ENEMY SEA LOSSES

Grey River Argus, 17 April 1940, Page 7

ENEMY SEA LOSSES

MORE TRANSPORTS Navy Over Half Crippled (Aus. & N.Z. Cable Assn.] LONDON, April 15. It was announced that a convoy of enemy transports was attacked by British submarines in the Skagerrak and that four torpedoes found their mark. Two German cargo _ ships were badly damaged by a mine in the Kattegat. An Admiralty communique states: “Further reports from our submarines indicate that another two German transports have been sunk, and that a convoj- of enemy transports was attacked in the Skagerrak, when four torpedoes found their mark. “Another attack on transports and aircraft in Bergen was carried out by fifteen aircraft of the Fleet Air Arm. yesterday, when several hits were obtained. One transport, was set on fire a small storeship was sunk, and a large flyingboat was machine-gunned and burst into flames. t “One of our aircraft failed to return.” The Norwegian Navy has also scored some successes. Two large German ships have scuttled themselves to avoid capture by the Norwegians, one was sunk by Norwegian batteries, and one, appropriately named the Kattegat, was sunk by a Norwegian destroyer. Commenting on the activities of the British submarines, Vice-Admiral Sir James Somerville pointed out that they had been operating in nar-! row waters, strewn with mines, and their story, when it cduld be told in full, woulud be an inspiring one. The commanders and crews had shown the greatest courage and endurance, and had done all that their fleet mates had expected of them. Now that more-detailed reports are available of the naval action in Norwegian waters, it is possible to give; a fair estimate of what, of the German fleet as it existed at the beginning of the war, is now left capable • of action. Authoritative London nav-1 al circles express the opinion that the effective strength of the German fleet consists of one battle-cruiser, I possibly one pocket-battleship, one light cruiser, eleven destroyers, half the number of U-boats. Of her two battle-cruisers, the Gneisenau has been claimed as sunk by the Norwegians, and the Scharnhorst seriously damaged, by the Renown. With the Graf Spee scuttled, and the Admiral Scheer torpedoed, there is only the Deutschland left of the pocket-battle-ships, and she has suddenly become; the Lutzow, leaving the former name to be given to one of the new battle-1 ships recently launched. At the time I of the announcement, the German practice of handing on the names of sunken ships to new vessels was recalled. Of the two heavy cruisers, one, later announced by the German Command as the Blucher, has been sunk, but it is thought that this an-j nouncement was probably made to cover the loss of the Gneisenau, and that the Blucher, or other Hipper class vessel, has been sunk as well. One light cruiser was sunk by the 1 Ursula in December and one was hit, by a torpedo from the Salmon, in the' same month in circumstances which, raise the strong presumption that she sank. One was sunk by a submarine i on April 9; one was hit by one bomb j off Bergen on April 9; the Karlsruhe; was sunk on April 10; and one was hit by three bombs on April 10, leaving probably one of this type still serviceable. Germany had 22 destroyers, of which 11 have definitely been sunk, with the strong probability of two or three more. In the week April 8 to April 14, 19 German transport supply ships were destroyed, and one of 8514 tons and three trawlers have been captured. Other trans-. ports have been bombed, and at least two convoys have been torpedoed, but I precise details are as yet lacking. It is probable that certain Nazi _ ships which were building at the beginning of the war are now in commission, but such naval strength as Germany had is gravely impaired. GREAT BELT OF MINES. [Aust. & N.Z. Cable Assn.] LONDON, April 15. A Danish ferry boat was damaged by an explosion in the Great Belt, There were no casualties. NEW AGREEMENT. GERMAN-BELGIAN TRADE. [Aust. & N.Z. Cable Assn.] BRUSSELS, April 15. The German trade delegation has gone to Berlin, after a satisfactory conclusion was reported to have been reached in the trade negotiations.