Some years ago,I posted about a dangerous journey made by a friend ,Arthur Fairchild in LCT489 (Mk3) when he was a young telegraphist in the R.N. A convoy of LCTs left Falmouth in December 1944, under their own power and made a long journey which ended in Cochin, India, travelling via the Med. The aim of sending these craft there was that they would be used in the retaking of Burma from the Japanese. In the event, they were not used in this way and Operation Zipper took place without them. An earlier effort to tow these LCTs by ship had ended in disaster and loss of life in the Atlantic. There was a Board of Enquiry which was mentioned in an earlier thread by the late, lamented Mike L. I believe he called it "The Lost Flotilla". Arthur was not part of this but his LCT was. This part of naval history seems to attract little interest compared with other wartime events but maybe this post will attract some new members. Arthur passed away a couple of years ago, but before he died, he recorded on a CD the story of his journey, and his widow tells me she has a few copies left which she would sell for a donation to the local Women's Refuge.If anyone would like a copy please let me know. I am also interested in finding a suitable archive or museum to pass a copy on to.
Intrigued I skimmed through the previous thread: My Uncle, Martin Long and the loss of HMLCT 488 Would the RN Museum @ Portsmouth be interested in a copy of the CD? See: Offers of Material to the Collection
David,Many thanks for that suggestion re Portsmouth. I will have a look at the link and see if they are interested.
You could also try contacting the National Maritime Museum in Falmouth. Their Bartlett Library may be interested as the vessels departed from Falmouth. National Maritime Museum Cornwall
Phil, I did visit the Bartlett Library when I went to that fascinating museum in Falmouth. I was attempting to research for Arthur. Sadly they were unable to help and had virtually no knowledge of the use of the port by the Royal Navy in the war. They did have some books about the D Day landings and use of LCTs, but were quite confused by the different types of these craft, and their numbering system.Arthur was quite insistent that his was a Mk3! I think it is an area that had escaped their attention, so perhaps they need a copy of the CD too. Thanks for the suggestion.
