Convoy SC-42
Encyclopedia
Convoy SC 42 was the 42nd of the numbered series of World War II
Slow Convoys
of merchant ships from Sydney
, Cape Breton Island
to Liverpool
. SC 42 was attacked over a three night period in September 1941, losing 16 ships sunk and 4 damaged. This was the worst Allied loss following the attack on convoy SC 7 the previous year. Two attacking U boats were destroyed.
Skeena
(Lt Cdr JC Hibbard, senior officer) with Flower class corvette
s Alberni
, Kenogami
, and Orillia. Sisters Chambly
and Moosejaw
were conducting training exercises in the convoy path at the direction of CDR James D. Prentice
, RCN, and were prepared to reinforce the escort as the convoy entered an area where U-boats were known to be waiting.
Ranged against them was the wolf pack Markgraf, a group of 14 U-boat
s in a patrol line southeast of Greenland
.
and made an unsuccessful torpedo attack. She then commenced shadowing, while other Markgraf boats moved in. The moon rose on the southern side on the convoy that night, and U-432 torpedoed the silhouetted 5229-ton British freighter Muneric. Muneric and her cargo of 7000 tons of iron ore sank rapidly with all 63 of her crew. Kenogami commenced firing on a surfaced U-boat without benefit of star shell or flashless powder, and quickly lost contact as the crew lost their night-vision in the flash of gunfire. The convoy made two emergency turns over the next half-hour as ships in convoy reported sighting three more surfaced U-boats. Another emergency convoy turn ninety minutes later caught Skeena pursuing a contact at speed; and while maneuvering to avoid collision, Skeena passed on reciprocal course a surfaced U-boat being fired upon by ships in convoy so closely Skeenas guns could not be depressed to bear. U-652
torpedoed Baron Pentland and Tahchee during the excitement. The tanker Tahchee was towed back to port by Orillia; but the 3410-ton British freighter Baron Pentland sank with 1512 standards of lumber and two of her crew.
Another emergency turn by the convoy brought two hours of suspenseful quiet while Orillia aided Tahchee and searched for survivors astern of the convoy. Then U-432 torpedoed the 3205-ton Dutch freighter Winterswijk and the 1113-ton Norwegian freighter Stargard. The freighter Regin stopped to rescue Starguards survivors and opened fire on a surfaced U-boat. While Skeena and Kenogami searched for U-boats around stricken Winterswijk and Stargard, U-81 torpedoed the 3252-ton British freighter Sally Maersk, and the convoy made another emergency turn to avoid a surfaced U-boat. U-82
torpedoed the 7465-ton British CAM ship
Empire Hudson less than two hours after Skeena regained station ahead of the convoy.
Daylight on 10 September brought several periscope sightings and emergency turns by the convoy before U-85 torpedoed the 4748-ton British freighter Thistleglen. Skeena and Alberni counterattacked and damaged U-85 with depth charges. Thistleglen sank with 5200 tons of steel, 2400 tons of pig iron, and 3 of her crew.
U-82 torpedoed the 7519-ton British tanker
Bulysses that evening. U-82 then torpedoed the 3915-ton British freighter Gypsum Queen shortly after the convoy ordered an emergency turn. Gypsum Queen sank quickly with 5500 tons of sulfur and ten of her crew. Bulysses sank with 9300 tons of gas oil and 4 of her crew. Other ships in convoy rescued survivors. Corvettes Chambly and Moosejaw observed the fireworks of these attacks and surprised U-501 while steaming to reinforce the escort. U-501 was first depth-charged by Chambly then rammed by Moose Jaw as the damaged submarine surfaced. The captain of U-501 jumped from the conning tower to Moosejaws deck; and Moosejaw sent a boarding party to enter the submarine. Eleven Germans and one of the Canadian boarding party (Stoker William Brown)were lost when U-501 sank. U-501 was the first U-boat sunk by Canadian escorts.
Just after midnight on 10/11 September U-207 torpedoed the 4924-ton British freighter Berury and the 4815-ton British freighter Stonepool while Chambly and Moose Jaw were attacking U-501. Then U-432 torpedoed the 1231-ton Swedish freighter Garm and U-82 torpedoed the 5463-ton British freighter Empire Crossbill and the 1980-ton Swedish freighter Scania two hours later while Alberni, Kenogami and Moosejaw were rescuing survivors of Berury and Stonepool. U-43 launched torpedoes unsuccessfully, U-433 damaged a 2200-ton freighter, U-202 sank the crippled Scania, and U-105
sank a straggler.
On 11 September, the escort was reinforced by the naval trawler
Buttermere and Flower class corvette
s Wetaskiwin
, Mimosa, and Gladiolus
from convoy HX 147 and by the 2nd Escort Group consisting of the Admiralty type
flotilla leader
Douglas (Cdr WE Banks senior officer), the Town class destroyer
Leamington, the V and W class destroyer
Veteran
, and S class destroyer
s Skate, and Saladin. Leamington and Veteran dropped 21 depth charges on the afternoon of 11 September while investigating a coastal command aircraft report of a U-boat ahead of the convoy. Postwar analysis indicated their attacks probably destroyed U-207.
Arrival on 12 September of the naval trawler
Windermere and Town class destroyer
s St. Croix from convoy SC 41 and Columbia from convoy HX 147 allowed the remaining original escorts Skeena, Alberni, and Kenogami to leave for refueling .
On 13 September destroyers of the 2nd Escort Group departed for refueling following arrival of American destroyers Sims
, Hughes
, and Russell
.
The last incident of the voyage took place three days later when U-98 torpedoed the 4392-ton British freighter Jedmore as the convoy approached North Channel on the late afternoon of 16 September.
Convoy SC 42 arrived in Liverpool on 20 September 1941. Sixteen ships totalling 68,259 GRT
had been sunk and four ships (14,132 GRT) damaged: One ship had turned back. Forty four ships arrived safely and unharmed, and two U-boats had been destroyed, though on eof these was not confirmed until after the war's end.
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
Slow Convoys
SC convoys
The SC convoys were a series of North Atlantic convoys that ran during the battle of the Atlantic during World War II.They were east-bound slow convoys originating in Sydney, Cape Breton ; from there they sailed to ports in the UK, mainly Liverpool.For a time after the entry of the...
of merchant ships from Sydney
Sydney, Nova Scotia
Sydney is a Canadian urban community in the province of Nova Scotia. It is situated on the east coast of Cape Breton Island and is administratively part of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality....
, Cape Breton Island
Cape Breton Island
Cape Breton Island is an island on the Atlantic coast of North America. It likely corresponds to the word Breton, the French demonym for Brittany....
to Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
. SC 42 was attacked over a three night period in September 1941, losing 16 ships sunk and 4 damaged. This was the worst Allied loss following the attack on convoy SC 7 the previous year. Two attacking U boats were destroyed.
Background
Sixty-five ships departed Sydney on 30 August 1941 under local escort, bound for Liverpool. The convoy commodore was R.Adm. WB Mackenzie in Everleigh. A week later were met just east of the Strait of Belle Isle by the Canadian 24th Escort Group consisting of the Canadian River class destroyerCanadian River class destroyer
The River class was a class of fourteen destroyers of the Royal Canadian Navy that served before and during the Second World War. They were named after Canadian rivers.-Description:...
Skeena
HMCS Skeena (D59)
HMCS Skeena was a River-class destroyer that served in the Royal Canadian Navy from 1931-1945.She was similar to the Royal Navy's A-class and wore initially the pennant D59, changed in 1940 to I59....
(Lt Cdr JC Hibbard, senior officer) with Flower class corvette
Flower class corvette
The Flower-class corvette was a class of 267 corvettes used during World War II, specifically with the Allied navies as anti-submarine convoy escorts during the Battle of the Atlantic...
s Alberni
HMCS Alberni (K103)
HMCS Alberni was a Flower-class corvette that served in the Royal Canadian Navy .-Construction:She was ordered on 14 February 1940 from Yarrows Ltd. in Esquimalt, British Columbia and laid down on 29 April. She was launched on 22 August 1940 and commissioned into the RCN on 4 February 1941. She...
, Kenogami
HMCS Kenogami (K125)
HMCS Kenogami was a Royal Canadian Navy which took part in convoy escort duties during World War II.Kenogami was laid down by Port Arthur Shipbuilding Co., Port Arthur on 20 April 1940 and was launched on 5 September 1940...
, and Orillia. Sisters Chambly
HMCS Chambly (K116)
HMCS Chambly was a serving in the Royal Canadian Navy. She was ordered from Canadian Vickers Ltd. in Montreal, laid down on 20 February 1940, launched on 29 July, and commissioned on 18 December 1940, named after the city of Chambly, Quebec...
and Moosejaw
HMCS Moosejaw (K164)
HMCS Moose Jaw was a Royal Canadian Navy which took part in convoy escort duties during World War II, and together with achieved the RCN's first U-boat kill of the war....
were conducting training exercises in the convoy path at the direction of CDR James D. Prentice
James D. Prentice
Captain James Douglas 'Chummy' Prentice was a Royal Navy and Royal Canadian Navy officer who served with distinction in the Battle of the Atlantic...
, RCN, and were prepared to reinforce the escort as the convoy entered an area where U-boats were known to be waiting.
Ranged against them was the wolf pack Markgraf, a group of 14 U-boat
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
s in a patrol line southeast of Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
.
Action
Early on 9 September U-85 sighted the convoy near Cape Farewell, GreenlandCape Farewell, Greenland
Cape Farewell , is a headland on the southern shore of Egger Island, Greenland. Located at it is the southernmost extent of Greenland, projecting out into the North Atlantic Ocean and the Labrador Sea on the same latitude as Stockholm and the Scottish Shetland Islands. Egger and the associated...
and made an unsuccessful torpedo attack. She then commenced shadowing, while other Markgraf boats moved in. The moon rose on the southern side on the convoy that night, and U-432 torpedoed the silhouetted 5229-ton British freighter Muneric. Muneric and her cargo of 7000 tons of iron ore sank rapidly with all 63 of her crew. Kenogami commenced firing on a surfaced U-boat without benefit of star shell or flashless powder, and quickly lost contact as the crew lost their night-vision in the flash of gunfire. The convoy made two emergency turns over the next half-hour as ships in convoy reported sighting three more surfaced U-boats. Another emergency convoy turn ninety minutes later caught Skeena pursuing a contact at speed; and while maneuvering to avoid collision, Skeena passed on reciprocal course a surfaced U-boat being fired upon by ships in convoy so closely Skeenas guns could not be depressed to bear. U-652
German submarine U-652
German submarine U-652 was a Type VIIC U-boat of the German Kriegsmarine during World War II. The submarine was laid down on 5 February 1940 at the Howaldtswerke yard at Hamburg, launched on 7 February 1941, and commissioned on 3 April 1941 under the command of Oberleutnant zur See Georg-Werner...
torpedoed Baron Pentland and Tahchee during the excitement. The tanker Tahchee was towed back to port by Orillia; but the 3410-ton British freighter Baron Pentland sank with 1512 standards of lumber and two of her crew.
Another emergency turn by the convoy brought two hours of suspenseful quiet while Orillia aided Tahchee and searched for survivors astern of the convoy. Then U-432 torpedoed the 3205-ton Dutch freighter Winterswijk and the 1113-ton Norwegian freighter Stargard. The freighter Regin stopped to rescue Starguards survivors and opened fire on a surfaced U-boat. While Skeena and Kenogami searched for U-boats around stricken Winterswijk and Stargard, U-81 torpedoed the 3252-ton British freighter Sally Maersk, and the convoy made another emergency turn to avoid a surfaced U-boat. U-82
German submarine U-82 (1941)
German submarine U-82 was a Type VIIC U-boat of the German Kriegsmarine during World War II.Her keel was laid down on 15 May 1940 by Bremer Vulkan-Vegesacker Werft of Bremen. She was commissioned on 14 May 1941 with Oberleutnant Siegfried Rollmann in command. U-82 conducted three patrols, sinking...
torpedoed the 7465-ton British CAM ship
CAM ship
CAM ships were World War II-era British merchant ships used in convoys as an emergency stop-gap until sufficient escort carriers became available. CAM is an acronym for catapult aircraft merchantman. A CAM ship was equipped with a rocket-propelled catapult launching a single Hawker Sea Hurricane,...
Empire Hudson less than two hours after Skeena regained station ahead of the convoy.
Daylight on 10 September brought several periscope sightings and emergency turns by the convoy before U-85 torpedoed the 4748-ton British freighter Thistleglen. Skeena and Alberni counterattacked and damaged U-85 with depth charges. Thistleglen sank with 5200 tons of steel, 2400 tons of pig iron, and 3 of her crew.
U-82 torpedoed the 7519-ton British tanker
Tanker (ship)
A tanker is a ship designed to transport liquids in bulk. Major types of tankship include the oil tanker, the chemical tanker, and the liquefied natural gas carrier.-Background:...
Bulysses that evening. U-82 then torpedoed the 3915-ton British freighter Gypsum Queen shortly after the convoy ordered an emergency turn. Gypsum Queen sank quickly with 5500 tons of sulfur and ten of her crew. Bulysses sank with 9300 tons of gas oil and 4 of her crew. Other ships in convoy rescued survivors. Corvettes Chambly and Moosejaw observed the fireworks of these attacks and surprised U-501 while steaming to reinforce the escort. U-501 was first depth-charged by Chambly then rammed by Moose Jaw as the damaged submarine surfaced. The captain of U-501 jumped from the conning tower to Moosejaws deck; and Moosejaw sent a boarding party to enter the submarine. Eleven Germans and one of the Canadian boarding party (Stoker William Brown)were lost when U-501 sank. U-501 was the first U-boat sunk by Canadian escorts.
Just after midnight on 10/11 September U-207 torpedoed the 4924-ton British freighter Berury and the 4815-ton British freighter Stonepool while Chambly and Moose Jaw were attacking U-501. Then U-432 torpedoed the 1231-ton Swedish freighter Garm and U-82 torpedoed the 5463-ton British freighter Empire Crossbill and the 1980-ton Swedish freighter Scania two hours later while Alberni, Kenogami and Moosejaw were rescuing survivors of Berury and Stonepool. U-43 launched torpedoes unsuccessfully, U-433 damaged a 2200-ton freighter, U-202 sank the crippled Scania, and U-105
German submarine U-105 (1940)
German submarine U-105 was a Type IXB U-boat of the German Kriegsmarine. U-105 was ordered by the Kriegsmarine on 24 May 1938 as part of Nazi Germany's naval rearmament program. Her keel was laid down by AG Weser in Bremen on 16 November 1938...
sank a straggler.
Naval trawler
A naval trawler is a vessel built along the lines of a fishing trawler but fitted out for naval purposes. Naval trawlers were widely used during the First and Second world wars. Fishing trawlers were particularly suited for many naval requirements because they were robust boats designed to work...
Buttermere and Flower class corvette
Flower class corvette
The Flower-class corvette was a class of 267 corvettes used during World War II, specifically with the Allied navies as anti-submarine convoy escorts during the Battle of the Atlantic...
s Wetaskiwin
HMCS Wetaskiwin (K175)
HMCS Wetaskiwin was a of the Royal Canadian Navy. She was ordered from Burrard Dry Dock Co. Ltd. in North Vancouver and laid down on 11 April 1940. She was launched on 18 July 1940 and commissioned on 17 December 1940...
, Mimosa, and Gladiolus
HMS Gladiolus (K34)
HMS Gladiolus was a Flower-class corvette of the Royal Navy, the first ship of her class.She was laid down at Smiths Dock Company on the River Tees on 19 October 1939, launched on 24 January 1940, and commissioned on 6 April 1940....
from convoy HX 147 and by the 2nd Escort Group consisting of the Admiralty type
Admiralty type leader
The Admiralty type leader, sometimes known as the Scott class, were a class of eight destroyer leaders designed and built for the Royal Navy towards the end of World War I. They were named after Scottish historical leaders...
flotilla leader
Flotilla leader
A flotilla leader was a warship suitable for commanding a flotilla of destroyers or other small warships, typically a small cruiser or a large destroyer...
Douglas (Cdr WE Banks senior officer), the Town class destroyer
Town class destroyer
The Town class destroyers were warships transferred from the United States Navy to the Royal Navy and the Royal Canadian Navy in exchange for military bases in the Bahamas and elsewhere, as outlined in the Destroyers for Bases Agreement between Britain and United States, signed on 2 September 1940...
Leamington, the V and W class destroyer
V and W class destroyer
The V and W class was an amalgam of six similar classes of destroyer built for the Royal Navy under the War Emergency Programme of the First World War and generally treated as one class...
Veteran
HMS Veteran (D72)
HMS Veteran was a V class destroyer of the Royal Navy. She was the third ship to carry the name Veteran. She was launched in 1919 and therefore missed the First World War. She served as a convoy escort in the Second World War before being sunk by the German U-boat U-404 while rescuing survivors...
, and S class destroyer
S class destroyer (1916)
The S class were a class of 67 destroyers built from 1917 for the Royal Navy. The design was based on the Admiralty modified R class and all ships had names beginning with S or T....
s Skate, and Saladin. Leamington and Veteran dropped 21 depth charges on the afternoon of 11 September while investigating a coastal command aircraft report of a U-boat ahead of the convoy. Postwar analysis indicated their attacks probably destroyed U-207.
Aftermath
With the arrival of these reinforcements further attacks by Markgraf were stifled. Though the group continued to shadow, it was unable to mount any further assaults.Arrival on 12 September of the naval trawler
Naval trawler
A naval trawler is a vessel built along the lines of a fishing trawler but fitted out for naval purposes. Naval trawlers were widely used during the First and Second world wars. Fishing trawlers were particularly suited for many naval requirements because they were robust boats designed to work...
Windermere and Town class destroyer
Town class destroyer
The Town class destroyers were warships transferred from the United States Navy to the Royal Navy and the Royal Canadian Navy in exchange for military bases in the Bahamas and elsewhere, as outlined in the Destroyers for Bases Agreement between Britain and United States, signed on 2 September 1940...
s St. Croix from convoy SC 41 and Columbia from convoy HX 147 allowed the remaining original escorts Skeena, Alberni, and Kenogami to leave for refueling .
On 13 September destroyers of the 2nd Escort Group departed for refueling following arrival of American destroyers Sims
USS Sims (DD-409)
USS Sims was the lead ship of her class of destroyers in the United States Navy during World War II. She was the first ship to be named for William Sims, an Admiral who pushed for the modernization of the Navy....
, Hughes
USS Hughes (DD-410)
USS Hughes was a World War II-era in the service of the United States Navy, named after Commander Edward Merritt Hughes.Hughes was laid down on 15 September 1937 by Bath Iron Works, Bath, Maine; launched on 17 June 1939; sponsored by Mrs. Edward M...
, and Russell
USS Russell (DD-414)
USS Russell was a World War II-era in the service of the United States Navy, named after Rear Admiral John Henry Russell.Russell was laid down on 20 December 1937 by the Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company, Newport News, Virginia; launched on 8 December 1938; sponsored by Mrs. Charles H...
.
The last incident of the voyage took place three days later when U-98 torpedoed the 4392-ton British freighter Jedmore as the convoy approached North Channel on the late afternoon of 16 September.
Convoy SC 42 arrived in Liverpool on 20 September 1941. Sixteen ships totalling 68,259 GRT
Gross Register Tonnage
Gross register tonnage a ship's total internal volume expressed in "register tons", one of which equals to a volume of . It is calculated from the total permanently enclosed capacity of the vessel. The ship's net register tonnage is obtained by reducing the volume of non-revenue-earning spaces i.e...
had been sunk and four ships (14,132 GRT) damaged: One ship had turned back. Forty four ships arrived safely and unharmed, and two U-boats had been destroyed, though on eof these was not confirmed until after the war's end.
Allied ships sunk
| Time and date | Name | Flag | Casualties | Tonnage | Cargo | Sunk by... |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 06:55, 9 Sep |  |
42 | 5,591 GRT | Steel and explosives | ||
| 21:37, 9 Sept | Muneric | |
63 | 5,229 GRT | iron ore | |
| 23:48, 9 Sept | Baron Pentland | |
2 | 3,410 GRT | lumber | |
| 02:10, 10 Sept | Winterswijk |  |
20 | 3,205 GRT | phosphates | |
| 02:10, 10 Sept | Stargard |  |
2 | 1,113 GRT | lumber | |
| 02:45, 10 Sept | Sally Maersk | |
0 | 3,252 GRT | wheat | |
| 05:04, 10 Sept | |
4 | 7,456 GRT | wheat | ||
| 10:30, 10 Sept | Thistleglen | |
3 | 4,748 GRT | steel & pig iron | |
| 20:57, 10 Sept | Bulysses | |
4 | 7,519 GRT | gas oil | |
| 21:00, 10 Sept | Gypsum Queen | |
10 | 3,915 GRT | sulfur | |
| 00:10, 11 Sept | Stonepool | |
42 | 4,815 GRT | grain, oats & trucks | |
| 00:10, 11 Sept | Berury | |
1 | 4,924 GRT | general | |
| 02:10, 11 Sept | Scania |  |
0 | 1,980 GRT | lumber | |
| 02:10, 11 Sept | |
49 | 5,463 GRT | steel | ||
| 02:30, 11 Sept | Garm | |
6 | 1,231 GRT | lumber | |
| 19:00, 16 Sept | Jedmore | |
31 | 4,392 GRT | iron ore |
U-boats destroyed
| Date | Number | Type | Captain | Casualties | Fate | hit by... |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 September 1941 | U-501 | IX | K/L H Forster | 12 | destroyed | Chambly, Moosejaw |
| 11 September 1941 | U-207 | VIIC | K/L F Meyer | 41 | destroyed | Leamington, Veteran |