List of Naval Battles - World War II (1939-45)

World War II (1939-45)

• 1939-45 Battle of the Atlantic (1939-1945)
• 1939
  • December 13 River Plate
• 1940
  • May 10 and 13 May First and Second Battles of Narvik
  • June 7 Naval Battle of Norway - German battleships Gneisenau and Scharnhorst sink the aircraft carrier HMS Glorious and two destroyers off Norway
  • July 3 Mers-el-Kebir - British fleet attacks French fleet in harbour in Algeria
  • July 9 Calabria (Punta Stilo) - British fleet attacks Italian fleet
  • July 19 Cape Spada - HMAS Sydney sinks Italian cruiser Bartolomeo Colleoni off Crete
  • September 23–35 Dakar - Vichy French fight off a British/Free French landing at Dakar
  • October 17–19 Convoy SC 7 and Convoy HX 79 - 32 ships sunk by wolfpack including U-boat aces Kretschmer, Prien and Schepke
  • November 11 Taranto - British air attack on Italians anchored at Taranto, inspiring the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor
  • November 27 Cape Spartivento (Cape Teulada) - British fight back an Italian interception
• 1941
  • January 17 Ko Chang - French defeat Siamese
  • March 28 Cape Matapan - British fleet defeats Italian fleet notably in night action
  • April 16 - British ships attack Italian convoy Duisburg. Lampo, Tarigo and Baleno are sunk, as well as HMS Mohawk
  • May 21-June 1 - Battle of Crete - Royal Navy loses 3 cruisers and 6 destroyers
  • May 24 - Battle of the Denmark Strait - Bismarck and Prinz Eugen sink HMS Hood
  • May 24- May 27 - Hunt for the German battleship Bismarck ends in her sinking
  • September 9–11 Convoy SC 42 - 14 ships and 2 U-boats sunk in North Atlantic
  • December 7 Pearl Harbor
  • December 10 South China Sea - HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse sunk by Japanese air attack
  • December 13 Cape Bon - British destroyers sink Italian cruisers
  • December 17 First Sirte - Indecisive British-Italian fight off Libya
• 1942
  • February 27 Java Sea - Japanese invasion convoy escorts destroy ABDA fleet
  • March 22 Second Sirte - Regia Marina obstacles a British convoy to Malta
  • May 8 Coral Sea - Japanese invasion convoy turned back by US carrier aircraft
• 1942-44 German U-Boats campaign in Gulf of St. Lawrence
  • June 4–5 Midway - invasion convoy retreats after US sinks four Japanese carriers
  • June 12–15 Operation Vigorous - 6 ships sunk from convoy to Malta
  • June 14–15 Operation Harpoon - 6 ships sunk from convoy to Malta
  • July 2–4 Convoy PQ 17 - 24 ships sunk from Arctic convoy to Soviet Union
  • August 5–10 Convoy SC 94 - 10 ships and 2 U-boats sunk in North Atlantic
  • August 8 Savo Island - Japanese sink 4 cruisers escorting Guadalcanal invasion convoy
  • August 11–15 Operation Pedestal - 13 ships sunk from convoy to Malta
  • August 24 Eastern Solomons - Japanese aircraft carrier Ryujo sunk while attacking Guadalcanal
  • September 10–14 Convoy ON 127 - 7 ships sunk in North Atlantic
  • October 12 Cape Esperance US cruisers intercept Japanese cruiser force approaching Guadalcanal
  • October 12–16 Convoy SC 104 - 8 ships and 2 U-boats sunk in North Atlantic
  • October 26 Santa Cruz Islands - USS Hornet sunk in aircraft carrier battle near Guadalcanal
  • October 27–31 Convoy SL 125 - 11 ships sunk decoying U-boats away from Operation Torch
  • November 1–4 Convoy SC 107 - 15 ships and 1 U-boat sunk in North Atlantic
  • November 8 Casablanca - French ships attempt to defend Moroccan neutrality
  • November 12–15 Guadalcanal - four days and nights of fighting
  • November 30 Tassafaronga US cruisers intercept Japanese destroyers resupplying Guadalcanal
  • December 26–30 Convoy ON 154 - 14 ships and 1 U-boat sunk in North Atlantic
  • December 31 Barents Sea - British escorts fight off German surface attack on convoy JW 51B
• 1943
  • January 29 Rennell Island - USS Chicago lost
  • February 4–7 Convoy SC 118 - 8 ships and 1 U-boat sunk in North Atlantic
  • February 21–25 Convoy ON 166 - 11 ships and 2 U-boats sunk in North Atlantic
  • March 2–4 Bismarck Sea - aircraft sink 12 ships from a Japanese troop convoy to New Guinea
  • March 6 Battle of Blackett Strait - an American task force intercepts 2 Japanese destroyers and sinks them both.
  • March 6–9 Convoy SC 121 - 7 ships sunk in North Atlantic
  • March 10–11 Convoy HX 228 - 5 ships and 2 U-boats sunk in North Atlantic
  • March 16–19 Convoys HX 229/SC 122 - 22 ships and 1 U-boat sunk in largest North Atlantic U-boat wolfpack attack
  • March 26 Komandorski Islands - US cruiser force intercepts a Japanese Aleutian Islands convoy
  • April 29-May 6 Convoy ONS 5 - 12 ships and 6 U-boats sunk in last major North Atlantic U-boat wolfpack attack
  • July 6 Kula Gulf
  • July 12–13 Battle of Kolombangara
  • August 6–7 Battle of Vella Gulf - American destroyers intercept the "Tokyo Express" and sink 3 Japanese destroyers.
  • October 6 - Naval Battle of Vella Lavella
  • October 23 - German light force defeats similar British force (details)
  • November 2 Empress Augusta Bay
  • November 26 Battle of Cape St. George - American destroyers intercept the "Tokyo Express" and sink 3 Japanese destroyers.
  • December 26 North Cape - convoy JW 55B escorts sink Scharnhorst off northern Norway
  • December 28 Operation Stonewall - Allied ships and aircraft sink three German destroyers in the Bay of Biscay
• 1944
  • June 9 Battle of Ushant - Allied 10th destroyer flotilla (UK/Canadian/Polish ships) engage and defeat remnants of the German 8th destroyer flotilla off Brittany
  • June 19 Philippine Sea - US invasion of Saipan initiates the largest aircraft carrier battle in history including "The Great Marianas Turkey Shoot"
  • October 23–26 Leyte Gulf - US invasion of the Philippines produces a decisive battle with the Japanese fleet including four main actions - the Sibuyan Sea, Surigao Straits, off Samar and Cape Engano
• 1945
  • April 1-May 25 Battle of Okinawa - Japanese aircraft sink 28 ships during the US invasion of Okinawa.