The Ohio and Malta: The Legendary Tanker that Saved Malta FROM THE PUBLISHER
After the fall of France in 1940 Malta became the lynchpin of the Allied campaigns in the Mediterranean and North African theatres, being a vital base from which to attack Axis convoys, and the only Allied port between Gibraltar in the west and Alexandria in the east. The Island was, however, extremely difficult to keep supplied (particularly with oil, which had to be transported in bulk) and, by the summer of 1942, the situation for its beleaguered garrison and civil population was desperate. The Pedestal convoy of August that year was deemed the last chance.
On entering the Mediterranean the convoy was subjected to ferocious air and submarine attacks and suffered terrible losses in both warships, escorts and merchantmen. The US-built OHIO, being the only tanker, was marked for particular attention and, during the course of her voyage, suffered direct hits from a torpedo and many bombs and was struck by two Luftwaffe aircraft shot down while attacking her. Despite these and numerous near-misses, with her engines dead, her hull practically broken in two, but with her vital cargo miraculously largely intact, she was towed into Grand Harbour by three destroyers and a minesweeper. Malta and her defenders gained a crucial reprieve. The OHIO and Malta is more than just the story of this most famous of naval convoys; it is a tribute to a vessel that has genuine claim to have had a real influence on the course of the Second World War.
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