23 January 1943

23 January 1943 St Malo Convoy Control Office

Weather: North-west to west force 5 easing to 3, south-west in afternoon, cloudy, visibility 10 nautical miles, sea 4–3, medium-high westerly swell. 0145, Guernsey: V 206/11 arrived with night troop convoy from Malo–Jersey. 0330, Malo: V 210/12 sailed with La France for Jersey. Remark: departure deliberately late because entry to St Helier harbour at night is forbidden and lying in Aubin roads seemed inadvisable in the prevailing southerly winds. 0830, St Helier: V 210/12 arrived with La France from Malo.

Tasks: (1) night troop convoy from Guernsey, Rheinland to Jersey, Amethyste and H 49 to Malo; (2) night troop convoy La France and RO 21 Jersey–Malo; (3) night troop convoy Rob. Müller 8 Guernsey–Alderney; (4) Franka and Weber Cherbourg–Alderney; (5) route sweeping Brest–Malo with ORG. Assigned: (1) V 722/11, independently Malo–Guernsey beforehand; (2) V 210/12; (3) V 206/11, afterwards to Cherbourg; (4) V 724/23; (5) A Group, 46th Minesweeper Flotilla under 3rd Security Division's order.

Remark: V 724/23's speed of 7–8 knots is unacceptable for Cherbourg–Alderney traffic given the tidal currents and particular danger of enemy action. I am therefore bringing them to Malo and ordering V 206/11 to Cherbourg for those duties. Such slow escorts also increase troop convoys' danger considerably: escorted vessels make much greater speed, some 14 knots, and Amethyste is said even to make 16 knots. At the next change of pairs I shall have to insist on receiving no such slow boats from 7th Patrol Boat Flotilla. 1030, Malo: V 722/11 sailed for Guernsey.

Report to 3rd Security Division. Situation for 23 January: (1) V 210/12 night troop convoy of 22/23 January Malo–Jersey with La France, evening return convoy Jersey–Malo with La France and RO 21; (2) V 206/11 complete night troop convoy of 22/23 January Malo–Guernsey, evening night troop convoy Rob. Müller 8 Guernsey–Alderney, then independently to Cherbourg; (3) V 724/23 ready at Cherbourg; (4) V 722/11 morning independent passage Malo–Guernsey, then night troop convoy of 23/24 January from Guernsey, Rheinland to Jersey and Amethyste and H 49 to Malo; (5) C Group of 46th Minesweeper Flotilla and M 4612 ready at Malo. Escorted tonnage: 6,300 GRT.

Intentions for 24 January: (1) V 210/12 complete night troop convoy Jersey–Malo, then readiness; (2) V 206/11 complete independent passage Alderney–Cherbourg, then readiness; (3) V 724/23 night troop convoy at 0300 with Franka and Weber Cherbourg–Alderney, evening night troop convoy of 24/25 January with Rob. Müller 8 Alderney–Guernsey; (4) V 722/11 complete night troop convoy of 23/24 January Guernsey–Jersey–Malo, then readiness; (5) A Group, 46th Minesweeper Flotilla complete passage with gear deployed Brest–Malo, then rest; (6) M 4612/01/04/06 combined convoy Malo–Jersey–Guernsey, then independently to Cherbourg, M 4601/04 released there for dockyard passage to Rouen under 2nd Security Division's order, M 4612/06 degaussing; (7) M 4600/02/05/07 ready at Malo.

1620, Guernsey: V 722/11 arrived from Malo. 1815, Guernsey: V 206/11 sailed with Rob. Müller 8 for Alderney. 1830, Malo: wireless message on KLW received announcing four S-boats' intended departure from Cherbourg at 2030 through Channel Islands area. 2020, Alderney: V 206/11 released Rob. Müller 8 to enter and proceeded to Cherbourg. 2030, Malo: S-boats' departure confirmed. 2040, Alderney: Rob. Müller 8 arrived from Guernsey. 2115, Jersey: V 210/12 sailed with La France and RO 21 for Malo. 2130, Malo: reports from Guernsey, Jersey and the air-reporting brigade of anti-aircraft fire and explosions at sea.

Remark: no friendly vessels known to Convoy Control were in the sea area concerned [handwritten “none” corrects the sentence]. The reports were very imprecise and, on enquiry, not confirmed by Cherbourg and Brest plotting centres. I therefore took no action. The observations may refer to anti-aircraft fire ashore, which had opened at this time on enemy aircraft flying over the Channel Islands. 2140, Malo: wireless message from 3rd Security Division ordering A Group, 46th Minesweeper Flotilla back to Brest. 2215, Cherbourg: V 206/11 arrived from Guernsey–Alderney. 2300, Malo: heightened alert ordered. Signed Wunderlich.

T-1022 Roll 2423, scans 0717–0718, original pages 13–15.