Convoy William Sail 12X

Aftermouth

General Percival surrendered all defending forces on Black Friday. 15 February 1942 to Lt. General Tomoyuki Yamashita. The British General had far more land forces but the all important element was the lack of air power.

Eventually most of the prisoners were marched and transported to Thailand to construct the "Death Railway" which included the bridges over the Kwae Noi River - "Bridge Over the River Kwai". *

Singapore was lost for numerous reasons. The jungles of Malaya were considered impassable and the major defences for Singapore Island were focused seaward. There were serious inadequacies in the leadership of the Army. After the loss of Prince of Wales and Repulse the Japanese had complete command of the sea. The enemy assigned the crack Third Flying Division with 343 combat planes. The British had fewer than 90 operational and not a single dive bomber. The Zero fighter shot down the Brewster Buffalo fighter with ease. The enemy troops were veterans from the fierce fighting in North China. The only defending troops with jungle combat training were an Australian unit and they had not been under fire. If there was anyone at fault for the loss of the "Impregnable citadel" it was the highest level of the British military and government. They had been warned for years, as the US had concerning Hawaii and the Philippines.

ADDED NOTES:

1. The officers and men of the combat ships, Cimarron and the three small transport were awarded the American Defense Medal with Bronze "A" and the American Theatre Medal for their participation in this operation. In addition to the above medals, the three large transports were recipients of the Asiatic-Pacific Medal with one battle star and the Philippine Defense Medal for serving in defined Philippine waters (South China Sea).
2. The Argentine cruiser "Belgrano" which we encountered, was the former Italian cruiser VARESE. Belgrano, sunk at the Falklands, was former USS Phoenix.

THE FOLLOWING VESSELS MADE UP CONVOY WILLIAM SAIL 12X:

Rear Admiral Arthur B Cook, Commander, in Ranger SOPA - OTC - COM AIR LANT *

 SCREEN: Screen Commander Captain T C Kinkaid in Wainwright ***

*Senior Officer Afloat - Officer in Tactical Command - Commander Naval Air Atlantic. Detached in Trinidad, promoted to Rear Admiral

**Convoy Commodore

***Former US Lines 1 SS Washington 2 SS Manhattan 3 SS America

The late Vice Admiral Donald Beary was especially chosen for the awesome duty as Commodore of Convoy William Sail 12X, with additional duty in command of the USS Mount Vernon. The Admiral graduated from the US Naval Academy in June 1910 and for his distinguished service as Commanding Officer of USS Remlik and Lamson during World War I he was awarded the Navy Cross. The US Navy's highest decoration was bestowed on the young naval officer after only eight years of duty because of his daring and professionalism while patrolling waters infested with enemy submarines and mines. His expertise in the formation and escorting of convoys became apparent at this time and after vigorously prosecuting offensive and defensive action, his name became known throughout the entire Navy.

In November 1944 the Admiral devised the system which enables the fast carrier task forces to remain on station and in the forward area while refueling and replenishing. As Commander of Service Squadron Six, he revolutionized the Fleet supply system so that the combat vessels did not have to travel thousands of miles to reprovision. It was the Fleet's "ace in the hole".

For his services as Commodore of Convoy William Sail, he was awarded the Bronze Star, with Combat "V, "For meritorious achievement... in connection with operations against the enemy in the Pacific and Indian Ocean Areas, from the beginning of hostilities to June 11, 1942. The citation further states in part: "Displaying conspicuous professional ability and leadership as Commanding Officer of a large troop transport in hazardous waters, he successfully negotiated the difficult passage through the heavily mined Sundra and Banka Straits to land desperately needed reinforcements for the beleaguered British garrison at Singapore, despite repeated Japanese air raids in the area".

The Admiral retired on October 1, 1950 and died at the US Naval Hospital, San Diego, California, on March 7, 1966.

The following vessels mentioned in this narrative were lost due to enemy action:

USS Quincy sunk on 9 August 1942 in the Battle of Savo Island, Pacific Ocean

USS Vincennes sunk on 9 August 1942 in the above mentioned battle

USS Yorktown sunk during the Battle of Midway with destroyers Hammann alongside on 7 June  1942 (Yorktown and  Hammann escorted  the  British Convov   from  mid-Atlantic to Halifax)

USS Rowan sunk on 9 September 1943 in the Mediterranean Sea during the operations leading to the landing at Salerno

USS O'Brien sunk as a result of damages sustained in the Battle of the Coral Sea. (O'Brien escorted the British Convoy from Mid-Atlantic to Halifax in 1941)

USS Sims in March 1942 during the Battle of the Coral Sea

HMS Prince of Wales sunk 10 December 1941 in the South China Seas off Malaya

HMS Dorsetshire sunk off Ceylon in April 1942

HNLMS DeRuyter sunk in the Java Sea in February 1942

HMS Exeter sunk in the Java Sea on 1 March 1942

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