Saturday, 5 October

Anti-aircraft cruiser CURACOA departed Scapa Flow at 1030 to provide anti-aircraft support for convoy WN.20 from Pentland Firth to the Firth of Forth. She then proceeded to Rosyth.

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Convoy OB.224 departed Liverpool escorted by destroyer SKATE, sloop DEPTFORD, corvettes ANEMONE, ERICA, PICOTEE. Anti-submarine trawlers PENTLAND FIRTH and STELLA CAPELLA joined on the 6th and were detached on the 8th along with destroyer SKATE. The corvettes were detached on the 9th and the sloop on the 12th.

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Convoy FN.300 departed Southend, escorted by destroyers WALLACE and WATCHMAN. The convoy arrived at Methil on the 7th.

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Convoy FS.301 departed Methil, escorted by destroyers VEGA and VIMIERA. The convoy arrived at Southend on the 7th.

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Convoy SC.7 of thirty four ships departed Sydney at 1115 escorted by Canadian armed yacht ELK as local escort and ocean escort Sloop SCARBOROUGH. The convoy commodore was Vice Admiral L. D. I. MacKinnon, CB, CVO Rtd on British steamer ASSYRIAN.

On 16 October, at 21?20, SC.7 was reinforced by sloop FOWEY and corvette BLUEBELL from OA.228 escort.

On 18 October, the convoy was reinforced by sloop LEITH and corvette HEARTSEASE. The convoy arrived at Liverpool on the 21st.

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Submarine TIGRIS attacked Italian submarine OTARIO without success in the Bay of Biscay.

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British steamer ADAPTITY (372grt/总吨位) was sunk on a mine (Minefield WERNER) laid by German torpedo boats on 30 September/1 October in 51?44N, 01?17E. The Master of the steamer was lost.

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Dutch steamer OTTOLAND (2202grt/总吨位) was sunk on a mine four miles south of 20A Buoy, off Hartlepool. The entire crew was rescued.

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British steamer ORTOLAN (489grt/总吨位) was damaged by German bombing at Free Trade Wharf, Stepney.

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Free French submarine NARVAL arrived back at Malta from a patrol beginning on 25 September. The patrol was conducted with Submarine RORQUAL.

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During the evening of 5 October, Italian operation CV began. Two merchant ships departed Taranto for North Africa escorted by the 12th Destroyer Division, destroyers LANCIERE, CARABINIERE, CORRAZZIERE, ASCARI.

On the morning of 6 October, heavy cruisers POLA, FIUME, GORIZIA, ZARA and the 9th Destroyer Division, destroyers ALFIERI, ORIANI, CARDUCCI, GIOBERTI, departed Taranto. Heavy cruisers TRIESTE, TRENTO, BOLZANO and the 11th Destroyer Division, destroyers ARTIGLIERE, CAMICIA NERA, AVIERE, GENIERE departed Messina.

When a British force of battleships and screening forces were sighted between Kaso Strait and Alexandria, all Italian ships returned to port.

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Temporary Lt (A) I. P. Godfrey RNVR, Naval Airman L. J. Stevens and Acting S/Lt (A) J. Marshall RNVR, Naval Airman A. S. Rush of 806 Squadron from aircraft carrier ILLUSTRIOUS landed their Fulmars in Crete and were interned. The airmen returned to their Squadron at the end of the month.

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Italian steamer MARIA GRAZIA (188grt/总吨位) was sunk in 41-05N, 17-45E by ramming by submarine REGENT.

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Italian submarine NANI sank armed boarding vessel KINGSTON SAPPHIRE (356grt, Lt L. A. Sayers RNR) southwest of Cadiz, 36-11N, 6-32. Three ratings were lost. The rest of the crew were rescued by a Spanish trawler and landed at Huelva.

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Anti-submarine trawler LORD HOTHAM attacked a submarine contact near Almina Point.

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Convoy BS.6 departed Suez, escorted by sloops CLIVE and GRIMSBY. The sloops were detached on 11 November when joined by light cruiser LEANDER and sloops AUCKLAND, HINDUSTAN, YARRA. Light cruiser HOBART joined on the 13th. The convoy was dispersed off Aden on the 13th.