NAAF Shipping Strikes, January-March 1943

During the January-March period numerous shipping strikes were made by NAAF heavies and mediums. On 20 January six B-25's escorted by P-38's struck a tanker between Sicily and Tunisia and saw it explode and settle in the water. On the 22d, six B-26's left a freighter listing; the next day B-26's made an attack on a convoy and saw one ship explode and another capsize, and left one listing. On the 29th direct hits were scored by B-25's on a freighter and another was set on fire.

There were few sightings during the first three weeks of February because of adverse weather conditions, but on the 10th near Cape Bon B-25's sank two Siebel ferries. From 21 February to 19 March successes were frequent. Twenty vessels were sunk, 15 severely damaged, and 11 damaged.

The central sector along the mountain ridge between Pont-du-Fahs and Faid was held by three divisions of French troops, who were poorly armed for fighting even in that mountainous region where tanks could not maneuver. Moreover, there was some disaffection and desertions were frequent. General Giraud was not disposed to leave much to the discretion of General Barre and Juin, who commanded in the field. general Eisenhower proposed to give to General Anderson the responsibility of meeting the anticipated Axis thrust, but the French refused to serve under his command. General Eisenhower was therefore forced to assume command,  with headquarters at Constantine. Meanwhile an organization was set up to supervise rearming of the French, evidently a task requiring many months, and a USAAF fighter squadron's P-40's were given to a group of selected French pilots known as the Lafayette Escadrille.

The first preliminary German move was made on 2 January, when the French were pushed out of Fondouk, west of Kairouan. Air operations in the mountainous terrain were difficult, and smoke signals served only to disclose our ground positions to the enemy.

On 18 January the expected Axis attack began when armor-supported columns moved out of Pont-du-Fahs to seize the coastal range to the south. The French were thrown back along the Oued-el-Kebir, and the attackers streamed through the gap and turned southward into the Ousseltia Valley toward Pichon. British and American units were rushed in from north and south and the drive was stopped within a week by strong counterattacks, but the enemy retained most of the area he had captured. Allied air cooperation had come largely from the RAF airfields around Souk-el-Arba; it had played an important part in blocking the drive.

The Germans were now in control of the northern half of the Ousseltia Valley. Since it was evident that the French did not possess the equipment to withstand a determined Axis push, certain French units were withdrawn to be re-equipped and British and American substitutes were rushed in as rapidly as transportation difficulties could be mastered. Mobile British units were stationed in the south, and none too soon, for on the 30th a German thrust at the weak southern flank of the French captured Faid, and its progress was stopped only by American counterblows and by diversionary attacks out of Gafsa toward Maknassy. These diversions only partly accomplished their mission, and the participating troops were forced to withdraw to Gafsa. In the short space of two weeks the Germans had seriously weakened the Allied center and had insulated their communications between Sousse and Tunis from ground attacks. Moreover, Rommel was now crossing the border Tripolitania, and a captured dispatch disclosed his intention of striking toward Gafsa and Thelepte. One gain was that in the midst of the crisis the French had at last agreed to serve under General Anderson.

It was during the Ousseltia drive that American fighters began to put ground-to-air communication into use. Faulty equipment and inexperience hampered its practical working, but its development in subsequent months made it in Italy the most important factor in the speed and accuracy with which our fighters and fighter-bombers responded to calls for cooperation.

After the fall of Tripoli Rommel retreated hastily to Tunisia and toward the Mareth Line, meanwhile striving to retard his pursuers by bombing their ports of entry, by fighting rear-guard actions, and by mining roads. By 6 February all of Rommel's forces were in Tunisia and he had joined with von Arnim. Rommel now depended to a large extent for supplies upon small coastal craft, and RAF fighter bombers, spite of bad weather, found good hunting among them. Meanwhile, however, the ground pursuit was hampered by heavy rains which turned salt flats into bogs, across which causeways had to be built. RAF aircraft took advantage of breaks in the weather to harry the road transport of the retreating enemy.

The weakening of the German rear guard enabled the Eighth Army to occupy Medinine on 20 February, and an armored action which followed forced Rommel to withdraw completely to the Mareth Line the next day. Air activity during the last days was almost nil, due to bad weather. within a few days, however, the attacks on coastal shipping were renewed with such success that Rommel had to place his chief reliance for supplies upon overland transport from Tunis, a distance of about 300 miles. The delay necessary for the Eighth Army to consolidate for the attack enabled the Desert Fox to divert some of his attention to the American threat to his rear and to dig more deeply along the Mareth Line.

The Mareth Line was really a defensive zone of fortifications in depth which extended for some 60 miles inland from the Gulf of Gabes. The coastal flank was unsuitable for amphibious operations and the right flank extended into rough country. Basically the defenses were remodeling of the old French fortifications, which had been partially destroyed in conformity with the stipulation of the Armistice of 1940. Antitank ditches were dug, concrete tank obstacles emplaced, and mine fields sown. It was significant, however, that Rommel did not use the old casements extensively, but preferred to preserve the mobility of his artillery by posting it at points between.