Operation Collar (convoy)

Malta, 1940 Malta, is a Mediterranean island of in an archipelago that has two other inhabited islands, Gozo and Comino. Malta had been a British colony since 1814. By the 1940s, the island had a population of 275,000 but local farmers could feed only one-third of the population, the deficit being made up by imports. Malta was a staging post on the British Suez Canal sea route to India, East Africa, the oilfields of Iraq and Iran, India and the Far East. The island was also close to the Sicilian Channel between Sicily and Tunis. After the Italian entry into the Second World War (10 June 1940), Malta was used as a base of operations by the Royal Air Force (RAF) and Fleet Air Arm (FAA), sea and submarine operations by the Royal Navy against Axis supply convoys from Italy to Italian Libya. On 11 June 1940, Italy began the Siege of Malta, the first step in an Italian plan to gain control of the Mediterranean. The Italians intended to bomb or starve Malta into submission by attacking its ports, towns, cities, and Allied shipping supplying the island. Force H At the west end of the Mediterranean, Vice-Admiral Sir James Somerville, the commander of Force H was less optimistic. Force H was smaller than the Mediterranean Fleet, having been improvised at Gibraltar as a substitute for the French after France defected from the Allies in late June. The redeployment of much of the to the west coast of Italy added to the vulnerability of Force H. The battleship was the only operational battleship, being in dry-dock for engine and boiler repairs, leaving Force H outnumbered three to one in battleships. The aircraft carrier was part of the force but the poor showing of the torpedo-bombers against left Somerville doubtful over the lack of training and inexperience of the aircrew in attacks on moving ships, shown again in operations during the Battle of Calabria (9 July 1940). Force H had two 6-inch cruisers, the modern and the ageing , completed in 1922. and were to participate in the operation but carrying 1,370 RAF technicians would severely limit their ability to fight. The 8th Destroyer Flotilla comprised , , , with and of the 13th Destroyer Flotilla and the new arrivals and that brought Force H up to eight destroyers, the equivalent of one destroyer flotilla. was also at Gibraltar but was of limited value after ramming the Italian submarine in late October, losing its Asdic, having to run at a slower speed and needing to get to the dockyard in Malta for repairs. Four s, , , and were waiting to sail to Alexandria and carried anti-magnetic mine apparatus, limiting their speed to in theory, that turned out to be in practice. ==Force H plan==

Force H was to make an air attack on Alghero airfield in the north-west of Sardinia, transport 1,400 soldiers and naval personnel through the Mediterranean from Gibraltar to Malta in the cruisers Manchester and Southampton that would meet Force D of the Mediterranean Fleet. The cruisers were to be part of the escort to Malta for the fast [] merchant ships Clan Forbes and Clan Fraser to Malta and New Zealand Star to Alexandria. On 15 November the ships and the destroyers , and sailed from the Clyde in Scotland for Gibraltar. Once the convoy entered the Mediterranean, it would be joined by the damaged Hotspur due for repairs at Malta. The corvettes Gloxinia, Hyacinth, Peony and Salvia were also to join the convoy, en route to Alexandria to join the Mediterranean Fleet. Somerville intended to join Force D at midday on 27 November south-east of Sardinia, continue to the Sicilian Narrows then turn for Gibraltar, Collar continuing towards Mata during the night. ==Operation MB 9==

Mediterranean Fleet On the night of 11/12 November 1940, the Battle of Taranto was fought by aircraft from of the Mediterranean Fleet that attacked the Italian Fleet in Taranto harbour and damaged severely the battleships , and leaving the with only three operational battleships. After the success of the raid, the commander of the Mediterranean Fleet, Admiral Andrew Cunningham, was willing to give credence to some of the more enthusiastic ideas circulating in Whitehall, in London. Operation Workshop, a plan to capture the island of Pantellaria, was rejected because it had no strategic significance and would saddle the navy with another onerous supply obligation. Operation Collar, a proposal to send a convoy of fast merchant ships carrying personnel and supplies from Gibraltar to Malta and Alexandria seemed feasible, with the drastic reduction in the fighting power of the . Force C Force C covered Force D with the battleships and and the aircraft carrier Eagle, which was to attack Tripoli on 26 November. The Mediterranean Fleet left Alexandria with the battleships , and the aircraft carrier Illustrious, the 7th Cruiser Squadron comprising , and with destroyers to cover a convoy to Souda Bay in Crete. Aircraft from Illustrious attacked Rhodes on 26 November. Force E Convoy MW 4 of , , and was to sail from Alexandria to Malta with Force E, a close escort of , , , , , , and . The distant escort consisted of the 3rd Cruiser Squadron, , and . Force D Force D, the slow battleship , the cruisers that was suffering from turbine problems and that had boiler trouble, were to depart Alexandria for Gibraltar across the Mediterranean, rather than round the Cape of Good Hope. The ships were to be accompanied by the anti-aircraft cruiser , with the destroyers , , , and . Force D was to rendezvous with Operation Collar (Force F) south of Sardinia. Convoy MW 4, the merchant ships Memnon, Clan Macaulay, Clan Ferguson and Breconshire were also at Alexandria, ready to be convoyed to Malta. The escorts would meet the merchant ship Cornwall which had been repaired and the four unloaded ships of Convoy MW 3 and escort them back to Alexandria. Part of MB 9 was for aircraft carriers of the Mediterranean Fleet to attack airfields in the Dodecanese Islands and Tripoli in Italian Libya. The Mediterranean Fleet was busy protecting convoys from Port Said and Haifa to Cyprus and Piraeus in Greece; the cruisers were transporting troops to the Aegean and under frequent attack by the . ==Voyage==

Convoy MW 4, 23 November On 23 November, the Malta-bound Convoy MW 4, Breconshire, Clan Ferguson, Clan Macaulay and Memnon sailed with a close escort of the destroyers Hasty, Havock, Hero, Hyperion, Ilex, Vampire, Vendetta and Voyager. The distant escort consisted of the 3rd Cruiser Squadron, Glasgow, Gloucester and York. The convoy reached Malta unhindered at on 26 November. 24−25 November During the night of 24/25 November the three merchant ships passed through the Strait of Gibraltar as Duncan led Hotspur and the corvettes Gloxinia, Hyacinth, Peony and Salvia out of Gibraltar at midnight on 24 November to rendezvous with the freighters. Velox and Wrestler were detached from the escort and put into Gibraltar. Around Army and RAF passengers began to embark on Manchester and Southampton from the liner completing the move shortly before dawn. At the cruisers sailed with the rest of the Force F destroyers and Force B. The convoy was met off Gibraltar by Force B, the battlecruiser Renown, the aircraft carrier Ark Royal, the cruisers Despatch and Sheffield and the destroyers Faulknor, Firedrake, Forester, Fury, Encounter, Duncan, Wishart, Kelvin and Jaguar. 26 November Force F and Force B sailed eastwards in clear but gusty weather and at daybreak on 26 November, aircraft took off from Ark Royal for the usual anti-submarines and reconnaissance flights that soon found the convoy. Despatch was sent to join the convoy escorts as the ships came closer to Vichy North Africa. During the afternoon, the fleet turned southwards to steam closer to the merchant ships and two hours later Manchester, Wishart, Encounter and Fury joined the convoy. The speed of the corvettes caused concern and rather than try to alter the plan, during the evening of 26 November, the corvettes were detached from Force F to make their way independently, even though this meant Force F losing their anti-submarine and anti-minesweeping capacity. By dark on 26 November the merchant ships were sailing east at 37°37′N, 06°54′E north of with the cruisers Dispatch, Manchester and Southampton as close cover and with Force B at 37°48′N, 07°24′E making , to the north-east of the convoy, the corvettes having fallen back . Force D from the Mediterranean Fleet was on schedule, north-east of (Galita) steaming west but wireless contact had not been gained with the eastbound ships and Ark Royal sent an aircraft to look at Convoy ME 4 The merchant ships Cornwall, Devis, Plumleaf, Rodi, Volo and Waiwera assembled in Grand Harbour and Marsaxlokk and departed Malta along the swept channel at with its escorts, the cruiser Calcutta and the Australian destroyers Vampire, Vendetta and Voyager. At on 29 November, Vampire and Vendetta covered Devis and Waiwera into harbour at Alexandria, Calcutta and Voyager sailed on with Volo and Rodi to Port Said on 30 November. ====== The departure of the ships from Gibraltar had been notified to and Force D, on its way from Alexandria, had been seen by the occupants of an Italian airliner on 26 November. The submarines , , and were sent to the south of Sardinia, and to stations off Malta. Admiral Inigo Campioni sailed from Naples with the battleships and , the 13th Destroyer Flotilla with , , and , the 7th Destroyer Flotilla with , and , the 1st Cruiser Division (Admiral Angelo Iachino) with , , and the 9th Destroyer Flotilla of , , and sailed from Naples, the 3rd Cruiser Division (Admiral Luigi Sansonetti) sailed from Messina with , and and the 12th Destroyer Flotilla with , and departed Messina. After dark, the 10th Torpedo Boat Flotilla sailed from Trapani in western Sicily for the Sicilian Narrows with , , and to attack Force D. The British ships were seen and Sirio fired torpedoes that had no effect and Force D sailed on. Convoy ME 4 The merchant ships Cornwall, Devis, Plumleaf, Rodi, Volo and Waiwera assembled in Grand Harbour and Marsaxlokk, departing from Malta on 26 November along the swept channel at with its escorts, the cruiser Calcutta, Vampire, Vendetta and Voyager. At on 29 November, Vampire and Vendetta covered Devis and Waiwera into harbour at Alexandria, Calcutta and Voyager sailed on with Volo and Rodi to Port Said on 30 November. 27 November During the morning of 27 November, when Force B was about to the south-west of Cape Spartivento and Ark Royal sent up its ASW and reconnaissance aircraft. Force B tuned about to close with the convoy. A decision had to be made to organise the convoy escorts for air attack by keeping them around the merchant ships or to stay north of the convoy to face a surface attack. At Somerville decided to take up anti-aircraft positions around the convoy. Force B came up to the convoy at and took post to the south to protect the convoy from a possible air attack out of the sun. A Swordfish crew spotted Italian ships off Cape Spartivento at the south end of Sardinia at The report was not received in Ark Royal, neither British Intelligence, nor air reconnaissance from Malta, had discovered the Italian sailing. Reports from the Swordfish described the Italian force as two battleships with destroyers and two groups of cruisers to the westwards of them. Renown missed the first eleven reports because of a faulty W/T receiver. After a visual signal from Ark Royal, Somerville decided to unite with Ramillies and attack. The details of five cruisers and five destroyers to the north-east, caused doubt in case it was Force D but Somerville ordered his ships to prepare for full speed. The destroyers Duncan and Wishart were ordered to remain with the convoy; soon afterwards, a report arrived of two battleships and seven destroyers sailing south-west. Once Dispatch, Duncan and Hotspur were on their way back to the convoy, Manchester, Southampton and the Force F destroyers were detached from the convoy to Force B. After more confusing reports a Sunderland appeared and reported Force D to be east-north-east, from Force B. Ark Royal had sent its torpedo bombers to the ships to the north-east and the Sunderland was sent to shadow the ships. The convoy, at its best speed, followed a course of 120° to get out of the way. The anti-aircraft cruiser Coventry, with Force D, was ordered to detach and join Force F as quickly as possible. At a bomber of the reported a convoy of three ships with escorts, the first time that the Italians realised that a convoy operation was taking place. Somerville gave his intention that Force B was to keep the Italian fleet away from the convoy unless there was a prospect of sinking an Italian battleship, then some risk to the convoy was acceptable. Somerville heard that Duncan had suffered an engine breakdown, leaving Force F and the convoy without anti-submarine defence, since it was the only ship with Asdic. Duncan was later taken in tow. Wishart had Asdic and was struggling to keep up with Force B; it was transferred back to the convoy. At after the engagement at Cape Spartivento, Somerville ordered Manchester, Southampton and the Force F destroyers to return to the convoy. By Force B was also sailing towards the convoy as it neared Sicily. The ships of Force H continued towards the Sicilian Narrows until late afternoon on 27 November, as the Italian battlefleet sailed northwards off the east coast of Sardinia. Just short of Cap Bon, Force B turned for Gibraltar and the convoy sailed through the Strait of Sicily. Ineffective attacks on Force E (the 3rd Cruiser Squadron) that was returning to the Mediterranean Fleet were made by the submarines Dessiè and Tembien during the night. 28/29 November The Italian 10th Torpedo Boat Squadron had sailed from Trapani at and about twelve MAS boats put to sea from several bases. The torpedo boats at about intervals, Sagittario, Sirio, Vega and Calliope from north-east to south-west, sailing west to the area of Cap Bon and turned about at At , lookouts on Sagittario spotted eleven ships behind them at . At midnight on 28 November, the cruisers of Force E and Force F, the three merchant ships, the 13th Destroyer Flotilla with the four corvettes following on, passed Cape Bon and set course to rendezvous with the Mediterranean Fleet (Admiral Andrew Cunningham) from Alexandria. Sagittario accelerated to attack a cruiser but three destroyers turned towards it, shepherding it to the north-east until out of touch. A few minutes later, Sirio saw an outline distant and turned again but destroyers headed it off, apparently firing torpedoes. At Vega spotted the convoy but the destroyers appeared again. At Calliope tried to edge closer to the convoy and at fired two torpedoes at to no effect. Clan Fraser and Clan Forbes arrived at Malta on 29 November and New Zealand Star, escorted by the cruisers Manchester and Southampton, with the destroyers Defender and Hereward, continued to Alexandria. ==Aftermath==

Analysis The oficial British naval historian, Stephen Roskill, wrote that the Italians had failed to intercept the convoy and the merchant ships of Operation Collar reached Malta and Alexandria unharmed. The Battle of Spartivento was indecisive and the failure of the torpedo bombers on Ark Royal to slow the Italian battle fleet as it withdrew confirmed the concerns Somerville had over their lack of training and inexperience. The cessation of the British pursuit led to Somerville being criticised at the Admiralty, the Prime Minister and the dispatch of a senior officer to chair a court of inquiry into Somerville's leadership, an underhand manoeuvre that was resented in the Mediterranean Fleet and Force H. Cunningham commanded another supply convoy to Malta during December and signalled that "the base was as effective as when war broke out and far better defended against air attack or invasion. On the Italian side, the aftermath of Cape Spartivento pleased no-one, opinion in the Italian fleet was that it had fled before an inferior opponent, even if they had to face an aircraft carrier and that they had failed to pursue the fleeing opponent. Iachino described the battle as "a minor military episode with no decisive results". "Indeed, the action at Cape Teulada, if it was not a success on the strategic level, as the enemy achieved their objective, was truly a tactical success for us and left everyone with the impression that we could confidently measure ourselves against the enemy in a prolonged gun battle". Giorgerini wrote that while it is correct to acknowledge the British had a strategic success in the passage of the convoy and other ships through the Strait of Sicily, "I find that it takes a certain sense of humour to call that action 'a tactical success for us". The directives issued by to the senior commander at sea, requiring the navy to engage "if the situation was favourable" was too vague, contrary to the principle that a clear intent and the goal to be achieved should be communicated. Vagueness served only to paralyse Campioni's initiative. Giorgerini wrote that after the failure of the British torpedo attacks, it would have been possible to use the large ships to stop the convoy. Even though the political–strategic circumstances of Italy required that the opportunity to achieve a success at sea be taken; 27 November 1940 was a bad day for the . After the operation, Campioni was sacked for timidity and replaced by Iachino and sent to the Dodecanese. Admiral Arturo Riccardi took over from Domenico Cavagnari at as Chief of Staff of the . Henceforth, the Italian fleet was to operate with air cover, to be converted as a fighter aircraft carrier and other ships were to be mounted with catapult-launchers for fighters. Casualties The convoy element of Operation Collar suffered no casualties and inflicted none. Subsequent events The Italian battle fleet was reorganised as a battle squadron with Vittorio Veneto, Andrea Doria and Giulio Cesare commanded by Iachino, with the 13th destroyer flotilla commanded by Bruno Brivonesi, the three heavy cruisers and a destroyer flotilla commanded by Admiral Sansonetti, three light cruisers and two destroyer flotillas commanded by Admiral Antonio Legnani, three light cruisers and a destroyer flotilla commanded by Admiral Alberto Marenco di Moriondo and three more light cruisers and two destroyer flotillas commanded directly by . ==Orders of battle==

Merchant ships Escorts } ME 4 escorts Convoy MW 4 MW 4 escorts ==Notes==