NEW TACTICS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 4 October 1943, Page 3

NEW TACTICS

ADOPTED BY U=BOATS BATTLE OF THE ATLANTIC RESUMED. RAIDERS ORGANISED AS FLEET (By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright) ' ST. JOHNS (Newfoundland). • October 3. Tt is now estimated that five merchant men. in addition to three warships, were sunk, 200 naval men and merchant seamen were killed and 300 survived in the three-clay northAtlantic battle.

Survivors said there were 70 ships in the two convoys which were first attacked three days out from Britain. The U-boats stalked the convoys in daytime and struck at night-time. The convoys merged on September 21, slowing the passage, but the escort strength was increased to 18 vessels. A Norwegian first mate, who has now survived six torpedoings, said he saw more U-boats on the voyage than ever before in one place, but our aircraft and naval protection kept them off till the weather was favourable for the Germans.

An Ottawa message quotes an Associated Press of Great Britain correspondent as saying that the action marked the re-opening of the Battle of the Atlantic after a four months’ respite. British, American and Norwegian survivors said the U-boat pack followed two Canada-bound convoys like a pack of sharks for 10 days till almost in sight of the coast. The opinion is expressed that the enemy used new and more deadly torpedoes, sinking one ship within a minute and another in four minutes. The three warships lost were the St. Croix, Itchen and Polyanthus. Photographic records of the battle disclose that the U-boat packs were organised in the same manner as surface fleets with vessels designed for special jobs. As an example, at least one Üboat is shown with 10 anti-aircraft and other guns firing from her deck. This U-boat is believed to be specially fitted for defending a fleet from planes. Future enemy tactics, it is believed, will be confined to such concentrated attacks.

Naval authorities described Germany’s new type of torpedo as combining magnetic guidance with acoustic detonation, and said that a torpedo fired at a ship from astern overtakes the vessel and explodes within radius of the propeller. Vibration totally disabled the ship, and with her propeller gone she was then an easy target for a point-blank torpedo. Reports from Maceio, Brazil, state that a U-boat twice torpedoed the 5000ton Brazilian passenger ship, Ipapage, which sank within four minutes off Coruripe Point on September 26. Its commander, Antonia Barra, said he tried to beach the ship after sighting the U-boat, which machine-gunned passengers and crew in lifeboats. Eighty wounded were taken to hospital. Six passengers and 19 of the crew are missing.