大象传媒

This article is a transcription of a book written by Jack Taylor who served in the Royal Navy throughout World War 2. Jack saw service in a wide range of ships and in many theatres of the war. Another article, written by Jack, about the loss of H.M.S. Hood can be found on the H.M.S. Hood web site www.hmshood.com

A Destroyer and Aircraft Carrier at War
Chapter 8, Carrier service

Our passage to the U.K. was mainly taken up with drills and evolutions such as how quick could we prepare to tow ship for鈥檃rd? This meant we had to cat the anchor by attaching it to the cathead (hence, 鈥榗at the anchor鈥�). We then laid out in order on deck all lines, hawsers and wired ready for towing. Another evolution was striking topmast. This we practiced quite often and I found out why when we arrived in the Firth of Forth, heading for the port of Rosyth. We had to pass under the Forth Bridge and our topmast was too high to go under the bridge. About 500 yards from the bridge, the order rang our 鈥淪trike Topmast!鈥�. One man up top reefing mast rope at the base of the topmast and the spectacle band holding the top is loosened. The mast rope is passed down to men waiting below. Then the order 鈥淪way away!鈥� (lower). The men haul on the rope and up went the topmast clearing the spectacle band and once under the bridge the order 鈥淗aul Away!鈥� and up goes the topmast and the man up top guides it back into the spectacle band and secures it.

Arriving at Rosyth we commenced to disarm and unload ship as she was going out of service. Having cleared the ship we were then escorted down the west coast to the great port of Southampton where the ship鈥檚 company was paid off. I was to stay behind as Lading Seaman of the Care and Maintenance party not only the 鈥淩esolution鈥� but our sister ship the 鈥淩evenge鈥� which was also lying alongside.

After four weeks we were drafted back to Chatham Barracks and civilians took over the ships. After checking into Barracks I managed to get a few days鈥� leave around Christmas 1943 at home 鈥� the first in three years. I had a very happy Christmas and went back to barracks arriving on the Friday 31st December 1943. I was then detailed for the barrack guard which suited me very well. I relieved the Leading Seaman of the guard on Saturday and prepared for a duty weekend, the usual comings and goings through the gate. Checking passes. Also checking the guards with the Officer of the day. On Sunday 2nd January 1944 I was in the Guard Office reading the daily Orders when a messenger from the post room arrived and handed me a telegram. It was from my mother: 鈥淒ad passed away. Come if possible.鈥� As I was reading it the Duty Officer came in and said, 鈥淪omething wrong Leading Seaman?鈥� I passed him the Telegram, he read it and said 鈥淪orry鈥� and went out.

About 20 minutes later he came back and said the Senior Officer wants to see you he took me to the Commander鈥檚 Office. The Commander sympathised with me and said, 鈥淗ave you any leave to come?鈥� I said, 鈥淣o, Sir. I have just returned from two weeks鈥� foreign service leave.鈥� He said, 鈥淎ny other family at home?鈥� I said, 鈥淣o, Sir. My eldest brother is Chief Inspector of Armaments at Woolwich Arsenal and his whereabouts I don鈥檛 know. My brother was at El Alamein with the Highland Division.鈥� The commander thought for a moment, then said to the Officer of the Guard, 鈥淎rrange travel and ration cards at once. I think we can stretch your Foreign Service Leave another 9 days.鈥� I thanked him and two hours later I was on my way home again. Arriving on Monday I was able to help with the funeral arrangements. I buried my father on the Friday and, on returning home from the service, a Telegram was awaiting me to return to Barracks at once as I was on draft back to sea. I was CR2 rating in Navy terms, a rangetaker, part of gunnery control and my new position was in the armoured director control onboard 鈥淚llustrious鈥� a fine aircraft carrier.

Having taken my position and also as Leading Seaman of No. 4 mess we were soon on our way to the far East, a formidable task force of three carriers: 鈥淚llustrious,鈥� 鈥淰ictorious鈥� and 鈥淚ndomitable鈥� plus several cruisers and destroyer escorts.

We were attacked several times on passage through the Med. But our own aircraft were capable of taking care of us. The three aircraft carriers were flying off Seafire and Corsair Fighters and we also had Barracuda Torpedo Bombers. We had a short stay in Alexandria and managed a short run ashore where all the natives had only one word: 鈥淏aksheesh鈥� which is where the word 鈥渂uckshee鈥� originates. The only other words we managed to learn were 鈥淪hufti bint鈥� which means 鈥渓ook, nice girl鈥� and the men calling it were pimps touting!

Alexandria was to me a dirty stinking hole and I was glad when we sailed for Port Said where we shipped a pilot to take us through the Suez Canal. The weather was getting very hot and we were moving very slowly because the banks are only sand and we did not want them to collapse into the canal. Passing Ismalia and on to the Bitter Lakes where we saw several Italian ships which were interned and on the shore was an Italian P.O.W. Camp, what a place. Heat, smells and flies. Hard luck on them. Our lads in their camp were not having a picnic. On we went to Suez and on into the Red Sea passing the Gates of Hell and stopping at Aden waiting for the whole of our Task Force to arrive through the canal.

We stayed at Aden for 48 hours and then the Task Force formed up again and sailed off into the Indian Ocean on our way to Columbo in Ceylon. The heat was terrific. Below decks was like a sweat box and most of us slept on the upper deck at night. It was too hot to sling our hammocks. During the day flying fish were in abundance and the war seemed very far away. Our journey was uneventful.

Columbo was still as I had left it 10 months before when I was in the 鈥淩esolution.鈥� We stayed there for a few days and had a few days鈥� shore leave to sink a few pints and meet a few oppos from other ships. Having restored ship, taken on oil fuel and high octane for our aircraft, with water tanks full all our crew were back, no deserters and nobody adrift we were ready once more for sea and back into the war.

From Columbo we went to the naval base at Trincomalee. When we entered harbour there were ships everywhere, Battleships 鈥淨ueen Elizabeth鈥� and 鈥淰aliant鈥� as well as cruisers, destroyers, submarines and a floating dock. Our three aircraft carriers and escorts were a great fleet and it was a wonderful sight.

One of my duties in harbour was coxwain of the 2nd motor boat and it was a busy time shuttling between various ships and the shore. Trincomalee was a beautiful place, a natural harbour with trees and bouganville flowers of pinks, mauves and yellows. The scent was out of this world.

It was March 31st and it was not long before we were back at sea with a strong naval force and heading towards Sumatra. We were two weeks at sea when we met the Fleet Train comprising of oilers, ammunition ships and store ships with Escort Carriers. Having taken on fuel at sea and more stores, we turned away for an attack on the oilfield at Sabang in Sumatra. For several days our aircraft bombed and strafed Sabang leaving it utterly destroyed. We were some 50 miles out at sea waiting to take on our aircraft and, at that distance, we could see smoke high in the air. Just before our aircraft arrived back four Corsair fighters took off and were patrolling overhead whilst we landed on aircraft. All our planes came back, though a few had holes in them where they had been hit by flack from the Japanese gunners. Having landed all our strike planes, we turned and headed out to sea at full speed and we closed up at Action Stations and waited for the counter attack by the Japs. Fortunately it was late afternoon and also getting dusk and we were getting further away and a counter attack did not come (sighs of relief.)

Come dawn we were some 200 miles out from Sumatra with the ship鈥檚 company back at cruising stations but on yellow alert in case of long range bombers. The next day we turned round again and went for another attack. This time at Sourabaya in Java. This time we were fighting for many hours beating off aircraft torpedo attackers and dive bombers. Our multiple Pom Pom guns were red hot and our 4.7s were throwing out empty brass shell cases everywhere and every time there was a lull we threw them overboard to clear the gun platforms. Our ammunition crews were working in sweltering heat below decks sending up hundreds of shells. Back came our aircraft, circling to land, refuel, ammunition and fly off again for another strike. During the lull we had time for a quick sandwich and a cuppa (good old cookie). The junior cooks were moving around the gun crews with cool drinking water. For several more hours and into the night we attacked Sourabaya. We lost several planes and two pilots baled out and were picked up by our destroyers. We also had a Walrus flying boat on board and it was airborne and waiting to pick up any other pilots who had to ditch their planes.

As we moved through the Indian Ocean we attacked Port Blair in the Adnanian Islands in the Bay of Bengal and most of the advanced Jap bases in the Indian Ocean including the Palambang oil instillations. Day after day Flying off, flying on, Action Stations and the weather was heat all day. The only respite was at night when we had a cool breese and were able to snatch a few hours sleep. We had lost 9 planes and four pilots. 5 had been fished out of the Ocean by our rescue plane and a destroyer. We proceeded out to sea and onward towards the Pacific via the Straits of Malacca turning into the Makassar Straits and up to the Philippines and to the island of Leyte where we joined up with the British Pacific Fleet under the command of Admiral Vian who was flying his flag in the aircraft carrier 鈥淰ictorious鈥� 鈥� our sister ship. With the carrier 鈥淚ndomitable鈥� we made a very strong force with the rest of the fleet including cruisers and destroyers.

Jack's Story continues in Chapter 9: In the Pacific with Nimitz

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