Convoy battles of World War II

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An Allied convoy in mid-Atlantic near Iceland, 1942 Allied convoy underway in the Atlantic Ocean near Iceland, circa in 1942 (80-G-72409).jpg
An Allied convoy in mid-Atlantic near Iceland, 1942

Convoy Battles of World War II occurred when convoys of warships protected cargo ships assembled for mutual defense and were attacked by submarines, surface ships and/or aircraft. Most were in the North Atlantic from 1939 to 1943 and involved attacks by U-boat wolfpacks. Convoy battles also occurred in the Arctic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea and western Pacific Ocean.

Contents

Battles

ConvoyEscortDate located [1] WarshipsBombersU-boats [1] Ships Sunk [1] GRT lost [1]
Convoy HX 65 24 August 1940 [2] 12 [3] 3 [4] 7 [4] 42,311 [4]
Convoy HX 72 [5] 20 September 194091172,727
Convoy SC 7 16 October 194072079,592
Convoy HX 79 19 October 194051275,069
Convoy HX 84 [6] HMS Jervis Bay 5 November 1940 Scheer 533,331
Convoy HX 90 [7] 1 December 194071173,958
Convoy HG 53 8 February 1941 [8] Hipper [8] 5 [8] 1 [8] 9 [8] 15,218 [8]
Convoy SL 64 [8] 12 February 1941 [8] Hipper [8] 7 [8] 32,806 [8]
Convoy OB 293 7 March 19414227,206
Convoy HX 112 5th EG [9] 15 March 19415534,505
Convoy SC 26 1 April 194181051,969
Convoy OB 318 3rd EG [10] 7 May 19414950,985
Convoy HX 126 HMS Aurania [11] 19 May 194111951,862
Convoy OG 69 24 July 19418711,303
Convoy OG 71 17 August 194181015,185
Convoy SC 42 NEF 24th EG [12] 9 September 1941191668,259
Convoy HG 73 19 September 194151025,818
Operation Halberd Force H [13] 25 September 1941 [14] 2 × BB [15] 62 [16] 11 [14] 1 [17] 12,427 [13]
Convoy SC 48 EG 4.1.15 [18] 15 October 194191149,835
Convoy HG 76 36th EG [19] 16 December 194110418,383
Convoy NA 2 31 January 1942411,190
ON 67 TU 4.1.5 [20] 21 February 1942 [20] [20] [20] 5 [20] 8 [20] 54,750 [21]
Second Battle of Sirte (Convoy MW 10) [22] 21 March 1942 Littorio 93217,031
Convoy PQ 13 28 March 19429211,507
Convoy ON 92 A-3 [23] 11 May 19426736,284
Convoy ON 100 C-1 [23] 8 June 19426520,478
Operation Vigorous (Convoy MW 11) [24] 12 June 19426212,915
Operation Harpoon (Convoy GM 4) [24] Force X14 June 1942429,129
Convoy PQ 17 [25] 1st EG 1 July 1942202 sorties [26] 916102,311
Convoy ON 115 C-3 [23] 29 July 194212321,456
Convoy SC 94 [23] C-15 August 1942171153,421
Operation Pedestal (Convoy WS.5.21.S) [27] 10 August 19423162988,812
Convoy ON 122 [28] B-6 [28] 22 August 194214417,235
Convoy ON 127 C-4 [28] 9 September 194212851,619
Convoy PQ 18 12 September 1942775319,689
Convoy SC 100 [28] C-418 September 194217526,331
Convoy QP 14 20 September 19427623,474
Convoy RB 1 [29] 23 September 19429311,525
Convoy SC 104 [28] B-612 October 194217843,970
Convoy HX 212 [28] A-326 October 194213651,918
Convoy SL 125 27 October 1942101280,005
Convoy SC 107 [28] C-430 October 1942161582,817
Convoy ON 144 [28] B-615 November 194213626,321
Convoy ON 153 B-7 [28] 15 December 194213419,551
Convoy JW 51B [30] 24 December 19422 × Heavy cruiser 1 [31]
Convoy ONS 154 [28] C-126 December 1942 [32] 0 [33] [33] 16 [32] 14 [33] 66,922 [34]
Convoy TM 1 B-5 [30] 3 January 194314756,453
Convoy SC 118 [28] B-2 4 February 1943201159,765
Convoy ON 166 [28] A-321 February 1943191488,001
Convoy UC 1 [35] 44th EG [36] 22 February 194311326,682
Battle of the Bismarck Sea (Convoy 81) [37] 8 × DD 1 March 194310 × MTB 114837,324
Convoy SC 121 [28] A-36 March 1943261255,661
Convoy HX 228 [28] B-3 10 March 194319525,515
Convoy UGS 6 [38] 12 March 194317428,018
Convoy HX 229 [28] B-4 16 March 1943431393,502
Convoy SC 122 [28] B-517 March 194343953,094
Convoy RS 3 27 March 19437315,389
Convoy HX 231 [28] B-74 April 194311641,494
Convoy ONS 5 [28] B-728 April 1943551361,958
Convoy TS 37 30 April 19431743,255
Convoy SC 130 18 May 194325
Convoy JW 55B [39] 22 December 1943 Scharnhorst 2 [31]
Convoy JW 56A 25 January 19444321,584 [40]
Convoy Hi-40 [41] Shimushu [42] 19 February 1944 [42] [42] [42] 2 [42] 5 [42] 28,075 [41]
Convoy Hi-71 [43] 6th EG17 August 19446573,071 [44]
Convoy Hi-81 [45] 8th EG15 November 1944 [45] 16 [46] 3 [45] 36,100 [46]

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Famous Convoy Battles". uboat.net. Guðmundur Helgason. Retrieved 6 November 2013.
  2. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 2005, p. 36.
  3. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 32.
  4. 1 2 3 "Convoy HX.65". Arnold Hague Convoy Database. Retrieved 9 November 2013.
  5. Edwards 1999, p. 26.
  6. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 41.
  7. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, pp. 42–43.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 50.
  9. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 54.
  10. Blair 1996, p. 278.
  11. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 62.
  12. Milner 1985, p. 67.
  13. 1 2 Greene & Massignani 1998, p. 182.
  14. 1 2 Greene & Massignani 1998, p. 184.
  15. Greene & Massignani 1998, p. 187.
  16. Greene & Massignani 1998, p. 185.
  17. Greene & Massignani 1998, p. 191.
  18. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 90.
  19. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 108.
  20. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Abbazia 1975, p. 50.
  21. "Convoy ON.67". Arnold Hague convoy database. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
  22. Greene & Massignani 1998, pp. 216–222.
  23. 1 2 3 4 Milner 1985, p. 286.
  24. 1 2 Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, pp. 145–146.
  25. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 2005, pp. 175–176.
  26. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 2005, p. 176.
  27. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 2005, pp. 183, 186–187.
  28. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Milner 1985, pp. 148–150.
  29. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, pp. 164–165.
  30. 1 2 Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 184.
  31. 1 2 Hague 2000a, p. 189.
  32. 1 2 Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 183.
  33. 1 2 3 "Convoy ONS 154". J. Gordon Mumford. Archived from the original on 11 January 2011. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
  34. Hague 2000a, p. 161.
  35. Blair 1998, pp. 811–812.
  36. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 195.
  37. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, pp. 197–198.
  38. Hague 2000, p. 181.
  39. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 250.
  40. Hague 2000a, p. 189; Woodman 2004, p. 379.
  41. 1 2 "Hisendan". Nifty.com. Archived from the original on 16 February 2015. Retrieved 17 November 2013.
  42. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Cressman 2000, pp. 213–214.
  43. Blair 1975, pp. 676–678.
  44. Blair 1975, pp. 702–704.
  45. 1 2 3 Cressman 2000, pp. 274–275.
  46. 1 2 Blair 1975, pp. 748–749.

References

Further reading