The Whale Has Wings Vol 2 - Taranto to Singapore

by David Row

  8th February

  While the British reorganise after Sirte and wait for supplies, the light units drive on towards Homs, where the Italian army is reported to be digging in to defend Tripoli. Again they are slowed more by the need to accept the surrender of weary footslogging Italian infantry that by any enemy action. However the supply line leading from Egypt is getting more and more frayed, despite the navy running in supplies by coastal convoy. O'Connor is pressing his troops as hard as he can, and the veteran units are responding well, but he will soon be forced to stop.

  The first units of the German 5th Light Division leave Naples for North Africa. The convoy also carries Italian reinforcements. Further units will sail tomorrow on a convoy bound for Tripoli. This is at the urging of General Rommel, who has flown in to the airfield at Tripoli, and is convinced of the need to stop the British advance short of the port in order to preserve a forward base of operations. Meanwhile units of the Luftwaffe are preparing to start operations from Tunisia.

  In Berlin, the Kriegsmarine sends the first briefing of Operation Rheinübung for discussion with the Luftwaffe; it is hoped to stage the operation by April.

  9th February

  The 2nd Armoured advance on Homs - while their supply situation is still woeful, they are currently using petrol and food captured in Sirte, which for some unknown reason the Italian commander had not destroyed. They hope to be at Homs by the following day, the lead elements of the 4th Indian following by lorry. There is also a Commando force of some 2,000 men at Benghazi; it is hoped to lane these behind Homs and stop it being reinforced from Tripoli.

  While they are doing this, elements of the 7th Armoured are bypassing Homs to get to Tripoli directly, by swinging south through Torhuno. This path seems to have been missed by the Italians, as by the end of the day they find themselves in sight of Tripoli.

  10th February

  Prime Minister Winston Churchill formally instructs General Sir Archibald Wavell, Commander in Chief Middle East Command, to regard help for Greece as having a higher priority than exploiting the success in North Africa. He mentions the important effect on American opinion of being seen to fulfil promises to smaller nations.

  HMS Implacable heads to Durban for a better evaluation of her underwater damage. She is now seaworthy, and after inspection to see that she is ready to cross the Atlantic, will carry on to Norfolk Virginia for full repairs - the hull damage will be fixed while the hangars and elevators are rebuilt. The repairs are estimated to take three to four months, as some additional refit work will also be done at the same time.

  The intention of the Luftwaffe to operate from bases in Tunisia is temporarily stalled due to issues with the French. While the Vichy regime has told the colony to cooperate, there is resistance, both official and unofficial, on the ground. In particular, it is being pointed out that this will lead to Britain legitimately attacking the Luftwaffe bases, and is tantamount to declaring war on Britain. The plan has not gone down well in the other remaining Vichy-controlled colonies, many of whom are facing serious local opposition. Remaining neutral under Vichy is one thing, actively fighting with Germany is something rather different.

  Outside Tripoli, the forces observing the city have generated a little excitement of their own. One of the officers in the detachment is a Major Stirling, a British officer who has been championing the idea of fast, light forces able to hit, run and do reconnaissance behind enemy lines where they are not expected. The actions in the desert have given him the opportunity to talk to a number of Australian officers who are quite interested in the idea of being able to hit the enemy when he isn't expecting it. He has pointed out that he has some armed vehicles, and the detachment has armoured cars, and there is this nice airfield close by at Mellaha full of undefended, helpless enemy aircraft.

  Later that evening, the air base receives some unwelcome visitors, who proceed to drive around and into it, shooting up anything resembling an aircraft or a fuel dump. The Italians are taken completely by surprise by this, and many of the aircraft present are destroyed or damaged. Indeed they only miss the German General Rommel by hours; he had flown out of the airfield that afternoon to report back on the situation in Tripoli and to expedite the arrival of the lead elements of his division.

  The situation in the city itself is almost as confused. Eight weeks ago it was nowhere near the war, only worrying about handling the Italian supply convoys and the troops on leave. Now it is in the forefront of the action, and it is not prepared in any way for this. The RAF are now visiting every night, and although the raids don't do much damage (the RAF is fast running out of serviceable bombers, and in any case the accuracy is poor), the psychological effects are bad. In addition, that morning HMS Terror paid them a visit and landed a number of 15" shells in the port area before withdrawing.

  11th February

  The news about the problems in Tunisia is given to Hitler, who flies into a rage, condemning the French, the Vichy regime, the Italians, and basically everyone else in Tunisia. The Army, who had also been hoping to send troops via the French North African ports, points out they need to get troops to North Africa if they are to do any good. Hitler instructs that unless the French do as they are told and allow the complete and full use of Tunisia and any other facilities Germany needs in North Africa, they are to prepare for the complete occupation of France.

  Wavell replies to Churchill that he understands the need to support Greece, but that the forces currently engaged in North Africa will need considerable refurbishment (in the case of 7th Armoured, basically a complete reconstruction) before they would be ready to send to Greece. He also thinks it's worth allowing O'Connor at least one attempt to take Tripoli, as that would throw the Italians out of North Africa and ease the Malta situation considerably, as well as being a huge propaganda coup. Such a coup could be useful support for Greece in demoralising the Italians. He has reinforcements arriving very shortly, and he suggests that he starts to prepare these for Greece (remembering that Greece hasn't yet actually agreed to British land forces), and planning for their deployment. They would actually be available more quickly, since if they were to replace his existing units it would take a while to prepare their replacements for the desert.

  Meanwhile Wavell is meeting with General O'Connor, Admiral Cunningham and Air Marshal Longmore to consider his options. O'Connor, when asked, states that the result of an immediate attack on Tripoli depends a lot on the Italian response. So far, the Italians have tended to collapse when surrounded and attacked, especially later in the campaign where their morale is suffering. However not all Italian units have given in easily, and he considers it likely that the ones who retreated west rather than surrender will be in the Tripoli garrison. If so, the city may hold out from an initial attack, and he does not have the force to take the city against serious opposition until he is resupplied. His idea is to make an attack as soon as possible, in the hope the city will surrender. If it does not, it will be necessary to put it under siege while his units get replenished and rested. To do that effectively will depend on the Navy and the RAF.

  Air Marshal Longmore is more than willing to both attack the city and interdict resupply, but he points out his actual serviceable aircraft numbers are very low after the action of recent weeks. He really needs a couple of weeks to repair and service aircraft, give his pilots a rest, and arrange to operate out of airfields nearer the front. So his question is can the Navy give him those two weeks?

  Admiral Cunningham's opinion is that, while the navy has also been worked hard recently, that he can stop most resupply reaching Tripoli for that time. He is mainly worried about Italian aircraft and submarines if he uses his heavier forces forward, but is prepared to risk them for the time needed. As long as Malta can also put out a maximum effort during that time, it should be possible to sink a considerable portion of the resupply convoys, and given air cover, those that arrive can be attacked in the port itself. He is also prepared to run coastal convoys as far forward as po
ssible to relieve the supply situation. Fortunately the rapid fall of some of the Italian towns have allowed the Navy to acquire a number of small coastal ships to supplement their existing ships, and the port facilities along the coast are in generally good shape. The Italians often ran out of time to destroy stores and facilities.

  Wavell decision is to allow O'Connor one attempt to storm Tripoli, as soon as he is ready, but only if he can be ready inside a week. If that fails, the city will be put under siege and the units will be rested and replenished. Depending what happens in Greece, once this is dealt with an attack can be made to take Tripoli. He also asks Dowding, who is returning to Britain today with his report on air support, to press the CIGS for as many planes as possible to support his operations in North Africa and Greece.

  General Ion Antonescu's decision to allow Romania to be used a base for a massive German expeditionary force led today to a diplomatic break with Britain. After a half-hour meeting with Antonescu, later described as "extremely painful", the British envoy, Sir Reginald Hoare, returned to the legation to pack his bags .Most of Germany's oil supplies come from Romania, and German engineers have for some time been running the country's oil wells. When German troops began arriving, Antonescu said that they were to train the Romanian army. The British told him that a full expeditionary force was not needed to train a few Romanians.

  12th February

  With at least 40 troop trains a day crossing Hungary to Romania, Hitler is building up to a formidable 600,000-strong army on the border with the Ukraine. Much of the equipment carried by the German forces is of French make, having been seized after the French collapse last year.

  The Germans' next move, now the ice has broken on the Danube, is to float pontoon bridges in the river to enable troops to enter Bulgaria, under a secret agreement reached with the Bulgarian government four days ago. The Germans have promised the Bulgarians a slice of Greek territory to give them access to the Aegean Sea after the war.

  The massive German move into the Balkans has set off a wave of speculation that Hitler may be about to go to the rescue of his Italian ally, who has been badly mauled by the Greeks. Some observers, however, believe that this is the advance stage of a plan to invade the Soviet Union.

  The Tripoli-bound convoy managed to slip past the RAF in Malta, only to run into first the submarine HMS Upholder, then an airstrike from HMS Victorious. As a result, only three merchant ships survive to retreat to Italy, and a destroyer is also lost. The convoy was ordered to withdraw after Tripoli advised there were RN battleships offshore - in fact there aren't, the 15" shells they assumed were from a battleship were from HMS Terror. Meanwhile Cunningham asks the RAF if they can mine Tripoli harbour whenever possible, as he thinks they may try and run a few fast ships through individually.

  The British forces outside Tripoli are being built up as fast as possible. A Brigade from 2nd Armoured is already there, as are advance elements of 4th Indian. The bottleneck is transport, there are broken-down lorries lining the coast road all the way back to Benghazi. The advance is only being kept going by captured Italian vehicles and petrol, but with only one last town to go, the troops morale is high despite their exhaustion. To aid the road traffic, infantry and supplies are being brought forward on coastal shipping, and the Navy expects to be able to land two commando units west of the city tomorrow. As one British officer put it, 'It's all being done on a shoestring. But a very determined shoestring'.

  13th February

  At Merano, Admirals Arturo Riccardi of Italy and Erich Raeder of Germany meet to discuss naval cooperation. One of the staff officer's present wonders if that means German fishing boats will be sent to support Italian yachts, or vice-versa.

  The Royal Navy lands the men of 51 Commando plus supporting forces and their equipment over open beaches west of Tripoli. This completes the surrounding of the city, and O'Connor hopes to be able to attack in two days; he is waiting for the rest of 4th Indian and further ammunition supplies to arrive.

  That night, the commandos are surprised to intercept a car coming from the direction of Tunisia. It contains a number of men who identify themselves as French officers, and ask to be taken to Cairo to speak to General Wavell. The commandoes are surprised, but after some radio calls it is arranged that they will be taken east where they can be flown to Cairo.

  The Vichy government is informed by Germany that they WILL allow their ports and facilities in North Africa to be used by the Germans, or the consequences will be 'severe'. After some hours of agonising, the Vichy regime agrees to obey the instructions and will draw up the necessary orders for the colonial territories. Despite the secrecy surrounding this meeting, a few hours later the news is in London, who rapidly (if secretly) disseminates it.

  14th February

  The Luftwaffe and the Regia Aeronautica are attacking Malta heavily, in an attempt to close down the ability of the island fortress to interdict the convoys to Tripoli. While they have some success in this, the convoys still have to first evade the Maltese squadrons, then Royal Navy submarines, bombers operating from North Africa and finally surface forces and carrier strikes. As a result the Italian navy insists they be allowed to send fewer convoys in order to escort them properly, pointing out what has happened to the latest convoy, which was only lightly escorted. Given the Italian navy has no heavy ships, escorts will have to be lighter vessels, but they hope to at least concentrate enough defensive power to fend off anything but the British battleships.

  In Italian Somaliland, the Italians are on the retreat. Their latest loss is the port of Kismayu, on the Indian Ocean, which was occupied at 14:00 by West, East and South African troops, under the command of Lt. Gen. Alan Cunningham. The port is the first major prize in what he plans will become a two-pronged drive, up the coast to Mogadishu, the colonial capital, and northwards up the river Juba to Ethiopia. His offensive into Italian territory began in earnest only three days ago, after an eight-week preliminary operation to recapture first parts of Kenya occupied by the Italians and then frontier posts on the Kenya-Somaliland border.

  While the supply build-up outside Tripoli is not satisfactory, O'Connor considers it adequate for the one attack he is allowed to make. He has a considerable number of troops available; 4th Indian Division, a brigade of 2nd Armoured, a New Zealand brigade and the commando units and two battalions of the Free French Foreign Legion. His hope is that the Italian defence will crack as it has done in the previous assaults.

  Back in England, Dowding has been making his report to the War Cabinet on Air Cooperation between the services. His conclusion is that the success in the desert is the result of close cooperation between the services and a willingness to try and understand the nature of the problems facing each of them. He recommends that each theatre creates a specific team (as the most senior officers have other tasks) to address the problems and solutions for their theatre. They will take as their starting point what has gone on in Africa and develop a doctrine for support operations. He suggests that that any team should include officers experienced in the local problems - he has noted that the requirements of the desert air force is often quite different from those he was familiar with while in charge of Fighter Command in the UK.

  In addition, he passes on the requests from Cairo for desperately needed air power. He has spent the previous day checking on the availability of planes in the UK, and points out that there are now ample planes available for defence, and that all available Hurricanes (and Sparrowhawks) would be best used in North Africa and Greece where they can directly engage the enemy. He dismisses the RAF theory of attacking over France with fighter sweeps as inefficient and merely losing more pilots than the Germans. Sending more aircraft to North Africa will help the Army, and if the Germans respond by diverting aircraft from northern Europe that is at least as effective as trying to coax them into fights where they always hold the home advantage.

  15th February

  The British make their assault on Tripoli, let by 2nd Armoured. Th
e attack is supported by every operational RAF aircraft available; after the attack a few days ago, the Italians evacuated their aircraft from Mellaha, and the only air support now available is bombers from Sicily. The Mediterranean fleet is also out in force, the battleships shelling the city (in particular the port) covered by the carriers. The Italian surface forces are absent, but one Italian submarine is sunk by RN destroyers as it tries to close on the fleet. The dive bombers from the two carriers are also attacking targets of opportunity in the defence perimeter, the idea being to put the maximum pressure on the defenders.

  The attackers put pressure on the Italian defensive perimeter as they probe for a weak spot; ironically many of the shells they are using to pound the Italians are Italian in origin - the British have captured more Italian artillery and ammunition than they can use. The assault goes on throughout the day, and by the evening the British have identified a couple of areas they think exploitable. Overnight, air raids and occasional artillery barrages go on, both to wear out the defenders and to make them believe the British have ample ammunition. Meanwhile the troops are briefed on tomorrow's assault, O'Connors final throw of the dice.

  Imperial troops capture the port of Kismayu in Italian Somaliland.

  Chancellor Adolf Hitler meets the Yugoslav Premier Cvetkovic and his Foreign Minister Cinkar-Markvic at Berchtesgaden to urge them to join the Tripartite Pact. They still refuse to commit their country, in the hope that Hitler will soon be preoccupied with relations with the Soviet Union and that they can get aid from Britain and the USA.