Memoirs re Combined Ops, "John Keys - A Letter"

A Letter from John Keys, Lt. Cdr., RCNVR (Ret'd)

Lamlash, Scotland from HMCS Ontario

Photo - CPO W.P. Hodgkins collection

I went to England in the spring of 1942, along with some others I remember - Ian Barclay, George Hampson, Harry Trenholme (Montreal), Hugh Harrison (Kingston), "Luke" Williams, Norm Donaldson (stayed in RCN), Lloyd Morgan (Seattle). Our first stop was HMCS Niobe, the Canadian shore base on the Clyde R.. followed by ALC* training in the south of England at Hayling Island. While there, we received a visit from Lord Louis Mountbatten, who gave us a pep talk. Inveraray in Scotland was next for a summer of further training.

On the evening prior to the landing at Dieppe, Norm Donaldson and I had the watch around midnight. We received orders to move to the south of England next morning. My recollection is that the order was cancelled, reinstated and cancelled again, all within two or three hours. We learned of Dieppe the next morning. I have never seen any reference to such a message, but the Naval records in the UK will have a copy - if they exist.

In the fall I went to Fort William to take an aircraft recognition instructors course. When I  returned to Inveraray, my Flotilla had departed. I was advised to go to Troon, a Combined Operations training centre from which I would be dispatched to my Flotilla which had embarked for an operation. They were unknown at Troon. With the help of a very friendly XO (Executive Officer, 2 IC), I was sent on to seek them abroad. They arranged for me to go to the Clyde to try and find my buddies. I never did, but scrounged a trip to Torch (Editor - invasion of N. Africa, November 1942) aboard a freighter who could use a young footloose officer. I eventually found my gang after a couple of nights on the beach at Arzeu.

Back to Foliat (near Plymouth) and from thence to NY (Perth Amboy, NJ) to join Lloyd Morgan to be his No:1 in 272. Sometime in the early spring 35 LCI (L) sailed from Norfolk for the Med - led by an RN commander (whose ship brought up the rear) and an RN navigator, who led the fleet in 272. Colin Madden, great man, had his ship beaten up in the Med. The fleet was RN, with a couple of Canadian officers (e.g., Alan Fallis from Winnipeg), and Canadian Stokers from the GM Diesels.

HMCS Ontario leaving Valetta, Malta. Photo - CPO W.P. Hodgkin collection

We spent some time along the North African coast, with Djidjelli as the daytime base. We had to disperse at night because of the bombing. From there to Malta which was my base for the rest of my stay in the Med. I transferred to 139 (not sure) for Sicily - we carried ammo in the holds. I met some of the old buddies in Malta, Ian and Dave Rogers. Later on I spent a night on one of the Prince ships in Taranto, where I got stuck overnight. We did a lot of little things - anti E-boat patrol in the Adriatic off the Canadian front lines in Greece, and some operations on the west coast of Italy. I took leaves flying around the Italian theatre and saw some results of major battles first hand - Monte Cassino for one. I counted 34 British tanks knocked out in one large field.

I returned to Canada at the end of 1944 (with malaria) and went to Kings for the navigation course, then to HMCS Lethbridge and after decommissioning her, to HMCS Cornwallis to teach in the Naval school. And then back to McGill in October.

*Assault Landing Craft before it was changed to LCA to suit US forces

The letter from John Keys appears in St. Nazaire to Singapore - The Canadian Amphibious War 1941 - 1945, Volume 1, page 126.

Link to Memoirs re Combined Operations - Lt. Cdr. J. E. Koyl