Saturday, 3 May

Light cruisers GALATEA and ARETHUSA departed Scapa Flow to relieve heavy cruiser EXETER and light cruiser NIGERIA on Iceland Faroes Channel patrol.

Heavy cruiser EXETER proceeded to Hvalfjord.

Light cruiser NIGERIA arrived at Scapa Flow on the 5th.

————

Battlecruiser HOOD and destroyers ECHO, ACTIVE, ANTHONY, and ACHATES were ordered to return to Scapa Flow.

The ships called at Reykjavik to refuel destroyers. Destroyer ECHO was detached and arrived at Hvalfjord at 2350.

The HOOD group departed Iceland at 1800/4th and arrived back at Scapa Flow at 1300/6th.

————

Anti-aircraft ship ALYNBANK departed Methil at 0715 to cover convoy EC.14 from May Island.

In Pentland Firth on the 4th, the ship was detached from the duty and returned to Scapa Flow arriving at 0700.

————

In a German bombing raid on Portsmouth during the night of 3/4 May, light cruiser SIRIUS under construction was damaged by a bomb which went through her.

————

Minelayer ADVENTURE, under repair,was damaged by splinters from German bombing at Liverpool during the night of 3/4 May.

The cruiser's repair was unaffected.

————

Minelayer TEVIOTBANK, escorted by patrol sloops SHELDRAKE and KITTIWAKE, laid minefield BS.55 off the east coast of England.

Paddle minesweepers SNAEFELL and THAMES QUEEN accompanied the minelay.

————

Light cruiser DELHI arrived at New York to refit.

Refit was completed on 12 January 1942.

————

German tanker NORDMARK replenished U.105 and U.107 at sea.

————

U.103 sank British steamer WRAY CASTLE (4253grt/总吨位) in 6-48N, 13-55. One crewman was lost on the steamer.

————

U.95 sank Norwegian steamer TARANGER (4873grt/总吨位) in 61-07N, 25-20. Two crew were lost.

————

In German bombing on Liverpool.

British steamer CORBET (468grt/总吨位) was sunk on a mine two cables 248° from Herculaneum Dock entrance, Liverpool.

Eight crew were lost. One was rescued from the steamer.

British sailing barge BARNACLE (138grt/总吨位), tug BONITA (65grt/总吨位) in Waterloo Dock, motor barge EMILY BURTON (58grt/总吨位), sailing barge PIKE (168grt/总吨位), sailing barge LING (164grt/总吨位), steam barge WALTON (82grt/总吨位) at Huskisson Branch No. 3 Dock, sailing barge SILVERDALE (176grt/总吨位) at Canada Dock, motor vessel IVY P. (79grt/总吨位) at Langton Branch Dock, flats GROSENOR, ROVER, BRILL (106grt/总吨位), DACE (143grt/总吨位), LUCE (143grt/总吨位) at Canada Dock, MUS (81grt/总吨位), RAY (91grt/总吨位), ROACH (108grt/总吨位), launch SURVEYOR No. 3 (7grt/总吨位), barges LONGENDALE (177grt/总吨位), ELLESPORT (55grt/总吨位), ORRELL at Alexandra Dock No. 3, and PIKE, and Norwegian steamer BRA-KAR (3778grt/总吨位)were sunk by German bombing at Liverpool.

There were no casualties on tug BONITA.

Steamer MALAKAND (7649grt/总吨位) carried ammunition. A partially deflated barrage balloon fell on deck and caught fire. The ship was abandoned at 0030/4th and blew up about 0730. One crewman from steamer MALAKAND was killed ashore.

Steamer ELSTREE GRANGE (6598grt/总吨位), steamer DOMINO (1453grt/总吨位) at Canada Dock, steamer EUROPA (10,224grt/总吨位), and barge ELLESPORT were lost when steamer MALAKAND exploded. Steamer TACOMA STAR (7924grt/总吨位) was sunk, but was later salved.

There were no casualties on steamer DOMINO. One crewman was lost on the steamer TACOMA STAR.

Flat LUCE was lost when she caught fire from the explosion of steamer BRA-KAR and sailing barge OYSTER.

British steamers AUSTRALIA STAR (12,614grt/总吨位) and CANTAL (3178grt/总吨位)were damaged by German bombing at Liverpool. One crewman was lost on the steamer CANTAL.

During the night of 3/4 May, British steamer BARONESE (8663grt/总吨位), British steamer LOBOS (6479grt/总吨位), Tug WAPITI (208grt/总吨位), British steamer MAHOUT (7921grt/总吨位), British tanker SAN FABIAN (13,031grt/总吨位) at Stanlow, Liverpool, steamer SILVERSANDAL (6770grt/总吨位), British steamer BUSIRIS (943grt/总吨位), British sailing barge LIMPET (164grt/总吨位), British sailing barge OYSTER (133grt/总吨位), British sailing barge GLITTO (166grt/总吨位), and British sailing barge CLAM (159grt/总吨位), Greek steamer KADIN (3582grt/总吨位), and Dutch steamer SALLAND (6447grt/总吨位) were damaged at Liverpool by German bombing.

Damage to steamer MAHOUT caused by explosion of steamer MALAKAND.

Tanker SAN FABIAN was repaired at Mobile.

Steamer SILVERSANDAL was set afire by the MALAKAND explosion. One crewman was killed on the steamer. One crewman was killed on Norwegian steamer SALLAND.

————

British steamer ROYSTON (2722grt/总吨位) was badly damaged by German bombing 270° from 62C Buoy, Humber.

The steamer was taken in tow and sank on the 5th in 53-37N, 00-39E.

————

Norwegian steamer SITONA (1143grt/总吨位) was badly damaged by German bombing in 53-12N, 1-11E. The entire crew was rescued.

The steamer sank on the 4th.

————

Norwegian steamer TRAJAN (1347grt/总吨位) was sunk by German bombing in 53-10N, 1-13E. The entire crew was rescued.

————

Light vessel SIRIUS (176grt/总吨位) was sunk on a mine at Albert Dock, Liverpool.

————

Battleships BARHAM and VALIANT, aircraft carrier FORMIDABLE, and destroyers ILEX, KANDAHAR, JUNO, JAGUAR, GREYHOUND, HASTY, and IMPERIAL arrived at Alexandria.

————

Anti-aircraft cruiser PHOEBE and destroyers HERO, HOTSPUR, ISIS, HAVOCK, and KIMBERLEY departed Port Said and arrived at Alexandria on the 3rd.

————

Destroyers DECOY and DEFENDER shelled Tobruk during the night of 3/4 May.

The destroyers then returned to Alexandria.

————

British steamer ARAYBANK (7258grt/总吨位) was badly damaged by German bombing at Suda Bay.

The steamer was bombed again on the 16th and became a total loss.

————

Italian torpedo boat CANOPO was sunk by British bombing at Tripoli.

Italian steamer BIRMANIA (5305grt/总吨位) was set afire and exploded.

Italian steamer CITTA D' BARI (3339grt/总吨位) was lost from the explosion of steamer BIRMANIA.

————

Italian coastal steamer GUISSEPPE ORLAND (838grt/总吨位) was lost on a mine at Tripoli.

————

Italian coastal steamer TUGNIN F. (425grt/总吨位) was sunk by Submarine TRIUMPH gunfire eleven miles northwest of Mersa Brega.

————

Ocean boarding vessel HILARY intercepted Italian tanker RECCO (5595grt/总吨位), which had departed Teneriffe on 21 April, in 44-37N, 24-27.

The tanker scuttled herself to avoid capture.

————

New Zealand light cruiser LEANDER arrived at Colombo.