 The tankers "Conte di Misurata" (7,599 GRT) and "Minatitlan" (5,014 GRT) carried of fuel.A powerful escort was to arranged for the convoy operation to counter the British flotilla recently based at Malta.Close Escort (Captain Ugo Bisciani) [Ship data from O'Hara (2009) unless indicated]

Distant Escort (Vice Admiral Bruno Brivonesi) [Ship data from O'Hara (2009) unless indicated]

The convoy was routed to the east of Malta, since the airfields in Libya were under Axis occupation, rather than the usual west and along the Tunisian coast.