Convoy ON 166

Convoy ON 166
Part of Battle of the Atlantic
A depth charge being loaded onto a depth-charge thrower aboard the corvette HMS Dianthus
Date 20–25 February 1943 Location North Atlantic Result German tactical victory
Belligerents
United Kingdom   United States   Canada Poland	Germany
Commanders and leaders
CAPT W E B Magee RN CAPT P.R. Heineman USN	Admiral Karl Dönitz
Strength
63 freighters 1 destroyer 2 cutters 5 corvettes	18 submarines
Casualties and losses
14 freighters sunk (87,994 GRT) 262 killed/drowned	3 submarines sunk 128 killed/drowned 11 captured

Convoy ON 166 was the 166th of the numbered ON series of merchant ship convoys Outbound from the British Isles to North America. Sixty-three ships departed Liverpool 11 February 1943 and were met the following day by Mid-Ocean Escort Force Group A-3 consisting of the Treasury-class cutters Campbell and Spencer and the Flower-class corvettes Dianthus, Chilliwack, Rosthern, Trillium and Dauphin. The convoy suffered losses before arriving at New York City, US.

Background

As western Atlantic coastal convoys brought an end to the Germans' "second happy time", Admiral Karl Dönitz, the Befehlshaber der U-Boote (BdU) or commander in chief of U-Boats, shifted focus to the mid-Atlantic to avoid aircraft patrols. Although convoy routing was less predictable in the mid-ocean, Dönitz anticipated that the increased numbers of U-boats being produced would be able to effectively search for convoys with the advantage of intelligence gained through B-Dienst decryption of British Naval Cypher Number 3. ^[1] However, only 20 percent of the 180 trans-Atlantic convoys sailing from the end of July 1942 until the end of April 1943 lost ships to U-boat attack. ^[2]

21 February

On 20 February U-604 sighted the convoy scattered by sailing eight days in a northwesterly gale. U-332 torpedoed the straggling Norwegian Stigstad on the morning of 21 February. U-623 was sunk by a No. 120 Squadron RAF B-24 Liberator that afternoon, and Campbell sank a U-boat that evening. Postwar analysis concluded that Campbell sank U-225, ^[3] but later re-evaluation indicated that the attack may have destroyed U-529. ^[4]

U-92 torpedoed the British Empire Trader at 2032 and the Norwegian NT Nielsen Alonso at 0153 on the night of February 21–22. Both ships were hit by a single torpedo on the port side, flooding the forward hold, and boiler room, respectively. ^[5] ORP Burza from the following convoy ONS 167 was ordered to reinforce the convoy escort.

22 February

U-606 torpedoed the British Empire Redshank and American Chattanooga City and Expositor after sunset 22 February, but was damaged by depth charges from the recently arrived Burza. Campbell was disabled in a collision with U-606. Twelve men were rescued from the crew of the sinking U-boat. Burza left the convoy to tow Campbell back to port. The convoy rescue ship Stockport was sunk by U-604 while returning to the convoy after rescuing men from the three ships torpedoed by U-606. ^[6]

23 February

U-628 torpedoed the Panamanian Winkler at 0420 and Norwegian Glittre at 0425. U-186 torpedoed the American Hastings about 0430 and British Eulima at 0458 on 23 February. ^[5] Spencer, Rosthern and Chilliwack remained with the convoy and Dianthus left to refuel. ^[7]

24 February

U-600 torpedoed the Norwegian Ingria at 0520 before dawn on 24 February. ^[5] U-653 torpedoed the straggling American Liberty ship Jonathan Sturges.

25 February

U-628 hit the British Manchester Merchant with two torpedoes on the starboard side at 0527 before dawn 25 February. ^{[5] [8]}

Aftermath

The U-boats discontinued the attack on 26 February. The surviving ships in the convoy were joined by Empire Cavalier from Halifax, Nova Scotia on 28 February with escorts New Westminster, Blairmore and Rimouski. ^[9] They reached New York City on 3 March 1943. ^[10]

Ships in convoy

Name [11]	Flag [11]	Dead [7]	Tonnage [11]	Cargo [7]	Notes [11]
Amastra (1935)			8,031 gross register tons (GRT)
Aruba (1929)			3,979 GRT	general cargo
Beauregard (1920)			5,976 GRT		returned to England
Brasil (1935)			8,130 GRT
Charles H Cramp (1920)			6,220 GRT		straggled 1 March [5]
Chattanooga City (1921)		0	5,687 GRT	(in ballast)	sunk by U-606 22 Feb
City of Canberra (1927)			7,484 GRT		carried convoy commodore Capt W E B Magee DSO RN
Delilian (1923)			6,423 GRT
Edward Rutledge (1942)			7,177 GRT	16 passengers	Liberty ship; returned to England
El Almirante (1917)			5,248 GRT		returned to England
El Coston (1924)			7,286 GRT		joined from Iceland 16 Feb but returned to Iceland when leaking condenser caused water shortage [5]
El Oceano (1925)			6,767 GRT
Empire Cato (1942)			7,039 GRT		returned to England
Empire Cavalier (1942)			9,891 GRT		joined Halifax to New York; survived this convoy and convoy HX 229
Empire Chivalry (1937)			6,007 GRT
Empire Confidence (1935)			5,023 GRT
Empire Redshank (1919)		0	6,615 GRT	(in ballast)	torpedoed by U-606 & scuttled by escort 22 Feb
Empire Trader (1908)		0	9,990 GRT	985 tons chemicals	veteran of convoy HX 79; torpedoed by U-92 & scuttled by escort 23 Feb
Empire Wordsworth (1942)			9,891 GRT
Eulima (1937)		63	6,207 GRT	(in ballast)	sunk by U-186 23 February
Exilona (1919)			4,971 GRT
Expositor (1919)		6	4,959 GRT	(in ballast)	sunk by U-606 & U-303
Fort Thompson (1942)			7,134 GRT	coal
Fort Vermillion (1942)			7,133 GRT
Franz Klasen (1932)			1,194 GRT
Gateway City (1920)			5,432 GRT		veteran of convoy PQ 18
George W McKnight (1933)			2,502 GRT
Glittre (1928)		3	6,402 GRT	(in ballast)	veteran of convoy ON 67; acting as escort oiler; sunk by U-628 & U-603 23 Feb
Gyda (1934)			1,695 GRT	general cargo	straggled and lost following 24 Feb collision with Fort Thompson [5]
Hastings (1920)		9	5,401 GRT	(in ballast)	sunk by U-186 23 Feb
Ingria (1931)		0	4,391 GRT	(in ballast)	sunk by U-600 & U-628 24 Feb
Jonathan Sturges (1942)		56	7,176 GRT	(in ballast)	Liberty ship straggled & sunk by U-653 24 Feb [5]
Kaipaki (1939)			5,862 GRT
Lechistan (1929)			1,937 GRT	general cargo	straggled 20 Feb [5]
Lochmonar (1924)			9,412 GRT	28 passengers	ship's master was convoy vice commodore
Madoera (1922)			9,382 GRT		straggled 24 Feb & damaged by U-653 [5]
Manchester Merchant (1940)		36	7,264 GRT	(in ballast)	sunk by U-628 25 Feb
Mark Twain (1942)			7,176 GRT		Liberty ship straggled with steering failure
Markay (1942)			10,342 GRT		joined from Iceland 16 Feb; romped 23 Feb
Molda (1937)			5,137 GRT	general cargo
N T Nielsen-Alonso (1900)		3	9,348 GRT	(in ballast)	sunk by U-92 & U-753 22 Feb
Pacific Exporter (1928)			6,734 GRT
Pacific Grove (1928)			7,117 GRT
Pan-Maine (1936)			7,237 GRT
Pan-Maryland (1938)			7,701 GRT
Samuel Chase (1942)			7,191 GRT		Liberty ship veteran of convoy PQ 17
Skandinavia (1940)			10,044 GRT		veteran of convoy ON 67
Stigstad (1927)		3	5,964 GRT	(in ballast)	straggled & sunk by U-332 & U-603 21 Feb [5]
Stockport (1911)		63	1,683 GRT	(rescued crewmen of sunken ships)	rescue ship; sunk by U-604 while rescuing survivors
Tai Shan (1929)			6,962 GRT	12 passengers
Thomas B Robertson (1942)			7,176 GRT		Liberty ship romped & arrived New York 28 Feb
Thomas Hooker (1942)			7,176 GRT		Liberty ship returned to England
Tortuguero (1921)			5,285 GRT
Tropic Star (1926)			5,088 GRT
Wind Rush (1918)			5,586 GRT
Winkler (1930)		20	6,907 GRT	(in ballast)	sunk by U-628 & U-223 23 Feb

See also

• Convoy Battles of World War II

References

1. Tarrant p.108
2. Hague pp.132, 137-138,161-162,164&181
3. Morison 1975 p.338
4. Rohwer & Hummelchen 1992 p.194
5. "Convoy ON 166". Warsailors.com. Retrieved 25 May 2011.
6. Hague 2000 pp.92&162
7. Hague 2000 pp.161-162
8. Hague 2000 p.162
9. "CONVOY ON 166". Warsailors. Retrieved 15 March 2010.
10. Hague 2000 p.159
11. "ON convoys". Andrew Hague Convoy Database. Retrieved 24 May 2011.

Bibliography

• Hague, Arnold (2000). The Allied Convoy System 1939–1945. Naval Institute Press. ISBN   1-55750-019-3.
• Morison, Samuel Eliot (1975). History of United States Naval Operations in World War II, Volume I The Battle of the Atlantic 1939–1943. Little, Brown and Company.
• Rohwer, J.; Hummelchen, G. (1992). Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945. Naval Institute Press. ISBN   1-55750-105-X.
• Tarrant, V.E. (1989). The U-Boat Offensive 1914–1945. Arms and Armour. ISBN   1-85409-520-X.