On This Day
1941 > WW2
On This Day - 1941
- April 21, 1941
HMAS VENDETTA, (destroyer), sank an Italian supply schooner in a night action off Derna, Libya.
HMAS PERTH, (cruiser), and HM Ships AJAX and ORION, (cruisers), provided support for the bombardment of the port of Tripoli, (Tunisia).
- April 20, 1941
HMAS VAMPIRE, (destroyer), took off the crew of the burning tanker BRITISH JUDGE, while under heavy air attack north of Crete.
- April 19, 1941
HMA Ships STUART, VOYAGER, and WATERHEN, (destroyers), covered a landing by British Commandos on enemy positions near Bardia, Libya.
The German raiders ATLANTIS and KORMORAN rendezvoused in the Indian Ocean. On leaving the rendezvous KORMORAN changed her disguise to the Dutch ship STRAAT MALACCA.
- April 18, 1941
Twelve telegraphists, and two stewards of the Women’s Emergency Signalling Corps, (WESC), commenced duty at the Harman W/T Station in Canberra. The WESC was the forerunner of the Women’s Royal Australian Naval Service, (WRANS), which was formed the following year.
- April 16, 1941
HMAS KATOOMBA, (minesweeper), was launched at Poole and Steele’s Yard, Sydney.
- April 15, 1941
The Bathurst class minesweeper, (corvette), HMAS BURNIE was commissioned. BURNIE was laid down at Mort’s Dock, Sydney, on 3 June 1940, and launched on 25 October 1940.
HMAS PERTH, (cruiser), joined ADML Cunningham’s battle fleet in the bombardment of the main Italian supply port of Tripoli.
- April 14, 1941
HMAS SYDNEY embarked Australian delegates for the ABDA conference and departed for Singapore, arriving on the 19/4/41.
HMAS WATERHEN, (destroyer), rescued 430 patients and medical staff from the hospital ship VITA, bombed off Tobruk. A year later VITA was to rescue survivors from the destroyer’s sister-ship HMAS VAMPIRE.
LCDR T. K. Morrison, RAN, was awarded the OBE for gallantry while serving in HMAS HOBART during the evacuation of British Somaliland. After the Allied forces had withdrawn from the port of Berbera LCDR Morrison took the cruiser’s motor boat in close to the shore to rescue stragglers.- April 13, 1941
The destroyers HMAS STUART and HMS GRIFFIN, bombarded enemy positions at Sollum, Libya.
- April 12, 1941
The siege of Tobruk started and went on for 242 days, until the 8 December. The Tobruk Ferry involved RAN destroyers making 139 runs, with HMAS VENDETTA alone making 39. VOYAGER and WATERHEN made the first runs at the beginning of May 1941, VENDETTA followed, and VAMPIRE made 2 runs before her defects caught up with her. HMA Ships taking part were STUART, VAMPIRE, VENDETTA, VOYAGER, WATERHEN, PARRAMATTA, NIZAM, and NAPIER, whilst YARRA took part in escort duties in the area.
- April 10, 1941
HMAS Canberra joined military convoy WS 6 as relief for HMS PHOEBE