May 1942
| 4-8 | May | Battle of Coral Sea. The Japanese southward advance was checked. |
| 6 | May | Fall of Corregidor, the island fortress in Manila Bay. Japanese Forces completed the conquest of the Philippines. |
| 8-10 | May | Operation BOWERY (USS Wasp and HMS Eagle reinforced Malta with fighter aircraft). |
| 10 | May | HMS Umbra was the last submarine to be evacuated from Malta as the Tenth Flotilla was relocated to Alexandria. However, submarines continued to make supply runs to the island. |
| 17-19 | May | Operation L.B. (HMS Eagle and Argus reinforced Malta with a second batch of aircraft). |
Italian submarine patrols in the Mediterranean during May 1942
| H.2 (…1 May) | Velella (…2 May) | Ondina (…4 May) |
| Sirena (…5 May) | Emo (…5 May) | Corallo (…5 May) |
| Onice (…11 May) | Nereide (…15 May) | Galatea (…16 May) |
| Mocenigo (…20 May) | H.8 (1-2 May) | Turchese (1-17 May) |
| Otaria (2-22 May) | Dessié (4-23 May) | Perla (8-25 May) |
| Uarsciek (10-26 May) | Ambra (11-24 May) | Asteria (11-27 May) |
| Platino (11-26 May) | H.8 (12-13 May) | Menotti (14-15 May) |
| H.8 (14-15 May) | Brin (17 May…) | Veniero (17 May…*) |
| Argo (22-30 May) | Beilul (23 May…) | Ondina (23 May…) |
| Aradam (23 May…) | Corallo (24 May…) | Mameli (25-26 May) |
| Squalo (25-26 May) | Acciaio (29-30 May) | Giada (29-30 May) |
| Alagi (29-31 May) | Malachite (30 May…) |
On the first day of the month, Emo (T.V. Giuseppe Franco) and Mocenigo (C.C. Paolo Monechi) were informed that a German U-boat had been disabled near the Spanish coast and ordered to give her assistance. This was U-573 (KL Heinrich Heinsohn), who was damaged and sought refuge in Cartagena, where she was interned. The next day, Mocenigo observed a U-boat; this was almost certainly U–74 (OL Karl Friedrich) also attempting to give succour to her sister ship. None arrived in time to help. U-74 would disappear with all hands and was believed to have been sunk the same afternoon by HMS Wishart and HMS Wrestler, the latter using Hedgehog, the first time this weapon was used. A destroyer on an anti-submarine search was sighted by Mocenigo from long range.
During the night of 1/2 May, twenty-two Wellington bombers raided the submarine base at Portolago (Leros), but they caused no significant damage.
At dusk on 2 May, Nereide (C.C. Pasquale Terra) spotted a submarine 120 miles northwest of Tobruk. This was HMS Porpoise (Lt L.A.W. Bennington, DSC, RN) returning to Alexandria after a storing trip to Malta. Both submarines dived, and contact was lost.
On 8 May, Force W departed from Gibraltar to rendezvous with the American carrier USS Wasp and escorts arriving from the Clyde.[1] Together they moved eastward and flew off sixty-four Spitfires (forty-seven from Wasp and seventeen from Eagle) to Malta. This was Operation BOWERY. All aircraft arrived except four and they were immediately embroiled in an air battle as the siege of Malta was reaching its climax. At the same time, the fast minelayer HMS Welshman, loaded with stores for Malta and disguised as the French destroyer Leopard, sailed from Gibraltar in the early hours of 8 May. Mocenigo (C.C. Paolo Monechi) was off Cape Blanc (Tunisia), too far to the east to be able to intervene as the aircraft carrier launched their aircraft from the 3°E meridian. At daylight on 9 May, Mocenigo observed a destroyer proceeding westward at 24 knots, however, the range was 13,000 metres and the submarine could not intercept. The same evening, Onice (C.C. Bruno Zelik), patrolling near Cape Bon, had just been forced to dive by an aircraft, when noises were heard indicating the passage of a fast destroyer on a southerly course. This was the minelayer HMS Welshman. An attempt to intercept her by S 61, S 34, and S 31 of the 3rd Schnellbootflottille failed. She reached Malta the next morning.
German submarines were deployed in the eastern Mediterranean in support of the Rommel offensive.
During the evening of 10 May, the destroyers Jervis, Jackal, Kipling, and Lively sailed from Alexandria to intercept a Benghazi-bound convoy. The following day, they were attacked by aircraft south of Crete. Despite a Beaufighter escort, Jackal, Kipling, and Lively were sunk.
Perla (T.V. Giovanni Celeste), one of the four survivors from Massawa, returned to the Mediterranean in October 1941. On 11 May, while patrolling between La Galite Island and the Tunisian coast, she detected a Welshman returning to Gibraltar from her supply trip to Malta. Two torpedoes fired from 600 metres missed the target, which escaped at high speed. Celeste failed to make an enemy report immediately after the attack and would be reprimanded.
Operation G.A.4
During the evening of 14 May, a new attempt against Alexandria was made by the Decima Flottiglia MAS, this time using the submarine Ambra (T.V. Mario Arillo). But Arillo did not have the experience of Borghese and misjudged the current, dropping the three maiali several miles to the west of the harbour entrance. They were finally abandoned near Agami, Mex, and Anfouchy, and the six men were captured. ULTRA decrypts had noted the arrival of Ambra at Leros on 5 May and it was known since 6 May that Alexandria was the objective. The Mediterranean Fleet had been put on alert as the floating dock was believed to be the main target. The trawler HMS Kingston Crystal claimed to have attacked a contact on the evening of the 13th, but this appears to have been a ‘non-sub’ as Ambra was not the target. Although the exact path of the Italian submarine on her return trip was well known to British Intelligence—the governor of Rhodes had not used the Quadratino in his signal to Rome —the Royal Navy and Air Force failed to make use of the information.
Eagle sailed again with HMS Argus on 17 May[2] to launch fifteen Spitfires and six Albacores (operation L.B.). The submarines Brin, Mocenigo, and Veniero were warned of the sortie. On the morning of 18 May, Mocenigo fired three torpedoes at an enemy cruiser in a squadron that included two aircraft carriers, believed to be HMS Eagle and HMS Argus, and several destroyers. The light cruiser Charybdis was missed and dropped three depth charges while the destroyer HMS Partridge hunted the submarine unsuccessfully.
The tribulations of Argo
Shortly before midnight on 27 May, Argo (T.V. Pasquale Gigli), patrolling near Cape Caxine (Algeria), was straddled by four depth charges dropped by Catalina ‘C’ (AJ162) of 202 Squadron piloted by Flight Lieutenant R.Y. Powell. One rating was wounded, and the submarine suffered some damage; three torpedoes were accidentally ejected as the bow caps had been left open during the attack. But her troubles were not over. The following afternoon, she was attacked with four depth charges by Sunderland ‘R’ (W3983) of 10 Squadron (RAAF) piloted by Flight Lieutenant H G. Pockley. The submarine escaped further punishment, and the aircraft was slightly damaged by return fire. About an hour later, the aircraft returned for another attack and, this time, hit the submarine with a depth charge, which failed to detonate and was lodged in her bow. Argo was in a predicament; she could no longer submerge from fear that the depth charge would explode. Another attack at the end of the day was carried out by Hudson ‘V’ (V9168) of 233 Squadron piloted by Flying Officer Paisey. The bomber was directed by Pockley in Sunderland ‘R,’ which was still lingering around, but Argo escaped from the four depth charges aimed at her.
Finally, the light cruiser HMS Charybdis, escorted by the destroyers Westcott and Wrestler, arrived on the scene but failed to locate the submarine. The British warships were reported by an Italian aircraft in the afternoon of the 29th. The Seventh Cruiser Division[3] sailed from Cagliari, the submarines Acciaio and Giada from Augusta and Alagi from Trapani to intercept them. They were shortly after recalled when the British force was observed to be returning to Gibraltar. Argo reached Cagliari on the morning of 30 May. Admiral Legnani and the Grupsom leader C.F. Alfredo Criscuolo met her, congratulating the crew for their narrow escape. The submarine was directed to Naples for repairs.
Loss of Veniero
Veniero (C.C. Elio Zappetta) disappeared without a trace either at the end of May or early June. On 17 May, she sailed from Cagliari, preceded by Brin, for a patrol north of Algiers and was to have returned on 7 June. She was informed that the aircraft carrier HMS Argus, the light cruiser Dido, and three destroyers had sailed from Gibraltar, followed a few hours later by the aircraft carrier HMS Eagle and three destroyers (this was the force attacked by Mocenigo on 18 May). Later, her loss would be attributed to a Catalina ‘J’ of 240 Squadron, but this aircraft had sunk Zaffiro (see 9 June). Six officers and fifty-two ratings perished.
As the month drew to a close, the former commander of Ametista, Capitano di Corvetta Virgilio Spigai, wrote a critical essay on the conduct of the war at sea by Italian submarines in the Mediterranean Theatre. The intellectual Spigai had commanded his submarine for twenty-five months since April 1940. His analytical mind pointed out the numerous failings of equipment and personnel and the poor showing of the submarines, especially compared to those of Betasom. It must be pointed out that Spigai never fired a torpedo at the enemy during the war. He soon took command of Rismondo (ex-Yugoslav Ostvenik), who was relegated to training duties. Had his comments ruffled a few feathers in high places? Later, he was given command of the Leros Grupsom at a time when no submarines were available for this flotilla. Eventually, he took command of the coastal artillery of this island during the Dodecanese campaign in the fall of 1943 and spent the remainder of the war in a German PoW camp. Post-war, he eventually reached the grade of Admiral and Military Adviser to the President of the Republic.
Italian submarine patrols in the Atlantic during May 1942
| Barbarigo (…) | Cappellini (…) | Bagnolini (…) |
| Archimede (1 May…) | Da Vinci (9 May…) | Giuliani (11-23 May) |
The submarine Giuliani (C.C. Adalberto Giovannini) departed on 9 May from Kiel for Bordeaux, which it reached after two weeks. Capitano di corvetta Gian Domenico Bruno was a passenger on board this submarine and was destined to take over the command of Calvi but ended up instead in command of Giuliani. His career as a submarine commander was cut short when he was wounded during an air attack near the term of his first Atlantic patrol. This brought the training of Italian submariners at Gotenhafen to a close. It would be renewed the following year with the acquisition of German-built U-boats.
Before midnight on 18 May, in the South Atlantic, Barbarigo (C.C. Enzo Grossi) struck the Brazilian tanker Comandante Lyra (5,753 GRT, built 1919) with one torpedo and caused further damage with gunfire, scoring nineteen hits. The ship was abandoned as help was being rushed to the scene. It consisted of the light cruiser USS Milwaukee (CL-5), the destroyer USS Moffett (DD-362) [Task Group 23.2] and the light cruiser USS Omaha (CL-4), and the destroyer USS McDougal (DD-358) [Task Group 23.3], both groups converging from different directions. Nine survivors managed to reach the Brazilian coast, and Milwaukee found a lifeboat with twenty-five survivors and Moffett another sixteen. A party from the light cruiser Omaha had boarded the burning ship and concluded that it was salvageable. The seaplane tender USS Thrush (AVP-3) arrived on the scene, helped fight the flames, and took Comandante Lyra in tow. The Brazilian tug, Heitor Perdigão, arrived on 22 May and assisted in towing the vessel to Fortaleza. She was repaired and returned to service the following year.
On 20 May 1942, in the first of two controversial incidents, Grossi attacked the light cruiser Milwaukee and the destroyer Moffett. The two ships had transferred the survivors of Comandante Lyra to Omaha and where now on their way to Recife (Brazil). The two torpedoes fired at the light cruiser missed their mark. This did not prevent Grossi from claiming he had sunk a California-class battleship, although the attack was not even observed by the American warships. Confirmation of the “sinking” appeared to come from the Italian Naval Attaché in Buenos Aires, who cited a source in the Argentinian postal service reporting that the Argentinian Rio Iguazu had landed fifty-five survivors of an American battleship. The source of this error is unknown. The incident was exploited to the fullest by Fascist propaganda, badly in need of good news. Three days later, Grossi was promoted to Capitano di Fregata.
Two days later, at dusk, the submarine was sighted by an aircraft that dropped five depth charges. Barbarigo replied with her deck gun and anti-aircraft armament and escaped damage. This was a Brazilian Mitchell (B-25) of the Agrupamento de Avioes de Adaptacao (Brazilian F.A.B.) piloted by Cap-Av A.C.P. Horta with a mixed Brazilian and American crew. It was the first attack by a Brazilian aircraft, although the country was still not at war. On 26 May, Barbarigo reported being missed by two torpedoes from a submarine. No Allied submarines operated in the area.
In the early hours of 23 May, Archimede (T.V. Gianfranco Gazzana Priaroggia), also cruising in the South Atlantic, was attracted by a light that appeared to be a ship on fire (this was Comandante Lyra towed by Thrush and escorted by Moffett; Heitor Perdigão and Milwaukee were also in the vicinity). Milwaukee suddenly appeared and was mistaken for a heavy cruiser of the Pensacola class in company with two other destroyers believed to be of the Craven class. Priaroggia intended to attack the cruiser, but they disappeared in the haze, and a destroyer was attacked instead. This was Moffett, who was missed by two torpedoes. The surfaced submarine was seen, and the destroyer counter-attacked with fifteen depth charges. Archimede had already gone down to 120 metres and was unmolested. The same afternoon, the submarine was attacked by Catalina P-2 (#7623) of VP-83[4] based at Natal, Brazil (piloted by Lt (jg) A.R. Waggoner) and then by a SOC (Curtis Seagull, piloted by Lt W.F. Bringle) from the light cruiser USS Milwaukee. Archimede managed to hold them off with her machine guns and main armament, before diving and making good her escape.
On the morning of 28 May, Barbarigo discovered a lone ship and asked Betasom for permission to attack. The submarine trailed the vessel, and it was only at 2200 hours that a signal was received, giving the green light. This was the British Charlbury (4,836 GRT, built 1940) carrying coal from Cardiff to Buenos Aires. She had been in convoy ON.93, which had now dispersed, and she would require six torpedoes and several rounds of gunfire to sink. Two were killed; her thirty-nine survivors were picked up by the light cruiser USS Omaha.
With torpedo and gunfire, Cappellini (T.V. Marco Revedin) disposed of the Swedish Tisnaren (5,747 GRT, built 1918) on 19 May. She was a straggler from convoy OS.27. Fortunately, all forty-two crew members were later picked up by the American steamer Green Mountain and landed in Trinidad. A week later, some 200 miles north of Natal (Brazil), the submarine escaped damage when she was attacked with a single MK 17 depth charge by a Catalina (PBY-5A) piloted by Lt (jg) H G. Cooper of USN squadron VP-83. On the last day of the month, Cappellini sent to the bottom the brand-new British tanker Dinsdale (8,214 GRT, built 1942) some 450 miles northeast of Natal, using six torpedoes in the process. Five were killed; the Spanish Orduna picked up forty-four survivors.
Bagnolini (C.C. Mario Tei), cruising 200 miles east of Natal, sighted a large unidentified tanker. She fired four torpedoes in the early hours of 28 May but missed her target.
[1] Force W: the battlecruiser Renown, the aircraft carriers HMS Eagle and USS Wasp, the light cruisers Charybdis and Cairo, the destroyers Intrepid, Ithuriel, Echo, Partridge, Antelope, Vidette, Westcott, Wishart, Wrestler, Salisbury, Georgetown, USS Lang (DD-399) and Sterret (DD-407).
http://www.fold3.com/image/267924380/
[2] Eagle and Argus were screened this time by the light cruiser Charybdis, the destroyers Wishart, Partridge, Ithuriel, Antelope, Wrestler, and Westcott.
[3] Seventh Cruiser Division: light cruisers Eugenio di Savoia and Montecuccoli screened by the destroyers Ascari and Oriani.
[4] VP stood for Fixed Wing Patrol Squadron.