CONVOY BATTLES

Wairarapa Times-Age, 26 September 1942, Page 3

CONVOY BATTLES

ON THE ARCTIC ROUTE TO RUSSIA AT LEAST TWO U-BOATS SUNK HURRICANES FROM CARRIER PLAY GREAT PART. TWO ESCORT CRAFT LOST ON RETURN JOURNEY. LONDON, September 25. A story of fortitude and gallantry is told by the Admiralty about the latest exploit in taking supplies to Russia in one of the biggest convoys ever to go there. The convoy comprised British. American and Russian ships and the great majority of them reached port For four days the convoy was subjected to repeated attacks by dive-bombers and U-boats and the enemy also laid minefields in the path of the convoy The battle began on September 12. Hurricanes from an aircraft carrier played a big part in beating oil' the enemy's air attacks. An aircraft-carrier was singled out for attack on one day of the engagements, but came out unscathed from a shower of bombs and 17 torpedoes. On the return journey the escort ships were again attacked and a mine-sweeper and. the destroyer Somali were lost, both by torpedoes. The destroyer was taken in tow, but broke in two in rough weather. Two U-boats were certainly sunk and at least four were severely damaged.

HEAVY TOLL TAKEN OF NAZI TORPEDO PLANES. FIFTY TO SIXTY DESTROYED. LONDON, September '24. Admiral E. K. Boddam Whetham, who is the commodore of the British, American and Russian ships which recently arrived in north Russia, estimates that British fighters and anti-aircraft batteries destroyed 50 to 60 enemy torpedocarriers, says the Moscow correspondent of ‘'The Times.” The Germans lost so heavily in the early stages of the eight-day battle that the violence of the attack diminished. The convoy was never scattered. Torpedocarrying planes 50 strong attacked several times a day, and dive-bombing and machinegunning by low-flying planes riddled the ships' bridges. There were simultaneously shoals of German submarines about, many of them surfacing 10 miles distant. Russian destroyers and Hurricanes came out to meet the convoy as it neared port. ADMIRALTY REPORT GALLANTRY OF NAVAL AIRMEN ' (British Official Wireless.) (Received This Day, 10.35 a.m.) RUGBY, September 25. An Admiralty report states that during the passage of the convoy to Russia the enemy was able to attack it for many days from bases conveniently situated along the flank of its route. Attempts to destroy the convoy began on September 12 and in the early phases of the battle one U-boat probably was seriously damaged. Air attacks began on the following day, with high-level bombing and mining of the waters ahead of the convoy, followed by an attack by 40 to 50 tor-pedo-carriers, * who flew towards the convoy in line abreast, in close formation. Our carrier-borne fighters, which are “Sea Hurricanes,” a modification of the standard Hurricane type, and the intense fire put up by all the ships, destroyed five enemy aircraft, which were seen to crash into the sea, and probably destroyed and damaged many others. Two more seen to crash in a further attack that day and another six at dusk, out of twelve attacking, made the total for the day thirteen enemy torpedo-carriers destroyed. Next day U-boats returned to the attack and as a result of our counterattacks oil, the wreckage of wooden gratings and green vegetables came to the surface. Torpedo-carriers also returned, and; clearly disliking our naval fighters, selected an aircraft-car-rier as their main target, but she was not hit. At least 24 enemy aircraft were destroyed on this day, September 14, while Admiral Burnett (in command of the convoy escort) in his report, says: “I can never forget the reckless gallantry of our naval fighter pilots in their determination to get among the enemy, despite a solid mass of defensive fire of every type.”

On September 15, the convoy was subjected for three hour's to high and low level bombing by from 50 to 70 planes. Low clouds prevented the confirmation of enemy losses, but the attacks were beaten off and the convoy was again saved. On this day another U,-boat was almost certainly sunk.

The enemy's last attack on this convoy was by 24 dive-bombers, shortly before it reached its destination. No damage was caused, but two enemy aircraft were shot down. It seemed as if the Luftwaffe had then had enough, for the returning convoy was not attacked from the air, the enemy confining his depredations to U-boats. The commodore of this returning convoy was Commodore J. C. K. Dowding.