Shipwreck off Devon still giving up secrets 80 years on
The wreck of the American Liberty Ship rests in just 25 feet of water near the Rame Peninsula, making it one of the most accessible and most dived wrecks in the UK.The Ships Project divers are keen to share what they have learned about the vessel with the public.
Historian and diver Peter Holt, who is also director of The Ships Project, said Liberty Ships transported goods needed during the war."Because the UK is an island everything had to come in via ship, but the Germans at the time were sinking ships far faster than we could build them," he said. "So a (Liberty Ship) programme was put together to build ships in America really fast."The Egan Layne was fully loaded with cargo when it was torpedoed near the Eddystone Rock by a German submarine. It was limping back to Plymouth when it started to sink. All the crew were able to evacuate the ship, including 17-year-old Earl George Blache who later shared the tale with his grandson Glen in America.Mr Blache said: "Earl was asleep in his bunk when they were torpedoed. He woke up and was lodged between two pipes. He barely made it out.'
Despite this he went back to save the ship's American flag.Mr Blache said the first mate ordered his grandfather to go and retrieve the flag."He said no, if I'm going to get it, I'm keeping it. The captain told him, whoever swims and gets it, gets to keep the flag. So he out swam the first mate..."The stars and stripes flag has been a prized possession passed down through the Blache family ever since.
The James Egan Layne sank fully loaded and close to shore so many items have has been salvaged over the years. Diver Mallory Haas said: "Everyone's got a piece of her somewhere in their house. It would be good to see it back together."The Ships Project is keen to find out what divers have found - but said they did not want any ammunition handed to them for safety reasons.
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Scottish Sun
an hour ago
- Scottish Sun
A hero who received 72 wounds but refused morphine & avoided attention – VC legend John Cruikshank dies aged 105
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) SIR WINSTON CHURCHILL said: 'Courage is rightly regarded as the foremost of the virtues, for upon it all the others depend.' The truth of those words is highlighted by the heroics of RAF Flight Lieutenant John Cruickshank, who has died at the age 105. 5 RAF Flight Lieutenant John Cruickshank has died at the age of 105 Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd 5 In 2013 with a Catalina flying boat, like the one he skippered Credit: Getty 5 The brave RAF ace stands proudly in his uniform Credit: PA:Press Association It was 81 years ago that he performed an extraordinary act of sustained bravery, as he defied the agony of multiple severe injuries to bring home his badly damaged plane after a lethal encounter with a U-boat off the coast of Norway. For this deed he was awarded the Victoria Cross. He was one of four Coastal Command airmen to receive this award, but his case was unique. The other three had died in action and were honoured posthumously. He had survived but it was a mighty close-run thing. It was appropriate that this Scotsman of rock-hard resilience should hail from Aberdeen, long known as 'the Granite City'. He had left school in 1938 to become an apprentice in banking. But the drumbeat of war was echoing across Europe so he volunteered for the Territorial Army, enlisting in the Royal Artillery. Called up for service with this regiment in 1939, he transferred to the RAF two years later then went through initial flight instruction in Canada and the US. Back in Britain, having won his wings as a pilot, he continued his training until March 1943 when he was assigned to 210 Squadron in Coastal Command, based at Sullom Voe in the Shetland Islands. The Last of the Few, John 'Paddy' Hemingway has died, age 105 Man of modesty His squadron's main duty was to protect Allied ships from U-boats and they were equipped with the rugged and reliable American-built twin-engine Catalina flying boat. It was on July 17, 1944, soon after D-Day, that the incident occurred which lifted John Cruickshank into the record book, but almost killed him. He was piloting an anti- submarine patrol off Norway when his radio operator John Appleton picked up a blip on the Catalina's equipment. John began to home in on the target, whose status as a U-boat was confirmed by fire from its 37 mm gun. Appleton wrote in his memoir: 'The skipper manoeuvred into a perfect attacking position astern of the submarine, just out of range of the enemy gunfire. He gave a blast on the klaxon and started the attack run-in from about two miles.' As the plane got closer, flak from the U-boat intensified and was reinforced as its two pairs of 20mm cannon opened up. The skipper manoeuvred into a perfect attacking position astern of the submarine, just out of range of the enemy gunfire. He gave a blast on the klaxon and started the attack run-in from about two miles John Appleton John flew on and appeared to have released the depth charges at the right moment. But the bombs had hung up, so he then took the plane out of range of the U-boat, while his crew rearmed their own guns and checked the bomb-release mechanism. 'Everyone ready! Here we go again,' said John over the intercom. Of the second attack, Appleton recalled: 'This time all the flak was bursting much closer to us and I was surprised at how thick it could be. 'We seemed to be flying into a wall of black explosions.' But again, John descended upon the target without hesitation. 5 The first thing John said when he had regained consciousness in the stricken Catalina, was: 'How are my crew?' Credit: PA:Press Association 5 John was awarded the Victoria Cross for his extraordinary act of sustained bravery Credit: Alamy This time the depth charges hit their target with deadly accuracy. Seconds later, the U-boat began to sink. None of the 52 men on board had a chance of survival. But by now John's plane, caught by more enemy fire, was in serious trouble. Flames and smoke began to fill the aircraft. The radar was wrecked and the nose canopy shattered. One crewman was dead and four others were badly wounded, including John, who had been hit in his chest and legs and was bleeding heavily. But all was not lost. With the use of extinguishers, some of the uninjured crewmen put out the fire. As the co-pilot took over the controls, John was carried to the back of the plane. Throughout, he set an example of determination, fortitude and devotion to duty in keeping with the highest traditions of the service Citation from Victoria Cross ceremony Lapsing in and out of consciousness, he was in tremendous pain but refused any morphine from the emergency safety kit because he wanted to keep alert so he could help bring the Catalina boat plane home to Sullom Voe. With almost superhuman fortitude, he returned to the cockpit to oversee the final descent just as dawn was breaking. After landing successfully on the water, he ran the shattered plane on to the beach. He had to be given an emergency blood transfusion before being taken to Lerwick Hospital, where he was found to have suffered 72 wounds. Yet, by September, he was fit enough to receive the Victoria Cross from King George VI in Edinburgh, the first time Holyrood House had been used for an investiture since the reign of Queen Victoria. His citation read: 'Throughout, he set an example of determination, fortitude and devotion to duty in keeping with the highest traditions of the service.' From a generation that never sought the spotlight Barney Crockett But he was a man of profound modesty who hated talking about his exploits. Even at his investiture, he crept out of a side door afterwards to avoid the attention of the press and public. In the same vein, when he had regained consciousness in the stricken Catalina, the first thing he said was: 'How are my crew?' Though he had recuperated imp-ressively in hospital, the legacy of his injuries was too severe to allow him to return to flying duties, so for the rest of the war he held a staff job at Coastal Command HQ. Later, on demobilisation at the end of the war, he resumed his career in banking, eventually working in international finance before he retired in 1977. Happily married, he lost his beloved wife Marion in 1985. In his final years, in sheltered accommodation, he disliked any fuss, whether about his VC or his birthdays. Barney Crockett, the former Lord Provost of his native Aberdeen, once said John was 'from a generation that never sought the spotlight'. But it was also the generation that saved the world from tyranny.
The Sun
an hour ago
- The Sun
A hero who received 72 wounds but refused morphine & avoided attention – VC legend John Cruikshank dies aged 105
SIR WINSTON CHURCHILL said: 'Courage is rightly regarded as the foremost of the virtues, for upon it all the others depend.' The truth of those words is highlighted by the heroics of RAF Flight Lieutenant John Cruickshank, who has died at the age 105. 5 5 It was 81 years ago that he performed an extraordinary act of sustained bravery, as he defied the agony of multiple severe injuries to bring home his badly damaged plane after a lethal encounter with a U-boat off the coast of Norway. For this deed he was awarded the Victoria Cross. He was one of four Coastal Command airmen to receive this award, but his case was unique. The other three had died in action and were honoured posthumously. He had survived but it was a mighty close-run thing. It was appropriate that this Scotsman of rock-hard resilience should hail from Aberdeen, long known as 'the Granite City'. He had left school in 1938 to become an apprentice in banking. But the drumbeat of war was echoing across Europe so he volunteered for the Territorial Army, enlisting in the Royal Artillery. Called up for service with this regiment in 1939, he transferred to the RAF two years later then went through initial flight instruction in Canada and the US. Back in Britain, having won his wings as a pilot, he continued his training until March 1943 when he was assigned to 210 Squadron in Coastal Command, based at Sullom Voe in the Shetland Islands. Man of modesty His squadron's main duty was to protect Allied ships from U-boats and they were equipped with the rugged and reliable American-built twin-engine Catalina flying boat. It was on July 17, 1944, soon after D-Day, that the incident occurred which lifted John Cruickshank into the record book, but almost killed him. He was piloting an anti- submarine patrol off Norway when his radio operator John Appleton picked up a blip on the Catalina's equipment. John began to home in on the target, whose status as a U-boat was confirmed by fire from its 37 mm gun. Appleton wrote in his memoir: 'The skipper manoeuvred into a perfect attacking position astern of the submarine, just out of range of the enemy gunfire. He gave a blast on the klaxon and started the attack run-in from about two miles.' As the plane got closer, flak from the U-boat intensified and was reinforced as its two pairs of 20mm cannon opened up. The skipper manoeuvred into a perfect attacking position astern of the submarine, just out of range of the enemy gunfire. He gave a blast on the klaxon and started the attack run-in from about two miles John Appleton John flew on and appeared to have released the depth charges at the right moment. But the bombs had hung up, so he then took the plane out of range of the U-boat, while his crew rearmed their own guns and checked the bomb-release mechanism. 'Everyone ready! Here we go again,' said John over the intercom. Of the second attack, Appleton recalled: 'This time all the flak was bursting much closer to us and I was surprised at how thick it could be. 'We seemed to be flying into a wall of black explosions.' But again, John descended upon the target without hesitation. This time the depth charges hit their target with deadly accuracy. Seconds later, the U-boat began to sink. None of the 52 men on board had a chance of survival. But by now John's plane, caught by more enemy fire, was in serious trouble. Flames and smoke began to fill the aircraft. The radar was wrecked and the nose canopy shattered. One crewman was dead and four others were badly wounded, including John, who had been hit in his chest and legs and was bleeding heavily. But all was not lost. With the use of extinguishers, some of the uninjured crewmen put out the fire. As the co-pilot took over the controls, John was carried to the back of the plane. Throughout, he set an example of determination, fortitude and devotion to duty in keeping with the highest traditions of the service Citation from Victoria Cross ceremony Lapsing in and out of consciousness, he was in tremendous pain but refused any morphine from the emergency safety kit because he wanted to keep alert so he could help bring the Catalina boat plane home to Sullom Voe. With almost superhuman fortitude, he returned to the cockpit to oversee the final descent just as dawn was breaking. After landing successfully on the water, he ran the shattered plane on to the beach. He had to be given an emergency blood transfusion before being taken to Lerwick Hospital, where he was found to have suffered 72 wounds. Yet, by September, he was fit enough to receive the Victoria Cross from King George VI in Edinburgh, the first time Holyrood House had been used for an investiture since the reign of Queen Victoria. His citation read: 'Throughout, he set an example of determination, fortitude and devotion to duty in keeping with the highest traditions of the service.' But he was a man of profound modesty who hated talking about his exploits. Even at his investiture, he crept out of a side door afterwards to avoid the attention of the press and public. In the same vein, when he had regained consciousness in the stricken Catalina, the first thing he said was: 'How are my crew?' Though he had recuperated imp-ressively in hospital, the legacy of his injuries was too severe to allow him to return to flying duties, so for the rest of the war he held a staff job at Coastal Command HQ. Later, on demobilisation at the end of the war, he resumed his career in banking, eventually working in international finance before he retired in 1977. Happily married, he lost his beloved wife Marion in 1985. In his final years, in sheltered accommodation, he disliked any fuss, whether about his VC or his birthdays. Barney Crockett, the former Lord Provost of his native Aberdeen, once said John was 'from a generation that never sought the spotlight'. But it was also the generation that saved the world from tyranny.
Western Telegraph
2 days ago
- Western Telegraph
1950s Newport bungalow to be replaced with new home
In an application to Pembrokeshire Coast National Park, High Wycombe-based Mr and Mrs Shorrocks, through agent Harries Planning Design Management, sought permission for a replacement dwelling at New Court, Fishguard Road, Newport. A supporting statement said the current bungalow is 'is a circa 1950s post-war bungalow and is typical for its time, with limited renovations or modernisations,' adding: 'The dwelling is in poor overall condition, both internally and externally. There are all necessary connections to the dwelling. The property also has a small single detached garage in poor state of repair, with large overgrowth.' It went on to say: 'This application seeks full planning approval for a three-bedroom dwelling on site, with internal garage and detached garden shed/store. This replacement is sought to create a dwelling capable of modern habitation and to serve future generations and to create a single harmonious dwelling, instead of trying to retrofit additional living accommodation onto the original and trying to bring it up to modern regulations, which would create an inharmonious development, which would look unforgiving in its landscape. 'Further to this, the current dwelling has no cavity insulation with limited cavity width which will not allow for retrofitted insulation and makes the property prone to cold bridging. The existing layout is not suitable for modern living and does not provide an accessible dwelling. The proposed dwelling is in a similar position within the plot and comprises a one-and-a-half storey dwelling to match the surrounding dwellings. The orientation of the dwelling is to remain the same with identical ridge lines and access arrangements.' An officer report recommending approval said concerns were received about the height of the proposed dwelling, property boundary and overlooking. It added: 'Amended plans have been received during the course of the application to address the authority's concerns in relation to design, the impact upon amenity and light pollution and materials palette. 'The design of the proposal is now deemed to be acceptable, and it is deemed that there would be no significant impact in terms of amenity, the character or appearance of the immediate area, or the wider landscape.' The application was conditionally approved.
