Convoy battles of World War II

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 defence 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.

Battles

Convoy	Escort	Located [1]	Warships	Bombers	U-boats [1]	Sunk [1]	GRT [1]
Convoy HX 65	—	24 August 1940 [2]	—	12 [3]	3 [4]	7 [4]	42,311 [4]
Convoy HX 72 [5] [6]	—	20 September 1940	—	—	9	11	72,727
Convoy SC 7	—	16 October 1940	—	—	7	20	79,592
Convoy HX 79	—	19 October 1940	—	—	5	12	75,069
Convoy HX 84 [7]	HMS Jervis Bay	5 November 1940	Scheer	—	—	5	33,331
Convoy HX 90	— [8]	1 December 1940	—	—	7	11	73,958
Convoy HG 53	—	8 February 1941 [9]	Hipper [9]	5 [9]	1 [9]	9 [9]	15,218 [9]
Convoy SL 64	— [9]	12 February 1941 [9]	Hipper [9]	—	—	7 [9]	32,806 [9]
Convoy OB 293	—	7 March 1941	—	—	4	2	27,206
Convoy HX 112	5th EG [10]	15 March 1941	—	—	5	5	34,505
Convoy SC 26		1 April 1941	—	—	8	10	51,969
Convoy OB 318	3rd EG [11]	7 May 1941	—	—	4	9	50,985
Convoy HX 126	HMS Aurania [12]	19 May 1941	—	—	11	9	51,862
Convoy OG 69	—	24 July 1941	—	—	8	7	11,303
Convoy OG 71	—	17 August 1941	—	—	8	10	15,185
Convoy SC 42	NEF 24th EG [13]	9 September 1941	—	—	19	16	68,259
Convoy HG 73	—	19 September 1941	—	—	5	10	25,818
Operation Halberd	Force H [14]	25 September 1941 [15]	2 × BB [16]	62 [17]	11 [15]	1 [18]	12,427 [14]
Convoy SC 48	EG 4.1.15 [19]	15 October 1941	—	—	9	11	49,835
Convoy HG 76	36th EG [20]	16 December 1941	—	—	10	4	18,383
Convoy NA 2	—	31 January 1942	—	—	4	1	1,190
ON 67	TU 4.1.5 [21]	21 February 1942 [21]	— [21]	— [21]	5 [21]	8 [21]	54,750 [22]
Second Battle of Sirte (Convoy MW 10) [23]	—	21 March 1942	Littorio	9	3	2	17,031
Convoy PQ 13	—	28 March 1942	—	—	9	2	11,507
Convoy ON 92	A-3 [24]	11 May 1942	—	—	6	7	36,284
Convoy ON 100	C-1 [24]	8 June 1942	—	—	6	5	20,478
Operation Vigorous (Convoy MW 11) [25]	—	12 June 1942	—	—	6	2	12,915
Operation Harpoon (Convoy GM 4) [25]	Force X	14 June 1942	—	—	—	4	29,129
Convoy PQ 17 [26]	1st EG	1 July 1942	—	202 sorties [27]	9	16	102,311
Convoy ON 115	C-3 [24]	29 July 1942	—	—	12	3	21,456
Convoy SC 94 [24]	C-1	5 August 1942	—	—	17	11	53,421
Operation Pedestal (Convoy WS.5.21.S) [28]	—	10 August 1942	—	316	2	9	88,812
Convoy ON 122 [29]	B-6 [29]	22 August 1942	—	—	14	4	17,235
Convoy ON 127	C-4 [29]	9 September 1942	—	—	12	8	51,619
Convoy PQ 18	—	12 September 1942	—	77	5	3	19,689
Convoy SC 100 [29]	C-4	18 September 1942	—	—	17	5	26,331
Convoy QP 14	—	20 September 1942	—	—	7	6	23,474
Convoy RB 1 [30]	—	23 September 1942	—	—	9	3	11,525
Convoy SC 104 [29]	B-6	12 October 1942	—	—	17	8	43,970
Convoy HX 212 [29]	A-3	26 October 1942	—	—	13	6	51,918
Convoy SL 125	—	27 October 1942	—	—	10	12	80,005
Convoy SC 107 [29]	C-4	30 October 1942	—	—	16	15	82,817
Convoy ON 144 [29]	B-6	15 November 1942	—	—	13	6	26,321
Convoy ON 153	B-7 [29]	15 December 1942	—	—	13	4	19,551
Convoy JW 51B [31]	—	24 December 1942	2 × Heavy cruiser	—	1	—	— [32]
Convoy ONS 154 [29]	C-1	26 December 1942 [33]	0 [34]	— [34]	16 [33]	14 [34]	66,922 [35]
Convoy TM 1	B-5 [31]	3 January 1943	—	—	14	7	56,453
Convoy SC 118 [29]	B-2	4 February 1943	—	—	20	11	59,765
Convoy ON 166 [29]	A-3	21 February 1943	—	—	19	14	88,001
Convoy UC 1 [36]	44th EG [37]	22 February 1943	—	—	11	3	26,682
Battle of the Bismarck Sea (Convoy 81) [38]	8 × DD	1 March 1943	10 × MTB	114	—	8	37,324
Convoy SC 121 [29]	A-3	6 March 1943	—	—	26	12	55,661
Convoy HX 228 [29]	B-3	10 March 1943	—	—	19	5	25,515
Convoy UGS 6 [39]		12 March 1943	—	—	17	4	28,018
Convoy HX 229 [29]	B-4	16 March 1943	—	—	43	13	93,502
Convoy SC 122 [29]	B-5	17 March 1943	—	—	43	9	53,094
Convoy RS 3		27 March 1943	—	—	7	3	15,389
Convoy HX 231 [29]	B-7	4 April 1943	—	—	11	6	41,494
Convoy ONS 5 [29]	B-7	28 April 1943	—	—	55	13	61,958
Convoy TS 37	—	30 April 1943	—	—	1	7	43,255
Convoy SC 130	—	18 May 1943	—	—	25	—	—
Convoy JW 55B [40]	—	22 December 1943	Scharnhorst	—	2	—	— [32]
Convoy JW 56A	—	25 January 1944	—	—	4	3	21,584 [41]
Convoy Hi-40 [42]	Shimushu [43]	19 February 1944 [43]	— [43]	— [43]	2 [43]	5 [43]	28,075 [42]
Convoy Hi-71 [44]	6th EG	17 August 1944	—	—	6	5	73,071 [45]
Convoy Hi-81 [46]	8th EG	15 November 1944 [46]	—	1	6 [47]	3 [46]	36,100 [47]

Notes

1. "Famous Convoy Battles". uboat.net. Guðmundur Helgason. Retrieved 6 November 2013.
2. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 2005, p. 36.
3. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 32.
4. "Convoy HX.65". Arnold Hague Convoy Database. Retrieved 9 November 2013.
5. Edwards 1999, p. 26.
6. Purnell, Tom. "Canonesa, Convoy HX72 & U-100". canonesa.uk. Retrieved 18 November 2025.
7. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 41.
8. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, pp. 42–43.
9. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 50.
10. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 54.
11. Blair 1996, p. 278.
12. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 62.
13. Milner 1985, p. 67.
14. Greene & Massignani 1998, p. 182.
15. Greene & Massignani 1998, p. 184.
16. Greene & Massignani 1998, p. 187.
17. Greene & Massignani 1998, p. 185.
18. Greene & Massignani 1998, p. 191.
19. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 90.
20. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 108.
21. Abbazia 1975, p. 50.
22. "Convoy ON.67". Arnold Hague convoy database. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
23. Greene & Massignani 1998, pp. 216–222.
24. Milner 1985, p. 286.
25. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, pp. 145–146.
26. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 2005, pp. 175–176.
27. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 2005, p. 176.
28. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 2005, pp. 183, 186–187.
29. Milner 1985, pp. 148–150.
30. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, pp. 164–165.
31. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 184.
32. Hague 2000a, p. 189.
33. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 183.
34. "Convoy ONS 154". J. Gordon Mumford. Archived from the original on 11 January 2011. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
35. Hague 2000a, p. 161.
36. Blair 1998, pp. 811–812.
37. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 195.
38. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, pp. 197–198.
39. Hague 2000, p. 181.
40. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1992, p. 250.
41. Hague 2000a, p. 189; Woodman 2004, p. 379.
42. "Hisendan". Nifty.com. Archived from the original on 16 February 2015. Retrieved 17 November 2013.
43. Cressman 2000, pp. 213–214.
44. Blair 1975, pp. 676–678.
45. Blair 1975, pp. 702–704.
46. Cressman 2000, pp. 274–275.
47. Blair 1975, pp. 748–749.

References

• Abbazia, Patrick (1975). "When the Good Shepherds Were Blind". United States Naval Institute Proceedings. United States Naval Institute. ISSN   0041-798X.
• Blair, Clay (1975). Silent Victory: The U.S. Submarine War against Japan . New York: J. B. Lippincott. ISBN   978-0-397-00753-0.
• Blair, Clay (1996). Hitler's U-boat War:The Hunters 1939–1942. New York: Random House. ISBN   0-394-58839-8.
• Blair, Clay (1998). Hitler's U-boat War:The Hunted 1942–1945. New York: Random House. ISBN   0-679-45742-9.
• Cressman, Robert J. (2000). The Official Chronology of the U.S. Navy in World War II. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN   1-55750-149-1.
• Edwards, Bernard (1999). Donitz and the Wolf Packs . Brockhampton Press. ISBN   1-86019-927-5 – via Archive Foundation.
• Greene, Jack; Massignani, Alessandro (1998). The Naval War in the Mediterranean 1940–1943. London: Chatham. ISBN   1-885119-61-5.
• Hague, Arnold (2000). The Allied Convoy System 1939–1945. Naval Institute Press. ISBN   1-55750-019-3.
• Hague, A. (2000a). The Allied Convoy System 1939–1945: Its Organization, Defence and Operation. London: Chatham. ISBN   1-86176-147-3.
• Milner, Marc (1985). North Atlantic Run. Naval Institute Press. p. 67. ISBN   0-87021-450-0.
• Rohwer, J.; Hümmelchen, G. (1992). Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945. Naval Institute Press. ISBN   1-55750-105-X.
• Rohwer, Jürgen; Hümmelchen, Gerhard (2005). Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two (3rd rev. ed.). Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN   1-59114-119-2.
• Woodman, Richard (2004) [1994]. Arctic Convoys 1941–1945. London: John Murray. ISBN   978-0-7195-5752-1.

Further reading

• Dönitz, Karl (1997) [1958]. Memoirs: Ten Years and Twenty Days. New York: Da Capo Press. ISBN   978-0-306-80764-0.