Last Action of the War

Discussions relating to actions or operations, including combined operations, involving Coastal Forces boats or flotillas
dutch
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Last Action of the War

Postby dutch » Sun Jul 19, 2009 9:12 pm

Re: Action at the end of the War
by dutch » Sun Jul 19, 2009 9:05 pm

ive read about the last action in a CFVA news letter and remember my father told me a long time ago how he took part in such n action but i only have a boat number ML 869 and cant confirm his flotilla number. He discribed the action almost word per word he also told me he had to dispatch a japanese soldier who had swam out to his boat and tried to hang on to the bow whilst trying to set of somesort of explosive round he said he was hitting a shell of the side of the boat like a mad man.my father was a gunner he also took part in opperation DRACULA.i think there may have been more than one ambush of this type.Any help or confirmation of his boat and flotilla number would be most helpful.THANKS DUTCH.

Pioneer
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Re: Last Action of the War

Postby Pioneer » Mon Jul 20, 2009 8:48 am

Hello dutch
A little more information on ML 869.
She was a very late built vessel - completed April 1945 (built by Messrs Beheral Company, El Gamel, Egypt). She was renumbered twice - ML 6005 then to - ML 2869. She was placed on the Disposal List (in Ceylon) and sold around 1951.
Still trying to trace the Flotilla number
(Source: J. Lambert Al Ross Allied Coastal Forces WW2 - volume 1)

dutch
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Re: Last Action of the War

Postby dutch » Mon Jul 20, 2009 10:30 am

Hello Pioneer thanks for that information that should help. He also served on ML 1479 in the far east if you have any information on that boat that would be great also. found a great report on operation DRACULA .On the BURMA STAR ASSOC.web site but yet again cant confirm his boat number or flottila there are boats mentioned by number but they seem to be lead boats or ones that have been involved and been casualtys of mines or come under heavy fire.there are other ML mentioned in the report but there refered to in quanitity rather than boat numbers THANKS Donald (DUTCH)

Pioneer
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Re: Last Action of the War

Postby Pioneer » Mon Jul 20, 2009 5:46 pm

ML 1479 - is causing a little problem. British "B" ML's appear to have been renumbered in the 2xxxx 5 and 6xxxx series etc Maybe someone else can properly ID this craft. Some "B" craft were built for the USN (classified and numbered as Sub Chasers) some were later transfered to the Burmese Navy after the War (in the Far East).

HDML 1479 however was built by Messrs Anderson Rigden & Perkins of Whitstable Kent UK and completed on 12th October 1944. She was to be sold to the Netherlands Navy in 1947 - whether she made it out to the Far East is not known (as yet).
Same source:

Ted Else
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Re: Last Action of the War

Postby Ted Else » Tue Jul 21, 2009 7:34 pm

Hello Donald

Had this interesting reply from my query to Christian Shepherd-Cappuro he states -

HDMLs were known by their pennant numbers, these were always ML... and not HDML..., so it seems probable that the vessel being referred to was the HDML "ML 1479". She did serve in the far east, as evidenced by this snippet from Jan Keel;

a.. Hr. Ms. "Vos" (RP 101) ex-HDML "ML 1479"
ML 1479 was taken over April 1946 from the Royal Navy at Singapore and was placed in service as Hr. Ms. patrouilleboot RP 101 (VOS). The vessel patrolled the islands of the Dutch East Indies. Later it obtained the new pennant number P 821. In 1950 it was handed over to the new Republic of Indonesia.

Hope of some use, Rgds, Christian

Many thanks
Ted

dutch
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Re: Last Action of the War

Postby dutch » Tue Jul 21, 2009 9:54 pm

Hello Ted thank you that was very intresting can you thank Christian for me that opens up an other question how accurate are royal navy service papers. It states my father joined ML 1479 in 1st Dec.1945 and left her 4th Aug.1946. i dont know if you read my first post asking for help identify his boats and flotillas and the actions he my have taken part in i know he was with 13th flotillas lead boat MTB 212 his Captian was Mark Arnold Foster who was highly decorated and also wrote the WORLD AT WAR .i just wonder if my father jioned his boat during a quite spell in his Career. as his early career is quite well documented but there is nothing for the period my father was with him my dad was a AA gunner with him from 1st July 1944 till 18th Sept.1944. Any help you can give me would be very welcomed. thanks Donald.(DUTCH)

Pioneer
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Re: Last Action of the War

Postby Pioneer » Wed Jul 22, 2009 2:52 pm

Off topic I realise but a shot of an HDML under Sail.
HDML 1139.jpg
HDML 1139.jpg (38.7 KiB) Viewed 29795 times

Pioneer
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Re: Last Action of the War

Postby Pioneer » Wed Jul 22, 2009 7:30 pm

Not so 'off topic' with these views of HDML 1479.
The attached views show ML 1479 in service with the Dutch. (From Maritiem Digitaal website via Christian Sheppard-Capurro).
ml1479.jpg
ml1479.jpg (36.04 KiB) Viewed 29786 times
ml1479 as rp101.jpg
ml1479 as rp101.jpg (26.21 KiB) Viewed 29786 times
ml1479 as rp101 foredeck.jpg
ml1479 as rp101 foredeck.jpg (20.94 KiB) Viewed 29786 times

RogerP
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Location: Bendigo, Victoria, Australia

Re: Last Action of the War

Postby RogerP » Sun Jan 17, 2010 6:57 am

Hello dutch,

I searched through my books on Fairmile Bs and found the book "The 13th & 14th Fairmile Flotillas in Burma" which is hard to find but has info on all the flotillas involved. I was very fortunate indeed when this book was given to me by a friend here in OZ as copies are quite hard to find. In the book ML 869 is part of the 39th ML Flotilla along with MLs 868, 871, 873, 4003 and 4004. There is no index so one would have to read through the book to find specific info.

The book Allied Coastal Forces Vol I by John Lambert and Al Ross tells me ML 869 was completed in April 1945 and sold 'circa 1951 in Ceylon'.

HDML 1479 was completed 12 October 1944 and went to the R Neth Navy in 1947. I cannot find any info as to which flotilla 1479 belonged.

Another book is The Banzai Hunters–the fogotten armada of little ships that defeated the Japanese, 1944-45. This book is quite a good read and I'm fairly positive you should find copies via 'bookfinder dot com' a really good book search facility.
This book mentions Operation Dracula, the Allied landings to secure Rangoon which it seems pretty much became a non-event as the Japanese had left.

Cheers,
Roger.

Steve
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Re: Last Action of the War

Postby Steve » Sat Mar 20, 2010 5:15 pm

Just spotted the picture above of an HDML under sail, this reminded me of a story my late father told me of his experiences in Coastal Forces in Burma.

The story goes that during the return from a voyage up the chaungs to deliver mail to the army, the boat was badly damaged by Japanese fire from the shore. They made it out to sea before the engines finally failed, by which time there were only two of the crew still on their feet. My father was Coxswain and had been protected by the armoured wheelhouse, while the stoker/mechanic had been protected by the engine blocks, everyone else was either dead or injured. With no motive power (fortunately the donkey engine that powered the pumps was still operational) they lashed the dinghy down to the deck and rigged its mast and sails, then used the foredeck awning as a makeshift jib and brought the boat back to base under canvas.

It would be interesting to hear if anyone has heard of this event since I can find no references to it anywhere. I can't be sure of the ML's number but it might have been 852.


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