John Mills: Chapter 10

Sunderland — Flying Boat Down
North of Shetland Isle — Late October 1944

A signal is received, for HMS. Volage, Duty Destroyer at Scapa Flow.

“To proceed to sea immediately, RAF Sunderland, flying boat down, north of the Shetland’s. Position of Sunderland to follow”.

As duty destroyer HMS Volage had been on standby at half hours, steaming notice for the last twelve hours, a wartime procedure at most harbours and ports around the world, where British Royal Navy were stationed.

The order to pipe “special sea duty, men to close up”, foc’sle men to muster on the foc’sle. This was done by quartermaster and bosun’s mate, one going forward and the other to aft mess decks. Calling attention on the bosun’s pipes and shouting the order range throughout the ship.

Special duty men were those responsible for navigation, steering plus radar and antisubmarine detection crew etc.

As foc’sle men we proceed to the foc’sle to prepare the ship to slip from the buoy when given the order from the bridge.

As HMS Volage was coupled to a buoy along with other destroyers of the 26th Destroyer Flotilla, just off Flotta Island in Scapa Flow, Orkney Island, a naval anchorage both during WWI and WWII. A convenient operating base for RN Fleet to Atlantic, Arctic and Naval covering forces, also providing escorts for notorious Russian convoys to take merchant ships to Murmansk and Arkangle in WWII. Of which HMS Volage had participated, since commissioning in May 1944.

A buoy jumper having been detailed to slip over the bow on a rope, placed around him with a bowline knot, slide down the anchor cable, (which had been detached from the anchor) had been coupled to the buoy ring with a shackle.

A wire hawser was passed down to him (the buoy jumper), placed through the buoy ring and brought back on board and coupled to a shackle on deck to be slipped when the order was given. The cable shackle released from the buoy, the buoy jumper hauled up on deck, duty done, cable brought up and reconnected to anchor, ship now ready for sea.

Down in the engine and boiler rooms, stokers have had steam up on the boilers to economic temperatures, now bring steam up to higher temperatures, requiring half an hour to do so, before the ship could put to sea.

Up on the bridge, Captain, First Lieutenant (Jimmy, to us), Officer of the Watch etc., assembled to proceed to sea. Us on the foc’sle received the order to slip. The shackle holding the wire hawser knocked out with a hammer, and hawsers are hauled up and stowed, the ship gathered way. Us on the foc’sle stood in line for leaving harbour, the weather overcast and slight rain, but still a bit of light left in the sky that late autumn evening as the bow began to dip into the sea as we gathered speed, wind strong at force 5 to 6.

Passing through the boom, which the boom defence vessel had opened and then closed after us, who duly pipe, the still we reciprocated, us brought to attention, our captain saluting, on the pipe “carry on”, to stand at ease. Working up speed to fifteen knots the foc’sle party now had to secure the foc’sle. Bottle screws on anchor chains etc., with spray now coming over the bows drenching us all.

Tannoy speakers orders now, “For exercise, Action Stations”. All RN ships proceeded to this order on leaving the harbour in wartime. This was to bring ships company to alert for the coming voyage, plus to test the guns. First the four 4.7 inch guns would test, firing circuits, just a small shot gun cartridge inserted into a short brass case of the gun and fired from a gun director, high up above the bridge. Next Orlickon’s and Pom Pom, close range weapons would fire a few rounds.

With the order “stand down”, us foc’sle men, also ‘A’ guns crew, though soaking wet was detailed as ‘Blue Watch’ to man ‘B’ gun at evasing stations (a quarter of ships company in readiness for the defence of the ship is required). Thank goodness I only will have to go on watch for an hour and a half of last ‘Dog Watch’. (1800 to 2000) Left before being relieved.

Going down below to dry off, with the ship working up to 24 knots and wind strength reaching up to force 6 to 7, strong to gale force.

Down below to the forward mess decks, sea water was scudding across the deck, which was leaking through the portholes. Mess mates off duty were doing their best to scoop and squeegee water up. It was warmer down below and a cup of tea from the tea urn that was swinging by a cord from the deck head (ceiling), cheered us up.

Now the wind force had increased to force 8 or 9, severe gale, but HMS Volage ploughed on a course north by west, direct into the waves, which meant the bow was rising and falling some twenty to thirty feet. On the upper deck, all those crew members in exposed positions to the weather were told to find shelter, that is gun crews, look outs, signal men etc. Spray coming over the bridge, which was open, from some small shelter in the forward part.

Our enemy now was not aircraft, submarine (‘U-Boats’) or surface ships, but the sea! Still our ship sailed on into the storm, up to 10, 11 and up to force 12. Hurricane!

Myself and three other mess mates were playing ‘Uckers’, Ludo, the bow of the ship rising and falling even more. The penalty of losing at uckers was the next days tot of run, on losing once it was a ‘sippers’, lose again ‘gulpers’, then half a tot, then whole tot. So going was swing backwards and forwards. About ten o’clock 2200 hrs, the ship was still ploughing into the hurricane seas to a position north west of the Shetlands.

We received a wireless message “Sunderland crew picked up yesterday by Catalinia flying boat, end of message, over and out”. Oh! Good, as we could have never rescued any of the crew in this hurricane. But we had to turn to go back to Scapa Flow.

The captain gave the order to turn to port; we had been doing twenty to thirty knots until then. Slowly, little by little, we turned and came beam on (side on) to the waves. Reaching that position a wave, beam on, a wave threw us over to lay nearly on our side. Righting ourself, the ship slid into sea, though another mighty wave crashed over us, full force with water coming down our funnel (smoke stack), cascading into No 1 boiler. Stokers have told me in later years, “The boiler being ‘red=hot’ just a buzzing noise quickly evaporated the sea water”. We had two boilers, so alright even if No 1 boiler had been washed out. Slowly the ship came round now having a stern sea; I am told that it took three men to hold onto the steering wheel.

For us below, anything loose went everywhere, us still at our game of uckers. Over top of our table, a fellow shipmate had turned in early in his hammock, with the ships movements, lifting up and down, side to side, as we turned broadside onto the waves, it lifted a foot out of the hammock, then with hammock swinging away from him he came crashing down onto the mess deck table and our game of uckers. Now we didn’t say to him “are you hurt?” no, we got onto him for upsetting our game, explaining that our next day’s rum was most important to us!

The ship now wallowing in a stern sea meant that those whose mess deck was aft had terrible noises from the ships propellers when they came out of the water every now and then, most frightening.

On entering, back at Scapa Flow, going back to our buoy early in the morning with some light, two buoy jumpers alight onto the buoy from the motor boat. A wire cable passed down to them and secured to the buoy, cable chain next, which was secured with a shackle, then the buoy jumpers hauled back onboard.

On inspecting the upper deck of the ship it was noticeable that considerable superficial damage had been done when being broadside onto those great waves when turning to proceed back to Scapa. Brackets, stations etc. broken off or stove in. The ships whaler was smashed and had to be replaced. A great clean up below decks; more sea water had seeped in through portholes all through the voyage.

The ship came through the ordeal remarkably well. As most of the RN ships were good sea ships, built and designed for all weathers but still fighting ships.

During my eighteen months aboard HMS Volage, we overcame two hurricanes, one monsoon in the Indian Ocean and numerous gales. Like many RN sailors I lived to tell the tales.

Lofty John Mills
Ex A.B. Seaman
HMS Volage

P.S. Buoy jumpers were volunteers, they took pride in a tuff job, in all weathers, sometimes thrown into the sea and having to swim back to re-climb the buoys.
For the next chapter in John's story go to: A8890185

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