大象传媒

I was 16 when WW2 broke out. I left school to join the Post Office Engineering Department. I was in a reserved occupation until the age of twenty but during the intervening years, served with a local Home Guard unit and I also experienced German bombing raids on Birmingham.

At the age of twenty, I enlisted with the Royal Navy at HMS Royal Arthur, previously a Butlins holiday camp at Skegness.

Eventually, I trained in the torpedo branch and became a Petty Officer. As a Petty Officer I joined my first ship, HMS Wizard, a destroyer. (This ship had been rebuilt after blowing off its own stern during depth charge exercises.)

We were posted to join the Pacific fleet. Under my charge I had the maintenance of torpedos, an experimental magnetic compass and all the ship鈥檚 electrical systems except radio and radar.

On arrival at Perth, Western Australia, we were greeted with premature end of war celebrations.(It would seem that Japan had been trying to surrender for some considerabe time.)

We arrived at Sydney, New South Wales, a week later,in time for genuine peace celebrations.

From Sydney we set off for Tokyo Bay and arrived in time for the official signing of Japan鈥檚 capitulation, VJ Day.

Proceeding from Tokyo, HMS Wizard went to Hiroshima and Nagasaki. These were cities which, over the years, have incurred some 340,000 deaths from the blast and radiation of the atomic bombs. When I saw these cities they were but deserts of rubble with the occasional earthquake proof buildings left standing, as empty shells.

Our task then was to convey emaciated Australian prisoners of war back to Australia and salvation. Two such voyages were undertaken and then we proceeded to New Zealand.

There we engaged in a 鈥淪howing the Flag鈥� cruise around the ports of New Zealand, which lasted for one month. We were feted where-ever we went.

After that I joined HMS Reaper, a mine laying cruiser, and at that time the Royal Navy鈥檚 fastest ship, to go again toTokyo Harbour.

From Tokyo, I eventually wended my way back to my Devonport base, on various ships, via Ceylon and India, where I was 鈥渄emobbed鈥�.

This story was submitted to the People鈥檚 War site by Becky Barugh of the 大象传媒 Radio Shropshire CSV Action Desk on behalf of Allan Arthur Tucker and has been added to the site with his permission. The author fully understands the site's terms and conditions.

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