The Whale Has Wings Vol 2 - Taranto to Singapore (13 page)

2nd February.

On her way to replace the damaged carrier Implacable in the Mediterranean fleet, HMS Victorious attacks the harbour installations at Mogadishu. This causes considerable confusion to the garrison, who have never seen the modern naval aircraft before, and have no idea that the carrier is off the coast.

The British advance reaches El Agheila against scattered and ineffective Italian opposition. Most of the Italian infantry is basically helpless due to loss of transport and any heavy equipment, and the sight of tanks is usually enough to make them surrender immediately. Intelligence indicates there are men making their way west to escape the British, and also some stands by determined troops, but these are not enough to hold back the advance, although a few spots of resistance have been left for the following infantry to clear up.

Due to the loss of armour, a brigade of the 2nd Armoured is being sent to Benghazi by sea, the coastal areas now uncontested by Italy. Indeed, air support from both sides is waning fast, although on the British side it is more to wear and lack of spares and maintenance that is steadily reducing the number or serviceable aircraft. The Italians are suffering if anything more from this, as well as having more aircraft destroyed (along with many non-serviceable planes being overrun and having to be destroyed or captured). O'Connor also wants to bring a brigade of the New Zealanders forward if practical.

Force H with HMS Ark Royal, HMS Renown and HMS Resolution sails into the Gulf of Genoa to allow the battleships to bombard the city of Genoa, firing 300 tons of shells onto dock installations, warehouses and the Ansaldo Electric works, while carrier aircraft bomb Leghorn, a major railway junction at Pisa and other rail connections, and lay mines off Spezia. The incursion is not resisted by the Italian navy, who have nothing available that can damage the British capital ships.

3rd February

In Berlin, The Army General Staff presents detailed plans to Hitler for Operation Barbarossa. Halder estimates that the Russians have about 155 Divisions; German strength is about the same but 'far superior in quality'. Hitler is convinced of the plans and approves them.

The British are pushing light motorised units forward to Sirte, but the heavier tanks and infantry are starting to lag behind. Sirte is fortified and the light elements are not enough to take it, although they do keep busy with reconnaissance and rounding up Italians.

4th February

Sirte is now surrounded by the British light forces, who keep it under observation while the lead infantry of the 4th Indian Division arrive, along with a handful of Matilda tanks. Reinforcements arrive at Benghazi by sea today, courtesy of the Royal Navy, and it is hoped to get them moving forward tomorrow. The situation behind the advance is somewhat confused, but is slowly being brought under control. The ships will also take on board some of 7th Armoured most damaged equipment for delivery to the heavy workshops in the Delta. It is becoming obvious even to the rear echelon of the Army that the key to success in the desert is mechanised forces, and the concern now is how long the advance can keep going before the transport arm literally grinds to a halt.

6th February

Hitler offers Rommel command of a new formation to be made up of the 5th Light Division and 15 Panzer Division and intended for operations in North Africa. This force was designated Afrika Korps and equipped with PzKw III and IV tanks. The operation will be codenamed 'Sunflower'. It is hoped to land the initial part of the force at Tripoli in order to block the British advance to the east of the port.

7th February

The British assault the fortified town of Sirte, lead by the tanks of the 2nd Armoured Division. This is the first action they have been involved with, and their lack of experience compared to the 7th Armoured Division shows. Fortunately they are supported by the veteran 4th Indian Division, and the Italians still don't have an antitank gun that can stop a Matilda. The 15" shells arriving from the battleships offshore are yet another distraction. By the afternoon the tanks have broken the defensive line, and although some of the defending units fight on bravely, some simply collapse and surrender, leading to the disintegration of the perimeter. Sirte is surrendered by nightfall.

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 possible 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.