Lessons from a sinking to help us stay afloat
The downing of the Prince of Wales and Repulse by Japanese aircraft in 1941 was not just about the loss of two ships.
Add BT as a preferred source
EXACTLY 80 years ago today on Dec 11, 1941, readers of the English newspapers in Singapore woke up to the news that the battleship Prince of Wales and battlecruiser Repulse had been "lost" and "sunk by air action off the coast of Malaya" the day before. This was the first instance in history that battleships had been sunk by air power during battle in open sea.
At that time, British Malaya was already 3 days into World War II with Japan: the Japanese forces had landed in Kota Bahru on early morning of Dec 8 and bombed Singapore that same day.
The Prince of Wales and the Repulse together with four destroyers (collectively known as Force Z), set sail that same evening from the former Sembawang Naval Base under the command of Admiral Tom Phillips to surprise the Japanese amphibious forces landing in Kota Bahru.
Decoding Asia newsletter: your guide to navigating Asia in a new global order. Sign up here to get Decoding Asia newsletter. Delivered to your inbox. Free.
Copyright SPH Media. All rights reserved.
