Operation XT

'XT' was the designation of Allied convoys (together with a numerical suffix) either detached from 'MW' convoys to Tripoli, Libya, or plying the route from Alexandria, Egypt, to Tripoli in the build-up to the Allied defeat of the Axis forces in North Africa, or 'Husky' (i) and subsequent Allied operations in southern Italy, and as such reciprocals of the 'TX' series (February1943/July 1944).

An early example of the detachments from an MW convoy was XT.2 of 9/10 February 1943, detached from the MW.20A convoy with the 6,802-ton US American Packer, 4,635-ton British Clan MacIndoe, 7,176-ton US Daniel H. Lownsdale, 7,174-ton Brtish Ocean Voyager, 2,290-ton British Robert Maersk and 4,372-ton British Tureby, supported by two escort destroyers in the form of the Greek Pindos and British Tetcott.

Of the other series, the first was XT.1 of 1 September 1943 with three ships including the 4,926-ton British Nailsea Moor, and the last was XT.29 of 25/31 July 1944 with the Dutch Hermes I, 1,874-ton British Kepong, 1,582-ton Dutch Mars, 1,386-ton Norwegian Regin and 1,817-ton British Stanforth.