Schlachtschiff Tirpitz 1936-1957 Illustrated by Atenas Editores Asociados

Author:Atenas Editores Asociados
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2015-05-25T00:00:00+00:00

Tirpitz and Admiral Scheer, along with the destroyers Friedrich Ihn, Paul Jacobi, Hermann Schoemann and Z25 and a pair of torpedo boats, were intended to attack the homebound convoy QP 8 and the outbound PQ 12 in March 1942 as part of Operation Sportpalast (Sports Palace). Admiral Scheer, with a design speed of 26 kn (48 km/h; 30 mph), was too slow to operate with Tirpitz, and was left in port, as was the destroyer Paul Jacobi. The two torpedo boats were also released from the operation. On 5 March, Luftwaffe reconnaissance aircraft spotted PQ 12 near Jan Mayen Island; the reconnaissance failed to note the battleship HMS Duke of York or the battlecruiser HMS Renown, both of which escorted the convoy, along with four destroyers. Unknown to the Germans, Admiral Tovey provided distant support to the convoys with the battleship HMS King George V, the aircraft carrier HMS Victorious, the heavy cruiser HMS Berwick, and six destroyers. Enigma intercepts again forewarned the British of Tirpitz's attack, which allowed them to reroute the convoys. Admiral Tovey attempted to pursue Tirpitz on 9 March, but Admiral Otto Ciliax, the commander of the German squadron, had decided to return to port the previous evening. An air attack was launched early on the 9th; twelve Fairey Albacore torpedo bombers attacked the ship in three groups, and Tirpitz successfully evaded the torpedoes. Only three men were wounded in the attack.Tirpitz's anti-aircraft gunners shot down two of the British aircraft. After the conclusion of the attack, Tirpitz made for Vestfjord, and from there to Trondheim, arriving on the evening of 13 March. On 30 March, thirty-three Halifax bombers attacked the ship; they scored no hits and five aircraft were shot down. The RAF launched a pair of unsuccessful strikes in late April. On the night of 27–28 April, thirty-one Halifaxes and twelve Lancasters; five of the bombers were shot down. Another raid, composed of twenty-three Halifaxes and eleven Lancasters, took place the following night. Two of the bombers were shot down by the German anti-aircraft defences.

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