Convoy ON 67 | |||||
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Part of Battle of the Atlantic | |||||
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Belligerents | |||||
United States Canada |
Germany | ||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||
Cmdr Albert C. Murdaugh, USN | Admiral Karl Dönitz | ||||
Strength | |||||
39 freighters 4 destroyers 1 corvette 1 cutter |
3 submarines | ||||
Casualties and losses | |||||
8 freighters sunk (54,750 GRT) 163 killed/drowned |
Convoy ON-67 was a trade convoy of merchant ships during the Second World War. It was the 67th of the numbered series of ON convoys Outbound from the British Isles to North America. The ships departed from Liverpool on 14 February 1942 with convoy rescue ship Toward, and were escorted to the Mid-Ocean Meeting Point by escort group B4.
On 19 February the US task unit 4.1.5 assumed escort responsibility with Gleaves-class destroyers USS Edison and Nicholson, Wickes-class destroyers USS Lea and Bernadou and the Canadian Flower-class corvette HMCS Algoma.Edison's commanding officer, Commander Albert C. Murdaugh, USN, was the senior officer of the escort group. The escort group had never operated together before.Bernadou had been modified for long range escort work by replacing the fourth boiler and stack with an extra fuel tank.Toward carried a High-frequency direction finding (HF/DF) set, and Nicholson had the only functional radar.Lea carried a British ASV aircraft radar with fixed antennae, but the coaxial cable to the antennae was repeatedly shorted by salt water spray.Edison had no depth charge throwers, and was limited to a linear pattern rolled off the stern. The American ships did not have enough binoculars. Bernadou had a 7x50 pair for the officer of the deck and a 6x30 pair for the junior officer of the deck but there were none for the lookouts.