Convoy ON-67 was a trade convoy

Convoy

A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support, though it may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas.-Age of Sail:Naval...

 of merchant ships during the second World War. It was the 67th of the numbered series of ON convoys

ON convoys

The ON convoys were a series of North Atlantic trade convoys running Outbound from the British Isles to North America during the Battle of the Atlantic .-History:...

 Outbound from the British Isles to North America. Ships departing Liverpool

Liverpool

Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...

 on 14 February 1942 with convoy rescue ship

Convoy rescue ship

During the Second World War purpose built convoy rescue ships accompanied some Atlantic convoys to rescue survivors from ships which had been attacked. Rescue ships were typically small freighters with passenger accommodations. Conversion to rescue service involved enlarging galley and food...

 Toward were escorted to the Mid-Ocean Meeting Point by escort group B4.

The Escort Group

On 19 February American task unit 4.1.5 assumed escort responsibility with Gleaves class destroyer

Gleaves class destroyer

The Gleaves-class destroyers were a class of 66 destroyers of the United States Navy built 1938–1942, and designed by Gibbs & Cox. The first ship of the class was the USS Gleaves . The U.S. Navy customarily names a class of ships after the first ship of the class; hence the Gleaves class...

s Edison

USS Edison (DD-439)

USS Edison , a Gleaves-class destroyer, was the first ship of the United States Navy to be named for Thomas Alva Edison, an inventor and businessman who developed many important devices....

 and Nicholson

USS Nicholson (DD-442)

USS Nicholson , a , was the third ship of the United States Navy to be named for the Nicholson family, which was prominent in the early history of the Navy....

, Wickes class destroyer

Wickes class destroyer

The Wickes-class destroyers were a group of 111 destroyers built by the United States Navy in 1917-1919. Along with the 6 preceding Caldwell class and 155 subsequent Clemson-class destroyers, they formed the "flush-deck" or "four-stack" class. Only a few were completed in time to serve in World...

s Lea

USS Lea (DD-118)

USS Lea was a Wickes-class destroyer in the United States Navy during World War I and World War II. She was named in honor of Edward Lea, a US Navy officer killed during the Civil War....

 and Bernadou

USS Bernadou (DD-153)

USS Bernadou was a Wickes class destroyer in the United States Navy during World War II. She was named for Commander John Bernadou....

 and the Canadian Flower class corvette

Flower class corvette

The Flower-class corvette was a class of 267 corvettes used during World War II, specifically with the Allied navies as anti-submarine convoy escorts during the Battle of the Atlantic...

 HMCS

Her Majesty's Canadian Ship

The designation Her Majesty's Canadian Ship , is applied as a prefix to any Canadian Forces warship. In the reign of a king, the designation changes to His Majesty's Canadian Ship; the French version of the title remains unchanged in this instance...

 Algoma. Edisons commanding officer, commander Albert C. Murdaugh, USN, was the senior officer of the escort group. The escort group had never operated together before. Bernadou had been modified for long range escort work by replacing the fourth boiler and stack with an extra fuel tank. Toward carried a HF/DF high-frequency direction finding set, and Nicholson had the only functional radar

Radar

Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...

. Lea carried a British ASV aircraft radar with fixed antennae, but the coaxial cable to the antennae was repeatedly shorted by salt water spray. Edison had no depth charge

Depth charge

A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare weapon intended to destroy or cripple a target submarine by the shock of exploding near it. Most use explosives and a fuze set to go off at a preselected depth in the ocean. Depth charges can be dropped by either surface ships, patrol aircraft, or from...

 throwers, and was limited to a linear pattern rolled off the stern. The American ships did not have enough binoculars. Bernadou had a 7x50 pair for the officer of the deck and a 6x30 pair for the junior officer of the deck. There were none for the lookouts.

U-155

U-155 found and reported the convoy on 21 February. Toward obtained a bearing on the contact report, and Lea searched the bearing unsuccessfully at dusk. U-155 approached the port quarter of the convoy in the pre-dawn hours of 22 February and torpedoed British tanker Adellen and Norwegian freighter Sama. Both ships sank quickly. Algoma rescued eleven of Adellens crew of 31 while Nicholson and Toward found twenty survivors from Samas crew of forty. U-155 crash-dived to avoid Bernadou, but the destroyer never saw the U-boat. U-155 made another emergency dive while shadowing the convoy at 1042, but Edison did not detect the U-boat. U-587, U-69, and U-558

German submarine U-558

The German submarine U-558 was a Type VIIC U-boat in the service of the German Kriegsmarine during World War II. She sank 19 shipping and military vessels totalling nearly 100,000 tons before being sunk by bombers in July 1943....

 found the convoy on 23 February.

U-558

U-558 approached the convoy at 2120, but repeatedly turned away to avoid Bernadous patrols until a squall provided cover at midnight. U-558 torpedoed Norwegian tanker Inverarder at 0045 24 February. The tanker sank slowly, and Toward rescued all 42 of the crew. U-558 approached again at 0230 and fired a single torpedo at Edison. The torpedo missed, and Edison was unaware it had been fired. U-558 torpedoed Norwegian tanker Eidanger at 0255. U-558 reloaded and at 0550 torpedoed British tanker Anadara, tanker Finnanger, and British freighter White Crest. All three ships straggled and were sunk. Later that morning, the convoy commodore sent a signal to the escort commander regarding the performance of U-558: "That chap must be one of their best ones. I do hope you have done him in."

U-158

U-158

German submarine U-158 (1941)

German submarine U-158 was a Type IXC U-boat of the German Kriegsmarine built for service during World War II.Her keel was laid down on November 1, 1940 by AG Weser in Bremen...

located the convoy at 0425 24 February and torpedoed British tanker . Empire Celt was testing a new Admiralty Net Defense system by streaming a strong steel net from 50 feet (15.2 m) poles along either side of the ship. One torpedo broke through the net and hit amidships. Empire Celt later broke in half, but a tug from Newfoundland

Dominion of Newfoundland

The Dominion of Newfoundland was a British Dominion from 1907 to 1949 . The Dominion of Newfoundland was situated in northeastern North America along the Atlantic coast and comprised the island of Newfoundland and Labrador on the continental mainland...

 rescued 31 from the crew of 37.

As U-558 was torpedoing ships on the starboard side of the convoy, U-158 approached the port side and torpedoed British tanker Diloma at 0635. Diloma was the only one of the torpedoed ships to successfully reach Halifax. Both U-158 and U-558 dived to avoid being seen in the early daylight. U-558 found and sank the drifting, abandoned Eidanger astern of the convoy with gunfire and a torpedo. All of Eidangers crew had been rescued. Lea investigated a DF bearing from Toward at 1515 and spotted U-558 twenty miles (32 km) astern of the convoy at 1707. Lea dropped eight depth charges at 1746, and then surprised the U-boat on the surface at 1813 and dropped fourteen depth charges at 1847. U-558 was undamaged.

Nicholson investigated a DF bearing from Toward and sighted U-158 at 1323. U-158 dived and evaded Nicholson. Nicholson then slowed to listen. U-158 surfaced at 1550 and was surprised to find Nicholson waiting 1500 meters away. U-158 crashed-dived before Nicholson saw the U-boat. U-158 surfaced again at 1817 and was surprised to find Edison 2000 yards (1,828.8 m) away. U-158 again avoided detection by crash-diving. Edison finally spotted U-158 making another convoy approach at 2008 and dropped 25 depth charges over the following six hours. U-158 was undamaged, but had been prevented from making further attacks on the convoy.

Admiral Karl Dönitz

Karl Dönitz

Karl Dönitz was a German naval commander during World War II. He started his career in the German Navy during World War I. In 1918, while he was in command of , the submarine was sunk by British forces and Dönitz was taken prisoner...

 ordered his U-boats to discontinue the attack on 25 February. The escort was reinforced on 26 February by the USCG Treasury Class Cutter

USCG Treasury Class Cutter

The Treasury-class high endurance cutters were a group of seven ships launched by the United States Coast Guard between 1936 and 1937. The class were called the "Treasury-class" because they were each named for former Secretaries of the Treasury. These ships were also collectively known as the...

 Spencer

USCGC Spencer (WPG-36)

USCGC Spencer was a Treasury-class cutter of the United States Coast Guard that served during World War II.-Early career and World War II:...

. The remainder of the convoy reached Halifax

City of Halifax

Halifax is a city in Canada, which was the capital of the province of Nova Scotia and shire town of Halifax County. It was the largest city in Atlantic Canada until it was amalgamated into Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996...

 on 1 March 1942.

Ships in convoy

Name	Flag	Dead	Tonnage	Cargo	Notes
Adellen (1930)		36	7,984 gross register tons (GRT)	(in ballast)	sunk by 22 Feb
Anadara (1935)		62	8,009 GRT	(in ballast)	sunk by & 24 Feb
Belinda (1939)			8,325 GRT		destination West Indies
Consuelo (1937)			4,847 GRT	general cargo	destination New York City; survived this convoy and convoy HX 228 Convoy HX 228 HX 228 was a North Atlantic convoy of the HX series which ran during the battle of the Atlantic in World War II. It was one of 4 convoy battles that occurred during the crisis month of March 1943 and is notable for seeing the loss of the Escort Group leader Cdr AA "Harry" Tait.-Prelude:HX 228 was...
Cristales (1926)			5,389 GRT		carried convoy vice commodore Capt R H R MacKay OBE; in collision 24 Feb; destination Halifax
Daghestan (1941)			7,248 GRT		CAM ship CAM ship CAM ships were World War II-era British merchant ships used in convoys as an emergency stop-gap until sufficient escort carriers became available. CAM is an acronym for catapult aircraft merchantman. A CAM ship was equipped with a rocket-propelled catapult launching a single Hawker Sea Hurricane,... ; destination Halifax
Dekabrist (1903)			7,363 GRT		destination New York City
Diloma (1939)			8,146 GRT		damaged by ; made Halifax
Dolabella (1939)			8,142 GRT		destination Curacao
Dromus (1938)			8,036 GRT		destination Curacao
Eidanger (1938)		(none)	9,432 GRT	(in ballast)	sunk by 24 Feb
(1941)		6	8,032 GRT	(in ballast)	sunk by 24 Feb
(1941)			9,813 GRT		destination Port Arthur
(1941)			8,134 GRT		destination Baton Rouge
(1941)			7,242 GRT		CAM ship CAM ship CAM ships were World War II-era British merchant ships used in convoys as an emergency stop-gap until sufficient escort carriers became available. CAM is an acronym for catapult aircraft merchantman. A CAM ship was equipped with a rocket-propelled catapult launching a single Hawker Sea Hurricane,... ; destination Halifax
(1941)			8,138 GRT		destination Port Arthur
Finnanger (1928)		39	9,551 GRT	(in ballast)	sunk by 24 Feb
Glittre (1928)			6,409 GRT		destination Aruba; survived to be sunk one year later in convoy ON 166
Gloucester City (1919)			3,071 GRT	general cargo	destination Philadelphia
Hamlet (1934)			6,578 GRT		joined from Iceland 19 Feb
Hektoria (1899)			13,797 GRT		destination New York City; survived to be sunk 7 months later in convoy ON 127
Idefjord (1921)			4,287 GRT	china clay	destination Saint John, New Brunswick
Inverarder (1919)		(none)	5,578 GRT	(in ballast)	sunk by 24 Feb
Lancastrian Prince (1940)			1,914 GRT		destination New York City; survived this convoy and convoy HX 228 Convoy HX 228 HX 228 was a North Atlantic convoy of the HX series which ran during the battle of the Atlantic in World War II. It was one of 4 convoy battles that occurred during the crisis month of March 1943 and is notable for seeing the loss of the Escort Group leader Cdr AA "Harry" Tait.-Prelude:HX 228 was...
Manchester Exporter (1918)			5,277 GRT	general cargo	carried convoy commodore RADM Sir O H Dawson KBE; destination Halifax
Mentor (1914)			7,383 GRT	general cargo	destination Singapore
USS Mizar USS Mizar (AF-12) USS Mizar was a Mizar-class stores ship acquired by the U.S. Navy for use during World War II. With modification to the ship, she was able to also carry a small number of troops. She served in the Pacific War and came back home with four battle stars to her credit...  (1932)			6,982 GRT		joined from Iceland 19 Feb
Nueva Andalucia (1940)			10,044 GRT		destination Port Arthur
Orari (1931)			10,350 GRT	china clay	destination Trinidad
USS Pleiades USS Pleiades (AK-46) USS Pleiades was commissioned by the U.S. Navy for service in World War II. She was responsible for delivering military personnel and equipment to ships and stations in the war zone....  (1939)			3,600 GRT		joined from Iceland 19 Feb; survived this convoy and convoy SC 107
Rapana MV Rapana MV Rapana was one of nine Anglo Saxon Royal Dutch/Shell oil tankers converted to become a Merchant Aircraft Carrier . The group is collectively known as the Rapana class....  (1935)			8,017 GRT		destination Curacao
Sama (1937)		20	1,799 GRT	china clay	sunk by 22 Feb
Skandinavia (1940)			10,044 GRT		destination Aruba; survived this convoy and convoy ON 166
Strinda (1937)			10,973 GRT		destination Key West
Stuart Prince (1940)			1,911 GRT	general cargo	destination Halifax; survived this convoy and convoy HX 228 Convoy HX 228 HX 228 was a North Atlantic convoy of the HX series which ran during the battle of the Atlantic in World War II. It was one of 4 convoy battles that occurred during the crisis month of March 1943 and is notable for seeing the loss of the Escort Group leader Cdr AA "Harry" Tait.-Prelude:HX 228 was...
Thorhild (1935)			10,316 GRT		destination Curacao
Torr Head (1937)			5,021 GRT		destination Norfolk, Virginia
Toward (1923)			1,571 GRT		convoy rescue ship Convoy rescue ship During the Second World War purpose built convoy rescue ships accompanied some Atlantic convoys to rescue survivors from ships which had been attacked. Rescue ships were typically small freighters with passenger accommodations. Conversion to rescue service involved enlarging galley and food...
White Crest (1928)			4,365 GRT	coal	straggled 18 Feb; sunk by 24 February