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Operation Halberd was a British naval operation that took place in September 1941, during the Second World War. The British were attempting to deliver a convoy from Gibraltar to Malta. The convoy was escorted by several battleships and an aircraft carrier, to deter interference from the Italian surface fleet, while a close escort of cruisers and destroyers provided an anti-aircraft screen. The Italian fleet sortied after the convoy was detected, but turned back after learning the strength of the escorting force. Air attacks by Italian bombers and fighters damaged several ships, and forced one of the merchant vessels to be scuttled. The rest of the convoy arrived at Malta and discharged their cargo. ==The convoy== Operation Halberd was at the time the largest Malta resupply effort of the war.〔Greene & Massignani, p.181〕 Nine merchant ships carrying 81,000 tons of military equipment and supplies sailed from Liverpool on 16 September and from the Clyde on 17 September as part of convoy WS (Winston Specials) 11X, passing Gibraltar on 24 September 1941, with a close escort under the command of Rear-Admiral Harold Martin Burrough.〔Hague, p.195〕 The nine ships were:〔(WS CONVOYS - July to December 1941 SAILINGS, including two DM Convoys, WS 10 to 14B )〕 * () 'Convoy Commodore' Auxiliary Supply Ship * () Blue Funnel Line * () Ellerman’s City Line * () Ellerman & Bucknall * () Clan Line * () Clan Line * () Blue Star Line * () Blue Star Line * () Union-Castle Line 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Operation Halberd」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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