Operation Vigorous
On 11 June, "Westcott" joined the escort of a large supply convoy to Malta from the west, Operation Harpoon, with a second convoy, Operation Vigorous sailing simultaneously to Malta from Alexandria in Egypt. Both convoys came under heavy air attack, and on 14 June, the cruiser was damaged by a torpedo dropped by an Italian aircraft. "Westcott" and the destroyer were detached from the convoy to escort "Liverpool" back to Gibraltar, with "Antelope" taking "Liverpool" under tow. The three ships came under continued Italian torpedo-bomber attacks after they had left the convoy, and on 16 April, "Westcott" was hit by anti-aircraft fire from "Liverpool", killing three of her crew. The three ships made Gibraltar on 17 June. Two of the six merchant ships in the convoy managed to reach Malta, with two destroyers being sunk as well as four merchant ships. The parallel Operation Vigorous was a failure, being forced to turn back by the weight of Axis attacks. "Westcott" took part in two more Spitfire delivery runs by "Eagle" in July.