Convoy HX 228

10–11 March 1943, North Atlantic, south-east of Greenland

Drawn; four merchant ships and a destroyer sunk for two U-boats

Convoy HX 228, some 60 ships from New York, was escorted by the British group B3 under Commander Arthur Tait in the destroyer Harvester, with two Polish destroyers, Burza and Garland, and three Free French corvettes, and was backed by the new American escort carrier Bogue. The Neuland pack found it on 10 March 1943 and sank four merchant ships that night. Early on 11 March Harvester caught U-444 on the surface and rammed her, wrecking her own propellers; the French corvette Aconit came up and finished the U-boat off. Lying stopped, Harvester was then torpedoed by U-432 and sank, with Tait and most of her crew. Aconit found U-432 still at periscope depth, blew her to the surface with depth charges and sank her with gunfire. She picked up survivors from all four ships: two U-boats in a morning for a single corvette.

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