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German
aircraft drop flares on a convoy escorted by MAYO.
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She fought the Battle of the North Atlantic
during the winter, spring, and summer of 1942 without
the loss of a single merchant ship. |
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Victor Blandin, Engineering
Officer | |
North Atlantic Convoy Duty
The MAYO was originally assigned to Destroyer Squadron 7
where she would remain through the end of the war in Europe.
Reverberations of merchant ship sinkings in the North Atlantic were
beginning to be heard in the United States. Damaged British ships
limped secretly into American ports for repairs, then returned to
the battle areas in the North Sea, the Mediterranean, and all other
British sea lanes that Hitler had released his submarines and
aircraft in a desperate attempt to destroy Britain's supply lines.
The United States was aiding the delivery of supplies to the Allied
Nations of Europe.
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Destroyer Squadron 7
Commanded by J.L.
Kauffman |
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Flagship |
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USS Plunkett DD431 |
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Destroyer Division 13 |
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USS Benson DD421 |
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USS Mayo DD422 |
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USS Gleaves DD423 |
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USS Niblack DD424 |
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Destroyer Division 14 |
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USS Madison DD425 |
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USS Lansdale DD426 |
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USS Hilary P. Jones DD427 |
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USS Charles F. Hughes
DD428 | | The
German Government decided that the United States was breaking its
neutrality and that US ships were "fair game" if used in supplying
enemies of Nazi Germany. As was the case, USS Niblack DD424, a unit
of DesRon 7, picked up a German U-boat preparing to attack her
convoy. The Convoy Commander ordered a depth charge attack that
,though unsuccessful, was the first American-German confrontation of
the war.
On May 27, 1941, President Franklyn D. Roosevelt
declared a "Unlimited National Emergency", where " The war
is approaching the brink of the Western Hemisphere itself. It is
coming very close to home.. It would be suicide to wait until the
aggressors are in our front yard... We have accordingly, extended
our patrol in North and South Atlantic Waters." Thus began the
undeclared war with Germany that was the "Neutrality Patrol".
On June 15, 1941, Admiral King issued a new "Operation Plan"
which named Iceland as an outpost of the Western Hemisphere. The
following day, Admiral Stark advised Admiral King that President
Roosevelt had issued orders that United States troops were to
relieve British troops on Iceland. On July 1, U.S. Marines steamed
for Argentia, Newfoundland on their way to Reykjavik.
To
support this undertaking, the first American Naval Task Force
organized for foreign service was created as TF-19 under command of
Rear Admiral D. LeBreton. This force consisted of 25 American ships
based around four troop transports. The escort was two battleships,
two cruisers, and nine destroyers. The convoy was protected by inner
and outer screens with the newer ships of DesRon 7 (less Madison)
providing the inner screen. Destroyers Ellis, Bernadou, Upshur, Lea,
and Buck were the outer screen stationed some 10,000 yards ahead of
the convoys main body and all arrived safely on 7 July, 1941.
Mayo along with other allied warships, especially Flagships
HMS Prince Of Wales and USS Augusta, protected the meeting of
President Roosevelt, Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and Premier
Stalin, which resulted in the Atlantic Charter.
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"I decoded the Flash AlNav notifying
us of the Pearl Harbor attack. The word electrified the ship
of course and because I didn't know the extent of the damage,
I felt relieved that the Pacific Fleet was now in combat as we
had been for many months. In retrospect, an unworthy emotion,
but the fatigue and danger of the North Atlantic Patrol had us
all on the edge."
E. Howard Hunt, Ens, USS Mayo
DD422
later a former OSS and CIA
Officer |
September
and October of 1941 were extremely anxious times as USS Greer, USS
Reuben James, and sister ship, USS Kearny DD432, were attacked by
German U-boats. Kearny and Reuben James lost a great deal of life
and Reuben James was lost at sea. By September 11, 1941, President
Roosevelt gave the "Shoot on Sight" order. Proclaiming that
" From now on, if German or Italian vessels enter the waters, the
protection of which is necessary for American Defense, they do so at
their own peril." Needless to say, Mayo underwent a sea change
that was not only reflected in personal attitudes but took on a
sense of urgency.
Toward the end of October 1941, a new
convoy system was begun where two DesRon ships would escort a convoy
along with four or more Canadian corvettes. At this time, Commander
Williams Phillips broke out his flag as Convoy Escort Commander on
Mayo and began several convoy runs to Iceland, Ireland, and the
such. December 8, 1941 brought word that the Pacific fleet had been
attacked by the Japanese and the men and crew as well as the nation
were in shock. However, they needed no alerting as war had begun
some 6 months earlier for the United States in the Atlantic.
1942 brought more of the same convoy duty but the German
submarine menace ran rampant ,as at this stage of the war, the
Anti-submarine force was completely outnumbered. The weather was
extremely rough with dangerous 40-50 degree rolls commonplace and
other ships could hardly be seen due to the ice, fog, storms, and
general wave movement. By the Summer of 1942, new ships were
entering the fleet and the weather became more moderate. New ASW
techniques and skills were used and finally some progress was being
made against the German submarine.
At the end of 1942, USS
Mayo supported the landings at Casablanca by escorting supplies from
the States to North Africa. Upon arrival, Mayo was ordered to Safi
to maintain control of that port in conjunction with the US Army.
Hence forth, there would be more convoy escort duty but with the new
Hunter-Killer groups of escort carriers and destroyer escorts taking
over, DesRon7 moved onto other tasks such as supporting the Invasion
of Europe.
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