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CONVOY JW 59

Convoy JW 59 Cruising Order
Left Loch Ewe Aug. 15-1944, arrived Kola Inlet Aug. 24 (34 ships)
Some of the ships in this convoy had arrived U.K. with Convoy HX 300, others with HX 301.
See also RA 60 and RA 61.

Br=British, Am=American, Norw-Norwegian
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
Samannan
(Br)
21
Clark Howell
(Am)
31
Samcalia
(Br)
41
John La Farge
(Am)
51
Fort Glenora
(Br)
61
Samtredy
(Br)
71
David B Johnson
(Am)
 81
Samloyal
(Br)		 91
Samgara
(Br)		 101
Samlyth
(Br)
12
Silas Weir Mitchell
(Am)
22
Charles A McAllister
(Am)
32
Samconstant
(Br)
42
Herbrand
(Norw)
52
Archangelsk*
battleship
(Aug. 17)
62
72
Luculus
(Br)
 82
Thomas Donaldson
(Am)		 92
Thomas H Sumner
(Am)		 102
Josephine Shaw Lowell
(Am)
13
Samidway
(Br)
23
British Promise
(Br)
 33
Elijah Kellogg
(Am)		 43
 53 63
 73 83
Oakley Wood
(Am)		 93
Nacella
(Br)		 103
Samsuva
(Br)
14
F T Frelinghuysen
(Am)		 24
Frank Gilbreth
(Am)		 34
Jose Marti
(Am)		 44
 54 64
 74 84
Leo J Duster
(Am)		 94
Edward H Crockett
(Am)		 104
Edward L Grant
(Am)
15 25
Empire Buttress
(Br)		 35
Warren Delano
(Am)		 45
 55 65 75 85
Rathlin
Rescue Ship
(Br)		 95
Charles Dauray
(Am)		 105

Commodore was in Samtredy, Vice Commodore in Samgara, and Rear Commodore in Samcalia.

The Norwegian Herbrand was escort oiler, as was the British Luculus.

* Archangelsk was the ex HMS Royal Sovereign.

12 Russian manned PT boats also joined this convoy for passage on Aug. 17.

See also text under Herbrand.

No merchant ships were lost, but the escorting Kite was torpedoed and sunk by 2 torpedoes from U-344 on Aug. 21 - 9 survivors rescued. A shadowing flying boat was shot down on Aug. 22, and that same day one of Vindex's Swordfish sank U-344. The next day another Swordfish from Vindex located U-354, which was sunk with the help of Keppel, Loch Dunvegan, Mermaid and Peacock.

The Rescue Vessel Rathlin was on her 20th voyage as such. She suffered damages to her rudder on arrival Molotovsk and remained in Russia for repairs for a month, before returning to the U.K. with Convoy RA 60 from Kola Inlet on Sept. 28, to Clyde Oct. 5-1944. On her return voyage she rescued 57 survivors from Samsuva (crew of 60), torpedoed and sunk by U-310 on Sept. 29. After permanent repairs she returned to North Russia in Convoy JW 62 (available at the external link below), and back with RA 62, attacked twice by aircraft on Dec. 12, but badly damaged one attacker (possibly fatally), and shot down the second.

Escorts:
Aug. 15-Aug. 25: Sloop Cygnet, frigate Loch Dunvegan, corvettes Bluebell, Camellia, Charlock, Honesuckle and Oxlip - close escort..
Also present were sloops Kite, Mermaid and Peacock, and destroyers Keppel and Whitehall (it's believed Whitehall joined the screen, the others operating ahead of convoy).
Aug. 17-Aug. 25: Cruiser Jamaica, escort carriers Striker and Vindex (all 3 in column 6), destroyers Caprice, Marne, Meteor, Milne and Musketeer (the cruiser and carriers were in the center of convoy, 6 A/S ships ahead of convoy, with Keppel and the 3 sloops a further 10 miles ahead to port and starboard of line of advance).
Russian fighter cover available from the morning of Aug. 24.

The above returned with Convoy RA 59A, and some of them subsequently went on to escort Convoy JW 60 (link below).

Related external links:
The attack on Kite

The loss of U-344 | The loss of U-354

Russian Convoys

Arctic Convoys main page

To the next JW convoy in my list JW 60

Sources for the information on this page: "Convoys to Russia 1941-1945", Bob Ruegg/Arnold Hague, 1992, and "Convoy Rescue Ships 1940-1945", Arnold Hague, 1998.

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