1 June 1942 Part 3

1 June 1942 naval headquarters review of Alderney April diary

Secret. Naval Commander Channel Coast to Sea Commander Normandy, copy to Harbour Captain Alderney. Subject: keeping the war diary. Reference: Alderney’s diary for 1–30 April 1942, submitted with Normandy reference G 2873 of 16 May. The date’s month is corrected by hand from May to June.

The diary contains the following entry for 23 April at 0005: “Enemy units pass three nautical miles off the harbour entrance, direction of movement unknown.” Such an occurrence should immediately have been transmitted as an urgent KR radio message. It was reported neither in the night nor the morning situation report of Sea Commander Normandy; no supplementary situation report had subsequently been submitted.

The entry is incomplete and gives no clear picture. A diary entry must clearly show whether, from where and how the enemy units were seen, or whether they were detected by technical means, stating whether the detections were certain or uncertain. The diary must also record what action was taken following so important a sighting of enemy vessels in one’s own waters.

Instructions for keeping the diary are provided in service regulation M.Dv. 545, Instructions for Keeping the War Diary, referred to in the letter of 29 May, G 11777 A Ia. Sea commanders had been ordered to obtain it for subordinate offices. The harbour captain is to be instructed accordingly. In future diaries are to be checked for such incomplete reports before submission; additions or explanations of ambiguous entries are to accompany subordinate units’ diaries. [Partly legible marginal notes are not reconstructed.]

T-1022 Roll 2422, PG 37995, scan 0368, reference G 12648 A Ia.