The Battle for Malta

Today on Far Future Horizons to commemorate the seventy-fifth anniversary of Operation Pedestal we present the BBC Two documentary The Battle for Malta.

Historian James Holland presents a fresh analysis of the World War Two battle for the tiny Mediterranean island of Malta.

Operation Pedestal ~ Malta’s Miracle of August 15, 1942

Operation Pedestal: Depicted, Tanker Ohio being attacked by Savoia Marchetti SM79's and Ju 88's The Cruiser is HMS Charybdis.

Today marks the seventy-fifth anniversary of Operation Pedestal, a British operation to get desperately needed supplies to the island of Malta in August 1942, during the Second World War. Malta was the base from which surface ships, submarines and aircraft attacked Axis convoys carrying essential supplies to the Italian and German armies in North Africa. In 1941–42, Malta was effectively under siege, blockaded by Axis air and naval forces. To sustain Malta, the United Kingdom had to get convoys through at all costs. Despite serious losses, just enough supplies were delivered for Malta to survive, although it ceased to be an effective offensive base for much of 1942. The most crucial supply was fuel delivered by the SS Ohio, an American-built tanker with a British crew. The operation started on August 9^th, 1942, when the convoy sailed through the Strait of Gibraltar.