Coastal Forces Veterans

Hello John Thank you for your enquiry, and welcome to the forum. It would be interesting to learn what your father may have been doing during the period October 1943 to July 1944, if there are no further details listed on his Certificate of Service. Just to add to what John has already told you, ML ...

Hello Anita Just to add to the information John has kindly supplied. The Commanding Officer of HDML 1297 was Richard Beale, who after the war became an actor, starring throughout his life in many film and television roles, including the film A Handful of Dust . He wrote a biography published by Bloo...

Hello Anita, and welcome to the forum. I will start looking at the resources I have and get back to you later this week with any findings. Briefy; 1297 & 1273 were both Harbour Defence Motor Launches (HDML) though they were used for more than that at times. The Medusa Trust Vessel Archive should...

Does the 'findmypast' website give a reference at all for that casualty log? Sometimes action reports name wounded and killed, and sometimes not, and in this case there is no indication of who all the wounded or killed were. Lieutenant-Commander Bailey's relatively brief report only mentions the Oer...

It was on the 28th or 29th of July. The Royal Navy casualities list mentions 4 others as well, all with what looks like shrapnel wounds and brought back to Felixstowe. Any ideas what happened on those dates? Is your grandfather specifically named within the records you've seen? The following extrac...

Hello and welcome to the forum! There is a thread on the subject of MTB 638 which has a photo of the crew and a thread on the subject of MTB 295 which features a photo of MTB 287. I will contact you by email if you don't mind about your photographs and also about materials on MTB 638 I hold. [ NOTE:...

Richard I didn’t realise from what you initially wrote at start of the thread, that you had already been in contact with the RN Disclosure Service. Am I right in thinking that you don’t have your grandfather’s service record, which is the document he would have been given when he left the service, b...

Yes, I'd be pleased to receive a proof copy of your memoir. If it is in a PDF or Word format I can provide you with a link and a login to upload it privately to me.

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The service record details the MOD supplies will be drawn from the Pay & Victualling records they hold.

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Hello Richard I'm fairly certain the boat listed is MTB 18, which is a fit for the records since MTB 18 and MTB 100 were both part of the 1st MTB Flotilla at Beehive. As for applying for his service record details, if memory serves me correct, the MOD, who are the ones who still hold Royal Navy reco...

Hello Nick Welcome to the forum and thank you for the confirmation around the location of the 7th MTB Flotilla. I have a copy of the history of the 24th MTB Flotilla, written by H F Cooper, but if you happen to have a copy of the 7th MTB Flotilla written by him, I would be grateful to receive a copy...

Richard On the whole your grandfather's service record is difficult to interpret, being more impressionistic than certain. Starting with what is known, HMS Suffolk was badly bombed during an attempt at bombarding Stavangar aerodrome, and had to limp back to the Northern Fleet base at Scapa Flow wher...

This is the complete list of frontline boats which came under Beehive at Felixstowe on 27 September 1942. This provides a useful snap shot of the situation which would have prevailed throughout the period of August 1942–October 1942. As may be seen, individual boats are to be found scattered all ove...

The Service Record is a two page document. The one I received was a photocopy and I can't tell what it's texture is I'm afraid. I had wondered whether I should share the Service Record online, but I'm not sure what the done thing is with that and I'm always a little bit cautious about sharing priva...

MTBs 029, 030, 070, 071, 072, 075(2) (4th MTB Flotilla) with MGBs 075 & 076 on 6 October 1942 were waiting at a designated position off the Dutch coast to intercept a large German merchant vessel, which was due to pass their position at approximately 01.30hrs.... John, thank you for the precise...

Hello Richard Thank you for the kind offer of a donation. I don't have any facility for collecting, being content to pass on as much information to any relative of those who served as arguably the best way of preserving the subject for the future. Not to get ahead of ourselves too much here, since a...

This is the only action I have been able to find for the date closest to 7th October, 1942. The details are drawn from the Admiralty Diary for 6th October, 1942. MTBs 29, 30 & 70 were part of the 4th MTB Flotilla based at Lowestoft (Mantis) while MGBs 75 & 76 were part of the 8th MGB Flotill...

Hello Richard Sorry, I missed the part about Telegraphist in the title! but it's useful to learn of his Leading status. The Admiralty's Red Lists which show deployment and status of boats provides this detail: 13th April, 1941 Red List shows MTB 44 at Dover, having arrived there on 7th April. Only M...

Thanks again Richard A provisional picture is starting to emerge. He was regular pre-war navy and is being posted, or has asked to join MTBs at the recently formed HMS Hornet, at Gosport. Coastal Forces was just about to formerly commence with the appointment of Piers Kekewich as Rear Admiral Coasta...

Thanks Richard I hope you don't mind but I've just removed the quote to make the thread a bit clearer. Does his service record mention when he joined, and or have dates for when and where he trained e.g. Collingwood or Raleigh?? That is, anything prior to 18 October, 1940. And was he regular navy, r...

Hello Richard Welcome to the forum, and thank you for your enquiry. Do you have dates for his various known postings please as that may have some bearing on what boat, and what action may have been involved in his injuries. The hurt certificate though issued on 7 October, 1942 may refer to an earlie...

Hello Darius I haven't found any corresponding claim for a sinking as yet for the date in question, and for the vicinity of Cape Alupo, if that is the correct area. ADM 199/268 in the National Archives contains monthly summaries for Mediterranean patrols, together with claims for vessels sunk, but w...

The information given above would apply to MTB 628. MGB 658 was also built by J W & A Upham, Brixham and was completed in April 1943. MGB 658 served in the Mediterranean throughout the whole of the war, having sailed there in convoy from Milford Haven. This boat was originally constructed with t...

Thank you for the additional information about your father. The incident involving MTB 723 was part of the same patrol that saw the loss of MTB 666. I have the action report of the incident — MO 07991/44 — which forms part of ADM 199/265 in the National Archives which I can send you if you are inter...

Hello Martin

Welcome to the forum. Thank you for the identification of your father in the photographs. Do you have a timeframe for when he served with MTB 723, and do you know if he served on any other boat besides MTBs 723 & 5009?

Regards
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Hello and welcome to the forum! There is a photo of MTB 82 posted within the thread on MTB 638 by the poster jonco. I have some documents that mention MTB 375 which I hope to post to your email address over the weekend, if you could keep a lookout for it, and check your spam folder in case it gets s...

Thank you for the information Paul. I shall keep a look out for a copy. I think looking back over this thread I think it likely that as the poster Stephen suggested, it was a bomber raid on submarine pens on the Continent, most likely Holland, and not a mission carried out by Coastal Forces, with th...

Hello Bob Welcome to the forum. Could you let me have your father-in-law's name, and his service number if you happen to know it. I am just trying to research when ML 574 was sent out to West Africa as it doesn't appear to have been with the earlier MLs sent in 1942. The ML Flotillas at Freetown wer...

Mark

I have managed to contact Nigel and Andrew and have emailed you with the details.

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Hello Anne

Thank you for your post from Malta!

Here is a photo featuring MTB 421 at Bastia from the collection of Bert Lapthorne as supplied to me by his son, which I presume is the one that he mentioned trying to post on the thread.

Regards
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