Submariners E-Book

Keith Hall

• Herausgeber: The History Press
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 100

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2006

Beschreibung

The Senior Service has, for a hundred years, had submarines. Originally thought to be Un-English, submarines helped us win two World Wars and have played a great part in Britain's nuclear deterrent for the past thirty years. Originally some of the small subs had crews of less than ten men, unlike today's nuclear behemoths with crews of almost one hundred. Submariners are a breed apart; ask any submariner and they'll tell you they think and act differently from the regular navy. Submariners is the story of the submarine service in the words of the men involved.

Leseprobe

SUBMARINERS

Real Life Stories From the Deep

SUBMARINERS

Real Life Stories From the Deep

All royalties from the sale of this book are being donated to the Submariners Memorial Fund and the Beatson Hospital, Glasgow

The Submariners Memorial Fund

This fund is managed for the exclusive use of submariners, by the Royal Naval Benevolent Fund (RNBT). Any submariner past or present in need of assistance can make a claim against both these funds.

The Beatson Oncology Centre Fund

This unit is the leading non-surgical cancer treatment centre for the west of Scotland. It i not only involved in the treatment of patients, but also in carrying out clinical and laboratory research into possible new treatments and possible causes of cancer. Anything supported by the fund would not otherwise be supported by the NHS and is used to pay for patient care and comfort, and the training and education of staff within the centre.

First published 2006

The History Press

The Mill, Brimscombe Port

Stroud, Gloucestershire, GL5 2QG

www.thehistorypress.co.uk

This ebook edition first published in 2013

All rights reserved

© Keith Hall 2006, 2013

The right of Keith Hall to be identified as the Author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

This ebook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights, and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.

EPUB ISBN 978 0 7509 5250 7

Original typesetting by The History Press

Contents

Acknowledgements

Foreword

Introduction

One:

Underhand, underwater – and damned un-English

Two:

Should be hung as pirates…

Three:

‘I say Number One, my end is diving… What the hell is your end doing?’

Four:

No occupation for a gentleman

Five:

Practically perfect in every way

Six:

It’s the same the whole world over…

Seven:

The submariners’ bond

Epilogue:

The case for the defence rests

Acknowledgements

Submariners’ stories are not intended for an audience of one or, even worse, for the sterile ear of a tape recorder so I am particularly grateful to the following people for sharing their stories with me and allowing me to use them in this book: Pip Cox, Tony Smyth, Hugh Porter, Andy Lawrence, John Pounder, Mark Fuller, Allan McLelland, Jim McMaster, Tony Dance, Jim Drew, Barry Gibb, Derek Lilliman, Steve Bridge, Grant Maloney. I have purposely not credited them in the text, they will know who they are; hopefully the regulating staff won’t.

I would like to thank the following organisations for permission to use their material and the waiving of their copyright fees.

AM Heath & Co. Ltd for permission to use extracts from Captain Compton-Halls book ‘Submarines and the War at Sea 1914 to 18’.

I am also indebted to:

Ellen Milgrew for typing the bulk of the manuscript. Ken Collins for allowing me to use the ‘Submariners Bond’.

Captain P. Walker Royal Navy (captain of the Faslane flotilla) for writing the foreword.

And Tempus Publishing for the opportunity to state and prove the case.

Finally, I ask for forgiveness from any contributors who may have been unintentionally omitted from these acknowledgements.

Foreword

I felt very honoured when Keith Hall asked me to write this foreword for his latest book, but was surprised when he revealed the subject matter. A collection of submariners’ dits (or anecdotes to the uninitiated), appeared to be a significant departure from the local history that has characterised his earlier, beautifully researched volumes. However, I quickly came to the conclusion that this was not really the case because such stories are a fundamental part of the history of our beloved submarine service; and we all recognise that it is churlish to allow strict observance of the absolute facts to get in the way of a good story!

These dits will strike a chord with all submariners, both serving and retired, but will only scratch the surface of a rich seam of stories that exists out there. Perhaps this book will lead to a sequel or two: I do hope so. It is also worthy of note that, as with his previous books, Keith Hall is donating all royalties to worthy causes, thus demonstrating that other, often unsung, trait of the submariner – generosity.

I could not conclude the foreword to such a book without contributing a story of my own and I can confirm that this is fact and not fiction! So here goes…

In the autumn of 1972, I was the Torpedo Officer of HMS Rorqual and we were taking part in a large NATO exercise up in the Norwegian Sea. Unfortunately, we suffered a succession of defects in short order, losing first the port diesel generator and then the starboard. With a rapidly depleting battery, a frigate was detached to stand by us and provide additional support including hot meals flown across by its Wasp helicopter. After some thirty-six hours, one generator was restored and we limped into Ramsfjordnes, the northern outpost of the Norwegian Navy, to fix the other. Accommodation ashore was rudimentary but very welcome after the unventilated conditions on-board and the knackered members of the ME Department were in better spirits the next morning. Having been on duty myself and staying on-board, I enquired of the SPO (stoker petty officer), a larger than life Cockney, how his first full night’s sleep for several days had been. ‘Aw right sir’ he said ‘but it took me half an hour to unpick me sleepin’ bag that some bleedin’ stupid Norwegian had stitched up.’This was clearly SPO’s first encounter with a duvet but I didn’t have the heart to tell him then! However, it illustrates quite well the fact that submariners are traditionally creatures of habit and are deeply suspicious of innovation.

Read on and enjoy.

Captain Pat Walker Royal Navy

Captain Faslane Flotilla

August 2005

Introduction

In a book about HMS Dolphin, the submariners’ spiritual home, I referred to the submariner as the ‘thinking man’s matelot’. The publisher has invited me to defend and explain this seemingly extravagant and surreal claim.

What makes the submariner so special? His renowned bravery really needs no further comment; nor do his stamina, intelligence, charm, devotion to duty and commitment to the service (a fact borne out by my service records, which over the years have failed to mention my stamina, intelligence, etc.). The mental tutoring the submariner receives in his formative years undoubtedly leaves its mark. The ‘been there, seen it, done it’ mentality ensures that wherever a submariner’s head may finish up, his feet are always firmly on the ground.

Daisy Adams and the young man from D2 are members of every submarine ship’s company and every Submarine Association branch. They are men that don’t belong in a world of performance indicators or productivity targets; they are men that are made not to be managed, but led and this, in part, helps to explain the close-knit, self-reliant community that is a submarine crew. It is a brotherhood that spans nations and generations; submariners are submariners the world over, and submariners are submariners regardless of when they served. While the language might change, and the once young bodies tend to mature, the ethos and the stories they give rise too, remain the same.

The submariners unique qualities can, perhaps, be best illustrated with the following, beyond all shadow of a doubt, true story:

During the Second World War a British submarine, operating in the Mediterranean, came under heavy depth charge attack. The chief stoker was mortally wounded during the attack. He fell to the control room deck, blood pouring from a gaping head wound.

‘Is that you SPO?’ mumbled the chief.

‘Yes chief’ replied the shocked SPO, cradling the injured chief stoker in his arms.

‘Is Stoker Grimshaw here?’

‘Yes chief’ cried Grimshaw as another depth charge exploded close to the port side.

‘…and young MEM (Marine Engineering Mechanic) Smith, is he with me?’ whispered the chief stoker.

‘Yes chief’ whimpered the young MEM, wiping a tear from his bloodshot eye, ‘Yes chief, I’m here.’

‘SPO, Grimshaw, Smith’ gasped the chief stoker, mustering all his rapidly failing strength, ‘then who the **** is on the panel?!’

It is not uncommon in the armed services, to claim that one regiment is better than another; one ship’s company is superior to another ship’s, even one country’s services are better than another’s. It is this unsolicited and unofficial rivalry that, in part, makes the British serviceman the best in the world. The only difference is that when a submariner says he’s the best, he is speaking from the enviable position of truth. It is worth repeating that the submariner, this human Turner Prize, is the chosen keeper of the ‘holy grail’ of all sea-going parables, the legendary ‘Revolving Bar’ dit.

Keith Hall

Tumbledown Cottage

one

Underhand, underwater – and damned un-English

It was not just that submarines and their crews did not fit into the class-ridden Edwardian Navy; there was also a fear that if submarines were accepted, they would render the stupendous British fleet obsolete (they would be cheaper and would require less crew) and it is hard to see the prestige of serving in a 50ft semi-submerged steel tube. That submarines were ‘considered the weapon of a weaker nation’ was just one of the arguments offered to preserve the primacy of the colossal surface fleet. Another tack to win the argument was to lay claim to the moral high ground; Admiral Cherry was of the opinion that all submariners should be ‘hung as pirates’. So the first submarines were obtained in order to merely assess them and, if truth be told, probably because the ‘old enemy’ France had them.

That said, the fledgling submarine service did little to endear itself to the Navy at large. The polished quarterdecks of the class-ridden surface fleet were not for submariners and conversely the smelly new-fangled craft crewed by ‘unwashed chauffeurs’ were not at all to the liking of the ‘gentlemen’ of the established Navy. The fact that gentlemen never dirtied their hands with a trade might account for the submariner’s nickname for his particular calling.

The beloved sea riders had been working up a submarine for several very long days, and hard though it is to believe, they had given the crew a particularly hard time. Just before they left they asked the chef if he could make them up backs to get out the fore ends. It ended up with a couple of us novice part threes shutting down the bulkhead just before the oxygen generator exploded. After surfacing to clear smoke and deal with the few small fires that had started in the compartment, we rather naively thought that the sea rider might just come back to us to apologise for his actions. Glad we didn’t hold our breath. But at least if nothing else, we realised that even the mighty screw up badly.

Submarine alongside at Devonport during CSST (Captain Sea Shore Training) inspection:

Inspecting officer: ‘Chief doc, where would you take your first reading in the event of a reactor core meltdown?’

CPOMA: ‘Preston sir!’

Inspecting officer: ‘Don’t be stupid chief.’

CPOMA: ‘Who’s being stupid sir?’

A CSST officer for some reason finished every question with ‘Batman’. He asked the console operator: ‘Why have we got two ballast pumps Batman?’

System console operator: ‘One for me and one for Robin sir!’