Tuesday, 10 September

Rear Admiral H. M. Burrough CB, Cruiser Squadron 10, hoisted his flag on light cruiser NIGERIA at Scapa Flow.

————

Convoy AP.3, consisting of British steamers BRITANNIC (26943grt, Commodore of convoy Rear Admiral K. E. L. Creighton, MVO Rtd), ATHLONE CASTLE (25564grt/总吨位), BRISBANE STAR (11076grt/总吨位), IMPERIAL STAR (10733grt/总吨位), DURBAN CASTLE (17388grt/总吨位), ULSTER PRINCE (3791grt/总吨位), DOMINION MONARCH (27155grt/总吨位), and GLAUCUS (7586grt/总吨位), carrying 6050 troops, and steamers CLAN MACARTHUR (10528grt/总吨位) and CLAN CAMPBELL (7255grt/总吨位) departed Liverpool escorted by destroyers HAVELOCK, HIGHLANDER, HARVESTER, HURRICANE, WOLVERINE, and VOLUNTEER from 10 to 12 September. Light cruiser SHEFFIELD and two destroyers departed Greenock on the 10th and joined the convoy at Lough Foyle on the 11th.

SHEFFIELD was ordered back to Greenock on the 11th, and the destroyers detached after passing the northwest approaches.

The ocean escort was mainly armed merchant cruisers - WOLFE and CILICIA from 13th to 23rd, when the convoy arrived at Freetown, and CANTON and CARNARVON CASTLE from 25 September to 4 October. The convoy arrived at Capetown on 4 October and sailed on the 6th. CANTON escorted from 6th to 9th, CARTHAGE from 9th to 15th, and heavy cruiser SHROPSHIRE from 15th to 20th.

Convoy AP.3 was joined by light cruiser CARLISLE, destroyers KINGSTON, KANDAHAR, and sloop FLAMINGO, and arrived safely at Suez on 22 October. The arrival of AP.3 concluded operation APOLOGY.

————

Destroyers DUNCAN and MAORI departed Rosyth at 0815 to search for an aircraft down in the sea, and at 1041, were ordered to the Tyne.

————

Destroyers MALCOLM, VETERAN, and WILD SWAN departed Harwich late on the 10th. Early on the 11 October, they struck at a German coastal convoy off Ostend.

————

Destroyers BULLDOG, BERKELEY, and BEAGLE departed Portsmouth and joined destroyers HAVELOCK (SO), HIGHLANDER, HARVESTER and HURRICANE. The destroyers were to intercept twelve enemy merchant ships escorted by thirty S-boats reported at 1605, 15 miles 315° from Dieppe. At 1630, the report was amplified to include the presence of five destroyers in the area. If no contact was made with the German force, the destroyers were to sweep northeast towards Le Toquet.

————

Convoy OB.211 departed Liverpool escorted by destroyer VANQUISHER plus corvettes ERICA and MALLOW, which detached on the 12th.

————

Convoy MT.165 departed Methil, and arrived in the Tyne later that day.

————

Convoy FS.277 departed the Tyne, escorted by destroyers VEGA and VORTIGERN, and arrived at Southend on the 11th.

————

Submarine STURGEON attacked U.43 forty miles southwest of the Naze in 57?14N, 06?04E.

————

Norwegian steamer ELI (4332grt/总吨位) was sunk by German bombing 12 miles 144° from Skerryvore Light House. Her naval gunner was lost.

————

Convoy SC.4 departed Sydney, CB at 1000 escorted locally by Canadian armed yachts HUSKY, LYNX and ocean sloop DEPTFORD, which detached on the 12th. Destroyers ACTIVE, KEPPEL, VANQUISHER, sloop LOWESTOFT, plus corvettes ARABIS, CAMELLIA, FLEUR DE LYS and HEARTSEASE joined the convoy on the 23rd and escorted it to its arrival at Liverpool on the 26th.

————

Convoy SHX.72 departed Sydney, CB escorted by Canadian auxiliary patrol vessel LAURIER and armed yacht REINDEER.

————

Destroyers JUNO and JANUS departed Alexandria for Port Said for escort duties with convoy AN.3 which sailed on the 11th. Anti-aircraft cruiser CALCUTTA and destroyer JERVIS supported the convoy on the 14th, with JERVIS detaching the same day, and CALCUTTA the next. When it was found steamer EASTLEA could only make six knots, she was detached to Alexandria while the destroyers continued with steamers VASCO and PALERMO, which arrived on the 15th.

————

Aircraft carrier ARGUS arrived at Freetown after delivering aircraft to Takoradi.

————

Convoy BN.5 departed Bombay on the 10th escorted by armed merchant cruisers ANTENOR and HECTOR until the 19th. Light cruiser LEANDER and sloop INDUS were escorts from Aden from 19th to 23rd, and sloops AUCKLAND and PARRAMATTA from 19th to 22nd.

Submarine X.2 (former Italian submarine GALILEO GALILEI, captured on 19 June) departed Aden with the convoy, but she returned to Aden, escorted by netlayer PROTECTOR, after a mechanical breakdown. Sloops GRIMSBY and SHOREHAM escorted the convoy from Port Sudan on the 23rd until its arrival at Suez on the 26th.

————

On 10 September, Vichy French armed merchant cruiser CAP DES PALMES escorted by submarine PONCELET and sloop BOUGAINVILLE, which departed Dakar on the 3rd, arrived at Libreville with troops and supplies to augment the Vichy government.

————

German armed merchant cruiser Schiff 16/ATLANTIS sank steamer BENARTY (5800grt/总吨位) in the Indian Ocean, 480 miles east of Rodrigues in 18?32S, 70?07E. There were no casualties.