HMS Whimbrel and D.day

 

HMS Whimbrel was a Royal Navy sloop which had been built in the Yarrow shipyards at Scotstoun Glasgow. Ernest McKie had been member of the crew from the time it had been handed over to the Royal Navy in January 1943.

From then it had been employed on anti submarine escort duties across the Atlantic and back to America and Canada, to Freemantle in Africa via Gibraltar.  North Africa for the invasion of Sicily was also on its itinerary and lately the hazardous journeys with convoys carrying supplies to Russia in atrocious winter weather.  During its first three years, Whimbrel had to go into shipyards several times, usually on the Mersey,  for repairs occasioned by the weather rather than enemy action. 

Come June 1944, Whimbrel was in the Bristol channel preparing to escort a convoy of ships carrying American troops and their vehicles round to the English channel aspart of operation Overlord, the invasion of Normandy, D.day!

They were scheduled to leave for the 250 journey on 4th June but the appalling weather in the channel decreed otherwise and the journey was put off for a day but eventually the orders were given to go and the convoy had an uneventful trip around to the appointed place off the Isle of Wight.  Deespite the fact that the landings did not appear to have gone completely to plan the convoy vessels went in to the Normandy beaches to discharge their cargos of men and vehicles. The available records do not make it clear if this occured late on the 6th June or the following day.  Leaving the convoy,  Whimbrel went into the Solent before immediately returning to the Bristol channel to escort another convoy.  No rest no respite. Despite the famous Landings on the beaches of Normandy elsewhere the war went on.