Chapter 2 - The Great Carrier War

(Part 8)

Target: North Africa

At the same time that the battles for Guadalcanal were being waged in the Pacific, British and American forces were fighting to keep Malta supplied and preparing for a massive invasion of German-held North Africa. On August 10, 1942, 14 merchant ships entered the Mediterranean in a convoy escorted by the HMS Victorious, HMS Indomitable, and HMS Eagle. The HMS Furious was also along, ferrying 36 Spitfires for the Royal Air Force on Malta.

The next day, taken completely by surprise, four torpedoes from U-73 blew the old HMS Eagle apart. She sank in less than ten minutes, with a loss of 200 of her crew. On August 12, German and Italian land-based bombers attacked the convoy as it neared Sardinia. Two bombs hit the HMS Victorious, but no serious damage was inflicted. The HMS Indomitable also received minor damage to her flight deck. By nightfall, the attacking planes had been driven off, and the escorting carriers left the convoy to begin their return trip to Gibraltar. Before it reached Malta, the convoy was again attacked, but five of the 14 ships, including the 15,000 ton tanker USS Ohio, made it safely with urgently-needed supplies.

Once the submarines and aircraft based at Malta were resupplied, they were able to disrupt the shipment of supplies to Rommel's Arika Korps. By November 8, 1942, the Allies were ready for "Operation Torch" -- the invasion of North Africa. Once established in the western portion of the North Africa, the push could begin to squeeze the Afrika Korps between these forces and British forces from Egypt. The landings were covered by a total of 12 carriers, including seven escort carriers, and over 500 aircraft. These were in four groups:

-- The USS Ranger and the escort carriers USS Sangamon, USS Chenango, USS Suwanee, and USS Santee were assigned to capture Casa Blanca on the Atlantic coast of Morocco.

-- The HMS Furious and escort carriers HMS Biter and HMS Dasher covered the landings at Onan.

-- The HMS Argus and escort carrier HMS Avenger participated in attacks on Algiers.

-- The HMS Victorious and HMS Formidable operated off-shore to keep the Italian navy from interfering in the landings.

The landings went off with minor opposition, and by May 1943 the German influence in North Africa was ended.

On September 9, 1942, about 100 Seafires from four British escort carriers provided air cover for Allied landings on Sicily. The Italian navy surrendered on the day of the landings and, from that time, the Allies had almost complete control of the Mediterranean.

| Home | Intro | Ventures | Sea | Air | Space | SciFi | Racing | Movies | Art | Travel | Exit |

| Intro | Early Years | Carrier War | Changing Role | Ship Directory | Bibliography | Tour the Big E |

Last Updated: January 1, 2003