Ready for Anything

The Royal Fleet Auxiliary, 1905–1950

Geoff Puddefoot

• Publisher: Seaforth Publishing
• Year: 2010
• ISBN:
  9781473817470
• Topic: Historia
• Subtopic: Historia militar y marítima

Set up in August 1905, the Royal Fleet Auxiliary unofficial motto: Ready for Anything was originally a logistic support organisation, Admiralty-owned but run on civilian lines, comprising a miscellaneous and very unglamorous collection of colliers, store ships and harbour craft. This book charts its rise in fleet strength, capability and importance, through two world wars and a technical revolution, until the time when naval operations became simply impossible without it. Its earliest tasks were mainly freighting supplying the Royal Navys worldwide network of bases but in wartime fleets were required to spend much longer at sea and the RFA had to develop techniques of underway replenishment. This did not come to full fruition until the British Pacific Fleet operated alongside the Americans in 1944-45, but by then the RFA had already pioneered many of the procedures involved.This book combines a history of the service, including many little-known wartime operations, with data on the ships, and a portrait of life in the service gleaned from personal accounts and recollections. Half way between a civilian and a military service, the RFA has never received the attention it deserves, but this book throws a long-overdue spotlight on its achievements.

Contents

List of Illustrations

Preface and Acknowledgements

Introduction

1 Supplying the Fleet … Before the RFA

2 The Beginning: 1905–14

3 The First World War

4 Cargo Tramps, Freighting Tankers and Franco’s Spain (1918–39)

5 The Second World War: The Atlantic and North Sea

6 The Atlantic: Turning the Tide

7 The Second World War: The Mediterranean

8 The Pacific and Indian Oceans

9 The British Pacific Fleet Train

10 Final Days: Europe, the Pacific and Armistice

11 Post-war Changes

Ship Data Tables

Appendix 1 Chronology of World Events and RFA Involvement 1900–50

Appendix 2 RFA Colour Schemes

Appendix 3 Service, Honours and Awards

Appendix 4 Battle Honours Awarded to RFA Ships 1905–50

Appendix 5 Refuelling at Sea 1905–50

References

Index

List of illustrations

(between pages 114 and 115)

PLATE I

The collier Mercedes; she was involved in the Admiralty’s unsuccessful coaling at sea trials. (National Maritime Museum N4349)

Mercedes coaling the River class destroyer HMS Kennet. (National Maritime Museum N20874)

PLATE II

Petroleum, the first Admiralty tanker to test a RAS(L) rig. (National Maritime Museum N21418)

First World War RFA officer (Mr A Ballantyne) in working uniform (by courtesy of Mrs Avril Hood)

Ballantyne in full dress uniform; note the sub-lieutenant RNR rank badge on the sleeve of his jacket (by courtesy of Mrs Avril Hood)

PLATE III

Thermol, 1911, one of the 2000-ton Burma class. (National Maritime Museum G5401)

Appleleaf, one of the Trinol or Fast Leaf class, shown in 1933. (National Maritime Museum N4298)

PLATE IV

Prestol, 1917, of the second 2000-ton class. (National Maritime Museum N4295)

Delphinula, acquired by the Admiralty in 1918; seen here in 1933. (National Maritime Museum N10699)

PLATE V

Palmol, an early 1000-ton harbour tanker painted in dazzle camouflage, 1918. (National Maritime Museum N4339)

Petronel, a 500-ton spirit carrier, alongside HMS Repulse, 1918. (National Maritime Museum N4346)

PLATE VI

War Diwan in 1936. Built at the end of the First World War, this class was an important element of the inter-war RFA. (National Maritime Museum N4758)

War Bahadur, showing damage to bridge sustained during storm at sea in January 1938. (National Maritime Museum N10686)

PLATE VII

Oleander, 1922, an inter-war freighting tanker. (National Maritime Museum N4287)

Broomdale, one of the Dale class of freighting tankers which came into service just before the Second World War. (National Maritime Museum P14197)

PLATE VIII

Bacchus, 1936, an early store ship. (National Maritime Museum P8988)

Robert Dundas, 1938, one of two coastal store carriers in this class. (National Maritime Museum N4752)

PLATE IX

Inter-war trials: the heavy cruiser HMS Suffolk refuelling the destroyer HMS Verity by stirrup method. Stirrups on rollers carry the hose suspended below the towline.

(National Maritime Museum L3435)

Stirrup rail and platform. This design was never used at sea because the hose was continually snagged by the rail supports. (National Archives)

PLATE X

Wartime fuelling astern using buoyant hose to supply a destroyer. (National Archives)

A destroyer refuelling astern. Here the warship has taken position, with the hose in a ‘bight’, to ease the strain on the refuelling rig. (National Archives)

PLATE XI

Early wooden roller used aboard some convoy escort oilers. (National Archives)

Hose connector aboard an oiler. (National Archives)

A later arrangement for oiling at sea aboard convoy escort oilers, with the buoyant rubber hose laid on metal rollers. (National Archives)

PLATE XII

An early experimental method of depth charge transfer. Charges were attached to an oil drum by 30 feet of rope and then tipped over the side. The receiving warship then grappled the drum and pulled the charges aboard. Later methods were less hazardous.

(National Archives)

Brown Ranger. This vessel spent part of the Second World War refuelling Malta-bound convoys (by courtesy of George Mortimore)

PLATE XIII

Fort Dunvegan, one of a class of store ships based on war-standard hulls that served the RFA for many years after 1945 (by courtesy of George Mortimore)

Oakol, one of the second 1000-ton class of harbour tankers. Crews of these vessels were usually employed on harbour or yard craft agreements (by courtesy of George Mortimore)

Spalake, 1946, one of the Spa class of water tankers. (National Maritime Museum N16306)

PLATE XIV BULAWAYO TRIALS (i)

Three-trough refuelling rig suspended from heavy duty derrick. (National Archives)

Early design of trough. (National Archives)

Prototype quick-release hose fitting trialed aboard HMS Bulawayo. (National Archives)

PLATE XV BULAWAYO TRIALS (ii)

Replenishment operations are sometimes made difficult by the heavy seas generated by ships in close proximity to one-another, one of the important lessons of these trials. (National Archives)

Jackstay transfer, possibly lubricating oil. (National Archives)

PLATE XVI

Wave Sovereign, before the fitting of abeam replenishment equipment. (National Maritime Museum P68570)

Wave Premier, simultaneously refuelling the destroyer hmas Bataan and the aircraft carrier HMS Glory. (National Maritime Museum P68566)

Preface and Acknowledgements

In any book on as extensive a subject as the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, the author’s problem is not so much what to include as what to leave out from the vast amount of material the subject encompasses.

I have therefore, once again, included predominantly material, information and personal accounts that reflect the character and development of the Service, rather than introducing strictly technical matters, which have been dealt with exhaustively elsewhere.

As in the previous book, this probably means that some areas are less well and fully documented than would otherwise have been the case. It is, however, my hope that the extensive reference section will serve as an adequate guide to those whose researches require more depth of knowledge than they find available here.

The author would like to acknowledge the help and advice of Captain Shane Redmond OBE RFA (Retd), Gordon Wilson, Martyn Hobbs, George Mortimore, and all of the serving and former members of the RFA, too numerous to name individually who took the time to supply photographs, information and anecdotes, without which this book would not have been possible.

I would also like to acknowledge the help of both Bexley and Dartford Library Services staff and the staff at the National Archive and the National Maritime Museum.

Introduction

Since its creation in 1905, the Royal Fleet Auxiliary has been involved wherever ships of the Royal Navy have seen action.

Supplying the fuel, ammunition and basic necessities of life which keep the ships afloat and operating, the RFA’s contribution has gone largely unnoticed, despite the fact that RFA men (and women) have frequently given their lives to ensure the smooth operation of the Navy’s ships.

Franco’s Spain, the Second World War, Korea, Suez, Aden, Oman, Northern Ireland, Rhodesia, Bluff Cove, Kuwait, Iraq: the areas of our naval deployment have spanned the world, and in the present world climate there is no reason to think that our reach will contract. The naval history of this era has been written in blood, some of it belonging to the men and women of the RFA.

But who were the men who operated the ships that fuelled the Russian convoys and manhandled ammunition under a burning Pacific sun, during that second war which was to end all wars?

Just the same sort as carried out a pump-over, forty years later, while simultaneously refueling HMS Plymouth, as a force 10 gale and thirty-foot waves in the Southern Ocean tried to tear the guts out of their battered, rusty ships, and an Argentinian submarine played them a deadly game of hide-and-seek. And for those who don’t remember, the ships were RFAs Tidespring and Brambleleaf and the place was 200 miles north of a tiny speck on the chart called South Georgia.

Chronicles of the Royal Navy are myriad, but the RFA’s story still remains largely untold. Finding out about the ships isn’t hard, but the story of the men who worked them still remains something of a mystery.

And it’s that story that this book and its companion volume, The Fourth Force, sets out to tell.

Chapter 1

Supplying the Fleet … Before the RFA

Prior to the development of reliable military aircraft, sea power, with its associated encouragement and protection of successful overseas trade, had historically been the key to a dominant position in the world order.

It was overwhelming naval superiority, supported by a system of shore bases, which allowed the Royal Navy’s warships to protect Britain’s vital trading routes and facilitated the expansion of British overseas possessions during the eighteenth and early nineteenth century. Control and successful exploitation of those colonies was also largely dependent upon sea power, although, ultimately, law and order in the areas concerned depended upon the presence of a well trained, professional standing ...