Siege of Malta (World War II)

Siege of Malta
Part of Mediterranean theatre
Service personnel and civilians clear up debris on a heavily bomb-damaged street in Valletta, Malta on 1 May 1942 Service personnel and civilians clear up debris on a heavily bomb-damaged street in Valletta, Malta on 1 May 1942.
Date 11 June 1940–20 November 1942 Location Malta Result Decisive Allied victory
Belligerents
Australia Canada Free French Forces Greece Malta New Zealand Poland United Kingdom Union of South Africa	Germany Italy
Commanders and leaders
William Dobbie Keith Park	Albert Kesselring Martin Harlinghausen
Strength
716 fighters over the course of the campaign	circa. 2,000 aircraft over the course of the campaign
Casualties and losses
369 fighters (air) 64 fighters (ground) 40 submarines 2 aircraft carriers 4 cruisers 19 destroyers 2,301 airmen killed or wounded 30,000 building destroyed or damaged 1,300 civilians killed	357 German aircraft 175 Italian aircraft 72% of the Italian Navy's transport fleet lost 23% of the Axis merchant fleet lost 2,304 merchant ships sunk 17,240 killed at sea ~50 German U-Boats (in entire MTO) Italian submarine losses ~16

The Siege of Malta was a military campaign in the Mediterranean Theatre of the Second World War. From 1940-1942, the fight for the control of the strategically important island of Malta pitted the air forces and navies of Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany against the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy.

The opening of a new front in North Africa in mid 1940 increased Malta's already considerable value. British air and sea forces based on the island could attack Axis ships transporting vital supplies and reinforcements from Europe. Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, in command of Axis forces in North Africa, recognised its importance quickly. In May 1941, he warned that "Without Malta the Axis will end by losing control of North Africa".

The Axis resolved to bomb or starve Malta into submission by attacking its ports, towns, cities and Allied shipping supplying the island. Malta was one of the most intensively bombed areas during the war. The Luftwaffe (German Air Force) and the Italian Regia Aeronautica (Italian Royal Air Force) flew a total of 3,000 bombing raids over a period of two years in an effort to destroy RAF defences and the ports. Success would have made possible a combined German—Italian amphibious landing (Operation Herkules) supported by German airborne forces (Fallschirmjäger). It was never carried out. In the end, Allied convoys were able to supply and reinforce Malta, while the RAF defended its airspace, though at great cost in material and lives.

By November 1942, the Axis had lost the Second Battle of El Alamein and the Allies landed forces in Vichy French Morocco and Algeria under Operation Torch. The Axis diverted their forces to the Battle of Tunisia, and attacks on Malta were rapidly reduced. The siege effectively ended in November 1942.

In December 1942, air and sea forces operating from Malta went over to the offensive. By May 1943, they had sunk 230 Axis ships in 164 days, the highest Allied sinking rate of the war. The Allied victory played a major role in the eventual Allied success in North Africa.

Background

Malta was a significant military and naval fortress, being the only Allied base between Gibraltar and Alexandria, Egypt. It became a vital linchpin in the British Empire overseas—a vital way station along Britain's lifeline, through Egypt and the Suez Canal to India and the Far East. Owing to its exposed position, close to a potentially hostile Italy, the British had moved the headquarters of the Royal Navy Mediterranean Fleet from Valletta, Malta in the mid-1930s to Alexandria, Egypt in October 1939.

The island itself was an area of just under one hundred square miles, and had a population of around 250,000, all but three of four percent were native Maltese. According to the 1937 census, most of the inhabitants lived within four miles of the Grand Harbour, where the population density was more than six times that of the island as a whole. Amongst the most congested spots was Valletta, the capital which was its political, military and commercial centre. In this city, 23,000 people lived in a space around one quarter square mile. Across the Grand Harbour, in the so-called Three Cities, where the dockyards were located and the Admiralty had its headquarters, 28,000 more were packed into half a square mile. It was in these small areas that the the heaviest, most sustained and concentrated of aerial bombing in history fell.

The state of the Malta defences was poor, verging on non-existent. This stemmed from a pre-war conclusion that the island was indefensible and should not be defended. In the wider context, both the Italian and British surface fleets were evenly matched, but the Italians had significant numerical advantages in submarines and aircraft. The British, in particular the Admiralty, suffered from having to cover the Suez Canal, with the Mediterranean Fleet under Admiral Andrew Cunningham and Gibraltar with Force H under Vice-Admiral James Somerville. In October 1939 the Mediterranean Fleet was moved east, to Egypt, practically stripping the island of its naval protection. Just the monitor Terror and a few British submarines were left to defend the island from he sea. When the Maltese Government question the British' rationale, they were told that the island could be defended just as adequately from Alexandria as from Malta's Grand Harbour. This was not true, and the Maltese suspected Britain's commitment to defending the island was not as strong as it should have been.

While there were concerns that the island, far from Britain and near Italy, could not be defended, the British decided in July 1939 to increase the land and air defences, if not British sea forces protecting the island. The number of anti-aircraft guns and fighters on Malta. The British leadership had further doubts about whether to hold the island in May 1940 when French Prime Minister Paul Reynaud reported that the situation in France was dire, but that Italian dictator Benito Mussolini might be appeased by concessions, including Malta. After some discussion, Winston Churchill convinced the British War Cabinet that no concessions should be made. With Britain itself at risk, Malta was not the highest priority, so it was lightly protected. Only six Gloster Sea Gladiator biplanes were stationed on the island, with another six in crates, when on 10 June 1940, Mussolini declared war on the United Kingdom and France.

In the 1930s, Italy had looked for expansion in the Mediterranean and Africa; regions dominated by the British and French. The defeat of France in May–June 1940, removed the French Navy from the Allied order of battle and changed the balance of naval and air power in the Italian favour. On declaring war, Mussolini called for an offensive throughout the Mediterranean. Within hours, the first bombs had dropped on Malta. After the French surrender on 25 June, Mussolini tried to take advantage of a Britain heavily engaged in the Battle of Britain by attacking Egypt in September, but was heavily defeated in a counter-offensive. Adolf Hitler was forced to rescue his ally. In February 1941, the Deutsches Afrikakorps (German Africa Corps, or DAK) commanded by Generalfeldmarschall (Field Marshal) Erwin Rommel was sent to North Africa to prevent an Axis rout. RAF and Royal Navy anti-shipping squadrons and submarines posed a significant threat to Axis supply and communications between Europe and North Africa, and both sides soon recognised the importance of the island in controlling the Mediterranean.

The timidity of the Italian Navy helped the Allied cause — they would only attack under favourable conditions. In 1940, conditions were more than favourable for an assault on Malta. Such a move stood a reasonable chance of gaining control of the island, which would have given the Italians naval and air supremacy in the central Mediterranean. Such a turn of events would have split the area in two and the British could not have transported supplies between their strongholds in the east and west without severe danger. The reluctance of the Italians to act throughout 1940 was strengthened by the Battle of Taranto, during which the Italian surface fleet was attacked and severely damaged by the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm. To the Italians (and later the Germans), air power was the key weapon against Malta.

Italian siege June–December 1940

Italian air power

Most of the Italian Army forces had been committed for the upcoming invasion of Greece. Air power was the method chosen to attack and the Regia Aeronautica began an aerial bombardment of the island. On the first day, 10 Italian CANT Z.1007 medium bombers bombed the Grand Harbour, at Hal Far, and Kalafrana. In seven attacks, 11 civilians and six soldiers were killed. In addition, roughly 130 civilians and some soldiers were injured. On 11 June, 55 Savoia-Marchetti SM.79s and 20 Macchi C.200s also flew over the island, with no air opposition. At the time of these first air raids, the defending fighters on Malta consisted of obsolete Gloster Sea Gladiators, in the Hal Far Fighter Flight. Legend has it that there were just three aircraft, nicknamed 'Faith', 'Hope' and 'Charity' but, in reality, at least six Gladiators were deployed. These were initially unable to fly from RAF Luqa Airfield, as it was not finished, and operated out of RAF Hal Far. Initially, the Italians flew at around 5,500 m (18,000 ft); later, they dropped to 3,000 m (9,800 ft) for improved accuracy, and owing to the lack of serious Allied air opposition.

Throughout the siege, resupplying the island proved to be a significant challenge, as the British had limited resources to spare. Both sides were aware of the strategic importance of Malta, and large naval and air forces were committed, resulting in desperate fighting and considerable losses. Allied convoys with naval escorts resupplied the island. The Royal Navy also sent some critical supplies to Malta by submarine.

By the start of July, the Gladiators had been reinforced by Hawker Hurricanes and the defences organised into No. 261 Squadron RAF in August. Twelve were delivered by HMS Argus in August, the first of several batches ferried to the island by the carrier. A further attempt to fly Hurricanes into Malta on 17 November, led by a Fleet Air Arm Blackburn Skua, ended in disaster with the loss of three Hurricanes — probably by accident. A further two Hurricanes crashed, with one of the pilots rescued by a Short Sunderland flying boat

Second phase (1941)

In January 1941, the Luftwaffe's X. Fliegerkorps arrived in Sicily as the German Deutsches Afrikakorps (DAK) reached Libya. This led to a notable increase in the bombing of Malta. The appearance in February of a squadron (staffel) of Messerschmitt Bf 109Es fighters of Jagdgeschwader 26 (JG 26), led by 23-kill ace Oberleutnant Joachim Müncheberg, quickly led to a sudden and marked rise in Hurricane losses, as the experienced Luftwaffe fighter pilots made their presence felt. The Allied pilots had little combat experience and their Hurricanes were "well worn". Over the next four months, few of JG 26's Bf 109s were damaged, let alone shot down.

In January 1941, while escorting a convoy to Malta, the aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious was seriously damaged by Junkers Ju-87 (Stuka) dive bombers. The attack killed 126 crew members and wounded 91. The carrier docked at Grand Harbour for urgent repairs. While the ship was being repaired, the harbour was subject to heavy aerial bombardment, but the ship survived. In mid 1941, new squadrons — No. 185 and No. 126 — were formed and the defenders received the first cannon-armed Hurricane Mk II fighters. Naval carriers flew in a total of 81 more fighters in April–May. These months also saw the arrival of the first Bristol Blenheim and Bristol Beaufighter units. On 1 June, Air Vice Marshal Forster Maynard, Malta's Air Officer Commanding, was replaced by Air Commodore Hugh Pughe Lloyd. The Allies were able to launch offensive operations from Malta. Some 60% of Axis shipping was sunk in the second half of 1941. The DAK and its allies needed 50,000 short tons (45,000 t) of supplies a day, but were not receiving that much, and as a result were unable to resist a strong counter-offensive by British forces in Operation Crusader.

Axis attacks decreased later that year, as the limited German resources were diverted to the Eastern Front and bombing operations reverted back to the Regia Aeronautica. But in December 1941, naval and aerial offensive operations launched from Malta caused Germany to renew intensive bombing. Fuel, food, and munitions all had to be imported, and resupply became very difficult and costly. The island was almost cut off. Thirty-one Allied ships were lost to bombing raids. The defenders had claimed some 191 aircraft shot down from June 1940-December 1941, while losses were some 94 fighters.

Third Phase (1942)

In February 1942, Squadron Leader Stan Turner arrived to take over 249 Squadron. His experience flying with Douglas Bader over Europe soon meant the adoption of the loose 'finger-four' formation in an attempt to cut RAF losses. However, with the outmoded Hurricanes still struggling against the very latest Bf 109-Fs of JG 53 and the Italian Macchi C.202s, in March 1942, a contingent of 15 Spitfire Mk Vs flew to Malta from the aircraft carrier HMS Eagle, the first Spitfires to serve overseas. The reinforcement of Malta by carrier ("Club Runs") became more frequent through 1942. Spitfires were flown to Malta from the carrier Eagle on 7 March 1942. No. 601 and 603 Squadron Spitfires arrived on 20 April. Then, USS Wasp and HMS Eagle despatched 59 more. While the Spitfires were a match for the Axis aircraft, many of the ones delivered in March and April were destroyed on the ground and in the air—where they were outnumbered. For instance, for five days in April there was just one Spitfire available to defend the island; for two days there were none. Also, the overwhelming Axis bombardments had substantially eliminated Malta’s naval and aerial offensive capabilities.

By mid-1942, the Axis air forces ranged against the island were at their maximum strength: some 520 Luftwaffe and 300 Regia Aeronautica aircraft. The main adversaries for the defenders were the 140 or so Bf 109Fs of JG 53 and II/JG 3 'Udet' and the 80 Macchi C.202s of the 4th and 51st Stormo. Bombers units included the Junkers Ju 88s of II./LG 1, II and III./KG 77, I./KG 54, Kgr.606, and Kgr. 806.

When the RAF could not put up a fighter cover, Malta's Fighter Control would transmit a dummy radio communication, aping the scrambling and interception of incoming raids as if fighters were already in the air, knowing the Luftwaffe would be monitoring the conversations.

In May, accelerated and more effective deployments of Spitfires allowed the British to gain air superiority over Malta for the first time since the start of the war. In June, the Royal Navy undertook Operation Harpoon and Operation Vigorous. The two convoys departed for Malta, the former from Gibraltar and the latter from Haifa and Port Said. The eastern convoy was forced to turn back in the face of air attacks. Two freighters of the western convoy made it to Malta and delivered 15,000 short tons (14,000 t) of supplies. Without them, Malta would undoubtedly have fallen. Yet the island appeared to the Axis forces to be neutralised, and they decided that there was no need for further intensive bombing raids. For instance, on 10 May, Albert Kesselring, Commander-in-Chief South of Axis forces, reported to the German High Command that "There is nothing left to bomb." By July, the Axis air offensive had reached its peak, and the attacks were reduced.

On 15 April, King George VI awarded Malta the George Cross, the highest civilian award for gallantry in the Commonwealth, normally awarded to individuals: "to honour her brave people, I award the George Cross to the Island Fortress of Malta to bear witness to a heroism and devotion that will long be famous in history". President Franklin Roosevelt, describing the wartime period, called Malta "one tiny bright flame in the darkness". Some historians argue that the award was in fact a propaganda gesture to justify the huge losses sustained by Britain to prevent Malta from capitulating as Singapore had done in the Battle of Singapore.

In the first six months of 1942, there was only one 24-hour period without air raids. Luftwaffe records indicate that between 20 March and 28 April, Malta was subjected to 11,819 sorties and 6,557 t (7,228 short tons) of bombs. 1,493 civilians were killed and 3,674 wounded out of a population of 270,000.

The siege caused significant hardships for everyone on Malta. Bombs killed many and left even more homeless. Businesses and civil infrastructure were destroyed. The disruption of shipping caused food, fuel, and other commodities to be in very short supply. During the greatest times of starvation, it is said that foods were rationed to "three boiled sweets, half a sardine and a spoonful of jam a day". Poor nutrition and sanitation led to the spread of disease. Soldiers rations were also reduced, from four to two thousand calories a day. Malta was starting to starve.

The tide really began to turn in July, however, with the appointment of Air Vice Marshal Sir Keith Park as air officer commanding. He changed the way in which Malta's fighters were used, repeating his successful Battle of Britain tactics of intercepting enemy raids as soon as possible, on their way to the target, rather than waiting to mount massed attacks on them as they retreated. Losses to the Axis attackers, reinforced by aircraft transferred from Russia, immediately increased, and British losses fell. [1]

Britain took advantage of the lull in Axis attacks to fly in 61 Spitfire Mk Vs from HMS Furious, which immediately improved the aerial defensive situation, although food, ammunition, and aviation fuel remained critically short. Operation Pedestal was a major attempt to resupply Malta with a convoy of 14 merchant ships supported by 44 major warships, including battleships and aircraft carriers, and diversionary naval attacks by the Mediterranean Fleet at the other end of the Mediterranean. The convoy was attacked relentlessly in the early days of August. On 13 August, the surviving merchant ships started arriving at Malta, ending on 15 August, the feast of Santa Marija (St Mary), a public holiday on Malta, with the British-crewed U.S. tanker SS Ohio; she had been hit by torpedoes, bombs, and a crashed dive bomber, but survived with her vital aviation fuel. The cost: nine of the 14 freighters, an aircraft carrier, two cruisers and a destroyer were sunk, and a carrier and two cruisers were badly damaged.

Throughout this period, Royal Navy submarines, RAF bombers and Fleet Air Arm torpedo bombers operating from Malta continued to wreak havoc on Axis shipping, severely curtailing vital supplies and reinforcements to the German and Italian forces in North Africa, thereby limiting Rommel's ability to advance across the western desert towards Alexandria and Cairo.

The Luftwaffe responded with a renewed wave of attacks on 11 October. However, this time the defenders were mass equipped with Spitfire Mk VB/Cs. Over 17 days, the Luftwaffe suffered 34 Ju 88s and 12 Bf 109s destroyed and 18 damaged. RAF losses amounted to 23 Spitfires shot down and 20 crash landed. 12 RAF pilots were killed.

The Allied efforts in the Middle East were beginning to have their effect, and supplies were reaching Malta. As the Axis forces were progressively defeated in North Africa, the siege of Malta was lifted. On 6 December, a supply convoy reached Malta without suffering any losses. After that, ships sailed to Malta without joining convoys. The last air raid over Malta occurred on 20 July 1943. It was the 3,340th alert since 11 June 1940.

The Allied infrastructure built up on the island in 1942 was later turned to offensive use, as over a dozen Spitfire squadrons based there commenced operations covering the amphibious Allied invasion of Sicily.

Invasion plan

Main article: Operation Herkules

On 29–30 April 1942, a plan for the invasion of the island was approved by Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini. It envisioned an airborne assault with one German and one Italian paratroop division, under the command of German General Kurt Student. This would have been followed by a seaborne landing of two or three divisions protected by the Regia Marina. However, while the invasion was supported by Rommel wholeheartedly, Hermann Göring was against it. In the end, the operation was repeatedly delayed and eventually cancelled.

Casualties

Allied warship losses

HMS Ark Royal in 1939, with Swordfish of 820 Naval Air Squadron passing overhead. The ship was sunk in 1941

Allied casualties in warships:

• Two aircraft carriers:

HMS Eagle, Ark Royal

• Four cruisers:

HMS Cairo, Hermione, Manchester, Neptune, Southampton

• 19 destroyers:

HMS Airedale, Bedouin, Fearless, Foresight, Gallant, Gurkha, Hasty, Hyperion, Jersey, Kandahar, Kingston, Kujawiak (Polish Navy), HMS Lance, Legion, Maori, Mohawk, HMAS Nestor (Royal Australian Navy), HMS Pakenham and Southwold.

• British submarine losses amounted to 38:

HMS Cachalot, Grampus, Odin, Olympus, Orpheus, Oswald, Undaunted, Union, P36, P38, P48, P222, P311, Pandora, Parthian, Perseus, Rainbow, Regent, Regulus, Saracen, Splendid, Talisman, Tempest, Tetrarch, Thunderbolt, Tigris, Traveller, Triad, Triton, Triumph, Trooper, Turbulent, Upholder, Urge, Usk and Utmost. The Free French submarine Narwhal and Greek Navy vessel Glaukos, were also lost.

Infrastructure damage

In the tiny but densely populated island, 5,524 private dwellings were destroyed, 9,925 damaged but reparable, and 14,225 damaged by bomb blast. In addition 111 Churches, 50 Hospitals, institutions or colleges, 36 theatres, clubs, government offices, banks, factories, flour mills and other commercial buildings suffered destruction or damage — a total of 30,000 building in all.

Axis shipping losses

Total Axis losses in the Mediterranean were Heavy. Human casualties amounted to 17,240 personnel at sea. In supplies, the Axis lost 315,090 short tons (285,840 t). This was more than reached Malta. The Allied Navies sank 773 Axis ships, totalling 1,342,789 long tons (1,364,337 t). Mines sank another 179 ships of 214,109 long tons (217,545 t) in total. The Navies and Air Forces shared in the destruction of 25 ships for 106,050 long tons (107,750 t), and Air Forces sank 1,326 ships, for a total of 1,466,208 long tons (1,489,736 t). Mines and Naval craft shared a further ship destroyed between them, accounting for 1,778 long tons (1,807 t). In all, 2,304 Axis ships were sunk, with a combined displacement of 3,130,969 long tons (3,181,211 t).

Below is a table charting Axis losses in shipping to Libya, June 1940–January 1943:

•   This indicates the periods the Regia Aeronautica was the only enemy air force in action against Malta
•   This indicates the periods the Luftwaffe made significant efforts against Malta
•   This indicates the influence of the Royal Navy Force K operations against Axis shipping
•   This indicates the influence of Bristol Beaufighter operations against Axis shipping

Axis Personnel and supplies to Libya, 1940

Month	Personnel Shipped	Personnel Reached	Supplies shipped	Supplies reached
June	1,358	1,308	3,618	3,608
July	6,407	6,407	40,875	40,875
August	1,221	1,221	50,669	50,669
September	4,602	4,602	53,669	53,669
October	2,823	2,823	29,306	29,306
November	3,157	3,157	60,778	60,778
December	9,731	9,731	65,556	58,574

Axis Personnel and supplies to Libya, 1941

Month	Personnel Shipped	Personnel Reached	Supplies shipped	Supplies reached
January	12,491	12,214	50,505	49,084
February	19,557	19,557	80,357	79,173
March	20,975	20,184	101,800	92,753
April	20,698	19,926	88,597	81,472
May	12,552	9,958	73,367	69,331
June	12,886	12,886	133,331	125,076
July	16,141	15,767	77,012	62,276
August	18,288	16,753	96,021	83,956
September	12,717	6,603	94,115	67,513
October	4,046	3,541	92,449	73,614
November	4,872	4,628	79,208	29,843
December	1,748	1,074	47,680	39,092

Axis Personnel and supplies to Libya, 1942

Month	Personnel Shipped	Personnel Reached	Supplies shipped	Supplies reached
January	2,840	1,355	66,214	66,170
February	531	531	59,468	58,965
March	391	284	57,541	47,588
April	1,349	1,349	151,578	150,389
May	4,396	4,241	93,188	86,439
June	1,474	1,249	41,519	32,327
July	4,566	4,435	97,794	91, 491
August	1,281	790	77,134	51,655
September	1,367	959	96,903	77,526
October	1,011	631	83,695	46,698
November	1,031	1,031	85,970	63,736
December	5	5	12,981	6,151

See also

• Malta Convoys
• Military history of Gibraltar during World War II
• Adrian Warburton, RAF pilot who conducted reconnaissance missions from the island.
• George Beurling, RAF fighter pilot who claimed 27 victories while defending Malta.

References

• Bungay, Stephen. Alamein. Aurum Press. 2002. ISBN 1-85410-929-4
• Bradford, Ernle. Siege: Malta 1940–1943. Pen & Sword. 1986. ISBN 978-0850529302
• de Zeng, H.L; Stanket, D.G; Creek, E.J. Bomber Units of the Luftwaffe 1933–1945; A Reference Source, Volume 1. Ian Allen Publishing, 2007. ISBN 978-1-85780-279-5
• Crawford, Alex. Gloster Gladiator. Redbourn, UK: Mushroom Model Publications, 2002. ISBN 83-916327-0-9.
• de Zeng, H.L; Stanket, D.G; Creek, E.J. Bomber Units of the Luftwaffe 1933–1945; A Reference Source, Volume 2. Ian Allen Publishing, 2007. ISBN 978-1-903223-87-1
• Holland, James. Fortress Malta: An Island Under Siege, 1940–1943. New York: Miramax Books, 2003. ISBN 1-4013-5186-7.
• Hogan, George. Malta: The Triumphant Years, 1940–1943. Robert Hale. 1978. ISBN 978-0709171157
• Keegan, John. The Oxford Companion to World War Two. Oxford University Press. 2005. ISBN 0-19-280666-1
• Mallett, Robert. The Italian Navy and Fascist Expansionism, 1935–1940. Frank Cass. 1998. ISBN 0-7146-4432-3
• McAulay, Lex. Against All Odds: RAAF Pilots in the Battle for Malta, 1942. Milsons Point. 1989.
• The Air Battle of Malta, The Official Account of the RAF in Malta, June 1940 to November 1942. London: Ministry of Information: His Majesty's Stationery Office, 1944.
• Poolman, Kenneth. Faith, Hope and Charity: Three Biplanes Against an Air Force. London: William Kimber and Co. Ltd., 1954. (First pocket edition in 1958.)
• Rogers, Anthony. Battle Over Malta: Aircraft Losses and Crash Sites, 1940–42 . Sutton Books. 2000. ISBN 978-0750923927
• Scutts, Jerry. Bf 109 Aces of North Africa and the Mediterranean. London: Osprey Publishing, 1994. ISBN 1-85532-448-2.
• Shores, Christopher and Cull, Brian with Malizia, Nicola. Malta: The Hurricane Years. London: Grub Street, 1987. ISBN 0-948817-06-2
• Smith, Peter C. The Battles of the Malta Striking Forces. Littlehampton Book Services. 1974. ISBN 978-0711005280
• Spooner, Tony. Supreme Gallantry: Malta's Role in the Allied Victory, 1939–1945. London. 1996. 978-0719557064
• Taylor, A.J.P. and S.L. Mayer, eds. A History Of World War Two. London: Octopus Books, 1974. ISBN 0-70640-399-1.
• Terraine, John.The Right of the Line: The Royal Air Force in the European War, 1939–1945. Sceptre Publishing. 1985. ISBN 0-340-41919-9
• Thomas, Andrew. Gloster Gladiator Aces. Botley, UK: Osprey Publishing, 2002. ISBN 1-84176-289-X.
• Wingate, John. The Fighting Tenth: The Tenth Submarine Flotilla and the Siege of Malta. Pen & Sword. 1991. ISBN 978-0850528916

External links

• Combat History of the Supermarine Spitfire – The Defence of Malta (1942)
• The Air Battle of Malta, 1940–1942 (HMSO 1944)