In reply refer to Initials
and No.
Op-12-D-LED/hjw
NAVY DEPARTMENT
OFFICE OF CHIEF OF NAVAL OPERATIONS
WASHINGTON
12 May 1941.
MEMORANDUM for The Chief of Naval Operations.
Subject: Convoy System as established by the
British and Recommended Changes if
the United States enters the War.
l. From observations made in the North-
western approaches to the British Isles it is my con-
sidered opinion that the reasons for the large merchant
ship losses in these approaches are as follows: -
(a) Too many Ships in Convoy.
Size of convoys vary from 30 to as
many as 90 ships. This tends to cut down speed of
convoy as a whole, and makes convoys very unwieldy,
especially when only a few escort ships are available.
With large convoys considerable time
is also lost in assembling the ships of the convoy.
(b) Too Slow Average Speed of Convoys.
C-in-C of the Western approaches stat-
ed that the speed of the convoys varied from 5 to 8 knots,
with the average about 5.5 knots.
(c) Inadequate Number and Type of
Escort Ships.
Many large convoys have only two or
three escort vessels, usually destroyers and corvettes.
Two out of three convoys have only
armed merchant cruisers instead of capitol ships as
escorts to protect them against such raiders as the
SCHARNHORST, GUEISENEAU,and HIPPER.
(d) Inadequate Air Protection of
Convoys.
Insufficient planes available at pre-
sent to have air escorts over convoys, except when near
land.