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NEWSLETTER NUMBER 3
Publishing copy requested - new Area Organiser wanted - Albert’s Story - Force H - HMS Hood - Bismarck - Arctic Convoys - LST 24 - Operation Husky - Invasion of Sicily - Struck a Mine - Find your Oppo - Looking for Ted Cummings - HMS Glory - Volunteers wanted - Slops, a new volunteer - Funnies - Positive side - Feedback & comments
Dear members,
I would like to start by introducing myself. My name is Iain (Jock) Crawford and I have volunteered, honest I did, to try my hand at editing the newsletter.
My original plan is to produce the newsletter every two months; this will depend however on the number of articles sent in for publishing. This is where you, the members, come in to play. I already have a number of articles that should keep me going for a while but the more the merrier.
Please send in anything that you would like published, old photos, stories, jokes, memoirs, and letters to the Ed. You can send them in by mail to my home address, by e-mail or send up a disc and I can download the contents. If you would like the articles sent back to you please let me know and I will do so when I have finished with them.
My home address is on Membership List 1.
Or you can send the e-mails to newsATrneba.org.uk anti spam measure, replace AT in the E-mail address by @
I look forward to hearing from you all.
I would like to ask one favour, I had volunteered to be an area organiser, but since I have taken this on can someone else please step forward and take over as area organiser. Your help would be very much appreciated.
Anyway enough from me. I would like to start by publishing an item sent in by Mr. Albert E. Griffiths from Kenilworth in Warwickshire.
It makes fascinating reading. It will be published as a serial as there is too much to put on the one newsletter, I hope you enjoy it as much as I have.
Albert R.N. – A True Story In November 1940, I entered the Royal Navy at the R.N. Barracks, Portsmouth, H.M.S. Victory (later renamed H.M.S. Nelson) and after initial training, I embarked onboard a troopship bound for Gibraltar to join a battleship, but, by the time I arrived in Gibraltar, the ship had been torpedoed and instead I joined the battle cruiser H.M.S Renown.
For the next few months the Renown in company with H.M.S Ark Royal and Sheffield (known as “Force H”) undertook convoy protection duties covering merchant ships providing replacement planes, munitions and supplies to Malta (under siege).
Whilst in convoy the ships were attacked by the enemy using submarines, high & low level bombers, during this period the Renown suffered some casualties when one of the 4.5 gun turrets was damaged resulting in the death of a number of members of the ships company and subsequent burials at sea.
Then came the news that the German Navy had been reported out in the North Atlantic and that H.M.S Hood had been sunk. The German Battleship Bismarck was at large and Renown, Ark Royal, Sheffield and a Destroyer Escort ( as “Force H”) were ordered into the Atlantic to undertake a search.
Bismarck was subsequently located and “Force H” was instrumental in the final sinking of Bismarck. At the time a German Submarine was located in the area and “Force H” was ordered to return to Gibraltar, with no opportunity to pick up survivors from Bismarck. After the war, I read a book written by a German Submarine captain, which confirmed that his submarine was in the area, but had no torpedoes left on board. Back to top
Following further convoy protection work in the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, Renown joined the Home Fleet at Scapa Flow and we subsequently sailed to Reykjavik in Iceland to undertake protection of Russian convoys sailing through the Artic Circle to Murmansk.
After 12 months in the above theatres of war and suffering attacks from submarines, High & Low Level Bombers and Surface Craft, together with the dangers of sea mines and the associated atrocious weather and sea conditions that had to be seen to be believed, I thought I had experienced all aspects of war at first hand, but there was more to follow
I left the Renown at Scapa Flow and eventually took passage on the Cruise Liner “Queen Elizabeth 1” (designed to convey fairly affluent people across the Atlantic in considerable luxury) to America. The liner sailed from a port in Scotland with an escort for a few miles into the Atlantic Ocean and then on its own Maximum speed on a zigzag course, collecting a further escort prior to entering the port of New York, a journey of approx. 5 days.
After a short stay at Asbury Park, New Jersey, I then proceeded to Baltimore to join a ship known as a “Landing Ship Tanks” these were flat-bottomed craft (conceived in the mind of Winston Churchill) and destined to become the foundation of future amphibious operations.
The one I joined, L.S.T. 424 was built in Baltimore. I never did find out if they were subjected to rigorous sea trials. After commissioning and loading with tanks and other war supplies we sailed from Baltimore to Halifax, Nova Scotia and then joined a slow convoy through the Atlantic (approx 20 days) to the Clyde in Scotland.
We subsequently took on board a Canadian Armoured Division of Troops complete with tanks, guns, ammunition and associated Armoured Vehicles. Following an address on board ship by Earl Mountbatten who wished us well and advised us that we about to embark on a training exercise
We sailed from the Clyde and ,”would you believe it,” we found ourselves in the Mediterranean – back in the war zone and involved in a new kind of war – “The Invasion of Enemy Held Territory – Operation Husky – and as dawn broke – The Invasion of Sicily.” Back to top
The trips between ports on the North African Coast and advancing Beachheads in Sicily and Italy were many and varied, carrying tanks, troops, armoured vehicles, ammunition and general stores. Thinking back to the amount of ammunition carried in either tanks, vehicles or in crates, the L.S.T’s were veritable “Time Bombs”. Such trips were not without incidents and ships in transit were subject to attack from enemy forces on a regular basis. Crews on the decks were subject to sniper fire as the ships beached on enemy held territory.
Apart from the run of the mill supply trips we undertook on one occasion a mercy mission to retrieve a group of Commandos from an enemy held beachhead where they had been dropped, in error, by glider planes. One of the more unfortunate tasks was to land troops as a fighting force on the beachheads and then bring some of those self same troops either wounded or dead.
On one of our return trips from Sicily, as lead ship in the convoy, on a fine clear night on Friday 30th July 1943 at 21.46 the silence was suddenly broken by an enormous explosion, a column of sea water shot 50 feet in the air and a twenty foot hole appeared in the port bow, we had been struck by a sea mine.
The ship was still under control, but listing badly and the initial instruction from the Captain was “prepare to abandon ship”, this instruction was subsequently rescinded and the Captain called for full speed ahead, and twenty seven (anxious) minutes later we ran aground in six feet of water on the beach at Sousse on the North African Coast.
TO BE CONTINUED. Back to top
FIND MY OPPO There is now a fully functional search on the web site for finding lost oppo’s, you can search on “best draft” and “official number”. Follow the link for “Find My Oppo”. Directions are on the web page.
I can also put any messages in this newsletter to help reunite people.
If you do manage to get in touch with long lost shipmates again please let me know, it would be great to report on success stories.
We have our first request:-
Clive Buss is looking for Ted Cummings they served together on the Carrier “Glory” in the Med. Fleet. Ted actually paid a visit to Clive’s mum but they never got round to exchanging addresses. If anyone has any information on Ted please get in touch with me and I will pass the details onto Clive.
Here’s hoping for a good start to the column.
If anyone does not want any details published on the web page please contact Mike Wright or Mike Crowe. [Note from web master, It is my policy to never publish your home, phone or e-mail address on this web site, see the Privacy Policy]
VOLUNTEERS. The association are still looking for volunteers for several posts, see the website for more details.
We do however have another volunteer. Robin Allum from Whitchurch, Hants. is now our Slops Manager. Mike will still be doing the Badges and ties until Robin has settled in.
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FUNNIES I am going to end each newsletter on a humorous note. If you have any jokes or stories you would like to share with us all please send them in to me.
A group of men and woman were trying to decide on the gender of the computer. The men argued that it was female. A) No one but their creator understands its internal logic. B) The native language they use to talk to other computers is incomprehensible to everyone else. C) The smallest mistakes are stored in their long-term memory for retrieval at a later date. D) As soon as you commit to one you spend half your pay on accessories for it.
The women said it should be male because A) In order to anything with them you have to turn them on. B) They have a lot of data but can’t think for themselves. C) They are meant to help you solve problems but most of the time they are the problem D) As soon as you commit to one, you realise if you had waited a bit longer you could have got a better model. THE WOMEN WON!!!
THE POSITIVE SIDE OF LIFE Living on Earth is expensive, but it does include a free trip around the sun every year.
How long is a minute? Depends on what side of the bathroom door you are on.
Birthdays are good for you, The more you have the longer you live.
Happiness comes through doors you didn’t even know you had left open.
Ever notice that people who are late are often jollier
Than the people who have to wait for them.
If Tesco’s are lowering prices every day how come nothing is free yet?
You may be the only person in the world, But you may also be the world to one person.
Some mistakes are too much fun to make only once. Back to top
Don’t cry because it is over, Smile because it happened.
We could learn a lot from crayons;
Some are sharp, and some are pretty,
Some are dull, some have weird names,
All are different colours……but, they all exist very nicely in the same box.
A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.
Have an awesome day, and know that someone who thinks you are great has thought about you today.
Working for God on Earth does not pay much, but his retirement plan is out of this world.
Comments Please drop me a letter or e-mail with your comments on my 1st attempt. Positive/Negative feedback would be welcomed. If you would like to send letters to the editor for publishing please do. Any other ideas for inclusion in future newsletters would be very much appreciated.
Best Regards Back to top
Iain
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