7

The Mediterranean Passage

The New Situation — France Out, Italy In — Admiral Cunningham at Alexandria — Successful Action off Calabria — Increasing Naval Burdens — Mediterranean Inhibitions — My Minute of July 12 and the First Sea Lord’s Reply — My Minute of July 15 — Admiral Cunningham’s Views on Sending Reinforcements Through the Mediterranean — The First Sea Lord’s Minute of July 23 — The Plan for “Operation Hats” — My Efforts to Send the Tanks Through the Mediterranean — My Minute of August 13 — Failure to Persuade the Admiralty — Conduct of “Operation Hats” — Successful Daring — Need for Bombarding Vessels — My Telegram to Admiral Cunningham of September 8 — Hard Efforts to Succour Malta Air Defence — Admiral Somerville’s Excursions — The Takoradi Route to Egypt Opened — A Vital Trickle — Malta Still in the Foreground.

UNTIL THE FRENCH COLLAPSE the control of the Mediterranean had been shared between the British and French Fleets. At Gibraltar we had maintained a small force of cruisers and destroyers watching the Straits. In the Eastern Basin lay our Mediterranean Fleet, based on Alexandria. This had been reinforced earlier in the year, when the Italian attitude became menacing, to a force of four battleships, seven cruisers, twenty-two destroyers, one aircraft-carrier, and twelve submarines. The French Mediterranean Fleet comprised five capital ships, one aircraft-carrier, fourteen cruisers, and many smaller ships. Now France was out and Italy was in. The numerically powerful Italian Fleet included six battleships, including two of the latest type (Littorios), mounting fifteen-inch guns, but two of the older ships were being reconstructed and were not immediately ready for service. Besides this, their Fleet comprised nineteen modern cruisers, seven of which were of the eight-inch-gun type, one hundred and twenty destroyers and torpedo-boats, and over a hundred submarines.

In addition a strong Italian Air Force was ranged against us. So formidable did the situation appear at the end of June that Admiralty first thoughts contemplated the abandonment of the Eastern Mediterranean and concentration at Gibraltar. I resisted this policy, which, though justified on paper by the strength of the Italian Fleet, did not correspond to my impressions of the fighting values, and also seemed to spell the doom of Malta. It was resolved to fight it out at both ends. On July 3 the Chiefs of Staffs prepared a paper about the Mediterranean in which they stressed the importance of the Middle East as a war theatre, but recognised that for the time being our policy must be generally defensive. The possibility of a German attack on Egypt must be taken seriously but so long as the Fleet could be retained in the Eastern Mediterranean our existing forces were enough to deal with purely local attack.

We have seen how, at the end of June, Force H was constituted at Gibraltar under Admiral Somerville. It comprised the Hood, Resolution, and Valiant, the carrier Ark Royal, two cruisers, and eleven destroyers. With this we had done the deed at Oran. In the Eastern Mediterranean we found in Admiral Andrew Cunningham an officer of the highest qualities and dauntless character. Immediately upon the Italian declaration of war, he put to sea in search of the enemy. The Royal Air Force attacked Tobruk and sank the old Italian cruiser San Giorgio. The Fleet bombarded Bardia from the sea. Submarines on both sides were active, and we destroyed ten of the enemy for the loss of three of our own from deep mining before the end of June.

On July 8, whilst covering the passage of a convoy from Malta to Alexandria, Admiral Cunningham became aware of the presence of powerful Italian forces. It was evident from the intensity of Italian air attacks that the enemy also was engaged in an important operation, and we now know that they planned to lead the British Admiral into an area where he could be subjected to concentrated attack by the full weight of the Italian Air Force and submarines. Admiral Cunningham at once seized the initiative, and, despite his inferiority in numbers, boldly turned to interpose his fleet between the enemy and their base.

On the following day contact was made and an action at long range ensued, in which one enemy battleship and two cruisers were hit without any damage being suffered by the British Fleet. The enemy refused to stand and fight, and, thanks to his superior speed, was able to escape, pursued by Admiral Cunningham to a point within twenty-five miles of the Italian mainland. Throughout this and the next two days the intense air attacks continued without success, and the convoy, though frequently bombed, reached Alexandria safely. This spirited action established the ascendancy of the British Fleet in the Mediterranean and Italian prestige suffered a blow from which it never recovered. Ten days later the Sydney, an Australian cruiser, with a British destroyer flotilla, sank an Italian cruiser. Our first contacts with the new enemy were therefore by no means discouraging.

The burdens which lay upon the Admiralty at this time were, however, heavy in the extreme. The invasion danger required a high concentration of flotillas and small craft in the Channel and North Sea. The U-boats, which had by August begun to work from Biscayan ports, took severe toll of our Atlantic convoys without suffering many losses themselves. Until now the Italian fleet had never been tested. The possibility of a Japanese declaration of war, with all that it would bring upon our Eastern Empire, could never be excluded from our thoughts. It is therefore not strange that the Admiralty viewed with the deepest anxiety all risking of warships in the Mediterranean, and were sorely tempted to adopt the strictest defensive at Gibraltar and Alexandria. I, on the other hand, did not see why the large numbers of ships assigned to the Mediterranean should not play an active part from the outset. Malta had to be reinforced both with air squadrons and troops. Although all commercial traffic was rightly suspended, and all large troop convoys to Egypt must go round the Cape, I could not bring myself to accept the absolute closure of the inland sea. Indeed I hoped that by running a few special convoys we might arrange and provoke a trial of strength with the Italian Fleet. I hoped that this might happen, and Malta be properly garrisoned and equipped with airplanes and A.A. guns before the appearance, which I already dreaded, of the Germans in this theatre. All through the summer and autumn months I engaged in friendly though tense discussion with the Admiralty upon this part of our war effort.

I thought that Illustrious might well go to the Mediterranean and exchange with Ark Royal. In this case Illustrious could take perhaps a good lot of Hurricanes to Malta. As we have a number of Hurricanes surplus at the moment, could not the Malta Gladiator pilots fly the Hurricanes themselves? This would not diminish our flying strength in this country.

The operation against Lulea [in the Baltic] has become less important now that the Germans have control of all the French and Belgian orefields. We must look to the Mediterranean for action.

You were going to let me have your plan for exchanging destroyers of more endurance with the Mediterranean flotilla. Could I have this with dates?

To this Admiral Pound replied through the First Lord the same day:

We have now gained experience of the air conditions in the Western Mediterranean and as soon as the present operation on which the Eastern Fleet is employed is completed, we shall know pretty well what we are faced with in the Eastern Mediterranean.

There is no doubt that both Force H and the Eastern Mediterranean Fleet work under a grave disadvantage inasmuch as it is not possible to give them fighter protection, as we do in the North Sea when ships are in the bombing area.

At the moment we are faced with the immediate problem of getting aircraft and A-A guns to Malta, and aircraft to Alexandria. I am not at all certain that the risk of passing a ship with all these available stores through the Mediterranean is not too great, and that it might not be better to accept the delay of sending her round the Cape.

There is also the question of Illustrious to be considered, but this need not be settled immediately as she must first come home to embark a full complement of Fulmar fighters.

Arrangements arc being made to replace some of the destroyers at Gibraltar by others with longer endurance, but the date on which they leave will probably be dependent on the escorting of the ship I have referred to above to Gibraltar.

1. It is now three weeks since I vetoed the proposal to evacuate the Eastern Mediterranean and bring Admiral Cunningham’s fleet to Gibraltar. I hope there will be no return to that project. Anyone can see the risk from air attack which we run in the Central Mediterranean. From time to time and for sufficient objects this risk will have to be faced. Warships are meant to go under fire. Our position would be very different if I had been assisted in my wish in October of last year to reconstruct the Royal Sovereign class with heavy anti-aircraft armour on their decks at a cost to their speed through increased bulging. The difficulties which were presented at every stage were such as to destroy this proposal, and we are no further on than we were a year ago. If we had the Royal Sovereigns armoured, and their guns cocked up, or some of them, we could assault the Italian coasts by bombardment with comparative impunity.¹ The various Boards of Admiralty which preceded this war altogether underrated the danger of air attack, and authorised sweeping statements to Parliament on the ability of ships of war to cope with it. Now there is a tendency to proceed to the other extreme, and consider it wrong to endanger His Majesty’s ships by bringing them under air bombardment, as must from time to time be necessary in pursuance of operations….

It may be taken for certain that the scale of the enemy’s air attack will increase in the Mediterranean as the Germans come there.

2. It becomes of high and immediate importance to build up a very strong anti-aircraft defence at Malta, and to base several squadrons of our best fighter aircraft there. This will have to be done under the fire of the enemy. I should be glad to know the full scale of defence which was proposed in various papers I have seen. The emplacements should be made forthwith. I understand that a small consignment of A.A. guns and Hurricanes is now being procured, and that the main equipment is to follow later. It may well be possible at the end of this month to detach the larger consignment from our home defence. The urgent first consignment should reach Malta at the earliest moment. The stores may be divided between several ships, so as to avoid losing all if one is hit. The immense delay involved in passing these ships round the Cape cannot be accepted. So far as Malta is concerned, it is not seen how the dangers will be avoided by this détour, the voyage from Alexandria to Malta being, if anything, more dangerous than the voyage from Gibraltar to Malta.

3. Illustrious. Considering that in the North Sea and Atlantic we are on the defensive and that no one would propose to bring Illustrious into the narrow waters north and south of Dover, where we have already good shore-based aircraft, our aircraft-carriers in home waters will be able to operate some distance from the enemy’s coast. In the Mediterranean, on the other hand, we must take the offensive against Italy, and endeavour especially to make Malta once again a Fleet base for special occasions. Illustrious, with her armoured deck, would seem to be better placed in the Mediterranean, and the Ark Royal in the home theatre. The delays in bringing Illustrious into service have been very great, and I should be glad to know when the Fulmar [fast fighter aircraft] will be embarked and she be ready to exchange with Ark Royal.

4. I am very glad that arrangements will be made to send out destroyers of longer radius to Gibraltar, and to bring home the short-radius vessels to the Narrow Seas.

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Meanwhile Admiralty policy had again been most carefully scrutinised, and on July 15 the intention to maintain a strong force in the Eastern Mediterranean was reiterated in a signal to the Commander-in-Chief. This message stated that in the East the chief British task would be to destroy the enemy naval forces, although they had a numerical preponderance. In the West, Force H would control the western exit from the Mediterranean and undertake offensive operations against the coast of Italy. I was in general agreement with this strong policy. The Commander-in-Chief was invited to say what heavy ships he considered necessary for the two forces and if redistribution were thought desirable, to advise whether the exchange should take place through the Mediterranean or round the Cape.

In reply he asked that both the Valiant and the Barham should join him. This would give him four battleships with the best available gun-range and speed. He could then dispense with the Royal Sovereign as with her poor deck protection and inferior speed she was a constant source of anxiety. Furthermore, he required two carriers, including the Illustrious, and two eight-inch cruisers. He agreed with the First Sea Lord that in the Western Mediterranean a force comprising the Hood and the Ark Royal with either one or two “R” class battleships would meet requirements. With these forces he considered that the Mediterranean could be dominated and the Eastern basin held indefinitely, provided that Malta was adequately protected by fighters and that his resources at Alexandria were built-up. In conclusion he said: “By carrying out a concerted movement it should be possible to pass reinforcements through the Mediterranean, but it would probably be desirable to do it all in one operation.”

We thus reached a considerable measure of agreement in our talks at the Admiralty. It was common ground between us that Admiral Cunningham’s fleet should be reinforced by a battleship, an aircraft carrier and two cruisers, and at the same time the opportunity should be taken to run a convoy of store ships to Malta from Alexandria. Thereafter on July 23 the First Sea Lord in the course of a Minute to the First Lord and me said:

Full consideration has been given as to whether it is possible to pass through the Mediterranean, not only the additional fighting ships which are being added to the Eastern Mediterranean force, but also merchant vessels containing spare ammunition for the Fleet; high-angle guns for Malta: and aircraft for Malta and the Middle East. The Commander-in-Chief is definitely of the opinion that under existing conditions it will be unsound to attempt to pass through the Central Mediterranean merchant vessels containing valuable cargoes, as if one or more ships were damaged in such a way as to reduce their speed, it would be necessary to scuttle them. I am entirely in agreement with the Commander-in-Chief.

Thus it came about that the plan for the important operation which followed under the code name “Hats” did not include provision for the passage of merchant ships. None the less with the full support of Admiral Cunningham it challenged the Italian Fleet and Air Force in the Central Mediterranean. I was now well content with the main decisions which the Admiralty were taking, and hoped that they might lead to a trial of strength. All preparations therefore went forward.

A few weeks later the bold and far-reaching step of the War Cabinet, with the full agreement of the Chiefs of Staff, to send nearly half our best available tanks to Egypt in spite of the invasion menace raised the question of the Mediterranean passage again and in a sharper way. I was of course in full accord with sending the tanks, but I feared that if they went round the Cape they might arrive too late for the battle on which the fate of Egypt depended. The First Sea Lord was at first inclined to run the risk, but on further study he thought it would complicate operation “Hats,” which now held the centre of the Admiralty stage. It involved sending at least two fast mechanical transport ships (16 knots) from Gibraltar to Malta, and this was regarded as more dangerous than sending them by the route from Alexandria. This led to further discussion.

I cannot accept this proposal [i.e., to use the Cape route for sending the tanks to Egypt], which deprives us of invaluable resources [fifty Infantry tanks or “I” tanks] during a most critical period, without making them available for the Middle East at the moment when they are most needed there. I must ask the Admiralty to make further proposals and overcome the difficulties. If necessary, could not the personnel be distributed among the destroyers, a larger force of destroyers being sent through from Force “H” to the Eastern Mediterranean, and returned thereafter in the same way as the six destroyers are now being sent westward by Admiral Cunningham?

There is no objection to the 3d Hussars (the personnel of a tank regiment) going by the Cape, as General Wavell can make temporary arrangements for manning [the tanks] in the meanwhile, so long as he gets their light tanks. I am prepared to risk the fifty Infantry tanks in the Mediterranean, provided their personnel is distributed among H.M. ships; but there can be no question of them or their personnel going by the Cape, thus making sure they are out of everything for two months. The personnel sent through the Mediterranean must be cut down to essentials, the balance going round.

Pray let me have further proposals by tomorrow (Monday).

1. Just before the French went out of the war, Admiral Darlan bombarded Genoa in full daylight without any Asdic destroyer protection, or any aircraft protection, and returned to Toulon unscathed. The Eastern Mediterranean Fleet has three times advanced to the centre of the Mediterranean and returned to Alexandria with only one ship – Gloucester – hit by one bomb. A few weeks ago a fast and a slow convoy were conducted uninjured from Malta to Alexandria – two days of their voyage being beset by Italian aircraft.

2. The Admiralty now propose to send six destroyers from Alexandria to meet Force “H.” These destroyers, which will certainly be detected from the air, will be within air-attacking distance of the very numerous, fast Italian cruiser forces in their home bases. This movement should be rightly condemned as hazardous in the extreme but for the just estimation in which Italian naval enterprise is held by C.-in-C. Mediterranean and the Admiralty.

3. We are now told that it is too dangerous for the powerful forces we shall have in motion in the near future to carry through to the Eastern Mediterranean two M.T. [mechanical transport] ships steaming in company at only fifteen knots. Yet at the same time we are asked to spend vast sums fortifying a large part of the western coasts of Britain against what the Admiralty declare is a possible invasion by twelve thousand men embarked and shipped [from the River] Gironde [or from] St. Nazaire, who are to be sent to their destination without any warship protection of any kind. If it is held to be a feasible operation to move twelve thousand men unescorted onto the Irish or British western coasts in the face of the full British sea-power, can this be reconciled with the standard of danger-values now adopted in the Mediterranean?

4. No one can see where or when the main attack on Egypt will develop. It seems, however, extremely likely that if the Germans are frustrated in an invasion of Great Britain or do not choose to attempt it, they will have great need to press and aid the Italians to the attack of Egypt. The month of September must be regarded as critical in the extreme.

5. In these circumstances it is very wrong that we should attempt to send our armoured brigade round the Cape, thus making sure that during September it can play no part either in the defence of England or Egypt.

6. I request that the operation of passing at least two M.T. ships through with the Eastern reinforcements may be re-examined. The personnel can be distributed in the warships, and it is a lesser risk, from the point of view of the general war, to pass the M.T. ships through the Mediterranean than to have the whole armoured brigade certainly out of action going round the Cape. So long as the personnel are properly distributed among the warships, I am prepared to take the full responsibility for the possible loss of the armoured vehicles.

I was not able to induce the Admiralty to send the armoured brigade, or at least their vehicles, through the Mediterranean. I was both grieved and vexed at this. Though my friendship for Admiral Pound and confidence in his judgment were never affected, sharp argument was maintained. The professional responsibility was his, and no naval officer with whom I ever worked would run more risks than he. We had gone through a lot together. If he would not do it, no one else would. If I could not make him, no one else could. I knew the Admiralty too well to press them or my great friend and comrade, Pound, or the First Lord, for whom I had high esteem, beyond a certain point. My relations with the Admiralty were too good to be imperilled by a formal appeal to the Cabinet against them.

When on August 15, I brought the question before the Cabinet finally I said that I had hoped to persuade the Admiralty to fit the two armoured regiments into “Operation Hats.” If the tank-units proceeded through the Mediterranean they would arrive in Alexandria about September 5; if by the Cape about three weeks later. However the Chief of the Imperial General Staff did not consider that an attack in force by the Italians was imminent, and this was also General Wavell’s view. Having done my utmost in favour of the short cut, I thought that the War Cabinet ought not to take the responsibility of overruling the judgment of the commanders, and I acquiesced in the longer voyage round the Cape with regret. The Chiefs of Staff however prepared an alternative plan for the short cut should the position in the Middle East suddenly worsen before “Operation Hats” was actually launched. Two fast M.T. ships carrying Cruiser and “I” tanks would accompany the naval forces through the Mediterranean. The decision was to be taken before the reinforcements passed Gibraltar. In the event reports received from the Middle East were not considered to justify putting the alternative plan into force, and the whole convoy continued on its way round the Cape.

“Operation Hats” was carried out successfully and without loss between August 30 and September 5. Admiral Cunningham left Alexandria on August 30, and on the evening of the 31st his aircraft reported the approach of an enemy force of two battleships and seven cruisers. Hopes of an engagement were raised, but evidently the Italians were not seeking trouble and nothing happened. The following evening our aircraft again made contact with the enemy, who were now retiring to Taranto. Thereafter Admiral Cunningham’s ships moved about with complete freedom to the east and south of Malta and were not seriously molested from the air. The convoy reached Malta safely, only one ship being damaged by air attack. Meanwhile the reinforcements, consisting of the Valiant but not her unreconstructed sister-ship the Barham, the aircraft-carrier Illustrious and two anti-aircraft cruisers, accompanied by Admiral Somerville with Force “H,” were approaching from Gibraltar. The Valiant and the cruisers had no difficulty in landing much-needed guns and ammunition in Malta, and then joined Admiral Cunningham to the eastward on September 3. During the return passage to Alexandria the fleet attacked Rhodes and Scarpanto and easily repulsed an E-boat attack. Admiral Somerville’s force returned to Gibraltar without being molested in any way.

All this convinced me that it would have been a fair risk, especially compared with those we were resolutely running in seriously depleting our armour at home in the teeth of the enemy’s invasion preparations, to transport the armoured brigade through the Malta channel, and that it would now be in Egypt, instead of more than three weeks away. No serious disaster did in fact occur in Egypt during those three weeks. Nevertheless, an exaggerated fear of Italian aircraft had been allowed to hamper naval operations. I thought, and think, the event proved my case. Towards the end of November Admiral Somerville with Force “H” did in fact successfully escort a convoy to Malta from the westward, and on the way fought a partial action near Sardinia with that part of the Italian Fleet which had escaped damage at Taranto. One ship of this convoy passed on to Alexandria, together with three more store ships from Malta, escorted by further Fleet reinforcements for the Eastern Mediterranean. This was the first time that a merchant ship made the complete passage of the Mediterranean after the Italian entry into the war. The reader will see in the next volume how a still more hazardous exploit was performed by the Navy in sending tanks to Egypt in 1941, when the German Air Force was fully established in Sicily.

1. The course of “Operation Hats” makes me quite sure that it was wrong to recede from the idea of passing the armoured vehicles through the Mediterranean. If you will read my Minute reciting all the reasons why this course should be adopted you will see that they are reinforced by new facts now….

I should be glad if you would let me have a short resume of the different occasions when I pressed, as First Lord, for the preparation of the Ramillies class ships to withstand air bombardment by thick deck armour and larger bulges. If those ships had been put in hand when I repeatedly pressed for them to be, we should now have the means of attacking the Italian shores, which might be productive of the highest political and military results. Even now there is a disposition to delay taking this most necessary step, and no substitute is offered.

I have not yet heard from you in reply to the Minute I sent you renewing this project of reconstruction in the hope that we may not be equally destitute of bombarding vessels next year. I shall be glad to have a talk with you on this subject when I have refreshed my mind with the papers.

This issue could never at any moment be decided without balancing other bitter needs in new construction. It was on this rock, and not on differences of principle that my wishes finally foundered.

Following for Sir Andrew Cunningham, C.-in-C. Eastern Mediterranean, from Prime Minister and Minister of Defence:

I congratulate you on the success of the recent operation in the Eastern and Central Mediterranean, and upon the accession to your Fleet of two of our finest units, with other valuable vessels. I am sorry, however, that the armoured brigade which is so necessary to the defence of Egypt and Alexandria is still separated by more than three weeks from its scene of action. I hope you will find it possible to review the naval situation in the light of the experience gained during “Hats” and the arrival of Illustrious and Valiant. Not only the paper strength of the Italian Navy, but also the degree of resistance which they may be inclined to offer, should be measured. It is of high importance to strike at the Italians this autumn, because as time passes the Germans will be more likely to lay strong hands upon the Italian war machine, and then the picture will be very different. We intend to strengthen the anti-aircraft defences of Malta by every possible means, and some novel weapons of which I have high hopes will shortly be sent there for experiment. I trust that Malta may become safe for temporary visits of the Fleet at an earlier date than April, 1941. If in the meanwhile you have any proposals for offensive action to make, they should be transmitted to the Admiralty. I shall be glad if you will also concert with the Army and Air Force plans for an operation against the Italian communications in Libya, which at the right time could be used to hamper any large-scale offensive against Egypt. The advantages of gaining the initiative are obviously very great. I hope the Fulmars [the fast fighter planes which had at last reached our aircraft-carriers] have made a good impression. The battle here for air mastery continues to be severe, but firm confidence is felt in its eventual outcome.

It is surprising that the violent impact of the air upon our control of the Mediterranean had not been more plainly foreseen by the British Government before the war and by their expert advisers. In any case, however, we had fallen so far behind in the air race with Germany that the defence of Britain made an overwhelming demand on the already outnumbered forces we possessed. Until the Battle of Britain had been decisively won, every reinforcement of aircraft to the Mediterranean and Egypt had been an act of acute responsibility. Even in the winter months, when we felt we were masters of our own daylight air at home, it was very hard under the full fury of the Blitz to send away fighter aircraft either to Malta or to Egypt. It was also most painful to take from bombarded British cities and vital seaports and munitions factories the anti-aircraft guns and shells sorely needed for their protection, and to send these either all round the Cape to Egypt or at much peril direct to Malta.

The reinforcement of Malta’s hitherto neglected air defences was pressed forward in spite of losses and disappointments. Among the tasks of Admiral Somerville’s force at Gibraltar was the convoying of fighter aircraft in a carrier to within flying distance of Malta. The first of these efforts was made in the beginning of August, when twelve Hurricanes were flown into the island from the aircraft-carrier Argus. Until their arrival the air defence of Malta consisted of three Gladiators, known locally by the affectionate names of “Faith,” “Hope,” and “Charity.” We made a second attempt in November; but there was a tragedy. Nine aircraft out of fourteen, which had been launched from the Argus, four hundred miles to the westward of the island, ran out of fuel on the way through a change of wind, and perished at sea with their devoted pilots. Never again were the margins cut so fine, and though many similar operations took place in the future never did such a catastrophe recur.

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It had also become necessary to find a way of sending aircraft to the Middle East which would avoid both the dangers of the Mediterranean and the fearful delay around the Cape. An overland route from West Africa would save many vital days and some shipping. The machines had either to be flown ashore from an aircraft-carrier, or dismantled and crated for the voyage and then reassembled at some port for their flight. The choice lay between Lagos and Takoradi.

After careful examination Takoradi was chosen, and as early as August 21,1940, an operating party arrived. The course lay by Kano to Khartoum and eventually to Cairo, a total distance of 3700 miles. Considerable workshops and accommodation had to be built at Takoradi, and various refuelling and rest stations provided along the route. A dozen crated Hurricanes and Blenheims arrived by sea on September 5, followed next day by thirty Hurricanes landed from the carrier Argus. The first delivery flight left Takoradi on September 20 and arrived at Khartoum four days later. By the end of the year a trickle of a hundred and seven planes had reached Egypt in this way.

Although a quick start had been made, many months’ work were needed before the route was organised. The climate at Takoradi and the local malaria harassed the men erecting the crated aircraft. The use of the carriers was limited by other clamant needs. Weather hampered the air convoys. The number of aircraft unserviceable awaiting spares along the route piled up. The heavy wear on engines in their flight over vast barren sandy spaces reduced their fighting life. Terrible teething trouble had to be overcome. None of this aircraft supply was effective in 1940. But if we had not begun in good time the Army of the Nile and all its ventures could not have lived through the tragic events of 1941.

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By the close of 1940, the British Navy had once more firmly established itself in the Mediterranean. The defences of Malta had been considerably strengthened by Admiral Somerville’s excursions to carry in A.A. and other equipment. Admiral Cunningham’s offensive policy in the Eastern Basin had also yielded excellent results. Everywhere, despite the Italian air strength, we held the initiative, and Malta remained in the foreground of events as an advanced base for offensive operations against the Italian communications with their forces in Africa.