Background
Events - June-November 1941
Invasion of
Russia, Malta Convoys, Japan prepares for war
1941
Tuesday,
1 July
Light cruiser MANCHESTER
arrived at Hvalfjord from denmark Strait patrol.
_____
Destroyer PUNJABI departed
Scapa Flow for Scrabster to take part in the local War
Weapons Week at Thurso.
The destroyer arrived back
at Scapa Flow at 2300.
_____
Destroyer CROOME arrived
at Scapa Flow from
Greenock at 1400
to carry out working up exercises.
_____
Indian sloop JUMNA departed Scapa Flow with
convoy EC.39 at 1800 to join the Western
Approaches following her working up exercises.
The sloop arrived at
Greenock at 0100 on the 4th escorting depot ship
GREENWICH.
_____
Anti-aircraft ship CURACOA
arrived at Scapa Flow, following refitting at Rosyth,
having escorting
convoy EC.39 from May Island to
Pentland Firth.
_____
British drifter DEVON
COUNTY (86grt, Skipper G.H. Barnard
RNR) was sunk by a mine in
51-28-51N, 0-59-14E in the
Thames Estuary.
There were three ratings
killed in the drifter.
_____
British steamer HOMEFIRE
(1262grt) was sunk by
German bombing in 53-05-30N, 1-28E. Two crew were lost
on the steamer.
_____
British fishing trawler
STRATHGAIRN (211grt) was
sunk on a mine about twenty miles southwest of Barra
Head.
Five of the crew were
missing. Six crew were landed
at Stornoway.
_____
British steamers HIGHWOOD
(1177grt) and JAMAICA
PLANTER (4098grt) were damaged by German bombing at
Barry while in drydock.
One crewman was killed on steamer HIGHWOOD.
_____
U.108 sank British steamer
TORONTO CITY (2486grt), employed as a meteorological
vessel, in
47-03N, 30W.
There were no survivors on
the steamer.
_____
German heavy cruiser PRINZ
EUGEN was bombed and
damaged at Brest.
_____
Armed boarding vessel
MALVERNIAN (Cdr J.W.B.
Robertson RNR) was abandoned after being badly damaged
by German
bombing in 47-37N, 19-07W.
T/Lt G.W. Jeffrey RNR,
T/Lt (E) A.E. Magraw RNR, T/Lt J.R. Slimin RNR, A/Sub Lt
(E) K.J. Trineman RNVR, and twenty
ratings were lost in the vessel.
T/Sub Lt P. Baddeley RNVR,
and T/A/Sub Lt A.
England RNVR, were wounded.
Of a crew of 164, fifty
seven survivors were
landed. P/T/Lt K.J. Dudgeon RNR, T/A/Sub
Lt (E)C.R. Keats RNVR, A/Major R.W. Madoc, RM, T/Lt T.G.
Mitchell RNR, T/Paymaster Sub Lt J.M. Moran RNR, T/Lt
A.H. Rogers RNVR, T/A/Sub Lt J.L. Wells
RNVR, and others were made prisoners of war.
Sloop SCARBOROUGH
proceeding to the scene picked up a boatload of
survivors, but could not
locate the damaged vessel.
She was
sunk by German aircraft 11/7/1941 in position 47.37N 19.07W and abandoned but remained
afloat; sighted drifting on 19/7 and sunk.
The
Captain and 31 others made it in
boats to Corunna on 21/7.Another boat of 21
survivors arrived at
Vigo on 22/7. Finally, a
last boat was picked up by
German minesweepers.
_____
French destroyers GUEPARD,
VALMY, and VAUQUELIN
departed Beirut to escort a troopship into Beirut.
Steamer ST DIDIER
(2778grt) was sunk by British
Albacore aircraft in the Gulf of Adalia on the 4th.
Steamer CHATEAU YQUEM
(2536grt) was recalled in
view of steamer ST DIDIER's fate.
_____
Light cruiser NAIAD and
destroyers KANDAHAR, DECOY, and HAVOCK departed Haifa
for a night sweep off Syria.
_____
Corvette HYACINTH ran
aground four miles south of Famagusta. She could not be
readily refloated and corvette
ERICA was damaged in the attempt.
On the 3rd, corvette PEONY
departed Haifa and tug ST ISSEY departed Alexandria to
refloat the grounded corvette.
Corvette HYACINTH was
unsuccessfully attacked by
enemy bombers, without success, during the evening of 4
July.
The corvette was refloated
on the 5th by corvette
PEONY.
Corvette PEONY and tug ST
ISSEY returned to Alexandria.
Corvette HYACINTH
proceeded to Alexandria, via Haifa, for repairs,
completed on the 15th.
_____
British trawler VULCAN and
motor torpedo boats MTB.68 and MTB.215 were sailed from
Famagusta to Haifa.
_____
Destroyers FAULKNOR,
FEARLESS, FORESTER, LANCE, and
LEGION departed Gibraltar to meet arriving convoy OG.66
and escort it to Gibraltar.
_____
Light cruiser HERMIONE
departed Gibraltar to patrol in the area of 40N, 15W for
enemy raider
or supply ships.
_____
Dutch submarine O.21,
escorting convoy HG.66, was
recalled and ordered to establish a patrol in the
vicinity of 43N, 11W to
attack any enemy raiders making for Biscay ports.
_____
Convoy SC.36 departed
Sidney, CB, escorted by
corvettes DAUPHIN and NAPANEE and anti-submarine yacht
PHILANTE. The
corvettes were detached on the 4th. Destroyer
CHESTERFIELD joined on the 3rd, corvettes AGASSIZ and
WETASKIWIN joined on the 4th, and destroyer CHURCHILL on
the 8th. On the
13th, the escort was detached when it was relieved by
destroyers SABRE,
SCIMITAR, and SHIKARI, sloop SANDWICH, corvettes ARABIS,
DIANELLA, HELIOTROPE, KINGCUP,
MALLOW, VERBENA, and VIOLET, minesweepers NIGER and
SPEEDWELL, and anti aubmarine trawlers
NORTHERN GEM and NORTHERN SPRAY. The sloop,
minesweepers, and
trawlers were detached on the 17th. The remainder of the
escort, less
corvette ARABIS, were detached on the 18th.With corvette
ARABIS, the convoy
arrived at Liverpool on the 19th.
_____
Norwegian whaler POL IX,
captured on 14 January 1941 by German raider
PINGUIN and renamed ADJUTANT, was scuttled on this date
by the German
cruiser.
_____
Soviet destroyer BYSTRY
was mined off Sevastapool
and beached.
_____
German steamer DURAZZO
(1153grt) at Maracaibo was taken over by Venezuela and
renamed PAMPERO.
Wednesday,
2 July
Light cruiser MANCHESTER
departed Hvalfjord for Scapa Flow, where she arrived on
the 3rd.
_____
Destroyer ICARUS arrived
at Ardrossan at 0600 to
effect repairs to her propellers, having taken passage
from Iceland in convoy HX.133.
_____
Destroyers INTREPID,
ACTIVE, and ANTELOPE departed Greenock for Loch Ewe to refuel, then escort convoy OB.341A to the westward
until relieved by escort vessels from
Iceland.
Destroyer ACTIVE, with
defective machinery,
departed Loch Ewe at 2200 on the 3rd for Scapa Flow. She
had been withdrawn from the escort duty. The
destroyer arrived at Scapa
Flow at 0730 on the 4th.
Destroyers INTREPID and
ANTELOPE escorted the
convoy until 0800 on the 7th. They arrived back at Scapa
Flow at 0930 on the 8th.
_____
Anti-aircraft ship
ALYNBANK departed Scapa Flow to meet convoy EC.40 off
Buchan Ness and provide
escort to Pentland Firth.
On the 3rd, the ship
transferred to convoy WN.48 in
Pentland Firth and escorted the convoy to Methil where
they
arrived at 1500 on the 4th.
_____
Convoy OB.341 A (there was
no OB.342) departed Liverpool, escorted by destroyers
ANTELOPE and INTREPID and
corvettes HEATHER and MIMOSA. This group, less corvette
MIMOSA was detached
on the 7th. On the 7th, destroyer OTTAWA and corvettes
CANDYTUFT, GLADIOLUS, and NASTURTIUM
joined. On the 8th, destroyer RIPLEY and armed merchant
cruiser MALOJA
joined. The group was detached on the 15th. The convoy
arrived at Halifax on the 18th.
_____
British steamer EMPIRE
AUDACITY arrived at Scapa Flow, escorted by sloop STORK.
The steamer departed the
next day for Campbeltown,
escorted by sloop STORK.In September, this steamer would
be the auxiliary
aircraft carrier AUDACITY.
_____
Minelayer PLOVER, escorted
by destroyer HAMBLEDON,
laid minefield BS 66 off the east coast of England.
_____
Lt Cdr (A) F.D.G.
Jennings, Commanding Officer of
768 Squadron, was killed when his Martlet dived into the
sea after an engine
failure at Abirlot, near Arbroath.
_____
Soviet destroyer STRASHNY
was badly damaged on a
mine in Irben Straits.
The rest of the force,
destroyers SERDITY and SILNY
laid mines in the Irben Straits.
On the 8th, German
Minenraumschiff 11 and
minesweeper M.31 encountered Soviet destroyer SILNY.
In a brief encounter,
destroyer SILNY was lightly
damaged. The German ships were undamaged.
_____
Destroyers JACKAL (D.7)
and HASTY departed Alexandria for Haifa. On their
arrival at Haifa, destroyers KANDAHAR and DECOY departed
on the 3rd for Alexandria.
Yugoslavian motor torpedo
boats KAJMAKCALAN and
DURMITOR departed Alexandria for Haifa to operate under
the orders of CS.15.
Motor launch ML.1032
departed Alexandria for Famagusta.
_____
Australian light cruiser
PERTH and Light cruiser NAIAD with destroyers KANDAHAR,
KINGSTON, HAVOCK, and GRIFFIN shelled French positions
east of Damur.
Australian light cruiser
PERTH was attacked in error by British aircraft, but no
damage resulted.
Destroyers JACKAL and
HASTY departed Alexandria for Haifa.
_____
Submarine URGE
unsuccessfully attacked an armed
merchant cruiser in 37-48N, 15-21E.
_____
Submarine
TORBAY sank
Italian steamer CITTA DI TRIPOLI (2933grt) in 37-41-50N,
24-15-50E.
_____
During the night of 2/3
July, a bombing raid on Tripoli damaged German steamer
SPARTA (1724grt) and Italian steamer ERITREA (2517grt).
Eight Swordfish of the 830
Squadron laid mines at
the entrance to Tripoli Harbour.
_____
anti-submarine whalers GOS
2 and KOS 12 and minesweeping trawler HOLLY departed
Gibraltar for Freetown.
Thursday,
3 July
Destroyers INGLEFIELD and
ACHATES departed Greenock at 1400 escorting battlecruiser REPULSE to
Scapa Flow, where they
arrived at 1000 on the 4th.
_____
British drifter RECEPTIVE
(86grt) was sunk on a
mine in 51-20-50N, 0-54-35E.
T/Lt R.H.A. Remington
RNVR, was lost in the
drifter.
_____
Auxiliary ship ROSME
(82grt) was sunk on a mine in
51-34-12N, 1-03E.
_____
Finnish submarine
VETEHINEN attacked Soviet steamer
VIBORG (4100grt) with gunfire north of Stenskaar.
The steamer escaped, but
was sunk by the next day
by Finnish submarine VESIKKO in 60-08N, 27-32E.
_____
Light cruisers AJAX
(Rawlings) and PHOEBE with destroyers JACKAL and
NIZAM departed Alexandria at 0100 on the 3rd arrived off
Syria later that day.
_____
Submarine UPHOLDER sank
Italian steamer LAURA
COSULICH (5870grt) in 37-55N, 15-44E, east of Calabria.
_____
Light cruiser PHOEBE,
Australian light cruiser PERTH, and destroyers KINGSTON,
HOTSPUR, and GRIFFIN swept off the Syrian coast.
Italian submarine
MALACHITE attacked Light cruiser
PHOEBE in 32-25N, 24-40E, without success.
_____
En route to Tobruk,
Australian destroyer STUART
sighted a submarine on the surface off Mersa Matruh.
Destroyer DEFENDER hunted
the submarine without
success, while destroyers STUART and VENDETTA continued
to Tobruk.
_____
Submarine OSIRIS arrived
at Malta with seventy tons of bulk petrol.
_____
Submarine UTMOST arrived
at Malta from patrol.
_____
Corvette COREOPSIS and
anti-submarine trawlers LADY
HOGARTH and LADY SHIRLEY departed Gibraltar to join
convoy OG.66. On joining, they relieved destroyers LANCE
and LEGION which
proceeded to Gibraltar.
_____
Convoy SL.80 departed
Freetown escorted by armed merchant cruisers ESPERANCE BAY
to 22 July and CANTON to 7 July,destroyer HIGHLANDER to
8 July,
corvettes AMARNTHUS and BERGAMOT to 11 July,
anti-submarine yacht SURPRISE to
9 July, and anti-submarine trawler CANNA to 11 July.
On the 23rd, destroyers
BROKE and WOLVERINE to 29
July and VERITY to 26 July after a collision with
destroyer BROKE and
corvettes HIBISCUS and PERIWINKLE to 29 July, joined the
convoy. The convoy
arrived at Liverpool on the 29th.
Friday,
4 July
Destroyer ESKIMO departed
Scapa Flow for Sheerness and refitting at London.
The destroyer arrived at
Sheerness at 1800 on the
8th.Her refit was completed in September.
_____
Minelayer PLOVER, escorted
by destroyer HAMBLEDON,
laid minefield BS 67, off the east coast of England.
_____
British trawler AKRANES
(T/Lt W.A.C. Harvey RNVR)
was sunk by German bombing off Bridlington
Bay.
There were no casualties
on the steamer.
_____
Convoy OG.67 departed
Liverpool escorted by destroyers CHELSEA and VERITY,
sloop
BIDEFORD, corvettes ARBUTUS, BEGONIA, CONVOLVULUS,
JASMINE, LARKSPUR, and RHODODENDRON,
ocean boarding vessel LADY SOMERS. The ocean boarding
vessel was detached
that evening. On the 5th, catapult ship PEGASUS and
corvette PIMPERNEL joined
the escort.
On the 9th, the destroyers
and corvettes ARBUTUS,
BEGONIA, CONVOLVULUS, JASMINE, and PIMPERNEL, and the
catapult ship were
detached.
Corvettes COREOPSIS from
Gibraltar and JONQUIL and SPIRAEA from convoy HG.67
joined
the escort on the 14th.Corvette SPIRAEA was detached on
the 15th to assist
ocean boarding vessel LADY SOMERS, which had been
torpedoed. The convoy
arrived at Gibraltar on the 20th, escorted by sloop
BIDEFORD,
anti-submarine trawler ARCTIC RANGER, corvettes JONQUIL
and COREOPSIS, Dutch
submarine O.24, and naval trawlers COPINSAY and ARRAN.
_____
British steamer BALFRON
(362grt) was sunk by German
bombing 3½ miles 38° from Ravescar. Four crew were
missing on the steamer.
_____
British steamer LUNAN
(363grt) was sunk on a mine
in 51-26-48N, 3-10-24W.
Five crew of a crew of six
were lost.
_____
Motor vessel GOLDFINCH
(454grt) was damaged by a
mine ten miles 273° from St Bees Head, Solway Firth.
The vessel was towed to
Whitehaven.
_____
U.69 sank British steamer
ROBERT L. HOLT (2918grt) at 24-15N, 20-00W.
Vice Admiral N.A.
Wodehouse, Commodore 2nd Class,
was lost in the steamer.
_____
U.123 sank British steamer
AUDITOR (5444grt) at
25-33N, 28-23W. One crewman was killed on the steamer.
_____
British troopship
CAMERONIA arrived at Gibraltar from Freetown.
Light cruiser HERMIONE
from raider hunting and
destroyers LANCE and LEGION from convoy OG.66 escort
arrived at Gibraltar.
Aircraft carrier FURIOUS
and troopships SCYTHIA and CAMERONIA departed Gibraltar for the Clyde, escorted by light cruiser HERMIONE and destroyers LANCE, LEGION,
WISHART, and FURY.
Light cruiser EDINBURGH
relieved light cruiser
HERMIONE after being detached from convoy WS.9B 3 July.
Light cruiser
HERMIONE proceeded to patrol duties. Destroyer FAULKNOR
was detached from
convoy OG.66 on the 5th to join aircraft carrier
FURIOUS. Destroyer WISHART
departed the escort on the 8th to refuel at Ponta
Delgada and then return to Gibraltar. On the 9th,
aircraft carrier FURIOUS rendezvoused
with battleship ROYAL SOVEREIGN and light cruiser
EDINBURGH was detached.
Light cruisers EDINBURGH and HERMIONE arrived at
Gibraltar on the 10th. Destroyers FAULKNOR and FURY
arrived
back at Gibraltar on the 14th.
Aircraft carrier FURIOUS
was bombed by three German
Focke Wulf aircraft in 36-28N, 10-51W on the 5th, but
was not damaged.
The aircraft carrier
arrived in the Clyde on the 12th with battleship ROYAL SOVEREIGN, steamers
SCYTHIA and CAMERONIA, carrying 188 prisoners of war, and destroyers PIORUN,
LANCE, and LEGION.
_____
Submarine
SEVERN arrived at Gibraltar
from patrol in the Tyrrhenian Sea.
_____
Submarine URGE arrived at
Malta from patrol.
_____
anti-submarine whaler GOS
3 departed Gibraltar for Freetown.
_____
Light cruisers NAIAD and
AJAX with destroyers JACKAL, NIZAM, KIMBERLEY, and
HAVOCK shelled French positions on the Syrian
coast.
_____
Ocean boarding vessel
CAVINA intercepted German
steamer FRANKFURT (5522grt), which had departed Rio de
Janiero on 26
June, in 31-34N, 37-42W.
Steamer FRANKFURT scuttled
herself. The vessel rescued twenty six survivors from
the steamer.Some twenty
crew members were missing.
_____
Submarine
TORBAY sank two
caiques with troops and stores with artillery off Doro
Channel.
_____
Heavy cruiser EXETER
arrived at Aden.
The cruiser operated from
Aden from 4 July until the end of September 1941 when
she docked at Colombo.
_____
Dutch steamer SIBAJAK
departed Durban with 800 personnel from convoy WS.8X.
The steamer
was escorted by light cruiser COLOMBO to 5-20S, 50E,
where the escort was relieved by
light cruiser MAURITIUS.
Light cruiser MAURITIUS
escorted to 4-25N, 86-50E where she was relieved
by light cruiser DURBAN.
The steamer arrived at
Singapore on the 19th.
Saturday,
5 July
Heavy cruiser SHROPSHIRE,
carrying 60 prisoners of war, arrived at Scapa Flow from
the East Indies to
join the Home Fleet.
_____
For Operation DN, Light
cruiser NIGERIA, anti-aircraft cruiser CURACOA, and
destroyers
BEDOUIN, PUNJABI, TARTAR, and ECLIPSE departed Scapa
Flow at 0630 to strike German shipping near
Stadtlandet.
The force was sighted by
German aircraft on 5/6
July. The ships then returned to Scapa Flow,
arriving at 1300 on the 8th.
_____
Destroyer JUPITER departed
Scapa Flow at 1700 for Greenock to carry out minor repairs prior to joining Western Approaches. The
destroyer was to have been in the escort for convoy
WS.9C, but repairs
required longer than expected. Destroyer LIGHTNING
replaced her in the convoy
escort.
_____
Dutch destroyer ISAAC
SWEERS arrived at Scapa Flow at 1900 from Greenock to carry out working up exercises.
_____
Anti-aircraft ship
ALYNBANK departed Methil at 1130
to cover convoy EC.41 from May Island to
Pentland Firth.
The ship arrived at Scapa
Flow at 1100 on the 8th after leaving convoy EC.41.
_____
Italian submarine MICHELE
BIANCHI was sunk by
Submarine TIGRIS in 45N, 04W in Biscay.
There were no survivors
from the Italian submarine.
_____
Auxiliary minesweeper
SNAEFELL (A/T/Lt Cdr F. Brett
RNR) was sunk by German bombing in 54-51N, 1-27W.
Brett was lost in the
minesweeper. T/Sub Lt F. Greenwood
RNVR, and T/Lt A.R.D. Morgan RNVR, were wounded.
_____
Destroyer HOLDERNESS
struck a mine in the North Sea.
The damage required twenty
six days to repair.
_____
Submarines TRAVELLER and
TROOPER, building at the
Scotts yard at Greenock, were damaged by German bombing.
The submarines were
damaged again on the 8th by
bombing.
_____
British steamer FOWEY ROSE
(470grt) was sunk by
German bombing in 51-51N, 5-28W.
Eight crew were missing on
the steamer.
_____
U.96 attacked a group of
ships composed of
surveying ship CHALLENGER, and British steamer ANSELM
(5954grt), carrying
troops and RAF personnel for Takoradi, escorted by
corvettes STARWORT,
LAVENDER, and PETUNIA.
These ships had departed
the Clyde on 30 June for Freetown.Corvette PETUNIA had departed
Londonderry on 30 June.
The submarine sank steamer
ANSELM in 44-25N,
28-35W. Four crew and about two hundred and fifty troops
were lost on the
steamer of a crew of 98 and 1210 troops. Ship CHALLENGER
rescued 970
survivors and corvette STARWORT 240. They were all later
transferred to armed
merchant cruiser CATHAY.
_____
anti-submarine trawler
NORTHERN FOAM sighted a
German submarine on the surface in 62-20N, 15-37E.
The submarine escaped at
high speed on the surface.
anti-submarine trawlers
NORTHERN PRINCESS and
NORTHERN SKY joined the hunt, but the submarine was not
recontacted.
_____
Latvian steamer RASMA
(3204grt) was damaged on a
mine laid by Finnish submarine VESIHIISI on 23 June
north of Ekholm.
The steamer was beached to
avoid sinking, but was
sunk by German motor torpedo boats S.26 and S.28 on the
10th.
_____
Swedish steamer STIG
GORTHON (2241grt) was sunk on
a mine off Borkum. The entire crew was rescued.
_____
British steamer
BENCRUACHEN (5920grt) was sunk ona
mine 9.8 cables 297° from Mex High Light. Three crew
were lost on the
steamer.
Motor yacht WYREEMA
(31grt) was lost when the
steamer was sunk.
_____
Light cruisers AJAX and
PERTH, anti-aircraft cruiser CARLISLE, and destroyers JACKAL, KINGSTON,
NIZAM, GRIFFIN, HAVOCK, and HOTSPUR, with air support,
bombarded
Damur.
A night sweep was
conducted by light cruiser PERTH, anti-aircraft cruiser
CARLISLE, and destroyers NIZAM and HAVOCK.
_____
Submarine
TORBAY sank
Italian submarine JANTINA south of Melos in 37-309N,
25-00E.
_____
Submarine
CLYDE returned to Gibraltar
after Operation VIGOROUS.
Sunday,
6 July
Convoy OB.343 departed
Liverpool, esoctetd by destroyers SABRE, SHIKARI, and
VENOMOUS, corvettes CLARKIA, DIANELLA, and KINGCUP, and
anti-submarine
trawlers LADY ELSA, MAN O.WAR, NORTHERN DAWN, and
WELLARD. This group,
less corvette CLARKIA, was detached on the 12th. On the
12th destroyer
HARVESTER, armed merchant cruiser AUSONIA, and corvettes
HEPATICA, PRIMROSE,
TRILLIUM, TULIP, and WINDFLOWER joined. The convoy was
dispersed on the 20th.
_____
P/T/A/Sub Lt (A) T. Duncan
RNVR, and Air Mechanic
B.E. Randle were killed when their Fulmar of 759
Squadron crashed near
Ilchester.
_____
British steam trawler
WESTFIELD (140grt) was sunk by German bombing off St
Govens
Head, near Lundy Island.
_____
Swedish steamer BIRGITTA
91363grt) was damaged by
German bombing in 53-05N, 1-19E.
The steamer was towed to
Great Yarmouth.
_____
British steamer NORTH
DEVON (3658grt) was damaged by German bombing in 53-03N,
1-38E, off Sheringham. Five crew were killed on the
steamer.
The steamer was towed to
Immingham.
_____
Light cruisers AJAX and
PERTH, anti-aircraft cruiser CARLISLE, and destroyers JACKAL, KINGSTON,
NIZAM, GRIFFIN, HAVOCK, and HOTSPUR (one of these
destroyers were
absent from the bombardment) bombarded Damur in support
of army operations.
A night sweep was
conducted by light cruisers NAIAD
and PHOEBE and destroyers KIMBERLEY and HASTY.
_____
Submarine TRIUMPH sank
Italian steamer NINFEA
(607grt) and escorting gunboat DE LUTTI off Benghazi.
In the encounter,
submarine TRIUMPH was hit by an
Italian shore battery shell and was forced to return to
Malta with damage to her forward torpedo tubes.
_____
Dutch submarine O.21
departed Gibraltar for patrol off Finisterre.
_____
Submarine P.33 arrived at
Malta from
Gibraltar.
_____
A Catalina aircraft
sighted a submarine on the
surface in 37-34N, 12-22W. Destroyers FEARLESS and
FORESTER with convoy OG.66
were ordered to that position, but did not make contact.
_____
Convoy HX.137 departed
Halifax, escorted by armed merchant cruiser CIRCASSIA
and corvettes DIANTHUS, SNOWBERRY, and SPIKENARD.
Convoy BHX.137 departed
Bermuda on the 4th escorted by ocean escort armed merchant cruiser
CHESHIRE. The convoy
rendezvoused with HX.137 on the 10th
and the armed merchant cruiser was detached.
Corvettes BARRIE and
MATAPEDIA joined on the 7th
and were detached on the 8th. On the 9th, destroyers
READING and SALISBURY, armed merchant cruiser CHESHIRE,
and corvette HONEYSUCKLE joined the
escort.Corvette HONEYSUCKLE and armed merchant cruiser
CHESHIRE was detached on the 10th. The escort was
detached
when relieved by destroyers AMAZON, BULLDOG, BURZA, and
GEORGETOWN, corvettes AUBRETIA and NIGELLA, and
anti-submarine trawlers DANEMAN and ST APOLLO. Destroyer
AMAZON was detached
later that day and the rest of the escort, less corvette
AUBRETIA on 21
August.Corvette AUBRETIA arrived with the convoy at
Liverpool on the 22nd.
_____
British troopship ELLEGNA
departed Madras for
Penang with
personnel and lorries, escorted by heavy cruiser
CANBERRA to 10N, 92E. Light cruiser DANAE relieved the
heavy cruiser. They arrived at Penang on the
10th.
Monday,
7 July
Aircraft carrier ARGUS
completed her refit at the Clyde.
The aircraft carrier was
allocated for deck landing
training duties.
_____
The Flag of the Rear
Admiral Commanding 10th
Cruiser Squadron was temporarily transferred to base
ship DUNLUCE
CASTLE.
On the 10th, the flag
returned to light cruiser NIGERIA.
_____
Destroyer HEYTHROP
departed Scapa Flow for Loch Alsh where she arrived at
1800.
_____
Convoy OB.344 departed
Liverpool, escorted by destroyers HESPERUS, SARONDYX, ST
FRANCIS, and WATCHMAN, catapult ship ARIGUANI, and
escort ships SENNEN,
TOTLAND, and WALNEY. The catapult ship and destroyer
SARDONYX were detached
on the 11th. The remainder of this section was detached
on the 16th.
Destroyers ASSINIBOINE and OTTWAW joined on the 15th and
were detached on
the 17th when the convoy was dispersed.
_____
Submarine SEALION, in
operations off Ushant, sank French fishing trawlers GUSTAV JEANNE (39grt) and GUSTAV EUGENE
(120grt) on the 7th.
On the 8th, the submarine
sank CHRISTUS REGNAT
(28grt) and on the 9th, ST PIERRE D'ALCANTARA (329grt).
_____
Polish submarine SOKOL
unsuccessfully attacked a
large transport in 46-41N, 20-30W.
_____
Admiralty hired drifter
LORD ST VINCENT (115grt,
Skipper J.S. Alexander RNR) was sunk by mining off North
East Gunfleet Buoy
in the Thames Estuary.
One rating was killed and
one rating died of wounds
in the drifter.
_____
Norwegian tanker FERNCOURT
(9918grt) was damaged by
German bombing in 51-50N, 5-29-30W.
Two gunners were lost on
the tanker.
The tanker returned to
Milford Haven and was docked
at Swansea.
_____
A Fulmar of 804 Squadron
was launched from catapult
ship PEGASUS to intercept a German FW 200 bomber. The
bomber was not located
and the Fulmar proceeded towards Algergove in bad
visibility.
Sub Lt T.R.V. Parke and
Leading Airman E.F. Miller
were killed when the aircraft crashed into Kerran Hill,
near Southend,
Kintyre.
_____
A Dominie aircraft of 782
Squadron crashed ferrying
passengers between Hatston and Donibristle. Petty
Officer W.C. Jones, 1st
Officer M.E.J. Dobson WRNS, Lt F.P. Tennyson of
EXCELLENT, and passengers 2nd
Lt J.L. Day RA, Mr.C.W. Young of Vickers Armstrong, and
Mr. T. McCabe were
all killed.
_____
US Marines landed at
Reykjavik, Iceland.
The landing force was
designated Task Force 19
(Rear Admiral David McC. Le Breton) and had departed
Argentia on the 1st.
Battleships NEW
YORK (Le Breton) and
ARKANSAS.
Light cruisers BROOKLYN and NASHVILLE.
Inner Screen:
Destroyer Squadron 7
Destroyer PLUNKETT
Destroyer Division 13
Destroyers NIBLACK,
BENSON, GLEAVES, and MAYO
Destroyer Division 14
Destroyers CHARLES F.
HUGHES, LANSDALE, HILARY P. JONES
Outer Screen:
Destroyer Division 60
Destroyers ELLIS,
BERNADOU, UPSHUR, LEA, and BUCK
Transport Force:
Transports WILLIAM P.
BIDDLE, FULLER, HEYWOOD, ORIZABA,
ARCTURUS, HAMUL,
SALAMONIE, and tug CHEROKEE
Following disembarkation,
the Task Force departed Iceland on the 12th and arrived
at Argentia on the 19th.
_____
German fishing vessel
NEUENFELDE (193grt) was sunk
on a mine near Kolberg.
_____
After a minelaying raid on
Haifa, Light cruisers NAIAD and PHOEBE and destroyers
JACKAL, HOTSPUR, NIZAM, and HAVOCK remained at sea off
the harbour.
Anti-aircraft ship
CARLISLE had to be towed clear of a suspected mine dropped near her.
_____
During the night of 7/8
July, motor torpedo boat MTB.68 entered Beirut harbour
twice and dropped depth
charges along two merchant ships along the mole.
_____
Italian light cruisers
ATTENDOLO and DUCA D'AOSTA
of the 7th Cruiser Squadron and BANDE NERE and DI
GIUSSANO of the 4th Cruiser
Squadron with destroyers PIGAFETTA, PESSAGNO, DA RECCO,
DA MOSTA, DA
VERAZZANO, MAESTRALE, GRECALE, and SCIROCCO laid mines
in the Sicilian
Channel.
_____
Destroyer AVON VALE
arrived at Gibraltar towing in a Catalina aircraft which
has forced
landed in the sea west of Gibraltar.
_____
Destroyer ERIDGE reported
sighting a U-boat in
34-46N, 9-47W. A Catalina aircraft was ordered to
assist.
Destroyers ERIDGE and
FARNDALE, which had departed
convoy OG.66, searched until the following day without
result.
Tuesday,
8 July
Australian destroyer
NESTOR departed Scapa Flow at 0900 to join destroyer
JUPITER at Greenock prior to proceeding to the
Mediterranean.
The destroyer arrived at
Greenock at 0400 on the 9th.
_____
Anti-aircraft ship CURACOA
departed Scapa Flow at 1200 to meet convoy EC.42 south
of Duncansby
Head to provide anti-aircraft protection.
At 2300, the ship
transferred to convoy WN.50 east
of Cape Wrath and escorted it to Methil where they
arrived at
0730 on the 10th.
_____
Lt Cdr A.J. Tillard, Lt
R.H. Furlong, and Lt Cdr W.
Thompson were killed when their Walrus of 778 Squadron
crashed off Arbroath.
_____
German fishing vessel JAN
HUBERT (460grt) was sunk
in a collision in southwest Norway.
_____
Convoy HG.67 departed
Gibraltar, escorted by sloop DEPTFORD, destroyers
FOXHOUND
and AVON VALE, corvettes JONQUIL, PETUNIA, and SPIRAEA,
catapult ship MAPLIN,
and Dutch submarine O.24.
Captured French steamer
CAP CANTIN proceeded to the UK in this convoy.
Destroyer FARNDALE and
corvette COREOPSIS departed Gibraltar on the 9th and
overtook the convoy.
Destroyers AVON VALE and
FARNDALE were detached on
the 12th. Early on the 13th, destroyer AVON VALE sighted
a submarine on the
surface in 35-20N, 16-35W near the convoy. The
destroyer, joined by destroyer
FARNDALE searched for the submarine without success.
On the 14th, the
corvettes, less PETUNIA, and the
submarine were detached to convoy OG.67.
On the 14th, the convoy
merged with convoy SL.79.
On the 19th, destroyers
CAMPBELTOWN, ST ALBANS, and WANDERER joined the convoy.
The convoy
arrived at Liverpool on the 24th.
_____
Ocean boarding vessel
MARSDALE arrived at Gibraltar from Western Patrol.
_____
Submarine
TORBAY sank German
steamers LXIV and LI east of Kithera with artillery.
_____
Dutch submarine O.21
arrived at Gibraltar from patrol.
_____
Submarine UPHOLDER arrived
at Malta from patrol.
_____
Heavy cruiser CORNWALL
collided with the wharf at Durban.
The cruiser's stem was
buckled.
Wednesday,
9 July
Minelayers AGAMEMNON,
MENETHEUS, and PORT QUEBEC, escorted by destroyers
CASTLETON, WELLS,
and HEYTHROP, laid minefield SN.67A of the Northern
Barrage.
On the 8th, light cruiser
NIGERIA and later on the same day battlecruiser REPULSE
departed Scapa Flow to cover the operation.
At 1130 on the 10th,
destroyer HEYTHROP was
detached and after collecting mails at Loch Alsh
proceeded to Scapa Flow, where she arrived at 2030.
Cruiser NIGERIA arrived
back at Scapa Flow on the 10th.
_____
Heavy cruiser SUFFOLK
arrived at Hvalfjord after Denmark Strait patrol.After
refuelling, the cruiser departed for Scapa Flow, where
she arrived on the 11th.
_____
Heavy cruiser DEVONSHIRE
departed
Scapa Flow for
Hvalfjord. En route, she intercepted Panamanian steamer
ST-CERGUE (4260grt)
in 63-28N, 7-55W and sent her to Skopenfjord under armed
guard. The cruiser
on the 10th at Hvalfjord.
The cruiser arrived back
at Scapa Flow on the 15th.
_____
Light cruisers AURORA,
ARETHUSA, and MANCHESTER departed Scapa Flow for the
Clyde to escort convoy WS.9C.
The cruisers arrived on
the 10th. Light cruiser
AURORA was replaced in the operation by cruiser
minelayer MANXMAN. The
cruiser arrived back at Scapa
Flow on the 13th.
_____
A German submarine was
reported by British aircraft
in 60-36N, 3-20W.
Polish destroyer KRAKOWIAK
and destroyer ECHO departed Scapa Flow at 2100
to search for the submarine.
The Polish destroyer was
later relieved by
Destroyer WINCHESTER, which departed Scapa Flow at 1200
on the 10th. The Polish destroyer arrived
at Scapa Flow at 0030 on the 11th.
The search was
unsuccessful.
Destroyers ECHO and
WINCHESTER arrived at Scapa Flow at 0840 on the 11th.
_____
British steam vessel BLUE
MERMAID (97grt) was lost on a mine, eight miles
185° from Clacton in 51-39-01N, 1-08-05E. Two crew were
lost on the
vessel.
_____
U.98 sank British steamer
DESIGNER (5945grt) in
42-59N, 31-40W.
Of a crew of seventy
seven, one lascars and one
gunner were rescued on the 10th in 42-59N, 31-40W. The
rest were lost.
_____
U.98 sank British steamer
INVERNESS (4897grt) in 42-46N, 32-45W.
Thirty six of a crew of
forty four were rescued.
_____
German minelayers
TANNENBERG, PREUSSEN, and
HANSESTADT DANZIG, returning from Finland to Swinemunde,
were sunk on the Swedish mine
barrage east of Oland.
_____
The Soviet 2nd Destroyer
Division with destroyers TASHKENT, BODRY, BOIKI,
BESPOSCHCHADNY, and BEZUPRECHNY
operated in the Fidonisi area in the Black Sea on a
shipping sweep, but did not make contact.
_____
Leaving Tobruk
Harbour, Destroyer DECOY and Australian destroyer STUART was damaged by near
misses from German bombing.
Both destroyers required
repair on their return to Alexandria.
Destroyer HERO replaced
destroyer DECOY in the
Tobruk operations.
_____
Destroyer NAPIER departed
Alexandria for Port Said to complete repairs on her
turbines.
_____
Submarine CACHALOT
departed Alexandria on a supply run to Malta, where she
safely arrived on the 16th.
_____
Submarine
TORBAY sank German
steamers LVI and LV and damaged L 12 with artillery and
scuttling
charges east of Kithera.
_____
French destroyers GUEPARD,
VALMY, and VAUQUELIN
departed Tripoli, Syria, for Salonika to pick
up troops transported there by rail from France.
These destroyers were able
to get within two
hundred miles of Syria when they were located by British
aircraft.
The French destroyers were
ordered to retire to Toulon, putting an end to the naval
phase of the Syria operations.
French sloop ELAN,
auxiliary tanker L'ADOUR
(4500grt), small tanker CYRUS (405grt), patrol vessels
DJEBEL SAMIN, JEAN
MIC, and MASSALIA,minesweepers AVOCETTE and LECID, tugs
MARIUS, CHAMBRUM, and
MARSEILLAISE, and trawler LA VAILLANTE were interned at
Iskanderun, Turkey.
Submarine CAIMAN proceeded
to Bizerte.
On 18 September, the last
of the interned ships had
been moved, under Turkish escort, to Mersin and Erdek.
Thursday,
10 July
Minelaying cruiser MANXMAN
departed Scapa Flow at 1900 after working up for
Greenock where she arrived at 0900 on the 11th.
The cruiser was to join
convoy WS.9C and replaced
light cruiser AURORA in the escort.
_____
Anti-aircraft ship CURACOA
departed Methil at 1500
to escort convoy EC.43 from May Island to
Pentland Firth.
The ship arrived at Scapa
Flow at 1800 on the 11th.
_____
Submarine TUNA
unsuccessfully attacked a submarine
in 46-00N, 09-40W.
_____
Motor boat CELANO (14grt),
being used as a tender
to diving ship TEDWORTH, was sunk on a mine one cable
100° from Number 1
Channel Buoy.
All six crew on the boat
were lost.
_____
British fishing trawler
ISABELLA FOWLIE (196grt)
was sunk by German bombing seven miles east, northeast
of Longstone. Three
crew were lost on the trawler.
_____
Norwegian steamer SVINT
(1174grt) was sunk by
German bombing seven miles northwest of Kellan Head,
Trevose. One crewman was
lost on the steamer.
_____
German destroyers HANS
LODY, KARL GALSTER, HERMANN SCHOEMANN, FRIEDRICH
ECKHOLDT, and RICHARD BEITZEN arrived at Kirkenes.
_____
The German 1st Motor
Torpedo Boat Flotilla with
S.28, S.26, S.101, S.40, and S.39 sortied to attack a
Soviet force in the Gulf of Finland near Ekholm.
No contact was made with
the Soviet force.
_____
Light cruiser EDINBURGH,
which had been with convoy
WS.9 B, and light cruiser HERMIONE arrived at Gibraltar.
Light cruiser EDINBURGH
was docked at Gibraltar the next day.
_____
Light cruiser AJAX and and
Australian light cruiser PERTH with four destroyers were
at sea off Syria during the night of 9/10 July in
support of the
Army.No contact was made during the patrol.
_____
Battleship VALIANT, light
cruiser LEANDER, and
destroyers were at sea from Alexandria exercising during
the day.
_____
Submarine
TORBAY damaged
Italian tanker STROMBO (5232grt) in 37-30N, 24-16E off
the Zea Canal.
The submarine was damaged
by escorting torpedo
boats CLIMENE and CALATAFIMI.
_____
Dutch submarine O.23
arrived at Gibraltar after in the Gulf of Genoa. The submarine was forced to depart the patrol area early on the 7th
because of a fuel leak.
_____
Submarine RORQUAL departed
Malta on patrol, but was forced to return with engine
defects at 2200.
_____
German steamer HERMES
(formerly KARNAK, 7209grt) was scuttled when intercepted by Armed merchant cruiser CANTON
three hundred miles northwest of St Paul.
Friday,
11 July
Destroyer ECLIPSE departed
Scapa Flow at 0700 providing escort for motor launches
ML.122, ML.124, ML.125, ML.128, ML.208, ML.210, ML.213,
ML.233 of the 4th
Motor Launch Flotilla proceeding to Skaalefjord and
thence to Reykjavik.
The force arrived at
Skaalefjord at 2300.
The destroyer and the
motor launches departed
Skaalefjord on the 13th for Reykjavik, where they
arrived at 1015 on the 15th. At 1800
on the same day, the destroyer departed to return to
Scapa Flow, arriving at 0530 on the 17th.
_____
Battleship NELSON,
escorted by destroyers
LIGHTNING, KRAKOWIAK, and KUJAWIAK departed Scapa Flow
at 0830 for the Clyde.
The ships arrived at
Greenock at 1054 on the 12th.
Destroyer KRAKOWIAK, which
had completed working up
practices proceeded to Plymouth
at 1500. Destroyer KUJAWIAK departed Greenock at 1430 for Scapa
Flow, arriving at 1130 on
the 13th.
Destroyer LIGHTNING
remained at Greenock to escort convoy WS.9C.
_____
Destroyer ICARUS, on
completion of repairs,
departed Ardrossan at 0500 escorting tanker MONTENOL to
Loch Alsh.
The destroyer then
proceeded to Scapa Flow where she arrived at 1000 on the
12th.
_____
Convoy OB.345 departed
Liverpool, escorted by destroyers ARROW, BULLDOG, and
GEORGETOWN, corvettes AUBRETIA and NIGELLA, and
anti-submarine trawler ST APOLLO. This group was
detached on the 16th. On the
16th, armed merchant cruiser CALIFORNIA, destroyers
CHESTERFIELD and CHURCHILL, and corvettes ARROWHEAD,
CAMELLIA,
and EYEBRIGHT joined. This group was detached on the
24th. The convoy arrived
at Halifax on the 26th.
_____
Motor vessel RIVER TRENT
(246grt) was damaged by a
mine in 53N, 1-15E.
The vessel was towed to
Great Yarmouth.
_____
During the night of 10/11
July, Light cruisers AJAX and PHOEBE with destroyers
JACKAL, GRIFFIN, KINGSTON, HASTY, and KIMBERLEY searched
the Syrian coast for French merchant
ships reported by air the previous day.
There was no contact and
the ships arrived back at Haifa at daylight.
At midnight on 11/12 July, the Army ceased hostilities with French forces in Syria.
_____
Destroyer DEFENDER and
Australian destroyer
VENDETTA, after carrying supplies to Tobruk, were bombed
by German aircraft
at 0520 in 31-45N, 25-51E.
Destroyer DEFENDER was
damaged. Destroyer VENDETTA
towed the damaged destroyer for a time before DEFENDER
sank seven miles north
of Sidi Barrani.
There was no loss of life
in the destroyer.Five
crew were wounded.
_____
Gunboat CRICKET, in tow of
tug ST ISSEY, and
gunboat GNAT, sailing on one engine, departed Alexandria
for docking at Port Said.
_____
Aircraft carrier ARK ROYAL
and light cruiser
HERMIONE departed Gibraltar to exercise in the
Mediterranean.
A Swordfish ditched during
the exercises and its
crew was picked up by destroyer FEARLESS.
_____
Submarines URSULA and P.33
departed Malta to intercept a convoy west of Lampedusa.
Submarine URSULA was
forced to return to Malta on the 12th with a defective
generator.
_____
anti-submarine trawlers
FANDANGO, MORRIS DANCE,
SARABANDE, SYRINGA, NORSE, and CORDELIA, escorting
British steamer PINZON
(1365grt), departed Gibraltar for Freetown, via
Bathurst.
_____
Convoy HX.138 departed
Halifax, escorted by destroyers ANNAPOLIS and CROIX and
armed merchant cruiser
AURANIA.Corvette RIMOUSKI joined on the 12th and sloop
LEITH and corvettes DAUPHIN and NAPANEE on the 13th. The corvettes were
detached on the 13th. The armed merchant cruiser was
detached on the 14th and
the destroyers on the 15th. Destroyers BROADWATER and
ST LAURENT and corvette
POLYANTHUS joined on the 15th and
destroyers BURWELL and RICHMOND
and corvette COBALt on the 16th. These escorts were
detached on the 23rd when
relieved by destroyers BEAGLE, BOADICEA, and ROXBOROUGH,
corvettes HEATHER,
ORCHIS, and PICOTEE, and anti-submarine trawlers ARAB,
LADY MADELEINE, and ST
LOMAN. The destroyers and corvette HEATHER were detached
on the 26th. The
convoy arrived at Liverpool on the 27th with the
remainder of the escort.
Saturday,
12 July
In a flying accident on
aircraft carrier VICTORIOUS
T/Sub Lt (A) J.B. Ganner RNVR, and Leading Airman L.
Powell in a Fulmar of
809 Squadron were killed.
_____
Anti-aircraft ship
ALYNBANK departed Scapa Flow at 0930 to cover convoy
WN.51 from the Pentland Firth to Tod Head where she
transferred to convoy EC.44.
In the Pentland Firth,
the ship left convoy EC.44 and arrived at Scapa Flow at
2100 on the 13th.
_____
Corvette ARBUTUS was in a
collision with British steamer
BLACKHEATH (4637grt) in 55-58N, 10-38W.
Corvette PIMPERNEL stood
by the damaged corvette.
Corvette ARBUTUS was
repaired at Liverpool completing on 19 August.
_____
Convoy OG.68 departed
Liverpool escorted by destroyers BATH and WALKER,
corvettes AZALEA, BLUEBELL, CAMPANULA, HYDRANGEA,
WALLFLOWER, and ZINNIA. The convoy was joined on the
13th by ocean boarding
vessels CAVINA and HILARY.
On the 14th, corvette
AZALEA was detached. On the
18th, the destroyers and the ocean boarding vessels were
detached.
Destroyer WISHART and
submarine CLYDE from convoy HG.68 joined the convoy on the 22nd.
On the 25th, the submarine
was diverted to patrol
in the vicinity of 40N, 15W. The convoy arrived at
Gibraltar on the 26th with the five corvettes.
_____
German destroyers HANS
LODY, KARL GALSTER, HERMANN SCHOEMANN, FRIEDRICH
ECKHOLDT, and RICHARD BEITZEN swept off the Kola coast.
Destroyers LODY, GALSTER,
and ECKHOLDT encountered
a Soviet convoy near Cape Teriberski.
Patrol ship PASSAT and
auxiliary patrol ship RT 67
(trawler MOLOTOV) were sunk. Auxiliary patrol ship RT 32
was able to escape.
The other two destroyers
off Iokanga found no
targets.
_____
Soviet destroyers BDITELNY
was badly damaged and KHARKOV was slightly damaged in a
German air attack on
Sevastapool.
_____
Australian light cruiser
HOBART arrived at Suez from Australia to join the
Mediterranean Fleet.
The cruiser could not
immediately be passed through
the canal due to mining.
The light cruiser and
destroyer KIPLING, following
repairs at Suez, were able to proceed through the Suez
Canal on the 16th.
_____
Submarine RORQUAL departed
Malta for Alexandria and arrived on the 20th.
Among the items brought to
Alexandria was a new stem piece, forged at Malta, for
anti-aircraft ship COVENTRY.
_____
Submarine TRIUMPH arrived
at Malta for damage repairs incurred in patrol off
Benghazi.
_____
Dutch steamer ALPHARD
(5483grt) was damaged by
German bombing at Port
Said. Four
crew were lost on the steamer.
_____
Greek steamer PATRIA
(1977grt) was sunk by German
bombing at Port
Said.
The steamer was raised and
restored to service
after the war.
_____
Battlecruiser RENOWN
departed Gibraltar and joined aircraft carrier ARK ROYAL
and light
cruiser HERMIONE for exercises.
The three ships arrived
back at Gibraltar later that day.
_____
Submarine OTUS departed
Gibraltar, carrying stores, for Malta, arriving on the
20th.
_____
Heavy cruiser LONDON
arrived at Gibraltar from Freetown.
_____
Convoy SC.37 departed
Sydney, CB, escorted by corvettes BARRIE, CHICOUTIMI,
and MATAPEDIA. Armed merchant cruiser AURANIA
joined the next day and was detached on the 14th. The
three corvettes were
detached on the 15th. On the 15th, destroyers BURWELL
and RICHMOND and corvettes COBALt and POLYANTHUS joined.
These
were detached on the 23rd, when relieved by destroyers
LEAMINGTON and SALADIN, corvettes ABELIA and ANEMONE,
and
anti-submarine trawlers ST ELSTAN and ST ZENO. Destroyer
DOUGLAS joined on
the 24th.Corvette ANEMONE was detached on the 26th,
destroyers DOUGLAS, LEAMINGTON, SALADIN, and SKATE, and
trawler ST ZENO on the
27th.Corvette ABELIA and trawler ST ELSTAN arrived with
the convoy in the Clyde on the 28th.
Sunday,
13 July
Convoy WS.9C formed at sea
from ships sailing from
Avonmouth, Liverpool, and the Clyde. This convoy
was primarily the SUBSTANCE convoy for Malta.
The Clyde section
escorted by light cruisers ARETHUSA and the Dutch
HEEMSKERK departed on the
10th. The convoy consisted of battleship NELSON, light
cruisers MANCHESTER, ARETHUSA, and HEEMSKERK, cruiser
minelayer
MANXMAN, and steamers DEUCALION, AVILA STAR, LEINSTER,
PORT
CHALMERS, PASTEUR, MELBOURNE STAR, DURHAM, SYDNEY STAR, and
CITY OF PRETORIA.
Destroyer WINCHELSEA
escorted the convoy on the
12th.
Sloop STORK escorted the
Avonmouth section and
remained with the convoy until 13 July.
Light cruiser HEEMSKERK
and destroyers GURKHA, GARLAND, VANOC, and WANDERER
escorted the convoy from 12
to 15 July.
Battleship NELSON, light
cruisers MANCHESTER and ARETHUSA, and destroyers
COSSACK, MAORI, SIKH,
NESTOR, and LIGHTNING escorted the convoy from 12 to 17
July.
Liner PASTEUR was detached
to Gibraltar on the 17th escorted light cruiser
MANCHESTER and destroyers NESTOR and LIGHTNING.
Liner LEINSTER was
detached to Gibraltar escorted by destroyers COSSACK,
SIKH, and MAORI.
Cruiser minelayer MANXMAN
escorted the convoy from
15 to 16 July.
Steamer AVILA STAR was
detached as an independent on the 16th.
Destroyers FEARLESS,
FOXHOUND,FURY, FORESIGHT, and
FORESTER departed Gibraltar on the 14th and joined the
convoy on the 18th.
Destroyer FIREDRAKE departed Gibraltar the next day and
joined the destroyers at sea.
They remained with the convoy until arrival on the 20th.
Light cruiser
EDINBURGH joined the convoy on the 20th and arrived with
it at Gibraltar. The convoy arrived at Gibraltar on the
20th.
_____
Anti-aircraft ship
POZARICA arrived at Scapa Flow at 1200 from Chatham to
carry out working up exercises.
_____
British steamer COLLINGDOC
(1780grt) was sunk on a
mine four cables 200° from Southend Pier. Two crew were
lost on the steamer.
The steamer was refloated
on the 21st and towed to Gravesend. The steamer was
converted to a hulk and towed to
Rosyth.
_____
British steamer SCORTON
(4813grt) was damaged by
German bombing two miles west of 57C Buoy, near Smiths
Knoll.
The steamer arrived in tow
at Immingham.
_____
Submarine TAKU sank
Italian steamer CALDEA
(2703grt), en route from Brindisi
to Benghazi, ten miles 312° from Benghazi.
Torpedo boat MONTANARI
from Tripoli was escorting the steamer, but was unable
to
damage the submarine.
_____
Returning from a supply
run to Tobruk, Destroyer
DECOY sighted a submarine off Bardia.After an
unsuccessful attack, due to the
threat of air attack, the destroyer proceeded to
Alexandria. Destroyer VOYAGER, in company, was reduced
to
seventeen knots due to a mechanical defect.
_____
British tanker PEGASUS
(3597grt) was sunk on a
British mine at Beirut.
Monday,
14 July
Heavy cruiser BERWICK
departed Scapa Flow for turbine repairs at Rosyth.
En route, the cruiser
experienced further engine
defects.
Destroyer TARTAR departed
Scapa Flow at 0500 and destroyer HEYTHROP at 0600 to
join the
cruiser. En route, destroyer HEYTHROP was recalled and
arrived back at Scapa Flow at 0030 on the 15th.
The cruiser was safely
escorted to Rosyth by
destroyer TARTAR, which arrived back at Scapa Flow at
0900 on the 15th.
_____
Destroyer WELLS arrived at
Scapa Flow at 2000 from Loch Alsh to carry out a short
program of practices.
_____
Anti-aircraft ship CURACOA
departed Scapa Flow at 0900 to carry out exercises in
Pentland Firth and then join convoy WN.52 off Duncansby
Head. The
convoy was taken to Methil, arriving at 1100 on the
15th.
_____
British cruiser minelayer
ADVENTURE departed Scapa Flow for Loch Alsh, where she
arrived that evening.
_____
Convoy OB.346 departed
Liverpool, escorted by sloop WELLINGTON, corvettes
CLOVER and VERVAIN, and escort ships
CULVER and LANDGUARD. On the 15th, destroyers ST ALBANS
and WESTCOTT, catapult ship MAPLIN, and corvettes
AURICULA, HIBISCUS, MARIGOLD, and PERWINKLE joined.
Destroyers ST ALBANS and
WESTCOTT were detached on the 18th, corvettes AURICULA
and MARIGOLD on the
20th, corvettes HIBISCUS and PERWINKLE on the 21st,
corvettes CLOVER and
VERVAIN on the 23rd, and catapult ship MAPLIN on the
28th. On the 31st,
destroyer WRESTLER, sloop BRIDGEWATER, and corvettes AMARANTHUS and BERGAMOT joined the convoy which
arrived at Freetown
on 1 August.
_____
A Swordfish of 821
Squadron crashed at Ballantrae,
en route from detling-Prestwick to Hatston. T/A/Sub Lt
(A) S.F.J. Wood RNVR,
Leading Airman F.B. Bavidige, and passenger Air
Mechanician M. Robinson were
killed.
_____
Swedish steamer ASPEN
(1305grt) was sunk by German bombing forty five
miles from Rotterdam. Two crew were missing on the
steamer.
_____
Italian submarine MOROSONI
sank British steamer
RUPERT DE LARRINAGA (5358grt), from dispersed convoy
OG.67, in 36-18N,
21-11W.
Forty four survivors were
picked up by Spanish
tanker CAMPECHE (6382grt).
_____
Italian submarine
MALASPINA sank Greek steamer
NIKOKLIS (3576grt), from dispersed convoy OG.67, 105
miles southwest of the Azores.
Seventeen crew were lost
on the steamer.
_____
The German 1st Motor
Torpedo Boat Flotilla with
S.28, S.27, S.40, S.101, and S.26 attacked a Soviet
convoy near Ekholm
without success.
_____
Light cruisers NAIAD and
PHOEBE, Australian light
cruiser PERTH, and destroyers GRIFFIN, HAVOCK,
KIMBERLEY, and HOTSPUR departed Haifa at 1800 to return
to Alexandria, arriving on the 15th.
British cruiser AJAX and
destroyers JACKAL, NIZAM, HASTY, and KINGSTON remained
on station on the Syrian coast and
anti-aircraft ship CARLISLE remained at Beirut.
_____
During the night of 14/15
July, Destroyer HERO and
Australian destroyer VENDETTA ran supplies to Tobruk.
Destroyer VENDETTA was
holed while alongside, but
was able to return to Alexandria after temporary repairs at Mersa Matruh.
_____
Submarine OSIRIS damaged
Italian steamer CAPO
D'ORSO (5293grt) in 36-27N, 11-54E.
_____
A German-Italian convoy of
steamers RIALTO
(6099grt), ANDREA GRITTI (6338grt), SEBASTINO VENIER
(6311grt), BARBARIGO
(5293grt), and ANKARA (4768grt) departed Tripoli for
Naples escorted by
destroyers MALOCELLO, FUCLIERE, and ALPINO and torpedo
boats PROCIONE,
PEGASO, and ORSA.
Submarine
UNION departed Malta at 0100 to
intercept a convoy south of
Pantellaria.
Swordfish aircraft
departed Malta on 14 and 15 July to attack this convoy,
but no
contact was made.
Submarine P.33 sank
steamer BARBARIGO on the 15th
eight miles south of Pantelleria in 36-27N, 11-54E.
The submarine sustained
hull damage from heavy
depth charging. The convoy arrived at Naples on the
16th.Submarine P.33 arrived at Malta for repairs on the
16th.
_____
British troopship GEORGIC
of convoy WS.9 A was
bombed by German bombers in Suez Bay.
The troopship was set afire and drifted to the beach,
fouling and slightly
damaging landing ship GLENEARN en route.
Twenty six on the
troopship were killed.
Australian light cruiser
HOBART was able to later
pass a line to landing ship GLENEARN towing her free.
Troopship GLENEARN
departed Suez for Bombay on 1 August in the tow of
British steamer CITY OF KIMBERLEY
(6169grt).
The troopship was salved
in November and towed to
Bombay. Troopship GEORGIC arrived in UK 1 March 1943 for
repairs.
_____
Destroyers FEARLESS,
FOXHOUND, FURY, FORESIGHT, and
FORESTER departed Gibraltar at 1746 to meet convoy
WS.9C, arriving from the UK.
_____
Sloop SCARBOROUGH and
corvette GERANIUM departed Gibraltar for exercises in
the Atlantic. SCARBOROUGH returned to
Gibraltar to escort convoy HG.68 departing Gibraltar on
the 18th, while GERANIUM arrived back at Gibraltar on
the 18th, escorting British oiler HORNSHELL.
