
Aerodrome, and another on the N.E.
No long range AA fire was observed.
Direct
hits
on the two westernmost hangers were obtained
with 250 lbs bombs by
aircraft 4F (Lieutenant Boulding)
and 4G (Lieutenant
Hunter) and these hangers at once burst into
flames. A huge column of black smoke
rose to a height of about 2000
feet and it is thought that a petrol dump
may have been destroyed. Hits with 250
lbs bombs were also
scored on the runways, and with Cooper bombs
on the huts and on the north side
of the aerodrome, by the other aircraft.
After
the
attack, squadron reformed 15 miles NW of the
objective. All six aircraft returned
to the ship
by the same route as that taken on the way
in. The Squadron Commander in aircraft
4A, P4124, however,
forced landed in the sea minutes after
reaching the ship. The crew were
rescued by the destroyer
MAORI. All remaining aircraft landed on
safely and were undamaged by enemy
action.
Photographs
of Vaernes, Asenfjord,
and Hoppel Elven
were
obtained by Lieutenant Dayrell.
A
number of our own merchant ships were
berthed in Hoppel
Elven]
[REPORT
of
810 Sqd ATTACK
The
Squadron
consisting of eight Swordfish aircraft took
off at 0315 and took
departure at 0333, having been delayed by
the forced landing in the sea of
2K. The crew of
this aircraft were recovered by the
screening destroyer.
A
course was set for Halten fyr
Lighthouse and then for
Trondheim. When about seven miles
from the latter at 0436, course was shaped
for Gulosen
Fjord to avoid long range AA fire
which was opened
from Trondheim.
The
Squadron
reached Jonsvatnet
Lake at 0455 and searched
for objectives for 25 minutes. No
aircraft or buildings identifiable as
military objectives were seen. The
lake appeared to be melting at edges
and at points which
streams entered.
The
Squadron
Commander, Captain N.R.M. Skene,
R.M, in 2A,
therefore decided to proceed to Vaernes
Aerodrome, the secondary objective.
At
0520, a heavy column of black smoke was
sighted ahead which proved to come from
the hanger destroyed at 820 Squadron.
At
0525, after forming line astern, the
Squadron delivered a bomb bombing attack
diving in succession from about 5000 feet
and releasing between 2000 and 3000
feet.
Intense
close
range AA fire was opened from points around
the aerodrome as the first
aircraft began to dive. During the
form up a few bursts of long range A.A. fire
were observed, the source of which
was not seen. No aircraft which
returned were hit.
Hits
were
obtained on the hanger next east of that
destroyed by 820 Squadron,
causing a violent explosion followed by a
fire which was attended by much black
smoke; this was the result of a salvo from
2P. A large transport monoplane was
straddled by 20 lb. Bombs and
narrowly missed by 250 lb bombs.
Several small buildings near the hangers
were destroyed or damaged.
At
0535, the Squadron Commander's sub flight,
having failed to make contact with
the remainder of the Squadron, proceeded
to Halten
Light, and thence to ARK ROYAL. 2A
joined this formation near Halten Light, 2P
returned independently. 2R, K8879 and
2G, L2790, forced landed
in sea, the crew of 2R being recovered by
MAORI.
A
destroyer was sent out on 2G's D/F bearing
at 0745, the aircraft was not
located. 2G had previously asked
for bearings, had received a course to steer
to reach ARK ROYAL from the
Squadron Commander, and by D/F was
approaching on the
correct bearing. A subsequent
search by two aircraft failed to find any
trace of 2G]
[The
attack on Vaernes aerodrome as well as
destroying infrastructure also destroyed
eight Ju 87's, seven from Stukastaffel
1./I./StG 1 and
one
from Stukastaffel
2./I./StG 1 and one Ju 52 from Transportstaffel
KGrzbV 107]
At
0420, seven Skuas, 7A, 7B,
7C, 7G, 7L & 7M of 801 Squadron and 2
Skuas, 6K & 6L of 800 Squadron, each
armed with a 250lb GP bomb and eight 20lb
bombs took off from the ARK ROYAL to
attack shipping in Trondheim Harbour.
[REPORT
of
801 and 800 Sqds
After
taking
off, Squadrons formed up and proceeded to
Halten fyr
Light, which was sighted as 0500.
The visibility was generally good, but
occasional snow showers were
encountered.
The
Squadrons
climbed to 5000 feet on reaching the coast,
just above the thin layer
of fractocumulus cloud and went into line ahead
formation.
The
approach
to Trondheim was made direct from Halten fyr
Light, thus avoiding the entrance to the
Fjord where they were reported gun
emplacements.
No
warships were seen in the harbour, but two
large merchant vessels were lying at
anchor in Trondheim Bay. The
leader decided to attack these and all
aircraft dived in line ahead, each
dropping one 250lb. GP bomb and four 20lb
bombs. One direct hit with a small
bomb was seen on the stern of
one of the motor vessels,
the remaining bombs falling
all round the targets.
The
squadron
then split up and four other merchant ships
were attacked separately
with the remaining bombs. No
direct hits were seen, but a warehouse
adjacent to one MV was set on fire. In
all these attacks bridges and decks
were machine gunned.
Two
Skuas 7M, Lt. (A) Church and 7L, Sub Lt.
(A)
Myers) found one Ju 88 and a wrecked He
111 on a nearby frozen lake.
These
were machine gunned
and two bombs dropped by Lt. Taylour,
who by this time had rejoined this
section. The rear gunner of the Ju 88,
who had
opened fire, was killed and the aircraft
badly damaged.
A
great deal of A.A. fire was encountered over
Trondheim and several Skuas were
slightly damaged. This shows AA
fire was quite accurate and of varying
calibre, the guns being situation on the
waterfront.
All
aircraft
had returned safely to the carrier by 0730]
At
0455,
three Skuas, 6F, 6G & 6H of 800 Sqd took
off from ARK ROYAL for
fighter patrol over Namsos.
[REPORT
of
800 Sqd.
A
good landfall was made at the head of Namsos
Fjords and communication was
established with CALCUTTA and BITTERN.
CALCUTTA indicated an enemy aircraft flying
up the valley to the
eastward. This aircraft, a He 115
floatplane was engaged. It climbed
rapidly but each aircraft in the section
delivered two attacks and it was
seen to be hit.
The enemy took violent avoiding action and
succeeded in climbing into
the clouds which
were at 4000 feet. Lieut. Finch-Noyes,
in 6F, broke off
the engagement and reformed his section
owing to a defective blind flying
panel.
Visibility
now
became bad on account of snow showers and it
was impossible to penetrate
further than Grong. However, at
0630, Foling
was reached at the western end, Snasavatnet,
and it was seen that both the railway and
the
road from here to Namsos were intact.
At Foling
itself the road bridge had been
destroyed. No troops or transports
were sighted at all, but the roads had
obviously been well used. Namsos
appeared to be evacuated and had
been badly damaged by bombs.
On
the return journey to the ship a Ju 89 was
sighted and the section gave chase
but was easily outdistanced.
This
section
landed at 0850]
At
0610, three Skuas, 6A, 6B
& 6C of 800 Sqd took off from ARK ROYAL
for fighter patrol over Namsos.
[REPORT
of
800 Sqd
This
section
made an easy landfall over Namsos; V/S
communication was established
with CALCUTTA. On this occasion
the patrol was carried out without incident,
no enemy aircraft being sighted.
All
aircraft
returned to ARK ROYAL at
1015]
By
1015 ARK ROYAL had
recovered all her aircraft and because of
weather conditions all flying was
suspended.
At
2100 the destroyer MAORI
detached to RV with the freighter the SS
BLACKHEATH and escort her back to
Scapa.
[In
the evening of the 25/4/40, the CINC Home
Fleet, received from the Admiralty the
following statement of air policy in
Norway, of which the Vice Admiral,
Aircraft Carriers, was informed:-
After
consultation with the War Office
and Air Ministry, the following
information as regards air policy for the
immediate future is forwarded for your
information:-
(1)
Aandalsnes
area: RAF Gladiator Squadron now landed
and
operating from frozen lake.
It is hoped that a land aerodrome three
miles south-west
of Aandalsnes
will be ready in about ten days' time. One
Blenheim squadron and two Hurricane
squadrons are being prepared for despatch.
The Hurricanes will have to be
placed on board the GLORIOUS or FURIOUS by
lighter and then flown ashore. Until
Blenheim and/or Hurricane squadrons can be
landed, it will be necessary for carriers
to give the
maximum support possible, as at present.
Occasional patrols by Blenheim
squadrons from Hatson and Hudsons
from Wick may be
expected.
(2)
Namsos area:
R.A.F cannot
provide any help for the
present. It will therefore be necessary
for
carriers to give maximum support possible
as at present, it appears
possible that a base for
twelve Rocs on floats might be found
in
the vicinity. This is
being actively investigated by Naval
and Air staffs.
This commitment could however, only be at
the expense of fighter squadrons now
embarked in carriers. (1943/25th
April)]
26th
-
At
0700 the destroyers GRENADE, BEAGLE,
FORTUNE, VOLUNTEER, ENCOUNTER and ESCORT
joined the force from Narvik.
At
0725 the destroyers HYPERION,
HEREWARD, HASTY, FEARLESS, FURY and JUNO
detached and proceeded to Sullom Voe
to refuel.
At
1000 the ARK ROYAL was in
position 65-08N, 5-28E. At this time the
weather cleared and there were clear
blue skies and she launched six Skuas, 7A,
7B, 7C, 7F, 7G & 7H of 801 Sqd
for a fighter patrol over Aandalnes
[REPORT
of
801 Sqd
The
squadron
took off in perfect visibility and made a
good landfall at Bud
climbing to 10, 000 feet. The
CURACOA was seen at Andalsnes
and the squadron
proceeded up the valley towards Gladiator
Lake at 1120, two Gladiators were
seen to take off. The swept runway
was most conspicuous and numerous bomb
craters were seen all over the lake.
Having
circled
the lake, the patrol was continued back
towards Aandalsnes.
Three He 111Ps of Kampfstaffel
5./II./KG 4, from
Fornebu, were
then seen approaching from the opposite
direction and slightly below in line
ahead formation.
The
whole
Squadron in turn attacked the rearmost enemy
aircraft
which hurriedly dropped its
bombs.
The starboard engine was
put on fire by Lieutenant
Commander H. Bramwell
in 7A and the port
engine by Lieutenant (A) W. Martin in
7C.
This aircraft lost height and was seen to
crash into a snowdrift; at Digervarden
Lesja, two
crew were seen to get out.
(This
aircraft had taken off from Fornebu
at 1000/26/4/40 on a mission to attack
shipping at Andalsnes.
During its attack on shipping in Romsdalsfjord
it hit and damaged by AA fire from the
MANCHESTER. The damaged Heinkel was then
attacked by Skuas 7A & 7C, and
made a forced landing)
The
second
He 111P was then attacked by Sub Lieutenant
Wigginton
in 7B, and the starboard engine put on
fire. This aircraft was last seen
losing height with smoke pouring
from it. Meanwhile, the leading He
111P beat a hasty retreat towards the coast.
The
Squadron
then reformed and returned to ARK ROYAL,
landing on at 1330]
By
1330 the six Skuas of 801
Sqd had landed back on.
At
1410 three Skuas, 6A, 6B
& 6C of 800 Sqd took off from ARK ROYAL
for a fighter patrol over Andalsnes.
[REPORT
of
800 Sqd
This
section
made a landfall at Bud at 1500, when one
small ship was seen on fire
amidships. A little further away
at Vestnes
another ship was seen sunk.
Section
climbed
to 9000 feet and on approaching Andalsnes
two
enemy aircraft at 9000 and 10,000 were seen
surrounded by H.A. burst from the
sloop FLAMINGO.
Captain
Partridge,
R.M. in 6A, fired all his ammunition at the
lower aircraft with no
observed effect. No. 3 P.O. Hadley
in 6C then attacked this aircraft and was
seen to break violently away and lose
height. The section leader
followed him down and was informed by signal
that the pilot had been wounded in
the face. However, P.O. Hadley
decided not to force land and rejoined his
leader.
Meanwhile,
No.
2 in the section, Sub-Lt Hurle
Hobbs, in 6B, had
attempted to intercept the other He 111, but
without success.
Aircraft
then
rejoined formation and returned to the ship,
landing on at 1615. It was found on
landing that the
windscreen of P.O. Hadley's aircraft had
been smashed and that he
had been cut by the splintering glass]
By
1615 the three Skuas of
800 Sqd had landed back on.
At
1700 the ARK ROYAL was in
position 68-14N, 6-12E, at this time six
Skuas, 6F, 6G, 6H & 6K of 800 Sqd
and 7L & 7M of 801 Sqd were flown off
for a fighter patrol over Andalsnes.
[REPORT
of
800 and 801 Sqds
Nothing
was
sighted until 1905 when one He 115
floatplane was seen at about 4000 feet
flying south along the coast. This
machine was attacked from the stern by all
of Red Section. Petrol was seen
pouring out of the port
float and the rear gunner ceased
firing.
Red 2 and Red 3 lost contact after the first
attack but Red Leader, Lt.
E.G.D. Finch-Noyes in 6F, continued to fight
the enemy down to the water. After one
long burst petrol started to
stream away from the starboard float.
By this time, Red Leader had run out of
ammunition, But Red 2, and Red 3
rejoined and attacked again until ammunition
was expended. The rear gunners were
then given
shots. Although the enemy was very
badly damaged, he finally escaped towards
Trondheim. Long bursts fired at the
engine did no apparent damaged,
although incendiary were seen to be hitting]
By
2040 all six Skuas had
been recovered.
27th
-
At
0820 ARK ROYAL was in position 64-40N, 4-48E
and she flew off three Skuas, 7F,
7G & 7H of 801 Sqd for a patrol over Andalsnes.
[REPORT
of
801 Sqd
A
landfall was made at 0930 in good weather
and the section proceeded up the
valley from Aandalsnes,
arriving over Gladiator Lake
at 1010. Height
10,000 feet.
Two
He
111H of Kampfstaffel
9./III./KG
26, from Aalborg West, Denmark, were seen
immediately low down in the valley at
the height of 2000 feet approximately.
S/Lt P E Marsh in 7G first sighted these
aircraft and was ordered to
lead the attack by Lieut. R L Strange in 7F.
The
rear
Heinkel was attacked head on by S/Lt P E
Marsh while the remainder of the
section wheeled and attacked from
astern.
Smoke was seen to come from the port engine
and it is believed the
aircraft force landed in a wood.
The
leading
Heinkel was then attacked, and in spite of
violent avoiding action two
further attacks were made.
Although hits were registered on this
Heinkel it managed to get away.
The
Section
returned safely to the carrier at 1155]
[By
the 27/4/40 the Germans were aware that
an aircraft carrier was operating off
Norway and they sent out reconnaissance
aircraft to attempt to locate the carrier.
At
about 0915 there was a report of an
unidentified flying boat bearing 215Ό from
ARK ROYAL. It was in fact one of
three Luftwaffe reconnaissance aircraft, a
He 111H of 1.(F)/122 and two Do 215B-1's of
3./Aufkl. St.(F)/ObdL,
which had
located the force. All the aircraft had
flown from Sola airfield Stavanger. The
Luftwaffe reported three aircraft
carriers, ARK ROYAL, GLORIOUS and EAGLE
(The
Do 215's were part of the special, Fernaufklarer,
named, Aufklarungsgruppe
des Oberbefehlshabers
der
Luftwaffe, headed by Reichsmarschall
Hermann Garing
and under the operational control of Oberstleutnant
Rowehl)
At
0935 GLORIOUS launched four
Gladiators to intercept the German
aircraft]
By
1155 ARK ROYAL had
recovered Skuas, 7F, 7G & 7H.
At
1230 ARK ROYAL launched
three Skuas, 6A, 6B & 6C of 800 Sqd for
a patrol over Andalsnes.
[REPORT
of
800 Sqd
A
landfall was made at Bud at 1327.
One He 111H of 2./KG100
from Aalborg airfield,
Denmark, was sighted at 13,000 feet bombing
one of HM Ships. Yellow section
climbed to attack and
Yellow 3, 6C, pilot Sub Lieutenant Hurle-Hobbs,
delivered
a full deflection beam attack.
Yellow 1, 6A and Yellow 2, 6B, then attacked
before the enemy turned
away to the south. Yellow section
gave chase and several more attacks were
delivered before heavy smoke was
observed coming from the port engine.
The enemy then force landed in the corner of
a valley about 20 miles to
the south east of Aandalnes.
(The
enemy aircraft were on a mission to
attack allied forces in the Andalsnes-Dombas
area.
They made a bombing run on the sloop
FLAMINGO in Romsdalsfjord
after which they were sighted and attacked
by the Skuas. The He 111H made a
forced landing beside lake Heilstuguvatnet)
Yellow
Leader,
6A, L2940, Captain RT Partridge, R.M.
appeared to have been hit in the
engine and he successfully force landed on a
frozen lake about one mile from
the Heinkel. Both occupants of the
machine were uninjured.
Yellow
2
and 3 joined up and returned to the ship at
1540, their ammunition being
expended]
[REPORT
of Forced landing of Skua 6A, by the
pilot, Captain Partridge RM.
Whilst
following the Heinkel down after
the attack, Captain Partridge realised
that his engine was failing and that he
would be forced to land immediately.
Selecting a frozen lake, lake Breiddalsvannet,
which appeared to have a road running
beside it, he landed his machine
successfully with the undercarriage
up.
A bent airscrew was the only damage and
the machine came to rest
alongside the road in about four feet of
snow.
After
destroying the R.1110 (homing
beacon W/T receiver) and removing such
gear as they though necessary, Captain
Partridge and Lieutenant Bostock,
the observer, set
alight to their machine by firing a few
shots from the revolver into the petrol
tanks and then a Very pistol cartridge
into the aircraft.
During
their glide to earth, following
the engine failure, the two officers had
noticed a small hut at the top of a
hill not far from where they eventually
landed. Walking through the snow
proved extremely hard going;
the road was buried and snow came up to
their knees most
of the time. However, the building
was reached at last and they went inside
to investigate.
A
few minutes later they heard a whistle
outside. On looking out of the
window, they saw three Germans armed with
revolvers and knives. These were the
crew of the Heinkel
which they had shot down and had
crashed on the
other side of the hill on which the little
building was situated.
The
situation was awkward, but Captain
Partridge rose to the occasion and ordered
the three men to come inside. To his
relief, they obeyed meekly and
Captain Partridge continued to take
charge. Differences in language
proved an obstacle, but by use of
broken English and broken German, the
British officers discovered that the
enemy consisted of one officer of
Lieutenant's rank (the pilot was Horst Schopis)
and two NCOs, one of whom was the
navigator. It transpired that the
rear gunner of the Heinkel had been
killed in the action with the Skuas.
Captain
Partridge and Lieutenant Bostock,
not wishing the Germans to realise that
they were
responsible for shooting them down,
managed to convey that they were the crew
of a British Wellington
which had been forced to land
nearby.
The
Germans appeared convinced that they
had been attacked and shot down by
Spitfires.
By
this time it was getting late, so it
was decided to have another look round for
more suitable shelter. The British
officers saw a chalet at
the foot of the hill. Captain
Partridge therefore told to the Germans
that they were to sleep in the
hut. The Germans made no
objection, so Captain Partridge and
Lieutenant Bostock
walked to the chalet. This turned
out to be a small hotel
which was shut up, but they
entered and discovered food and bedding.
Early
next morning, the Germans arrived,
still armed. There seemed no
alternative but to offer them a share of
the food, so all five breakfasted in
company. Captain Partridge then
announced that he intended to explore
outside the hotel. One of the German
NCOs went with
him. Lieutenant Bostock
remained inside with the other two.
A
few minutes later, Lieutenant Bostock
heard a shot outside, and thinking that
the German
had shot Captain Partridge, hurried out to
look. On reaching the veranda,
Lieutenant Bostock
saw a Norwegian ski patrol four hundred
yards away. The patrol had fired a
warning shot; captain Partridge had
fallen flat on the ground as a precaution,
and the German NCO had placed his
hands above his head.
The
leading Norwegian covered the German
with his Rifle. The latter called
out 'Ingleesh',
'Ingleesh',
and apparently satisfied, the Norwegian
turned his attention to Captain
Partridge. At this moment, as the
Norwegian turned away, the German made a
movement with Lieutenant Bostock
considered to be an attempt to reach his
revolver. Seeing this, another
member of the ski
patrol shot the German dead.
The
Norwegians then proceeded to search
Captain Partridge, Lieutenant Bostock,
and the
remaining two Germans for weapons.
They did not at first believe that Captain
Partridge and Lieutenant Bostock
were British, but the production of a
half-crown
and the showing of a tailor's label inside
their uniform coats eventually
convinced them. An amazing
coincidence then occurred, as the English
speaking
leader of the Norwegians chanced to be the
brother in law of a close friend of
Captain Partridge. On discovering
this, the Norwegians became very friendly
and most helpful.
It
was decided to hand over the two
Germans to the French Headquarters and
they were marched away by the patrol.
The
Norwegians suggested that Captain
Partridge and Lieutenant Bostock
should join the
British Forces at Aalesund.
Waiting
till two o'clock the next
morning (29/4/40l) when the snow was
reasonable firm, the British officers set
out to trudge the twenty
one miles to Aalesund.
They
arrived at last, extremely weary, and were
met by a scene of utter
desolation. The enemy were bombing
the town continuously and it was
completely wrecked. Major Lumley,
Captain Pitts, and a hundred Royal Marines
were in occupation.
Captain
Partridge and Lieutenant Bostock
were told that a destroyer was arriving
that night
to evacuate the British force, but it did
not appear. After twenty
four hours, during
which vain attempts had been made to
communicate with Aandalsnes
by telephone, it was decided that a
message must be taken by hand.
Captain
Partridge and Lieutenant Bostock
managed to commandeer a car and they set
off on the
twenty five
mile drive to Aandalsnes.
The road was in many places made
practically impassable by bomb craters,
and on several occasions it became
necessary to stop and take cover while
German aircraft passed close
overhead. Aandalsnes
was reached eventually, after crossing the
fjord by car ferry. On arrival, the
AA cruiser CALCUTTA was
seen to be in action with fifteen Heinkel
bombers but no damage was observed.
Aandalsnes
too was a
shambled, most of the town being on fire
after continual heavy bombing.
Captain Partridge and Lieutenant Bostock
reported the situation at Aalesund.
A few hours later they embarked in the
light cruiser MANCHESTER and were brought
home to the United Kingdom]
At
1515 ARK ROYAL launched
five Skuas, 6F, 6G & 6H of 800 Sqd and
7A & 7C of 801 Sqd for a patrol
over Aandalnes.
[REPORT of
800 Sqd
The
two
Skua sections proceeded independently to Aandalsnes
in perfect weather with extreme
visibility. A convoy escorted by
destroyers and one 'C' class cruiser
was seen moving up the fjord towards the
town.
On
arrival over the convoy at a height of 9,000
feet, two Ju 88As of KG30 from Westerland
airfield, Island of Sylt,
were seen about to carry out a dive bombing
attack on the ships. The enemy
aircraft were immediately
attacked by both sections and followed down
on their dive. Bombs fell close to the
convoy, but no
direct hits were seen. Lieutenant
Commander H.P. Bramwell
in 7A and Sub-Lieutenant (A) Wigginton
in 7C continued to attack one Ju 88 and both
its
engines were set on fire; the attack was
broken off on sighting another enemy
aircraft, but this is a reasonable
assumption to presume that this Junkers
force landed. The other section
continued their attack on the other Ju 88,
both engines being set on fire.
Numerous
He
111 aircraft were then seen, sections
climbed independently and the Skuas
became dispersed as individual targets were
engaged.
No
Heinkels managed to attack the convoy and
their bombs were dropped
indiscriminately.
At
1610, HA fire from the cruiser convoying
indicated large and rugged formations
of He 111Hs of KG100 from Nordholz, Lower Saxony, approaching from the northward.
In all, fifteen enemy aircraft were sighted.
Our
aircraft
attacked individually and a general 'dog
fight' ensued. Enemy formations were
broken up and
only two He 111s dropped their bombs in the
vicinity of the convoy.
It
is difficult to single out individuals for
special mention on occasions of this
sort. Every pilot fought
magnificently and the rear seat personnel
opened fire with effect as occasion
permitted.
This
general
fight lasted approximately a quarter of an
hour during which four
Heinkels were shot down, a statement
which has been
verified by a German prisoner who was a
spectator.
Enemy
aircraft,
Included Ju 88s, He 111s, and Do 17s and
apart from the initial dive
bombing by the two Ju 88s, the attacks were
not driven home with determination.
On
conclusion of this general affray, all Skuas
were out of ammunition but several
pilots continued to make dummy attacks on
the retreating Heinkels.
In
the middle of these attacks, one Sunderland
was seen to land close to the
convoy and was immediately fired on by a Ju
88 but without result. Two
Skuas were
unsuccessfully attacked by Ju 88s.
All
our
aircraft had returned safely to the ship by
1820.
In
all, some thirty enemy aircraft had been
encountered during this patrol]
At
1540 Skuas 6B & 6C
landed back on ARK ROYAL.
At
1645 ARK ROYAL lunched
three Skuas 7L, 7M & 7P of 801 Sqd for a
patrol over Aandalsnes.
[REPORT
of
801 Sqd
When
this
section reached the approaches to Aandalsnes
at
1735, they saw one solitary He 111H of
2/KG100 from Aalborg airfield, Denmark
which was attacked from astern.
The enemy retired at high speed but further
attacks were made. During on of these
attacks, the section
leader in 7L, L2931, pilot Lieu (A) WCA
Church; observer Sub Lieu (A) Willis
was hit. Skua 7L burst into
flames; the engine parted from the fuselage,
and the aircraft dived vertically
into the sea just north of Storholmen fyr Lighthouse
The
remaining
two Skuas continued to attack and the
Heinkel was shot down in the
sea. Two crew
were seen to escape.
The
two
Skuas circled the spot were Lieu Church had
crashed, but nothing was seen
except a partially inflated dinghy, both
Lieu Church and Sub Lieu Willis
perished. As no further enemy aircraft were
sighted, the remainder of the
section returned to the ship landing on at
1855]
By
1820 Skuas 6F, 6G, 6H, 7A
& 7C landed back on ARK ROYAL.
At
1855 Skuas 7M & 7P
landed back on ARK ROYAL.
At
1900 GLORIOUS flew off her
last four remaining Skuas of 803 Sqd and
there landed on the ARK ROYAL. This
gave the ARK ROYAL 23 fighters, 18 Skuas, 7
of 800, 7 of 801 and 4 of 803, and 5
Rocs, 2 of 800 and 3 of 801.
At
2030 the destroyers HYPERION,
HEREWARD, HASTY, FEARLESS, FURY and JUNO
rejoined from Sullom Voe.
At
2100 the GLORIOUS escorted
by destroyers FURY, FORTUNE, ESCORT,
GRENADE, HASTY and ENCOUNTER detached for
Scapa Flow.
28th
- At
0305 ARK ROYAL was in position 64-58N,
8-07E. Weather
conditions,
cloud, nil, visibility, very good, wind SW
force 1 to 2. At this time
ARK ROYAL launched six Swordfish, 4B, 4C,
4F, 4G, 4K & 4L of 820 Sqd. Each
aircraft was armed with four 250 lb bombs,
six Cooper bombs, and two incendiary
bombs.
At
0310 ARK ROYAL launched
six Swordfish, 2A, 2F, 2H, 2L, 2M & 2P
of 810 Sqd. Each aircraft was armed
with four 250 lb bombs, six Cooper bombs,
and two incendiary bombs.
The
target for the 12
Swordfish was Vaernes Aerodrome, which had
become a major Luftwaffe base.
[REPORT
BY
820 Sqd
The
operation
was carried out by six aircraft as shown in
the crew list, each armed
with four 250 lb. bombs, six Cooper bombs,
and two incendiary bombs.
Aircraft
took
off at 0305 and steered so as to make a
landfall at the Kya
Lighthouse.
This position was reached at 0405 when a
S.E. course was set for Vaernes
Aerodrome, height 6000 feet.
After
approaching
from the North, the Squadron reached the
objective at 0432 and
attack was carried out on huts and barrack
blocks on the outskirts of the
aerodrome. Direct hits with at
least six 250 lb bomb, eight 20 lb. Cooper
bombs, and several incendiaries were
observed on what appeared to be barracks
blocks on the N.E. corner of the
aerodrome. Huts on the N.W. side
of the aerodrome were also hit with 250 lb
and 20 lb bombs.
During
the
approach when about three miles from Vaernes
at 6000 feet, fire was opened
by the enemy with four or possibly six H.A.
guns of about 3 inch calibre,
situated on the W. side of the
Aerodrome.
A barrage of high explosives was put
up. Rate of fire appeared very high
and shooting was accurate as
regards height, though slightly out for
line. On aircraft (4C) was hit by a
flying fragment of a shell in
the lower plane, but its efficiency was not
impaired and it carried out its
attack.
Short
range
A.A. fire was also experienced during the
dive to attack, though this was
less than on the occasion of the previous
attack on 25/4/40]
[REPORT
BY
810 Sqd
0310
Took
off, 6 Swordfish aircraft armed with four
250 lb G.F.
bombs, 2 incendiary bombs and six 20 lb
bombs per aircraft.
0317
Took
departure and made a landfall 10 miles S.E.
Kya
Light. Then Course direct for
Vaernes aerodrome and climbed to 9000 feet
with no cloud cover.
At
about 0400 long range A.A. fire (about 3
inch) was opened (see below). This was
countered by diving 'S' turns,
the aircraft being in line astern.
0443
Squadron
delivered a high dive
bombing attack. Intense short
range A.A. fire was met
below 6000 feet.
0445
Squadron
reformed over Tautra
Island, Midflorden
and returned to ship, landing on at 0610.
DAMAGE
REPORT
A
group of buildings in the N.E. corner of
aerodrome were blown up and left
burning. The last remaining hangar
was blown up by a salvo of 4 x 250 lb bombs,
a direct hit by 2P pilot Lieut. DF
Godfrey-Faussett. It is reported that the
wing of a large aircraft was
projecting from the hanger and two more
aircraft were parked close by. If so
these must have been destroyed.
REPORT
of
AA Fire
This
was
considerably more intense that on the first
raid. One battery of long
range guns
(about 3') opened a very accurate fire from
a position on the west side of the
aerodrome.
Short
range
fire appeared to come from numerous guns of
the Bofors and Bren type, the
former appearing to burst at about 6000
feet.
Three
aircraft
received minor damage from rifle calibre
bullets.
On
this, as on the previous occasion, the
direct hit on the hangar was the result
of a determined attack by Lieutenant D.F.
Godfrey-Faussett, R.N. the pilot of
2P]
[In
the attack on Vaernes Aerodrome by 810
and 820 Sqds, eight Ju 87s were destroyed
on the ground; seven from Stukastaffel
1./I./StG 1and
one
from Stukastaffel
2./I./StG 1]
At
0400 ARK ROYAL launched
seven Skuas, 6K, 6L & 6M of
800 Sqd and 7A, 7C, 7F
& 7G of 801 Sqd. Each Skua was armed
with one 250lb SAP bomb and eight 20lb
bombs, their mission was to attack shipping
in Trondheim Harbour, floatplanes and
the slipway.
Also
launched was a Swordfish
that was to carry out a photographic
reconnaissance of the forts at entrance to
Trondheim Fjord.
[REPORT
BY
800 and 801 Sqd
The
two
sections approached from the North making a
landfall at Halten Light at
0430 at 13,000 feet.
Three
empty
merchant ships in the same position as on
the previous raid were observed
and approximately eighteen large
floatplanes.
A
tactical dive was made to about 8000 feet
and then a final dive so as to line
up with the merchant ships and
floatplanes. One 250 lb bomb and two
20 lb bombs were aimed at the
merchant ships, one hit observed.
The dive was then extended and six 20 lb
bombs were dropped by each
pilot amongst the seaplanes
which were moored close
together. One direct was observed
and all the remainder are thought to have
been close enough to cause damage by
blast and splinters.
Accurate
short range HAA fire was experienced by
all
except the first two aircraft.
None of our aircraft
were hit by the heavy HAA and pom pom
fire, but Skua 6M, pilot Midshipman
L H Gallagher
became lost the forced landed at Andalsnes.
Six Skuas
returned to ARK ROYAL at 0630]
[In
this attack five He 115 B-2s were
destroyed, two from Kstenstaffel
1./KGr 506 and
three from Kstenstaffel
2./KGr 506]
[REPORT
BY
SWORDFISH RECONNAISSANCE
This
reconnaissance
was carried out in preparation for Operation
ZEAL, which was to
be a bombardment of the approaches to
Trondheim Fjord.
Aircraft
on
photographic reconnaissance experienced no
AA fire from the forts but
sighted and attacked unsuccessfully, with
four 100 lb A/S bombs, a submarine
proceeding out of Trondheim Fjord.
The aircraft then returned and landed on]
By
0610 all 12 Swordfish of
the early morning strike had landed back on
ARK ROYAL.
By
0630 ARK ROYAL had
recovered six of the Skua strike.
[REPORT
OF MIDSHIPMAN (A) L.H. GALLAGHER.
I
have the honour to report that on Sunday
28th
April 1940, at 0400 my aircraft left ARK
ROYAL in company with two others,
piloted by Lieutenant Rooper,
6L and Lieutenant
Spurway 6K in order to bomb enemy
transports in Trondheim Harbour. The
attack was carried out and one hit
was observed on a transport by a 250 lb
bomb, and numerous 20 lb bombs were
dropped among seaplanes at the moorings,
but without observing any
results. Finding myself separated
from the leader, I set course back to the
ship, but failed to locate her.
After carrying out a squared search,
still without results, I flew back to
Trondheim and from there
made my way down the coast to Aandalsnes,
which was
held by British forces. After an
interchange of signals with a British
cruiser in the Fjord, a landing ground
was discovered near Aandalsnes,
where the remnants of
the Gladiators which
had been landed by GLORIOUS
proved to be hidden. Here I
managed to refuel my aircraft intending to
fly to Hatston immediately
(0830). However, the engine failed
to start on my only remaining starter
cartridge. By this time the usual
bombing by German aircraft started,
and continued throughout the day.
I therefore camouflaged my aircraft with
branches and walked into Andalsnes
to the Army Headquarters with frequent
halts to
take cover.
From
the Headquarters a signal was sent
as follows: 'To ARK ROYAL. From
Naval Officer in
Charge. Please drop box
Coffman starter cartridges at Aandalsnes
on next patrol.' I then walked back
to the
camp near the aerodrome and attached
myself to Lieutenant Commander
Audrey. We spent most of the day
taking cover as He 111's were patrolling
continuously overhead, releasing bombs
at short intervals. Most of these
bombs were aimed at the jetty and the
remainder of the town still standing,
causing serious fires.
On
29th April, the enemy air
raids started much earlier than usual,
0700, and during the day, six or seven
dive bombing attacks were made at the
flying ground with 500 lb and smaller
bombs. Some missed the field and
fell in the camp and killed six horses,
but there were no other casualties, as
personnel were extremely well dispersed,
in some cases as much as 2000 feet up
the mountains. In the evening the
Naval Liaison Officer informed me that my
aircraft would have to be destroyed
if I could not get it started as Andalsnes
was to be
abandoned. With the aircraft's
destruction in view, I was stripping it of
all movable gear when I discovered
five starter cartridges. I
salvaged these with difficulty and
informed the Naval Liaison Officer that I
should be able to leave. In the
evening, the troops from the camp were
marched down from the camp to the jetty
to embark. A force of 100 Marines
being left to cover their retreat.
At dusk enemy aircraft dropped incendiary
bombs near the jetty, and used
this blaze as a guide for their
bombing.
At
0215 on the morning of the 30th
the Marines left the camp, destination
unknown, leaving myself
and
the Air Gunner, Naval Airman G.W.
Halifax, as the only occupants,
as
we needed light before we could take off,
owing to the damaged condition of the
field. Just on dawn, an early
Heinkel spotted us, and attacked with
machine guns from 3000 feet. We
therefore started the aircraft and
managed to take off without damage at
0310. I set course for Lerwick,
and then
Hatston, eventually arriving at 0700]
[Early
in the day the British War Cabinet
ordered the withdrawal of the British
troops that were attempting to capture
Trondheim. The Admiralty immediately
informed the CINC Home Fleet that it had
been decided to re-embark the forces
landed at Namsos and Andalsnes
as soon as possible. It was therefore
planned to extricate the troops from Andalsnes
on the nights of 29th/30th April, 30th
April/1st
May, and the troops from Namsos on the
night of 1st/2nd May. This
news
was communicated by the CINC Home Fleet
to Vice Admiral Wells. The
intention was that the Fleet Air Arm would
provide cover over Andalsnes
on 1st May and Namsos on the 2nd and 3rd]
At
1105 ARK ROYAL launched
three Skuas of Blue Section 803 Sqd, H, K
& L, to carry out a patrol over Molde.
[REPORT
OF
803 Sqd
1109.
Departed for Molde
1214.
Crossed coast at Bud; height
11,500 feet.
1218.
Sighted Ju 88, 7000 feet
below bombing a British Escort vessel 3
miles south east of Molde,
which was leaving harbour.
Manoeuvred to carry out beam attack.
Leader, Blue 1, pilot Lieutenant W.P. Lucy,
got in one short
burst, but relative speeds were too great
and the attack was broken off.
Blue
2,
pilot Sub-Lieutenant (A) G. W. Brokensha,
was out of position and overshot
enemy.
Blue
3,
pilot Petty Officer Airman A.G. Johnson,
carried out quarter, developing
into stern attack, maintained position at
about 270 knots and fired short
bursts. Enemy appeared partially
to lose control and jettisoned his bombs and
dived out of range. Continued to
follow enemy who lost
height and crashed onto west side of island
north of Hero.
1922.
Blue Section reformed.
1245.
Three He 111s were
sighted above.
Blue 3 was able to carry out an immediate attack
causing enemy to jettison his
bombs. Blue Leader and Blue 2 climbed
into position above enemy
(different enemy from the one Blue 3
attacked) who also jettisoned bombs, and
carried out successive attacks from
astern. Enemy appeared to be disabled,
with starboard engine stopped
and undercarriage down. Enemy
continued to lose height and finally crashed
in a valley, believed to be
between Hjorun
Fjord and Sunnelve
Fjord.
1310.
Blue Leader and Blue 2
returned to patrol Aandalsnes.
Sighted another Ju 88 about to bomb Molde.
Dived
to attack, but enemy escaped owing to
superior speed.
1320.
Returned
to patrol over Molde.
Sighted eight enemy aircraft He 111s, seven
of which were in
formation at the same height as patrol, 9000
feet. Blue Leader and Blue 2 carried
out successive attacks on
starboard wing aircraft
which was slightly astern of
station. After Blue 2's attacks,
enemy dived steeply and finally crashed into
the sea in flames.
1340.
Followed formation out to sea
to north west.
Both
aircraft made enemy reports to ship.
1345.
Blue
Leader manoeuvred in position 1500 feet
above and slightly ahead of enemy and
dived in a vertical attack on the leader,
breaking away and climbing up again
to starboard. Formation broke up;
Blue Leader maintained contact with one
remaining enemy proceeding north
west.
1350.
Blue
2 observed many bombs being jettisoned as
the formation broke up and attacked
the nearest enemy who finally disappeared
into clouds with starboard engine
stopped. Blue 2's ammunition was
then expended.
1352.
Blue Leader, when enemy
report had been sent, expended remaining
ammunition on enemy aircraft
which turned to the south and
disappeared into cloud.
1350.
Blue 3 who was patrolling
above Molde saw
several aircraft returning from
seaward. Rear gun attacks were
carried out and one long attack was
made.
Port engine burst into flames and enemy
dived steeply into cloud and was
not seen again.
Blue
aircraft
had become separated and returned
independently, Blue Leader and Blue
2 having navigators and Blue 3 homing
himself by beacon. It is noted that
ship was then 90 miles
from the coast and Leading Airman Coston,
air gunner
in Blue 3, was able to service the R.1110
which had
become defective in the air, and his feat in
returning without breaking W/T
silence is considered worthy of special
mention.
1500.
Blue Section Landed]
At
1130 in position 64-40N,
5E the light cruiser SHEFFIELD joined from
Scapa Flow to take on the duty of
Radar guard ship.
At
1135 the CURLEW detached
to refuel at Sullom Voe. ARK ROYALs escort
now comprised BERWICK, SHEFFIELD, HYPERION,
HEREWARD, FEARLESS and JUNO
At
1140 ARK ROYAL flew off
three Skuas 6F, 6G & 6H of 800 Sqd to
attack enemy bombers that were bombing
CALCUTTA and Convoy TM 1.
[Convoy
TM 1 had sailed from Namsos around
midnight 27/4/40 and comprised the
merchant ships DALLINGTON COURT 6889grt,
DELIUS 6065grt (During her
offloading
at Namsos the DELIUS had had received a
direct hit from a bomb), SPANKER
1875 grt and RONAN 1489grt, escorted
by the destroyers AMAZON and WITHERINGTON
with additional AA cover from the
destroyers MOHAWK and SIKH. The AA cruiser
CALCUTTA and the sloop AUCKLAND had
sailed from the Namsos area at
0210/28/4/40]
[REPORT
OF
800 Sqd
Red
Section
proceeded to H.M.S. CALCUTTA but no enemy
aircraft were seen and ship
reported 'no attacks for last forty
minutes.' Patrolled over Convoy TM 1.
Considerable
air
activity observed over the convoy so the
section remained in the vicinity.
The
first
attack was on one He 111 K and all the
section attacked simultaneously,
RED 1, 6F, pilot Lieut. EG
Finch-Noyes from astern and Red 2,
6G, Lieut. EW Taylour
and Red 3, 6H, pilot
Petty Officer Monk, from either beam.
Red 3 subsequently attacked again.
This aircraft appeared to be badly damaged
and it is considered that it
crashed into the sea.
After
this,
many other aircraft appeared and the section
broke up. Red 2 chased a Ju 88 right
down in his
dive bombing attack and so harassed the
enemy that his bombs fell about 200
yards from the target. Red 2
considered the Ju 88 to be badly damaged.
Red
3
attacked a further four aircraft and one of
them was observed to have an
engine on fire. On running out of
ammunition, Petty Officer Monk made dummy
attacks on five separate occasions to
prevent the enemy from carrying out bombing
runs.
Red
Leader
patrolled at cloud base and attacked three
aircraft. The Observer's Mate, Petty
Officer
Cunningham, got in a good shot at a He 111 K
that suddenly disappeared into the
clouds above. A Ju 88 K was
attacked head on and a good burst was
observed hitting. This enemy pulled
very steeply up into
the clouds and was not seen again.
The
section
returned to ARK ROYAL and landed at 1540.
On
this mission Skua L 3000, 6F, flown by Lt
Finch-Noyes, shot down a He111H of Kampfstaffel
4./II./KG 26
flying
from Sola, over Convoy TM1. The kill was
shared with Skuas L 2934, 6H and 6G]
At
1210
the Force was located and came under attack
by two He 111s.
At
1215 ARK ROYAL flew off
three Rocs of 803 Sqd to attack the enemy
aircraft. One of the attackers was
shot down by HA fire. The Rocs attacked and
drove off the other Heinkel
which was thought to be shadowing.
At
1330
ARK ROYAL recovered the three Rocs of 803
Sqd.
At
1430
ARK ROYAL flew off three Rocs of 803 Sqd to
attack an enemy aircraft that
was shadowing the force.
At
1500 ARK ROYAL recovered
the three Skuas, H, K & L of Blue
Section 803 Sqd.
At
1625
ARK ROYAL recovered the three Rocs of 803
Sqd.
At
2100
the SHEFFIELD detached to join in the
evacuation of allied troops from Andalsnes.
[At
this time Vice Admiral Wells made
representations to the CINC Home Fleet
that the fighter aircraft personnel in
ARK ROYAL must be given a rest. The CINC
approved his proposal that ARL ROYAL
should withdraw to the north
west for 48 hours. The
additional fighter aircraft
which ARK ROYAL was to have
embarked from Hatson were
embarked by the GLORIOUS instead]
The
ARK ROYAL and her escort
of the BERWICK and destroyers HYPERION,
HEREWARD, FEARLESS and JUNO then
steered north westerly into the Norwegian
Sea, out of range of most of the
Luftwaffe attack aircraft, to provide a
respite for ARK ROYAL's air crews.
29th
-
At
0800 the ARK ROYAL and her escort were in
approximate position 68-30N, 3E. ARK
ROYAL remained cruising in this position for
three hours.
At
1100 ARK ROYAL and her
escort steered south westerly towards the
Faroe Islands.
30th
-
At
1100 in approximate position 62N, 4E, the
ARK ROYAL, BERWICK and destroyers
HYPERION, HEREWARD, FEARLESS and JUNO, RVed
with the battleship VALIANT and the
destroyers FURY, FORTUNE, ESCORT and
ENCOUNTER. The VALIANT was to provide Radar
cover and additional AA protection.
[The
VALIANT was also to carry out Operation
ZEAL, the bombardment of the approaches to
Trondheim]
At
approximately 1700 hours
the JUNO, who had defects and was unable to
maintain station, detached for
Sullom Voe.
[At
2034 the destroyer KIMBERLEY was in
approximate position 63N, 2W, escorting
the Danish freighter SS GUNVOR MAERSK
3295grt, en route from Namsos; when she
was ordered to Sullom Voe to embark
ammunition from the destroyer JUNO.
KIMBERLEY was low on ammunition having
been
under sustained air attack during the
passage from Namsos. KIMBERLEY arrived at
Sullom Voe at approximately 0400/1/5/40]
MAY
1st
-
At
1005 the ARK ROYAL/VALIANT force RVed with
the aircraft carrier GLORIOUS and the
destroyers ACHERON, ANTELOPE and BEAGLE.
Due
to poor visibility
throughout the day there was no flying from
ARK ROYAL
At
1200 the destroyers
HYPERION and BEAGLE were detached for
refuelling at Sullom Voe. The Force now
comprised ARK ROYAL, GLORIOUS, VALIANT,
BERWICK and the destroyers HEREWARD,
FEARLESS, FURY, FORTUNE, ESCORT, ENCOUNTER,
ACHERON and ANTELOPE.
[From
1215, Sea Gladiators of 804 and 803
Sqds from GLORIOUS provided a CAP over the
Force]
[At
1427/1/5/40 the CINC Home Fleet informed
the authorities that the VALIANT's
bombardment of Trondheim would not be
carried out. The operation had of course
effectively been cancelled on 19/4/40]
At
1400
the destroyer HEREWARD detached for
refuelling at Sullom Voe
At
1600 an
aircraft that was unseen from the ground
dropped a heavy bomb that fell between
ARK ROYAL and VALIANT,
no damage was caused.
[At
1802 VALIANT's Radar picked up aircraft
approaching from seaward at a range of
30Nm. These aircraft were two He 115s of
2./KFlGr
leading 12 Ju 87Rs of II./LG1 from Vaernes
airfield]
At
1823 the Force was
attacked by 12 Ju 87Rs of II./LG1
the first six
aircraft to attack singled out the ARK
ROYAL, GLORIOUS and VAIANT as their
targets. The ARK ROYAL
was near missed by 500 Kg bombs
several times; one pilot named Bahme
claimed a hit on
the forward end of ARK ROYALs flight deck,
but the bomb did in fact explode ten
yards off her starboard side.
[A
Gladiator of 802 Sqd piloted by Lieu JF Marmont
sot down one of the Ju 87Rs. The crew of Oberfeldwebel
Erich Stahl and Unteroffizier
Friedrich Gott
survived and were picked up by the
destroyer ENCOUNTER]
[Vice
Admiral Wells believed that he was
keeping the carrier force out of the range
of the Ju 87. So the attack by the
Ju 87s, who approached from the west, came
as an unpleasant surprise. What was
not known at the time was the attack was
carried out by the R series of Ju 87;
these were a long-range anti-shipping
variant that had only recently come into
operation. It was Ju 87Rs that disabled
the heavy cruiser SUFFOLK and sank the
destroyer AFRIDI, the sloop BITTERN, the
French destroyer BISON, and the Polish
destroyer GROM.
Following
this attack Vice Admiral Wells
signalled the CINC Home Fleet to the
effect that he could no longer provide air
cover for the withdrawal from Andalsnes
and Namsos
and protect the carrier force from air
attack]
At
2052 the ARK ROYAL was in
approximate position 66-50N, 3E, when the
CINC Home Fleet signalled the Vice
Admiral aircraft carriers to return to
Scapa.
2nd
-
At
0000 hours the carrier force set course for
Scapa Flow.
At
approximately 0800 the
destroyer KIMBERLEY joined the carrier force
from Sullom Voe.
3rd
At
approximately 0830 on passage to Scapa, ARK
ROYAL flew off her five Rocs to
Hatson.
At
1030 ARK ROYAL, GLORIOUS,
VALIANT, BERWICK and the destroyers FURY,
ENCOUNTER, ESCORT, FEARLESS, ACHERON,
ANTELOPE, FORTUNE and KIMBERLEY arrived back
at Scapa.
[The
report on FAA aircraft
casualties on Operation DX sustained by ARK
ROYAL as stated by the Vice Admiral
Aircraft Carriers, Vice Admiral Wells:-
Aircraft
embarked on sailing
21 Swordfish and 18 Skuas. Four Swordfish
and four Skuas lost]
At
Scapa
refuelling and replenishing, where
her new CO Captain
Cedric Swinton
Holland RN took command.
4th
-
At
1620 the ARK ROYAL (Flag Vice Admiral
Aircraft Carriers), anti-aircraft cruiser
CURLEW and the destroyers INGLEFIELD (D3),
SIKH, MASHONA, TARTAR, JAGUAR and ENCOUNTER
sailed from Scapa Flow for operations off
Narvik.
[On
9/4/40 about 2000 German troops had
landed at Narvik from ten destroyers. The
troops were Austrian Gebirgsjagers
(mountain
troops) from the 139 Gebirgsjager
regiment of the 3rd Mountain Division
commanded by General Eduard
Dietl. The
ten destroyers were sunk in the first and
second
battles of Narvik on 10th and 13th April.
Survivors from the ten destroyers,
about 2500, were organised into infantry
and joined the German troops at
Narvik. Because of British control of the
sea approaches the Narvik garrison
was now isolated and awaited relief
overland from the south. However British
troop landings north and south of
Trondheim on 17/4/40 completely cut off
the
German forces at Narvik. The beleaguered
force came under attack from Norwegian
troops of the Norwegian 6th Division and
was ordered by Hitler to hold out as
long as possible.
The
first British troops, two companies
of the Scots Guards of the 24th Guards
Brigade, without most of its equipment
which had been sent to Namsos, arrived in
the SOUTHAMPTON on 14/4/40;
disembarking at Salsngsverket
and Sjǿvegan,
which are 33 miles north of Narvik
These were the first troops
of what was to be called,
Rupertforce. The
commander
of the British troops was Major-General Pierse
Joseph
Mackesy and
the naval commander was Admiral of the
Fleet William Henry Dudley Boyle, Earl of
Cork and Orrery. The naval option was
to immediately land troops at Narvik.
However when Mackesy
knew of this he had already landed the
advanced force of the 24th Guards
Brigade at the above locations,
so was not disposed to
the naval option.
On
3/5/40 Admiral of the Fleet William Henry
Dudley Boyle,
Earl of Cork and Orrery issued orders for
an attack on Narvik on the 8/5/40, to
be launched from the sea or across
Rombaksfjord 'as judged best'.
By
the 4/5/40 when the ARK ROYAL sailed
for the Narvik area the situation at
Narvik was; the German garrison now
numbered about 4800 and they were starting
to receive reinforcement by air. The
24th Guards Brigade had been shipped to
Mo, south of Narvik and the main
frontal attack on Narvik was being
carried out by the
Norwegians
and French with the
assistance of the navy.
The
object of the operation was, that
ARK ROYAL's aircraft should give fighter
protection, to Allied troops during
their attack on Narvik, until Royal Air
Forces fighters could be established
ashore]
Between 1900 and 1920 ARK ROYAL landed on
six Swordfish and seven Skuas,
replacement aircraft and nine Skuas of 803
Sqd, all from Hatston. ARK ROYAL's
air component now comprised 27 Skuas, nine
in 800, 801 and 803 Sqds and 19
Swordfish, 11 in 810 Sqd and 8 in 820 Sqd.
At
1935 course was set at 18
knots (to conserve destroyers' fuel) to
position 63N, 4W, so as to keep west of
the convoy route.
5th
-
At
approximately 1000 the ARK ROYAL force
passed through position 63N, 4W. Course
was then set for position 69N, 11-50E.
At
1630 in approximate
position 64N, 1W the ARK ROYAL force sighted
convoy HK One.
[Convoy
HK 1 was on passage from Scapa Flow
to Harstad and comprised the RFA BROOMDALE
8334grt, the tanker SS BRITISH GOVERNOR
6840grt, the cable ship HMS LASSO, the
freighters SS NARVA 1575grt, SS CROMARTY
FIRTH 538grt and SS EMILE JAVARY 2471grt.
The escort was the destroyers
WESTCOTT and FS FOUDROYANT, the sloop
FLEETWOOD and the trawlers ULLSWATER and
WILLOW]
6th
-
At 1651
the ARK ROYAL arrived at position 69N,
11-50E and the Walrus aircraft was flown
off with Staff Officer (Operations) to
Harstad to confer with Admiral of the
Fleet Lord Cork and Orrery, the Flag
Officer, Narvik. The Walrus remained
at Harstad over night.
At
1655 ARK ROYAL flew off
six Skuas of 800 Sqd for a fighter patrol
over Tjelsundet,
Bogen and Harstad. One aircraft
sighted and reported submarine southwest of
Andenes Lighthouse.
[The
troops of the 24th Guards Brigade stated
that the Skua fighters flying high over
Harstad base were the first British
aircraft they had seen since our arriving
in Norway and a welcome sight]
At
2145 ARK ROYAL flew off
three Swordfish to attack submarine reported
by Skua. Armament
six 100 lb bombs. Area
thoroughly searched for more than
an hour. No submarine sighted.
7th
-
At 0600
the ARK ROYAL force was in position 70-17N,
16-08E. Wind south
west force 2 and Sea state 21.
[The
intention for the day was to provide
fighter patrols over the Narvik area to
the maximum extent possible.
Distance of the Carrier from the
objective and the endurance of flying
personnel were factors that had to be
considered.
Paramount
was the security of ARK ROYAL.
Therefore to combine the function of
giving warning of the approach of enemy
air or surface forces with that of A/S air
patrol, two Swordfish were to patrol
continuously during daylight hours, one 15
miles ahead and the other 15 miles
astern of the Squadron]
At
0600 a fighter patrol to
Narvik area was flown off, no enemy aircraft
were sighted.
At
0610 the Walrus from
Harstad was landed back on ARK ROYAL.
At
0830 a fighter patrol to
Narvik area was flown off, no enemy aircraft
were sighted.
At
0830 two Swordfish were
flown off for photographic reconnaissance
for area east of Bogen. No enemy
aircraft were sighted.
[At
1020 the CURLEW reported an accident had
occurred on her multiple pom pom,
five men were
killed and two wounded. The
accident was caused by a corroded
firing circuit in the pom pom
director]
At
1330 ARK ROYAL flew off
two Skuas of 801 Squadron for a fighter
patrol over Bogen, Narvik, Tjelsundet,
and Harstad.
At
1450 ARK ROYAL flew off three
Skuas of 803 Squadron for a fighter patrol
over Ofotfjord, Tjelsundet,
and Harstad.
[Enemy
troop
carriers were reported to be flying North
from Ankenes
at 0900 and 1200, the fighter patrols were
instructed to keep a good look out
for such aircraft, but none was sighted.
At
1600 the five aircraft of 801 and 803 Sqds
had combined over Ofotfjord, where
they engaged two pairs of He 111H. Two
Heinkels seen to drop bombs over the Fjord,
the other two are thought to have bombed the
light cruiser AURORA before being
attacked (At 1641 in position 68-30N,
14-15E, the AURORA was damaged by a bomb
which landed forward of her B turret).
One Heinkel was chased over the
Swedish border, jettisoning
boxes.
One
Heinkel
was seen going into a vertical dive south of
Ofotfjord; this was a He
111H of 8./III./KG
26 from Vaernes and was shot down
by a Skua from 801 Sqd.
Lieutenant
GF
Russell, RN of 803 Sqd was wounded in the
finger by a bullet]
At
1700 the ARK ROYAL was in
position 70-16N, 15-34E. Weather clear, wind
south east
force 3, sea state 2 -1.
At
1700 and 1900 ARK ROYAL
flew off fighter patrols, but they failed to
sight enemy aircraft.
At
2000 ARK ROYAL flew off
the Walrus to Harstad for transfer to
EFFINGHAM (Flag, Flag Officer, Narvik,
Admiral
of the Fleet the Earl of Cork and Orrery).
At
2215 the CURLEW detached
to Narvik to refuel and to act as ordered by
the Flag Officer, Narvik.
8th
-
At 0540
ARK ROYAL was in position 70-30N, 17E.
Weather bright, wind south east force 2,
sea state 12.
At
0540, 0905 and 1040 ARK
ROYAL flew off fighter patrols, but they
failed to sight enemy aircraft.
[Signal
timed 0825/8, from CO light cruiser
AURORA, 'Fighters kept Narvik area
remarkably quiet yesterday, 7th
May. I was caught in entrance Sjomen
Fjord, unable to alter course, by two
bombers whilst
fighters were engaging previous two.
Formation keeping and fire power of
Heinkel was much above that experienced in
Trondheim area']
At
1305 ARK ROYAL was in
position 70-31N, 16-51E. Weather bright,
wind south east force 2, sea state 12.
At
1305 ARK ROYAL flew off
three Skuas 8F, 8G & 8C of 803 Sqd for
fighter patrol over Narvik and
Harstad.
At
1305 ARK ROYAL flew off Swordfish
4F of 820 Sqd, for a photographic
reconnaissance of ground east of Bogen and Herjangsfjord.
Was
attacked by three Ju 88s, but escaped by
flying at ten feet along the
edge of the fjord.
At
1548 ARK ROYAL flew off two
Swordfish of 810 Sqd for an A/S patrol
around the force.
At
1600 ARK ROYAL flew off
three Skuas 8K, 8L & 8M of 803 Sqd for
a fighter patrol
over Narvik.
[At
1630,
Skua 8C, pilot Midshipman (A) AS Griffith
attacked a Ju 88 and a He 111H
obtaining hits on both. The other two
aircraft of the section did not make contact
in variegated cloud layers]
[At
1710,
Skuas 8K, 8L & 8K sighted and attacked a
large enemy flying boat,
believed to be a Do 26, (It was a Do 26
from 9./III./KG
zbV108, based at Bergen) near
Bogen. (The Do 26 was en route to Narvik
with 12 soldiers of 3rd Company I/GJR 138).
After the attack, this flying
boat was seen to be diving, disabled, to
south of Ofotfjord. (The Do 26 came down
at Tepkilen,
in Efjord).
803 Squadron Commander reports; enemy
appeared to be considerably slower at the
end of the attacks and disappeared in
a dive through 10/10 cloud
towards high
mountains. This flying boat was
later reported to be down in Efjord.
During
this
engagement, Skua 8M, L2916, pilot Sub
Lieutenant (A) PN Charlton, was hit
in the engine and forced to land in the sea
near Tovik
with loss of engine pressure.
The
Flag
Officer, Narvik, subsequently reported that
this aircraft had been burnt
out, but that the crew were unhurt. The crew
later rejoined ARK ROYAL]
At
1800 ARK ROYAL was in
position 70-42N, 16-27E. Weather bc,
wind south force 3, sea state 11.
At
1810 ARK ROYAL flew off two
Skuas of 803 Sqd for a fighter patrol over
Narvik. No enemy aircraft was
sighted.
At
1900 when ARK ROYAL was
recovering the Swordfish from the A/S
patrol, Swordfish 2R, L2733, pilot Sub-Lieu
H E H Pain, stalled and fell into the sea
astern of ARK ROYAL. The
crew of three was picked up by a destroyer.
Weather
deteriorated, clouds
being down to 900 feet with snow and
rain.
[At
1930, a signal was received from the Flag
Officer Narvik (T.O.O. 1545/8) requesting
air bombardment of certain enemy
positions in the area east of Bogen]
By
2130 ARK ROYAL had
recovered all her aircraft.
9th
-
At
0700 ARK ROYAL was in position 70-42N,
17-02E. Wind south force 5, sea state
41.
At
0800 the CURLEW rejoined
from Harstad where she had been subjected to
frequent bombing attacks p.m.
yesterday, 8th May, whilst
refuelling.
At
0805 ARK ROYAL flew off nine
Swordfish, 2A, 2P, 2C, 2F, 2H, 2Q, 2L, 2B
& 2M of 810 Squadron, each armed
with four 250lb GP and eight 20lb bombs, to
carry out an attack on the railway
line at Nordalsbroen,
Hundalen, and Sildvik.
[The
Swordfish
strike force set off in three sub flights
heading for GrytΏya Island.
The third sub flight comprising 2B, 2L &
2M had to turn back when 2B &
2L developed engine trouble. 2L & 2M
landed back on but 2B, L2723, pilot
Lieutenant A Stewart, landed in the sea and
the crew were picked up by a
destroyer.
The
first
sub flight headed for the 180
meter long railway
viaduct bridge at Norddalsbrua,
(Called Nordalsbroen
by the British) here
they were met with AA fire. (This was
probably from 20mm and possibly 37mm
calibre weapons that had been salvaged
from the German destroyers). The line
that crosses the viaduct target
emerges from a tunnel and immediately
crosses the viaduct. Swordfish 2A, pilot
Captain N Skene
RM, scored a direct hit on the south
end of the tunnel and 2C, pilot
sub-lieutenant R Eborn, had direct hits on
the
south end of the viaduct. One aircraft was
badly hit by Flak and small arms
fire, and another aircraft by small arms
fire. All Aircraft of the sub flight
returned and landed on at
1145
The
second
sub flight, led by Swordfish 2F, pilot
Captain W Martin RM, carried out
an attack on the railway tunnel at Hundalen,
again AA fire was met. Hits were
scored on the tunnel mouth and a train that
was standing in Hundalen station
was hit with a 250lb bomb
which blew it on its side
and set it on fire.
On
his return to ARK ROYAL Captain Martin RM
gave a talk to the ships company
about the attack]
At
0845 ARK ROYAL flew off three
Skuas, 6F, 6G & 6H of 800 Sqd for a
fighter patrol over the Swordfish strike
force.
At
0905 ARK ROYAL flew off two
Skuas of 800 Sqd for a defensive patrol,
these sighted nothing. Weather
deteriorating. Rain
squalls
and heavy swell getting up.
At
0910 Swordfish 2L, 2M
landed back on but 2B, L2723, landed in the
sea.
[The
Skuas
of 800 Sqd investigated a report of flying
boat in Efjord.
There were no signs of the flying boat
and the attacks of the striking force were
watched. No air opposition was
encountered. The Skuas then proceeded
to Hartvikvannet
lake and shot up
ten German Ju 52 aircraft which were
forced landed there and showed signs of
salvage]
[On
12/4/40,
13
Ju 52 of
KGr.zbV 102 took off from Tempelhof
airport Berlin to transport troops and
equipment of the 2./A.R.112
Gebirgsbatterie to Narvik.
Embarked on the aircraft were 66 troops
and their equipment and four 7.5cm
GebG 36 pack
Howitzers and ammunition.
They
landed
at Fornebu, Oslo at 1240, refueled and
took off at 1345, included at Oslo was a
JU 52 with communications equipment.
Because of bad weather, two aircraft got
lost and made forced landings. The
remaining 11 landed on the ice on
Hartvikvatnet lake, which is 10½ miles
north east of Narvik, but was the
closest they could land. They were unaware
that there was a 70 cm thick layer
of snow on the ice, so the landing was a
disaster, five aircraft tipped on
their noses, two were badly damaged, three
landed elsewhere and one landed
intact.
At
0730/13/4/40 the
stranded planes were bombed by three
Norwegian He 115s of 3. Flyavdeling.
The Ju
52's were strafed later by Norwegian
Fokker CV fighters.
On
the
night of the 16/4/40 Norwegian Fokker CV
fighters again strafed the stranded
aircraft.
One
of the
Ju 52s eventually managed to take off but
the remaining ten sank in the lake
when the ice melted]
Skua
6H, L3055, Piloted by Midshipman C Treen
parted company with engine failure over
Rombaksfjord and forced landed at Ionkop.
The Crew walked across county (through
German
lines) and reached the shore of Rhombaksfjord
where
they were picked up by the destroyer
BEDOUIN. The remaining two Skuas
landed on at 1145]
At
1145 ARK ROYAL commenced
recovering the Swordfish of 810 Sqd and the
Skuas of 800 Sqd.
At
1200 ARK ROYAL was in
position 70-11N, 16-33E. Weather
deteriorating. Wind south
southwest
force 5 later gale force. Sea
state 43. Conditions
becoming unsuitable for flying.
Ship withdrew to northwards.
10th
-
During the morning a deep swell after
yesterday's gale persisted during the
forenoon and the motion on the ship made
flying impossible. Conditions improved
a little in the
afternoon.
[At
0400/10/5/40 CET German forces commenced
Operation Fall Gelb (Case Yellow),
beginning with operation Sichelschnitt
(Sickle
Stroke), a surprise air assault
against Holland, Luxembourg, Belgium, and
France.
At
0501/10/5/40 CET 76 German divisions
operating on a 175 mile front crossed into
Holland, Luxembourg, Belgium]
At
around 1000 the destroyers
SIKH and TARTAR detached to refuel at
Harstad.
At
1320 ARK ROYAL was in position
70-50N, 16-50E. Weather
improving. Wind 160 degrees 20
knots. Sea state
43.
At
1320 CURLEW's Radar indicated
that a group of aircraft was approaching ARK
ROYAL from the bearing 160
degrees. Three Skuas were flow off
to intercept them, but failed to find them
due to rain
squalls. Originally reported at 50
miles, this group closed to about 16
miles and then appeared to turn away to the
south east.
At
1400 ARK ROYAL flew off
three Skuas 7K, 7L & 7M of 801 Sqd for
a fighter patrol
over the Narvik area. One He 115
floatplane was sighted and chased over
Harstad but it climbed into cloud and
escaped.
At
1505 ARK ROYAL flew off
three Skuas 8F, 8G & 8H of 803 Sqd for a
fighter patrol over the Narvik
area. Skua 8H, pilot Petty Officer H Glover,
chased and engaged a He 111 over
Harstad. The enemy aircraft escaped into
cloud. The section flew over Navangen
area but saw no French troops.
[The
reference to French
troops related to the movements of the
13th
Foreign Legion Demi-Brigade. This was a
force of 2250 men who had
arrived at Harstad
on the 5/5/40 on
board the troopship MONARCH OF BERMUDA
that was part of convoy FP3. They were
the troops along with Polish troops who
were to take Narvik]
At
1645 and 1715 ARK ROYAL
flew off further fighter patrols; no enemy
aircraft were sighted.
At
2000 ARK ROYAL was in
position 70-26N, 15-57E.
By
2100 ARK ROYAL had
recovered all her aircraft. The last fighter
patrol had returned and reported
that clouds were down to 2000 feet in Narvik
area. No further flying was carried
out and ARK ROYAL withdrew to
the northward.
11th
-
At
0540 a signal was received from the FO
Narvik, (TOO 2332/10) requesting fighter
protection for the PENELOPE convoy.
[The
PENELOPE convoy had departed Skjelfjord
at 2237/10/4/40 and composed the light
cruiser
PENELOPE (On 11/4/40 the PENELOPE
had
run aground on rocks off BodΏ. The
grounding caused serious damage to her
hull
and boiler room. She was towed to Skjelfjord
where
she was moored alongside the German prize
SS ALSTER, so as to use her derricks
to carry out temporary repairs. Whilst
under repair the anchorage came under
attack by the Luftwaffe and in one attack
PENELOPE was near missed
exacerbating the damage already sustained.
So the
decision was taken to tow her to the UK)
towed by the tug BANDIT.
(On
8/5/40 the destroyer ISIS
struck wreckage in Ballangen Fjord. Her propellers were
wrecked and her tiller flat damaged. She
was towed to Skjelfjord by the
destroyer ILEX. The decision was taken to
tow her to the UK)
towed
by the
tug BUCCANEER, the tanker MV BRITISH
VALOUR 6952grt, MV LOCHEE 964grt,
Admiralty trawler ST LAMOND and Admiralty
drifter LUNAR BOW, escorted by the AA
cruiser CALCUTTA and the destroyers
CAMPBELL and WITCH.
At
0600 the PENELOPE convoy was in
approximate position 68N, 11-30E. This was
about 220NM from ARK ROYAL]
Signals
requesting fighter
protection were also received about the same
time, 0540, from AURORA (TOO.
2000/10) who was in Ofotfjord, and
ENTERPRISE (TOO. 0357/11). AURORA
reported considerable bomber
activity beyond the mountains north east of
Bjerkvik,
where Ju 88s were reported to be harassing
the Norwegian and French troops in
that area.
[The
light cruiser ENTERPRISE in company with
the sloop FLEETWOOD, the destroyer
HESPERUS and the freighter SS MARGOT
4545grt
which carried four25pounder field guns and
a light AA battery, and escorted by
AA cruiser CAIRO were convoying elements
of the first battalion the Scots
Guards and other troops from Sknland, Tjeldsund,
to
Mo I Rana, at
the head of Ranfjord,
and requested fighter protection during
the passage. This operation was to set
up a blocking force south of Narvik to
stop German troops relieving Narvik from
the south]
[As
it
was not possible to keep fighters operating
in all three areas at once, Admiral
Wells decided to provide fighters for the
PENELOPE and ENTERPRISE forces]
At
0545 course was set 220
degrees at 20 knots to reach a convenient
position for providing assistance for
doing so.
At
0600 ARK ROYAL was in
position 71-02N, 15-25E. Ships in company
were CURLEW, INGLEFIELD, MASHONA,
JAGUAR and ENCOUNTER.
At
1000 ARK ROYAL flew off
three Skuas of 803 Sqd to carry out a patrol
over the PELELOPE force. The
convoy endeavoured to direct the fighter
patrol on to a shadowing aircraft, but
no enemy aircraft was
seen by the Skuas. The fighter
patrol remained over the convoy from 1140 to
1310.
At
1035 ARK ROYAL flew off
two Skuas of 803 Sqd to carry out a patrol
over the ENTERPRISE force. The
convoy was found at 1130, 20 miles east of Skjelfjord
and the patrol remained in the vicinity for
an hour and a half without sighting
any enemy aircraft.
At
1230 ARK ROYAL was in
position 69-47N, 11-49E. It had been
intended to continue these patrols at two
hour intervals, but by 1230, the wind had
risen considerably in force and heavy
rain had set in, making further flying
impossible until 1630.
At
around 1300 CURLEW
detached for Harstad and the destroyers SIKH
and TARTAR rejoined from Harstad.
At
1345 the destroyers JAGUAR
and MASHONA were detached and sent back to
Scapa at best possible speed, in
accordance with the CINC Home Fleet's
signal, timed 0929/11. The destroyer
screen now consisted of INGLEFIELD,
ENCOUNTER, SIKH, and TARTAR.
At
1630 ARK ROYAL flew off
three Skuas of 800 Sqd to carry out a patrol
over the ENTERPRISE force and two
Skuas of 803 Sqd to carry out a patrol over
the PENELOPE force. No enemy
aircraft were sighted by either
patrol.
At
2000 the ARK ROYAL was in
position 68-07N, 9-02E.
By
2025 ARK ROYAL had
recovered all her aircraft and stood off the
coast to the westward for the
night.
12th
-
At
0400 ARK ROYAL was in position 67-11N,
9-58E. Weather c, wind southwest force
3, sea state 33.
At
0405 ARK ROYAL flew off
three Skuas 6K, 6L & 6M of 800 Sqd for
fighter patrol over ENTERPRISE and
convoy landing at Mo and to attack flying
boats and Germans south of Hemnes,
Ranfjord.
No flying boats or Germans were seen.
One He 111 was seen and chased and one
Do 17 was attacked but escaped. 6M
returned with engine trouble at 0755.
Remainder landed 0835.
[The
Germans south of Hemnes.
This
was a German unit of approximately
300 men, from the 1st Company, 138th
Regiment, 3rd Gebirgsjager
Division, who had been transported from
Trondheim (Operation
WILDENTE) in the commandeered
Norwegian coaster the SS NORG NORGE
991grt, the NORG NORGE was manned by
German
sailors from destroyers at Trondheim. The
Germans had landed at Hemnesberget
at about 1930/10/5/40; the troops
disembarked
and quickly overwhelmed No 3 Platoon of No
1 Independent Company (raised from
the Royal Scots) which had been
holding the town before the
German landing. The Germans had
effectively cut off the retreat of the
force at
Mosjaen and
were a threat to the troops that were to
be landed at Mo I Rana.
The destroyer ZULU, alerted
to the German attack had sailed from Skjelfjord
and
arrived at Hemnesberget
at 2050/10/5/40 and sank the
NORG NORGE before she could land her
supplies. Shelling of Hemnesberget
by ZULU and CALCUTTA, who arrived on the
scene soon after ZULU, had failed to
dislodge the German force]
At
0405 ARK ROYAL flew off
two Skuas of 800 Sqd for a fighter patrol
over PENELOPE and convoy. No enemy
aircraft sighted.
At
0455 ARK ROYAL flew off
six Skuas of 801 Sqd to relieve the fighter
patrols over ENTERPRISE at Mo and
PENELOPE.
At
0535 the fighter patrols
over ENTERPRISE at Mo and PENELOPE were each
relieved by three Skuas of 801 Sqd.
The unloading of troops at Mo was
observed to be proceeding, and troops were
seen to be advancing to the Westward
from Mo. No enemy aircraft were
sighted by either patrol.
At
1000 ARK ROYAL altered to
the northward to reach a position for
operating fighter patrols in the Narvik
area during Operation OB. The Flag
Officer, Narvik, signalled his aircraft
requirements for this operation in his
signals timed 1616/9, 1617/9 and
2009/11.
Having supplied fighter protection for
PENELOPE and ENTERPRISE a.m.
today, Sunday, ARK ROYAL was unable to start
patrols over Operation OB, until
1800.
[The
support
that ARK ROYAL's aircraft could give during
Operation OB. was as
follows (the Vice Admiral, Aircraft
Carriers' signal timed 1050/12):
(a).
Continuous fighter protection of three
Skuas from 1800 to 0600.
(b).
Continuous
reconnaissance by one Swordfish over landing
from 0100.
(c).
Six
Swordfish to bomb objectives specified in
the Flag Officer, Narvik's signal
timed 1617/9.
(d).
After
meeting these requirements and A/S patrols
for defence of carrier,
further objectives could not be bombed until
two hours after receipt of
request]
[Operation
OB took place at Bjerkvik,
at the head of Herjangsfjord,
8½ miles north east of Narvik and was the
first opposed amphibious
assault of the war. It was carried out by
troops of the 13e DBLE (Demi-Brigade Lgion
Ětrangre) of
the
French Foreign Legion commanded by
Lieutenant Colonel Magrin-Vernerey.
At
1800/12/5/40 the invasion force
assembled off Ballangen,
on the south shore of Ofotfjord 13½ miles
west of Narvik. The force
consisted of the battleship RESOLUTION
with 4 French Hotchkiss H 39 light tanks
and 2 mechanised landing craft (MLC's) embarked, the cruisers EFFINGHAM (Flag CINC Narvik
and with French
General
Antoine Marie mile
Bethouart
embarked)
and AURORA with 1500 French Foreign
Legionnaires embarked; and the
destroyers ORP BASILISK, FAME, HAVELOCK
(with a French mortar battery mounted on
her forecastle), SOMALI and WREN,
4 assault landing craft
(ALC) each with 30 Legionnaires
embarked and a MLC carrying a Hotchkiss H
39
tank.
At
0001/13/5/40 the naval bombardment of the
landing beach commenced.
At 0100
hours
the landing began with the discharge of
the tank from the MLC and the 120
Legionnaires from the 4 ALC's. The plan
called for the tanks from RESOLUTION to
be landed first but her crew had
difficulty in hoisting out the tanks into
the
MLC's, They eventually struggled ashore
where they did good work in silencing
the enemy machine guns.
The
Legionnaires from EFFINGHAM and AURORA
were landed from ships boats.
By 0600
hours
all of the assault force was ashore and
moved off to join forces with Norwegian
and French forces pushing south from ―se
and Polish
forces pushing east from Bogen]
At
1725
ARK ROYAL was in position 69-23N,
12-42E.
Weather C, wind north
northeast force 2, sea
state 10.
At
1725
ARK ROYAL flew off three Skuas 8A, 8B &
8C of 803 Sqd for a fighter
patrol for protection of the ships
assembling at Ballangen.
The Skuas each carried one 100 lb bomb
to drop on the railway bridge at Norddalsbrua,
but
clouds were too low to reach this objective,
and Sildvik was attacked. The bomb
carried by 8A was seen to fall
next to the railway line. No enemy
aircraft were seen.
At
1725
ARK ROYAL flew off Swordfish 2P of 810 Sqd
to carry out an ADA patrol.
At
1830
ARK ROYAL received a weather report from
RESOLUTION stating, clouds 500 to
1000 feet.
At
1920
ARK ROYAL flew off two Skuas of 800 Sqd to
relieve the fighter patrol from
803 Sqd. This patrol remained over Ofotfjord
until 2145 and sighted no enemy
aircraft. This second fighter patrol had
difficulty in reaching and returning
from the Narvik area owing to bad
weather. Further flying operations
were now impossible and the Vice
Admiral, Air Craft Carriers signalled the
Flag Officer, Narvik, (T.O.O.
2258/12) that flying operations were
postponed, at the same time requesting
weather reports hourly from RESOLUTION.
13th
-
At 0215 ARK ROYAL was in
position 69-47N, 15-38E. Weather cp, wind
north, northeast
force 3, sea state 20.
At
0215
ARK ROYAL flew off two Skuas of 800 Sqd for
a fighter patrol over Herjangsfjord
if weather conditions permitted. The
patrol reported weather clearing
from the north, but sighted no enemy
aircraft.
At
0215
ARK ROYAL flew off a Swordfish of 810 Sqd
armed with two 250lb GP bombs
with a 12 second delay, and eight 20lb
Cooper bombs, with orders to carry out
reconnaissance for the Army and bomb enemy
ports resisting advance. This aircraft
encountered low cloud and
fog and was unable to carry out its duty
effectively.
[At 0250, following the improvement in the weather, the
Vice Admiral, Aircraft Carriers signalled
the Flag Officer, Narvik, that
fighter patrols and reconnaissance were
being resumed, and that Hundalen and
Sildvik would be bombed at 0930.
It was by this time too late to bomb the
objectives specified in the
Flag Officer, Narvik's signal, timed 1617/9]
[At 0440 the
RESOLUTION reported that Skuas were
overhead]
At
0425
ARK ROYAL flew off two Skuas of 800 Sqd
aircraft left for fighter patrol
over the Fleet in Herjangsfjord.
These aircraft
remained on patrol as the weather was
relatively clear at Bjerkvik.
However they were unable to return to the
ship as thick fog lay over the coast
line.
[Skua 6K, L3001, pilot Lieutenant Rooper forced
landed at Sandoy,
and Skua 6M, L2938, pilot Petty Officer (A)
Burston,
forced landed alongside the destroyer
BRAZEN]
At
0425
ARK ROYAL flew off a Swordfish of 810 Sqd
for reconnaissance over the
landing party but on encountering fog off
the coast it returned at 0530 as the
weather was too bad for the aircraft to
reach the objective.
At
0430
ARK ROYAL flew off a bombing force of six
Swordfish, 4A, 4F, 4G, 4K, 4B &
4M of 820 Sqd each armed with four 250lb GP
bombs. The objective of the strike
force was the railway line west of Narvik.
[The Swordfish encountered thick fog soon after
taking off. The squadron therefore
climbed to 7000 feet before crossing the coast
line on
the way to the objective. One sub flight
attacked the western end of the
railway tunnel, west of Sildvik; a completed
salvo of bombs was observed to hit
the railway line. The second sub
flight found thick clouds at 5000 feet above
their objective, which was the
railway line at Hundalen. The pre
arranged attack had to be abandoned and
individual attacks made on any suitable
target. Two aircraft hit the
western end of the railway tunnel, west,
northwest of Hundalen with their bombs
and the third attacked the railway
line.
It is though that the line was cut in three
points. Fire from Flak guns was
encountered.
Aircraft 4A, pilot Captain A.C. Newson, RM, sighted
a submarine on the surface off DyrΏy
and reported the
fact. (This was a false sighting as all
U-Boats had been withdrawn from Norway due
to faulty torpedoes)
Several of the above Swordfish had difficulty in
returning after the attacks, as ARK ROYAL
was then in a dense fog. D/F bearings
were given, but two
aircraft, 4A & 4G were unable to find
the ship without danger of colliding
with her. 4A, P4077, made a forced
landed in a field at Tofta,
1½ miles west of
Harstad; and 4G, L2809, pilot Lieutenant H.
de G. Hunter, made a forced landing
at Medkila, 1½
miles south of Harstad. The
crews of both aircraft were picked up by
Walrus and returned to ARK ROYAL two
days later. Also both aircraft were later
recovered]
At
0700
the fog near ARK ROYAL had cleared
considerably, and it was decided to resume
flying operations in view of the urgent
necessity of maintaining a fighter
patrol over the Fleet and Bjerkvik.
At
0710
ARK ROYAL flew off two Skuas of 801 Sqd for
a fighter over the Fleet and Bjerkvik.
The
patrol sighted no enemy aircraft and was
homed by D/F in a dense fog landing
back on at 1110.
At
0710
ARK ROYAL flew off two Swordfish, 2K &
2L of 820 Sqd. One Swordfish
left in response to a call from AURORA for
reconnaissance over the high ground
to the east of Bjerkvik.
The other aircraft left to
attack the submarine which 4A had
reported.
[It is not known what these two aircraft achieved as
both were prevented from leaving the coast
on their homeward journey by
fog. Swordfish 2K, pilot
Lieutenant
Corbet-Milward
forced landed at Skaanland
and 2L, pilot Captain Ford RM, on a lake
near Reisen, twenty miles west of
Bardufoss]
By 0745
Swordfish, 4F, 4K,
4B & 4M of 820 Sqd had all been
recovered.
At
1200
ARK ROYAL was in position 70-31N, 17-09E.
Weather bc,
wind east, northeast force, sea state 11.
There
was
now much local fog; flying ceased and ARK
ROYAL proceeded northward until the
weather cleared.
14th
-
At 0500 ARK ROYAL reversed
course and steered south to close Narvik
area, weather clear.
At
1100
ARK ROYAL was in position 71-11N, 16-24E.
Weather b, wind south, southeast
force 2, sea state 11.
At
1100
ARK ROYAL flew off three Skuas of 801 Sqd
for a fighter patrol over Bjerkvik.
The patrol sighted no enemy aircraft so on
departing they attacked the derelict Ju 52
transport aircraft on
Hartvikvatnet
lake
with their front guns. (Four Browning 0.303" guns
mounted in the wings)
At
1330
ARK ROYAL flew off three Skuas 8F, 8G &
8Hof 803 Sqd for a fighter
patrol over Bjerkvik.
Each aircraft carried one 100
lb. bomb which
they dropped on
Hartvikvatnet
lake
before
carrying out their
patrol.
[After receiving an enemy aircraft report from
RESOLUTION, the patrol found and chased
several enemy aircraft that were attacking
the Fleet anchorage at 17,000 feet.
After two unsuccessful chases in which the
enemy outdistanced the Skuas,
five He 111 Hs, from KG 26 based at Vaernes
airport, were observed approaching
from the eastward at 18,000 feet.
After a determined dog fight during which
the Skuas attacked both from
astern and head on, the port engine of one
Heinkel was set on fire and the
aircraft was put out of action. (This
aircraft was a He 111 H-3, of Kampfstaffel
5./II./KG 26,
the aircraft crashed landed at Sitasjaure,
Muohkirisluokta,
Sweden). The leader of the patrol in
8F, pilot Lieutenant W.P. Lucy, then
pursued two other Heinkels down to sea
level. During this engagement, the
Skua appeared to explode and
crashed into the sea. Another of
the patrol 8G, L2918, pilot Lieutenant T.E.
Gray located a destroyer, the
WHIRLWIND, at Ransundet
which he directed to the
position of the crash. The body of
the pilot was recovered, but there was no
sign of the observer.
Lieutenant Gray's aircraft ran out of petrol and he
forced landed on the shore at Breivika
near Andenes. The destroyer ENCOUNTER,
who was near
the scene, returning to ARK ROYAL's screen
after refuelling at Harstad,
embarked the crew. The aircraft,
which could not have taken off again, was
set on fire.
(In this
engagement the fighter patrol, as well as
shooting down one Heinkel they damaged
a further three; one of which, a He 111
H-4 of 4./II./KG
26
crashed into the StjΏrdals
river near Vaernes
airport. The other two from Kampfstaffel
5./II./KG 26
and Gruppenstab
II./KG
26 received 30% damage)]
At
1340
the heavy cruiser DEVONSHIRE (Flag Vice
Admiral
John
Henry Dacres Cunningham
FO 1st CS), the destroyers WESTCOTT and
VOLUNTEER from Tromso, were
met. The WESTCOTT and VOLUNTEER
joined ARK ROYAL's screen in accordance with
the CINC, Home Fleet's signal
timed 2249/13, and the destroyers INGLEFIELD
and SIKH were detached to Scapa at
best possible speed.
At
1340
the CURLEW also rejoined from Harstad.
The
DEVONSHIRE
proceeded to join the flag of the CINC
Narvik.
ARK
ROYAL
now had in company CURLEW and the destroyers
TARTAR, VOLUNTEER, WESTCOTT
and ENCOUNTER.
At
1535
ARK ROYAL flew off two Skuas 8K & 8L of
803 Squadron for patrol at Rombaken
Fjord. Each aircraft carried one 100 lb. bomb
which they dropped on
Hartvikvatnet
lake
before
carrying out their
patrol.
[This patrol encountered a Ju 88 A and a He 111 H, probably
both from Vaernes airport, both of which
were attacked. After the first burst
of fire at the
former, the Ju 88's undercarriage fell
down. Six more attacks were carried
out before the Ju 88
disappeared into a thick cloud. It
is presumed to have been
put out of action. The He 111
also escaped into a cloud]
At
1700
ARK ROYAL flew off three Skuas of 803 Sqd
for a fighter patrol no enemy
aircraft were sighted.
At
1900
ARK ROYAL flew off three Skuas of 800 Sqd
for a fighter patrol no enemy
aircraft were sighted.
At
1900
the CURLEW was detached for Scapa in
accordance with the CINC Home Fleet's
signal timed, 1117/14.
By
2240
all aircraft had been recovered and ARK
ROYAL retired to northward for the
night.
15th
-
At 0030 a signal from the
sloop STORK to the Flag Officer, Narvik, was
intercepted stating that the SS (actually
she was a motor ship) CHROBRY
11442grt
(carrying a battalion of Irish Guards from Tjelsundet
to BodΏ) had been bombed and set on fire,
and was abandoning ship in position 67-38N,
13-50E (Vestfjord).
[The landing
of German troops at Hemnesberget
on the 10/5/40
threatened the allied position at Mo I Rana
and thus
the chances of blocking the German advance
from the south. So the Allied War
Council agreed to move the 24th Guards
Brigade from Harstad south to Mo I Rana.
The first troops of the 24th Brigade, the
Scots
Guards, were embarked on the light cruiser
ENTERPRISE, the destroyer HEPERUS
and the sloop FLEETWOOD and the freighter
SS MARGOT 4545grt and sailed on 11/5/40.
At
1830/14/5/40 the MV CHROBRY escorted by
the destroyer WOLVERINE and the sloop
STORK, sailed from Hol,
on the east shore of Tjeldsundet.
CHROBRY's destination had been Mo I Rana
but due to German air activity her
destination had
been changed to BodΏ. Embarked on CHROBRY
were members of the 24th Brigade HQ,
850 men of the 1st Battalion Irish Guards,
troops of the 3rd
King's Own Hussars, some
sappers, a field ambulance, anti aircraft
guns and other
supplies and a crew of 176, making a total
of 1192 on board.
At around
midnight as CHROBRY was approaching Landegode
Island
in Vestfjord, a He 111 of Fhrungskette
X.
Fliegerkorps
(Staff Flight X. Air Corps) piloted
by Hauptmann Robert Kowalewski,
came out of the darkness and passed low
over
her stern spraying her decks with MG fire.
The He 111 then turned and again
came in from the stern and in this pass
dropped several bombs, two of which hit
CHROBRY amidships immediately slowing the
ship and causing fires to break out.
The order was given to abandon ship and
WOLVERINE went alongside up wind to
take on board survivors, whilst STORK
warded off further attack and signalled
the CINC Narvik. WOLVERINE took off 694
men in sixteen minutes, and then left
for Harstad. The STORK later picked up a
further 300 survivors before returning
to Harstad, Where they arrived at 0930/15.
The CHROBRY was left a burning wreck]
At
0300
a signal was received from the Flag Officer,
Narvik, requesting air attack
on troops in the Hartvig
area be stopped. (Assume that this signal
refers to the
bombing attacks carried out against the Ju
52 on
Hartvikvatnet lake)
At
0403
ARK ROYAK flew off two Skuas
of 800 Sqd for a fighter patrol over Hartvig.
No enemy aircraft were seen but our
troops were observed on the move to the east
of
Hartvikvatnet
lake.
At
0405
ARK ROYAL was in position 71-10N,
16-00E.
Weather bc, wind
east force 2, sea state 10.
Aircraft
now
remaining on ARK ROYAL were 18 Skuas and 12
Swordfish.
At
0445
a signal was received from the Flag Officer,
Narvik, requesting fighter escort
for ships returning to Harstad with
survivors from CHROBRY.
At
0512
ARK ROYAL flew off three Skuas of 801 Sqd to
cover WOLVERINE and STORK. They
remained on patrol for an hour and
a half but sighted no enemy aircraft.
At
0655
a signal from Captain (D), 6th
Destroyer Flotilla (T.O.O.
0040/15) was received requesting fighter
protection. SOMALI was at this time,
200 miles south of ARK ROYAL and
therefore too far for the operation of
fighter patrols.
[At
0030/15/5/40 the destroyer SOMALI (D6)
with Brigadier Fraser, CO 24th Guards
Brigade, embarked and escorted by the
French destroyer FOUDROYANT was in Sjonafjorden
returning from Mo I Rana
when she received STORK's
signal to Flag Officer Narvik re the
attack on the CHROBRY. SOMALI immediately
set course for CHROBRY.
At 0243/15
in
position 66-28N, 12-34E, SOMALI was
attacked by four dive bombers,
(Possibly Ju 87R's of 1./St
G1 from Vaernes,
Trondheim) she zigzagged at high
speed and avoided every bomb except the
last. The last bomb was a near miss off
her starboard bow the damage was such that
she could only make 10 knots]
At
0710
ARK ROYAL was in position 70-21N, 16-10E.
Weather bc, wind south
southeast force 2, sea state 10.
At
0710
ARK ROYAL flew off six Swordfish, 2A, 2C,
2P, 2Q, 2F & 2M of 810 Sqd,
each armed with 250lb SAP bombs and eight
20lb Cooper bombs. The strike force
was divided into two sub flights of three.
The target for the first sub flight
comprising 2A, 2C & 2P, was the railway
station at BjΏrnfjell.
The target for the second sub flight
comprising 2Q, 2F & 2M was the mouth
of the railway tunnel between Hundalen and Norddalsbrua.
At
approximately
0730 ARK ROYAL flew off two Skuas, 8K &
8L of 803 Sqd to
provide a fighter escort for the strike
force.
[BjΏrnfjell, which is
about one mile from the Swedish border, was
the HQ of the German CINC Narvik,
General Eduard Dietl.
It was also the location where
German parachute reinforcements were dropped
and where they were receiving
supplies that were shipped through Sweden.
The first sub flight approached its
objective from the east, having come down
the Swedish border to Riksgransen,
which is just over the Swedish border. (There
were reports on the BBC of bombs
falling in Sweden, but this was incorrect).
No railway trucks were seen on
the line between BjΏrnfjell
and Ricksgransen.
The railway station at BjΏrnfjell
was bombed as were
several railway trucks that were near the
station.
While
the first sub flight
was near Ricksgransen
some AA fire appeared to come
from the Swedish side of the border.
The second sub flight attacked the mouth of a
railway tunnel between Hundalen and Norddalsbrua,
near misses with obtained with 250lb bombs
and a Flak machine gun post was
destroyed by a salvo of 8 x 20lb Cooper
bombs]
[The fighter escort attacked two
He 111's over Narvik, but they
escaped owing to their superior speed and
climb. A Ju 88 was chased from
Harstad, but also escaped. The
pilot of 8L, Petty Officer Airman A.G.
Johnson received a flesh wound in his
shoulder from a bullet which penetrated the
windscreen of his machine; the
bullet then entered the cockpit (rear) and
smashed some instruments with the
result that air gunner, Leading Airman Coston,
FX
76330, received slight cuts about the face
from glass splinters. This was the
second casualty of this type; Fleet Air Arm
fighters are so far not equipped
with bullet proof
glass as supplied to the Royal Air
Force. Petty Officer Johnson returned and
landed on ARK ROYAL safely]
At
0710
and 0835, the fighter patrol over WOLVERINE
and STORK was relieved, but no
enemy aircraft were sighted.
[At 0915 the Vice Admiral, Aircraft Carriers
signalled to the FO Narvik, that he proposed
to bomb Hemnes
and operate fighter patrols in Bodo
and Mo areas at
0400/16/40. To reach a suitable position for
these operations, fighter patrols
over Narvik would have to cease by
1500/15/40. The FO Narvik, confirmed that
the bombing was required and signalled later
that the operation to Bodo
had been postponed and that fighter patrols
were
required over the usual areas]
At
1010
ARK ROYAL flew off three Skuas, 6A, 6B &
6C of 800 Sqd for a fighter
patrol over ships in Herjangsfjord.
[This
patrol encountered four
He 111's over Hartvigvann
and one over Herjangsfjord.
The four Heinkels were in open formation
when first sighted. They moved into
close formation and all four
rear guns fired at the
attacking Skuas. The enemy had
been about to bomb the Fleet, but the Skua
attack forced them to jettison their
bombs, which fell in the middle of Ofotenfjord.
The four Heinkels in formation and later
the single Heinkel all made the best use of
the clouds and managed to escape]
At
1400
the last fighter patrol over the Fleet
anchorage returned to ARK ROYAL,
following which course was altered to the
southwest to reach the latitude of Hemnes,
66-14N, for Thursday morning.
At
1900
ARK ROYAL flew off three Swordfish of 820
Sqd armed with Mark XII torpedoes
fitted with Duplex pistols to sink
the MV CHROBRY which was
still afloat and on fire in
position 67-37N, 13-50E. A fighter
patrol of three Skuas accompanied the
Swordfish.
[The torpedoes were set to 30 feet depth and 2000
yards range. Of the three
torpedoes dropped, one exploded just under
the stern, one missed 30 yards
ahead, and one exploded 120 yards
short.
It appears that the magnetic pistols worked
satisfactorily though the
explosion short appears to be due to torpedo
not running its set range. The
CHROBRY remained afloat]
By
2200
all aircraft had landed back on.
16th
-
At 0300 ARK ROYAL was in
position 67-59N, 09-18E, weather bc,
wind East, Southeast
force 3, sea state 01.
At
0300
ARK ROYAL flew off a strike force of nine
Swordfish, 2A, 2P & 2C of
810 Sqd and 4K, 4L, 4M, 4F, 4B & 4C of
820 Sqd, each was armed with two 250
lb GP bombs and eight 20lb Cooper bombs, to
attack enemy troops and stores
reported to be on the peninsular of Hemnes,
near Mo I
Rana.
At
0300
ARK ROYAL flew off three Skuas, 7F, 7G &
7H of 801 Sqd, each armed
with a 250lb SAP bomb. The Skuas mission was
to bomb the CHROBRY if she was
still afloat, then to escort the strike
force to their objective.
[The situation
in Hemnes:
On 5/5/40
the
2nd Gebirgsjager
(Mountain) Division Commanded by Generalleutant
Valentin Feurstein
had set off from Grong, 300 miles south of
Narvik, to relieve Narvik.
On the
10/5/40
the Germans landed
300 men, from the 1st Company, 138th Regiment, 3rd Gebirgsjager
Division at Hemnesberget,
later on 10/5/40 the
Germans landed further troops and
equipment from He 59 seaplanes at Sund.
These moves outflanked the Norwegian and
British
defenders south of MosjΏen,
forcing the defenders to withdraw. The
British No 4 & 5 Independent companies
(These units under the overall
command of Colonel Colin Gubbins,
were about 290
strong, and were the forerunners of the
Commandos),
were withdrawn from MosjΏen
by Norwegian steamers to SandnessjΏen.
Norwegian units withdrew north to Finneidfjord,
13 miles south of Mo i
Rana
and 184 miles south of Narvik.
At 2230/11/5
the destroyers JACKAL and JAVELIN, who had
been on passage to Scapa when they
ordered to RV with Colonel Colin Gubbins,
arrived at
Mo i Rana.
There they were
informed by the Norwegians that Gubbins
was at SandnessjΏen.
On passage back down Ranfjord
JACKAL and JAVELIN encountered the
light cruiser ENTERPRISE, the destroyer
HEPERUS and the sloop FLEETWOOD
and the freighter SS MARGOT who were on
passage to Mo i
Rana with the
Scots Guards embarked. JACKAL and
JAVELIN continued to SandnessjΏen,
arriving at
0300/12/5, where they made contact with Gubbins
and
No 4 & 5 Independent Companies.
By
0400/11/5, MosjΏen,
200 miles south of Narvik, was in German
hands.
The 2nd Gebirgsjager
Division continued north towards
Finneidfjord,
and at the same time moved east over
the mountains to outflank Finneidfjord.
At this point
opposing the Germans were elements of the
Norwegian 6th Division and the
British No 1 Independent Company.
By 0700/12/5
the 1st Battalion Scots Guards had
disembarked at Mo i
Rana
Because the
Allies had concluded that the northern
thrust of the German forces must be
contained at Helgeland,
the commander of the 24th
Guards Brigade, Brigadier Fraser was
ordered to Mo i
Rana to assess
the situation. During the afternoon of
13/5/40 the destroyer SOMALI (D6) with
Brigadier Fraser, CO 24th Guards Brigade,
embarked and escorted by the French
destroyer FOUDROYANT, had arrived at Mo i
Rana. While
Brigadier Fraser was ashore at Mo i
Rana the
SOMALI and FOUDROYANT returned
down Ranfjord
and SOMALI bombarded German troops
advancing on Finneidfjord
and FOUDROYANT bombarded Hemnesberget
and Sund,
where in Sundsbukta
she sank a Blohm
and Voss BV 138A-1 seaplane of Transportstaffel
9./III./KG zbV
108. The destroyers then returned to
Mo i Rana
to re-embark
Brigadier Fraser.
On 16/5/40
the
situation was the Germans were north of Finneidfjord
and pressing elements of the Norwegian 6th
Division and British No 1
Independent Company and the Scots Guards
were setting up a blocking position at
Dalselv, six
miles south of Mo i
Rana]
[The Strike
formation made landfall at Nyken
Light, then circled
over Hemnes at
4000 feet to select targets. No
troops, stores, or other military
objective could be seen at either Hemnesberget
or Sund, (This
was
because as stated above the action had
moved away from Hemnesberget
and closer to Mo I Rana)
so the attack was made
on jetties and on large buildings
which might be
storehouses. The bombs just missed
the jetties, but hits were obtained on what
appeared to be a sawmill and on
several large buildings. No
opposition was encountered at any time
during the flight.
The
fighter patrol found the CHROBRY still
afloat so the three Skuas bombed the
ship. One bomb hit CHROBRY. No
enemy aircraft were seen]
At
0716
the destroyer WESTCOTT fractured a nozzle drain
pipe
in her port engine. Her ASDIC dome
was also unserviceable so she was detached
to Harstad with a request to the
Flag Officer, Narvik, that relief destroyer
be sent. The Flag Officer, Narvik,
signalled later that he was
sending BRAZEN as a relief.
At
1040
ARK ROYAL flew off a fighter patrol of three
Skuas 7A, 7F & 7G of 801 Sqd
each armed with one 500 lb bomb, with orders
to bomb the CHROBRY if she were
still afloat and then patrol over the Skraaven
and Tranoy
area.
[When the patrol arrived at CHROBRY's position she had
already sunk, so the bombs were
jettisoned. Three He 111 Ks (these
aircraft were probably Ju 88s of 6./11./KG30
from
Vaernes, because unbeknown to the crews of
the Skuas they seriously damaged Ju
88 A-1 that later crash landed
near a farm at Mardal,
SΏmna)
were encountered over the Fleet Anchorage;
several attacks were made on the
bombers but the Skuas had not the speed
necessary to enable them to press the
attacks home. The aircraft
returned with all ammunition expended]
At
1150
ARK ROYAL flew off two Skuas, 8K & 8H of
803 Sqd for afighter
patrol over Narvik and the Fleet anchorage.
[Two Do17s were seen by 8K & 8H, and on being
engaged, two more dived to assist
them.
(The enemy aircraft were in fact
Ju 88 As of KG 30 from Vaernes) The
Skuas were quite outclassed in speed
and maneuverability
by the Ju 88s and a dog
fight ensued during which the
Section Leader's aircraft
(8K, L2910, pilot Lieutenant LA Harris,
R.M., observer Lieutenant JHRM Vereker,
R.N) was forced down in Rombaks
Fjord. The crew were rescued by the
destroyer MATABELE. The remaining
Skua was also forced down to 3000 feet and
attempted to draw the enemy into the
range of some warships in the Fjord.
A long burst of pom pom
fire was observed to
hit one enemy aircraft at close range, and
later only three of the four Ju 88s
were observed to fly off. It was
presumed that the fourth had been brought
down. (A Ju 88 A-1 flown by Oberleutnant
H Bansch was
lost around this time)]
At
1330
ARK ROYAL flew off three Skuas, 8A, 8B &
8C of 803 Sqd for a patrol
over Narvik.
[At 1416 this section encountered six Ju 88s (these were Ju 88 As of 6./II./KG
30
from Vaernes) over Ofotfjord and a
tremendous dog fight ensued in which
the enemy endevoured
to evade the Skuas by diving,
making steep climbing turns, and in one
case, spinning to 1000 feet. In spite
of the superior performance of
the Junkers, two of these were brought down,
one crashing in Narvik Fjord, and
the other, shot down by 8C, pilot,
Midshipman (A) A.S. Griffith, on a
mountainside on the south side of Ofotfjord.
(In this encounter it is probable that ony
one
enemy aircraft was shot down, the victor
was 8B, L3010, pilot, Sub/Leiut
RA Easton and the victim was Ju 88 A-1,
4D+KP of 6./11./KG30
from Vaernes. The Ju 88 crashed into
Ofotfjord,
south west of Narvik)]
At
1500
ARK ROYAL flew off a Skua fighter patrol to
patrol over Narvik and the Fleet
anchorage. No enemy aircraft were seen.
At
1650
ARK ROYAL flew off three Skuas, 6F, 6G &
6H of 800 Sqd for afighter
patrol over Narvik and the Fleet anchorage.
[A He 111 K Mark V was sighted when about eight
miles west of the Fleet anchorage at 15,000
feet; the enemy was pursued but not
engaged, as his superior speed enabled him
to escape. 6G and 6H became separated
from their leader during the
pursuit and returned to the Fleet Anchorage,
where they found a Ju 88 attacking
the Fleet. Both aircraft attacked
the Junkers, whose port engine was disabled
by a burst of fire from 6H, pilot,
Midshipman
(A) R.W. Kearsley.
(The Ju 88 A-1, 4D+AP,
of 6./11./KG30
from Vaernes crash landed in Bogen
Fjord off Forra
and its crew of five swam ashore)
6F attacked a He 111E Mark V near the Fleet
anchorage. It is thought that at
least one bust of fire hit the target,
although the enemy, being of the latest
type, was easily able to escape.
6G and 6 H then attacked another He 111K Mark V, and
forced him down from 15,000 to 300 feet, but
he also managed to escape, though
damaged. (This attack proably
caused the loss of He 111 H-3, 1H+DN of 5./11./KG26
from
Vaernes)]
At
1650
ARK ROYAL flew off a Swordfish of 810 Sqd to
take photographs of the
landing grounds at Bardufoss, Skaanland,
and Skjomen Elvegard.
At
2115,
On completion of flying, ARK ROYAL withdrew
to the westward and later
altered course to the southward to take up a
position for covering the passage,
tomorrow, of the cruisers COVENTRY,
EFFINGHAM, and CAIRO, escorted by
destroyers ECHO and MATABELE who were
conveying troop reinforcements from
Harstad to Boda.
At
2230
the destroyer BRAZEN joined the screen from
Harstad.
gggggggggg
17th
At
0001 ARK ROYAL escorted by the destroyers
TARTAR, VOLUNTEER, BRAZEN and
ENCOUNTER was steaming in a generally
south westward course, to achieve a
flying off position from which to cover
the EFFINGHAM convoy.
[At 0400/17 the heavy cruiser EFFINGHAM with 1,020 troops
embarked,
comprising the 2nd Battalion the South
Wales Borderers, 24th (Guards) Brigade
HQ and support troops, 10 Bren Gun
Carriers, and 130 tons of supplies,
escorted
by the anti-aircraft cruisers COVENTRY
(Flag Rear Admiral G. VIVIAN, Rear
Admiral, Anti-Aircraft Ships), CAIRO and
the destroyers MATABELE and ECHO,
sailed from Harstad for Boda. The route
that the force took was outside the
leads so as to reduce the risk of air
attack. Speed of advance 20 knots.
At
0503 EFFINGHAM informed the Flag that
she would like to arrive off
Svartoksen Light at 2000. Increased
speed to 23 knots.
At
1034 EFFINGHAM suggested to the flag
that, in view of the possible
submarine danger in the main approach to
Boda, the force should proceeded
between Briksvaer and Terra Islands,
stating that a large scale Norwegian
Chart, No. 65, was held onboard.
Rear Admiral, Anti-Aircraft Ships
informed EFFINGHAM accordingly,
stating he would be ordered to lead the
force in, preceded by MATABELE and ECHO
as A/S screen, and that he should make
the necessary course signals.
At
1615 two Skuas arrived over the force
and Skuas remained over the
force until the operation was abandoned.
At
1730 an enemy aircraft was sighted by
the force
At
1912 the force was in position 67-13N,
13-28E and EFFINGHAM was
ordered to exchange stations with
COVENTRY and take the lead.
At
1923 EFFINGHAM altered course to 080‘,
speed 23 knots.
At
1925 EFFINGHAM was in position 67- 15N,
13-37E, course O4O ‘. The
gyros had previously been checked by
transits.
At
1945 EFFINGHAM was ordered to take
MATABELE and ECHO under orders and
proceed independently to Boda. COVENTRY
and CAIRO were to follow.
At
1947 in the
Briksvaer
Channel,
about 8½ miles west of Boda, EFFINGHAM
ran aground at a speed
of 23 knots, in what was apparently very
deep water. MATABELE was ordered to
tow her off and ECHO was ordered provide
an A/S screen, but MATABELE informed
the Flag that she had also been aground
and reported damage to her starboard A
bracket and propeller. CAIRO was ordered
to proceed to Boda with all dispatch
and send out all puffers and trawlers
that were available.
It
soon became clear that EFFINGHAM was
lost so ECHO was ordered to
commence taking off the 1750 souls on
board.
By
2240 ECHO had taken off all on board and
transferred them to COVENTRY]
At
1500 ARK ROYAL was in position 68-08N,
07-00E
At
1500 a Walrus of 701 Sqd from GLORIOUS
landed on ARK ROYAL.
[At 2130/14/5/40 the aircraft carriers GLORIOUS (with 18
Hurricane 1s of
46 Sqd RAF embarked) and FURIOUS
(with 18 Gladiator IIs of 263 Sqd
RAF
embarked) escorted by the
destroyers
DIANA, VETERAN, VISCOUNT and
WITHERINGTON sailed from the Clyde for
operations
off Norway.
Early
on 15/5/40 destroyer AMAZON joined from
Scapa Flow and the
WITHERINGTON detached.
During
the afternoon of 17/5/40 the force
arrived in the vicinity of the
ARK ROYAL]
Between
1510 and 2200 ARK ROYAL flew off four
fighter patrols to cover
the EFFINGHAM convoy.
At
1700 ARK ROYAL flew off the 701 Sqd Walrus
to Harstad, taking with it
for the information of the Flag Officer,
Narvik, proposals for the
disembarkation of the RAF Squadrons from
GLORIOUS and FURIOUS.
At
2030 ARK ROYAL received news of the
grounding of EFFINGHAM, west of
Boda, while shortly before midnight a
signal was received from the Admiral
Commanding Anti-Aircraft ships, that the
operation had been abandoned, and
requesting that air protection be
continued while ECHO remained to arrange
for
the sinking of EFFINGHAM.
At
2145 the Flag Officer Aircraft Carriers
received the Flag Officer,
Narvik's signal timed 1731/17, requesting
reconnaissance of the Rombaksfjord
and area south of it, and bombing of
Sildvik and Hundalen. It was decided
that ARK ROYAL would
proceed northwards on completion of
present operations to comply with this
request.
18th
At
0030 and 0300 ARK ROYAL flew off Skua
fighter patrols to cover Boda and
operations around the EFFINGHAM.
At
0630 the last fighter patrol was landed
back on. Following which
course was altered at this time to the
Northwest, preparatory to carrying out
fighter operations off Narvik in the
evening.
At
1700 ARK ROYAL was in position 70-06N,
15-15E.
At
1710 and 1830 ARK ROYAL flew off fighter
patrols of three Skuas for
Narvik. Neither patrol sighted any enemy
aircraft and
both patrols reported unfavourably on the
weather, Clouds were reported to be
9/10th at 1000 feet, therefore
no further patrols were sent.
At
1810 ARK ROYAL was joined by GLORIOUS and
FURIOUS. This was the first
time in the war that three aircraft
carriers had operated together.
The
combined force now consisted of the
aircraft carriers ARK ROYAL,
GLORIOUS and FURIOUS escorted by the
destroyers TARTAR, VOLUNTEER, BRAZEN,
ENCOUNTER, DIANA, VETERAN, VISCOUNT and
WITHERINGTON.
At
1900 ARK ROYAL flew off a Swordfish to
take photographs of Bardufoss
Aerodrome for the RAF pilots embarked on
GLORIOUS and FURIOUS.
19th
At
0800 ARK ROYAL was in position 70-27N,
15-47E. The carrier force remained in
this approximate position with ARK ROYAL
prepared to launch a bombing attack by
Swordfish aircraft on Sildvik and
Hundalen. The weather, however, was
consistently bad inshore and
patches of thick weather were frequently
met at sea. It was therefore
necessary to wait until conditions
improved,
and ship retired to the north
west in the evening.
At
1115 a signal was received from the Flag
Officer, Narvik (T.O.O.
2331/18) giving arrangements for
disembarking the RAF Gladiators from
FURIOUS
to Bardufoss on Tuesday, 21/5/40.
The signal also stated that Hurricanes
from GLORIOUS could not be received
until Sunday, 26/5/40. The Vice
Admiral, Aircraft Carriers, signalled the
Flag Officer, Narvik (T.O.O. 1308/19)
suggesting that GLORIOUS should leave for
the United Kingdom forthwith and that
ARK ROYAL and FURIOUS should return in
company on Tuesday, 21/5/40, after the
Gladiators
had been disembarked. No reply was
received.
At
1700 ARK ROYAL was in position 71-16N,
16-19E.
20th
A
signal was received reporting a
considerable improvement in the weather
over
night.
At
0330 ARK ROYAL was in position 70-24N,
16-10E. Weather O, wind south
southeast force 1, sea calm.
At
0330 ARK ROYAL flew off a strike force of
nine Swordfish of 810 and
820 Sqds, armed with 20 lb Cooper bombs
and 25 lb Incendiary bombs, plus either
2x500 lb or 4x250 lb GP bombs, their
objective was Hundalen and Sildvik The 250
lb GP bombs included the last twelve of
these bombs on the ship.
At
0330 ARK ROYAL flew off a Skua fighter
patrol for Narvik.
[As the strike force approached the
coast the weather deteriorated.
One sub flight of three proceed up to
Narvik below the cloud, but at
Narvik the cloud ceiling was at 500 feet
and coming lower, and the sub flight
returned having jettisoned its
bombs.
The other flight of six tried above the
cloud layer at 5000 feet, but
was unable to find gaps large enough to
enable an attack to be made. This
flight also jettisoned its bombs
on its return trip to the ship, which by
then was in rain with visibility down
to two miles, a front having arrived
rapidly from the south west. All aircraft
returned to ARK ROYAL]
At
0400 ARK ROYAL flew off a Skua fighter
patrol for Narvik to support
the Swordfish strike force. On arrival at
the coast, this section found the
weather so bad that they returned to the
ship at 0630.
At
0600 ARK ROYAL flew off a Skua fighter
patrol for Narvik.
[This Fighter patrol was carried
out at 50 to 400 feet over Ofotfjord and
narrowly escaped hitting a previously
unknown HT cable between Skogoy Island, in
Bogen Bay and the mainland when
returning to ARK ROYAL]
At
0950 the Skua patrol returned to ARK
ROYAL, by which time the
visibility had deteriorated to under one
mile. Further operations were
abandoned and ARK ROYAL held off to
the North.
At
1600 ARK ROYAL was in position 70-33N,
16-21E. At this time the
Weather was getting steadily worse.
Wind southwest force 6 and freshening, sea
41, and visibility 1 to 2
miles. Continuous rain, though by
this time the weather in the Narvik area
had apparently cleared.
[At 2101 the Flag Officer, Narvik,
signalled that weather conditions were
suitable at Bardufoss and ordered
FURIOUS to fly off the RAF GLADIATORS of
263 Sqd immediately. FURIOUS replied
that Gladiators would
arrive between 0300 and 0400 tomorrow
morning. The advanced echelon of 263 Sqd
had arrived in the Bardufoss area since
11/5/40 and had been joined by the
second echelon on 20/5/40]
21st
At
0300 ARK ROYAL was in position 70-25N,
15-50E. Weather OC; wind west by south,
sea state 21.
At
0300 ARK ROYAL flew off six Skuas, the
first section of three 6F, 6G
& 6H of 800 Sqd and the second section
of three 8A, 8B & 8C of 803 Sqd,
Their mission was to patrol over Bardufoss
airfield, 100NM distant, to cover
the landing of 265 Squadron Gladiators
from FURIOUS.
[All encountered banks of fog, rain, and low cloud on
the coast. 8A and 8C returned at
0430 having lost 8B in cloud. 8B,
pilot Sub Lt I Easton, finally arrived
over Harstad and forced landed at SandsΏy,
north of Harstad at the end of patrol, as
visibility to seaward was less than
half a mile. 6F, 6G, and 6H came back and
landed at 0530 having experienced
similar conditions, and flying ceased
until weather improved]
[At approximately 0300,
in poor flying weather, FURIOUS
commenced flying off the 18 Gladiators
of 263
Sqd for Bardufoss. Each section was led
by a Swordfish who provided navigation.
The first section was led by Swordfish
P4216 of 818 Sqd, near Senja Island they
ran into thick mist and due to a
navigational error the Swordfish and two
Gladiators, N5697 pilot P/O Walter
Philip Richards and N5693 pilot P/O
Randolph Stuart Mills, flew into
HΏystakktind mountain, 2060 feet high,
which is between Sifjord and Osterfjord
on Senja Island. Pilot Officer Richards
was killed all the other aircrew
survived. By 0930 sixteen Gladiators had
safely landed at Bardufoss]
At
0730 Swordfish 2K, pilot Lieut. NR
Corbett, of 820 Sqd landed back on
ARK ROYAL from Sknland where they had
made a successful forced landed on
13/5/40. The crew had waited until the
field to dry out enough for a successful
takeoff with ARK ROYAL within range.
At
1120 ARK ROYAL flew off a Skua fighter
patrol to Bardufoss. This
patrol reported clouds very low
inshore.
Further patrols were impracticable.
At
1230 a signal was received from FURIOUS
stating that 18 Gladiators had
been disembarked, but that one Swordfish
and two Gladiators were overdue and
missing.
[ARK ROYAL was now in need of
replenishment of her aircraft ordnance
stores. So when Flag Officer Aircraft
Carriers received the signal from FURIOUS
and with the knowledge that 46 Sqd
Hurricanes could now be landed before
26/5/40 he ordered ARK ROYAL and escort
proceeded to Scapa. GLORIOUS and FURIOUS
and escort were ordered to proceed
independently to Scapa.
During her latest operations off
Norway, the ARK ROYAL air group had flown
250 sorties, 60% of them by the Skua
Sqds. Aircraft losses had been 8 Skuas and
5 Swordfish. Two
aircrew had been lost Lt. WP Lucy
and Lt. MCE Hanson both of 803 Sqd]
At
approximately 1300 ARK ROYAL escorted by
the destroyers ANTELOPE,
BRAZEN, VOLUNTEER and ENCOUNTER set course
for Scapa.
22nd
At
0800 ARK ROYAL was in position 68-11N,
02-04E. Course 230‘, speed 14 knots. Weather,
thick fog.
At
1200 ARK ROYAL was in position 67-37N,
00-52E.
At
2000 ARK ROYAL was in position 66-21N,
03-10W. Thick fog continued
throughout most of the day.
23rd
At
0800 ARK ROYAL was in position 63-38N,
04-12W. Course 190‘, speed 14 knots. Fog
continued except for a break during the
afternoon.
At
1200 ARK ROYAL was in position 62-44N,
04-54W.
At
2000 ARK ROYAL was in position 61N,
04-42W.
[At 2130/23/5/40 GLORIOUS, FURIOUS and the destroyers
VETERAN, DIANA,
AMAZON and VISCOUNT arrived at Scapa
Flow]
24th
At
0500 North West of the Orkneys, ANTELOPE
was detached to proceed to Scapa
independently as she was getting short of
fuel. She arrived at Scapa at
0720/24/5/40.
At
0800 ARK ROYAL was in position 59-17N,
04-17W. Thick fog prevented ARK
ROYAL entering the Pentland Firth and she
stood off to the northwest until fog
cleared.
At
1200 ARK ROYAL was in position 59-17N,
0409W.
The
fog cleared in the evening
At 1915 ARK ROYAL, escorted by
BRAZEN, VOLUNTEER and ENCOUNTER entered
Hoxa Gate, Scapa
Flow
25th
At 1600 ARK ROYAL (Flag Vice Admiral,
Aircraft Carriers) and FURIOUS, screened
by the destroyers ANTELOPE, AMAZON,
ENCOUNTER, CAMPBELL and VISCOUNT sailed
from Scapa for the Clyde via the
Minches.
At 1700 in the Pentland Firth the
destroyer VOLUNTEER, who had sailed from
Scapa at 1615/25, joined and ENCOUNTER
detached for Rosyth.
At 1800 replacement aircraft were
flown on from RNAS Hatston.
[In
the Minches the ARK ROYAL force passed
the destroyers BEDOUIN and FOXHOUND who
were en route to Scapa from the Clyde.
They had departed the Clyde at 1550/25
for Scapa. En route, they conducted an
anti-submarine sweep from North Channel
to Lower Minch, then from North Minch
to Pentland Firth, arriving at Scapa
Flow at 1745/26th]
26th At 1100 the force was in position
55-19N, 06-05W.
[At
1100 FURIOUS flew off five Swordfish to
RNAS Campbeltown and ten Skuas to RNAS
Abbotsinch]
At 1730 ARK ROYAL, FURIOUS, ANTELOPE,
AMAZON, VOLUNTEER, CAMPBELL and VISCOUNT
arrived off Greenock.
[Immediately
after
ARK ROYAL picked up her mooring the
process of replenishment commenced
and damaged aircraft were disembarked on
to lighters. Crew were given local
leave]
27th to 29th
ARK ROYAL off Greenock
carrying out replenishment.
30th
At 0515 ARK ROYAL (Flag Vice Admiral,
Aircraft Carriers) screened by the
destroyers ACASTA, ARDENT and ACHERON
sailed
from the Clyde for Scapa via the Minches.
At 0755 off the Isle of Arran, ARK
ROYAL landed on three Swordfish from RNAS
Abbotsinch. A further four Swordfish
and two Skuas failed to arrive due to low
cloud and rain. The four Swordfish that
were unable to find ARK ROYAL landed at
RNAS Machrihanish, the Skuas returned
to Abbotsinch and then flew to RNAS
Hatson.
At 1830 ARK ROYAL was in position
55-32N, 06-35W and she landed on the four
Swordfish from Machrihanish.
31st
At 0600 ARK ROYAL, ACASTA, ARDENT and
ACHERON arrived at Scapa.
At 0800 ARK ROYAL (Flag Vice
Admiral, Aircraft Carriers) and GLORIOUS
escorted by the destroyers HIGHLANDER,
DIANA, ACASTA, ARDENT and ACHERON sailed
from Scapa for Operation ALPHABET.
Course was set to pass west of the
Orkneys.
[Operation
ALPHABET was the code name for the
Allied withdrawal from Norway. The role
of ARK ROYAL was to provide fighter
cover and that of GLORIOUS to evacuate
RAF fighters.
On 24/5/40 the British Government decided that
events in the Low Countries and northern
France necessitated a withdrawal of
Allied forces from Norway. The troops
were required in the UK and the warships
were wanted for possible anti- invasion
operations and deployment to the
Mediterranean, for possible action
against Italy.
The withdrawal order was communicated to the
Flag Officer Narvik early on 25/5/40,
with the proviso that the operation was
to be carried out in a manner that would
keep it secret from the Germans for as
long as possible. The Allied commanders
agreed that the attack on Narvik should
continue as this would disguise the
retreat and allow the destruction of the
harbour and iron ore loading facilities.
(On
29/5/40 Narvik was captured by a
combined
force of French Foreign Legion, Polish
and Norwegian troops supported by naval
gunfire. The German troops retreated
along the railway line towards Sweden,
destroying the railway tunnels as they
went)
The evacuation would entail the embarkation of
23000 troops from the Harstad/Narvik
area and 4000 from Boda.
On 26/5/40 the Flag Officer Narvik decided to
carry out the evacuation in three
phases, as follows:-
First
Phase,
embark valuable stores in five ships
then at Harstad and sail them to Scapa.
Second
Phase,
embark valuable stores in three MT ships
and 13000 troops from the Narvik
area in liners in fjords to the west and
north of Harstad and also embark the
Boda force.
Third
Phase,
embark 10000 troops from the Narvik area
in liners as in the second
phase.
The date proposed by the Flag Officer Narvik
for the second phase was 1/6/40 and for
the third phase 4/6/40. These dates
were later amended]
Between
0925
and 1630 ARK ROYAL's Swordfish carried out
A/S patrols.
At
1015 in
position 59N, 04-20W, ARK ROYAL flew on
Skuas of 803 Sqd from RNAS Hatston
together with two replacement Skuas for
800 Sqd, these latter two were the
aircraft that failed to find ARK ROYAL on
the morning of 30/5/40. On completion,
course was set to the Northward, to
proceed towards the Narvik Area.
[ARK
ROYAL now had embarked 24 Skuas, 12 of 800
Sqd
and 12 of 803 Sqd, and 21 Swordfish, 12 of
810 Sqd and 9 of 820 Sqd]
JUNE
1st
At 0730 ARKROYAL was in position 64-50N,
02-40W and steering northerly, the weather
was foggy and the fog persisted
intermittently throughout the day.
At
2201 the
Flag Officer Aircraft Carriers signalled
the Flag Officer Narvik with an RV
position for 1700/2/6/40, for a Walrus
bringing out orders for Operation
ALPHABET.
2nd
ARK
ROYAL continued steering northerly and
maintained ADA patrols during daylight
hours.
At
1710 ARK
ROYAL was in position 68-58N, 00-33E when
she landed on a Walrus from Narvik.
[In
a
signal timed 1959/1/6/40, the Flag
Officer, Narvik, indicated his
requirements
from the Carrier Squadron. Embarkation
operations were to begin on the night of
3/6/40; he requested fighter patrols each
night over the points of embarkation
ashore and the rendezvous of ferrying
destroyers with transports, and also
reconnaissance and bombing of troop
movements in the SΏrfold Drag area,
and bombing of enemy headquarters at
Hundalen]
At
1748 the
destroyers ARDENT and ACASTA were detached
to refuel at Harstad.
At
1825 ARK
ROYAL flew off the Walrus to return to
Narvik.
3rd
At
0730 GLORIOUS and HIGHLANDER were detached
to the northwest, to conserve fuel
until required for embarking shore based
aircraft.
[During
ARK
ROYAL's last operations off Norway it had
become obvious that the weather on
shore was often different from the weather
at sea. In order to combat this
problem the Flag Officer Aircraft Carriers
took the decision that before
fighter patrols were despatched a
Swordfish would be flown off to ascertain
weather conditions over the patrol area]
At
1002 The
Flag Officer Narvik signalled; operation
ALPHABET is to start tonight, Monday,
without further orders.
[Destroyers
were to evacuate the troops then ferry
the troops to troopships that would be
assembled in Ersfjorden, position
69-42N, 18-17E or if the weather was
suitable at sea. The Flag Officer Narvik
had the following destroyers at his
disposal HAVELOCK, BEAGLE, CAMPBELL,
DELIGHT, ECHO, FIREDRAKE, FAME, ARROW,
WALKER, VANOC and VETERAN]
At
1600 ARK
ROYAL was in position 71N, 12-56E and flew
off two Swordfish 4K & 4C of 820
Sqd for an ADA patrol. Searching
sector, 130‘ to 180‘.
At
1700 the
ACASTA and ARDENT rejoined from
refuelling. Following which DIANA and
ACHERON
were detached to Harstad to refuel.
At
1700
Deck landing practice for new pilots
carried out.
At
1835 ARK
ROYAL flew off two Swordfish 2P & 2Q
of 810 Sqd for an ADA patrol.
Searching sector 130‘ to 180‘
At
2050 ARK
ROYAL flew off two Swordfish 4A & 4B
of 820 Sqd, 4B for an ADA patrol,
searching sector 130‘ to 230‘, and 4A for
a weather reconnaissance over Narvik.
[The
weather
report indicated low cloud and conditions
generally unsuited for bombing. It
was therefore decided to postpone
bombing attacks by Swordfish which were to
have been delivered on Hundalen from
0130/4 onwards]
At
2230 ARK
ROYAL flew off two Skuas 6B & 6C of
800 Sqd for a fighter patrol over the
troop transports. Aircraft 6C returned
soon after taking off with undercarriage
jammed in the down position.
At
2337 ARK
ROYAL flew off two Swordfish 4G & 4H
of 820 Sqd, 4G for an ADA patrol,
searching sector 130‘ to 230‘, and 4H for
a weather reconnaissance over Narvik.
4th
At
0001 ARK ROYAL was in position 70-22N,
16-00E; weather O; wind west force 3;
sea state 34.
[Fighter
patrols
were continued throughout the night,
morning, and forenoon in
accordance with the Flag Officer, Narvik's
signal timed 1959 of 1st
June. Cloud conditions remained unsuitable
for bombing]
At
0035 ARK
ROYAL flew off two Skuas 6G & 6H of
800 Sqd for a fighter patrol over the
troopships at position C.
[At
0035although
the latest weather reports were still
unfavourable, however it was
decided that further fighter patrols must
leave the ship and attempt to reach
the objectives. The patrol which
took off at 0035 found that the
embarkation of troops at Position 'C' was
about
to commence; a thick layer of cloud at
1000 feet lay above the ships and there
were frequent rainstorms]
[Position
C was Ersfjorden which is located
north of Harstad and about 84NM by sea
from Harstad. The troops were embarked
at Narvik and BodΏ on destroyers and
Norwegian fishing boats and transported
to
Harstad, From Harstad they were taken by
destroyer to Ersfjorden where they
trans-shipped on to the troopships]
At
0245 ARK
ROYAL flew off two Swordfish 2P & 2Q
of 810 Sqd, 2P for an ADA patrol,
searching sector, 130‘ to 230‘, and 2Q for
a weather reconnaissance over
Narvik.
[The
weather report from
2Q indicated low cloud
and poor visibility for the whole of the
Narvik area, and in particular Rombaksfjord]
At
0345 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 6P, 6Q & 6R
of 800 Sqd for a fighter patrol over
the troopships at position C.
At
0550 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 8F, 8G & 8H
of 803 Sqd for a fighter patrol over
Reisen Fjord; this patrol reported
that there was no sign of activity in or
near the fjord.
At
0550
ARK ROYAL flew off two Swordfish 4C
& 4L of 820 Sqd, 4C for an ADA patrol,
searching sector 130‘ to 230‘, and 4L
for a weather reconnaissance over Narvik.
[In
late May the German high command became
concerned about the situation in
Northern Norway, particularly at Narvik.
On 25/5/40 the Seekriegsleitung, German Naval High Command, SKL, informed German
Army Group XXI in Oslo that they were
going to undertake an operation against
Allied naval operations off Northern
Norway.
The
purpose of the operation was to
interrupt
Allied re-supply convoys and to relieve
the pressure on German troops fighting
around Narvik. The operation was
to be called Operation JUNO.
On 1/6/40 Army Group XXI signalled their
requirements to SKL; these were the
destruction of all transports and small
vessels in the Narvik, Namsos and BodΏ
areas also any target in Narvik except
the hospital.
At
0800/4/6/40
the German battlecruisers GNEISENAU
(
flag Admiral Marschall),
SCHARNHORST, heavy cruiser ADMIRAL
HIPPER, with destroyers HERMAN
SCHOEMANN, KARL GALSTER, ERICH
STEINBRINCK and
HANS LODY sailed from Kiel on Operation
JUNO.
At
Bletchley
Park Harry Hinsley had been studying
German W/T traffic and had
reached the conclusion that heavy German
units were at sea. Hinsley contacted
the OIC at the Admiralty that analysis
of wireless intercepts indicated that
German heavy units had left the Baltic
and might be moving north into the
Norwegian Sea. However because Hinsley's
work was tentative and could not be
confirmed from other intelligence, the
OIC decided to take no action. Therefore
the Admiralty did not pass this
information on to the fleet or RAF
Coastal
Command]
At
0645 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 6K & 6L of
800 Sqd and 8M of 803 Sqd for a
fighter patrol over the troopships at
position C. This patrol
reported
that the
embarkation appeared to be proceeding
smoothly.
At
0750 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 8K, 8L & 8M
of 803 Sqd for a fighter patrol over
Reisen Fjord; this patrol reported
that a ship was loading at pier in
Reisen Fjord.
At
0850
ARK ROYAL flew off two Swordfish 4H
& 4G of 820 Sqd, 4H for an ADA patrol,
searching sector 130‘ to 230‘, and 4G
for a weather reconnaissance over Narvik.
At
1005 ARK
ROYAL flew off two Skuas 8P & 8Q of
803 Sqd for a fighter patrol over the
troopships.
At
1115 ARK
ROYAL flew off two Skuas 6A & 6B of
800 Sqd for a
reconnaissance
of the road
between
SΏrfold and Drag, and of the area near
Korsnes.
[This
patrol found that the clouds were low and
the
SΏrfold-Drag road could not be investigated. Aircraft 6B, pilot PO
H.A. Monk, dropped one 250 lb GP bomb on
the jetty at SΏrfold.
A small vessel flying the Norwegian flag
was seen in
Sorfolla, this is believed to have been a British
ship disguised]
At
1145
ARK ROYAL flew off three Skuas 6F,
6G & 6H of 800 Sqd for a fighter
patrol over the troopships at position C.
At
1200 ARK
ROYAL was in position 70-08N, 16-31E. At
this time the destroyers DIANA and
ACHERON rejoined from Harstad.
[At
1430
the 1145 patrol
reported transports
leaving the fjord.
The troop
transports, GEORGIC 27759grt, MONARCH OF
BERMUDA 22424grt and LANCASTRIA
16243grt, with 4700 troops embarked,
escorted by the destroyer ARROW and
sloop
STORK, sailed from
Ersfjorden at 1425/4/6/40
and steered for rendezvous B. At the RV
they were to await the other three
transports of Group 1 before proceeding
to the UK]
At
1515
ARK ROYAL flew off two Swordfish 2P
& 2Q of 810 Sqd, 2Q for an ADA patrol,
searching sector, 130‘ to 230‘, and 2P
for a weather reconnaissance.
[By
1515/4
the weather inshore was now bad and
the visibility near ARK ROYAL was
poor.
Aircraft 2P was sent inshore to see if
there were any signs of
improvement; this aircraft reported
conditions unsuitable for flying and
operations were temporarily suspended.
None of ARK ROYAL's aircraft had so far
sighted any enemy]
At
2200 ARK
ROYAL flew off Swordfish 4F of 820 Sqd to
carry out an A/S over a convoy which
had left Harstad at 2200/4.
[The
convoy was Convoy Greek, consisting of
the
British merchant ships MV HERON 2374grt,
SS MARINA 5088grt and SS BALTEAKO
1328grt and the French merchant
ships SS ENSEIGNE MAURICE PRECHAC
4578grt, SS VULCAIN 4362grt and MV PAUL
EMILE
JAVARY 2471grt, escorted by the
anti-submarine trawlers ST ELSTAN and
WASTWATER
The SS BALTEAKO whilst at Harstad had been
subjected to frequent bombing attacks
that had culminated on 20/5/40 in a
number of bombs near missing her. Her
whole superstructure amidships was
damaged and distorted, and she was holed
near the waterline in 36 places. Her
master, Captain Francis Butcher, beached
her, the destroyer DELIGHT was
alongside at the time and assisted in
the beaching. Later the chief engineer
Robert
Towns,
plugged the holes. As she was lying at a
steep
angle she was moved to a more level
beach and more lasting repairs were
made.
Finally, with the assistance of one of
H.M.'s trawlers, she was refloated and
joined Convoy Greek]
At
2330 ARK
ROYAL sighted the anti-aircraft cruiser
COVENTRY (Flag Rear Admiral Anti-Aircraft
Ships).
At
2350 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 7A, 7B & 7C
of 803 Sqd for a fighter patrol over
troopships that were loading troops and
stores in RisΏy Sound. (RisΏy Sound is
off Andfjorden located between the Island
of GrytΏya and the LyngΏyan Islands)
[The
troopships were the SS
MONARCH OF
BERMUDA 22575grt and the Polish ships MV
BATORY 14287grt and MV SOBIESKI
11030grt. There vessels didn't arrive at
the anchorage until 0551/5]
At
2350 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Swordfish 2B, 2C
& 2F of 810 Sqd, 2B for an ADA
patrol, searching sector, 130‘ to 230‘, 2F
for a weather reconnaissance over
Narvik and 2C for an A/S patrol over
Convoy Greek.
5th
At
0320 ARK ROYAL flew off Swordfish 4B of
820 Sqd for an A/S patrol over Convoy
Greek.
At
0325 ARK
ROYAL recovered Skuas 7A, 7B & 7C.
Rain
and low cloud on the coast now made the
weather too bad for flying
to be continued; operations were therefore
temporarily suspended.
[At
0400 the
COVENTRY who was in
Andfjorden reported
weather as wind southwest force 3, rain,
slight swell, cloud 10/10ths at 1000
feet]
At
0540 ARK ROYAL
flew off Swordfish 4G of 820
Sqd for an A/S patrol over Convoy Greek.
At
0715 ARK
ROYAL was in position 70-26N, 15-57E. At
this time she landed on a Walrus who
was carrying despatches from Harstad. At
the same time ARK ROYAL ran into fog.
At
0727
Flag Officer Anti-Aircraft Ships in
COVENTRY made the following signal to Flag
Officer Aircraft Carriers, 'no fighters
over RisΏy Sound yet'.
At
0835 ARK
ROYAL flew off the Walrus to return to
Harstad.
At
0910
Flag Officer Aircraft Carriers replied to
Flag Officer Anti-Aircraft Ships 0727/5
with the following signal.
'Your 0727
last patrol left RisΏy at 0300. Conditions since
then unsuitable.
Report
cloud
conditions at RisΏy every hour'.
[At
1254/5 the troop transports
MONARCH OF
BERMUDA, BATORY and SOBIESKI having
competed loading and with 4900 troops
embarked sailed from RisΏy
Sound
escorted by the COVENTRY and steered for
the ocean RV with the troop transports
GEORGIC and LANCASTIA.
At 2000/5 the
COVERNTRY, MONARCH OF BERMUDA, BATORY
and SOBIESKI were in position 69-31N,
14-05E.
At 2015/5
the MONARCH OF BERMUDA, BATORY and
SOBIESKI detached to wait at the ocean
RV.
At 2118/
COVENTRY closed the repair ship
VINDICTIVE,
(VINDICTIVE had sailed from Scapa
at 2116/1) GEORGIC and
FRANCONIA. The
four vessels then steered for
Andfjorden and
RisΏy Sound]
At
1420 ARK
ROYAL with the destroyers ACASTA, ARDENT,
DIANA and ACHERON in company, was in
position 70-38N, 15-50E, in which position
she RVed with GLORIOUS and
HIGHLANDER
At
1430
HIGHLANDER detached to refuel at Harstad.
At
1930 there
was a slight improvement in the weather.
At
1935 ARK
ROYAL was in position
70-15N,
16-20E and she flew off two Swordfish 2B
& 2P of 810
Sqd, 2P for an
ADA patrol and 2B for a weather
reconnaissance over Narvik. 2B reported
low
visibility inshore.
At
2047 ARK ROYAL flew off a Swordfish of 810
Sqd to relieve 2P on
the ADA patrol.
[At
2231/5 the
Flag Officer Anti-Aircraft Ships Informed
ships and authorities concerned that
RisΏy
Sound was to be the rendezvous for
tomorrow, Thursday, 6th June 1940,
embarkation of troops]
At
2305 ARK ROYAL flew off two Swordfish 2C
& 2H
of 810
Sqd, 2H for an ADA patrol and 2C for a
weather reconnaissance over Narvik.
At
2330 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 6P, 6Q & 6R
of 800 Sqd for a fighter patrol over
the troopships that were loading troops
and stores in RisΏy Sound.
The
weather was still bad inshore and the
fighters reported
that the transports had not yet arrived in
position for embarkation.
[GLORIOUS
who
was in company was
waiting
for the weather to clear in order to
land on the Gladiators of 263 Sqd RAF
and
the Hurricanes of 46 Sqd RAF from
Bardufoss and return them to the UK]
6th
At
0200 ARK ROYAL flew off three Skuas 6A, 6B
& 6C of 800 Sqd for a fighter
patrol over the troopships that were
loading troops and stores in RisΏy Sound.
The patrol reported on their return that
the transports had not arrived by the
time they left the area.
[Late
on 5/6/40 the Allied ground forces that
were pursuing the retreating German
forces along the railway line towards
Sweden requested an aerial bombing
attack on German headquarters at
Hundalen.
Swordfish of 823 Sqd, embarked on
GLORIOUS were tasked with this attack
and a
Swordfish of 810 Sqd was tasked to lead
them to their target]
At
0200 ARK
ROYAL flew off Swordfish 2A of 810 Sqd to
lead the four Swordfish of 823 Sqd,
each armed with
with four 250 lb GP
bombs, four Cooper bombs, and four
incendiary bombs. Their orders were to
attack
Hundalen.
At
0200 ARK ROYAL flew off two Swordfish 4C
& 4L
of 820
Sqd, 4C for
an ADA
patrol and 4L for a weather reconnaissance
over Narvik.
At
0230 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 6A, 6B & 6C
of 800 Sqd, Their
orders
were to attack suitable targets and
protect
the
Hundalen strike force.
[The Hundalen strike force
encountered a thick layer of low cloud
and generally poor visibility this made it
impossible to these aircraft to
reach an objective, and the bombs were
jettisoned in the sea.
Low cloud also prevented the
fighter covering force carrying out their
mission. Bombers and fighters
jettisoned their bombs in the sea, before
returning at 0530/6]
At
0315 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Swordfish 2K, 2L
& 2M of 810 Sqd for a reconnaissance
in sector 220‘ to 270‘ to a depth of 125
miles. This search was because it was
considered possible from intercepted
messages that an enemy surface force might
be in the vicinity.
Clearing searches such
as these were to be made at intervals
until the probability of surprise by
enemy surface vessels no longer existed.
At
0430 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 7P, 7Q & 7R
of 803 Sqd for a fighter patrol over
the troopships that were loading troops
and stores in RisΏy Sound.
[At
0450/6, (two hours late) the VINDICTIVE,
GEORGIC and FRANCONIA arrived in RisΏy
Sound. They immediately commenced
embarking troops. The COVENTRY remained
in Andfjorden]
At
0530 ARK
ROYAL flew off two Swordfish 4F & 4H
of 820 Sqd for an ADA patrol.
At
0645 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 7F, 7G & 7C
of 803 Sqd for a fighter patrol over
the troopships that were loading troops
and stores in RisΏy Sound.
At
0645 ARK
ROYAL flew off two Skuas 6K & 6L of
800 Sqd for a fighter patrol over
Sagfjorden. The patrol reported that
one destroyer
had loaded and left the fjord.
At
0900 ARK
ROYAL was in position 70-03N, 16E when she
flew off three Swordfish 2F, 2Q
& 2R of 810 Sqd for a reconnaissance
in sector 220‘ to 270‘ to a depth of
150 miles. The objective was to search for
enemy ships in the direction from
which they would be most likely to
approach. Nothing was sighted except
for an Allied Convoy.
At
1015 the
destroyer HIGHLANDER rejoined from
Harstad. Following which GLORIOUS and
HIGHLANDER detached to the Northwest to
conserve fuel until required for
embarking aircraft during pm 7th
June.
At
1030 the
destroyers ARDENT and ACASTA were detached
to Harstad to refuel.
[At
1100/6 the troopships GEORGIC and
FRANCONIA with VINDICTIVE (VINDICTIVE
had embarked the RAF ground crews of 46
and 263 Sqds) having completed with
troops sailed for the ocean RV, escorted
by
the destroyers HAVELOCK,
ECHO and WALKER,
to join the other troopships of Group 1]
At
1200 ARK
ROYAL was in position 70-15N, 16-56E.
Weather
BC,
wind W by S force 4; sea state 33.
[The
weather was reported as bad at
Rombaksfjord,
but suitable for bombing
at Drag. The decision was made to make a
reconnaissance of the Drag and Sorfold
areas
and to bomb any suitable
targets]
At
1210 ARK ROYAL flew off two
Skuas
7A & 7B of 803 Sqd,
each armed with a 250lb GP bomb
to make a reconnaissance of the Drag and
SΏrfold areas, and to bomb any suitable targets.
[Aircraft
7A,
pilot, Lt. Cdr. J Casson,
bombed the runway of the landing ground
behind
Boda.
Aircraft 7B, pilot, Sub Lt GW
Brokensha,
found
German troops
at
Finneid,
near
Fauske, in Sorfolla;
two platoons of
troops appeared to be using the hotel as
their Headquarters and several army
vehicles were seen on the road leading
north from Finneid. The aircraft dropped a
bomb on the hotel and missed by ten yards.
When ARK ROYAL received 7B's report
of German troops; the decision was taken
to carry out a strike mission as soon
as possible]
At
1210 ARK ROYAL flew off three
Skuas
6B, 6C & 6L of 800
Sqd
for a fighter patrol
over the troopships that
were loading troops and stores in RisΏy
Sound.
At
1210 ARK
ROYAL flew off two Swordfish 2B & 2H
of 810 Sqd, 2H for an ADA patrol and
2B for a weather reconnaissance over
Narvik.
At
1535 the
last fighter patrol returned and patrols
ceased until later in the day.
At
1710 ARK ROYAL flew off Swordfish 4C of
820 Sqd for a
weather reconnaissance over Narvik.
[The
purpose
of this mission was to ascertain whether a
dive bombing attack could be
carried out on the railway stations at
Sildvik and Hundalen where the German
headquarters were reported to be. The
French Military Headquarters had asked for
these objectives to be attacked and ARK
ROYAL was particularly desirous to meet
their demands. Aircraft 4C reported
that the clouds had lifted in Rombaksfjord
and that attacks could now be
expected to have a good chance of success]
At
1715 ARK
ROYAL flew off a strike force of six Skuas
7K, 7L, 7M, 7P (L2984), 7Q (L2955)
& 7R (L2956) of 803 Sqd. Each aircraft
was armed with one 250 lb GP bomb,
four 20 lb Cooper bombs and four
incendiary bombs. Yellow section
comprising 7K,
7L & 7M and red section comprised 7P,
7Q & 7R. Their mission was to
bomb the German troops at Finneid, near
Fauske. Because ARK ROYAL was so far from
the
objective at this time the Swordfish could
not have covered the distance and
retuned with safety.
[Report
on the attack by yellow section. We
proceeded to our objective via Andenes
Point, Korsnes, Drag, Musken, SΏrfjordmo,
Sorfold, and Djupvik. An extensive
reconnaissance of all roads was made at
1000
ft. for troop movements. The
weather deteriorated towards the south and
at Fauske. The cloud ceiling was
between 1500 and 2000 ft.
Fire
was opened by the enemy as we approached
and no
troops were visible at any point in the
town. From this it can be assumed
that warning of our approach had
been given to the enemy sometime before
our arrival.
Yellow
section was the first to attack. The
first objective was a hotel,
believed to be the enemy HQ, near a large
warehouse at the S.E. of the
town. The attack was made at 1845
with 250 lb bombs diving from 1800 to 1000
ft. However, owing to the low
ceiling, accurate dive bombing was
impossible and no hits were observed on
the hotel.
The
bombs were observed to fall as follows:
Yellow
1, 7K, 30 yards from hotel, between
it and the warehouse.
Yellow
2, 7L, on the road south of the
warehouse about 100 yards from the
hotel.
Yellow
3, 7M, 20 yards south of the
warehouse.
An
attack was then made on the warehouse with
incendiary bombs dropped in sticks of
four. One fire was observed, but
lasted only a short time.
Aircraft
then attacked independent objectives as
follows, with 20 lb bombs:
Yellow
1, attacked a row of houses to the right
of
the main pier from which intensive flak
and machine gun fire was coming. A
stick of four 20 lb bombs was dropped
and direct hits were observed. It
is estimated that three or four machine
gun and Flak posts were destroyed.
Yellow
2, attacked the main pier. A stick
of four 20 lb bombs was dropped
just north of the pier damaging houses
were troops had been previously
reported.
Yellow
3, chose the same objective as Yellow 2
and
scored one direct hit on the pier.
The remaining three fell in the sea.
On
completion of this attack, Red Section
began
theirs. In the meantime yellow
section
made an extensive reconnaissance of the
area to the north of the town. No
troops were seen]
[Report
on the attack by Red Section. Followed
Yellow Section to the objective. On
arrival at Fauske, we separated from
Yellow
Section and proceeded to the west to await
completion of Yellow's attack.
At
1840, 7P led the Red Section on an attack
on the
warehouse and hotel at Fauske. Owing to
extremely bad visibility and clouds at
1200 feet accurate bombing was difficult.
Attack
by Red 1, 7P, one 250 lb bomb miss in
water
alongside warehouse, 4 x 20 lb bombs in
grounds of wireless station, 4 x
Incendiary bombs caused a fire alongside
the wireless station.
Attack
by Red 2, 7Q, one 250 lb bomb in grounds
of
the warehouse, 4 x 20 lb bombs in grounds
of the warehouse, 4 x Incendiary
bombs caused fire near wireless station.
Attack
by Red 3, 7R, one 250 lb bomb close to
hotel,
4 x 20 lb bombs on road near hotel, 4 x
Incendiary bombs caused a fire among
cars outside hotel.
Red
1 and Red 2 were hit in several places by
small
calibre AA fire (.303 probably).
This appeared to come from the shrubbery
of the wireless station, the
unit was made to stop firing, and probably
put out of action by the 20 lb bombs
and extensive low altitude front gun
attack. On completion of the attacks, at
1900, Red Section left the target and
proceeded up the road leading north from
Fauske. Military Lorries on this
road were attacked closely with the
remainder of our front gun
ammunition. They were obviously hit.
The Lorries
had drawn up under the trees and the
personnel had taken shelter in a
wood.
We
arrived back on ARK ROYAL at 2015]
[At
1813 in
position 70-06N, 11-56E, the COVENTRY
(Flag
Rear Admiral Anti-Aircraft Ships) RVed
with
the troopships of Group II, comprising
ORAMA 19840grt, ORONSAY 20,043grt,
ORMONDE 14,982grt, ARANDORA STAR
15,501grt, DUCHESS OF YORK 20,021grt,
ROYAL
ULSTERMAN 3244grt, ULSTER PRINCE 3791grt
and ULSTER MONARCH 3791grt and the
Armed boarding vessel VANDYCK.
The ORAMA, ARANDORA STAR, DUCHESS OF YORK and
VANDYCK were ordered to remain at sea.
The ORAMA reported that she was short of fuel
oil and water, so after consultation
with FO
Narvik, FO AA Ships ordered ORAMA to return to the
UK.
The remaining
troopships then proceeded under escort
to RisΏy Sound]
At
2105 ARK
ROYAL flew off six Swordfish, 2K, 2L, 2M,
2F, 2G & 2Q of 810 Sqd. Each
aircraft was armed with four x 250 lb GP
bombs, four 20 lb Cooper bombs and
four incendiary bombs. The first
sub-flight comprising 2K, 2L & 2M were
tasked to strike at Hundalen and the
second sub-flight comprising 2F, 2G &
2Q were tasked to strike at Sildvik.
[Report
on
the attack on Hundalen. The sub flight
proceeded to Hundalen in very good
weather conditions. The Objective
was sighted at 2210 and approached from a
height of 4500 ft. A group of four
Bofors guns immediately
opened fire. These guns were well
concealed in some scrub, about 400 yards
north of the village of Hundalen and
could only be located by the gun
flashes.
Flak fire was observed coming from
positions on the hill side. The
target was buildings at
Hundalen. The approach was in line
astern on a southerly course at a height
of 4500 ft. Continuous fire was
experienced from a group of four Bofors
guns, and a number of MG.s.
2K
dropped
a number of bombs on a group of small
buildings and a large fire was started,
which appeared to be spreading
satisfactorily when the sub flight
returned.
2M
scored a
direct hit on a large white building
several stories high, with a number of
windows and was possibly a residential
building of some nature. Further
bombs were dropped amongst
smaller buildings. Two of the 250 lb bombs
on 2L hung in the racks, but near
misses were obtained with the remaining
bombs on the tunnel mouth and on some
corrugate iron roofing over the railway
line.
2M
was hard
hit by flak causing considerable damage to
the tail unit, and severing one
control wire, but the aircraft remained
airworthy. The sub flight returned to
the ship at 2400]
[Report
on
the attack on Sildvik. Sildvik was
approached from North West in line astern
at
6500 feet.
2F
made an
approach dive to 4000 feet in the same
direction then to 2500 feet and
released, made away to the East, and
climbed to 4000 feet. The second attack by
2F was made from eastward along the
railway line. A hit was made on the
junction
of railway lines. No AA fire was
experienced during the attack.
2Q
followed
2F after one minute making one attack from
the North West on Sildvik and
thereafter machine gunning huts in the
vicinity. 2G dived in the same
direction scoring one hit about 5 yards
from the track and fired a building]
[At
2200 the
ORANSAY,
ORMONDE, ULSTER PRINCE, and ULSTER
MONARCH arrived in RisΏy
Sound.
The DUCHESS OF YORK remained in
Andfjorden and the
ROYAL
ULSTERMAN went to
Harstad]
At
2330 ARK
ROYAL was in position 70-14N, 16-14E.
Weather
bc, wind
SE force 3, sea state 22
At
2330 ARK
ROYAL flew off six Skuas 7A, 7B, 7C, 7F,
7G & 7K of 803 Sqd for a fighter
patrol over Reisen and RisΏy Sound to protect the embarkation of troops.
At
2330 ARK ROYAL flew off three
Swordfish 4F, 4H & 4L of 820 Sqd for
search
between the bearings
220‘
and
270‘
to a
depth of 140 miles, with the object of
clearing the bearing upon which enemy
surface craft were most likely to
approach. Only a Norwegian gunboat
and a small loaded tanker were
seen.
At
2330 ARK ROYAL flew off Swordfish
4K of 820 Sqd for
reconnaissance over Drag and the road
leading there from the
south. No enemy forces were
sighted and two 250 lb GP bombs were
dropped near the bridge on the road ten
miles to the southwest of Drag.
7th At 0035
ARDENT
and ACASTA rejoined from refueling at
Harstad. Following which DIANA
and ACHERON detached to Harstad
to refuel.
At
0200
ARK ROYAL flew off two Skuas 6K & 6L
of 800 Sqd for a
fighter patrol over the troopships that
were loading troops and stores in RisΏy
Sound.
At
0200 ARK
ROYAL flew off Swordfish 2C of 810 Sqd for
an ADA patrol.
At
0435 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 6A, 6B & 6C
of 800 Sqd for a fighter patrol over
the troopships that were loading troops
and stores in RisΏy Sound. This patrol
reported
no enemy aircraft in sight and loading of
transports proceeding satisfactorily.
At
0445 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Swordfish 4A, 4B
& 4C of 820 Sqd each armed with 4 x
250 lb GP bombs, 4 x 20 lb Cooper bombs
and 4 x 25 lb incendiary bombs. Their
mission was to attack enemy positions and
the Flak and Bofors positions reported
and located at Hundalen by aircraft of the
previous day's night raid.
[This
is
the report of the attack on Hundalen by a
sub-flight of 820 Sqd. On approaching
the land, the section climbed to 7000 feet
above a scattered layer of thin
Stratocumulus
cloud and conditions appeared ideal for
bombing. However, the cloud layer
became denser and more extensive as
the objective was approached, and when
within 20 miles the section was forced
to come below the clouds.
Rombaksfjord
was entered in the base of the clouds at
1500 feet with clouds down on the
hills on either side. Breaks in
the cloud were observed at the head of the
fiord and it was decided to press on
in the hopes of getting through to
Hundalen. AA fire was encountered
from a Bofors gun when passing
Sildvik. On reaching the head of
the Rombaksfjord, it was found that
Hundalen could not be reached and it was
decided to attack enemy positions in
Sildvik.
Attacks
were
made on Sildvik, dives being started from
inside the cloud at a height of
3500 feet and bombs released about 1000
feet. 12 x 250lb GP, 12 x 20 lb, and 12
incendiary bombs were dropped.
Attacks
were
continued for about 10 minutes.
Direct
hits
with 250 lb GP bombs were obtained on two
buildings and a fire started. Four x
250 lb GP bombs fell on the
railway lines. A machine gun was
silenced by Cooper bombs.
Fire
was
encountered from what was probably a
Bofors gun which appeared to be located in
the mouth of the tunnel and was possibly
mounted on a railway truck, also from
an Oerlikon, or similar guns, and machine
guns.
No
hits
were obtained by the enemy on our
aircraft]
At
0445
ARK ROYAL flew off Swordfish 2A of 810 Sqd
to report on the weather at
Drag and Vestfjord as it was the
intention to send further bombing forces
to Fauske if bombing conditions were
good.
At
0540
ARK ROYAL flew off two Swordfish 2B &
2N of 810 Sqd for an
ADA patrol.
At
0800 ARK
ROYAL was in position 70-09N, 16-55E.
Weather bc,
wind, light airs, sea state 02.
At
0800 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 6F, 6G & 6H
of 800 Sqd for a fighter patrol over
the troopships that were loading troops
and stores in RisΏy Sound. The patrol
reported five destroyers hunting a
submarine in Andfjorden; three destroyers
loading transports at RisΏy; weather
conditions unsuitable for enemy bombers.
At
0800 ARK
ROYAL flew off Swordfish 2P of 810 Sqd to
report on the weather on the Drag
area.
At
0900
ARK ROYAL flew off two Swordfish 2L &
2R of 810 Sqd. 2L was to carry
out an ADA patrol and 2R was to fly to
Bardufoss airfield to communicate with the
R.A.F.
At
0930
ARK ROYAL flew off three Skuas 6P, 6Q
& 6R of 800 Sqd for a
fighter patrol over the troopships that
were loading troops and stores in RisΏy
Sound.
[At
0650/7 the ROYAL ULSTERMAN joined the
transports in RisΏy Sound.
At 1052/7 the embarkation of troops and the
ORANSAY,
ORMONDE, DUCHESS
OF
YORK and ROYAL
ULSTERMAN escorted by the COVENTRY and
the destroyers HAVELOCK,
ARROW and WALKER sailed for the Ocean
RV. The ULSTER PRINCE and ULSTER MONARCH
sailed for
Harstad escorted
by the destroyers DELIGHT, BEAGLE, and
CAMPBELL.
During the
7th about 5200 troops were embarked.
The
0930 fighter patrol reported the movements
of
the ULSTER PRINCE and ULSTER MONARCH]
At
1205 ARK ROYAL flew off Swordfish 4K of
820
Sqd
for an ADA patrol.
[At
1314/7 the
COVENTRY reported that the convoy was
being shadowed by a FW 200 Condor, which
at 1315/7 she opened fire on, without
apparent success]
At
1330 in position 71-11N, 15-25E, GLORIOUS
and
HIGHLANDER rejoined the Flag from the
Northwest.
At
1355 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 7K, 7L & 7M
of 803 Sqd to attack enemy aircraft
which had been reported in
position 310 degrees 20
miles from Andenes point. This was
probably the FW 220 Condor sighted by
COVENTRY. No enemy aircraft were sighted
by
this patrol.
[At
1430
GLORIOUS flew off four Swordfish to
Bardufoss
for navigating fighter aircraft back to
carrier]
At
1550 DIANA and ACHERON rejoined from
Harstad.
At 1615 ARK ROYAL flew off Swordfish 2K of 810
Sqd to Bardufoss aerodrome with the orders
for embarkation of Hurricane,
Walrus, and Gladiator aircraft in the
Carrier Squadron on Saturday, 8th
June.
[At
1925 the
GNEISENAU
[flag
Admiral Wilhelm Marschall], SCHARNHORST,
heavy cruiser ADMIRAL HIPPER, with
destroyers HERMAN SCHOEMANN, KARL
GALSTER, ERICH STEINBRINCK and HANS LODY
on
Operation JUNO RVed with the fleet
supply ship DITHMARSCHEN in approximate
position 67-52N, 2W and refuelling of
the HIPPER and the destroyers commenced.
Whilst
refueling Admiral
Marschall received a reconnaissance
report of a seven ship convoy on a south
westerly course,
whose course and speed would put it
about 110 NM south east of his current
position.
(This
was the Group 1 troopship convoy
comprising
the MONARCH OF BERMUDA, BATORY,
SOBIESKI, FRANCONIA, LANCASTRIA and
GEORGIC
escorted by the VINDICTIVE)
Admiral Marschall,
who was unaware that the Allies had
commenced the evacuation of Norway, was
undecided what to do about the convoy
believing it to be of empty ships. So at
2030 Marschall called a captains'
conference on board
the
GNEISENAU. Just as the conference was ending Marschall received a signal
informing him that only one warship
remained at Harstad. From this he
deduced
that the evacuation had begun so he
could profitably attack south bound
shipping.
At
2215 the captains' conference
ended and at 2300 the Force got under
way. The ships set off due south in line
abreast 10 miles apart]
[At
1930
GLORIOUS landed on three Hurricanes of
46 Sqd RAF as a trial to test the
feasibility of landing Hurricanes
without arrester hooks on a
carrier. The aircraft landed on
very
successfully, and it was decided to
embark the remainder in GLORIOUS a.m.,
tomorrow, Saturday]
At
2000 hours ARK ROYAL landed on five Walrus
of 701
Squadron from
Harstad.
[At
2000 the
Heavy cruiser DEVONSHIRE (Flag Vice Admiral
Cunningham, FO 1st Cruiser Squadron)
departed Tromso for the Clyde with the
King of Norway, his government and
allied legations embarked]
[At
2035
GLORIOUS flew off a Swordfish of 823
Sqd to
Bardufoss with
instructions for landing on remaining
RAF fighters]
At
2305 ARK
ROYAL flew off nine Skuas 6A, 6B, 6C, 6F,
6G, 6H, 6K, 6L & 6M of 800 Sqd
for fighter patrols over Narvik, Sknland,
and Bardufoss, each patrol being
charged with the protection of evacuating
allied troops from air attack.
[The
patrols
reported that Norwegian fishing boats were
ferrying men and stores, to
three destroyers off Narvik, and that the
R.A.F. were striking camp at
Bardufoss. The patrol which went
to Sknland was fired on by Allied
demolition parties. A large convoy of 15
ships was seen to be assembling off
Andenes Point]
At
2305 ARK
ROYAL flew off two Swordfish 2F & 2M
of 810 Sqd for an ADA patrol.
At
2310 ARK
ROYAL sighted the COVENTRY.
[At
around midnight the cruiser SOUTHAMPTON
(Flag Flag Officer Narvik) embarked the
last Allied troops from Narvik. These
were the rear guard, troops of 13th
Foreign Legion Demi-Brigade. SOUTHAMPTON
then sailed for Harstad]
8th
At
0100 ARK ROYAL was in position 70-05N,
15-53E Weather ocp, wind WNW, sea state
32.
In company were the GLORIOUS and
destroyers ARDENT, ACASTA,
DIANA,
ACHERON and HIGHLANDER.
At
0100 ARK ROYAL flew off two
Skuas
7A & 7P of 803 Sqd
for a fighter patrol over Narvik.
The
patrol
reported that destroyers were bombarding
the piers.
[By
0115 GLORIOUS had landed on ten
Gladiators of 263 Sqd RAF, (the
first
Gladiator had taken off just after 2300/7)
followed by seven Hurricanes of 46 Sqd
RAF, all from Bardufoss, and one
Walrus of 701 Sqd FAA, ferrying Group
Captain Wood, RAF from Harstad. All
landings were completely
successful.
GLORIOUS then landed on the Swordfish of
823 Sqd that had acted as navigating
aircraft]
At
0130 ARK
ROYAL flew off four Skuas 7F, 7G, 7Q &
7R of 803 Sqd, 7F & 7G for a
fighter patrol over Reisafjorden (RAF
ground crew were being evacuated through
SΏrreisa and taken in fishing boats to
Harstad) and Bardufoss aerodrome and
7Q & 7R for a fighter patrol
over RisΏy Sound.
At
0130 ARK
ROYAL flew off two Swordfish 2G & 2Q
of 810 Sqd for an ADA patrol.
At
0207 ARK
ROYAL landed on Walrus 5A of 701 Sqd,
pilot Lt
M
B
Francklin from GLORIOUS. (This was
to be the last aircraft to take off from
GLORIOUS)
At
0300 ARK
ROYAL flew off six Skuas 6P, 6Q & 6R
of 800 Sqd and 7K, 7L & 7M of 803
Sqd, 7K, 7L & 7M for a fighter patrol
over Reisafjorden and Bardufoss
aerodrome and 6P, 6Q & 6R for a
fighter patrol over RisΏy Sound.
[At
0300 in position 70-17N, 14-10E,
GLORIOUS, ARDENT and ACASTA detached for
Scapa. They were routed through the
following positions, speed of advance 16
knots, 69-30N, 06-40E, 66-00N, 02-00W
& 63-00N, 04-30W.
The Flag Officer Aircraft Carriers agreed to
the CO of GLORIOUS, Captain,
D'Oyly-Hughes RN, request for GLORIOUS
to proceed
independently to Scapa to expedite a
Court Martial]
At
0515 ARK
ROYAL flew off six Skuas 6F, 6G. 6H, 6K,
6L & 6M of 800 Sqd, 6F, 6G &
6H for a fighter patrol over Reisafjorden
and Bardufoss aerodrome and 6K, 6L
& 6M for a fighter patrol over RisΏy
Sound. This patrol reported that
embarkation at Reisafjorden was completed.
[At
about 0530 in position 67-26N, 4-23E,
the
German Force were steaming south in line
abreast when the HIPPER sighted two
ships, these were the tanker MV
OILPIONEER 5666grt escorted by the
trawler
JUNIPER of the 19th Anti-Submarine
Striking Force, they had departed Tromso
on
the 7/6 for the UK. On sighting the
Enemy force JUNIPER hoisted her battle
ensign and turned towards the enemy.
HIPPER took on JUNIPER and amazingly
JUNIPER managed to survive for 90
minutes before being overwhelmed by
HIPPER.
GNEISENAU attacked the OILPIONEER with
her secondary armament setting her
ablaze and the destroyer SCHOEMANN
despatched the tanker with a torpedo.
Neither of the British ships got off an
enemy sighting signal]
At
0805 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 7P, 7Q &7R
of 803 Sqd for a fighter patrol over RisΏy
Sound. The fighters sighted a He 111K (this
was
probably a He 111H of KG 26) when on
patrol and immediately chased
after him, but the Heinkel was able to
take cover in a convenient layer of
thick cloud and escaped after an
indecisive action.
At
0815 ARK
ROYAL flew off two Swordfish 2H & 2P
of 810 Sqd for an ADA patrol.
[At
0900/8/6/40in position 68-02N, 03-36E
the HIPPER
and HANS LODY came upon two ships, the
empty troopship SS ORAMA 19840 grt and
the hospital ship ATLANTIS. The HIPPER
sank the ORAMA but allowed the ATLANTIS
to proceed on her way. In accordance
with the Geneva Convention ATLANTIS
maintained radio silence]
At
1030 ARK
ROYAL flew off two Skuas 7F & 7G of
803 Sqd for an ADA patrol and to look
for a shadower which had been sighted from
the bridge. The shadower disappeared
as the Skuas took
off and was not seen again.
At
1050 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 6A, 6B & 6C
of 800 Sqd for a fighter patrol over
the transports leaving Andfjorden. The
patrol also had orders to search for a
shadower reported by COVENTRY, but no
enemy aircraft were seen.
At
1100 ARK
ROYAL escorted by the destroyers
HIGHLANDER, DIANA, and ACHERON steered to
the
westward to keep to northward of convoys.
At
1330 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 7K, 7L & 7M
of 803 Sqd for a fighter patrol over
the Store ship convoy which had been
bombed by a four engine flying boat. The
patrol reported very low cloud near the
convoy and no enemy aircraft in sight.
[The
convoy was of slow (7knot) auxiliaries
that
had departed Harstad late on the 7th.
The convoy consisted of the RFA SS
OLIGARCH
6897grt, the tanker MV CONCH 8376grt and
the freighters SS BLACKHEATH 4637grt,
SS HARMATTAN 4558grt, SS CROMARTY FIRTH
538grt, SS THESEUS 6527grt, SS ACRITY
403grt and SS COXWOLD 1124grt. At 0300/8
the convoy was off Andenes Point and was
escorted by the anti-submarine trawlers
ST CATHAN and LOCH MONTEITH of the 18th
Anti-submarine Striking Force. At 1300/8
the convoy was in approximate position
69-30N, 13E]
At
1515 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 6P, 6Q & 6R
of 800 Sqd for a fighter patrol over
the troopship convoy.
[At
1005/8 the troopship convoy which was
part of Group II had completed with
troops and had sailed from RisΏy Sound.
(This completed the withdrawal of
Allied
troops from Norway) The convoy
comprised ARANDORA STAR, DUCHESS OF
YORY, ULSTER MONARCH and ULSTER PRINCE
escorted by
COVENTRY (flag Rear Admiral Anti-Aircraft Ships), the
light cruiser SOUTHAMPTON (Flag
of Admiral of the Fleet, Lord Cork and
Orrery, who had delegated command of the
convoy to
Rear
Admiral Anti-Aircraft Ships) and the destroyers HAVELOCK (D 9),
CAMPBELL,
FAME, DELIGHT, BEAGLE, ECHO, FIREDRAKE,
VANOC and VETERAN.
At 1200/8
this convoy was in position 69-32N,
16-08E and steering for an RV with the
other troopships of Group II]
[At
1546 the GNEISENAU and SCHARNHORST (At
1300 HIPPER and the destroyers had been
detached to refuel at Trondheim) were
in
position 69N, 3-10E steering 345‘ speed
19 knots with the flag ship leading,
when a lookout on the SCHARNHORST
sighted smoke bearing 60‘. The Germans
initially identified the vessel sighted
as ARK ROYAL but it was actually the
GLORIOUS escorted by ARDENT and ACASTA
they were steering 205‘ speed 17 knots.
The
German battlecruisers turned on to a
south easterly course and closed to
attack.
At 1600 the battle cruisers were sighted by
GLORIOUS and ARDENT was ordered to close
and identify them.
At
1627 ARDENT was fired on by GNEISENAU
and at
1630 by SCHARNHORST at a range
of about 14600M. ARDENT withdrew, firing
torpedoes, one of which was seen to
pass close ahead of the SCHARNHORST.
Both
destroyers made smoke to screen the
GLORIOUS.
The smoke was effective enough to cause
the Germans to cease fire from
about 1658 to 1720. ARDENT achieved one
hit on SCHARNHORST with her 4.7-inch
guns, but was
extensively damaged by return fire from
the 150mm secondary armament of
the battlecruisers, and sank at about
1725.
At 1630 at a range of 26150M on a bearing 120‘
the battlecruisers opened fire on
GLORIOUS, ARDENT and ACASTA made smoke
and
turned towards the enemy.
At 1652, GNEISENAU picked up GLORIOUS
transmitting the following message on
8.29 MHz addressed to Scapa W/T;
"Two battlecruisers bearing 308‘ 15
miles course 030‘, my position 54-69N,
4‘E'. This signal was not picked up by
any British station or ship.
At about 1730, ACASTER passed ahead of SCHARNHORST
and turned to run down her starboard
side, ACASTER then fired two four-tube
salvos of torpedoes. One torpedo hit
SCHARNHORST below Caesar turret, causing
heavy damage and casualties, and causing
a sharp reduction in speed. ACASTER also
made a hit on SCHARNHORST's B turret
with her 4.7 "guns, but came under
heavy and accurate fire after she had
turned away, which left her burning and
in a sinking condition. The Germans
ceased fire on ACASTER at about 1808 and
she sank at about 1820.
AT
1638
GLORIOUS received
her first 280mm hit from SCHARNHORST's
third salvo.
At 1720 the heavy cruiser DEVONSHIRE who was
then about 70 miles west of
GLORIOUS picked up a weak signal on 3.7
MHz,
addressed to VAA front GLORIOUS.
DEVONSHIRE took no action upon receipt
of the
broken and distorted signal.
At about 1740 the German ships ceased fire and
GLORIOUS sank at about 1820.
At 1815, the German ships set course for
Trondheim and left the scene at
SCHARNHORST's best speed of about 20
knots.
At 1851 the SCHARNHORST signalled GNEISENAU 'hit
by torpedo on the starboard side in
compartments III and IV. Turret C
unserviceable".
At 1200/9 they entered the Frohavet.
At 1530/9/6/40 they arrived off Munkholman
Island outside of Trondheim harbour]
At
1715 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 7A, 7B & 7C
of 803 Sqd for a fighter patrol over
the troopship convoy.
At
1915 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 7P, 7Q & 7R
of 803 Sqd for a fighter patrol over
the troopship convoy.
At
2208 ARK
ROYAL flew off two Swordfish 4C & 4K
of 820 Sqd for ADA patrols. ARK ROYAL
was now so close to the troop convoy that
A.D.A. patrols to cover both forces
could be provided. Swordfish 4C carried
out the ADA patrol around ARK ROYAL and
4K around the troop convoy.
At
2358 ARK
ROYAL sighted the troop convoy.
9th
At 0108
ARK ROYAL flew off two Swordfish 2A &
2L of 810 Sqd for an ADA patrol
around the convoy and ARK ROYAL.
[At
0230 the troopships
ORONSAY,
ORMONDE and ROYAL ULSTERMAN joined the
troop convoy. The armed boarding vessel
VANDYCK should have joined at this time
but had failed to RV with the other
troopships]
[At
0310 the
destroyers DELIGHT and FIREDRAKE were
detached from the escort of the troop
convoy with orders to search for the
VANDYCK]
At
0400 ARK ROYAL was in position 70-11N,
7-20E. (This
was position A, the assembly point for the
troop transports of Group II) Weather,
wind northwest force 4, slight swell,
cloud 8/10ths at 6,000 feet.
At
0405 ARK
ROYAL flew off four Swordfish 4A, 4B, 4G
& 4H of 820 Sqd to carry out a
reconnaissance
of the sector 130‘ and 225‘ with the
object of searching for enemy surface
vessels upon their most probable line of
approach to the convoy. A Store ship
convoy was reported at
0440/9 and many small 'stragglers' were
seen to the leaving Norway after the
main convoys.
At
0406 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 6F, 6G & 6H
of 800 Sqd for a fighter patrol over
the troop convoy.
[At
0431 the FO Anti-Aircraft Ships
Sent
following signal to FO Aircraft Carriers
(R) DELIGHT; 'Request air search for
SS VANDYCK two masts one funnel painted
hull black, upper works grey, which
should have made rendezvous 'A' at 0300
on approximate course 250 degrees. If
located request that DELIGHT and
FIREDRAKE be informed.']
AT
0718 ARK ROYAL flew off two Swordfish 2P
and 2B
of 810
Sqd they were sent
back
to the position in which the ships of the
convoy gathered, the object being to
find SS VANDYCK, which had failed to join
the convoy. VANDYCK was not sighted,
but FAME and DELIGHT were seen
looking for her.
At
0720 ARK
ROYAL flew off two Skuas 7F & 7G of
803 Sqd for a fighter patrol over the
troop convoy.
[At
0750 the destroyer
FIREDRAKE
rejoined the convoy having failed to
locate VANDYCK]
[At
0810 the Following signal was received
from VANDYCK (R) DELIGHT and FIREDRAKE;
'am at rendezvous X']
[At
0847 the destroyer DELIGHT was ordered
to
to
bring VANDYCK on and inform CINC
Rosyth
and authorities concerned of expected
time of arrival in position
63-00N, 04-00E. The DELIGHT failed to RV
with VANDYCK because VANDYCK was
bombed and sunk]
At
1000 ARK ROYAL was in
position
69N,
3-24E, and course approximately 210 ‘.
At
1000 ARK
ROYAL flew off four Swordfish 4C, 4F,
4K & 4L of 820 Sqd for a
reconnaissance
between
headings 130‘ and 210‘, to a depth of 80
miles. The search sighted
nothing.
At
1000 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 6K, 6L & 6M
of 800 Sqd for a fighter patrol over
the convoy.
[At
1014 the
Flag Officer Aircraft Carriers received a
signal from the battleship VALIANT
timed 0901/ 9 reporting enemy battleships
and destroyers in position 67-44N, 3-52E
at 0900/8. This was the first
intimation received that enemy surface
forces were at sea]
[At
1020 the CINC Home Fleet signalled
VALIANT,
make all possible speed to join Group II]
At
1110 ARK
ROYAL was in position 68-50N, 3-05E when
she flew off three Swordfish 2B, 2H
& 2Q of 810 Sqd to carry out a search
between 225‘ and 275‘ to a depth of
90 miles to search for the enemy force.
Nothing was sighted.
At
1200 ARK
ROYAL was in position 68-46N, 3-03E,
weather oc, wind northerly force 4, sea
state 30.
[At
1155 the SOUTHAMPTON sighted a body in
the water. She altered course to
investigate a sighted a further three
bodies.
(These were almost certainly from the
previous days engagement between
GLORIOUS, ACASTER and ARDENT and
SCHARNHORST and GNEISENAU). At 1205
SOUTHAMPTON proceeded at 20 knots to
re-join the convoy]
At
1300 ARK
ROYAL was in position 68-30N, 2-59E when
she flew off Walrus 5A of 701 Sqd and
seven
Swordfish 2B, 2C & 2P of 810 Sqd and
4A, 4B, 4G & 4M of 820 Sqd these 8
aircraft were to carry out a search
between 110‘ and 285‘ to a depth of 100
miles to search for the enemy force. Also
flown off were three Skuas 7K, 7L
& 7M of 803 Sqd these 3 aircraft were
to carry out a search between 310‘
and 085‘ to a depth of 20 miles astern of
the convoy.
[The
weather
was difficult for air navigation, as the
visibility was low and the
wind extremely changeable; a few of the
less experienced observers had to be
brought back to the ship by D/F at the
completion of this and subsequent
searches. The general standard of air
navigation was high considering the
weather was so unsuitable and the ship
often unable to maintain the mean line
of advance given to the aircraft when they
took off]
At
1545 ARK
ROYAL was in position 68-10N, 2-00W, when
she flew off two Walrus 5C & 5F
of 701 Sqd and six Swordfish 2B, 2E, 2F,
2K, 2L & 2Q of 810 Sqd and 4L of
820 Sqd these 8 aircraft were to carry out
a search between 110‘ and 285‘ to a
depth of 100 miles to search for the enemy
force. Also flown off were three
Skuas 7A, 6B & 6C of 803 Sqd these 3
aircraft were to carry out a search
astern of the convoy.
At
this
time ARK ROYAL was operating close to the
main troop convoy in order to offer
maximum protection.
[At
1707, as VALIANT had reported being
shadowed, the Vice Admiral, Aircraft
Carriers suggested to the Flag Officer,
Narvik, that course of convoy should be
altered to 270‘ in order to open the
distance from the enemy air base at
Trondheim (Vaernes Aerodrome)]
At
1800 ARK
ROYAL and the convoy altered course to
270‘, speed of advance 13 knots.
At
1830 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Walrus 5G, 5H &
5K of 701 Sqd and six Swordfish 2A, 2C
& 2P of 810 Sqd and 4C, 4H & 4K of
820 Sqd for a reconnaissance between
the bearings of 175‘ and 340‘ to a depth
of 120 miles. This reconnaissance
sighted the VALIANT and passed the
position, course, and speed of the convoy
to
her. Also flown off were three Skuas 7A,
7B & 7C of 803 Sqd these 3
aircraft were to carry out a search astern
of the convoy.
At
1830 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 6A, 6B & 6C
of 800 Sqd with orders to pass a
message to VALIANT and attack an enemy
aircraft showing her. When the Skuas
arrived over the VALIANT they found that
she was being shadowed by a He 115 which
they attacked and drove off, but were
unable to close due the float plane
disappearing into low cloud.
At
2030 ARK
ROYAL received Admiralty signal timed
1936/9ordering convoy to steer 270‘ to
longitude of Faroe Islands, then turn
south.
[At
2115 the battleship VALIANT and the
destroyers
MASHONA,
TARTAR, BEDOUIN and ASHANTI were
sighted. The
Vice
Admiral,
Aircraft Carriers ordered VALIANT to
take station five miles ahead of
the convoy.
At 2145in position 67-58 N, 1W, VALIANT,
MASHONA,
TARTAR, BEDOUIN and ASHANTI
took
station ahead of the convoy]
At
2145 ARK
ROYAL flew off two Walrus 5L & 5M of
701 Sqd and six Swordfish 2B & 2C
of 810 Sqd and 4A, 4B, 4G & 4M of 820
Sqd for a reconnaissance between the
bearings of 155‘ and 355‘ to a depth of
120 miles. Three Skuas covered the arc
astern of the convoy.
At
2300 in
position 67-55N, 2-10W six He 111H's
(probably of II./KG26
from
Vaernes) approached ARK ROYAL from astern
and flew up the starboard
side. ARK ROYAL opened fire on the
enemy aircraft, without success. When
nearly ahead of the ship, they broke
formation,
four Heinkels disappeared into the clouds
above the ship while the remaining
two shadowed from either bow. The sub
slight of fighters already in the air,
shot down one He 111H and damaged another.
At
2315 ARK
ROYAL flew off a second section of
fighters immediately the He 111H's were
seen, these were 6F, 6G & 6H of
800Sqd. This patrol attacked one He 111H
and probably damaged it.
At
2355 ARK
ROYAL flew off six Skuas 6A, 6B & 6C
of 800 Sqd and 7K, 7L & 7M of 803
Sqd to attack the Heinkels and defend the
convoy and escort. The Heinkels had
all been driven away by 0300/10 and some
of them had jettisoned their bombs
while being attacked by the Skuas.
The convoy and escort suffered no damage
from these enemy aircraft.
10th
At
0001 Admiral of the Fleet, Lord Cork,
hauled down his Flag on the SOUTHAMPTON.
At
0107 the
Vice Admiral, Aircraft Carriers suggested
to the Flag Officer, 20th
Cruiser Squadron (Rear
Admiral Anti-Aircraft Ships)
that he
should inform, REPULSE, NEWCASTLE, and
SUSSEX of the position of the convoy and
escort. This was done at 0144.
At
0400 the
convoy was in position
67-48N, 5-02W. Weather: east southeast wind,
force 2, cloud 9/10ths at 6000 feet.
At
0245 ARK
ROYAL was in position 67-23N, 3-30W when
she flew off Ten Swordfish 2B, 2C, 2F,
2K, 2P & 2R of 810 Sqd and 4C, 4F, 4K
& 4L of 820 Sqd for an all round
search to a depth of 120 miles. No
enemy forces were sighted.
[At
0725 whilst
being brought back to the ship by D/F,
Sub/Lt R C Eborn in aircraft 2C lost his
way and forced landed in sea. The crew of
three were picked by the Norwegian
fishery protection trawler SYRIAN and
landed in Iceland]
At
0400 ARK
ROYAL flew off two Skuas 7F & 7G of
803 Sqd for a patrol over the convoy.
At
0445 ARK
ROYAL sighted the NEWCASTLE (Flag CS18)
and SUSSEX. The convoy altered course
to 195‘.
At
0518 the
NEWCASTLE joined and was
stationed one
mile on starboard quarter of convoy to
provide AA defence
on that flank.
At
0532 the SUSSEX joined and was ordered to
provide
AA
defence for the ARK ROYAL.
At
0709 the NEWCASTLE was ordered to provide
AA
defence
for the ARK ROYAL.
At
0730 ARK
ROYAL was in position 66-47N, 4-55W.
Weather OC, wind south east by south force
3, sea state 44.
At
0730 ARK
ROYAL flew off three walrus 5C, 5H &
5K of 701 Sqd to carry out a search
for Swordfish 2C.
At
0800 the
Vice
Admiral, Aircraft Carriers, ordered
SUSSEX and NEWCASTLE to part company and
support the store ship convoy in
approximately position 67-35N, 4-18W.
[At
0846 hours
a RAF Blenheim IVF of 254 Sqd from
Sumburgh on reconnaissance over
Trondheim
reported sighting 4 enemy cruisers; this
was subsequently amended to a
battlecruiser and a large transport and
7 destroyers patrolling off the fiord
entrance]
At 0857 the
battlecruiser REPULSE
joined. Vice Admiral, Aircraft Carriers
ordered
her to take VALIANT under her orders.
These ships and their screening
destroyers MASHONA, TARTAR, BEDOUIN and
ASHANTI
were designated Force 'A'.
[By
the morning of 9/6 it was clear to
Admiral
Marschall that the Allies were
evacuating northern Norway; so he
decided that
he must immediately attack Allied
shipping. At 0902 the GNEISENAU, HIPPER
and
the destroyers LODY, GLASTER, SCHOEMANN
and STEINBRINCK sailed from Trondheim.
In the afternoon the submarine CLYDE on patrol
off the Frohavet sighted this force.
At 1400 the CLYDE reported 'a pocket battleship
and 8" cruiser in 64-35N, 9-45E,
steering 300‘', by this time the
destroyers had returned to Trondheim..
The German
force had sighted the CLYDE so Marschall
knew his mission was compromised. But
it was not until intelligence was
received that the heavy units were
covering
the Allied convoys that Marschall was
ordered to abort the mission.
At 2010 the GNEISENAU and HIPPER turned east
and headed back to Trondheim.
At 1130/11 the GNEISENAU and HIPPER arrived
back off Trondheim]
At
1000 the
CINC Home Fleet ordered ARK ROYAL to join
him.
At
1100 ARK ROYAL's escorting destroyers
DIANA
and
ACHERON were exchanged for the destroyers
MASHONA and ASHANTI from REPULSE's
screen, as the latter had more fuel
remaining. (DIANA and ACHERON joined
VALIANT returning to Scapa)
At
1130 in
position 66N, 6W the ARK ROYAL with the
destroyers HIGHLANDER, MASHONA and
ASHANTI detached from the convoy and
steered easterly to join the CINC Home
Fleet in RODNEY.
At
1445 ARK
ROYAL sighted RODNEY (flag CINC Home
Fleet), RENOWN and the destroyers
INGLEFIELD (D.3), ZULU, KELVIN, ELECTRA
and ESCORT.
At
1525 in
position 66-40N, 2-30W, ARK ROYAL joined
the CINC Home Fleet. The destroyers
HIGHLANDER, MASHONA and ASHANTI detached
to refuel. The Home Fleet then steered
in a generally eastward direction.
At
1540 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 6K, 6L & 6M
of 800 Sqd to attack a shadower
which had been sighted from the bridge.
The patrol chased off the He 115 but
could not close the range sufficiently to
open effective fire as the Heinkel
made full use of the low clouds for
avoiding action.
At
1600 the
CINC Home Fleet ordered the Fleet to steer
north eastward at maximum speed. This
was in response to CLYDE's 1400/9 signal.
The CINC's intention was to locate
the enemy force and carry out an air
strike from ARK ROYAL.
At
1650 ARK ROYAL flew off three
Skuas
7A, 7B & 7C of 803 Sqd
to
attack a shadower. An
attack was made on a He 115 and it is
possible that the enemy aircraft was
damaged.
At
1813 the
Fleet altered course to 115‘.
At
1910 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 6P, 6Q & 6R
of 800 Sqd to attack another
shadower, but no enemy aircraft was seen
and the patrol returned to guard the
Fleet.
At
2000 ARK
ROYAL was in position 66-29N, 00-33W.
Weather OC, wind east south
east force 4, sea state 21.
At
2000 ARK
ROYAL flew off nine Swordfish 2B, 2K &
2K of 810 Sqd and 4A, 4B, 4C, 4F, 4K
& 4L of 820 Sqd to carry out a search
between bearing 020‘ and 210‘ to a
depth of 150 miles, the object of the
search being to locate the enemy
battleships or battleship, reported by
CLYDE and believed to be in the
vicinity. At 2100 a submerged
submarine was reported 20 miles ahead of
the Fleet.
At
2330 the
Swordfish returned having sighted nothing.
At
2355 the
Fleet altered course to 320‘ to provide
close cover for the slow convoys and
numerous single merchant ships that were
proceeding from Narvik and Tromso to
the UK.
[Between
2345/10 and 0555/1, in position
68-15N, 2-20E the Norwegian ship SS
BORGUND 341grt, sighted rafts with 38
survivors from GLORIOUS and one from
ACASTA. The 39 survivors were taken on
board and landed at Trshavn, Faroe
Islands]
11th
[At
0645 the submarine CLYDE on patrol off
the Frohavet sighted what was
believed to be a pocket battleship off
LinesΏya Island at the entrance to the
Frohavet. This was certainly the GNEISENAU
and
HIPPER returning to Trondheim]
At
0800 ARK
ROYAL was in position 67-13N, 2-20W.
Weather BC, Wind south east force 3, sea
state 22.
At
0812 ARK
ROYAL flew off nine Swordfish 2A, 2F, 2G,
2K. 2Q & 2R of 810 Sqd and 4F, 4G
& 4M of 820 Sqd to carry out a search
between bearing 181‘ and 359‘, to a depth
of 120 miles. No enemy forces were
sighted and thick weather was reported
ahead.
At
0830 ARK
ROYAL flew off three Skuas 6F, 6G & 6H
of 800 Sqd to attack a shadower. No
enemy was sighted and it seems possible
that one of our own flying boats had
been reported as the shadower. (This
may
have been a Sunderland 1 of 204 Sqd from
Sullom Voe that was searching for the
ships reported the CLYDE)
[At
1130 twelve Hudson 1's of 269 Sqd RAF,
each
armed with four x 250lb SAP bombs, (this
size
and type of bomb was useless against the
targets they were to attack) took
off from Sumburgh. Their mission was to
bomb the enemy heavy ships at Trondheim
reported by the Blenheim IVF of 254 Sqd
at 0846/10.
At about 1415 they arrived over the target
where they were attacked by Bf 109's of
II,/JG77 and
Me
110's of 3./ZG76. Although three hits
were claimed no bombs hit any of the
German ships. Two aircraft were shot
down, UA-G, N7361 pilot Sgt E B
Lascelles,
this aircraft was shot down by A Bf 110
and UA-P, P5131, pilot Sgt G W Robson,
this aircraft was shot down by a Me109]
At
1300 the
weather closed in and no further flying
was possible for the rest of the day.
[At
1706
the Admiralty signalled the CINC Home
Fleet with the intelligence report of the
RAF attack. The Admiralty went on to state
that if weather conditions were
suitable a further attack would be made,
and suggested that Skuas should be
used to finish off the enemy ships]
[The
CINC
Home Fleet ordered the Flag Officer
Aircraft Carriers to commence planning for
the operation on the basis that the Fleet
would remain undetected and reach a
position 65N, 4-40E by 0001/13/6.
Because
at
this time of the year there is almost 24
hours of daylight and the last 40
miles would be over land and the enemy
ships were lying 17 miles from the
largest airfield in Norway at which were
located many Bf 109 and Me 110
fighters the mission would be very
difficult and dangerous.
In
conjunction
with the RAF a three pronged attack was
planned. First Beauforts of
22 Sqd RAF would carry out a low level
attack on Vaernes aerodrome to keep the
German fighters grounded before the attack
by the FAA developed. Second Skuas
of 800 and 803 Sqds would carry out a dive
bombing attack. Third as the Skuas
were attacking, Swordfish of 810 and 820
Sqds would carry out a torpedo attack.
To provide a degree of protection to the
Skuas and Swordfish during the attack,
Blenheim IV fighters of 254 Sqd RAF would
RV with the attack force as they took
off from ARK ROYAL.
In
the
event the weather proved unsuitable for
the Swordfish, they would be flying
into a strong south easterly wind that
would reduce their speed and make them
easy prey for fighters and AA fire. So the
Swordfish were dropped and the
attack would be carried out by the Skuas
alone. Each Skua was to be armed with
a 500lb SAP bomb which, even with the
added impetus of the diving aircrafts
speed would not generate sufficient
velocity to penetrate the armoured decks
of
the German battlecruisers. This fact was
known to those who authorised, planned
and executed to raid.
Therefore
it
is difficult to understand why the
Admiralty suggested that Skuas should be
used to finish off the enemy ships.
Cabinet
Office
minutes from 11/6/40 state 'the Prime
Minister, Winston Churchill,
expressed grave doubts as to the wisdom of
the operation, t would be a gallant
operation, but one which, in his opinion,
might prove far too costly']
The
Fleet
steered for position 65N, 4-40E.
12th
-
The
Fleet
steered for position 65N, 4-40E. Weather
low clouds and frequent rain storms.
At
0630 the
destroyers AMAZON, ANTELOPE, ESCAPADE and
FEARLESS joined the CINC. The Fleet
now comprised NELSON, RODNEY, RENOWN and
the destroyers INGLEFIELD (D.3), AMAZON,
ANTELOPE, ESCAPADE, FEARLESS, ZULU,
KELVIN, ELECTRA and ESCORT.
At
0935 the
Fleet altered course to 080‘ and increased
speed to 18 knots, the maximum that RODNEY
was capable, to reach the flying off
position for the attack on Trondheim.
At
1200 the
Fleet was in position 64-23N, 3-19W.
Weather OV, wind south south
east force 5, sea
state 32.
[At
1616
the CINC Rosyth signalled the CINC Home
Fleet that at 0200/13 precisely four
RAF aircraft would attack Vaernes
aerodrome and six Blenheim fighters would
be
in the vicinity of Trondheim at that time
as a protective escort for the Skuas
and to prevent them from being pursued out
to sea]
At
1650 the
weather was becoming generally more
suitable for flying;
the cloud lifting and the visibility
improving. ARK ROYAL flew off three
Skuas 6P, 6P & 6R for defensive
patrol over the fleet.
[At
1802
the CINC Rosyth signalled the CINC Home
Fleet informing him that RAF aircraft
would be bombing targets at Bergen during
the night from 0001 to 0300/13]
At
2230 ARK
ROYAL flew off two Skuas for fighter
patrol over Fleet.
13th
The
Fleet arrived at the flying off position,
64-58N, 4-38E.
At
0002 ARK
ROYAL flew off 15 Skuas 6A, 6C, 6F, 6G, 6H
& 6K of 800 Sqd and 7A, 7B, 7C,
7F, 7G, 7L, 7P, 7Q & 7R of 803 Sqd,
each Skua was armed with a 500lb SAP
bomb, to attack enemy warships in
Trondheim
harbour.
[The
formation climbed to 11,000 feet, formed
up, then
headed for the coastline to the north west
of Trondheim. The attack by the
Skuas
was timed to synchronise
at 0200 with an attack on
Vaernes
aerodrome by four Beaufort aircraft of 22
Sqd
RAF;
also the arrival of six Blenheim IV
long range fighters of 254 Sqd RAF who
were to provide fighter protection.
At
0123 the
15 Skuas were north of Halten Lighthouse,
no doubt from where they were
reported, and they crossed the coast near
to LysΏysundet in brilliant sunshine,
35 miles from the target, except that the
one thing all the pilots wanted was a
cloudy day. In the van was 803 Squadron,
led by Lt Cdr J Casson in 7A, in three
flights of three. Following was 800
Squadron, led by Capt RJ Partridge RM, in
6A, in two flights of three.
The
Blenheims
of 254 Sqd failed to arrive at the RV on
time due to an error in
calculating the range. Therefore because
of time pressures the Skuas left the
RV and headed for Trondheim without the
Blenheims.
Seven
Bauforts
of 22 Sqd took off from Wick, three got
lost in bad weather, the
remaining four attacked Vaernes aerodrome
at 0150. The Beauforts landmark for
crossing the coast was the Grip
Lighthouse, but as they flew over the
lighthouse they were sighted from the
light cruiser NURNBERG who was on passage
to Trondheim. The NURNBERG made a sighting
report that was received by the
SCHARNHORST at 0134. The raid on Vaernes
caused little damage and was over by
the time the Skuas arrived. However it had
the opposite effect to that intended
as the Bf109's of II./JG77and Me110's of
I./ZG76 that were scrambled to defend
the aerodrome were perfectly placed to
attack the Skuas even before they
reached their target.
The
enemy
fighters attacked the rear section of 803
Sqd which comprised 6F, 6G & 6H.
Skua 6G, L3028, pilot Mid LH Gallagher was
the first to be shot down by a Me109,
second was 6H, L3047, pilot Mid DTR Martin
and third 6F, L3000, pilot Lt GED
Finch-Noyes.
Lt
Cdr
Casson in 6A led 800 Sqd into the dive
from 5,000ft from the direction of
SCHARNHORST's
bow, into a storm of AA fire. Lt Gibson in
7P, at the rear of the formation
took his flight in the opposite direction,
attacking from stern to bow. Despite
the flak and fighters, the pilots were
determined to get their bombs on target.
Capt
Partridge
in 7A led the remaining three aircraft of
800 Sqd round to the stern of the
ship and dived from 7,000ft, to give them
the best chance of an accurate bomb
run. Lt Spurway in 6K, following Partridge
down, saw one bomb near miss off the
starboard quarter and then a bright flash
just aft of the funnel.
A
further
five Skuas were lost these were, 6A,
L2995, pilot Capt RJ Partridge RM, shot
down by a Me109, 7A, L2896, pilot Lt Cdr J
Casson shot down by a Bf109, 7F,
L2963, pilot Lt CH Filmer shot down by a
Me110. 7L, L2992, pilot Sub Lt JA
Harris shot down by a Me110 and 7Q, L2955,
pilot Sub Lt RE Bartlett shot down
by a Me110.
The
Blenheim
fighters
As
the seven remaining aircraft made
their way back to ARK ROYAL, some pilots
asked for a D/F bearing from the
carrier. This was unusual as a broadcast
from the ship could give away its position
to the enemy, but the aircrews had been
told that they could radio their call-sign
once for a D/F bearing. However, as the
Skuas returned, ARK ROYAL did not break
radio silence and the crews were forced to
navigate back by taking a fix using
the ship's revolving beacon, which was
quite a feat of navigation for a TAG not
trained in formal navigation.
In
the analysis of the attack the VA
Aircraft Carriers considered that two hits
had been achieved, but in fact only
one hit had been achieved and that failed
to explode]
Following
the launch of the strike
mission the Fleet steered north, north
easterly to a pre-arranged flying on
position.
At
0207 ARK ROYAL flew off three
Skuas
for fighter patrol over Fleet.
By
0345 all the remaining seven
Skuas, two
from 800 Sqd and five from 803 Sqd, had
landed back on. ARK ROYAL remained in the
pre-arranged flying on position until 0600, this being the
latest time any of the stragglers could be
expected to return.
[The
high loss rate effected
the morale of the entire ships company.
But particularly
affected were those that had planned the
mission. The total losses amounted to
almost an entire squadron, and effectively
reduced the FAA's two premiere fighter
squadrons to a small nucleus of
experienced flyers]
At
0425 the Fleet entered a fog bank.
At
0553 the Fleet cleared the fog bank and
the three
Skuas on
fighter
patrol were landed back on.
At
0600 ARK ROYAL escorted by the destroyers
KELVIN
and
ESCORT detached for Scapa Flow at a speed
of 22 knots.
At
1115 ARK
ROYAL flew off Swordfish to carry out
patrols ahead of the ships.
At
1340 ARK
ROYAL flew off Swordfish to carry out
patrols ahead of the ships.
At
1610
ARK ROYAL flew off Swordfish to
carry out patrols ahead of the ships.
At
1930 ARK ROYAL was in position 66-46N,
1-30W.
At
1935 ARK ROYAL flew off
six
Swordfish
and two Walrus to carry out a
reconnaissance to a depth of 110 miles
between bearings 110‘ and 250‘ to give
warning of approach of enemy surface
vessels. Four destroyers,
CAMPBELL, FORESTER, MASHONA and VETERAN
were sighted approaching a RV, arranged
by the CINC Home Fleet. The CAMPBELL was
ordered to join the flag of Vice
Admiral, Aircraft Carriers, as part of ARK
ROYAL's screen in accordance with
instructions received from the CINC Home
Fleet.
2150
ARK
ROYAL flew off two Swordfish for a warning
patrol ahead of the ships.
14th
At 0015 ARK ROYAL
flew off two Swordfish and a Walrus
to
relieve warning patrol.
At
0124 ARK ROYAL
passed the destroyers TARTAR, ASHANTI,
MAORI and BEDOUIN who were on passage to a
RV with the CINC Home Fleet.
At
0245 ARK
ROYAL flew off Swordfish to relieve
warning
patrol.
At
0517 ARK ROYAL commenced Swordfish A/S
patrols
and continued them until arrival at Scapa.
At
1300 ARK ROYAL was in position 59-27N,
4-07W.
At
1300 a Hawker Henley (a 270mph target
tug!)
towing a flare target, of 771 Sqd from
RNAS Hatson (HMS SPARROWHAWK) RVed with
ARK ROYAL and a trial shoot by the 4.5" HA
AA and pom poms was carried
out.
[Early
in 1937
A meeting at the admiralty of the board
of Admiralty, the agenda was: - Future
aircraft for the FAA.
The meeting was
appraised of the aircraft being
developed at that time for the FAA:-
Swordfish,
role TBR biplane with radial engine,
slow but rugged. No alternative
available at this time.
Skua, role, DB,
monoplane with radial engine, good DB
but slow and under armed for other
roles,
Roc, role,
FF2s, Monoplane with radial engine and
turret, slow, (slower than most bombers)
single roll only.
Sea Gladiator
FF1s Biplane with radial engine. Slow
and under armed when compared to newest
land based aircraft.
The First Sea Lord looked up and said 'so thanks to the AM and RAF we are
liable to start the next war with second
rate aircraft and that is despite
expansion scheme F starting last
February! What are we going to do about
it? Any ideas?'
The Head of the
aircraft technical section pause and
replies, 'Actually Sir we do;
Our proposed plan is technically practicable, the problem will be getting
political support and overcoming the
inevitable opposition from the RAF and
AM and the Treasury'
'Leave that to
me' responded the FSL, 'Let's hear your
proposal.
'Right Sir' is
the response,' We propose to accept the
Swordfish as there is no viable
alternative for that role, currently
flying or even in the design stage,
However a specification should be
prepared and issued immediately for a
radial
engine monoplane TBR capable of a
minimum 250 knots top speed using the
next
generation of 1500hp+ radial engines or
their equivalents.
The Hawker
Henley built to specification P4/34 is
about to be ordered by the AM as a
target tug! , Not only is it nearly 70
knots faster than the Blackburn
Skua but by using standard
Hurricane outer wings it can be armed
with up to 8 x 303' machine guns
(Hawker tell
us that the Hurricane outer wing is
currently being configured for 4 x 20mm
Oerlikon cannon as in specification
F37/35 as an alternative). Currently
the aircraft does not have folding
wings, or dive breaks but is stressed
for dive bombing. Informal discussions
with the Hawker design team show no
problems with fitting arrester gear.
Folding wings would take a little longer
so initial
production (to use the capacity
allocated by Gloster Aircraft) would
start with
fixed wings to get aircraft flying for
crew training. Though the wingspan at
47'10' would seem to preclude use at
sea, due to the 46' maximum lift width,
land trials will be carried out to see
if the aircraft can be skewed on the
lifts if required.
The design
effort being expended by the AM required
to turn the Henley into a target tug
would better used optimising it for
Naval service]
At
1450 ARK ROYAL flew of the Walrus aircraft
of 701
Sqd to Hatston aerodrome for onward
routing to RNAS Donibristle (HMS MERLIN)
At
1515 ARK ROYAL
with
the destroyers KELVIN, ESCORT and CAMPBELL
arrived at Scapa Flow.
15th
and
16th
ARK ROYAL at Scapa Flow.
17th
At 1515 ARK ROYAL (Flag Vice Admiral,
Aircraft Carriers) screened by the
destroyers FAULKNOR (D8), FEARLESS and
ESCAPADE sailed from Scapa Flow with
orders to proceed to the Clyde.
At
1630 the destroyer FOXHOUND joined the
screen.
At
1815 ARK ROYAL was in position 59N, 3-45W
and
commenced to fly on replacement aircraft
from RNAS Hatson.
At
1900 flying on completed, ARK ROYAL set
course
for the Clyde.
18th
At 0345 when ARK ROYAL was in the Minches,
in approximate position 57-33N, 6-52W,
signal 2314/17 was received from the CINC
Home Fleet, ordering the Vice Admiral,
Aircraft Carriers in ARK ROYAL, to RV with
the battlecruiser HOOD in position 55-44N,
13-10W at 2200/18, and then to
proceed to Gibraltar.
[At
1630/10/40
the British and French Ambassadors in
Rome were informed by Count Ciano that
from 11/6/40 Italy considered herself at
war with the Allies. At 1900/10The
Admiralty ordered the Navy to commence
hostilities against Italy. This was the
same day that the advancing Germany Army
forced the French Government to leave
Paris for Tours. The overall situation
in France looked bad and a French
collapse would cause a problem in the
Western Mediterranean. At 1000/ 14/6/40
German forces marched into Paris and on
15/5/40 the French cabinet voted to ask
Germany for the terms of an armistice.
On the 16/6/40 Marshal Henri Ptain
takes over the government of France.
Also on 14/6/40
Spain had exchanged her neutrality for
non-belligerency and occupied the
international
zone of Tangier on the pretext of
guaranteeing its neutrality. It seemed
possible that, following the example of
Italy, she was preparing to declare war
and join the Axis.
Therefore the
Admiralty took the decision as a
precaution against total French collapse
to
build up naval forces in the Western
Mediterranean, based on Gibraltar. ARK
ROYAL and HOOD were the first capital
ships to be allocated for the new force]
At
0415 FOXHOUND, being short of fuel, was
detached
to Milford Haven to refuel and RV later
with the Vice Admiral, Aircraft
Carriers southwest of Ireland.
At
0730 when Barra Head had been passed,
course was
set 253‘, speed 17 knots to position
50-00N, 15-30W, and thence by the
following positions (a) 50-00N, 15-30W,
(b) 39-00N, 15-30W and (c) 36-00N,
10-00W to Gibraltar, speed of advance 16
knots.
At
1020 ARK ROYAL flew off six Swordfish to
Aldergrove RAF Coastal Command aerodrome
to collect personnel of 818 Sqd and
fly them back to the carrier.
At
1415 in position 56-12N, 10-02W the ARK
ROYAL
force RVed with the battlecruiser HOOD
escorted by the destroyers ATHERSTONE
and HMCS FRAZER, RESTIGOUCHE, SKEENA and
ST LAURENT
At
1540 ARK ROYAL sighted Swordfish of 818
Sqd flying
in from Aldergrove led by six Swordfish of
810 Sqd.
Between
1555 and 1625 the Swordfish were landed
on.
ARK
ROYAL's air component was now 800 Sqd with
12
Skuas, 803 Sqd with 12 Skuas, 810 Sqd with
12 Swordfish, 818 Sqd with 9
Swordfish and 820 Sqd with 9 Swordfish.
At
1625 the destroyers FRAZER, RESTIGOUCHE,
SKEENA
and ST LAURENT were detached to execute
previous orders from the CINC Western
Approaches.
19th
-
Intermittent fog was encountered in the
afternoon.
At
1440 when in position 51-47N, 14-43W, a
signal
was received from the CINC Western
Approaches to amend route to pass through
the following positions; (1) 45-00N,
20-00W, (2) 40-00N, 20-00W and (3) 36-00N,
10-00W. Course was altered according.
During
the day aircraft from ARK ROYAL made
dive-bombing attacks on HOOD and the
destroyers.
20th
Intermittent fog was encountered in the
morning.
At
1100 ARK ROYAL was in position 46-28N,
18-45W.
At
1100 ARK ROYAL flew off five Swordfish the
search
for the destroyer FOXHOUND who was
expected to join from Milford Haven. The
FOXHOUND was not located.
At
1320 ARK ROYAL flew off a further three
Swordfish
to search for FOXHOUND these also failed
to locate FOXHOUND.
Between
1600 and 2150 the destroyers FEARLESS,
FAULKNOR and ESCAPADE were refuelled by
HOOD, each receiving 100 tons.
At
2230 Speed was increased to 20 knots to
make up
for time lost during fuelling of
destroyers.
21st
At 1820 in position 40-32N, 20-12W the
FOXHOUND was sighted.
At
1900 FOXHOUND joined and ATHERSONE
detached.
At
1938 reduced speed to 19 knots.
22nd
ARK ROYAL maintained A/S patrols during
afternoon and evening.
[At
1600/22/6/40 General Keitel for
Germany and General
Charles Huntziger for France signed
surrender terms in the same railway car
that the Germans had signed their
armistice in November 1918.
Under the terms
of the Armistice the French Fleet was
obliged to keep its ships under Axis
control and be disarmed under German or
Italian control. However, little
attempt to impose this clause of the
Armistice was made, with the Axis being
content to leave the French ships in
French hands so long as they were
withdrawn from the British war effort]
23rd
At 0035 sighted Cape Spartel light,
bearing
098‘, 30 miles.
At
0730 the Vice Admiral, Aircraft Carriers
in ARK
ROYAL with HOOD and the destroyers
FAULKNOR, FEARLESS, FOXHOUND and ESCAPADE
arrived
Gibraltar and secured alongside.
24th
and 25th
ARK
ROYAL at Gibraltar.
[24/6
the
destroyer DOUGLAS of the 13th Destroyer
Flotilla, with Admiral Sir Dudley North
CINC North Atlantic aboard, departed
Gibraltar for Mers el Kebir to learn the
terms of the French Armistice. The
DOUGLAS with the CINC NA arrived back at
Gibraltar later that same day]
26th - ARK ROYAL at
Gibraltar.
At
1030 ARK ROYAL (Flag Vice Admiral Aircraft
Carriers), HOOD and the destroyers
FAULKNOR (D8), FEARLESS, FOXHOUND,
ESCAPADE,
DOUGLAS and WRESTLER sailed from
Gibraltar. Their objective was to
intercept
the French battleship RICHELIEU reported
to have sailed from Dakar at 1415 (Z +
1) on 25/6.
[On
18/6/40
the uncompleted (95% complete)
battleship RICHELIEU escorted by the
French destroyers
FOUGEAUX and FRONDEUR sailed from Brest
for Dakar. Shortly after leaving she
was bombed by the Luftwaffe, one hit was
scored but it caused little damage. En
route the destroyers detached to
Casablanca.
23/6/40 the
RICHELIEU arrived at Dakar.
On arrival at
Dakar the CO of RICHELIEU Captain Marzin
found that the local French Governor
and naval Flag Officer were
considering continuing the fight
against Germany, with the British Navy,
a unit of which, the aircraft carrier
HERMES
was moored in the inner harbour. (The German-French
Armistice terms didn't come into effect
until 25/6/40).
The HERMES reported the arrival of the RICHELIEU and the Admiralty
ordered the heavy cruiser DORSETSHIRE
from Freetown to Dakar to assist the
HERMES in watching the RICHELIEU.
The CINC of the French Fleet, Admiral Darlan had, following the signing
of the Armistice, had sent instructions
to the COs of all French warships that
their ships must remain under the French
Flag and any attempt to take them over
must be countered by scuttling or sailed
them to the USA.
On 25/6/40 RICHELIEU escorted by the destroyer FLEURET sailed from Dakar
for Casablanca. Captain Marzin decided
on this course of action because of the
uncertain political situation at Dakar.
The sailing was immediately reported to
the Admiralty. The DORSETSHIRE shadowed
the RICHELIEU as she steered north. The
Admiralty believing that the RICHELIEU
may be returning to France immediately
ordered the sailing of ARK ROYAL and
HOOD]
At
1250 in position 35-56N, 05-42W, the
destroyers DOUGLAS
and WRESTLER were detached to return to
Gibraltar.
At
1600 ARK ROYAL flew off six Swordfish to
search
to a depth of 160 miles between the
bearings 195 degrees to 295 degrees and
along the African Coast. Nothing
of importance was sighted.
[At
1915 a signal timed 1125/26/6/40 was
intercepted
from the DORSETSHIRE reporting that her
seaplane had sighted the RICHELIEU at
0730/26/6/40 in position 19-28N, 18-52W,
steering north at 18 ½ knots,
and that RICHELIEU had altered course to
195‘ at 0741/6/40]
[At
1940/6/40 the Vice Admiral Aircraft
Carriers received
DORSETSHIRE's signal timed 1630/26/6/40
reporting that the RICHELIEU had
informed her that she was returning to
Dakar. (This reversal of course was due
to Admiral Darlan ordering the
battleship
back to Dakar)]
[Following
receipt
of DORSETSHIRE's signal 1630/26 the Vice
Admiral Aircraft
Carriers decided to remain in present
vicinity during the night, and to send a
Swordfish to Casablanca a.m. on 27/6/40 to
order the ten Swordfish of 767 Sqd,
presently at Rabat, to embark in ARK
ROYAL]
At
2315 Vice Admiral Aircraft Carriers
received
Admiralty signal, timed 2107/26/6/40
ordering him to return to Gibraltar and to
embark 767 Sqd during passage.
27th
At 0030 course was altered to the south
east.
At
0230 ARK ROYAL sighted French auxiliary
Vessel
FADO steering 170‘ at 8 Knots.
At
0300 Vice Admiral Aircraft Carriers
received
Admiral Commanding North Atlantic's signal
timed 0148/276/40, giving a RV for
767 Sqd with ARK ROYAL at 1100 today.
At
0735 ARK ROYAL flew off a Swordfish to
Rabat to
rendezvous with 767 Sqd and lead them out
to ARK ROYAL. Altered course 020‘
towards the
arranged RV position 35-20N, 07-25W.
At
1020 ARK ROYAL flew off six Skuas for dive
bombing practice.
At
1135 in position 35-30N, 07-43W nine
Swordfish of
767 Sqd arrived from Rabat and landed on.
[767
Sqd had
been a training squadron at Hyres in
southern France. On 18/6/40 when the
German Army reached Tours the squadron
was evacuated to Bone, North Africa.
From where part of the squadron flew to
Malta where on 1/7/40 they formed 820
Sqd. The remaining 10 aircraft were to
return to the UK via Morocco. At Bone
one aircraft was cannibalised for spares
the remaining nine were the aircraft
that landed on ARK ROYAL, some of the
Swordfish that landed on were not fitted
with an arrestor hook]
At
1240 ARK ROYAL altered course 080‘ to
return to
Gibraltar.
At
1700 ARK ROYAL increased speed to 22 knots
for
entering Gibraltar Straits.
At
1945 the HOOD, followed by ARK ROYAL and
destroyers
FAULKNOR, FEARLESS, FOXHOUND and ESCAPADE
entered Gibraltar Harbour and secured
alongside.
[By
the
27/6/40 the UK Government was aware of
the terms of the Franco German
Armistice, particularly with regard to
the French Navy and they were concerned
that the ships would fall into the hands
of the Germans or Italians. On this
day the British cabinet approved
Operation CATAPULT an operation which
ordered
the Royal Navy to seize, disable or
destroy the French fleet. The Prime
Minster
Winston Churchill states, "No act was
ever more necessary for the life of
Britain". The men charged with carrying
it out were Vice Admirals, Sir
James Somerville and Andrew Cunningham]
[At
1530/27/6/40
Vice Admiral James Fownes Somerville, at
a meeting held at The
Admiralty, was informed that it had been
decided to assemble a force at
Gibraltar to be known as Force H. Force
H was to be a detached squadron under
the direct control of the Admiralty with
Somerville as its Flag Officer.
The initial
task of Force H would be to secure the
transfer, surrender or destruction of
the French warships at Oran and Mers el
Kebir, to ensure that those vessels
didn't fall into German or Italian
hands.
At 1430/28/6/40
the light cruiser ARETHUSA flying the
flag of Vice Admiral Somerville sailed
from Spithead for Gibraltar]
28th
At 0545 the ARK ROYAL (Flag Vice Admiral,
Aircraft Carriers), HOOD and the
destroyers FAULKNOR (D8), FEARLESS,
FOXHOUND
and ESCAPADE sailed from Gibraltar and set
course for the Canary Islands at 20
Knots in accordance with Admiralty signal
timed 0021/28/6/40.
[The
Admiralty signal 0021/28 stated that the
RICHELIEU had sailed from Dakar. However
the report proved to be false and when
confirmation was received the RICHELIEU
was still at Dakar the force was
recalled to Gibraltar]