HMS Ark Royal is arguably one of the most renowned aircraft carriers in history. Her short but proud and eventful career sadly came to an end on 13 November 1941 when she was torpedoed by U-81. This is the story of her demise.
On 10 November 1941, HMS Ark Royal completed her mission of ferrying aircraft to Malta. Returning to Gibraltar, Admiral Somerville warned the crew of potential U-boat threats off Spain. Indeed, U-81, captained by Friedrich Guggenberger, lay in wait.
On 13 November, at 15:40, a sonar operator aboard the destroyer HMS Legion detected an unidentified sound, dismissed as nearby propellers. Just a minute later, Ark Royal was hit amidships by a torpedo, causing an explosion that rocked the ship and led to catastrophic flooding.
The torpedo created a massive 130×30 ft (40 x 9 m) hole, flooding key areas and knocking out communications. 44-year-old Able Seaman Edward Mitchell was the only fatality. Immediate damage control was hindered as the crew gathered on the flight deck to determine who would remain on board to attempt saving the ship, while others prepared for evacuation to the destroyer Legion.
Captain Maund ordered the engines to stop, but with communications down, the order was delayed as a runner had to be sent to the engine room. In the meantime, the continued movement worsened the damage. The ship began to list significantly. As HMS Legion moved alongside, the crew began to evacuate rapidly, leaving many hatches open on the lower decks—a decision that allowed flooding to spread unchecked.
Half an hour after the explosion, the carrier appeared to stabilize. Admiral Somerville ordered the ship to be saved and damage control parties returned to HMS Ark Royal. However, despite efforts by the tug Thames and the destroyer HMS Laforey, the list increased as flooding reached the boiler room fan flat, an uninterrupted compartment spanning the ship’s width. This forced the shutdown of the only operational boiler, leaving no power to operate the bilge pumps. By early morning, the situation was dire.
By 4:00 a.m. on 14 Nov, the list reached 27°, and the order to abandon ship was given again. Legion evacuated the remaining crew, with no further fatalities. By 6:19 a.m., Ark Royal capsized and sank, breaking into two sections as she hit the seafloor.
In February 1942, a Board of Inquiry investigated the loss, leading to Captain Maund’s court-martial for negligence. The inquiry cited a lack of damage control measures and the captain’s failure to ensure the ship was in an adequate state of readiness to handle potential damage.
HMS Ark Royal’s wreck lay undiscovered until 2002. An underwater survey confirmed the carrier’s final resting place 30 nautical miles from Gibraltar. Analysis indicated that structural design flaws, rather than the captain’s negligence, were key factors in the ship’s tragic fate.
Olivier Goossens
Heart of Oak 
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