Convoy HX 72

Convoy HX 72
Part ofWorld War II
Date 20–22 September 1940 Location Western Approaches Result German victory
Belligerents
Kriegsmarine	Royal Navy
Commanders and leaders
AdmiralKarl Dönitz	Comm: R Adm HH Rogers Escort: Cdr AM Knapp
Strength
8 U-boats	43 ships 5 escorts
Casualties and losses
none	11 ships sunk (72,727GRT) 2 ships damaged (18,178 GRT)

HX 72was aNorth Atlanticconvoyof theHX serieswhich ran during thebattle of the AtlanticinWorld War II.The convoy comprised 43 ships of which 11 were sunk and another damaged by GermanU-boatswho suffered no losses.

Background

HX 72 was an east-bound convoy of 43 ships which sailed fromHalifaxon 9 September 1940 bound forLiverpooland carrying war materials.

The convoy comprised contingents from Halifax,SydneyandBermuda.Its Commodore wasRear AdmiralHH Rogers, RNR inTregarthen.

Escorts at this stage of the campaign were generally meagre; convoys generally were unescorted, or had just anarmed merchant cruiser(AMC) as protection against surface raiders until reaching theWestern Approaches.HX 72's ocean escort was the AMCJervis Bay,though at sunset on 20 SeptemberJervis Baydetached to meet a west-bound convoy. HX 72 was not due to meet the Western Approaches escort until the afternoon of 21 September, so HX 72 was unprotected when it was sighted at last light byGünther PrienofU-47.

TheU-boat Arm(UBW) was also sparse, able to maintain only a few boats at any one time in the North Atlantic, operating at the edge of the Western Approaches to intercept convoys before their escort had joined. U-47was on weather duty, her armament depleted after an attack onConvoy SC 2earlier that month, and was able only to report contact.

After reporting the convoy Prien shadowed the convoy, while U-boat Control(BdU)summoned all available U-boats. During night and following day a pack of 6 boats was gathered,U-99andU-65,which were nearby, and others en route from Germany.

Action

Otto Kretschmer,inU-99made contact around midnight of 20/21 September and attacked, hittingInvershannon.Rogers ordered a turn to port to try and shake off the attack, but this failed;U-99attacked again, hittingBaron Blythswood,which sank, andElmbank,which was disabled.U-99andU-47then attackedElmbankwith gunfire, but she did not sink until morning, at which pointU-99left the scene to return toLorient.

U-48arrived before dawn, and sankBlairangus,which was straggling. Rogers dropped smoke and turned again, to try and shake off his pursuers, but failed once more;U-47andU-48continued to shadow throughout the daylight on the 21st.

On 21 September, Prien and Bleichrodt were joined by 4 other boats of2nd U-boat Flotilla,U-65,U-38,U-43andU-32,whileU-100arrived at nightfall.

However, that afternoon the Western Approaches escort also arrived, causing the U-boats to draw back. At this stage, escorts usually arrived piecemeal, but by evening 5 warships had arrived, thesloopLowestoft,destroyerShikariand threecorvettes,Calendula,HeartseaseandLa Malouine.

At nightfall on 21/22 SeptemberU-100struck, entering the convoy to attack at close range. Attacking before moonriseJoachim Schepkehit three ships within minutes, causing confusion.Canonesa,ToriniaandDalcairnwere sunk, and the convoy began to scatter in confusion. The escort sought to retaliate, but searched outside the convoy perimeter, where the rest of the pack was gathered; they were unable to find Schepke, but were able to frustrate further attacks.U-48hitBroompark,which was damaged, but no other boat was successful. Just after midnightU-100struck again, sinking 3 more ships;Empire Airman,Scholar,andFrederick S Fales.She also attackedHarlingen,but was spotted;Harlingenavoided the torpedoes aimed at her, and returned fire with her stern gun, scoring several hits, but causing little damage.

As the convoy broke up, two more ships were hit;U-100sankSimla,whileU-32damagedCollegian.

This was the end of the action; HX 72 was scattered, but the U-boats were unable to pursue, as the presence of the escorts had forced them to submerge. The remaining ships of HX 72 proceeded independently, while the escorts tried to gather the convoy back together, but no further attacks took place and all remaining ships reached port safely.

Conclusion

HX 72 had lost 11 ships of 72,727gross register tons,of which Kretschmer sank three and Schepke seven ships. Whilst undoubtedly a victory, and a vindication of Donitz'swolfpack tactic,most of the UBW's successes were achieved by two of its aces using their high-risk tactic of penetrating the convoy to attack from within. The other boats following the more traditional approach from the flank, and at longer range, were far less successful.

Table

Allied ships sunk

Date	Name	Nationality	Casualties	Tonnage (GRT)	Sunk by...
20/21 September 1940	Invershannon	United Kingdom	16	9,154	U-99
20/21 September 1940	Baron Blythswood	United Kingdom	34	3,668	U-99
21 September 1940	Elmbank	United Kingdom	1	5,156	U-99,U-47
21 September 1940	Blairangus	United Kingdom	7	4,409	U-48
21/22 September 1940	Canonesa	United Kingdom	1	8,286	U-100
21/22 September 1940	Torinia	United Kingdom	5	10,364	U-100
21/22 September 1940	Dalcairn	United Kingdom	none	4,608	U-100
21/22 September 1940	Empire Airman	United Kingdom	33	6,586	U-100
21/22 September 1940	Scholar	United Kingdom	none	3,940	U-100
21/22 September 1940	Frederick S. Fales	United Kingdom	11	10,525	U-100
22 September 1940	Simla	Norway	5	6,031	U-100

References

• Blair, Clay (1996).Hitler's U-Boat War.Vol. I.ISBN0-304-35260-8.
• Edwards, Bernard (1996).Donitz and the Wolf Packs.ISBN0-304-35203-9.
• Hague, Arnold (2000).The Allied Convoy System 1939–1945.ISBN1-55125-033-0.
• Roskill, Stephen(1954).The War at Sea 1939–1945.Vol. I.

External links

• HX 72 at convoyweb
• HX 72 at uboat.net
• HMSJervis Bay