Convoy RA 59A
The convoy RA 59A was an allied northern sea convoy that was put together in August 1944 in the Soviet Murmansk and drove largely unloaded into the Scottish Loch Ewe . The Allies suffered no losses, while a submarine was lost on the German side.
Composition and securing
The convoy RA 59A consisted of nine cargo ships. On August 28, 1944, they left the Kola Bay ( Lage ) off Murmansk in the direction of Loch Ewe ( Lage ). The escort carriers HMS Vindex and HMS Striker , the cruiser HMS Jamaica and the destroyers HMS Milne , HMS Marne , HMS Meteor , HMS Musketeer and HMS Caprice were responsible for securing the convoy . The escort service was carried out by the 20th and 22nd escort groups, with the destroyers HMS Keppel and HMS Whitehall , the sloops HMS Cygnet , HMS Kite , HMS Mermaid , HMS Peacock , the frigate HMS Loch Dunvegan and the corvettes HMS Bluebell , HMS Camellia , HMS Charlock , HMS Honeysuckle and HMS Oxlip . At the same time, two British carrier groups drove with them to carry out air raids on the German battleship Tirpitz . It was a group with the carriers HMS Indefatigable , HMS Formidable and HMS Furious , the battleship HMS Duke of York , the cruisers HMS Devonshire , HMS Berwick and 14 destroyers. The second group consisted of the escort carriers HMS Trumpeter , Nabob (Canadian) and the 5th Escort Group with the destroyers HMS Bickerton , HMS Aylmer , HMS Bligh , HMS Garlies , HMS Kreats and HMS Kempthorne .
| Surname | Type | flag | Measurement in GRT | Whereabouts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barbara Friet Chie | freighter |
 United States
|
7176 | |
| Empire Bard | freighter |
 United Kingdom
|
3114 | |
| Empire Elgar | freighter |
United Kingdom
|
2847 | |
| Empire Prowess | freighter |
United Kingdom
|
7058 | |
| Fort Vercheres | freighter |
United Kingdom
|
7128 | |
| Herbrand | freighter |
 Norway
|
9108 | |
| Lacklan | freighter |
United Kingdom
|
8670 | |
| Luculus | freighter |
United Kingdom
|
6546 | |
| WR Grace | freighter |
United States
|
7176 |
course
The Germans deployed the submarine group "Trutz" with the boats U 344 , U 354 , U 365 , U 668 , U 394 , U 363 , U 703 , U 711 and U 997 against the convoy RA 59A . They moved into an outpost strip between the North Cape and Bear Island, the so-called Bear Narrow. But neither the submarines nor the German aerial reconnaissance could make contact. On September 2, a Swordfish of the carrier HMS Vindex U 394 was badly damaged. During the subsequent hunt by the destroyers HMS Keppel and HMS Whitehall and the sloops HMS Mermaid and HMS Peacock it was then sunk ( location ).
The two carrier groups carried out another attack on the Tirpitz on August 24 , in which they scored two insignificant hits, and a fourth attack on August 29, in which only the Z 31 and Z 34 were slightly damaged by gunfire. A total of 247 sorties were flown during the attacks on the Tirpitz .
On September 5, 1944, the convoy reached Loch Ewe.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c Jürgen Rohwer , Gerhard Hümmelchen : Chronik des Maritime War 1939–1945, August 1944. Retrieved January 18, 2017 .
- ^ Arnold Hague: Arnold Hague Convoy Database, RA Convoy Series. Retrieved January 18, 2017 .
Map with all coordinates: