HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Operation Excess was a series of
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
supply convoys to
Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...
,
Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...
and
Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...
in January 1941. The operation was the first to encounter ''
Luftwaffe The Luftwaffe () was the aerial warfare, aerial-warfare branch of the before and during World War II. German Empire, Germany's military air arms during World War I, the of the Imperial German Army, Imperial Army and the of the Imperial Ge ...
'' anti-shipping aircraft over the
Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...
and all the convoyed freighters reached their destinations. The destroyer ''Gallant'' was disabled by Italian mines and Axis bombers severely damaged the cruiser ''Southampton'' and the aircraft carrier ''Illustrious''.


Background

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
's declaration of War on 10 June 1940 brought 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 ...
to the Mediterranean Sea and placed the ''
Regia Aeronautica The Royal Italian Air Force (''Regia Aeronautica Italiana'') (RAI) was the air force of the Kingdom of Italy. It was established as a service independent of the Regio Esercito, Royal Italian Army from 1923 until 1946. In 1946, the monarchy was ...
'' astride the traditional British sea route to
Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or approximately 20% of the water area of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia (continent), ...
ports, while the ''
Regia Marina The , ) (RM) or Royal Italian Navy was the navy of the Kingdom of Italy () from 1861 to 1946. In 1946, with the birth of the Italian Republic (''Repubblica Italiana''), the changed its name to '' Marina Militare'' ("Military Navy"). Origin ...
'' roughly tripled the numbers of
battleship A battleship is a large, heavily naval armour, armored warship with a main battery consisting of large naval gun, guns, designed to serve as a capital ship. From their advent in the late 1880s, battleships were among the largest and most form ...
s,
cruiser A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several operational roles from search-and-destroy to ocean escort to sea ...
s and
submarine A submarine (often shortened to sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. (It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability.) The term "submarine" is also sometimes used historically or infor ...
s available to challenge British sea power. The
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...
had held the eastern Mediterranean and
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
the western Mediterranean but the
Second Armistice at Compiègne The Armistice of 22 June 1940, sometimes referred to as the Second Armistice at Compiègne, was an agreement signed at 18:36 on 22 June 1940 near Compiègne, France by officials of Nazi Germany and the French Third Republic. It became effective a ...
removed the French navy from the alliance on 25 June 1940. From bases 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 ...
and Alexandria, the Royal Navy attempted to convoy supplies to Malta to maintain it as a base in the central Mediterranean. As Italy attacked
Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
from
Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...
in September 1940 and Greece from
Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...
in October 1940, the Royal Navy maintained most of the
Mediterranean Fleet The British Mediterranean Fleet, also known as the Mediterranean Station, was a formation of the Royal Navy. The Fleet was one of the most prestigious commands in the navy for the majority of its history, defending the vital sea link between ...
at Alexandria and used
Force H Force H was a British naval formation during the Second World War. It was formed in late-June 1940, to replace French naval power in the western Mediterranean removed by the French armistice with Nazi Germany. The force occupied an odd place ...
at Gibraltar for raids. British successes in early November 1940, including providing help to the Greeks to defeat the Italian offensive in Greece and the Royal Navy disabling Italian battleships , and at the
Battle of Taranto The Battle of Taranto took place on the night of 11/12 November 1940 during the Second World War between British naval forces (Admiral Andrew Cunningham) and Italian naval forces (Admiral Inigo Campioni). The Royal Navy launched the first all ...
, provided incentive and opportunity to supply Malta and Greece.


Prelude


Allies

Convoy MC 4 consisted of four freighters at Gibraltar, ''Clan Cumming'', ''Clan MacDonald'' and ''Empire Song'' carried
materiel Materiel or matériel (; ) is supplies, equipment, and weapons in military supply-chain management, and typically supplies and equipment in a commerce, commercial supply chain management, supply chain context. Military In a military context, ...
destined for
Piraeus Piraeus ( ; ; , Ancient: , Katharevousa: ) is a port city within the Athens urban area ("Greater Athens"), in the Attica region of Greece. It is located southwest of Athens city centre along the east coast of the Saronic Gulf in the Ath ...
. ''Essex'' carried of seed potatoes, of
ammunition Ammunition, also known as ammo, is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. The term includes both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines), and the component parts of oth ...
and twelve crated
Hawker Hurricane The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft of the 1930s–40s which was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd. for service with the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was overshadowed in the public consciousness by ...
s for Malta. Convoy MW 5 consisted of the Freighters ''Breconshire'' and ''Clan Macaulay'' at Alexandria with cargo bound for Malta. Convoy ME 6 was made up of nine freighters waiting at Malta for passage to Alexandria. Force A comprised , , , , , , , , and to sail from Alexandria, covering convoys MC 4, MW 5 and ME 6 east of the Skerki Banks. Force B of , , and would carry five hundred soldiers and airmen from the Aegean to Malta and join convoy MC 4 after dropping their passengers in Malta. Force C was to screen Convoy MW 5 with , and . Force D, and , was to sail from Alexandria with s ''Gloxinia'', , , and the
replenishment oiler A replenishment oiler or replenishment tanker is a naval auxiliary ship with fuel tanks and dry cargo holds which can supply both fuel and dry stores during underway replenishment (UNREP) at sea. Many countries have used replenishment oilers. Th ...
''Brambleleaf'' to be joined by and from
Souda Bay Souda Bay () is a bay and natural harbour near the town of Souda on the northwest coast of the Greek island of Crete. The bay is about 15 km long and only two to four km wide, and a deep natural harbour. It is formed between the Akroti ...
. Force F was to cover Convoy MC 4 with , , , and carrying four hundred soldiers and airmen to Malta. Force H was to protect Convoy MC 4 from Gibraltar to the Skerki Banks with , , , , , , , and ferrying six
Fairey Swordfish The Fairey Swordfish is a retired biplane torpedo bomber, designed by the Fairey Aviation Company. Originating in the early 1930s, the Swordfish, nicknamed "Stringbag", was principally operated by the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy. It was a ...
for Malta.


Axis

Five hundred anti-shipping aircraft of ''Fliegerkorps'' X were being transferred from
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...
to
Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...
to protect Axis convoys to North Africa and prevent passage of British convoys to Malta.


Operations


6 January 1941

Convoy MC 4 left Gibraltar, feinting toward the
Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...
, before turning toward Malta after dark, to mislead Axis agents near Gibraltar.


7 January

Force H sailed from Gibraltar to cover convoy MC 4. Force A, Force D and convoy MW 5 with Force C sailed from Alexandria and Force B sailed from the Aegean toward Malta. Force A was located by Italian air reconnaissance that afternoon.


8 January

Force B landed its passengers in Malta and proceeded west to meet convoy MC 4.
Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...
bombers raided
Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...
, damaging with three near misses and causing the only operational Italian battleship, , to retreat from the approaching convoys.


9 January

Force A was joined by Force D and south-east of Malta, Force B joined convoy MC 4; Convoy MC 4 and Force H were discovered by Italian aircraft and attacked by ten SM.79s from Sardinia. Two SM.79s were shot down by
Fulmars The fulmars are tube-nosed seabirds in the family Procellariidae. The family includes two extant species, and two extinct fossil species from the Miocene. Fulmars superficially resemble gulls, but are readily distinguished by their flight on s ...
from ''Ark Royal'' and a later attack by 15
Fiat CR.42 Falco The Fiat CR.42 ''Falco'' (Falcon, plural: ''Falchi'') is a single-seat sesquiplane fighter developed and produced by Italian aircraft manufacturer Fiat Aviazione. It served primarily in the Italian in the 1930s and during the Second World War. ...
s carrying bombs also failed. Force H left convoy MC 4 that afternoon after ''Ark Royal'' launched six Swordfish for the defence of Malta; Force A joined convoy MC 4 at dusk.


10 January

Italian ships from
La Spezia La Spezia (, or ; ; , in the local ) is the capital city of the province of La Spezia and is located at the head of the Gulf of La Spezia in the southern part of the Liguria region of Italy. La Spezia is the second-largest city in the Liguria ...
failed to find Force H. The Italian submarine and
torpedo boat A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval ship designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs were steam-powered craft dedicated to ramming enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes. Later evolutions launched variants of ...
s and ''Vega'' (Commander Giuseppe Fontana) launched torpedoes against Convoy MC 4 but missed. ''Bonaventure'' and ''Hereward'' sank ''Vega'' south of
Pantellaria Pantelleria (; ), known in ancient times as Cossyra or Cossura, is an Italian island and comune in the Strait of Sicily in the Mediterranean Sea, southwest of Sicily and east of the Tunisian coast. On clear days Tunisia is visible from the i ...
at 08:30 and ''Circe'' escaped undamaged. ''Bonaventure'' was slightly damaged and two men killed; 75 per cent of her ammunition was expended in the engagement. Two of ''Vega'' crew survived. Right after the engagement, which pushed the British convoy too far south of their route, ''Gallant'' struck a
naval mine A naval mine is a self-contained explosive weapon placed in water to damage or destroy surface ships or submarines. Similar to anti-personnel mine, anti-personnel and other land mines, and unlike purpose launched naval depth charges, they are ...
at 08:35. ''Mohawk'' took ''Gallant'' in tow toward Malta while the Force B cruisers provided protection from air attacks. Convoys MC 4 and MW 5 arrived at Malta and Convoy ME 6 departed for Alexandria. Fulmars from ''Illustrious'' shot down an Italian aircraft shadowing Force A at 09:30. ''Valiant'' avoided torpedoes launched by two SM.79s approaching under the
radar Radar is a system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), direction ( azimuth and elevation angles), and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It is a radiodetermination method used to detect and track ...
horizon at 12:30. As the combat air patrol Fulmars dropped altitude to engage the SM.79s, Force A was attacked at 12:35 by 18
Heinkel He 111 The Heinkel He 111 is a German airliner and medium bomber designed by Siegfried and Walter Günter at Heinkel Flugzeugwerke in 1934. Through development, it was described as a wolf in sheep's clothing. Due to restrictions placed on Germany a ...
s of ''
Kampfgeschwader 26 ''Kampfgeschwader'' 26 (KG 26) "Löwengeschwader" (in English ''Bomber Wing 26'' aka ''"Lions' Wing"'' by virtue of its insignia) was a German air force Luftwaffe bomber wing unit during World War II. Its units participated on all of the fronts ...
'' (KG 26) and 43
Junkers Ju 87 The Junkers Ju 87, popularly known as the "Stuka", is a German dive bomber and ground-attack aircraft. Designed by Hermann Pohlmann, it first flew in 1935. The Ju 87 made its combat debut in 1937 with the Luftwaffe's Condor Legion during the ...
s of ''
Sturzkampfgeschwader 1 ''Sturzkampfgeschwader'' 1 (StG 1 - Dive Bomber Wing 1) was a Luftwaffe dive bomber wing during World War II. StG 1 was formed in May 1939 and remained active until October 1943, when it was renamed and reorganised into Schlachtgeschwader ...
'' (StG 1) and ''
Sturzkampfgeschwader 2 ''Sturzkampfgeschwader'' 2 (StG 2) ''Immelmann'' was a Luftwaffe dive bombing Wing (military unit), wing of World War II. It was named after the World War I aviator Max Immelmann. It served until its dissolution in October 1943. The wing ope ...
'' (StG 2) escorted by 10 ''
Messerschmitt Bf 110 The Messerschmitt Bf 110, often known unofficially as the Me 110,Because it was built before ''Bayerische Flugzeugwerke'' became Messerschmitt AG in July 1938, the Bf 110 was never officially given the designation Me 110. is a twin-engined (de ...
'' (Bf 110) of ''
Zerstörergeschwader 26 ''Zerstörergeschwader'' 26 (ZG 26) "Horst Wessel" was a Luftwaffe heavy fighter wing of World War II. Formed on 1 May 1939, ZG 26 was initially armed with the Messerschmitt Bf 109 single-engine interceptor due to production shortfalls with t ...
'' (ZG 26). ''Illustrious'' completed launching Fulmar and Swordfish patrol aircraft as the attack developed. ''Illustrious'' was the main target and was enveloped in waterspouts and mist of exploding bombs. Some bombers diving from delayed bomb release until they pulled-out lower than the height of ''Illustrious'' funnel. The five air patrol Fulmars had not returned from chasing the SM.79s which attacked ''Valiant'' and the last four Fulmars to take off were unable to gain altitude rapidly enough to break up the attack. The Fulmars claimed eight enemy aircraft during the bombing of Force A as they shuttled to Malta airfields to refuel and re-arm. ''Warspite'' was lightly damaged by a bomb. ''Illustrious'' was hit by five bombs, including one which failed to explode and a near miss disabled her rudder mechanism. A bomb striking a lowered elevator caused extensive hangar damage, with many casualties among aircraft maintenance personnel and the destruction of nine Swordfish and five Fulmars. At 15:30 ''Illustrious'' headed for Malta steering with engines and the bombing continued. Seven SM.79s were discouraged by massed anti-aircraft fire but an attack by six Italian Ju 87s at 16:00 scored another bomb hit and two near misses. Fourteen German Ju 87s missed ''Valiant'' and ''Janus'' and a later attack by fourteen He 111s was similarly ineffective. ''Illustrious'' reached Malta at 21:30 and suffered 126 dead and 91 wounded by the time she departed from Malta.


11 January

''Gallant'' was beached in Malta's Grand Harbor at dawn and never repaired. As ''Mohawk'' and the Force B cruisers steamed from Malta to rejoin Force A, they were surprised by 12 Ju 87R dive bombers of II/St.G.2 attacking out of the sun at 15:20. ''Gloucester'' was hit by a bomb which failed to explode and ''Southampton'' was hit by two bombs, which killed eighty men and started fires, requiring the ship to be scuttled east of Malta. Force H returned to Gibraltar.


12 January

Force A was reinforced west of
Crete Crete ( ; , Modern Greek, Modern: , Ancient Greek, Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the List of islands by area, 88th largest island in the world and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fifth la ...
by Force B, the cruisers of Force D, the battleship and the aircraft carrier from Alexandria.


13 January

Convoy ME 6 arrived at Alexandria.


The Illustrious ''Blitz''

What Maltese called the Illustrious ''Blitz'' began when bomb stocks depleted during the attacks of 10 and 11 January were replenished and the Axis made a maximum effort to destroy ''Illustrious'' before she could be repaired. ''Illustrious'' and ''Essex'' were hit during an air raid on 16 January. Ten Macchi C.202s, ten CR.42s and twenty Bf 110s escorted 44 Ju 87s. Bombs exploding in Grand Harbour killed numerous fish, that were collected after the raid and eaten. ''Illustrious'' was not seriously damaged but a bomb exploded in ''Essex'' engine room killing 15 men and wounding 23 more. There was another heavy air raid on 17 January and ''Illustrious'' was again hit in an air raid on 18 January. ''Illustrious'' was not damaged by the last big attack on 19 January. ''Illustrious'' departed Malta on 23 January but her Fulmars remained for the defence of the island. ''Illustrious'' was able to complete additional repairs after reaching Alexandria on 25 January but restoration of full combat effectiveness required a trip to United States shipyards.


Losses

Fairey Fulmar fighters and AA gunners of the Royal Navy shot down at least seven aircraft on 10 January 1941, in defence of ''Illustrious'', while one Fulmar was lost. No merchantmen were lost during ''Excess'' but one cruiser was sunk and a destroyer damaged beyond repair.


See also

*
Battle of the Mediterranean The Battle of the Mediterranean was the name given to the naval campaign fought in the Mediterranean Sea during World War II, from 10 June 1940 to 2 May 1945. For the most part, the campaign was fought between the Kingdom of Italy, Italian Reg ...
* Malta Convoys


Notes


Footnotes


References

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Further reading

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Excess Balkans campaign (World War II) Allied naval victories in the battle of the Mediterranean Malta Convoys Naval aviation operations and battles Naval battles and operations of World War II involving the United Kingdom January 1941 in Europe