Operation Substance
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Operation Substance was a British naval operation in July 1941 during the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
to escort convoy GM 1, the first of the series from
Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...
to
Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
. The convoy defended by Force H was attacked by Italian submarines, aircraft, and ''Motoscafo armato silurante'' (MAS boats).


The convoy

The convoy of six cargo ships carried one light and one heavy anti-aircraft regiment with 30 field guns to strengthen the island against possible airborne assault.Greene & Massignani, pp.178–179 Medical personnel expected to be needed in the forthcoming siege were also embarked. Force H included the battleship , the battlecruiser , the fast
minelayer A minelayer is any warship, submarine or military aircraft deploying explosive mines. Since World War I the term "minelayer" refers specifically to a naval ship used for deploying naval mines. "Mine planting" was the term for installing control ...
, cruisers , and with eight destroyers and the aircraft carrier operating 21
Fairey Fulmar The Fairey Fulmar is a British carrier-borne reconnaissance aircraft/fighter aircraft which was developed and manufactured by aircraft company Fairey Aviation. It was named after the northern fulmar, a seabird native to the British Isles. The F ...
s and carrying seven
Fairey Swordfish The Fairey Swordfish is a biplane torpedo bomber, designed by the Fairey Aviation Company. Originating in the early 1930s, the Swordfish, nicknamed "Stringbag", was principally operated by the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy. It was also us ...
to be flown off as reinforcements to Malta.


Prelude

The
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...
observed decreasing intensity of '' Regia Aeronautica'' attacks as the
torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, s ...
inventory at
Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...
n airfields was nearly exhausted. The ships of convoy GM 1 sailed from the
British Isles The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles, ...
on 13 July 1941 as part of convoy WS (Winston Specials) 9C, and arrived at Gibraltar on 20 July.Hague, p.195 Ships of the Mediterranean Fleet operating from
Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandri ...
began making heavy radio traffic in the hope of diverting attention to possible preparations for a major operation in the eastern
Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western Europe, Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa ...
. Eight Allied submarines were deployed off Italian naval bases; but the Italian fleet assumed the convoy was merely ''Ark Royal'' flying-off replacement aircraft to Malta, and chose to remain in port. ''Leinster'' ran aground while leaving Gibraltar on 21 July and had to return to port. The found the convoy on 22 July and launched torpedoes which narrowly missed ''Renown'' and .


Battle of 23 July

The convoy came under low level attack by nine Savoia-Marchetti SM.79 torpedo bombers coordinated with five CANT Z.1007 high level bombers. Four Fulmars met the torpedo planes head-on and shot one down before another SM.79 launched a torpedo which hit ''Manchester'' before also being shot down. ''Ark Royal'' launched seven more Fulmars which were unable to engage the high level bombers before they released bombs which failed to hit the convoyed ships. Three Fulmars were shot down. A later attack by two SM.79s sank killing 35 of her crew. Another bombing attack near-missed causing damage requiring the destroyer to be towed back to Gibraltar. Bristol Beaufighters from Malta assisted ''Ark Royal'' Fulmars defending the convoy from these attacks. detected MAS boats 532 and 533 approaching the convoy after dark, but was unable to prevent them from torpedoing SS ''Sydney Star'' at around 03:00 on 24 July. The merchant ship, carrying 484 army officers and men in addition to its normal crew, came to a dead stop as it took on water. Fearing that the ship's pumps couldn't cope with the damage, the captain requested evacuation of the troops. The ''Nestor'' came alongside and took on board approximately 500 men via
gangplank A gangway is a narrow passage that joins the quarterdeck to the forecastle of a sailing ship. The term is also extended to mean the narrow passages used to board or disembark ships. Modern shipping uses gangways to embark and disembark passeng ...
and
Jacob's ladder Jacob's Ladder ( he, סֻלָּם יַעֲקֹב ) is a ladder leading to heaven that was featured in a dream the biblical Patriarch Jacob had during his flight from his brother Esau in the Book of Genesis (chapter 28). The significance of th ...
, leaving the captain and a skeleton crew on the ''Sydney Star.'' The captain later estimated that his ship had taken on 7,000 tons of water.Thomas, Chapter 6 ''Nestor'' successfully towed the damaged 11,000-ton cargo ship to Malta, arriving at the
Grand Harbour The Grand Harbour ( mt, il-Port il-Kbir; it, Porto Grande), also known as the Port of Valletta, is a natural harbour on the island of Malta. It has been substantially modified over the years with extensive docks ( Malta Dockyard), wharves, a ...
shortly after 08:00.


Aftermath

Seven empty ships sailed from Malta as convoy MG 1 on 23 July to be convoyed back to Gibraltar by Force H. One was damaged by an aircraft torpedo on the voyage west. ''Ark Royal'' lost a total of six Fulmars defending convoy MG 1 and the Malta bound ships from Gibraltar and at least 12
Axis An axis (plural ''axes'') is an imaginary line around which an object rotates or is symmetrical. Axis may also refer to: Mathematics * Axis of rotation: see rotation around a fixed axis * Axis (mathematics), a designator for a Cartesian-coordinat ...
aircraft, in total, were destroyed by FAA fighters and the AA guns of the Royal Navy.Naval Staff History, ''The Royal Navy and the Mediterranean Convoys'', pp. 15-22. The six cargo ships of convoy GM 1 arrived in Malta on 24 July where they were observed by a
CANT Z.506 The CANT Z.506 ''Airone'' ( Italian: Heron) was a trimotor floatplane produced by CANT from 1935. It served as a transport and postal aircraft with the Italian airline "Ala Littoria". It established 10 world records in 1936 and another 10 in 19 ...
reconnaissance seaplane escorted by 42 Macchi C.200 fighters. Malta launched 22
Hawker Hurricane The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft of the 1930s–40s which was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd. for service with the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was overshadowed in the public consciousness b ...
fighters which shot down three of the escort without loss. An audacious attack on Grand Harbour by other MAS boats and
manned torpedo Human torpedoes or manned torpedoes are a type of diver propulsion vehicle on which the diver rides, generally in a seated position behind a fairing. They were used as secret naval weapons in World War II. The basic concept is still in use. ...
es on the night of 25–26 July was thwarted by
Ultra adopted by British military intelligence in June 1941 for wartime signals intelligence obtained by breaking high-level encrypted enemy radio and teleprinter communications at the Government Code and Cypher School (GC&CS) at Bletchley Park. ' ...
intelligence and ended in disaster for the Italians.


See also

* Battle of the Mediterranean *
Malta Convoys The Malta convoys were Allied supply convoys of the Second World War. The convoys took place during the Siege of Malta in the Mediterranean Theatre. Malta was a base from which British sea and air forces could attack ships carrying supplies ...


Notes


References

* * * *


External links


MV Leinster 1937
{{DEFAULTSORT:Substance, Operation Battle of the Mediterranean Malta Convoys Naval battles and operations of World War II involving the United Kingdom July 1941 events