Convoy OG 71 was a trade
convoy
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be used ...
of merchant ships during the
Second World War
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 was the 71st of the numbered
OG convoys Outbound from the
British Isles
The British Isles are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner Hebrides, Inner and Outer Hebr ...
to
Gibraltar. The convoy departed
Liverpool
Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...
on 13 August 1941 and was found on 17 August by a
Focke-Wulf Fw 200
The Focke-Wulf Fw 200 ''Condor'', also known as ''Kurier'' (German language, German for ''courier'') to the Allies of World War II, Allies, is an all-metal four-engined monoplane designed and produced by the German aircraft manufacturer Focke-Wul ...
''Condor'' of
Kampfgeschwader 40. Starting on August 19, it became the first convoy of the war to be attacked by a German submarine
wolfpack, when reached by eight
U-boat
U-boats are Submarine#Military, naval submarines operated by Germany, including during the World War I, First and Second World Wars. The term is an Anglicization#Loanwords, anglicized form of the German word , a shortening of (), though the G ...
s from
1st U-boat Flotilla
The 1st U-boat flotilla (German ''1. Unterseebootsflottille'') also known as the Weddigen flotilla, was the first operational U-boat unit in Nazi Germany's ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy). Founded on 27 September 1935 under the command of ''Fregattenka ...
, operating out of
Brest. Ten ships comprising a total tonnage of 15,185 tons were sunk before the U-boats lost contact on 23 August.
[ p. 78]
Legacy
This convoy was known as "Nightmare Convoy". Eight merchant ships,
[ two naval escorts and over 400 people died, including 152 from the ]commodore
Commodore may refer to:
Ranks
* Commodore (rank), a naval rank
** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom
** Commodore (India), in India
** Commodore (United States)
** Commodore (Canada)
** Commodore (Finland)
** Commodore (Germany) or ' ...
's ship, (146 on August 19 and 6 survivors lost on August 22 when '' Empire Oak'' sank). The ''Aguila'' losses included the 22 ''"lost Wrens"'' (members of the Women's Royal Naval Service
The Women's Royal Naval Service (WRNS; popularly and officially known as the Wrens) was the women's branch of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy. First formed in 1917 for the World War I, First World War, it was disbanded in 1919, then revived in ...
, or WRNS) who had volunteered for duties at Gibraltar
Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...
. After this, Wrens were never sent again on passenger liners in convoys, but transported on HM ships. In their honour, a new sloop, launched in 1942, was named , while a ''Liverpool''-class lifeboat, launched in 1951, was named .
Of the convoy's surviving merchant ships, five reached Gibraltar while 10 retreated to neutral Portugal. This was described as the most ''"bitter act of surrender could ever come our way"''.
The two ships from neutral Ireland were carrying British coal—after this incident, the Irish ship owners decided not to sail their vessels in British convoys and by the early months of 1942 the practice had ceased.[, page 87.]
Ships in the convoy
Allied merchant ships
A total of 23 merchant vessels joined the convoy in Liverpool.
Convoy escorts
A series of armed military ships escorted the convoy at various times during its journey.[
]
See also
* List of shipwrecks in August 1941
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
External links
OG.71 at convoyweb71 Convoy OG 71
at uboat.net
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