Arctic convoy operations

The Allies' merchant marine resources undertook some of the most arduous and dangerous missions of World War II, and none was more harrowing than the Arctic convoys that transported war materiel from ports in Great Britain and Iceland to the Soviets. Some 4.43 million tons of supplies were shipped by Arctic convoys, representing 22.7 percent of the supplies the USSR received under Lend Lease. Losses were very high: 7.8 percent of ships bound for Soviet ports were sunk, as were 3.8 percent of those returning. This loss rate was much higher than the rate for all other convoy routes. The first Arctic convoy sailed on August 21, 1944, from Scotland; the last convoy sailed on April 16, 1945. The Arctic convoy routes connected Great Britain and Iceland with Soviet ports via the Norwegian and Barents Seas, but they were restricted by climate and geography, particularly the extent of ice fields. These same conditions, however, made it more difficult for submarines as well as surface raiders to attack convoys. Also, the long Arctic nights provided a welcome cloak of darkness. Counterbalancing these advantages was the necessity of hugging the Norwegian coast to avoid ice, which meant that convoys were thrust closer to German coastal forces stationed there. Escort vessels consisted mainly of a close escort of destroyers and distant escort of cruisers. Most of these were Royal Navy ships, but the U.S. and Soviet navies also supplied escort ships. Air support was used but was severely limited by range and weather conditions. All the convoys were dangerous, but Convoy PQ17, which sailed from Iceland on June 27, 1942, demonstrated just how disastrously dangerous this mission could be. Attacked by submarines and aircraft, 26 of the convoy's 37 ships were sunk with the loss of 3,850 trucks and vehicles, 430 tanks, and 2,500 aircraft. Thanks to efficient rescue and recovery, only 153 merchant seamen were lost—a remarkably small number, considering the number of ships sunk.