HMS Petard was a P-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy that saw service during the Second World War. She was one of only three P-class ships, out of the original eight, to survive the war in a serviceable condition.Harper, p. 49.
Originally to have been named HMS Persistent, Petard was launched in March 1941.Harper, pp. 48–49. She initially carried the pennant number G56, which was changed after the war to F56.
Petard had the distinction of sinking a submarine from each of the three Axis navies: the German , the Italian and the Japanese .Harper, p. ix.
Members of the ship's crew recovered from U-559 a new, four-wheel Enigma cypher machine and the books to go with it,Jak P. Mallmann Showell, U-Boat Warfare p. 107 albeit at the cost of the lives of her First Lieutenant and an Able Seaman, both of whom were drowned when the U-boat they were searching sank with them inside.
The early years Petard was launched on 27 March 1941 at Walker's shipyard in Newcastle, on the River Tyne.Harper, p. 48. Accommodation was basic, the officers had a cabin each in the aft of the ship, which doubled as office space. The ratings were housed in messes forward and slept in hammocks. As a result of these locations, confusion could arise when 'action stations' were sounded which might involve the officers making their way forward towards the bridge while gun-crews attempted to move aft to the stern armament.Connell, 1976, p. 19
She was fitted out and handed over to "a mainly untried crew" on 15 July 1942. Although the ship was fitted with radar, it was relatively primitive, so the need for a good visual watch was regarded as crucial. Her first captain was Lieutenant Commander Stephen Beattie who would go on to win the Victoria Cross in the St Nazaire Raid. He was replaced by Lt Cmdr Mark Thornton DSC on 28 April, (he had come from the destroyer ; his DSC was for sinking a German U-boat). He worked the ship's company hard in training.Harper, pp. 50–51.Connell, 1976, p. 22
Convoy WS 21 Petard began operations in late July as part of the naval escort of the Middle East-bound Convoy WS 21, (via the Cape of Good Hope).Harper, p. 51.Connell, 1976 It was an inauspicious baptism; two Sunderland flying boats were shot down by the convoy's gunners and , another escort, collided with a ship from the inbound Convoy MG 86, in fog.Connell, 1976, pp. 36–37
The convoy steamed south, into improving weather. Thornton seemed to live up to his reputation for eccentricity, standing for long periods on the upper yard, tied to the mast, ensuring the crews' state of alert was maintained by pelting those below him that he thought needed stimulation with objects brought from his pockets. Some officers took to wearing their steel helmets.Connell,1976, p. 40
Stopping off for fuel in Simon's Town, South Africa, Petards crew were granted some free time. This proved to be too much for three gun-layers, who missed the ship's sailing.Connell, 1976, p. 46 Training continued, at one point soap was spread on the upper deck to make keeping one's footing difficult, thunder flashes were also used and the ship given an artificial list, to simulate realistic battle conditions. During this period, Petard suffered her first fatality when the wardroom chef collapsed and died. He was buried at sea.Connell, 1976, p. 49 The rest of the voyage, via the eastern passage off Madagascar and through the Red Sea, culminated with the negotiation of the Suez Canal and passed without incident.
The Mediterranean, part one Having seen the convoy deliver its cargo, Petard joined the 12th Destroyer Flotilla in Port Said on 22 September. Two days later she used her guns in anger for the first time against three Junkers Ju 88 aircraft. The result was inconclusive.Connell, 1976, p. 56
Back in her mooring, the ship's first lieutenant had the opportunity to 'paint ship'; it was carried out under the watchful eye of the buffer (chief bosun's mate). Off-duty time was precious and sometimes amusing for the ship's crew. At one shore-side establishment, four of Petards officers had just entered as an improvised 'rodeo' of gharry horses (normally employed pulling a cab), was coming to an end. They were then involved with a fish-pond, a Lebanese singer and a move to an out-of-bounds area which saw the Royal Marines Patrol concerned with their welfare.Connell, 1976, pp. 57–62
For the next few days, Petard and the (Queen Olga) took part in anti-submarine patrols and exercised with Allied submarines, improving the two ships' anti-submarine warfare training. On 12 October Petard and moved to Haifa to escort the cruiser to Alexandria. The voyage included drills and tactics for the protection of convoys. Also in attendance were the cruisers , and and their attendant fleet destroyers.Connell, 1976, p. 63 On 24 October she took part in the abortive interception of a German force said to be heading for Cyprus.Harper, p. 51
The U-559 action
On 30 October 1942, a Sunderland flying boat reported the sighting of a submarine north of the Nile Delta.Connell, 1976, p. 65 Petard, with , , and , was involved in the sinking of . After many hours of searching and attacks with depth charges, the U-boat was forced to the surface. Petard and Hurworth engaged the U-boat with their "pom-poms" and Oerlikons after the main armament (4-inch guns) was found to be ineffective. With illumination from the searchlights of Petard and Hurworth, the First Lieutenant, Anthony Fasson and Able Seaman Colin Grazier swam across to the U-boat. They went below and recovered a new, four-rotor Enigma machine, code-books and other important documents for transfer to Petard.Harper, p. 58 They were helped by a 16-year-old NAAFI canteen assistant, Tommy Brown, who was originally thought to have swum across to the sinking submarine as well but when asked at the subsequent inquiry how he had boarded the U-boat, he testified that he "got on board just forward of the whaler on the port side when the deck was level with the conning tower".Connell, 1976, p 69 That whaler, under the command of Sub-Lieutenant Connell, went alongside the U-boat in the darkness.Harper, p. 60
Brown said that the conditions below were,
The Enigma machine sank with the U-boat. Petard left the area for Haifa, signalling that documents had been captured. The code books they retrieved were immensely valuable to the Ultra code-breakers at Bletchley Park in England; just six weeks after the action, many U-boat signals were being read.Harper, pp. 68–69. An Admiralty report on the sinking stated "The battle was largely won by persistence".Harper, p. 65 The German engineer officer said that prior to abandoning ship he had opened the sea-cocks on the U-boat.Connell, 1976, p. 70Harper, p. 66 Thornton, honouring a promise he had made to the shipyard, sent them a German U-boat seaman's life jacket as a trophy. Later awarded the George Medal for the U-boat action, Brown died in 1945 attempting to rescue his infant sister from a fire in the family home in North Shields.Harper, p. 74Connell, 1976, p. 71 Fasson and Grazier were awarded a posthumous George Cross each.Harper, pp 69–73 The 2000 film U-571 drew on this and similar actions () by the Royal Navy for its plot.
The Mediterranean, part two
Convoy escort Petard, with sister ship , was ordered on 9 November to enter Alexandria harbour and trained her torpedo tubes on ships of the Vichy French fleet while political negotiations were conducted for their transfer to Allied command.Connell, 1976, pp. 74–75 Almost immediately after the successful conclusion to this situation she sailed, with Queen Olga, as escort to two supply ships. The convoy was preceded by three minesweepers; their destination was Mersa Matruh, which had supposedly been re-captured from Axis forces.Harper, p. 101.Connell, 1976 p. 75 As dawn broke on 12 November, a Ju 88 was sighted, apparently on a reconnaissance mission. There was some doubt about the situation in Mersa Matruh; as a signal to that effect was being received, RDF (radar) reported a number of aircraft closing the convoy. Ten Ju 88s began their bomb run. Petard was the only ship in the convoy with armament that could put up a creditable defence (although Queen Olga had larger calibre guns than Petard, they could not be elevated sufficiently for anti-aircraft use). After an initial flurry of bombs, which scored no hits, the German aircraft broke off to attack individually, at which point they were close enough for every gun in the convoy to engage them. The naval action was curtailed when four Spitfires attacked the bombers; the convoy had suffered only minor damage but was nonetheless ordered to return to Port Said, which, for the merchantmen only, was amended to Alexandria.Connell, 1976, pp. 75–82
Convoy MW 13 and Operation Stoneage Operation Stoneage was part of the effort to supply Malta. Four merchantmen were to be escorted, initially by a total of nine warships, including Petard. The escort was reinforced with the addition of three cruisers and 14 more destroyers, which set course for Malta on 17 November.Connell, 1976, pp. 83–84 Only one incident of note involved Petard. An alert look-out sighted a dinghy which contained five RAF men who had been shot down the previous day. The navigator surprised his rescuers after being picked up by running up to the bridge chart house to confirm his estimate of their position, thus winning a bet with his fellow survivors.
The first air raid, carried out by the Italian Regia Aeronautica (air force), commenced from high altitude in mid-afternoon. No serious damage was inflicted. It was followed by small groups of Italian and German aircraft, which did not press their attack home with conviction. It was only as dusk fell that the convoy faced a more determined onslaught, when six Ju 88 torpedo-bombers, approached the convoy from different directions. Those ships with sufficient 'sea-room' took evasive action. Some ships in the outer escort screen suffered damage from falling shell splinters from the close escort, a constant hazard.
The following morning more attacks were carried out by the Axis, but accurate bombing was discouraged by advantageous cloud cover, the escorts' barrage and the presence of Bristol Beaufighters over the convoy. One attack, less desultory than most, was launched by six Ju 88s on the starboard screen, Petard was the last ship in the line. Only a few near misses and violent manoeuvres by the escorts were the result.
In the evening of 18 November, a force of 26 Ju 88 torpedo bombers in three groups attacked the convoy, silhouetted against the light from a pattern of air-dropped flares. The escorts' guns were firing in all directions, trying to distract the German aircraft. In the confusion the cruiser Arethusa was hit by a torpedo.
Towing Arethusa Petard and the destroyer were detached to offer assistance. Thornton, as senior officer, almost immediately sent Javelin back to the convoy, reasoning that Malta's survival had priority over Arethusas and that the convoy needed every ship. Petard then carried out Asdic (later called active sonar) sweeps to discourage submarines and prepared to take the crippled ship in tow. With everything ready, the tow began, rising to a speed of in the first hour. Arethusa had adopted a 15-degree list which was reduced to five degrees over six hours by jettisoning upper-deck fittings and transferring liquids; this also improved the cruiser's steering. Exchanges of signals to increase speed (to get inside air cover before dawn), were interrupted when the tow-line parted. It was reconnected and the tow resumed at . At dawn on 19 November the two ships were being shadowed by a German reconnaissance aircraft, which was chased away by a pair of Beaufighters but reported the tow's position. Two high-level attacks were then mounted but driven off by a combination of the ships' guns and the Beaufighters.