CONVOY LOSSES

Wairarapa Times-Age, 26 March 1943, Page 4

CONVOY LOSSES

INFORMATION WITHHELD FROM GERMANS STATEMENT BY MR CHURCHILL. INCREASE IN ALLIED FLEETS. LONDON, March 25. Answering a question in the House of Commons about the losses in recent Atlantic convoys, Mr Churchill said that all sorts of claims were made by the Germans, who would very much like to know how badly astray they were. He,.was not going to give them that satisfaction. He would say, however, that .the United Nations had afloat today substantially larger fleets than at the worst period of the U-boat war, and this improvement was continuing. , VALUE OF PLANES

URGED BY LORD HANKEY. POLICY OF THE.ADMIRALTY. ® (British Official Wireless.) RUGBY, March 24. The war at sea was debated in the House of Lords today on a motion by Lord Strabolgi. Lord Hankey, who was for many years secretary of the Committee of Imperial Defence, said: “We have had our ups and downs, but, broadly speaking, at the end of each year we are worse off than at. the beginning of the year. I fear we have not looked ahead enough in the past year 'and the enemy will continue one lap ahead. I am afraid escort ships cannot affect the position in 1943. The only way we can affect the position is by planes.” Lord Hankey said that shipping losses in December, January and February were reported to be lower. “But during March,” he added, “there were some very uncomfortable stories. The Germans made some very large claims. I know these -were exaggerated, but they were rathef confirmed by an official’s statement from America:” Lord Hankey advocated a whole-time Minister of Anti-U-Boat Warfare. A number of criticisms and suggestions were answered by the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty. Lord Bruntisfield, who, replying for the Government, said that for the purpose of-combating the U-boat menace there was the highest priority for the Admiralty. Merchant and naval shipbuilding had priority, and the naval programme provided for the construction of naval vessels on a priority basis. The number of long-range heavy aircraft for the use of the Navy was steadily increasing, but the mere provision of aircraft was by no means the whole story. The aircraft had to be equipped with anti-submarine devices and the crews had to be trained for special work and bases constructed. The whole matter, he added, was being treated with the utmost urgency. The Director -of War Information, Mr Elmer Davis, at a Press conference in Washington today said that two Allied convoys which were attacked in the Atlantic last week did suffer some losses, but the German claims were fantastic. Mr Davis warned, however, that increasingly serious losses might be expected.

A special Berlin communique last weekend claimed that U-boats in the North Atlantic sank 32 merchant ships, totalling 204,000 tons.