TOLL OF SHIPPING

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 4, Issue 169, 17 October 1941, Page 3

TOLL OF SHIPPING

SURVEY OF LOSSES

HEAVY DECREASE RECENTLY

The following table gi.ves a comprehensive survey of merchant shipping losses—.British, Allied and neutral, from the beginning of the war to the end of June of this year, when publication of the figures Avas discontinued : British, Allied and Neutral

The Battle of the Atlantic —and ;)f the other oceans —is not vet won. [t "will continue as long as the war lasts and the enemy can operate hi-'-' U-boats, raiders and aircraft. Yet during the last three months a very great and important victory has been won at sea, by the Royal Navy. Mr Churchill announced recently that losses caused by enemy action to British, Allied and neutral merchant ships in J u 1 y - All g us t- S e p t e m be r were onls' one-third of those lor the prefious three months, despite the operation by the Germans of ever larger forces of U-boats and longrange aircraft against shipping. Onethird of the April-May-June losses gives a figure or less than .>OO,OOO tons for the last three months. Put another way, nearly 1,000,000 tens

of merchant shipping was saved from destruction during the quarter.

The importance of Mr Churchill's statement can be guaged by a study of the official figures. Merchant shipping losses during the quarter April-May-June totalled 1,416,410 tons. One-third of this figure gives 472,138 tons as the total loss for the July-August-September quarter. This works out at an average' of 157,279 tons a month, which is easily the lowest monthly figure since March. 1940.

Ships. Tonnage Average, Sept., 19393Uay, 1940 — 182,400 rune, 1940 128 5313,902 July 104 400,353 August 88 387,471 September 93 439,637 October 0(5 423,(51(5 November 87 372,017 December 74 325,(51(5 January, 1941 59 309,73) February 89 350,384 March 124 515,763 April 135 589,273 May ..104 497,847 June 79 329,29(1 Thirteen months .. 1260 5,476,006 Average, June, 1940Junc, 1941 97 421,230 Average, July-Aug-Sept., 1941 — 157,380