Red Tobruk : Memoirs of a World War II Destroyer Commander

Red Tobruk, the war memoir of the Captain of HMS Eridge from late 1940 until August 1942 is a superb account of wartime action at sea. Frank Gregory-Smiths war started on the destroyer Jaguar and he saw action off Norway and during the Dunkirk evacuation, when she was hit by enemy air attack with 25 men killed. Command of the new escort destroyer HMS Eridge followed (he was to be her only Captain) and they deployed to the Eastern Mediterranean, and so began a gruelling 18 months of convoys to Tobruk and Malta under German controlled skies. ORed Tobruk was the name for the enemy aircraft warning that the Tobruk radar station put out which all sailors dreaded as it meant yet another attack was imminent.Eridge survived countless such attacks. She fought in the famous Battle of Sirte when the powerful Italian fleet was seen off. She had to pick up survivors, take stricken ships in tow and once had only blanks to fire at attacking enemy aircraft. Among Eridges achievements was the sinking of U-568 in May 1942. The author's luck finally ran out in August 1942 when Eridge was torpedoed by an Italian MTB. Under constant air attack, she was towed to Alexandria but was irreparable. Saddened by the loss of his ship but cheered by the Allies' increasing superiority, Gregory-Smith returned to Britain having been awarded two DSOs and one DSC (a second followed at D-Day). All this and more is told in the most graphic and moving fashion in this exceptional memoir, which will recall to many readers that naval classic The Cruel Sea. The big difference, of course, is that Red Tobruk is a true personal account. [Elib] A Second World War hero, who played a leading role in the evacuation of Dunkirk . . . has published a fascinating account of his memories of the war.”— Salisbury Journal Frank Gregory-Smith’s war started on the destroyer Jaguar and he saw action off Norway and during the Dunkirk evacuation, when she was hit by enemy air attack with 25 men killed. Command of the new escort destroyer HMS Eridge followed (he was to be her only Captain) and they deployed to the Eastern Mediterranean, and so began a grueling 18 months of convoys to Tobruk and Malta under German controlled skies. “Red Tobruk” was the name for the enemy aircraft warning that the Tobruk radar station put out which all sailors dreaded as it meant yet another attack was imminent. Eridge survived countless such attacks. She fought in the famous Battle of Sirte when the powerful Italian fleet was seen off. She had to pick up survivors, take stricken ships in tow and once had only blanks to fire at attacking enemy aircraft. Among Eridge ’s achievements was the sinking of U-568 in May 1942. The author’s luck finally ran out in August 1942 when Eridge was torpedoed by an Italian MTB. Under constant air attack, she was towed to Alexandria but was irreparable. Gregory-Smith returned to Britain having been awarded two Distinguished Service Orders and one Distinguished Service Cross (a second followed at D-Day). All this and more is told in the most graphic and moving fashion in this exceptional memoir, which will recall to many readers that naval classic The Cruel Sea , except that Red Tobruk is a true personal account. Gregory-Smith's war started on the destroyer Jaguar and he saw action off Norway and in the North Sea. During the Dunkirk evacuation, when loaded with soldiers, many drunk, Jaguar was hit by enemy aircraft and 25 men killed. Command of the new escort destroyer HMS Eridge followed (he was her only Captain) and they deployed to the Eastern Mediterranean, and so began a gruelling 18 months of Malta Convoys. The Germans controlled the air. 'Red Tobruk' was the name for the enemy aircraft warning that the Tobruk radar station put out. All sailors dreaded a 'Red Tobruk' as it meant an attack was imminent. Eridge survived countless air attacks and saw many fine ships sunk and lives lost. Under Gregory-Smith's command she fought in the famous Battle of Sirte when the powerful Italian fleet was seen off. She had to pick up survivors, take stricken ships in tow, and once had only blanks to fire at attacking enemy aircraft. She sank U-568 in May 1942. Eridge's and the author's luck ran out in August 1942 when she was hit by a torpedo from an Italian MTB. Despite constant air attack, Eridge was towed to Alexandria but was irreparable. Five crew were killed. Exhausted and dispirited by the loss, Gregory Smith returned to Britain, having been awarded 2 DSOs and 2 DSCs. All this and much more is told in the most graphic and moving words in this exceptional memoir The author’s luck finally ran out in August 1942 when Eridge was torpedoed by an Italian MTB. Under constant air attack, she was towed to Alexandria but was irreparable. Saddened by the loss of his ship but cheered by the Allies’ increasing superiority, Gregory-Smith returned to Britain having been awarded two DSOs and one DSC (a second followed at D-Day). All this and more is told in the most graphic and moving fashion in this exceptional memoir, which will recall to many readers that naval classic The Cruel Sea. The big difference, of course, is that Red Tobruk is a true personal account. Bisac Code 1: HIS027150; HISTORY / Military / Naval Red Tobruk, the war memoir of the Captain of HMS Eridge from late 1940 until August 1942 is a superb account of wartime action at sea. Frank Gregory-Smith1s war started on the destroyer Jaguar and he saw action off Norway and during the Dunkirk evacuation, when she was hit by enemy air attack with 25 men killed. Command of the new escort destroyer HMS Eridge followed (he was to be her only Captain) and they deployed to the Eastern Mediterranean, and so began a gruelling 18 months of convoys to Tobruk and Malta under German controlled skies. ORed Tobruk1 was the name for the enemy aircraft warn Disse krigsberetninger af kaptajnen på HMS Eridge fra sidst i 1940 til august 42 er et enestående vidensbyrd om krigsbegivenheder til søs. Frank Gregory-Smiths krigsdeltagelse begyndte på destroyeren Jaguar og herfra var han vidne til kamphandlinger ud for Norge og i Nordsøen. Under evakueringen ved Dubkirk blev Jaguar med soldater om bord ramt af et fjendtligt luftangreb, hvorved 25 soldater omkom. Eridge blev i august torpederet af en italiensk motortorpedobåd. Dette blot et lille udpluk af det handlinsmættede indhold