Petty Officer Leonard Brown RML 527

Enquiries relating to individual men and women who served with HM Light Coastal Forces; help with interpreting service records, or with tracing former comrades
Foggy_Lens
Seaman
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Joined: Mon Nov 12, 2012 5:31 pm

Petty Officer Leonard Brown RML 527

Postby Foggy_Lens » Mon Nov 12, 2012 8:27 pm

I wonder if anyone can help with any information or leads that will help me piece together a little more of my Grandfather's role in the war please.

My Grandfather, Leonard Brown, didn't talk much of his role in the war and unfortunately is no longer with us to ask. He did survive the war though. I have seen a gallantry award that states he was a petty officer motor mechanic and his boat was RML 527. I also know him to have been based in Ardrossan during 1944 (from where he was given the award) and latterly Freetown, West Africa during 1945. I have a picture of him in Freetown with Jack Burns, Jack Bateman and Bill Bell. Beyond that I know very little. An Internet search of his personnel number and the boat (a B-type) have returned very little information.

Could anyone help piece together some family history (role, places, boat, etc) please?

Foggy_Lens
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Joined: Mon Nov 12, 2012 5:31 pm

Re: Petty Officer Leonard Brown RML 527

Postby Foggy_Lens » Fri Jan 04, 2013 10:07 am

I have now received the naval records and his postings were as follows. I have a few questions:
1. Any further information on places like Shrapnel (Fulham GTC) and the Freetown postings would be appreciated.
2. Any info on ML277
3. What does "Lent to Stamshaw" mean?
4. HMS Belmont appeared to have been sunk before the posting to it. Is this a mistake?
5. "Passage" - is this travel to Africa?
6. I am pulling together the information with great interest from my Grandmother and so any photos of relevant places / boats would also be of great interest

Personnel number PMX
HMS Drake , Ordinary Seaman, 11 Aug 1942 to 14 Aug 1942
HMS Raleigh, Ordinary Seaman, 15 Aug 1942 to 05 Nov 1942
HMS Victory, Ordinary Seaman, 06 Nov 1942 to 06 Nov 1942
HMS Belmont, Ordinary Seaman, 07 Nov 1942 to 07 Nov 1942
HMS Victory, Ordinary Seaman, 08 Nov 1942 to 18 Dec 1942
HMS Shrapnel (Fulham GTC), Ordinary Seaman, 19 Dec 1942 to 18 Jun 1943
HMS Victory, Ordinary Seaman, 19 Jun 1943 to 21 Jun 1943
HMS Victory, Motor Mechanic, 22 Jun 1943 to 05 Jul 1943
Lent to Stamshaw, Motor Mechanic, 06 Jul 1943 to 06 Jul 1943
HMS Victory, Motor Mechanic, 07 Jul 1943 to 16 Aug 1943
HMS Attack, Leading Motor Mechanic, 17 Aug 1943 to 04 Sept 1943
RML 527, Leading Motor Mechanic, 05 Sept 1943 to 21 Dec 1943
RML 527, Petty Officer Motor Mechanic, 22 Dec 1943 to 22 Mar 1945
HMS Hornet, Petty Officer Motor Mechanic, 23 Mar 1945 to 09 Apr 1945
Passage, Petty Officer Motor Mechanic , 10 Apr 1945 to 18 Apr 1945
HMS Eland, Petty Officer Motor Mechanic, 19 Apr 1945 to 05 Sept 1945
ML 277, Petty Officer Motor Mechanic, 06 Sept 1945 to 04 Oct 1945
HMS Eland, Petty Officer Motor Mechanic, 05 Oct 1945 to 26 Feb 1946
HMS Victory, Petty Officer Motor Mechanic, 27 Feb 1946 to 08 Apr 1946
HMS Victory X, Petty Officer Motor Mechanic, 09 Apr 1946 to 05 Jun 1946

Thanks in advance for any help / information anyone can give.

Admin
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Re: Petty Officer Leonard Brown RML 527

Postby Admin » Sat Jan 05, 2013 12:29 pm

HMS Belmont is something of an oddity given that it had been lost prior to the date given, though seeing as the posting is only for one day, it may just be an administrative error of some sort. Likewise, 'Lent to Stamshaw', again just for one day, either side of being posted at Victory in Portsmouth would imply something local, and an internet search does in fact reveal a Stamshaw in Portsmouth, which was a residential area for dockyard workers and their families. So that may just have been as mundane as helping to fix a broken down truck engaged in naval duties or even part of a naval party helping to clear up after a bombing raid. Shrapnel was known to have included the Frazer Nash sports car company at Isleworth, Middlesex which was used as a training facility for Motor Mechanics and Ordnance Mechanics, with billeting arranged within the surrounding area — hence the reference to Fulham. Passage would mean the trip out to Freetown from England, whilst Eland was the shore base at Freetown, Sierra Leone.

Foggy_Lens
Seaman
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Joined: Mon Nov 12, 2012 5:31 pm

Re: Petty Officer Leonard Brown RML 527

Postby Foggy_Lens » Tue Mar 28, 2017 9:06 pm

I'm not sure I ever said thanks for your post! Thank you. Really interesting leads. If anyone else out there has any more info I'd be a grateful recipient.

Brian Holmes
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Location: Portsmouth

Re: Petty Officer Leonard Brown RML 527

Postby Brian Holmes » Wed Apr 05, 2017 8:47 pm

ML_527 Brooke Marine Ltd, Oulton Broad, Nr Lowestoft 9/9/42
Known Crew
TLt D P R Hunt RNVR HMS St Christopher for MLs 22/8/42 ML 527 22/8/42 TLt 1/11/42 Commanding Officer ML 246 4/9/44
TLt F A P Greenland RNVR TSLt HMS St Christopher for MLs 28/9/42 65th ML Flotilla Based at HMS Mentor II, Stornoway ML 536 12/11/42 TLt 26/6/43 ML 527 61st RML Flotilla Based at HMS Aggressive, Newhaven ML 495
TLt B O Wallace RANVR 17th MTB Flotilla 5/4/43 TLt 16/7/43 65th ML Flotilla Based at HMS Mentor II, Stornoway ML 527
TSLt C W Court RNVR TSLt 5/6/42 HMS Mentor II (Stornoway) 65th ML Flotilla ML 527 17/8/42 149th ML Flotilla Commanding Officer HDML 1309 25/1/44 Operation Neptune - Invasion of Normandy TLt 5/12/44
TSLt A M Smith Mid 23/7/43 ML 527 TSLt 6/9/44
TSLt J W Rowse RNVR TSLt 15/7/43 65th ML Flotilla Based at HMS Mentor II, Stornoway ML 527
Wartime Activities
Rescue Motor Launch
2/43 65th ML Flotilla
Based at HMS Mentor II, Stornoway
ML 527, ML 528, ML 531, ML 533, ML 536, ML 539, ML 541, ML 543

Post War Fate
11/45 For disposal

Foggy_Lens
Seaman
Posts: 4
Joined: Mon Nov 12, 2012 5:31 pm

Re: Petty Officer Leonard Brown RML 527

Postby Foggy_Lens » Tue May 02, 2017 9:47 pm

Many thanks. So ML 527 was part of the 65th flotilla. Does anyone have any further info about this or the African assignments please?


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