page_title: Operation Substance
section_title: Battle of 23 July
hierarchical_section_title: Operation Substance / Battle of 23 July
caption_attribution_description: Photograph of British destroyer HMS Fearless.
context_page_description: Operation Substance was a British naval operation in July 1941 during the Second World War to escort convoy GM 1, the first of the series from Gibraltar to Malta. The convoy defended by Force H was attacked by Italian submarines, aircraft, and Motoscafo armato silurante.
context_section_description: The convoy came under low level attack by nine Savoia-Marchetti SM.79 torpedo bombers coordinated with five CANT Z.1007 high level bombers. Four Fulmars met the torpedo planes head-on and shot one down before another SM.79 launched a torpedo which hit Manchester before also being shot down. Ark Royal launched seven more Fulmars which were unable to engage the high level bombers before they released bombs which failed to hit the convoyed ships. Three Fulmars were shot down. A later attack by two SM.79s sank HMS Fearless killing 35 of her crew. Another bombing attack near-missed HMS Firedrake causing damage requiring the destroyer to be towed back to Gibraltar. Bristol Beaufighters from Malta assisted Ark Royal Fulmars defending the convoy from these attacks.
  HMS Cossack detected MAS boats 532 and 533 approaching the convoy after dark, but was unable to prevent them from torpedoing SS Sydney Star at around 03:00 on 24 July. The merchant ship, carrying 484 army officers and men in addition to its normal crew, came to a dead stop as it took on water. Fearing that the ship's pumps couldn't cope with the damage, the captain requested evacuation of the troops. The Nestor came alongside and took on board approximately 500 men via gangplank and Jacob's ladder, leaving the captain and a skeleton crew on the Sydney Star. The captain later estimated that his ship had taken on 7,000 tons of water. Nestor successfully towed the damaged 11,000-ton cargo ship to Malta, arriving at the Grand Harbour shortly after 08:00.
caption: HMS Fearless was sunk by a Savoia-Marchetti SM.79 while escorting convoy GM 1.
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