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NAVY NEWS, JUNE 2000
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Fast work by Harry of the Protector I FEEL I must write and tell you about a most extraordinary man I had the pleasure to meet at the inaugural reunion of the HMS Protector Association. Harry Bates was a leading telegraphist on board HMS protector from 1939-41. Off Crete Protector was struck by an aerial torpedo and the ship lost way and all power and was unable to send out an SOS. Harry was in the washroom at the time of impact and with just a towel round him he climbed the mast and rigged up an aerial, connected up the transmitter to some batteries and managed to send out a successful SOS. If anyone saved our ship, it was certainly him, and Protector survived the war and served in the Antarctic from 1955-68. Harry could send and receive Morse signals at an incredible speed - in German and Russian as well as English - and he went on to Bletchley Park to work on the German Enigma encoding machine. - Bill Bartlett, Christchurch, Dorset. • HMS Protector in company with HMY Britannia during the Duke of Edinburgh's Antarctica Tour in January, 1957 (From The Navy in the News)
Chaplain's shame CONCERNING your article on Tristan da Cunha (April issue), during World War II I, like thousands of others, was conscripted into the RN and sent to HMS Royal Arthur. Our chaplain was the Rev. H. Wilde who prior to his arrival in Skegness was "major-domo" in the loneliest place in the world. He let it he known that if any philatelists among us would like a Tristan stamp, they would receive one if they presented themselves at his office with a blank envelope, which I did. Mr Wilde produced from his desk drawer a rubber stamp which he pressed on a mauvish coloured ink pad, then franked my envelope. This I was assured was the only form of postage stamp on the island at that time. As well as PMG, Mr Wilde seemed to have all the duties ascribed to the Naval Surgeon lieutenant commander who came after him. Possibly the reason why, after
the war, Tristan had no official postage system was that the reverend gentleman had taken it with him into the Navy. Incidentally, I progressed from Royal Arthur to the Royal Naval Patrol Service. I have tried to find this service on IT, but keying in RNPS only produces the Royal Naval Philatelic Society. - H. Crago, Hemcl Hempstead, Herts. The RNPS may be located on www.harry-tates.org.uk - Ed
Type" VI""
1936-1946 • A postal cachet of the type used at Tristan da Cunha before the war - possibly the one pinched by the Rev Wilde!
FIELD GUN equipment used by the Royal Navy in the popular competition that ended with the demise of the Royal Tournament last year has been handed over on loan to the Royal Armouries Fort Nelson Museum at Portsmouth. The spectacular display, which was inspired by the transport of Naval guns overland to the Relief of Ladysmith in the Boer War, saw guns and limbers manhandled by 18 men over 5ft walls and 28ft chasms. • Cdre Adrian Munns, Commodore HMS Excellent, formally hands over one of the Navy's field guns to (left to right) Keeper of Royal Armouries Nicholas Hall, Vice Chairman of the Portsmouth Field Gun Association Norman Slingsby and Chairman of the Association Peter Scott.
Letters US pigeon fanciers TUGG's insight into Jack's experience with the uninformed public is displayed in his wonderful April cartoon in which Jack claims with sarcasm to be a bus conductor and is accepted as such. In 1943 I passed out in the 45th Pilot's Course at Kingston, Ontario and was granted permission to wear the pilot's badge and duly sewed the treasured wings on to the sleeve of my Leading Airman's square rig. Their Lordships, always with an eye to saving a few coppers, delayed the award of a commission until after the return Atlantic crossing so that we could travel steerage (instead of First Class along with the RAF pilots on the troopship) but granted us seven days' leave in North America as a reward.
In New York the uniform attracted the attention of the young ladies at the Stage Door Canteen and the United Services Organisation, but led to our rejection as lying line-shooters when we claimed to be Fleet Air Arm pilots, since everyone knew that US Navy Cadet pilots were commissioned even before they won their wings and wore them on their chests, not their arms. To make the best of a bad job, we changed our tack and claimed to be "Carrier pigeon operators first class", whereupon we met with universal approval and were granted appropriate favours. - S. t. Brand, Crowthornc, Berks.
Parting shot recalled ON THE eve of D-Day I was on board HMS Bleasdale, the flotilla leader of the 1st Destroyer Flotilla. We were anchored in the Solent before escorting large ships and landing craft across to France. While this was happening cruisers at our stern were bombarding Caen. Later in the afternoon we returned to Portsmouth to escort HMS Warspite across to bombard Caen into submission. At night we patrolled against E-boats and human torpedoes. An alarm was sounded when an object was spotted dead ahead coming towards us. The torpedo passed down on our starboard side. The German sailor slid or jumped off after firing. He was yanked on board by our motor boat's crew, given a shower, change of clothing and a warm breakfast. On leaving he gave a hearty smile and the thumbs up - obviously glad to be out of it. - A. C. Nelson, Partick, Glasgow.
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