12-18-06, 06:33 PM
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#10
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Ocean Warrior 
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: In Tromsoe, @Tirpitz' final resting place..
Posts: 3,277
Downloads: 94
Uploads: 0
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by bookworm_020
Do I dare ask what is a Reuben James????  I know about the ship, but who, or what is Reuben James |
Quote:
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In March 1941, Reuben James joined the convoy escort force established to promote the safe arrival of war material to Britain. This escort force guarded convoys as far as Iceland, where they became responsibility of British escorts. Based at Hvalfjordur, Iceland, it sailed from Argentia, Newfoundland, 23 October 1941, with four other destroyers to escort eastbound convoy HX-156. While escorting that convoy at about 0525, 31 October 1941, Reuben James was torpedoed by German submarine U-562. [sic--should be U-552] The ship had postured itself between an ammunition ship in the convoy and the known position of a German U-Boat Wolfpack. Its magazine exploded, and the ship sank quickly. Of the crew, 44 survived, and 100 died. Reuben James was the first U.S. Navy ship sunk by hostile action in World War II.
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Taking one for the team...
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