Evening star., 1942-04-10
Hermes Sent Down
Ten Miles Off
CeyIon Coast
BY the Associated Press.

LONDON, April 10.-Britain's
first aircraft carrier, the 23-year-
old Hermes, has been sunk in
Japan's unabated effort to beat
down the sea and air shield
against invasion of India, but the
enemy's total claims of victory
are too extravagant, the British
Admiralty said today in a COM
munique.
Japanese planes sank the 10,850-
ton Hermes about 10 miles OF
Ceylon, pivot of British strength
at the tip Of India on the western
side Of the broad Bay of Bengal.
Could Garry 20 Planes.
The Hermes was involved deeply
In developing the navy's air arm.
She was the first vessel especially
designed by the Admiralty as a car
rier and could carry 20 planes, as
compared with the 60 or 70 of newer
carriers.
The British Navy was especially
fond of its flrst-born Hermes. Typi-
cal Is a general note recorded by
James Fighting Ships: Splendid sea
boat, very steady, with remarkably
little rolling propensity"
In announcing the loss, the Ad-
miralty said ''it Is probable a large
proportion of the ships company"
has reached land. The Hermes had
a normal complement of about TOO
officers and men.
The loss of the Hermes came soon
after the sinking of the heavy
cruisers Dorsetshire and Cornwall,
acknowledged yesterday, in the same
area. The cruiser losses had Sc
riously crippled British protection
Of the sea road to India. Now, in
the loss Of the Hermes, the Royal
Navy has been stripped of another
formidable weapon.
Thus Maj. Gen. Lewis H. Brere-
tons hard-hitting American Army
bomber force in India was left with
still greater responsibility in the de-
fense of the subcontinent.
One informed source said the at
tacks in which the Hermes, Dorset
shire and Cornwall were sent to the
bottom cost the Japanese fully rs
planes. He said the Hermes was
sunk by bombs, not plane-launched
torpedoes.
Japs Claim Greater Successes.
The Japanese, however, claimed
D..
ing, intermittent battle which has
become perhaps the wars greatest
test Of sea power versus air power.
A japanese naval communique
said that besides the Hermes a
9,100-ton cruiser of the Birmingham
class and a 7,s50-ton cruiser Of the
Emerald class were sunk yesterday
of Trincomalee Naval Station,
Ceylon.
To this the London Admiralty
countered:
The japanese claim to have
sunk cruisers of Trincomalee is
known to be quite untrue"
Yesterday the Japanese claimed
81 merchant vessels and the two
cruisers had been sunk in Indian
Ocean operations up to April Z.
Others Added to Claim.
Today's claim added the Hermes,
two cruisers. a detroyer, a patrol
vessel and six other ships to the
Japanese list of sinkings, but of
these the British confirmed only
that Of the Hermes. The japanese
also said a cruiser of the 7,270-ton
Leander class was damaged.
The Japanese account of the
battle said her forces lost 10 planes,
Toxic said. The British lost 81
planes over land and sea. The jap
anese report indicated Trincomalee
was heavily raided.
The British Navy, already COM
Haitted to guarding much of the
North Atlantic as well as the
Mediterranean, was spread thinly
over eastern waters. Observers said
the Japanese In the last few days
had won temporary air and sea con-
troll Of the Indian Ocean, of which
(See HERMES, Page A-14.)