Torpedo Alley - North Carolina World Naval Ships Forums Archive

Naval History by Country :

ROYAL
NAVY

US
NAVY

GERMAN
NAVY

FRENCH
NAVY

*VIEW ALL OF OUR CURRENT ART SPECIAL OFFERS ON ONE PAGE HERE*
NAVAL ART	AVIATION ART	MILITARY ART	SPORT ART

ALWAYS GREAT OFFERS :

20% FURTHER PRICE REDUCTIONS ON HUNDREDS OF LIMITED EDITION ART PRINTS

BUY ONE GET ONE HALF PRICE ON THOUSANDS OF PAINTINGS AND PRINTS

FOR MORE OFFERS SIGN UP TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER

Torpedo Alley - North Carolina World Naval Ships Forums Archive

Torpedo Alley - North Carolina

Posts 1 to 19

[B][B]The Torpedo Alley, or Torpedo Junction, off North Carolina, is one of the graveyards of the Atlantic Ocean, named for the high number of attacks on Allied shipping by German U-boats in World War II. [/B][/B] [B][B]Almost 400 ships were sunk, mostly during the Second Happy Time in 1942, and over 5,000 people were killed, many of whom were civilians and merchant marines. The period of attacks began in January 1942, and together were known as the "Great American Turkey Shoot", by U-boat sailors. Torpedo Alley is located in the waters between the mainland and the Outer Banks, primarily around Cape Hatteras.[/B][/B] [B][B]Some of the Allied ships lost and their attackers SS Empire Gem[/B][/B] The SS Empire Gem, was a recently built 10,600 ton British tanker, armed with one 4-inch (100 mm) gun, one 12-pounder anti-aircraft gun and six machine guns. While off Diamond Shoals on the night of January 23, 1942, U-66 under Richard Zapp, detected the unescorted Empire Gem and the unarmed American merchantman SS Venore. A few hours later, at about 2:40 am on January 24, U-66 attacked by firing a spread of torpedoes at the Empire Gem. One of them struck the tanker at the tanks on starboard side and the ship immediately began to burn and sink. The U-boat then fired additional torpedoes and one struck the Venore, which also sank. Both vessels sent out an SOS and shortly after an American motor lifeboat from Ocracoke Coast Guard Station arrived to rescue survivors. Fifty-five men out of fifty-seven were killed on the Empire Gem including Royal Navy gunners and another seventeen men were killed on the Venore. Twenty-three survivors from both ships were later rescued by American forces. [B][B]SS San Delfino[/B][/B] The SS San Delfino was an 8,702 ton armed British tanker. She was attacked east of Cape Hatteras at position 35.35N, 75.06W on April 10, 1942 by the U-203 under Captain Lieutenant Rolf Mützelburg. At 3:47 am San Delfino was hit by a torpedo but it had no effect. A second spread missed their target but a final shot hit the ship at 5:08 am, sinking the vessel, killing twenty-eight men and sending another twenty-two into the water. The action occurred early in the morning, and the gunners aboard had not been able to see a target. It took seven torpedoes altogether to destroy the ship. The Master and twenty-one crew members were rescued later on by the naval trawler HMT Norwich City and landed at Morehead City. [B][B]SS Empire Thrush[/B][/B] On April 14 the armed British steamer SS Empire Thrush was attacked by the U-203, eight miles north of Diamond Shoals. At 3:15 pm a single torpedo hit the ship and it slowly sank though the master, all forty-seven crewmen and seven Royal Navy gunners escaped without harm. The United States Navy Q-ship USS Asterion witnessed the attack on the horizon but was unable to engage. Arriving two hours later the Americans rescued the British and took them to Norfolk, Virginia. [B][B]HMT Bedfordshire[/B][/B] HMT Bedfordshire was a 443 ton trawler. On May 10, the Bedfordshire and HMT Lowman were deployed from their base at Morehead City to Ocracoke Island to search for a U-boat spotted in the area. When the vessels arrived they were discovered by Captain Lieutenant Gunther Krech of U-558 who proceeded to shadow the vessels until later that night. Krech attacked after assuming he had been detected by the British ships - firing a spread of torpedoes at the Lowman but they all missed. The British then maneuvered and began dropping depth charges but these failed to destroy their target. At 5:40 in the morning on May 11, the U-boat fired a single torpedo at the Bedfordshire which missed but a second hit the trawler and it quickly sank with all thirty-seven hands. Two bodies were eventually recovered by the Americans who buried the dead on Ocracoke, creating the British Cemetery there. [B][B]HMT Kingston Ceylonite[/B][/B] The next warship sunk was the HMT Kingston Ceylonite, another trawler serving in American waters off North Carolina. On June 15, the Kingston Ceylonite was sailing off Virginia Beach in convoy KN-109 when she unknowingly entered a sea mine field laid by U-701 four days earlier. The British trawler struck one mine at position 36.52N, 75.51W and sank. Thirty-three men went down with the ship and only eighteen survived. Two other tankers and the destroyer USS Bainbridge also hit mines that night but were saved from sinking. Some of the dead washed up on Ocracoke Island and were interred with the men of HMT Bedfordshire. [B][B]USS YP-389[/B][/B] The small 170-ton American trawler USS YP-389 was destroyed during an action with U-701 in the early morning on June 19. German Captain Horst Degen decided to surface the submarine and engage with his deck guns in order to save torpedoes. Armor piercing rounds splashed all around the American ship for an hour and a half before she sunk. Because of a faulty firing pin in the trawler's 3-inch (76 mm) dual purpose gun, only .30-06 Springfield machine guns and depth charges could be used to defend the ship. Of a twenty-five man complement, six American seamen were killed in battle and the eighteen remaining went adrfit. The Germans suffered no casualties though U-701 sustained slight damage. [B][B]SS William Rockefeller[/B][/B] SS William Rockefeller was a one gun American tanker of 14,054 tons, sank sixteen miles east-northeast of Diamond Shoals on June 28 of 1942. At 6:16 pm, Horst Degen's U-701 released a torpedo which hit the William Rockefeller's pump room on portside amidships while she was steaming on a non-evasive course at 9.2 knots. The torpedo tore a twenty foot hole in the ship and oil sprayed everywhere, causing a fire. The pump room flooded along with one of the ship's tanks and the cargo aboard caught on fire. Nine officers, thirty-five crewmen and six armed guards evacuated the ship and were picked up twenty minutes later by USS CG-470 which then depth charged the area inconclusively. U-701 surfaced the following morning around 5:20 am and delivered a coup de grâce which sank the American ship at position 35°11N/75°07W without loss of life. [B][B]German U-boats U-85[/B][/B] The first of three German U-boats sunk during the battle for Torpedo Alley was U-85 at midnight on April 13, 1942. While operating within sight of Bodie Island Lighthouse, the destroyer[B][B] USS Roper[/B][/B] detected U-85 on radar at a range of 2,700 yards away. The German submarine was surfaced at the time and she attempted to head south. When the Roper had closed to 700 yards, U-85 released a torpedo from her stern and began firing with her deck gun but the Americans evaded all of the shots. U-85 then turned to starboard and the range closed to 300 yards where the Americans opened fire with a 3-inch (76 mm) gun and machine guns. The sailors of USS Roper were able to hit the U-boat one time with naval gunfire before she submerged and then the Americans dropped eleven depth charges over the enemy and sank her. All forty-six German crew members were killed and twenty-nine bodies were recovered. Some of the dead were wearing civilian clothing and had wallets with United States currency and identification cards in them, suggesting that the submarine had been involved in landing German agents on the mainland. A nighttime military funeral was held for the dead Germans at Hampton, Virginia. The hatch of U-85 is now on display at Cape Hatteras Lighthouse and the enigma machine resides at the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum in Hatteras. [B][B]U-352[/B][/B] [B][B]USCGC Icarus[/B][/B] delivering prisoners from U-352 to Charleston Navy Yard U-352, under Captain Lieutenant Hellmut Rathke, was destroyed on May 9 by the United States Coast Guard. At position 34.21N, 76.35W, off Cape Lookout, the USCGC Icarus picked up a sonar contact just before a torpedo exploded nearby. Lieutenant Maurice D. Jester knew right away that they were under attack by a submarine and he suspected where the Germans would fire their next torpedo from. So the Americans maneuvered and dropped five depth charges and when sonar detected the U-boat again, Icarus moved accordingly and dropped two more charges, forcing the Germans out of the water. Then a short surface action occurred as the Icarus opened fire with machine guns and prepared to ram the enemy U-boat. But before the range closed, the crew of U-352 evacuated their ship and the Americans ceased fire after dropping one last depth charge as the submarine sank. Fifteen Germans were killed and thirty-three survivors were taken prisoner and transported to Charleston, South Carolina where they arrived the following day. Lieutenant Jester later received a Navy Cross for his victory over the Germans. [B][B]U-701[/B][/B] German survivors from U-701 going ashore at Naval Station Norfolk on June 9, 1942 after being rescued by a United States Coast Guard seaplane. The destruction of U-701 happened on July 7, 1942, near Cape Hatteras, and was the last sinking of a German submarine in Torpedo Alley.[B][B] American Lockheed Hudson aircraft from the United States Army 396th Bombardment Squadron attacked the surfaced U-701 with depth charges[/B][/B]. The attack was successful and the U-boat sank with twenty-nine hands. Seventeen survivors then went adrift in lifeboats for two days and when they were rescued by American forces, only seven remained. German casualties in Torpedo Alley totaled exactly 100 dead and forty captured. NB This list can be expanded on jainso31

[B][B]The first U-boats reached U.S. waters on 13 January 1942. By the time they withdrew on 6 February, they had sunk 156,939 tonnes of shipping without loss.[/B][/B] The first batch of Type IXs was followed by more Type IXs and Type VIIs supported by Type XIV "Milk Cow" tankers which provided refuelling at sea. They sank 397 ships totalling over 2 million tons (as mentioned previously, not a single troop transport was lost). In 1943, the United States launched over 11 million tons of merchant shipping; that number declined in the later war years, as priorities moved elsewhere. [B][B]In May, King (by this time both Cominch and Chief of Naval Operations {CNO}) finally scraped together enough ships to institute a convoy system. This quickly led to the loss of seven U-boats. The U.S. did not have enough ships to cover all the gaps; the U-boats continued to operate freely during the Battle of the Caribbean and throughout the Gulf of Mexico (where they effectively closed several U.S. ports) until July, when the British-loaned escorts began arriving. These included 24 armed anti-submarine trawlers crewed by the Royal Naval Patrol Service many had previously been peace-time fishermen.[/B][/B] On 3 July 1942, one of these trawlers, HMS Le Tigre proved her worth by picking up 31 survivors from the American merchant Alexander Macomb. Shortly after Le Tigre managed to hunt down the U-boat U-215 that had torpedoed the merchant ship, which was then sunk by HMS Veteran; credit was awarded to Le Tigre. [B][B][B]The institution of an interlocking convoy system on the American coast and in the Caribbean Sea in mid-1942 resulted in an immediate drop in attacks in those areas. As a result of the increased coastal convoy escort system, the U-boats' attention was shifted back to the Atlantic convoys. For the Allies, the situation was serious but not critical throughout much of 1942.[/B][/B][/B] jainso31

[B][B]Tenth Fleet was a unique organization within the United States Navy; never before or since WW II did an organization like Tenth Fleet exist. Under the personal command of the Navy's top sailor, Fleet Admiral Ernest J. King, this fleet, created expressly to fight the U-boats, never put to sea (it had no ships) and never had more than about 50 people in its organization, all of whom fought the U-boats with remarkable results from their desks in the old Navy Department building on Constitution Ave. in Washington DC[/B][/B]. Tenth Fleet did not exist at the start of the war between Germany and the United States, and had its origins largely in the Allied disaster which took place off the east coast of the United States in 1942. In May of 1943, Tenth Fleet had control over all aspects of the US Navy's battle against the U-boats in the Atlantic but by the end of June 1945 no longer existed. jainso31

[B][B]Tenth Fleet was a unique organization within the United States Navy[/B][/B]; never before or since WW II did an organization like Tenth Fleet exist. Under the personal command of the Navy's top sailor, Fleet Admiral Ernest J. King, this fleet, created expressly to fight the U-boats, never put to sea (it had no ships) and never had more than about 50 people in its organization, all of whom fought the U-boats with remarkable results from their desks in the old Navy Department building on Constitution Ave. in Washington DC. Tenth Fleet did not exist at the start of the war between Germany and the United States, and had its origins largely in the Allied disaster which took place off the east coast of the United States in 1942. [B][B]In May of 1943, Tenth Fleet had control over all aspects of the US Navy's battle against the U-boats in the Atlantic but by the end of June 1945 no longer existed. [/B][/B] [B][B]Operation Paukenschlag [/B][/B]- U-boats off the East Coast of the U.S. When Admiral Doenitz launched Operation Paukenschlag in December of 1941, the five U-boats (U-125, U-123, U-66, U-130, U-109) of the initial wave sent against the United States found the east coast, for all practical purposes, un-defended. Admiral Andrews commanding Eastern Sea Frontier, had at his disposal: 4 Yard Patrol Boats 4 Subchasers 1 Coast Guard Cutter 3 WW I "Eagle" boats 103 aircraft, five of which were combat ready This tiny force was to protect a 28,000 sq. mile area extending from the St. Lawrence River down to North Carolina. Defense forces in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean were in no better shape. [url]http://www.uboat.net/allies/ships/us_10thfleet.htm[/url] jainso31

[QUOTE=jainso31;10061818][B][B] [B][B]Operation Paukenschlag [/B][/B]- U-boats off the East Coast of the U.S. Admiral Andrews commanding Eastern Sea Frontier, had at his disposal: 4 Yard Patrol Boats 4 Subchasers 1 Coast Guard Cutter 3 WW I "Eagle" boats 103 aircraft, five of which were combat ready [B]This tiny force was to protect a 28,000 sq. mile area extending from the St. Lawrence River[/B] down to North Carolina. Defense forces in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean were in no better shape. [url]http://www.uboat.net/allies/ships/us_10thfleet.htm[/url] jainso31[/QUOTE] Jim: I hadn't realized that the USN's mandate included most of the Canadian East coast???

Tim -that would be the case as[B][B] Tenth Fleet was a covert operation.[/B][/B] “If Great Britain goes down, all of us in the Americas would be living at the point of a gun.” There are those who say that the Axis powers have no desire to attack the Western Hemisphere. That is the same sort of wishful thinking which has destroyed the powers of resistance of so many conquered peoples…the vast resources and wealth of this American Hemisphere constitute the most tempting loot in all of the round world.” Wiping his broad forehead with a handkerchief, the fire crackling in the white marble fireplace in front to his right, Roosevelt finishes the thirty-seven minute talk with a ringing plea to arm faster, to build more planes and ships. “We must be the great arsenal of democracy.” FDR’s call to arms has unwaveringly committed America to save Britain from defeat, no matter the cost and regardless of the risk. [B][B]Thus, on 1 February 1941, the Atlantic Squadron, the U.S. Navy’s Atlantic neutrality patrol received a new name, the Atlantic Fleet. And hence, it was soon to have a new offensive mission.[/B][/B] Appointed by the President to head the fleet was sixty-three year-old 1901 Naval Academy graduate, Admiral Ernest J. King. The hard-driven, hot-tempered admiral, a convinced Anglo-phobe, is staunchly opposed to the “Germany first” policy, a November 1940 Executive decision making Germany the principle opposition. Blends of rumor and fact cling to the salty Commander-in-Chief Atlantic Fleet like wet snow to a windshield. He was profane, arrogant, humorless – no one remembered him ever smiling – and reputedly a serial womanizer and known hard drinker. His own daughter said (although not within his hearing): "He is the most even-tempered man in the Navy; he's always in a rage." In liberty bars from East Main Street in Norfolk to drafty cabins in barren Newfoundland, fleet sailors spun legends that increased with each shot thrown-back. With as much awe as hyperbole, they avowed the admiral didn’t think he was God, but God thought he was Admiral King. “He shaves with a blowtorch,” said an admiring President. [url]http://www.historyarticles.com/new_page_10.htm[/url] jainso31

[QUOTE=jainso31;10061855]Tim -that would be the case as[B][B] Tenth Fleet was a covert operation.[/B][/B] “If Great Britain goes down, all of us in the Americas would be living at the point of a gun.” There are those who say that the Axis powers have no desire to attack the Western Hemisphere. That is the same sort of wishful thinking which has destroyed the powers of resistance of so many conquered peoples…the vast resources and wealth of this American Hemisphere constitute the most tempting loot in all of the round world.” Wiping his broad forehead with a handkerchief, the fire crackling in the white marble fireplace in front to his right, Roosevelt finishes the thirty-seven minute talk with a ringing plea to arm faster, to build more planes and ships. “We must be the great arsenal of democracy.” FDR’s call to arms has unwaveringly committed America to save Britain from defeat, no matter the cost and regardless of the risk. [B][B]Thus, on 1 February 1941, the Atlantic Squadron, the U.S. Navy’s Atlantic neutrality patrol received a new name, the Atlantic Fleet. And hence, it was soon to have a new offensive mission.[/B][/B] Appointed by the President to head the fleet was sixty-three year-old 1901 Naval Academy graduate, Admiral Ernest J. King. The hard-driven, hot-tempered admiral, a convinced Anglo-phobe, is staunchly opposed to the “Germany first” policy, a November 1940 Executive decision making Germany the principle opposition. Blends of rumor and fact cling to the salty Commander-in-Chief Atlantic Fleet like wet snow to a windshield. He was profane, arrogant, humorless – no one remembered him ever smiling – and reputedly a serial womanizer and known hard drinker. His own daughter said (although not within his hearing): "He is the most even-tempered man in the Navy; he's always in a rage." In liberty bars from East Main Street in Norfolk to drafty cabins in barren Newfoundland, fleet sailors spun legends that increased with each shot thrown-back. With as much awe as hyperbole, they avowed the admiral didn’t think he was God, but God thought he was Admiral King. “He shaves with a blowtorch,” said an admiring President. [url]http://www.historyarticles.com/new_page_10.htm[/url] jainso31[/QUOTE] I'm afraid you've lost me on this one Jim. Am I to assume that this mandate "[B][I]to protect a 28,000 sq. mile area extending from the St. Lawrence River[/I][/B]" was self-imposed by Admiral King? I suspect the RCN/RN would have been less than amused to know that an American admiral (particularly that one!) had taken it upon himself to defend Canadian/Newfoundland waters - particularly as he had virtually no resources and even less knowledge of how to combat the U-boat threat!

Tim [B][B]Tenth Fleet was a unique organization within the United States Navy; never before or since WW II did an organization like Tenth Fleet exist. [/B][/B]Under the personal command of the Navy's top sailor, Fleet Admiral Ernest J. King, this fleet, created expressly to fight the U-boats, never put to sea (it had no ships) and never had more than about 50 people in its organization, [B][B]all of whom fought the U-boats with remarkable results[/B][/B] from their desks in the old Navy Department building on Constitution Ave. in Washington DC. PS -I am currently researching this so called Tenth Fleet-if and when I get some gen-will post it. jainso31

[QUOTE=jainso31;10061862]Tim [B][B]Tenth Fleet was a unique organization within the United States Navy; never before or since WW II did an organization like Tenth Fleet exist. [/B][/B]Under the personal command of the Navy's top sailor, Fleet Admiral Ernest J. King, this fleet, created expressly to fight the U-boats, never put to sea (it had no ships) and never had more than about 50 people in its organization, [B][B]all of whom fought the U-boats with remarkable results[/B][/B] from their desks in the old Navy Department building on Constitution Ave. in Washington DC. PS -I am currently researching this so called Tenth Fleet-if and when I get some gen-will post it. jainso31[/QUOTE] Thanks Jim - look forward to seeing the results of your research ... particularly as it applies to this "mandate"!!!

Jim: Just did some quick research on the USN Tenth Fleet ... apparently it has now been resurrected (effective January 2010) as the USN's "Fleet Cyber Command," responsible for the USN's cyber warfare activities. Interesting!

Admiral King argued against the convoy system stating that inadequately escorted convoys were worse than none which was the exact opposite to all that the British experience had taught them.By June 1942-US shipping losses threatened the entire war effort but by this time the lesson had sunk in,taught by Doenitz rather than Pound.King had to capitulate and he detailed to Marshall all emergency measures that had to be taken,including coastwise measures to avert the horrendous losses-he stated:- "IF all shipping can be brought under escort and air cover our losses will be reduced to an acceptable level.I might say that say in this connection that escort is not just one way of handling the submarine menace-it is the only way" So that being the case-where do the escorts come from and how are they to be organised??? jainsi31

I wonder how many people lost their lives due to King's stubborness/stupidity?!

Shiny-This is just an illustration of the ships and men lost in the fore part of 1942. "Almost 400 ships were sunk, mostly during the Second Happy Time in 1942, and over 5,000 people were killed, many of whom were civilians and merchant marines". jainso31

[B][B]Implementing FDR’s promise to give Churchill “all aid short of war,” on 18 April 1941 Admiral King issued OPERATION PLAN 3-41.[/B][/B] The warships of any belligerent – except for powers having West Indian possessions – coming within twenty-five miles of a vastly expanded Western Hemisphere, will be considered trespassers and dealt-with as pirates. [B][B]“Entrance into the Western Hemisphere by naval ships or aircraft of belligerents…is to be viewed as possibly actuated by an unfriendly interest toward shipping or territory in the Western Hemisphere.”[/B][/B] In this daring re-drawing or “bending” of the Western Hemisphere’s accepted lines of demarcation, the meridians now covered enormous ocean areas. [B][B]They extended west to the International Date Line beyond Iceland, including Greenland, the Azores, the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and all of the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico. [/B][/B]The West Indian powers allowed access to their possessions - already defeated France and the vestiges of her fleet, and Great Britain’s warships - continued to enjoy unimpeded passage to their holdings, or to American ports or shipyards for replenishment or repair. [B][B]By warning that Axis incursions into Allied waters represented an act of war, OPPLAN 3-41 placed the Atlantic Fleet directly in the way of opportunistic German and Italian surface raiders and U-boats.[/B][/B] Admiral King fleet was to implement much more than a standard defensive doctrine. He underlined the operative words in OPPLAN 3-41. [B][B]“If any such naval vessels or aircraft are encountered within twenty-five miles of Western Hemisphere territory, except the Azores, warn them to move twenty-five miles from such territory and, in case of failure to heed such warning, attack them.” [/B][/B] The threshold for war had been set. With Admiral King’s issuance of OPPLAN 3-41, and needing only targets to come within U.S. Navy view, America's entry into World War II could have started as much by intention in the Atlantic as by surprise eight months later in the Pacific. [B][B][B]As confirmed by declassified operational orders, throughout 1941 the U.S. Navy set the bar ever lower for all-out war at sea with Germany [/B][/B][/B] [url]http://www.historyarticles.com/new_page_10.htm[/url] jainso31

[B][B]On September 1, in OPERATION PLAN 7-41, [/B][/B]Admiral King set down in upper case his interpretation of the President’s letter to Admiral Stark. Stamped SECRET, King’s analysis went to ten Navy task forces and four patrols - Northern, Gulf, Caribbean and Panama. [B][B]“MY INTERPRETATION OF THREAT TO UNITED STATES OR ICELAND FLAG SHIPPING WHETHER ESCORTED OR NOT, IS THAT THREAT EXISTS WHEN: 1) POTENTIALLY HOSTILE VESSELS ARE ACTUALLY WITHIN SIGHT OR SOUND CONTACT OF SUCH SHIPPING OR ITS ESCORT. 2) POTENTIALLY HOSTILE SURFACE RAIDERS APPROACH WITHIN 100 MILES OF SUCH SHIPPING, ALONG THE SEA LANES BETWEEN NORTH AMERICA AND ICELAND. 3) POTENTIALLY HOSTILE SURFACE RAIDERS OR SUBMARINES EITHER APPROACH WITHIN 100 MILES OF SUCH SHIPPING TRAVERSING ROUTES DEFINED IN PARAGRAPH 3 (W) (5) BELOW, OR ENTER THE PROCLAIMED NEUTRALITY ZONE. 4) ANY POTENTIALLY HOSTILE FORCES APPROACH TO WITHIN FIFTY MILES OF ICELAND." The OpPlan had an unconditional order to U.S. Navy warships encountering Axis vessels: "DESTROY HOSTILE FORCES THAT THREATEN SHIPPING NAMED IN (B) AND (C) ABOVE." [/B][/B] Four days later came the “incident” long sought by the President and the Navy. [B][B]Two hundred miles southwest of Reykavik, the old “four-piper” destroyer Greer barely escaped a torpedo from U-552, and then unsuccessfully attacked with depth charges. [/B][/B] The next day on radio a determined President spoke directly to Nazi Germany: [B][B]“You shall go no further… If German or Italian vessels of war enter the waters…necessary for American defense, they do so at their own peril.” [/B][/B] The New York Daily News said it all with a black headline: SHOOT, FDR TELLS NAVY. “Whether the country knows it or not, we are at war.” [B][B]On 10 September, Admiral King ordered the Atlantic Fleet to escort convoys all the way from Halifax to Britain, making it possible to begin offensive operations across all of the North Atlantic.[/B][/B] Anticipating the combat to come, Admiral Stark wrote the President: “Whatever we do I am anxious that our first real shooting contact with the enemy be successful. Particularly would I like to get Tirpitz if opportunity comes our way. Early victory would breed confidence and be a wonderful stimulant.” On 22 September, further lowering the already dynamic combat flashpoint set in his 1 September OPPLAN 7-41, Admiral King’s revised OPPLAN 7B-41 had blunt orders for the Atlantic Fleet: [url]http://www.historyarticles.com/new_page_10.htm[/url] jainso31

[B][B]POST PEARL HARBOUR[/B][/B] [B][B]The German slaughter of merchant shipping off the east coast continued almost unchecked from mid-January until the latter part of April 1942. During this period German submarines sank about 80 ships off this coast, and, according to their commanders, bad weather offered the chief obstacle to operations. [/B][/B] From the beginning of April onward they noted a markedincrease in American antisubmarine activities, but they reported that at first these activities were almost wholly ineffective. The Germans lost their first submarine off the American coast on the night of 13 April; then, about 21 April, enemy submarine commanders began to report a sudden dropping off of favorable targets, and after that date the easy pickings off the east coast came to an end.60 [B][B]The armed forces of the United States had in fact been almost wholly unprepared for submarine attacks off the coasts. Ignoring World War I experience and World War II practice, before Pearl Harbor they had not even planned on how they might check a submarine offensive off the American coast line.61 The defenses set up in January along the east coast were scanty and improvised. Until the end of the month, 1 Bomber Command and the 1 Air Support Command of the Army's First Air Force conducted all of the oversea air patrols along the coast.[/B][/B] [B][B]By 15 January these Army commands were managing to cover the offshore area from Hatteras northward with fifteen patrols daily, but their personnel and equipment were woefully untrained and inadequate for effective antisubmarine operations[/B][/B].62 Army planes continued to provide most of the regular offshore patrols throughout the period of intense enemy activity off the East Coast, operating at first informally and then (after 25 March) formally under Navy command. From the outset these Army operations stripped the east coast air forces of all offensive striking power against any other form of enemy attack, although an enemy surface attack during this period was admittedly a remote possibility. [B][B]Beginning on 5 March the civilian Civil Air Patrol began to fly patrols under the auspices of the 1 Air Support Command, and its operations helped to frighten submarines away from shallow waters near the coast. Beginning in April the installation of airborne radar on Army bombers greatly increased their effectiveness and made it possible to patrol and to escort vessels at night.[/B][/B] [url]http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USA/USA-WH-Guard/USA-WH-Guard-4.html[/url]

IIRC, when "Tenth Fleet" was founded its war fighting equipment, surface and air, was almost non-existent. Many YPs (hastily armed yachts, etc) were pressed into service to provide SOMETHING! Even sailing craft with [B]mg[/B]s! CAP was pressed into service, too. Typical was the PYc 36 Paragon: in service from 9/42 to 1/44. Had a weapons fit to challenge an LCS:1 6 pdr! Talk about TOTALLY unprepared! DFO :eek:
Attachments :

[B][B]DFO-YOU CAN SAY THAT AGAIN!!!BUT IT GOT BETTER[/B][/B] [B][B]In the early days of the German submarine offensive, the most effective antisubmarine measures had been movements by night and insistence that ships hug the shore line by day[/B][/B]. After some initial misgivings, the Army finally ordered a stringent coastal blackout to prevent submarines from attacking ships silhouetted by lights on shore. [B][B]But, as the Navy insisted, the best defense against the sort of commerce raiding the Germans were undertaking off the American coast was the organization of all coastal shipping into convoys escorted by surface vessels and aircraft. By mid-May the Navy was able to convoy most east coast shipping.[/B][/B] Within two months this system, abetted by the enlarged activity and improved techniques and equipment of the Army's 1 Bomber Command, brought an end to sinkings off this coast for the rest of 1942.[B][B] Within these two months also the Germans lost six more submarines along the east coast, a factor that helped them to decide on 19 July to withdraw their two remaining submarines, which had been operating in the Hatteras area[/B][/B] [url]http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USA/USA-WH-Guard/USA-WH-Guard-4.html[/url] jainso31

STRIKE ONE!!! [B][B]This was the first sinking of a Uboat by an American warship in WW2 -the engagement was certainly unusual and more than somewhat controversial-of that I will not outline at this juncture.[/B][/B] [B][B]At just after midnight on the 13th April,The destroyer USS Roper was patrolling the Wimble Shoal, just off Cape Haterras.NC at 19kts; and within sight of the Bodie Island Lighthouse ,when she detected a vessel with her British 286 radar at a range of 2700 yds.[/B][/B]She closed on the unknown ship and recognised that it was a Uboat on the surface; and it appeared that she was trying to make a run for it -south.The Roper closed up to 700 yds and the Uboat launched a torpedo from her stern tube and some men were now on deck ready to man the 88mm deck gun. Roper just managed to evade the torpedo .The Uboat then turned to starboard to get her deck gun to bear; but Roper switched on her 24" searchlight illuminating her adversary, and raked the conning tower and deck with machine gun fire[B][B].The destroyer was now at full General Quarters and one 3" gun managed to hit Tthe hull; at which the Uboat submerged sweeping those on deck into the sea.[/B][/B] [B][B]Roper then ran over the position where the Uboat submerged and dropped,not one or two;but eleven depth charges on the Uboat and sunk it in 100 ft of water-how it did not damage itself is unexplained.This attack would have probably killed all or most of the 29 men who were in the water. [/B][/B] As it was dark and the fear of other Uboats; Roper made no attempt at rescue until daylight; when all in the water were found to be dead. It is said that some of the dead in the water were dressed in civilian clothes and carried wallets with US currency and ID documents ,suggesting U85 (now Identified) was tasked with landing enemy agents. [B][B]All the dead were buried secretly at night in a cemetary in Hampton VA. The whole episode poses more than a few questions about the conduct of these adversaries.A German book published in 2002 called the action of the Roper a WAR CRIME!!??[/B][/B] jainso31

Everything we obtain for this site is shown on the site, we do not have any more photos, crew lists or further information on any of the ships.

COPYRIGHT NOTICE. ALL IMAGES DISPLAYED ON THIS WEBSITE ARE PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT LAW, AND ARE OWNED BY CRANSTON FINE ARTS OR THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS. NO REPRODUCTION OR COPYING ALLOWED ON OTHER WEBSITES, BOOKS OR ARTICLES WITHOUT PRIOR AGREEMENT.

Contact Details
Shipping Info
Terms and Conditions
Cookie Policy
Privacy Policy

Sign Up To Our Newsletter!

Stay up to date with all our latest offers, deals and events as well as new releases and exclusive subscriber content!

This website is owned by Cranston Fine Arts. Torwood House, Torwoodhill Road, Rhu, Helensburgh, Scotland, G848LE

Contact: Tel: (+44) (0) 1436 820269. Email: cranstonorders -at- outlook.com

Return to Home Page