The largest convoy of World War II was HX 300 which sailed for the UK via New York on 17 July 1944, with 167 merchant ships. ISBN (Canada) 1 55125 033 0 . Often, a … As fast convoys they were less vulnerable to U-boat attack than the slow convoys, but they still witnessed some of the great convoy battles of the war. All ships arrived safely. Of the 40 convoys during the campaign which lost more than 6 ships, 5 were in the HX series. List of World War II Convoys - South Atlantic Convoys. They were east-bound convoys and originated in Halifax, Nova Scotia from where they sailed to ports in the United Kingdom. The simulated, World War II-style convoy underscored the importance of sealift to U.S. war plans, as well as the shortage of naval escorts that has incited a minor panic among military planners. Among the best known HX convoy battles were: Articles incorporating text from Wikipedia, Full listing of ships sailing in HX convoys, "Item details ADM 199/2192/25—Convoy Lists—Convoy number HXS300 from Halifax (later New York) to UK. During World War I and World War II, the practice was revived to protect Allied and neutral merchant shipping against German surface raiders and submarines. A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. In both World War I and World War II, Bermudians served in the British armed forces. The rental market started to boom once the base agreement came into action. For an alphabetical listing of convoy codes, see, North American Coastal and Caribbean Convoys, Mediterranean and North African Coastal Convoys, List of Allied convoy codes during World War II, Treaty on the Final Settlement with Respect to Germany, Rape during the Soviet occupation of Poland, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_Allied_convoys_during_World_War_II_by_region&oldid=953062409, North American Coastal convoys of World War II, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, outward and return convoys used same number, temporarily replaced by EC convoys during 1941, merged with OB convoy in the southwest approaches, merged with OA convoy in the southwest approaches - ON and OS convoys replaced OB convoys, sailed from Bermuda and merged with same number HX convoy at sea, 9-knot convoys for ships of sustained speeds less than 15 knots, slower ships to the Mediterranean - 1st 12 sailed independently - remainder sailed with OS convoys and detached west of Gibraltar, slower ships from the Mediterranean- 1st 11 sailed independently - remainder merged with SL convoys west of Gibraltar, early sailings every 5th merged OA/OB convoy became an OG convoy at sea - later OG convoys sailed from Liverpool, replaced OB convoys for North American destinations - alternate convoys included slower ships until the ONS convoys started, slower ships westbound on the ON convoy route, replaced OB convoys for non-North American destinations - included KMS convoys detached west of Gibraltar, 7-knot convoys of eastbound ships too slow for the 9-knot HX convoys, merged with MKS convoys west of Gibraltar, faster ships - (UGF-1) was the invasion force for, French convoys - sometimes prefixed F or S, southward extension of the corresponding OS convoy, July 1942 from Beira - September 1943 from Mumbai, {return Addu Atoll to Colombo convoys used same CX designation}, troopships; WS convoys on at least one occasion [WS30, 1943] routed via Freetown and Durban, This page was last edited on 25 April 2020, at 14:34. The U.S. Navy Fought Nazi Germany In The Atlantic Before America Entered World War II. Most were in the North Atlantic from 1939 to 1943, and involved attacks by U-Boat wolfpacks. UK - Middle East via Cape: Summer 1940. Fast military convoy with war materials for Middle East: A.S. America - Freetown: From March 1942, military convoys: A.T. New York - UK: From March 1942, military convoys: B.A. There were also fights between the Bermudian men and servicemen over women. Forgotten Sacrifice: The Arctic Convoys of World War II Michael Walling. The HX designation also perpetuated a similar series that ran in World War I, between 1917 and 1918. 38 convoys were attacked (about 10%), resulting in losses of 110 ships in convoy; a further 60 lost straggling, and 36 while detached or after dispersal, with loses from marine accident and other causes, for a total loss of 206 ships, or about 1% of the total. ", http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/displaycataloguedetails.asp?CATID=-5742223&CATLN=7&Highlight=&FullDetails=False, https://military.wikia.org/wiki/HX_convoys?oldid=2505225, Dan van der Vat : The Atlantic Campaign (1988). On the eve of World War II, with its emphasis on antisubmarine operations against German U-boats in the North Atlantic, the U.S. Navy’s destroyer force consisted mainly of Fletcher-, … The 345 OB convoys lost a total of 213 ships. 7 Samuel E. Morison, History of U.S. OB 98GF (& OA 98GF)• OB 105*•OB 169• OB 228**•OB 244• OB 275• OB 286• OB 287•OB 288•OB 290 Reports• OB 318. 1939 and contained 18 merchant ships, escorted by HMCS St Laurent and HMCS Saguenay to an Atlantic rendezvous with Royal Navy ships HMS Berwick and HMS York. In total, 450 convoy series were run over the course of the Second World War. X: The Atlantic Battle Won, May 1943-1945 (Boston: Little Brown and Company, 1956), 24-25; Farago, Tenth Fleet, 163–216. Later, after the United States had entered the war the HX convoys began at New York. North Atlantic Convoys. The Islands naval bases once again became a hub for convoy and anti-submarine operations. These deliveries played a crucial role in the Soviet war effort. July to December: The records of ships used to carry troops to their theaters of operations were destroyed intentionally in 1951. Originally, convoys of merchant ships were formed as a protection against pirates. Number of Convoys Notes; AT: United States to British Isles: March 1942: 1945: troopships: BHX: Bermuda to Liverpool: May 1940: March 1941: 97 (# 41-137) sailed from Bermuda and merged with same number HX convoy at sea: CK: Charleston, South Carolina to British Isles: 1944: 1944: rarely used: CT: British Isles to Canada: 1941: 1941: troopships: CU: Caribbean (later New York City) to Liverpool Convoy, vessels sailing under the protection of an armed escort. Of these, 53 were lost in convoy, 30 were stragglers and 130 were losses out of convoy. eg: ON=Liverpool to New York, fast. A parallel series of slow convoys, the SC series, was run for ships making 8 knots or less, while ships making more than 13 knots sailed independently, until 14-knot CU convoys were organized in late 1943. More than 1,400 merchant ships and naval vessels participated in the convoys to the ports of Arkhangelsk and Murmansk… The Gibraltar convoys of World War II were oceangoing trade convoys of merchant ships sailing between Gibraltar and the United Kingdom. HX convoys were organized at the beginning of the Atlantic campaign and ran without major changes until the end, the longest continuous series of the war. List of Allied convoys during World War II by region. It sailed in late January 1944, reaching the Soviet northern ports at the beginning of February. This is a list of convoy codes used by the Allies during World War II. It arrived in the UK, without incident, on 3 August 1944.[1]. A convoy of merchant ships protected by airplanes en route to Cape Town during World War II. HX-1 set sail on September 16. The equation of time and attrition was less than 1% attrition versus a 25% increase in the average round trip (equivalent to having 20% fewer ships) for almost 16,700 sailings in 1134 convoys. Convoy Routing Codes World War II AB-- Aden to Bombay ABF-- Aden to Bombay, Fast AC-- Alexandria to Cyrenaica (1941) AG-- Alexandria to Greece (1941) ... BHX-- Bermuda Joiner to HX BK-- Bombay to Karachi BK-- … The U.S. Navy engaged in a shooting war with the Kriegsmarine before official U.S. entry into World War II. Bermuda’s contribution to the war effort was out of all proportion to its geographical size. Bombay - Aden/Red Sea During World War II, between 1941 and 1945, 78 Allied Arctic convoys brought more than 4 million tons of provisions and munitions to the U.S.S.R. Code Prefix South Atlantic Routes First Sailing Last Sailing Number of Convoys Notes; AS: United States to Suez Canal: 1942: 1942: via Freetown: BF: Bahia to Freetown: 1943: USN escorts: BRN: Bahia to … Almost exactly a year later, another converted liner, the 14,000-ton SS Jervis Bay, under Commander Edward Fegen, was escorting Convoy HX-84 from Bermuda to Britain. Aden - Kilindini - Durban: From Sept' 1943: A.P. ISBN 0-340-37751-8, Arnold Hague : The Allied Convoy System 1939-1945 (2000). Most were in the North Atlantic from 1939 to 1943, and involved attacks by U-Boat wolfpacks.Convoy battles also occurred in the Mediterranean Sea and western Pacific Ocean. They absorbed the BHX convoys from Bermuda en route. They were designated fast convoys, that is, made up of ships that could make 9-13 knots. Convoy Battles of World War II occurred when convoys of cargo ships assembled for mutual defense, and were attacked by enemy submarines, surface ships, and/or aircraft. They absorbed the BHX convoys from Bermuda en route. *The page for … Gibraltar convoy routes crossed U-boat transit routes from French Atlantic ports and were within range of Axis maritime patrol aircraft making these convoys vulnerable to observation and interception by bombers, submarines, and surface warships during the Battle of the … Convoy battles also occurred in the Arctic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea and western Pacific Ocean . This is a List of Allied convoys during World War II by region. Book review: Of the many convoys that traversed northern seas ferrying goods to Soviet ports during World War II, none met a fate as awful as the one numbered PQ-17. The HX convoys were a series of North Atlantic convoys which ran during the Battle of the Atlantic in World War II. Convoy JW 56B was an Arctic convoy sent from Great Britain by the Western Allies to aid the Soviet Union during World War II. Naval Operations in World War II, Vol. Images pertain to Allied merchant ship crewmembers and vessels damaged, or sunk, by German U-boats during 1942. From July to Sept' 1942. 4 convoys only: A.K.D. ISBN (UK) 1 86176 147 3. Contents. But over time the connections became stronger than the hostilities. World War II Convoys JW-54A and RA-55A Posted on November 11, 2006 by Steve As part of the US Naval Armed Guard, my father served on the Liberty Ship the S. S. Daniel Drake on two convoys as part of the Murmansk Run, delivering war supplies to the Eastern Front. List of World War II convoys provides additional information on a regional basis. Amongst the latter was Major-General Glyn Charles Anglim Gilbert, Bermuda's highest ranking soldier. List of Allied convoys during World War II by region; List of World War II convoys; M Mid-Ocean Escort Force; O Convoy OA 178; Convoy OB 318; Convoy OB 293; Convoy OG 69; Convoy OG 71; Convoy OG 82; ON convoys; Convoy ON 67; Convoy ON 122; Convoy ON 144; Convoy ON 207; Convoy ON 113; Convoy ON 115; Convoy ON 127; Convoy ON 153; By the end of the war in November 1918, 90% of overseas traffic was in convoy. South Atlantic Convoys. 1 European Coastal Atlantic … There were over 300 convoy routes organized, in all areas of the world; each was designated by a two- or three letter code. Rooms and apartments were rented to military personnel. The HX convoys were a series of North Atlantic convoys which ran during the Battle of the Atlantic in World War II. As the fighting progressed, new convoys became necessary, including routes to Malta and the Soviet Union (the ' Arctic Convoys'). "According to our [U. S. National Archives] records, in 1951 the Department of the Army destroyed all passenger lists, manifests, logs of vessels, and troop movement files of United States Army Transports for World War II." As during the Great War, Bermuda sent many of her sons overseas, some of course never to return. A total of 377 convoys ran during the campaign, conveying a total of approximately 20,000 ships. 6 For more on convoy and routing, visit the NHHC Library Online Reading room. 1942: Atlantic Convoys Following United States' entry into World War II, Germany decided to undertake Operation Drumbeat (Paukenschlag), which was the initial wave of German U-boats meant for a fast and suprise attack on the United States east coast and Allied shipping. The Arctic convoys of World War II were oceangoing convoys which sailed from the United Kingdom, Iceland, and North America to northern ports in the Soviet Union – primarily Arkhangelsk (Archangel) and Murmansk in Russia. 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