 The resulting concentration near Gibraltar resulted in a series of battles around the Gibraltar and Sierra Leone convoys.In December 1941, Convoy HG 76 sailed, escorted by the 36th Escort Group of two sloops and six corvettes under Captain Frederic John Walker, reinforced by the first of the new escort carriers, , and three destroyers from Gibraltar.The convoy was immediately intercepted by the waiting U-boat pack, resulting in a brutal battle.