Battle of the Atlantic

• U-107 sinks the British steamer Eskdene (3829t) southeast of the Azores. All 39 crew members are picked up by the British steamer Penhale. U-107 next sinks the British steamer Helena Margareta (3316t) 330 miles west of Madeira with the loss of 27 crew members. 9 survivors are picked up by the British fleet oiler Cairndale.
• U-124 sinks the British steamer Tweed (2697t) southwest of Freetown with the loss of 3 of her crew. 28 survivors in lifeboats make it to French Guiana.
• The British tanker Ahamo (8621t) sinks on a mine east of Grimsby with the loss of 14 of her crew.
• The British armed merchant cruiser Bulolo captures the French steamer Fort de France (4279t) in the middle of the Atlantic. She is sent toward Gibraltar under armed guard.

The Blitz

There is a second heavy raid on Coventry. 230 aircraft drop 315 tons of high explosives and 25,000 incendiaries. There is wide destruction to factories and to public and commercial buildings. Casualties result from the Coventry and Warwickshire Hospital being hit. The casualties from this raid and a minor raid on April 10 are 451 killed and 720 seriously hurt. Many lessons had been learned from the November raid. Civilian defense services, from fire brigades and police to block wardens to rescue parties, work hard to limit the effects of the raid.

Children searching for books among the ruins of their school after the April raid.

School Damage

Italian East Africa

Massawa, the last center of Italian resistance, falls to the Allied forces. Of the 13,000 men defending it, over 3,000 have been killed and 5,000 wounded. 17 large Axis merchant ships are taken in the port along with many smaller military and civilian vessels. The 4th Indian Div, which has played a large part in the Allied campaign in Eritrea, is immediately prepared for shipping to Egypt where the Allied forces are under great pressure. The priority in the East African campaign is now to clear the road between Asmara and Addis Ababa. Forces are being sent to this task from both ends of the road.

North Africa

Axis forces overwhelm the badly-decimated British 2nd Arm Div and the 3rd Indian Bde. Mechili falls to the German attacks in the morning and Rommel immediately begins to organize an advance to Tobruk.

Red Sea

More Italian ships are scuttled this day either at Massawa or at Dulac Island. Among these are the Italian steamers Colombo (11,760t), Clelia Campanella (3245t) and Prometeo (4958t), and the Italian tanker Giove (5211t).

Yugoslavia

Faced by overwhelming German forces, the Yugoslav army shows signs of rapid disintegration. The German offensive is extended with the start of attacks by von Kleist's 1st Pzr Group. They advance west over the Bulgarian border and by evening have destroyed the Yugoslav forces on the frontier and have advanced as far as Nis. Nis is occupied by the Germans as they push towards Belgrade along the Morava valley.