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The next major action, which I recall, was of the Fleet in action in the Sicilian Channel.
The ships, which formed the force on this occasion, consisted of seven destroyers, three of the F class, including the Firedrake, together with the Ark Royal aircraft carrier, the battleship Barham, and three “ Town “ class cruisers. The destination was the channel between Sicily and Tunisia to cover the passage of a convoy of merchant ships to Malta .The journey was fine until we approached the narrow part near to the island of Pantellaria. This was invariably the area where the Italian aircraft made their attack. On this occasion the attack was from a formation of some 50 to 60 planes. I remember taking a look at their approach and seeing the strict formation they kept even though all the Naval escorts fired their A.A guns when within range.

I have included a copy of an actual photograph I possess (the Ark Royal had a photographic unit as part of its intelligence resource and I had the chance to buy copies from time to time. They survived with me providentially.)

This was my first experience with the Fleet in action and was by no means as hazardous as the bombing by dive-bombers at Dunkirk. I knew that the big ships were the prime targets. The Italian tactics of dropping all the bombs together in formation was quite spectacular as the bombs exploded in unison. There was always the worry that ships might be hit as they vanished behind the huge spray towers. And we waited till the spray vanished to check the result. This time we all escaped unscathed.
The return to Gibraltar was made without incident and my confidence in my job as quartermaster increased. I regarded this as my first notable step to becoming a trained sailor. It was about this time also that I was made an able seaman in rank. I was classified up till then as an ordinary seaman and should have been made A.B (the short designation for an able seaman) earlier. However, as I have recorded, all my records were lost in the Princess Victoria and had to be replaced. My first promotion had arrived at last. The date was around the middle of November and the weather had lost its Mediterranean warmth.

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