HMAS AUSTRALIA arrived at Desolation Island to search for a German raider. The cruiser laid a minefield before departing. Post-war records showed the island had been used by the raider ORION for a refit, some time before AUSTRALIA’s visit.
CMDR A. S. Rosenthal, RAN, was awarded the DSO for outstanding gallantry while commanding HMAS NESTOR during Operation Substance, the passing of a convoy from the west to Malta, on 15 December
CMDR A. S. Rosenthal, RAN, was awarded a Bar to the DSO for the sinking of a German submarine in the Atlantic.
HMAS Ballarat (I) sailed for Jervis Bay to give anti-submarine protection to the transport Queen Mary. That ship and another giant liner of the Cunard Line, Queen Elizabeth, were to comprise Convoy US13 to the Middle East, the troops embarked being mainly from the 6th, 7th and 9th Australian Divisions