大象传媒

There are no good memories in war, I was at sea from 1942 until 1946 (Gun Boats LCGL - No. 7 / No. 17) and can never forget the conditions.

We all worked long cold nights on watch and I can always remember the ships being damp and the walls dripping with condensation.

However, everybody was in the same situation and we were well off compared to others. In particular those people in Russian convoys, who were in terrible conditions.

Imagine being hit by waves of up to 50 - 60 foot during the night - your ship would go along like a surf board and so many turned over because of these conditions.

Our ship never turned over or sunk, but you would see a fleet of six ships go out, and then maybe only two would return.

During these years at sea we fought all the way up through Italy, and then back down to Malta. Many boats sunk off the coast of Malta during the period of 42 - 43. I remember arriving in the harbour of Malta and seeing oil everywhere, the coast line completely swamped. People in this region deserved their George's Cross...

It was particularly difficult in these conditions, and I remember how sweltering it would become in the Middle East. All the decks on the ships were steel plated and you burnt your feet to blisters! We had to make slippers out of platinum, just like metal flip flops!

I also remember everything on the ships being done with buckets. The bucket was your best friend.

Like I said before, there are no good memories in war, you just wanted to get home safely. You never felt safe out at sea, but you never had time to feel scared. You were always busy on the boat, either on watch or helping out.

It was difficult, everytime we went into action, we were asked to sign our 'last willing testiment'.

I'll never forget filling out those forms.

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