Convoy PQ 12

Arctic naval operations of World War II

Weserübung Norwegian Campaign Convoys Claymore Gauntlet PQ 7 PQ 8 PQ 12 Sportpalast PQ 13 PQ 14 QP 10 PQ 15 QP 11 PQ 16 PQ 17 Rösselsprung QP 13 Wunderland PQ 18 QP 14 Doppelschlag QP 15 JW 51A JW 51B Regenbogen Barents Sea JW 55B Ostfront North Cape JW 56A JW 56B JW 57 JW 58

Convoy PQ 12 was an Arctic convoy sent from Great Britain by the Western Allies to aid the Soviet Union during World War II. It sailed in March 1942, reaching Murmansk despite a sortie against it by the German battleship Tirpitz. All ships arrived safely.

Ships

PQ 12 consisted of 16 ships under the command of Commodore HT Hudson. The Close Escort comprised the minesweeper Gossamer and five whalers. These were joined on 5 March by the Ocean Escort of two destroyers, Oribi, commanded by Cdr. JEH McBeath who took over as SOE, and Offa, supported by the cruiser Kenya.

Distant cover was provided by two Heavy Cover Forces; one comprising the battleship Duke of York (V. Adm. ATB Curteis commanding), the battlecruiser Renown, and six destroyers, sailing from Reykjavik, and another led by Adm. J Tovey comprising the battleship King George V, the carrier HMS Victorious, the cruiser Berwick and six destroyers, sailing from Scapa Flow.

Action

PQ 12 sailed from Reykjavik on 1 March 1942 with its Close Escort. It was joined on 5 March by the Ocean Escort, and on 6 March by the cruiser Kenya. Also at sea were the Heavy Cover Forces, V.Adm. Curteis from Reykjavik sailing on 3 March and Adm. Tovey from Scapa Flow on the 4th.

On 5 March the convoy was sighted by a German reconnaissance aircraft, and on 6 March, after obtaining permission from Hitler to do so, Tirpitz sortied from Trondheim with three destroyers as escort. This was Operation Sportpalast, and was intended to find and destroy both PQ 12 and its reciprocal, QP 8, which was also at sea.

Shortly after sailing Tirpitz was sighted by the patrolling submarine Seawolf, and the Heavy Cover Forces, now joined together, sought to bring Tirpitz to action.

Over the next two days these groups of ships manoeuvered around each other, without coming into contact, though on two occasions they were just 60 miles apart. Tirpitz had no success, though her destroyers encounterd one straggler from QP 8, the freighter Ijora, and sank her. Finally on 9 March as Tirpitz headed for home, she was sighted by aircraft from Victorious and attacked, though also without success.

PQ 12 arrived at Murmansk on 12 March. No ships were lost, though the escort suffered one whaler lost, Shera, capsized by ice buildup, and one destroyer, Oribi, damaged by pack ice. On 24 March the Lancaster Castle was dive bombed alongside the quay in Murmansk. Eight men were killed. It was towed out and moored in the river. The crew continued to live on board. A few days later it was dive bombed again and received five direct hits. There were no casualties but the crew moved to shore.

Ships in the convoy^[1]

Name	Flag	Tonnage (GRT)	Notes
HMT Angle (FY201)	Royal Navy		Escort 01 Mar - 04 Mar Anti-submarine trawler
Artigas (1920)	Panama	5,613	Arrived Reykjavik 27 Feb, Sailed 1 Mar
HMS Ashanti (F51)	Royal Navy		Escort 06 Mar - 10 Mar
Ballot (1922)	Panama	6,131	Dynamo Defects, Did Not Sail With Pq 12
Bateau (1926)	Panama	4,687	Arrived Rekyjavik 27 Feb, Sailed 1 Mar, Returned
Beaconstreet (1927)	United Kingdom	7,467
HMS Bedouin (F67)	Royal Navy		Escort 06 Mar - 10 Mar
Belomorcanal (1936)	Soviet Union	2,900
HMS Berwick (65)	Royal Navy		Escort 06 Mar - 10 Mar
Capulin (1920)	Panama	4,977	Arrived Reykjavik 27 Feb, Sailed 1 Mar
HMT Chiltern	Royal Navy		Escort 01 Mar - 04 Mar Anti-submarine trawler
Dneprostroi (1919)	Soviet Union	4,756
HMS Duke of York (17)	Royal Navy		Escort 06 Mar - 10 Mar
Earlston (1941)	United Kingdom	7,195	Arrived Reykjavik 27 Feb, Sailed 1 Mar
HMS Echo (H23)	Royal Navy		Escort 06 Mar - 10 Mar
HMS Eclipse (H08)	Royal Navy		Escort 06 Mar - 10 Mar
El Coston (1924)	Panama	7,286	Arrived Reykjavik 27 Feb, Sailed 1 Mar
El Occidente (1910)	Panama	6,008
Empire Byron (1941)	United Kingdom	6,645	Arrived Reykjavik 27 Feb, Sailed 1 Mar Vice Commodore’s Ship
HMS Eskimo (F75)	Royal Navy		Escort 06 Mar - 10 Mar
HMS Faulknor (H62)	Royal Navy		Escort 06 Mar - 10 Mar
HMS Fury (H76)	Royal Navy		Escort 06 Mar - 11 Mar
HMS Gossamer^[2]	Royal Navy		Escort 04 Mar - 10 Mar
Gremyaschi	Soviet Union		Escort 11 Mar - 12 Mar
HMS Grove (L77)	Royal Navy		Escort 10 Mar - 10 Mar
HMS Harrier	Royal Navy		Escort 11 Mar - 12 Mar
HMS Hussar	Royal Navy		Escort 11 Mar - 12 Mar
HMS Icarus (D03)	Royal Navy		Escort 06 Mar - 11 Mar
HMS Inconstant (H49)	Royal Navy		Escort 10 Mar - 10 Mar
HMS Intrepid (D10)	Royal Navy		Escort 06 Mar - 11 Mar
HMS Javelin (F61)	Royal Navy		Escort 10 Mar - 10 Mar
HMS Kenya (14)	Royal Navy		Escort 06 Mar - 12 Mar
Kiev (1917)	Soviet Union	5,823	Position probable but not definite
HMS King George V (41)	Royal Navy		Escort 06 Mar - 10 Mar
HMS Lancaster (G05)	Royal Navy		Escort 10 Mar - 10 Mar
Lancaster Castle (1937)	United Kingdom	5,172	Arrived Reykjavik 27 Feb, Sailed 1 Mar Lost In Russia
HMS Ledbury (L90)	Royal Navy		Escort 10 Mar - 10 Mar
Llandaff (1937)	United Kingdom	4,825	Arrived Reykjavik 27 Feb, Sailed 1 Mar Capt H T Hudson RD RNR (Commodore)
HMS Lookout (G32)	Royal Navy		Escort 06 Mar - 11 Mar
Navarino (1937)	United Kingdom	4,841	Arrived Reykjavik 27 Feb, Sailed 1 Mar
HMT Notts County (FY250)	Royal Navy		Escort 01 Mar - 04 Mar Anti-submarine trawler
HMS Offa (G29)	Royal Navy		Escort 04 Mar - 12 Mar
HMS Onslow (G17)	Royal Navy		Escort 06 Mar - 10 Mar
HMS Oribi (G66)	Royal Navy		Escort 04 Mar - 10 Mar
HMS Punjabi	Royal Navy		Escort 06 Mar - 11 Mar
HMS Renown	Royal Navy		Escort 06 Mar - 10 Mar
Sevzaples (1932)	Soviet Union	3,974
HMS Shera (FY1724)	Royal Navy		Escort 04 Mar - 09 Mar ASW whaler
HMS Shusa (FY1702)	Royal Navy		Escort 04 Mar - 12 Mar ASW whaler
HMS Speedwell	Royal Navy		Escort 11 Mar - 12 Mar
HMS Stefa	Royal Navy		Escort 04 Mar - 12 Mar ASW whaler
HMS Stella Capella	Royal Navy		Escort 01 Mar - 04 Mar ASW trawler
Stone Street (1922)	Panama	6,131
HMS Sulla (FY1874)	Royal Navy		Escort 04 Mar - 12 Mar ASW whaler
HMS Svega (FY294)	Royal Navy		Escort 04 Mar - 12 Mar ASW whaler
HMS Tartar (F43)	Royal Navy		Escort 09 Mar - 10 Mar
Temple Arch (1940)	United Kingdom	5,138	Arrived Reykjavik 27 Feb, Sailed 1 Mar
HMS Verdun (L93)	Royal Navy		Escort 10 Mar - 10 Mar
HMS Victorious (R38)	Royal Navy		Escort 06 Mar - 10 Mar Aircraft carrier
HMS Wells	Royal Navy		Escort 10 Mar - 10 Mar
HMS Woolston	Royal Navy		Escort 10 Mar - 10 Mar

Notes

↑ "Convoy PQ.12". Arnold Hague Convoy Database. Retrieved 15 October 2013.
↑ "HMS Gossamer 1942". HALCYON CLASS - MINESWEEPERS AND SURVEY SHIPS OF WORLD WAR TWO. Retrieved 15 October 2013.

References

Clay Blair : Hitler's U-Boat War Vol I (1996) ISBN 0-304-35260-8
Paul Kemp : Convoy! Drama in Arctic Waters (1993) ISBN 1-85409-130-1
Bernard Schofield : (1964) The Russian Convoys BT Batsford ISBN (none)
PQ 12 at Convoyweb

Arctic convoys of World War II

1941

Outbound	Dervish PQ 1 PQ 2 PQ 3 PQ 4 PQ 5 PQ 6

Homebound	QP 1 QP 2 QP 3

1942

Outbound	PQ 7a PQ 7b PQ 8 PQ 9 PQ 10 PQ 11 PQ 12 PQ 13 PQ 14 PQ 15 PQ 16 PQ 17 PQ 18 Operation FB JW 51A JW 51B

Homebound	QP 4 QP 5 QP 6 QP 7 QP 8 QP 9 QP 10 QP 11 QP 12 QP 13 QP 14 QP 15 RA 51

1943

Outbound	JW 52 JW 53 JW 54A JW 54B JW 55A JW 55B

Homebound	RA 52 RA 53 RA 54A RA 54B RA 55A RA 55B

1944

Outbound	JW 56A JW 56B JW 57 JW 58 JW 59 JW 60 JW 61 JW 61A JW 62 JW 63

Homebound	RA 56 RA 57 RA 58 RA 59 RA 59A RA 60 RA 61 RA 61A RA 62 RA 63

1945

Outbound	JW 64 JW 65 JW 66 JW 67

Homebound	RA 64 RA 65 RA 66 RA 67

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