Thursday 24 July 1941

Russian POWs loaded onto trucks to be taken to their final destination. Zhytomyr Lager, Ukraine, 24 July 1941.

Eastern Front: Marshal Mannerheim on 24 July 1941 reaches his conclusion regarding the advance of Finnish VI Corps to the old Finnish-Soviet border on the eastern shore of Lake Ladoga: halt. Finnish troops there are refusing to cross the border, as nobody wants to provoke the Soviet Union. Instead of ordering the troops to continue heading southeast, Mannerheim orders them to form a line along the Tuulema River. The Germans are dismayed, as they want the advance to continue, but there is nothing that they can do.

On the other side of Lake Ladoga, Finnish VII Corps continues forcing its way forward against heavy Soviet resistance. It approaches the town of Sortavala on the road that runs along the fringes of Lake Ladoga. The Finns capture Vidlitsa and Rajakonru northeast of Lake Ladoga. Further north, Finnish 14th Infantry Division (Colonel Erkki Raappana) takes Omelia, wiping out Soviet 337th Rifle Regiment.

In the Army Group North sector, the Wehrmacht consolidates its position as it prepares for the final advance on Leningrad.

In the Army Group Center sector, Soviet troops attack the exposed Panzer Group 2 bridgehead at Yelnya. At Velikiye Luki, Soviet counterattacks cut German lines of communication and the Wehrmacht retreats in the area. The Germans are under heavy pressure in this sector and have to throw service troops into the line.

In the Army Group South sector, Romanian Third and Fourth Armies in conjunction with the German 11th Army complete the occupation of Bessarabia, Northern Bukovina, and Hertsa. These are territories ceded by Romania to the Soviet Union in 1940. This completes Operation München. Romania intends to reincorporate the region into the Romanian State.

The Luftwaffe, after a night off, again attacks Moscow. Tonight, the number of bombers is reduced to 100. Red Army night fighter pilot Kapitan Konstantin Titenkov claims a bomber for his third success in three nights.

The wrecked Bf 109E7 "Yellow One" of Staffelführer 3./JG 2 Lt. Julius Meimberg at Saint-Renan near Brélès, France, 24 July 1941. Meimberg is lying on the ground with someone holding an umbrella to shield him from the sun. Meimberg is out on medical leave until the spring of 1942.

European Air Operations: The RAF sends more raids against the German warships parked along the French coast, and today they succeed in damaging two of them. During the day, RAF Bomber Command sends 100 planes over Brest in Operation Sunrise. It is a complicated plan that works well, with Operation Sunrise I being the main raid and Operation Sunrise II a diversionary raid. An initial force of 3 Fortresses and 18 Hampdens accompanied by a Spitfire escort draw up the Luftwaffe defenses by bombing at 30,000 feet. Immediately after this, 79 Wellingtons fly over and make the real attack. Neither of the two heavy cruisers in port, Gneisenau (in drydock) and Prinz Eugen, take any hits. The British lose 10 Wellingtons and 2 Hampdens. Luftwaffe ace Julius Meimberg claims three bombers shot down, but he also is shot down and seriously injured.

RAF Bomber Command also sends a diversionary raid of 36 Blenheims against Cherbourg. The raid causes some damage to the docks but does not attract any defending fighters away from Brest as desired. So far so good for the Germans - but there is more to come.

A third raid targets La Pallice, where heavy cruiser Scharnhorst arrived on the 23rd. This is an additional 200 miles further south, so there are no escorting RAF fighters. The attack by 15 Halifaxes of RAF No. 35 and 76 Squadrons are pressed home with great courage against heavy Luftwaffe opposition and score five hits. Three bombs pass straight through the ship, and two other bombs explode and cause only light damage. However, the Germans are forced to concede that the move to La Pallice was a mistake, so, despite the ship taking on water, they send Scharnhorst back to Brest after dark. Scharnhorst is out of action until November, at a cost to the RAF of five Halifax bombers and damage to the rest.

After dark, RAF Bomber Command sends 34 Wellingtons (one lost) and 30 Hampdens (one lost) against Kiel. As has been the case often recently, accuracy is poor, and the only deaths are five people in the nearby village of Wellsee, Germany, which is near Kiel. Another raid by 31 Whitleys and 16 Wellingtons against Emden results in the loss of two Wellingtons. The RAF also sends 4 Wellingtons over Rotterdam and six on minelaying missions in the Frisian Islands, both without loss.

During the raid on La Pallice, the German defenders accidentally down a returning Focke-Wulf FW-200 returning from an Atlantic reconnaissance flight.

RAF Pilot/Officer Joseph Francis Patrick John McKenna, KIA 24 July 1941 at Nantes, France. He is buried at the War Cemetery in Loire-Atlantique, about fifty kilometers from Nantes in France.

The RAF flies a Circus mission to Hazebrouck. RAF ace James Lacey files claims for two Luftwaffe Bf 109 fighters after observing them collide nearby during a dogfight.

Major Günther Freiherr von Maltzahn, Kommodore of JG 53 and a 42-victory ace, is awarded the Eichenlaub.

The weekly RAF operations report shows that for the week ending 23 July:

• Coastal Command flew 252 patrols and 364 sorties
• RAF Fighter Command flew 704 ship protection patrols.

The report notes that attacks on Axis shipping were "highly successful in spite of intense A.A. [anti-aircraft] fire from Flak ships."

Australian troops with captured Morane-Saulnier MS.406C1 fighters of Groupe de Chasse I/7, Aleppo-Nerab, Syria, 24 July 1941. (Australian War Memorial 008990).

Battle of the Atlantic: Operation EF, a large raid on Kirkenes and Petsamo, continues northward toward Seidis Fjord, Iceland, and remains undetected.

The RAF (No. 42 Squadron) sinks 370-ton Norwegian freighter Vestkyst I off Skadberg, Norway.

German destroyer Hermann Schoemann, operating off of Kharlov Islands, uses gunfire to sink 540-ton Soviet whaler Meridian.

U-652, operating off the Russian Kildin inlet in the far north, attacks Russian patrol boat SKR-23 "Musson" but misses.

German scouts spot Allied convoys OG-69 and SL-80 at sea and U-boat Command (BdU) direct U-boats toward them.

US Aircraft carrier USS Wasp loads 30 P-40s and three Stearman PT-13 Kaydet trainers at Norfolk for transport to Iceland.

Convoy OS-1 departs from Liverpool bound for Freetown, Convoy SL-82 departs from Freetown bound for Liverpool. Convoys SL-79 and HG-67 both arrive in Liverpool.

U-454 and U-580 are commissioned.

MV Sydney Star which was damaged on 24 July 1941.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Operation Substance, a Royal Navy supply convoy from Gibraltar to Malta, continues. Most of the ships of Convoy GM-1 reach Malta safely despite continued Italian air and motor torpedo boat attacks. Royal Navy destroyer HMS Nestor (Cmdr. A. S. Rosenthal, DSO, RAN) unloads 487 troops at Malta. Royal Navy submarines Perseus and Regent engage in fake radio traffic designed to create the impression to the Italians that the main Royal Navy Mediterranean Fleet based at Alexandria is at sea, when in fact it is in port.

Italian torpedo boat MAS-533 torpedoes and damages 11,219-ton freighter Sydney Star. Destroyer Nestor tows the Sydney Star to Malta, where the freighter is put in drydock for repairs.

Italian bombers based in Sardinia damage 9351-ton British tanker Hoegh Hood, part of Convoy MG-1 returning to Gibraltar from Malta. The Hoegh Hood, which is empty, is able to continue to Gibraltar.

An Italian CANT Z.506 reconnaissance seaplane, escorted by 42 Macchi C.200 fighters, spots the Operation Substance ships arriving in Malta. The RAF launches 22 Hawker Hurricanes to attack the Italian formation, and the British shoot down three of the Italian fighters without loss to themselves. Overall, the Italians lose about a dozen aircraft during their operations surrounding Operation Substance.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Upholder torpedoes and damages 4964-ton Italian freighter Dandolo off the west coast of Sicily.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Upright, operating off Cape dell Armi, uses its deck gun to attack floating dock G022. The Italians immediately send ships out to launch depth charge attacks, but Upright gets away.

Italian submarine Squalo claims to damage a British tanker northeast of Tobruk, but there is no confirmation or identification of what ship it is.

Operation Guillotine, the reinforcement of Cyprus, continues. Royal Navy transport Gujarat, escorted by Australian sloop HMAS Parramatta, travels from Port Said to Famagusta without incident.

Italian soldier executing civilians in Sinj, Croatia, 24 July 1941.

Partisans: The partisan revolt in the Balkans continues. Italian troops, attempting to regain control, engage in repressive measures. This includes executing civilians in the Croatian town of Sinj.

POWs: A group of Dutch troops, 68 officers, arrives at Colditz Castle, an Oflag IV-C camp. They are the first Dutch prisoners.

German/Italian Relations: Mussolini offers to add another Italian army corps to the one already allocated to the eastern front.

US/German/Italian Relations: US troopship USS West Point (AP-23) arrives in Lisbon. It carries German and Italian consular personnel and their families who have been ordered to return to Europe by the United States government.

Two USAAF B-18 bombers in the Philippines, 24 July 1941.

US/Japanese Relations: President Roosevelt meets with Japanese Ambassador Nomura in the Oval Office. Roosevelt defends his policy in the Pacific, noting that he has permitted oil to be shipped to Japan. However, he notes that the Japanese occupation of French Indochina is a problem for relations. Nomura says that he personally disagrees with the aggressive Japanese policies in the Pacific and is a good friend of new Foreign Minister Toyoda. Both Roosevelt and Nomura agree that Germany's goal is world conquest and is pressuring Japan. Nomura promises to ask his government not to occupy French Indochina, and Roosevelt promises to guarantee that the Allies would leave it alone if Japan does as well. Nomura responds that it may be too late because Japan would lose face if it pulled out of Indochina now.

After the meeting, Acting Secretary of State Sumner Welles issues a statement regarding the Japanese/Vichy French agreement regarding Japanese use of French Indochina. It notes in part:

By the course which it has followed and is following in regard to Indochina, the Japanese Government is giving clear indication that it is determined to pursue an objective of expansion by force or threat of force.

The statement does not, however, indicate that the United States will take any direct action as a result of the Japanese establishment of military bases in the territory.

Anglo/Free French Relations: Charles de Gaulle remains extremely upset about having Free French forces not included in the treaty ending the conflict in the Levant. At his demand, Free French forces revert to his command from British control at noon.

Japanese troops enter Saigon by bicycle, 24 July 1941. (Japanese army photo).

French Indochina: Japanese marines land at Cam Ranh Bay to secure port facilities, pursuant to the recent Japanese agreement with the Vichy French. Army troops are following along behind.

German Military: General der Panzertruppe Walther Kurt Josef Nehring is awarded the Knight's Cross. He is Generalmajor and commander of the 18th Panzer-Division.

US Military: The US Marine Corps establishes a detachment of the 1st Defense Battalion at Johnston Island southwest of Hawaii in the Pacific.

Fw 200 C-2 W.Nr. 0026 "F8+CH", 1./KG 40, Bordeaux, before 24 July 1941, the date when it was shot down with all its crew near Ireland.

German Government: During his evening talks with cronies, Adolf Hitler opines:

The German army is technically the most perfect in the world; and the German soldier, in a moment of crisis, is safer and sounder than any other soldier. I'm truly happy that it has been granted to me to see, in my lifetime, the German soldier rewarded by Providence. For an elite force, like our SS, it's great luck to have suffered comparatively heavy losses. In this way, it's assured of the necessary prestige to intervene, if need be, on the home front — which, of course, won't be necessary. But it's good to know that one disposes of a force that could show itself capable of doing so, on occasion.

Ordinary soldiers may not agree that their losses are worth it for the prestige granted their formations. There is no question, however, that the SS is loaded with fanatical troops who might, in fact, agree with Hitler.

One of two checkpoints at the Kishinev Ghetto circa 1941.

Holocaust: The Romanian governor of the Kishinev (Chișinău) district of Bessarabia (Moldova) and the local German commander of the Einsatzkommando order a Ghetto established for Jews who have survived previous executions. Some 11,000 people squeeze into the confined space.

A local SS commander reports to headquarters that 4435 Jews have been exterminated at Lachowicz.

German SS troops execute Jewish citizens of Grodz, Lithuania.

Canadian Homefront: About 700 workers in Arvida, Quebec begin an illegal strike against their employer, the Alcan aluminum company. Alcan is considered essential to the war effort, and thus the strike is illegal.

American Homefront: The New York Times publishes a quote from Senator Harry Truman of Missouri regarding the German invasion of the Soviet Union: "If we see that Germany is winning we ought to help Russia, and if Russia is winning we ought to help Germany, and in that way let them kill as many as possible."

Motor launch for hospital ship MS Oranje, Cockatoo Island, 24 July 1941.

July 1941

July 1, 1941: US TV Broadcasting Starts
July 2, 1941: MAUD Report
July 3, 1941: Stalin Speaks
July 4, 1941: Pogroms in Eastern Europe
July 5, 1941: Germans on Schedule
July 6, 1941: Australians Attack Damour
July 7, 1941: US Marines in Iceland
July 8, 1941: Flying Fortresses In Action
July 9, 1941: British Take Damour
July 10, 1941: Sword and Scabbard Order
July 11, 1941: Cease-fire in Syria and Lebanon
July 12, 1941: Anglo/Russian Assistance Pact
July 13, 1941: Uprising in Montenegro
July 14, 1941: Katyusha Rocket Launchers in Action
July 15, 1941: Smolensk Falls
July 16, 1941: Stalin's Son Captured
July 17, 1941: Heydrich Orders Mass Executions
July 18, 1941: Twin Pimples Raid
July 19, 1941: V for Victory
July 20, 1941: The Man Who Wouldn't Shoot
July 21, 1941: Moscow in Flames
July 22, 1941: Soviet Generals Executed
July 23, 1941: Secret Plan JB 355
July 24, 1941: Operation Sunrise
July 25, 1941: US Naval Alert
July 26, 1941: Italian E-Boat Attack on Malta
July 27, 1941: MacArthur Returns
July 28, 1941: Auschwitz Exterminations
July 29, 1941: Rescue From Crete
July 30, 1941: Raid on Petsamo and Kirkenes
July 31, 1941: Final Solution Order

2020

Wednesday 30 April 1941

"German Panzer III tanks advance along a railway line in pursuit of retreating British troops in Greece between 25 and 30 April 1941."  © IWM (HU 39517)

Operation Marita: The Wehrmacht mops up on the Peloponnesos on 30 April 1941, taking thousands of British, New Zealand, Australian, and of course Greek captives who couldn't be evacuated in Operation Demon. The evacuation is often called a "second Dunkirk," as the British took off 50,732 men, but, as at Dunkirk, all of the heavy weapons had to be left behind. While this proved inconsequential at Dunkirk because the Wehrmacht stopped at the Channel coast, it won't in the upcoming campaign in Crete. In comments to the House, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill notes that the British landed 60,000 men in Greece, and "at least 45,000 have been evacuated." After dark, Royal Navy destroyers HMS Isis, Kimberley and Hero return to Kalamata and take off another 200 soldiers, while destroyers Havock and Hotspur take 700 men off of Milos. After that, the only men to escape from the mainland do so in small groups or singly.

Some of the last men taken off from Kalamata on 30 April 1941 by HMS Kimberley, taken on 1 May 1941 (Syd Grant Collection).

While Allied soldiers continue to find any way off the mainland that they can find, for all intents and purposes Operation Demon is over and those left on the Peloponnesos will be captured or killed. That said, the general attitude to this information is one of relief, for those "in the know" expected much worse.

The Germans quickly set up a puppet government in Greece. It is led by Georgios Tsolakoglou. They also set up a government in Serbia, known as the Commissioner Government, under Milan Acimovic.

The Germans and Italians quickly occupy the islands of the Aegean abandoned by the British. The Italians send their 2nd Paratroop Battalion to take Zante, Cephalonia and San Mauro, taking 250 Greeks as prisoners, while a black shirt (fascist) division lands on Corfu. These islands will change hands several times during the conflict. The Germans also seize numerous ships in Greece, including 190-ton Panamanian freighter Ines.

The German press announces that Crete is the next objective. Churchill, noting this in a memo to General Ismay, comments that, "Although our evidence points the other way, we must not exclude the possibility that Crete is a blind, and Syria or Cyprus the quarry." This is a great example of how openly telling the plain truth about future military strategy can be an effective way to create doubt in an opponent. Meanwhile, New Zealand General Bernard Freyberg VC is confirmed as the Allied commander in Crete. He commands 29,000 Anzac forces and 9000 Greek troops. General Wavell, Middle East Commander, flies in and briefs Freyberg on Ultra decrypts citing Crete as the next target of German paratroopers (though Freyberg is not told the source).

Iraq War: The standoff continues in Iraq, with Iraqi ground forces threatening the RAF Habbaniya airfield and the RAF planes based there launching strikes against them (authorized by Churchill himself). The Iraqi government orders the military to deploy 28 cannons on the plateau south of the airfield overlooking the airfield and sends 6000 men on a "training mission" there to cover this operation.

The British have 2000 troops in the airfield and 9000 civilians there as well. Additional troops are being airlifted from RAF Shaibah to Habbaniya by the RAF on a piecemeal basis, with civilians being taken out on the return flights. The Iraqis have told the British to cease all flights, but they continue.

European Air Operations: RAF Bomber Command continues its attacks on Channel shipping, focusing today along the Dutch coast. Three Blenheims of No. 2 Group spot a tanker escorted by flak ships and patrolling Bf 110s and the flak shoots down one RAF plane. After dark, Bomber Command sends a major raid (81 bombers) to Kiel and a smaller, diversionary one to Berlin.

The Luftwaffe bombs Cardiff before dawn, causing great damage with land mines.

A Wellington bomber on a training flight crash-lands in St. Andrews Park at Somerville Road in Bristol, killing three crew, after hitting anti-aircraft cables dangling from a barrage balloon. Pilot Lawrence Hugh Houghton survives. The incident is kept out of the newspapers for morale purposes. The incident will be kept secret until 2009 when a memorial service is held, attended by Houghton.

East African Campaign: In Abyssinia, the Indian 9th Infantry Brigade launches small attacks against Italians at Amba Alagi.

Indian 1548 ton patrol vessel Parvati (Lt. HMS Choudri, RIN) hits a mine and sinks at the confluence of the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea. There are 16 deaths, 14 wounded, and 21 survivors overall.

U-576, launched on 30 April 1941. It will be sunk off the coast of North Carolina, about 30 miles from Cape Hatteras, on 15 July 1942. Its remains will be rediscovered in 2014.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-107 (K.Kapt. Günther Hessler), on its second patrol and operating about 300 miles southwest of the Cape Verde islands, torpedoes and sinks 7417-ton British freighter Lassell. There are 24 survivors (including the master) and 17 deaths. However, the survivors were picked up by a ship that also was torpedoed and sank, the Benvrackie, on 13 May, and 15 of the 24 survivors perished in that sinking (the master again surviving). The Lassell had been part of Convoy OB 309, which was dispersed on 19 April. This is part of a string of successes by U-107 on this lengthy patrol, helping to make it one of the most successful U-boats of the war.

Troop transport SS Nerissa (5583 tons) is approaching the British Isles when U-552 (K.Kapt. Erich Topp), on her second patrol out of St. Nazaire, torpedoes and sinks her with three torpedoes at 23:30 about 320 km west of Liverpool. The ship quickly breaks in two, preventing the lifeboats from launching. Fortunately, the radio operator has just enough time to send a Mayday signal with his ship position. There are 84 survivors, picked up by HMS Veteran early the next morning. The Nerissa becomes the only transport carrying Canadian troops to be lost during World War II. This sinking is often cited as occurring on 1 May since it took place around midnight.

German river patrol boat CF-1 is lost today of unknown causes.

The Luftwaffe attacks and sinks tug HMS Peuplier off Plymouth.

The Luftwaffe attacks Westgarth and damages the Royal Navy sloop HMS Erne. It will not be repaired until 21 June 1942.

Royal Navy patrol vessel HMS Loch Oskaig captures the Vichy French freighter Cap Cantin a couple dozen miles off Cape Espichel. The ship is taken to Gibraltar.

German raider Thor arrives in Hamburg, having completed a cruise in which it sank 11 ships totaling 83,000 tons.

Convoy OB 317 departs Liverpool, Convoy SA-1 forms at sea and departs, Convoy HX 124 departs from Halifax.

The Royal Navy commissions frigates HMS Barle and Mourne and corvette Celandine.

The US Navy lays down future destroyers USS Chevalier and Strong.

U-501 (Korvettenkapitän Hugo Förster) is commissioned in Hamburg, and U-453, U-454, U-575, and U-576 are launched.

During the month of April 1941, Axis sinkings spike, largely due to increased success by the long-range Luftwaffe group previously authorized by Adolf Hitler. There are 88 Allied ships sunk with 381,289 tons in Atlantic, 107 Allied ships with 306,512 tons sunk elsewhere (primarily the Mediterranean, where 32 Axis ships with 152,129 tons are sunk. Overall, total Allied shipping losses rise from 474,879 tons in March to 616,469 tons in April (figures will not match up because they come from different sources and calculating such totals is more of an art than a science - even seemingly exact figures are best taken as crude approximations).

The Kriegsmarine loses two U-boats sunk in the Atlantic, Arctic or Baltic. There are 32 serviceable U-boats in Atlantic, a continuing increase over those available at the start of the war. The Allied shipping losses will decline from here until the peak months of 1942, though, because Admiral Doenitz' U-boat fleet has lost some of its best commanders recently.

"The crew of an A13 Cruiser tank Mk IV studying a map whilst on operations in the Western Desert, 30 April 1941." © IWM (E 2640).

Battle of the Mediterranean: Visiting Major-General Friedrich Paulus finally has allowed General Erwin Rommel to attack the Tobruk perimeter after some indecision. The defenders have had time to sow minefields and even to bring in a dozen infantry tanks, but the Germans now have had time to settle their dispositions as well. At the War Cabinet today, Churchill comments that "sufficiently vigorous steps were not being taken by any of the three Services to strike the Germans before they became stronger," so this attack will prove the acid test for that judgment.

Rommel plans his attack to hit the southwest salient, defended by the 26th Australian Brigade. The attack begins at 20:00, led by the 15th Panzer Division and the 5th Light Division. The Axis dispositions have been disrupted by Allied artillery fire - troop movements in the desert are hard to conceal, especially during the day. The panzers make a small breakthrough, but the defending Australians hold tight at several outposts. The Italian troops of the Ariete and Brescia divisions make little progress following the lead panzers, and the offensive deteriorates into a melange of local actions. As the day ends, it is unclear which side has the advantage.

The Germans and Italians mount a supply convoy from Messina and Augusta with five freighters and several escorts. The Luftwaffe bombs HMS Gloucester while it is trying to intercept the convoy. The bomb passes through the ship without exploding, so the damage is very minor. Another convoy departs from Tripoli.

Royal Navy gunboats HMS Aphis and Ladybird bombard Sollum and Gazala, respectively.

The Luftwaffe continues to be active over Malta. The raids begin at 08:00 when a couple of Junkers Ju 88s escorted by fighters bomb St. Angelo and shipping in Grand Harbour. Around sunset, half a dozen Heinkel He 111s with fighter escort make another raid, followed by a much larger raid around 20:30. The last raid starts major fires and includes large parachute mines. Included in the targets are the airfields at Luqa and Ta Qali, and shipping damage includes a hit on HMS Encounter and the loss of minesweeper HMS Coral Trusty Star (later refloated and repaired). Minesweeper HMS Fermoy is operating off Valletta when it, too, is bombed and sunk (though later raised for scrap). In addition, minesweeper HMS Abingdon is damaged while sweeping, which, with the sinking of the Coral Trusty Star, leaves the Royal Navy with no usable dedicated minesweepers.

This is considered one of the worst raids of the year on Malta, with banks, the law courts and numerous other businesses and residences obliterated. There are dozens of casualties, both military and civilian, including several children as young as age 4, 5, 9, 10  and 11. The German High Command quickly pushes out a press release touting the Luftwaffe's successes in Malta and at Tobruk.

Los Angeles Times headline, 30 April 1941.

Anglo/US Relations: The US Navy transfers four Lake-class U.S. Coast Guard cutters to the Royal Navy:

• USCGC Pontchartrain (CGC-46) -> HMS Hartland (Lt Cdr G. P. Billot RNR); 
• USCGC Tahoe (CGC-47) -> HMS Fishguard (Lt Cdr H. L. Pryse RNR); 
• USCGC Mendota (CGC-49) -> HMS Culver (Lt Cdr R. T. Gordon-Duff); and
• USCGC Saranac (CGC-43)  -> HMS Banff (Lt Cdr P. S. Evans)

These ships were crewed with men taken from battleship Malaya, currently undergoing repairs. Some sources list USCGC Itasca as transferred on this date, but that took place on 30 May 1941. These ships are often termed "old," but in fact, they were built around 1929/30, so they are in their prime.

German/Egyptian Relations: German Foreign Minister Ribbentrop replies to an inquiry by King Farouk of Egypt, saying that Germany has no designs on Arab nations. This, of course, is patently false.

"Groundcrew of the Advanced Servicing Unit dismantling Supermarine Spitfire Mark IX, EN459 'ZX-1' of the Polish Fighting Team, attached to No. 145 Squadron RAF in Tunisia, April 1943. The aircraft was damaged on 6 April 1943 when, after shooting down a Messerschmitt Bf 109, it was attacked by another Bf 109 and hit in the engine. The pilot, Flight Lieutenant Eugeniusz Horbaczewski, was able to glide into Gabes for a forced landing." © IWM (TR 1008).

German Military: The Luftwaffe is busy developing advanced engines, including jets, rockets, and assorted other concepts. Today, a test pilot takes aloft a Gotha Go 145 biplane with an Argus pulse-jet of 265lb static thrust suspended below it. The engine test is a success. This engine, after further development, will evolve into the powerplant on the V-1 cruise missile (Fieseler Fi 103 flying bomb).

Around this time, a party of air ministry engineers returns to Germany following a tour of Soviet aircraft factories. They report to Hitler that the Soviet factories dwarf German factories, with more under construction. They further relate that Soviet aircraft designer Artem (Artyom) Ivanovich Mikoyan, perhaps under the influence of alcohol, had rather imprudently stated:

Now you have seen the mighty technology of the Soviet fatherland. We shall valiantly ward off any attack, whatever quarter it comes from.

As Hitler will tell Finish Field Marshal Mannerheim during their June 1942 meeting, his great fear is that the Allied air forces will destroy his Romanian oil supplies ("I have nightmares of seeing them on fire"). Hitler thereafter claims that the report of the air ministry engineers was the final factor underlying his decision to authorize Operation Barbarossa. Taken together, the two separate incidents serve as support for each other in suggesting that Hitler's driving goal behind Operation Barbarossa was to eliminate the Red Air Force as a threat.

Hitler confers with OKW operations director General Jodl. Hitler sets 22 June 1941 as the date for the invasion, though, as always, this is subject to change.

British Military: Winston Churchill sends a note to Air Vice Marshal William Sholto Douglas congratulating him on the progress of Operation Mutton. This is a project being experimented with to use six specially equipped Harrows of RAF No. 93 Squadron (at this time still No. 420 Flight) to tow Long Aerial Mines (LAM) in the path of German bombers. The LAMs are cylindrical containers 14 inches long and 7 inches in diameter, weighing 14 pounds and towed at the end of long cables. Churchill places great stock in this concept, and comments to Douglas that "It seems possible that this will enable us to make bags in the dark period as heavy as those we can get on the best moonlit nights." The Harrows, however, are clumsy aircraft, and the interceptions (guided by ground controllers using radar) are a bit like fishing - either the Luftwaffe plane blunders into the mines, or it doesn't, and multiple factors such as wind and angle of approach are extremely difficult to get just right. That said, Operation Mutton Harrows do have some success during early trials.

British Government: Visiting Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies notes in his diary a "Great argument in the War Cabinet" about Churchill suggesting to the USA that it move its Pacific fleet to the Atlantic, with Menzies firmly opposed to this.

Italian Government: Mussolini's Foreign Minister, Count Ciano, meets with King Victor Emmanuel II regarding Croatia, which Italy will administer for the duration of the conflict. The King decides to award the area to the Duke of Spoleto.

Holocaust: The Pavelic government in Croatia strips Jews of citizenship and passes other restrictive laws.

German Homefront: Bavarians stage rare protests during the Third Reich era, protesting a ban on crucifixes in schools. Southern Germany is very Catholic, and restrictions on religion are taken very seriously there.

American Homefront: Alexander Korda's "That Hamilton Woman" is released. Starring Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh, who are newlyweds, the film reportedly was made at Winston Churchill's urging as a propaganda tool (the film depicts romance during the Napoleonic Wars). "That Hamilton Woman" goes on to become the fifth most popular film at the British box office for 1941 and wins an Oscar for Best Sound. Korda, incidentally, came under suspicion in the United States congress for using his film operations as a cover for British spy operations in the United States. While that investigation was dropped after Pearl Harbor, a modern scholar (film historian Stacey Olster) claims that the charge was accurate.

The Boston Evening Transcript, begun in 1830, ceases publication.

Damage to the Greek Orthodox Church in Malta after the bombings of 30 April 1941.

April 1941

April 1, 1941: Rommel Takes Brega
April 2, 1941:Rommel Takes Agedabia
April 3, 1941: Convoy SC-26 Destruction
April 4, 1941: Rommel Takes Benghazi
April 5, 1941: Rommel Rolling
April 6, 1941: Operation Marita
April 7, 1941: Rommel Takes Derna
April 8, 1941: Yugoslavia Crumbling
April 9, 1941: Thessaloniki Falls
April 10, 1941: USS Niblack Attacks
April 11, 1941: Good Friday Raid
April 12, 1941: Belgrade and Bardia Fall
April 13, 1941: Soviet-Japanese Pact
April 14, 1941: King Peter Leaves
April 15, 1941: Flying Tigers
April 16, 1941: Battle of Platamon
April 17, 1941: Yugoslavia Gone
April 18, 1941: Me 262 First Flight
April 19, 1941: London Smashed
April 20, 1941: Hitler's Best Birthday
April 21, 1941: Greek Army Surrenders
April 22, 1941: Pancevo Massacre
April 23, 1941: CAM Ships
April 24, 1941: Battle of Thermopylae
April 25, 1941: Operation Demon
April 26, 1941: Operation Hannibal
April 27, 1941: Athens Falls
April 28, 1941: Hitler Firm about Barbarossa
April 29, 1941: Mainland Greece Falls
April 30, 1941: Rommel Attacks