Atlas of Battles

battle, major, interwar and Second World War

Operation Pedestal

Operation Pedestal was a battle fought on 3 August 1942 at Mediterranean Sea, in what is now Spain; it lasted 12 days. It was part of Q682452. The recorded result: See Aftermath.

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IWM caption : OPERATION PEDESTAL, AUGUST 1942. Preliminary movements: 3 - 10 August 1942: Photograph taken from the after end of HMS VICTORIOUS' flight deck showing HMS INDOMITABLE and HMS EAGLE. A Ha
IWM caption : OPERATION PEDESTAL, AUGUST 1942. Preliminary movements: 3 - 10 August 1942: Photograph taken from the after end of HMS VICTORIOUS' flight deck showing HMS INDOMITABLE and HMS EAGLE. A Ha. Priest L C (Lt)Royal Navy official photographer, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought3 August 1942lasted 12 days
WhereMediterranean Sea, Spain36.171N, 5.412W
OutcomeSee Aftermath
Part ofQ682452

Record

Date3 August 1942
to 15 August 1942
PlaceMediterranean Sea, Spain
36.171N, 5.412W
KindBattle, interwar and Second World War
Operation PedestalOperation PedestalBattle of CarteiaBattle of GibraltarBattle of GibraltarFirst Battle of AlgecirasTwelfth Siege of GibraltarBattle of CarteiaTangierGranada‎CádizCeutaMálagaKsar El KebirHuelvaLarache100 km36.171N, 5.412W
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Operation Pedestal
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 25 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Operation Pedestal today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2024-08-25. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2024.

The recorded site stands at about 0 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from -7 to 306 m, 313 m of relief, hilly country and today it is 61% water, 18% built-up, 9% grassland.

water: 61%built-up: 18%grassland: 9%tree cover: 7%water 61%built-up 18%grassland 9%tree cover 7%
west to east, 10.0 km0 to 9 mnorth to south, 10.0 km0 to 62 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

Contested ground: this site was fought over 26 times between 206 BC and 1942.

In the same war

Elsewhere in 1942

Operation Pedestal is one of 2,997 engagements of the 20th century in the atlas and one of 1,070 in present-day Spain.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q1927362, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Operation Pedestal, revision 1370694258, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.