Charles Debono, curator of the National War Museum, takes a look at the ordeal merchant ships faced while trying to reach Malta between August 13 and 15, 1942.
Between June and August 1942, convoys had failed to replenish the Maltese islands’ needs and the deteriorating situation persisted. Convoy Operation ‘Pedestal’ was a determined effort to fight a convoy through to the island which was on the verge of surrender.
Thirteen merchant ships, under a heavy escort, entered the Mediterranean on the night of August 10, 1942. To protect the vessels, the Royal Navy assembled a massive naval force.
The following are the three most crucial days of the convoy:
Friday, August 13
2am Glenorchy (Captain G. Leslie) was hit by torpedoes from the Italian torpedo boat MS 31 (Tenente di Vascello Calvani). Captain Leslie, aware of the aviation spirit stowed all over the deck, ordered the crew to abandon ship.
3am A second wave of Italian MAS-boats and German Schnellboote attacked the convoy. MAS 552 and MAS 554 torpedoed the Wairangi (Captain H. R. Gordon), hitting it forward in its port side, striking a deep tank in No. 3 hold. Captain Gordon was aware that Wairangi had become a hulk and decided to scuttle the ship.
Survivors from merchant ships disembarking from HMS Ledbury in Malta.3.30am The German Schnellboote S30 (Oberleutnant-sur-Zee Weber) and S36 (Oberleutnant Brauns) torpedoed the American vessel Almeria Lykes (Captain W Henderson) and the ship was hit forward in No. 1 hold, where a stow of bags of flour absorbed much of the explosion and prevented countering mining among the dangerous commodities. Henderson ordered the crew to abandon ship and 105 men boarded three boats.
4.15am Italian torpedo boat MAS 564 (Tenente di Vascello Iafrate) closed in from the starboard side of the American ship Santa Elisa and fired a torpedo at point-blank range. The detonation took place amid a stow of aviation spirit. All men who could reach the boats abandoned ship in three lifeboats. The survivors were picked up by HMS Penn.
4.30am MAS564 (Tenente di Vascello Iafrate) closed in from the starboard side and fired a torpedo at point-blank range into the Santa Elisa (Captain T Thompson) starboard bow. The detonation took place amid a stow of aviation spirit and there was a terrific explosion.
The merchant ship Port Chalmers arriving in Malta on August 13, 1942, cheered on by servicemen and civilians.7.15am The Master of Santa Elisa decided to abandon ship and all men who could reach the boats abandoned the ship; they were picked up by HMS Penn. As the ship was going to be scuttled, a Junkers Ju88 arrived on the scene and hit the Santa Elisa with a stick of bombs, sinking it in five minutes.
08.00am Other survivors from Glenorchy landed south of Kelibia, Tunisia, where they gave themselves up to a Vichy French coastguard, to be interned with other survivors near Sfax.
The destroyer HMS Eskimo appeared on the scene; it was searching for the survivors of HMS Manchester, but instead rescued 79 survivors of Wairangi from their boats and rafts.
Two Junkers Ju88s made a concentrated attack against Waimarama (Captain R. S. Pearce) and four bombs seem to have detonated high-octane spirit and ammunition amid the after deck.
A vast sheet of flame roared high up into the sky.
Damage to the starboard side of the stem of Brisbane Star sustained on the night of August 12-13, 1942.10.00am One Ju88 was hit by the barrage and skidded down across the sea, driving into the side of Ohio in a welter of flames.
This action and near misses from other aircraft blew out the boilers in Ohio and stopped the remaining engines of Dorset.
Several signal stations along the coast called up Brisbane Star (Captain F. N. Riley), which was wearing no ensign, making the usual request for the ship to show its distinguishing ‘numbers’.
The Vichy authorities at Hammamet asked Riley to come inshore and anchor.
However, he refused the call and resumed his course at five knots.
Morning: About 40 survivors of Clan Ferguson were in a single lifeboat. The boat landed on Zembra Island and the men were picked up by a Vichy minesweeper and interned in Bon Fichu near the coast.
2.30pm HMS Penn started approaching the Ohio, intending to tow the tanker.
HMS Penn’s attempt to tow ended in failure when the hawser parted. HMS Rye and two attendant motor launches ML121 and ML168 were called to tow the tanker where, in the late afternoon, another attempt was made to tow.
Captain Mason and the crew returned to Ohio to help manoeuvre the ship but progress was almost nil as the two small warships found they were unable to overcome Ohio’s perverse tendency to go its own way.
4pm At the entrance to the swept sea channel, the vessels streamed their gear and led the cargo liners north, to round Delimara Point and make the final approach to Grand Harbour.
6.30am Rochester Castle, Port Chalmers and Melbourne Star entered Grand Harbour.
As the battle-scarred vessels slid between the arms of the breakwater, the sound of the band of the Royal Malta Artillery played from the ramparts of Fort St Elmo to welcome the surviving ships.
Brisbane Star proceeded independently to Malta, arriving on August 14, 1942.Saturday, August 14
06.00am Brisbane Star sailed east, zigzagging at 10 knots. Despite the merchant ship forward draught of 38 feet and a broad, foamy wake, the night passed quietly.
Spitfires flew over the ship and remained flying over until it entered the harbour.
11.30am As the Stukas withdrew, again the destroyers’ attempt to tow the Ohio and speed was worked up to a gratifying six knots, with a steady enough course. Morale rose accordingly and, to cheer everyone up, a song Chattanooga Choo-Choo was played loudly from HMS Penn’s PA system.
3.30pm Brisbane Star passed to bottom and entered Grand Harbour to proceed to No.7 Berth where it passed the crowds lining the Upper and Lower Barrakka Gardens.
7pm Another attempt was made to tow the ship by minesweeper HMS Rye, but as the impracticability of the task became obvious, four Ju88s intervened and dropped bombs, near missing Dorset aft, but firing it badly forward.
7.55pm Dorset went down to the bottom of the sea in just 20 minutes together with its invaluable cargo, only 72 miles (115.8 kilometres) short of its destination.
8pm Arrangements had been made to hand the Ohio over to tugs, and the tug Robust was seen coming out from Malta, loaded with spectators and intending to add its power ahead of Ohio.
The merchant ship Rochester Castle proceeds to its berth in Grand Harbour.Sunday, August 15
2am The entrance to the swept channel was reached. Ohio’s directional stability was now critical; there were two large and difficult turns ahead; to be negotiated by tired men, not helped by a fresh cross-wind and the mines flanking the swept channel. With HMS Penn and HMS Bramham edging Ohio along the shore, HMS Ledbury lent its power to shove the tanker’s bow through the arc necessary to make the turns off Delimara and Żonqor points.
8am On the feast of Santa Marija, the broken-backed and almost derelict hulk of Ohio made the tight turn inside the mole, rounded Ricasoli Point and headed up Grand Harbour.
It was a sublime moment. The stupefied men were greeted by crowds, cheering like mad, lining the ramparts and bastions while bands played God Save the King, The Star-Spangled Banner and Rule Brittania.
However, there were also Maltese children who started shouting: “We want food, not oil!”
As Operation Pedestal concluded, Operation Ceres also reached its final phase. The cargoes of Port Chalmers, Rochester Castle and Melbourne Star had been unloaded and the discharge of Ohio and Brisbane Star was rapidly completed.
Although 53,000 of the 85,000 tons of supplies loaded at the Clyde in Scotland ended up at the bottom of the Mediterranean, the remaining 32,000 tons enabled Malta to stave off the dreaded Harvest Day, commonly referred to as the Target Date.