Battle of the Atlantic

• The US Coast Guard begins patrol operations off the southern Greenland coast. Only 4 ships are involved at this stage.
• U-105 sinks the British steamer Scottish Monarch (4719t) southwest of the Cape Verde Islands with the loss of 1 crewman. 24 survivors are picked up on 8 June by the Dutch motor merchant Alphard and landed at Freetown five days later. 20 more survivors are picked up on 11 June by the British steam merchant Christine Marie and landed at Freetown on 19 June.
• U-107 sinks the British steamer Alfred Jones (5013t) 140 miles southwest of Freetown with the loss of 14 of her crew. 62 survivors are picked up by the British corvette Marguerite and taken to Freetown.
• The British submarine Clyde sinks the Italian steamer San Marco (3076t) southeast of Sardinia 5 miles from Capo Carbonara.

The Blitz

There is a night raid by 110 German planes on Manchester.

Britain, Command

Air Vice-Marshal Tedder is appointed AOCinC RAF Middle East.

Britain, Home Front

It is announced that measures for clothing and footwear rationing are being prepared. It will be a point system with each person allotted 66 points per year. An example: an adult mackintosh (raincoat) - 16 points.

Crete

The AA cruiser Calcutta is sunk by the German Ju-88s north of Alexandria. British naval losses in the 'Battle of Crete' include 3 cruisers and 6 destroyers sunk, 3 battleships, 1 carrier, 6 cruisers and 7 destroyers damaged.

The battle of Crete is virtually over. Altogether 18,600 men are taken off but casualties and prisoners in the battle for the island amount to 16,583 men (8,200 British, 3,376 Australian and 2,996 New Zealand army personnel and 2,011 men of the Royal Navy). The Germans have lost 3,714 dead and missing and about 2,500 wounded. About 600 more Allied troops will escape from the island by various routes later. The largest groups of prisoners are the 5,000 men who are captured when the Germans take Sfakia this day and the garrison of Retimo who do not receive evacuation instructions because of a communications breakdown.

The ships lost include 3 cruisers and 6 destroyers. In addition, 2 battleships, 1 carrier and numerous cruisers and destroyers have been hit. In all the operations in Greece and Crete 44 transports are lost. The German casualties are picked men - a very high proportion of them deaths - and Hitler decides that such large-scale airborne attacks should not be repeated even although the result has been a brilliant success.

Iraq

British forces enter Baghdad. Regent Emir Abdul Illah, the uncle of King Faisal, returns to the country.

North Africa

Air Marshal Tedder takes command of the RAF forces in the Middle East. The majority of the German 15th Pzr Div has now joined Rommel's force.