Scousesubs

Commander I.A. (Iain) Fraser. VC. DSC. RD and Bar

18th December 1920 - 1st September 2008

President of Merseyside Branch

Submarine Service: 08/41-12/46.
Submarines:- P35 H28 H43 H44 Sahib X Craft.

In the summer of 1945 the Allied staffs in South-East Asia were planning Operation Zipper - the liberation of Singapore and Malaya. Although the war in Europe had ended in May, Japan had not surrendered, and her forces still held the island and peninsula occupied in 1942. For security reasons the planners were denied any hint of the imminent explosion of the first atomic bomb over Hiroshima. Hence, they were preparing an assault landing in northwest Malaya and the elimination of any Japanese naval units which might try to intercept it.
The Japanese cruisers Takao and Mikyo were sighted at anchor in the Straits of Johore between Singapore and the mainland. The depot ship of the 14th Submarine Flotilla, HMS Bonaventure with six XE-craft (four-man midget submarines) in her hold, was given orders to launch XE-craft attacks to sink or disable them.
XE3, captained by Lieutenant Ian Fraser, DSC, RNR, with Leading Seaman James Magennis as crew and frogman, was assigned to attack the Takao by attaching limpet mines to her hull. Four days out from Bonaventure's base off Labuan island, XE3 slipped her tow from the submarine Stygian and began an entry to the Singapore Channel from the east shortly before midnight on July 30. Fraser faced 40 miles of difficult passage to his objective through minefields, a buoyed anti-submarine boom and Japanese hydrophone listening posts and surface patrols.
Contrary to intelligence reports the navigation buoys marked on his charts were unlit, so Fraser spent two hours sitting astride the mini-submarine's outer casing scanning his course ahead with binoculars. By 02.00 hours on the morning of the 31st, XE3 had passed the known hydrophone posts then, so as to avoid detection by any others, he decided to leave the safe channel and pass through a known minefield. A slow and stealthy advance on the surface was interrupted at 04.30 hours when he had to crash dive to avoid a Japanese tanker with armed escort vessels.
Finding to his surprise that the gate to the anti-submarine boom was open, Fraser took XE3 through and sighted the Takao at 12.50 hours. He began his final approach at periscope depth an hour later but was again forced to dive when an enemy motor launch appeared. Continuing the advance blind led to the nose of XE3 striking Takao's hull with a loud clang. Fraser cautiously withdrew after noting that the cruiser was almost aground both fore and aft.
Thankful that the collision had seemingly gone undetected, Fraser returned to the attack and after 40 minutes of careful manoeuvre he placed XE3 under the cruiser's midships section. The next move lay with Leading Seaman Magennis. Clad in his frogman's suit his task was to exit through the submarine's "wet and dry" compartment, unhitch the limpet mines and attach them to the cruiser's hull. Two additional charges, attached to XE3's port and starboard sides, would be released from inside once the limpets had been placed.
Magennis unlocked the diver's hatch only to find it was too close to the cruiser's hull to open fully. Realising that any delay would trap the submarine beneath the Takao as the tide fell, he inhaled deeply, pulled off his breathing apparatus to allow him to squeeze through the gap and replaced it once outside. Half an hour later he had attached the mines 50 feet apart on Takao's hull and squeezed back into XE3 using the same technique he had used for getting out.
Fraser operated the mechanism to release the two side charges in preparation for withdrawal, but only the port charge fell away. Worse still, the Takao began to settle as the tide fell and her keel was soon pressing down on XE3. For 50 minutes Fraser used every trick he knew to free his craft, and at last broke away to starboard in an upheaval of water.
The starboard charge was still attached, however, and, as Magennis appeared exhausted, Fraser prepared to go out to release it manually. But Magennis insisted on carrying out this responsibility. After exiting from the hatch wearing his breathing apparatus, he released the starboard charge with a heavy spanner.
Fraser made course for safety back along the one he had followed in the early hours of the morning, but daylight held him to a slow speed at periscope depth. Once well clear of the Singapore Channel, XE3 made a successful rendezvous with her towing submarine, Stygian. The limpet mines and side charges exploded at 21.30 hours on July 31, ripping a 60ft-long hole in the Takao's hull, leaving her immobilised and stranded.
Fraser and Magennis returned to Bonaventure off Labuan on August 4. Two days later the first atomic bomb was detonated over Hiroshima, beginning the sequence of events which were to end the Pacific war. Consequently Singapore and Malaya were retaken without the need for an assault landing.
Such were their personalities, Fraser and Magennis were able to see the ironic side of this development. Both men were awarded the Victoria Cross, which they received from King George VI at Buckingham Palace on December 11, 1945.
Ian Edward Fraser was born in Ealing, London, in 1920, the elder son of Sydney Fraser, a marine engineer. He was educated at the Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe, and the training ship HMS Conway, from where he entered the Merchant Navy in 1937.
He joined the Royal Navy on the outbreak of war and saw action in destroyers, mainly in the Atlantic. He volunteered for the submarine service in 1942 and was awarded the DSC after a year's intensive operations with the submarine Sahib in 1943. His involvement with midget submarines came about through his response to a signal from Flag Officer Submarines calling for volunteers for "special and hazardous service with submarines" in March 1944.
Fraser remained on the Royal Navy Reserve list until 1965, when he retired with the rank of lieutenant-commander. Putting his wartime experience to commercial use, he founded Universal Divers - a civil engineering underwater contracting company - in 1947. This proved very successful, and he turned the company over to his younger brother, Brian, in 1965.
That year he started up, with others, North Sea Diving Services, tailored to meet the requirements of the offshore oil industry. He was managing director until the company was acquired by Blue Star Line in 1975. He served on the board of Star Offshore Services until his retirement in 1982.
Fraser was an enterprising and intensely social man. Small in stature and known to many of his friends simply as "Titch", he was an engaging raconteur. In 1957 he published Frogman VC, which dealt not only with his wartime exploits but also his struggle to establish himself in the commercially competitive postwar world.
He was appointed a justice of the peace for Wallasey, Merseyside, in 1957 and elected a Younger Brother of Trinity House in 1980. Fraser remained in the RNR rank until he retired as a lieutenant- commander in 1966. He was awarded the Reserve Decoration with Long Service Bar and became President of the Merseyside Branch of the Submariners Association.

Ian Fraser married, in 1943, his childhood sweetheart, Melba Hughes, who was serving as a Wren at Pwllheli on the north Wales coast when they met. They had four sons and two daughters, one of whom recently predeceased him. Magennis died in 1986.

Lieutenant-Commander Ian Fraser, VC, DSC, RD and Bar,
wartime submariner, was born on December 18, 1920.
He died on September 1, 2008, aged 87

Ray Hedgecock MBE

16th February 1920 - 18th November 2007

Vice - President - Merseyside Submariners Association

On the 18th November this year, Raymond Hedgecock MBE died at age 87 and the city of Liverpool lost one of its less celebrated naval sons. Those in the tight brotherhood of the Royal Navy Submarine Service would immediately recognise the man and the name, but the general public may well not know of him or his lifetime achievements on behalf of the silent service that he so passionately loved.

Almost fifty two years ago a small group of ex- WWII submariners met up in a Liverpool pub and formed the Merseyside Branch of the then Submarine Old Comrades Association, a national body of veteran submariners. Among that pioneer group were its founder members, Bill Cheshire, Les Fowles, Tommy Heath, Bill Curley, Phil Drewery, John Cole and last, but not least, the man whose life would become synonymous with the Association, Ray Hedgecock.

From those small and humble beginnings Merseyside went on to become one of the largest and most progressive branches in the nation. Ray was its Secretary/Treasurer for an unbelievable 33 years and with his sure hand at the helm the branch went from strength to strength. Membership soared to include not only the older generations of ex-submariners but also current serving diesel and nuclear submariners from across the entire length and breadth of the UK and indeed many more from overseas.

The main driver behind the branches social success was Ray's philosophy towards the fairer sex, which was to involve the ladies at every given opportunity whatever the occasion, be it socials, meetings or re-unions. Given that time in an all male environment, this was radically inspired and controversial thinking, but shown the way forward Scouse submariners went unisex with their association's activities and ended up loving every minute of the new arrangement.

During the early seventies Ray was instrumental in founding the annual service of remembrance for the disastrous loss of HM/Submarine Thetis in Liverpool Bay in 1939 with its dreadful death toll of 99 souls. This service was held annually in Holyhead, Anglesey, close to Moelfre Bay where the Thetis was eventually beached for salvaging. Submariners and other naval associations nationwide made that pilgrimage to pay their respects over the next twenty years. At the same time Ray laid the groundwork for the Service of Remembrance which is still considered a highlight of the Merseyside branches calendar. This is held in the sailor's church of St Nicholas at the Pier Head in July each year to remember all those submariners lost in the 106 years of the Submarine Service. In World War Two alone Britain lost 80 submarines and 5,000 submariners. It is an especially moving and humbling experience during that service when the names of those boats and also the names of all departed members of the branch are read out and the ship's bell is tolled after each name.

Liverpool became the focal point for the celebration of the 75th Anniversary of the Submarine Service in 1976 and the mastermind behind the monumental planning for this colossal event was none other than Ray Hedgecock. Numerous warships and submarines from the world's navies visited Liverpool to pay tribute to the event and vast parades were organised throughout the city. These involved the ship's companies of visiting naval vessels, marching units of the other British armed services and even elements of the Calgary Stampede who were visiting the UK at the time.

The city streets were host to the colourful cavalcades of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, war-painted warriors of various Native American and Canadian Indian tribes riding their painted ponies and mustangs, rodeo performers and bronco busting cowboys. The beautiful, classic St. Georges Hall was hired for the event and each evening a plethora of entertainment was arranged whereby choirs and opera singers, including our very own international diva soprano, Rita Hunter CBE, graced the stage. Honoured guests and visitors danced the night away to the strains of the Sid Lawrence Orchestra.

After that signal achievement the branch then entered a new era with its launch of the Ballet de Scouse; a troupe of geriatric submariners dressed up in drag performing their cleaned-up version of the traditional naval Sod's Opera (the acronym SODS for Sailors Operatic and Dramatic Society) for socials, submarine re-unions and local charities. Their zenith was a huge charity performance at the Royal Philharmonic Hall which was a sell-out. During their heyday more than £90,000 was raised for the Liverpool Alderhey Children's Hospital and many more thousands were raised for naval charities and other worthy causes. No surprise then that the man responsible for its facilitation, arrangement and direction was none other than Ray Hedgecock, ably assisted by his trusty friends and star performers, Mick Jones and Jim Bellew.

Known simply as Ray to his peers and WWII contemporaries and as Uncle Ray to generations of younger submariners, he was always there for his members, always a friend, fully supportive and there to offer wise and sometimes fatherly advice when it was required. Like the Rock of Gibraltar he was strong and absolutely dependable. He was forever passionate about the Royal Navy and the Submariners Association which were his life and he spent many years on the General Purposes Committee of the National Submariners Association helping shape its policies and the way forward. For his considerable services he was honoured by the Queen with the MBE which was bestowed on him by the Prince of Wales and of which he was always so immensely proud.

So we celebrate the life of a good man and submariner extraordinaire whom I am honoured to have called my friend. He was a selfless and giving human being who gave his all for the two loves of his life - the Submarine Service and its special band of brothers - its submariners. Ray Hedgecock may be gone but his indomitable spirit will live on as a legend and inspiration within the Submariners Association, and more especially within the city of Liverpool and its Merseyside branch for many years to come.

In closing I can find no better tribute to the man than that sent to me by Rear Admiral Tony Whetstone CB on hearing of Ray's demise:

Please convey to Ray Hedgecock's family and to his friends in Merseyside Submariners Association the deep sympathy of myself and Betty at their (and our) loss. Ray was a true friend, a brave man and a fine Christian Gentleman. Our life will be poorer for his passing.

Amen to that our very good friend. May you have fair winds and following seas on your final patrol to the Promised Land. Resurgam - I shall rise again.

Ray was buried with full naval honours following his funeral service at Christ Church, Bootle, Liverpool, on the 28th November 2007. Submariners and skimmers travelled from far and wide to pay their last respects to a great old friend and sailor, and the church was packed with family, friends and comrades both young and old. The service was conducted by his old friend, Father John Williams MBE (Chaplain of HMS Eaglet). The Lament and The Last Post were played respectively by the Pipe Major and bugler from the Liverpool Scottish Regiment; his son POMEM Paul Hedgecock RNR and great grandson Michael Paul Hedgecock (T.S. Starling - Sea Cadet Corps) took the salute at the graveside. Standards from the Merseyside SA branch, the National Submariners Association, Birkenhead RNA and HMS Eaglet were paraded.

J. (Mick) Jones. AB.HSD. Age 85.

Merseyside Branch. S/M. Service:-1941-1946

S/M's:-Una Unbroken Sunfish Tribune.

To celebrate the life of a man who went under three different first names. To his immediate family and others he was John, to his dearly loved wife Joan, he was Jack, and to thousands of Royal Navy sailors he was plain old Mick. So what's in a name you may well ask? Well the answer to that one is easy - whichever one you personally feel happiest with when remembering an outstanding man.

I can only speak on behalf of the Royal Navy Submarine Service and its submariners, both young and old, that knew him to tell you that Mick was and remains a legend within the elite brotherhood of the Silent Service

I don't have a copy of 'Unbroken - The Story of a Submarine' by its Captain, Alistair Mars to hand, so I shall have to recall this passage from memory. It went something like this:

After sinking a major unit of the Italian navy in the Strait of Messina, HMS/M Unbroken came under a heavy and sustained attack from enemy escorts. After what seemed hours under depth charge attacks even the cool Lt. Mars thought this was definitely the end of the line for them all. Now desperately short of air and standing in sweating silence in the sweltering control room Lt. Mars was handed a scribbled message on the back of a Woodbine cigarette packet which had been passed around the group to much smothered laughter. It read: "AB J. Jones D/JX 254129 requests an immediate transfer to general service" That inspired and hilarious note broke the terrible tension and eventually Unbroken was later able to limp away from danger to lick her wounds and live to fight another day.

The character who came up with that much needed morale ice breaker was of course 'Mick' Jones who served with the 10th Submarine Flotilla in Malta during those hectic WWII days when it was under siege. Stories about the little leprechaun's escapades were legendary in the Submarine Service. Belfast born and bred he was the stereotype of the devil-may-care Irishman always with that mischievous twinkle in his eye and with an off-the-wall sense of humour. For fifty odd years after WWII Mick was a member of the Merseyside Submariners Association and during its golden days of the Ballet de Scouse Sods Opera as a star performer playing reunions, naval establishments and even the Royal Philharmonic Hall right here in Liverpool raising many thousands of pounds for local charities.

Always up to the minute with his characters on stage you had to be there to see his fantastic impersonations of Nana Mouskouri, Michael Jackson and even the good looking half of the Torville and Dean skating team. For a man who faced death on more than one occasion during his naval career I am still amazed that he wasn't electrocuted years ago as he sang 'Cool Clear Water' standing in a metal tray as buckets of cold water were poured over him by Jim Bellew whilst Mick held a live microphone in his hand.

He was the author of many amusing and often raunchy monologues about the Royal Navy and as writer of the equally funny and informative 'Ping Bosun's Log' in the Merseyside newsletters the 'Submariners Times' Mick gave pleasure and laughter to generations of sailor's both old and new.

Even during his past months of suffering he bravely and steadfastly continued to produce on his trusty word processor his funny and eagerly sought after submissions for the Merseyside newsletters for the amusement and information of submariners all over the world. As long as his produced writings last we shall continue to print his spot in future newsletters to keep his never-say-die spirit alive.

We have sadly lost one of life's gentlemen and a wonderful caring comrade who thoroughly deserves our highest respect and reverence. We shall continue to spin the stories about Mick, especially the raunchier ones; laugh at them and be grateful for them and for the sheer privilege of knowing him as a friend.

Mick had many friends all over the world ranging from Admirals to stokers who admired him for his humorous talent and happy demeanour. He has some friends whom he served with living in Australia and his old friend Fred Bottrell has sent me a short condolence that I would like to read on behalf of him and all Aussie submariners:

"All WWII submariners are at the age when we become accustomed to the demise of yet another mate. However I was deeply saddened on receiving the news of Mick crossing the bar. He was a very special man, a brave man, and a very funny man. He possessed that special quality of wit to enlighten any situation whenever things might appear gloomy. History records that he was a valuable asset to the captain and crew of HMS/M Unbroken in the dark days of the fighting 10th Flotilla at Malta.

This is the time to give thanks for Mick's life and service to his country in peace and war. We should all be proud of his untiring effort and contribution to the Submariners Association over many years. I shall miss reading 'The Ping Bosun's Log' in the newsletter. His loss leaves a big void in our ranks and I trust that his example of service to the SA will encourage the younger generation members to become office bearers and to share the load as he would have us do.

From Victoria in Australia to his dear wife, Joan and all their family members my sincere condolences and I pray that you all will find inner strength to overcome your sorrow and to find peace."

Yours Sincerely

Fred Bottrell

So Mick our old friend we wish you fair winds and following seas on your last patrol to the Promised Land. - Resurgam - 'I shall rise again'.

Lt-Cdr Jack Smart DSO, MBE

(A Naval Officer who took part in daring midget submarine operations.)

Lieutenant-Commander Jack Smart, who has died aged 91, took part in two of the most daring midget submarine operations of the Second World War.

After minesweeper service in the eastern Mediterranean when war broke out, he joined HMS Varbel, the midget submarine training depot in Scotland in 1943, and was given command of X-8 for Operation Source, the attack on German ships hiding in the Norwegian fjords. Six X-craft were towed underwater across the Norwegian Sea, where X-8's target was the German cruiser Lützow. However, at 0400 on September 15, the craft took a sudden deep dive, and the towline to the parent boat Seanymph broke.

Smart blew the main ballast tanks to force the craft to the surface, but on doing so found no sign of Seanymph. Deciding to continue at a maximum speed of three knots on course for Altenfjord, he hoped to be rescued but, if not, was determined to carry out his attack on his own.

Twelve hours later Smart chanced on the submarine Stubborn, towing X-7, and continued in company with them until dark. Next morning the sea was empty. But Lieutenant J Oakley, commanding Seanymph, continued his search and in the afternoon he spotted X-8, and took it in tow. Smart had been on his own for 37 weary hours and was transferred exhausted to the parent submarine.

Subsequently when X-8 developed leaks in its high-pressure air system and was unable to dive, its explosive charges were jettisoned, but the resulting detonation so damaged the craft that it had to be scuttled.

Smart was appointed MBE for his efforts while Lieutenant Godfrey Place (X-7) Lieutenant Donald Cameron (X-6) were each awarded the VC for their successful attacks on the battleship Tirpitz.

In July 1945 Smart was commanding the improved XE-1 in the Far East. The Americans at first refused to let the X-craft take part in operations, likening them to suicide-bombers or Japanese kamikaze pilots.

But they proved so successful in cutting underwater telephone cables between Singapore and Tokyo that they were eventually allowed to mount Operation Struggle, the attack on two Japanese cruisers in the Johore Strait. Smart, in XE-1, and Lieutenant Ian Fraser, in XE-3, were towed to within 40 miles of Singapore, where they entered mined waters to avoid Japanese hydrophone posts.

Smart's target was the heavy cruiser Myoko. Creeping up the strait and through an anti-submarine net while avoiding enemy patrols took some 16 hours, and Smart lost the time he needed to reach his target.

Switching to the heavy cruiser Takao, which was aground on the falling tide, he dropped his two high-explosive charges close alongside and withdrew seawards. Fraser and his diver, Leading Seaman James Magennis, who had laid XE-3's charges under Takao, were awarded the VC for destroying their target; Smart received the DSO and was made an officer of the US Legion of Merit.

John Elliott Smart was born in Northumberland on March 1 1916. He joined the RNVR in 1938, and after retiring in 1954 became a stockbroker with Pemberton Securities, a Vancouver firm. He became a director and an outstanding expert in bond trading before transferring to the firm's Victoria office in the 1980s.

A large, quiet and unfailingly courteous man, Smart was known to his Canadian friends as "the English gentleman." He was shy in mixed company and reticent about his wartime exploits.

When he took early retirement in his late fifties, he devoted his time to golf, and while his second wife was away for years pursuing her career in alternative medicine in the United States, he lived a bachelor life. His interest in books led to him organising a monthly luncheon for writers at the Sticky Wicket, a pub in Victoria; he also liked to lunch at naval officers' mess when in Vancouver.

Jack Smart is survived by a son of each of his two marriages.

Vice-Admiral Sir Tony Troup

Vice-Admiral Sir Tony Troup, who died on July 8 aged 86, became the youngest-ever submarine captain when he took command, at 21 years 10 months, of the training submarine H32 in June 1943.

Just a few months later he was given command of Strongbow, based at Trincomalee, Ceylon. Operations had been largely restricted to patrols, air-sea rescue and the landing and recovery of agents; but Troup sank the 800-ton coaster Toso Maru off Phuket with a single torpedo on his first eastern patrol. He then sank or drove ashore nine junks, a tug and two lighters with gunfire and by boarding and placing demolition charges.

The next patrol, however, brought mixed results. On October 11, in the Malacca Strait, Troup attacked a merchant ship which was being escorted by two sub-chasers, firing five torpedoes at a range of 3,000 yards. Two exploded prematurely and the others missed; then, before he could renew the attack, he found himself in shallow water.

Next day Troup encountered two Japanese submarines in quick succession. He fired four torpedoes at Ro113 from 2,500 yards; all of them missed. Half an hour later two more were launched at Ro115 from 4,500 yards; these too missed. Reloading his one remaining bow torpedo, Troup sank the 1,185-ton cargo ship Manryo Maru at close range.

A week later he was ordered to take up position off the Nicobar Islands for air-sea rescue duties during a carrier-borne air attack by the Eastern Fleet. As the raid ended, he fired his stern torpedo into the harbour, where it was caught by torpedo nets.

In November Troup patrolled the west coast of Sumatra, sinking a tug and a lighter by gunfire and carrying out a successful re-supply operation to coast watchers. On the last day of the month he found and sank three junks close inshore, claiming 33 hits with 36 rounds from his 3-in gun while coming under shell-fire from shore batteries.

Troup made one last patrol in the same seas at the end of the year, then sailed to the southern Malacca Strait. A couple of weeks later he sank a junk and was depth-charged in response, though there was no damage. Three days later he was less lucky: Strongbow was trapped in shallow water by several anti-submarine vessels and subjected to close and effective depth charge attack.

When Troup took tea after the war with Commander Tetsunoke Moriama, his Japanese opponent told him that after eight hours of continual bombardment he was sure that Strongbow had been sunk. Troup admitted: "They gave me a very bad time, and I was considerably dusted up."

Many of Strongbow'srivets had popped and the pressure hull had collapsed inwards; the main engines had been blown off their beds; the air compressors had been smashed and the torpedoes jammed in the tubes. He crept into a known minefield, where he knew he would not be pursued, then nursed his boat for 1,000 miles across the Indian Ocean to Trincomalee. There the base engineers pronounced the boat unfit for further service. Troup was awarded a Bar to an earlier DSC.

John Anthony Rose Troup was born into a naval family on July 18 1921. He was educated at HMS Worcester, the nautical training college on the Thames, and entered Dartmouth in 1936. His father had been boxing champion at Dartmouth and insisted that Tony should take up the sport (he consented, but was regularly beaten and grew to hate it). After service in the cruiser Cornwall and the destroyer Active in the Far East and the Atlantic, Troup volunteered for submarines in 1941.

He joined the newly built Turbulent, commanded by Commander "Tubby" Linton, which was part of the Fighting 10th Submarine Flotilla. In 1942, after 254 days in the Mediterranean, nearly half of them submerged, Turbulent was estimated to have sunk a cruiser, a destroyer, a
U-boat, and 28 supply ships totalling 100,000 tons; it had been depth charged more than 250 times.

Troup was mentioned in dispatches while in Turbulent, but had left to do his "perisher" course for submarine commanders when Linton was lost on its next patrol. His first DSC was announced on the same page of the London Gazette as Linton's posthumous VC.

After Troup had limped home in Strongbow, he commanded three more submarines in the post-war years: Tantalus, Trump and Tally Ho. He was second-in-command of the Royal Navy's first angled-deck aircraft carrier, Victorious, from 1956 to 1959, and then held three influential appointments as naval assistant to the First Sea Lord, captain of the 3rd Submarine Squadron, and Captain of the Fleet in 1964-65.

He returned to the Far East as captain of the amphibious assault ship Intrepid, then became became Flag Officer Sea Training, demanding the highest standards of efficiency in all the ships sent to him at Portland.

As Commander Far East Fleet Troup took the salute at a steam past to mark the end of the Anglo-Malaysian defence pact and the start of the Five-Power Defence Agreement in 1971. When he was appointed Flag Officer Submarines, aged 50, he insisted on making an inaugural ascent in the new underwater escape tower at Gosport. His last appointment was as Flag Officer Scotland and Northern Ireland.

For his retirement Troup acquired a crofthouse at Portchuillin, which enabled him to indulge his passion for golf at the Lochcarron club. He also owned a series of boats called Seil, the last and smallest of which was a Devon yawl which he sailed until his children banned him after he fell overboard. He was elected
to the Royal Yacht Squadron in 1964.

Troup joined the board of the shipbuilder Vosper Thornycroft and, from 1979 to 1988, was defence adviser to Scicon International. He was president of the Submarine Old Comrades' Association.

Tony Troup, who was appointed KCB in 1975, wanted no memorial service and left no papers, but recorded an oral history for the Imperial War Museum.

He married, in 1943, Joy Gordon-Smith. The marriage was dissolved in 1952, and the next year he married Cordelia Hope, who survives him with two sons and a daughter of the first marriage and two sons and a daughter of the second.

The passing of SAOC West member Dave Tudor

Born in Edmonton in 1926, Dave joined the Royal Navy from Calgary in 1942, and signed on with the Canadian Navy in 1956. Initially a communicator by trade, Dave eventually rose to the rank of LCDR in the Canadian Navy. Dave was awarded medals for 1939/45 service in Burma, France & Germany SVals, as well as the Pacific Clasp, War Medal, and M.M.M. He qualified in submarines in August 1946, and sailed in HMS/M's Talent, Trump, Toredo, Solent, Alcide, Tantive, Sea Scout, Seneschal, and Tudor. From 1956 to 1980 while serving in the RCN/CF, Dave sailed in Canadian Submarines Grilse & Ojibwa.

".. Dave Tudor .. Submariner .. We Shall Remember Him .."