Convoy JW 54A was an

Arctic convoy The Arctic convoys of World War II were oceangoing convoys which sailed from the United Kingdom, Iceland, and North America to northern ports in the Soviet Union – primarily Arkhangelsk (Archangel) and Murmansk in Russia. There were 78 convoys ...

sent from

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

by the

Western Allies Western Allies was a political and geographic grouping among the Allied Powers of the Second World War. It primarily refers to the leading Anglo-American Allied powers, namely the United States and the United Kingdom, although the term has also be ...

to aid the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. It sailed in November 1943, reaching the Soviet northern ports at the end of the month. JW 54A was the first out-bound Arctic convoy of the 1943–44 winter season, following their suspension during the summer. All ships arrived safely.

Forces

Convoy JW 54A consisted of 19 merchant ships which departed from

Loch Ewe Loch Ewe () is a sea loch in the region of Wester Ross in the Northwest Highlands of Scotland. The shores are inhabited by a traditionally Gàidhlig-speaking people living in or sustained by crofting villages, the most notable of which, si ...

on 15 November 1943. Close escort was provided by the destroyers ''Inconstant'' and ''Whitehall'', and two other vessels. These were supported by seven

Home Fleet The Home Fleet was a fleet of the Royal Navy that operated from the United Kingdom's territorial waters from 1902 with intervals until 1967. In 1967, it was merged with the Mediterranean Fleet creating the new Western Fleet. Before the First ...

destroyers led by (Captain James McCoy commandinThe convoy was also accompanied initially by a local escort group from Britain, and was also joined later by a local escort from

Murmansk Murmansk () is a port city and the administrative center of Murmansk Oblast in the far Far North (Russia), northwest part of Russia. It is the world's largest city north of the Arctic Circle and sits on both slopes and banks of a modest fjord, Ko ...

.A cruiser cover force comprising (Rear-Admiral

Arthur Palliser Admiral Sir Arthur Francis Eric Palliser, (20 July 1890 – 22 February 1956) was a prominent Royal Navy officer during the Second World War. Early life and career Palliser was born in Richmond, Surrey, the son of Arthur Palliser and Hester B ...

), and also followed the convoy, to guard against attack by surface units. Distant cover was provided by a Heavy Cover Force comprising the battleship , the US cruiser and four US destroyers. Convoy JW 54A was opposed by a U-boat force of five boats in a patrol line, code-named ''Eisenbart'', in the

Norwegian Sea The Norwegian Sea (; ; ) is a marginal sea, grouped with either the Atlantic Ocean or the Arctic Ocean, northwest of Norway between the North Sea and the Greenland Sea, adjoining the Barents Sea to the northeast. In the southwest, it is separate ...

. A surface force comprising the battleship and five destroyers was also available, stationed at

Altenfjord The Altafjord (; ; ) is a fjord in Alta Municipality in Finnmark county, Norway. The long fjord stretches from the town of Alta in the south to the islands of Stjernøya and Seiland. The long river Altaelva empties into the fjord at the town o ...

Voyage

JW 54A departed Loch Ewe on 15 November 1943, accompanied by its local escort, of three destroyers, and its close escort. Three days later, on 18 November, it was joined by the ocean escort, while the local escort departed. At the same time the Cruiser Force and the Distant Cover Force from

Scapa Flow Scapa Flow (; ) is a body of water in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, sheltered by the islands of Mainland, Graemsay, Burray,S. C. George, ''Jutland to Junkyard'', 1973. South Ronaldsay and Hoy. Its sheltered waters have played an impor ...

also put to sea, taking station in the Norwegian Sea. The convoy was not sighted by German reconnaissance aircraft, nor by any of the ''Eisenbart'' U-boats, and crossed the Norwegian and

Barents Sea The Barents Sea ( , also ; , ; ) is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean, located off the northern coasts of Norway and Russia and divided between Norwegian and Russian territorial waters.World Wildlife Fund, 2008. It was known earlier among Russi ...

s without incident. On 24 November JW 54A arrived safely at

Kola Inlet Kola Bay () or Murmansk Fjord is a 57-km-long fjord of the Barents Sea that cuts into the northern part of the Kola Peninsula. It is up to 7 km wide and has a depth of 200 to 300 metres. The Tuloma, Rosta and Kola Rivers discharge into t ...

Conclusion

JW 54A was a successful start to the 1943–44 convoy season, with the safe arrival of 19 merchant ships and the war ''materiel'' they carried.

Ships involved

Allied ships

Merchant ships *''Copeland'' *''Daniel Drake'' *''Edmund Fanning'' *''Empire Carpenter'' *''Empire Celia'' *''Empire Nigel'' *''Fort Yukon'' *''Gilbert Stuart'' *''Henry Villard'' *''James Gordon Bennet'' *''James Smith'' *''Junecrest'' *''Mijdrecht'' *''Norlys'' *''Ocean Vanity'' *''Ocean verity'' *''Park Holland'' *''Thomas Sim Lee'' *''William Windom'' Close escort * ''Whitehall'' * ''Inconstant'' * ''Heather'' * ''Hussar'' Ocean escort * ''Onslow'' * ''Onslaught'' * ''Obedient'' * ''Orwell'' * ''Impulsive'' * ''Haida'' * ''Huron'' * ''Iroquois'' Cruiser cover force * ''Kent'' (flag) * ''Jamaica'' * ''Bermuda'' Distant cover force * ''Anson'' (flag) * ''Tuscaloosa'' * ''Corry'' * ''Fitch'' * ''Forrest'' * ''Hobson''

Axis ships

U-boat force * ''U-277'' * ''U-307'' * ''U-354'' * ''U-360'' * ''U-387'' Surface force * ''Scharnhorst'' * ''Z29'' * ''Z30'' * ''Z33'' * ''Z34'' * ''Z38''

Notes

References

* * Paul Kemp : ''Convoy! Drama in Arctic Waters'' (1993) * * * Bob Ruegg, Arnold Hague : ''Convoys to Russia'' (1992) * Bernard Schofield : (1964) ''The Russian Convoys'' BT Batsford ISBN (none)
JW 54A at Convoyweb
{{Arctic convoys JW 54A