“Navy Saves Convoy in Arctic Battle”, “Pilots Fought When Frozen to Their Cockpits”, “Convoy Fights the Enemy in 80 mph Gale”, Convoy Beats Planes, U-boats In 90 mph Gale”.
There may have been a bit of hyperbole in this; but there was also some good factual reporting.
“During the double passage,” wrote The Times, “weather of exceptional severity was encountered, and in storms with gusts of over 100 mph all ships had difficulty keeping their stations. Twice under the stress of weather the convoy became scattered, but each time it was successfully reformed. … The finest achievement of the whole convoy was the flying of fighters from HMS Nairana, when her bows were dipping under huge waves and her screws cleared the water each time she tossed up her stern. Thanks to the able handling of the ship and the flying skill of the pilots, the planes got down safely.”
And this is a good note to end on: “the able handling of the ship and the flying skill of the pilots”. For it was this bonding of carrier and squadron which made Nairana and 835, by the end of the war in Europe, such an effective fighting unit. As I said in my Introduction: “She was our ship. We were her squadron.” Like many a husband and wife, our relationship was not without its ups and downs, but when we pulled together we were, to quote The Odyssey, “a great comfort to our friends, and a great grief to our foes”.
It was of course the drawing to an end of the war in Europe which heralded the end of 835 Squadron, for there was no way that our Swordfish could have been used against the Japanese in the Pacific. We stayed together for roughly another month, most of the time at Hatston, then briefly venturing again towards the Norwegian fjords with the idea of carrying out another shipping strike, only to find that this operation too had to be called off because of bad weather.
On our return from Norway, on 28 March, 1945, we received a signal that the Squadron was to be disbanded.
Although this was something that many of us had been half-expecting, it was nonetheless a shock to have it spelt out in black and white. We weren’t sure whether to laugh or cry; laugh because we had come to the end of the road and were still alive, or cry because the friendships we had made and the camaraderie we had enjoyed were about to become things of the past.
There were some last rites: a last party in the wardroom, with Surtees, all bonhomie, singing “Fly off, fly off for Christ’s sake, the Captain wants a gong!”; a last beat up of the Fleet at anchor in Scapa Flow, with the most pukkah warships singled out for our most outrageous low flying and acrobatics; and finally our Swordfish and Wildcats flown for the last time to Evanton or Abbot to be “mothballed”. It was like saying goodbye to old friends. We disbanded on 1 April.
The evening before, we had packed our personal gear from our cabins in the Nairana, collected our flying gear for the last time from the Ready Room and had a last quick drink in the wardroom bar. The carrier was moored to the jetty at Greenock, off the Tail O’ the Bank and next morning we went ashore to start a most welcome spell of indefinite leave before taking up our next appointments. When we got to Glasgow we couldn’t think why all the church bells were ringing until we suddenly realized it was Easter Sunday. This seemed a bit symbolic, and a good many of us ended up in the Cathedral. After the Service we went our separate ways. And this, we told ourselves, must surely be the end of the Squadron story. We never thought there would be a postscript.
6
ENVOI
Maybe old squadrons are like old soldiers – they never die, they only fade away. For here some of us are, exactly fifty years after the disbanding of 835 Naval Air Squadron having a reunion to celebrate the publishing of our story.
This gives me the excuse for some up-dates. After the defeat of Germany it was agreed that the spoils of war should be divided into three: a third to Great Britain, a third to the USA and a third to Russia. Included in these spoils were 156 U-boats which had surrendered to the Royal Navy. With the prospect of a “Cold War” already in the offing, Churchill was reluctant to hand over a third of these potentially dangerous U-boats to the Russians. It was therefore decided to destroy them. In an operation codenamed “Deadlight”, the U-boats were towed 300 miles into the Atlantic and sunk by carrierborne aircraft. The carrier chosen for this somewhat macabre task was, ironically, the Nairana; “ironically” because she was about the only carrier in the Navy which hadn’t sunk a U-boat throughout the whole of the war. She now sank 156 in three weeks! Soon after this she was transferred to the Royal Netherlands Navy where she served for three years as the Karel Dorman, before being converted to a cargo-carrying merchant ship, the MV Port Victor. Under this name she sailed for more than twenty years with the Port Line, latterly between Southampton and Wellington. Sometimes, as she lay at anchor in the harbour of New Zealand’s capital city, a visitor would be welcomed aboard, an elderly man with a Scottish accent: Commander Edwardson was checking that “his” engines were still being well cared for.
Once she called at Dunedin, and my young son James and I went aboard to be warmly welcomed by the Captain. Among other things, he showed us a plaque in the main lounge which commemorated Port Victor’s wartime career as an escort-carrier. He also showed my son the ship’s hooter and invited him to sound it. Since James was only six, he needed no urging and swung on the rope for a full twenty seconds – much to the consternation of the good citizens of Dunedin!
The Nairana/Karel Dorman/Port Victor ended her days, like many grand old vessels before her which had worn themselves out in service, in the shipbreakers’ yards. On 21 July, 1971, she was delivered to British Breakers. By 7 August, 1971, all that remained of her were memories.
Perhaps Surtees ought to have an up-date too. He was awarded a bar to his DSO, and went on to fulfil a not unimportant role in naval operations in the Pacific. He remains an enigma. Many squadron aircrew whose judgement I respect are convinced he was unbalanced. That may be. Yet I am reminded of the words of the French poet, Alfred de Vigny: “Il faut toujours exiger des hommes plus qu’ils peuvent faire afin d’en avoir”, which could be roughly translated as “if you want men to do all that is possible, you must ask them to do the impossible.” So I suppose you might argue that, by his unreasonable demands, Surtees brought out the best in us. At any rate, I prefer my last thoughts on him to be charitable. One of our observers, David Beal, subsequently met him in the Far East; they kept in touch and on 19 April, 1947, Surtees wrote in a letter to David:
“I hope you realize how much I admired 835 Squadron. Perhaps I did not always show it at the time, but so often I was worn out and worried which made me irritable. It is entirely due to you and the other lads that I got a bar to my DSO – and I realize it full well.”
These are not, I suggest, the words of the devil incarnate.
I will spare my wartime friends their blushes by embarking on an update on them, but since this is their story, the last words should surely be theirs. I started writing Alone in a Wide, Wide Sea largely to satisfy myself. I had retired. I had time on my hands. I’d read books about the Air Arm I wasn’t too happy with. I wanted to put the record straight, to get across what it was really like to fly in the Fleet Air Arm. My wartime colleagues buckled-to to help me. I’ve literally a suitcase full of letters, diaries, reminiscences and photographs sent from all over the world. When, a couple of years ago, I showed some of my friends my first draft, I was surprised not that they all thought it awful but that they all thought it awful for different reasons! “You should be more formal”, wrote Hank Housser, “and give everyone their proper rank. We want this to be an official history.” “Must you be so formal?” wrote Eric McEwan, “just get across that a lot of the time a lot of us simply had fun.” Val Jones reckoned it ought to be stated categorically that our Captain was mad. “Personally,” wrote George Sadler, “I always got on very well with Captain Surtees.” It didn’t take me long to realize that we all saw things differently. So what I have tried to do is chart a fair and balanced course between the minefields of many conflicting opinions. Ho
wever, two of our aircrew, one an observer and one a pilot, made comments that we are all agreed on.
“We don’t,” Johnny Lloyd told me firmly, “want any heroics. Just tell people that we had a job to do and we did it and that was that.”
“Looking back,” John Cridland wrote, “I think we did a competent job – and that goes for both aircrew and groundcrew. As I remember it, 835 was a good squadron.”
Let that be our epitaph.
APPENDIX I
Commanding Officers of 835 Squadron
LtCdr. M. Johnstone, DSC, RN ..... Jan ’42 – April ’42
Lt (then LtCdr.) J.R. Lang, RN ..... April ’42 – July’43
LtCdr. W.N. Waller, RN ..... July ’43 – Dec ’43
LtCdr(A) T.T. Miller, RN ..... Dec ’43 – Feb ’44
Lt(A) (then LtCdr) E.E. Barringer, RNVR ..... Feb ’44 – Aug ’44
LtCdr(A) F.V. Jones, RNVR ..... Aug ’44 – Jan ’45
LtCdr(A) J.R. Godley, RNVR ..... Jan ’45 – March ’45
APPENDIX II
Pilots and Observers serving in 835 Squadron
(F = fighter pilot – Sea Hurricane or Wildcat: TBR = torpedo bomber reconnaissance pilot – Swordfish)
Pilots
Name Rank and date on joining Rank and date on leaving
C. Allen (F) S/Lt(A)RNZVR Aug ’43 S/Lt(A)RNZVR Dec ’43
O.K. Armitage (F) S/Lt(A)RNZVR Dec ’43 Lt(A)RNZVR March ’45
K.W. Atkinson (F) S/Lt(A)RNVR June ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
P.H. Blanco (F) S/Lt(A)RNVR June ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
R.H. Brown (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR June ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
R. Bullen (F) Mid(A)RNVR July ’43 S/Lt(A)RNVR Aug ’43
A.R. Burgham (F) S/Lt(A)RNZVR July ’43 Lt(A)RNZVR March ’45
A. Costello (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR April ’43 S/Lt(A)RNVR Feb ’44
S. Cowsill (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR Oct ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
J. Cramp (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNZVR Aug ’42 S/Lt(A)RNZVR March ’43
J.E. Cridland (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR April ’43 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
C. Cross (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR April ’43 S/Lt(A)RNVR Sept ’43
J.F. Defrates (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR July ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
D.J. Edwards (F) S/Lt(A)RNVR Feb ’45 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
W.E.F. Elliott (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’43 Lt(A)RNVR May ’44
J.R. Godley (TBR) LtCdr(A)RNVR Jan ’45 LtCdr(A)RNVR March ’45
G.D. Gordon (F) S/Lt(A)RNVR Dec ’43 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
C.F. Gough (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR Dec ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
J. Henshelwood (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
H.C.K. Housser (TBR) Lt(A)RCNVR May ’42 Lt(A)RCNVR June ’43
J. Hunt (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR Jan ’42 Lt(A)RVNR June ’44
M. Johnstone (TBR) LtCdr. RN Jan ’42 LtCdr. RN April ’42
H.G. Jones (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR Jan ’42 Lt(A)RNVR April ’43
W. Mayson (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
E.H. McEwan (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR July ’43 S/Lt(A)RNVR Jan ’45
R.G. McLaughlin (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNZVR Aug ’43 S/Lt(A)RNZVR Sept ’44
S.A. Mearns (F) S/Lt(A)RNVR July’43 Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
D.B. Millar (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR Jan ’45 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
I.L.T. Miller (F) S/Lt(A)RNVR June ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR Dec ’44
J.T. Miller (TBR) LtCdr(A)RN Dec ’43 LtCdr(A)RN Feb ’44
R. Moss (F) S/Lt(A)RNVR Jan ’45 S/Lt(A)RNVR Jan ’45
E. McG. Murray (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNZVR July ’44 S/Lt(A)RNZVR Jan ’45
L.W.H. Paine (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR Jan ’45 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
D.G. Payne (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR Dec ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
P.H. Picot (F) S/Lt(A)RNZVR July ’43 S/Lt(A)RNZVR Jan ’44
E. Pitts (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR May ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR Jan ’45
J. Provis (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR July ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
C. Richardson (F) S/Lt(A)RNVR Dec ’43 S/Lt(A)RNVR May ’44
J.P. Roffy (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR Nov ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
J. Rogers (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR Jan ’45 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
G. Sadler (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR April ’42 Lt(A)RNVR Nov ’44
N. Sargent (P) S/Lt(A)RNVR Dec ’43 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
R.P. Selley (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR April ’42 Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
R. Shirley-Smith (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR Jan ’42 Lt(A)RNVR Sept ’43
G.C. Summers (TBR) Lt(A)RNVR Jan ’45 Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
J.S. Supple (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR April ’43 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
J.F. Urquhart (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR May ’42 Lt(A)RNVR May ’44
P. Urwin (TBR) Lt(A)RN July ’44 Lt(A)RN March ’45
W.N. Waller (F) Lt.RN July ’43 LtCdrRN Dec ’43
F. Wallis (F) S/Lt(A)RNVR May ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR July ’44
K. Warren (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR July ’44
D.W. Whittick (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR Oct ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
K. Wilmot (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR Sept ’43 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’44
H.R.D. Wilson (TBR) S/Lt(A)RNVR Sept ’43 S/Lt(A)RNVR Jan ’45
D. Yate (F) S/Lt(A)RNVR July ’43 S/Lt(A)RNVR Aug ’43
Observers
Name Rank and date on joining Rank and date on leaving
G. Arber S/Lt(A)RNVR Sept ’43 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’44
E.E. Barringer S/Lt(A)RNVR Jan ’42 LtCdr(A)RNVR Aug ’44
D.W. Beal S/Lt(A)RNVR July ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
J.S. Bevan S/Lt(A)RNVR June ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
W. Buckie Lt(A)RNVR April ’43 Lt(A)RNVR July ’44
W. Cairns S/Lt(A)RNVR Aug ’43 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’44
G. Clewett S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
J. Dalton S/Lt(A)RNVR April ’43 S/Lt(A)RNVR Feb ’44
J.V.H., Eames S/Lt(A)RNVR July ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
P. Grady Lt(A)RCNVR Feb ’45 Lt(A)RCNVR March ’45
K. Hall S/Lt(A)RNVR June ’43 S/Lt(A)RNVR Feb ’45
R.F. Hankin S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
R. Henshall S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’43 S/Lt(A)RNVR May ’43
L.M. Holley S/Lt(A)RNVR Oct ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
R.V. Jones LtCdr(A)RNVR July ’44 LtCdr(A)RNVR July ’44
J.R. Lang Lt.RN April ’42 LtCdr.RN Sept ’43
R. Legood Lt(A)RNVR Aug ’44 Lt(A)RNVR Jan ’45
A.R.J. Lloyd S/Lt(A)RNVR May ’43 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
J.M. McCormick S/Lt(A)RNVR Aug ’42 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’43
J.L. McEwan S/Lt(A)RNVR July ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
D.O’D. Newbery Mid(A)RNVR May ’42 S/Lt(A)RNVR Nov ’44
J. Parker S/Lt(A)RNVR Jan ’42 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’43
D.J. Ravenhill S/Lt(A)RNVR May ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
J.S. Robert S/Lt(A)RNVR Jan ’45 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
G. Rose S/Lt(A)RNVR July ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
S. Smith S/Lt(A)RNVR April ’43 S/Lt(A)RNVR Sept ’43
R.A. Stiff S/Lt(A)RNVR Nov ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
S.G. Strong S/Lt(A)RNVR Sept ’43 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
J.G. Teesdale S/Lt(A)RNVR Jan ’42 Lt(A)RNVR July ’44
E.V. Thomas S/Lt(A)RNVR April ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR Oct ’44
S.H. Thomas S/Lt(A)RNVR Jan ’42 Lt(A)RNVR June ’44
J.B. Winstanley S/Lt(A)RNVR May ’42 S/Lt(A)RNVR April ’44
P.F. Worrell S/Lt(A)RNVR Oct ’44 S/Lt(A)RNVR March ’45
N. Wylie S/Lt(A)RNVR Jan ’45 S/Lt(A)RNVR Feb ’45
APPENDIX III
AWARDS TO 835 NAVAL AIR SQUADRON
AND TO THE AIR DEPARTMENT OF HMS NAIRANA
APPENDIX IV
Aircraft flown on carrier based operations
SEA HURRICANE
Technical Data
Description: Single-seat carrier-borne fighter.
Metal construction with metal and fabric covering.
Manufacturers: Hawker Aircraft Ltd., Kingston-on-Thames; conversion by General Aircraft Ltd.
Power Plant: One 1.460 Rolls Royce Merlin XX.
Dimensions: Span 40 feet; length 32 ft. 3”; height 13 ft. 3”; wing area 258 sq. ft. The Sea Hurricane’s wings could not be folded; this was a serious disadvantage when operating from a carrier.
Weight: Empty 5,800 lbs; loaded 7,800 lbs.
Armament: Four 20mm cannon in wings.
Performance: maximum speed 300 mph at 21,000 ft; cruising 200–220 mph; climb to 20,000 ft. 9½mts; range 460 miles (normal) 960 miles (with auxiliary tanks); service ceiling 28,000 ft.
Throughout the whole of the Second World War the Air Arm never had an adequate purpose-built British fighter. In 1945 its squadrons were equipped with:
(a) British-built twin-seater fighters of inherently low performance (Fulmars and Fireflies): 8%.
(b) Adapted RAF fighters which per se were excellent planes but which had serious shortcomings when it came to operating from a carrier (Sea Hurricanes and Seafires): 20%.
(c) Fighters designed and built for the US Navy and bought from America (Wildcats, Hellcats and Corsairs): 72%.
Of the British-built fighters Sea Hurricanes were arguably the best. (Fulmars and Fireflies were often slower than the bombers they were expected to intercept and shoot down, while Seafires, with their narrow undercarriage and long-bladed propeller, were too fragile and had too short a range for the rough and tumble of work from a carrier. For every Seafire lost through enemy action twenty were lost taking-off or landing-on.) Sea Hurricanes were more robust, although they too had shortcomings; by the time they reached the Navy most were already old, survivors from the Battle of Britain, and their wings couldn’t be folded, which meant they took up an inordinate amount of room and were difficult to manoeuvre between flight-deck and hangar.
In spite of these limitations, Sea Hurricanes did sterling work with the Air Arm, particularly in the Atlantic. At a time when the war at sea was going badly, they provided much-needed air cover for our convoys, by operating from escort carriers, MAC ships (Merchant Aircraft Carriers) and CAM ships (Catapult Aircraft Merchantmen). Flying from the latter was particularly hazardous; a pilot would be catapulted off in mid-ocean, knowing he had no hope of landing, but that having made his interception he would have to bail out and hope to be rescued by one of the ships in convoy.
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