Convoy SL 138/MKS 28
Convoy SL 138/MKS 28 | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Part of World War II | |||||||
| |||||||
Belligerents | |||||||
United Kingdom | Germany | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Convoy Comm AM Hekking Escort:Lt Cdr. F Ardern | Admiral Karl Dönitz | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
60 ships 14 escorts | 8 U-boats | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
1 ship sunk | 1 U-boat destroyed |
Convoys SL 138/MKS 28 were two Allied convoys which ran during the Battle of the Atlantic in World War II. SL 138 was one of the
Background
Following the
For the Allies, the success of Operation Torch and the re-opening of the Mediterranean to Allied traffic had led to the Allied convoy system in this area being re-organized. The previous OG/HG series to Gibraltar had been discontinued, to be replaced by the MKS/KMS series of ships to and from the Mediterranean. The OS/SL series to Freetown and the South Atlantic continued, but now the two routes were combined from Gibraltar; SL convoys from Freetown now making a rendezvous with MKS convoys from North African ports for the final leg of the journey to Britain. Similarly the OS and KMS convoys travelled together across the Bay of Biscay, before parting off Gibraltar.
Protagonists
SL 138 left Freetown on 13 October 1943, arriving off Gibraltar on 24 October. It comprised 44 ships and was escorted by 39 Escort Group, of seven warships led by the frigate Tavy (Lt.Cdr. F Ardern). MKS 28 sailed from
The Schill patrol group initially comprised eight U-boats, but one of these, U-441 was attacked by Allied aircraft and forced to return. The seven boats that remained on station deployed in a patrol line west of Portugal, while aircraft of the Luftwaffe from searched the ocean for any sign of the approaching convoys.[2]
On 27 October 1943 a German reconnaissance aircraft sighted SL 138 and MKS 28 and reported their position.
Action
SL 138/MKS 28 was sighted three days out from the Strait of Gibraltar by a German
On 29 October
On 30 October the escort was joined by the destroyers
On 31 October, as the convoy came within range of air cover from Britain, Whitehall and Geranium were able to catch U-306, which was destroyed by depth charges.[4] With no further success after two days and nights of trying, and now with the loss of one of the Schill boats, the attack was called off and the wolf pack withdrew.
SL 138 and MKS 28 continued with no further incident and arrived at Liverpool on 5 November 1943.[5]
Aftermath
With just one ship sunk, for the loss of one U-boat and another damaged, the attack on SL 138/MKS 28 was hardly an auspicious start to BdU's renewed offensive. The Royal Navy, meanwhile, could take heart that the success they had achieved in the North Atlantic, with convoy after convoy making its "safe and timely arrival" could also be achieved on the Biscay route.
Notes
References
- ISBN 0-304-35261-6.
- Arnold Hague : The Allied Convoy System 1939–1945 (2000) ISBN 1-86176-147-3(UK)
- Kemp, Paul (1997). U-Boats Destroyed, German submarine losses in the World Wars. Arms and Armour. ISBN 1-85409-515-3.
- Stephen Roskill : The War at Sea 1939–1945 Vol III (1960) . ISBN (none)