Gordon Bennett - The Avenger of HMS Kite

I have received a copy of a letter that Gordon Bennett wrote to Clem Bray on 24th November 1989 in which he describes the attack on U344. The letter is obviously
replying to some points Clem Bray had raised. They may not make as much sense to those of us not privy to Clem's original letter but the main gist is the attack on the U344.

On the original letter was a telephone number near Derby, I finally found out the code and rang the number, the current user of that number has never heard of Gordon Bennett and I suspect that he may no longer be with us, the number being reallocated.

HMS Vindex and the book Escort Carrier

U344

This is the entry from a Naval Historical Site which contains erroneous information regarding the loss of the Kite and the U344. I mailed them a long time ago regarding the truth, however, it has not been corrected.

http://www.naval-history.net/WW2CampaignsRussianConvoys.htm

AUGUST 1944

15th-29th - Attacks on Tirpitz and Russian Convoy JW59 - Russian convoy JW59 (33 ships) leaves Loch Ewe on the 15th with a heavy escort including escort carriers "Striker" and "Vindex" and the 20th and 22nd Escort Groups.

Home Fleet, under the command of Admiral Moore, sails in two groups, partly to cover the convoy but mainly to launch further FAA attacks on "Tirpitz" in Altenfiord. One group includes "Formidable", "Indefatigable" and "Furious" and battleship "Duke of York"; the second one escort carriers "Trumpeter" and the Canadian-manned "Nabob" together with the 5th EG (Cdr Macintyre). Between the 22nd and 29th, three strikes are made, but in two of them the German ship is obscured by smoke; and although a hit is obtained on the 24th, the bomb fails to explode. In the course of these manoeuvres the escort carrier group suffers two casualties:

22nd - "U-354" encounters them to the northwest of North Cape and attacks. Frigate "BICKERTON" of the 5th EG is torpedoed, badly damaged, and finished off by destroyer "Vigilant" (not an old "V" and "W", but a war programme ship). Escort carrier "NABOB" is too badly damaged by her torpedo hit to be repaired. The U-boat is shortly sunk.

 The convoy, JW59 is also subjected to U-boat attack and losses are sustained by both sides:

21st - Sloop "KITE" of the 22nd EG is torpedoed by "U-344" to the northwest of Norway in the Greenland Sea and goes down. There are few survivors, but the attacker, like "U-354" is also sunk shortly.

24th - As "U-344" tries to approach the convoy to the north of North Cape, she is sunk by destroyer "Keppel", frigate "Loch Dunvegan" and sloops "Mermaid" and "Peacock" of the 20th EG (both sister-ships of "Kite" so recently lost to "U-344's" attack) ** (The truth is above! - mk)

25th - "U-354" now prepares for the arrival of return convoy RA59A in the Bear Island area and is destroyed by a rocket-firing Swordfish of 825 Squadron from "Vindex". (Note: Some sources reverse the cause of loss of "U-344" and "U-354", but with "U-344" sunk on the 22nd and "U-354" on the 24th.) (The U344 was sunk on the 22nd August 1944 - mk)

JW59 arrives at Kola Inlet on the 25th with all 33 merchant ships.

** Feb 2004: I have since mailed the site who have promised to update their entry for Aug 24th 1944 and also to re-date it to Aug 22nd 1944.

Copyright ©  Mike Kemble