PO. John "Herbie" Webb
Royal Navy HMS Illustrious
from:Plymouth
My father John Webb was an Officer's Steward PO on board HMS Illustrious, an Aircraft Carrier of the Mediterranean Fleet. Some time between 1940 and 1942 he found himself as part of the allied forces besieged by Italy and Germany on the Island of Malta. (Sorry I cannot be more specific about dates here). He was serving at a joint RAF and Fleet Air Arm air station at Hal Far, which is on the heights above much of Malta.
During our honeymoon to the Island in July 2004 I was able to visit the site and the nearby hospital which my father was in for a while, not sure why. Dad was profoundly deaf after the war: he always told the story of how at his discharge medical the MO said I've been calling you, Webb for some time and you have not responded, I'd better check your hearing. It was then discovered that Dad had suffered substantial damage to both his ears. He then recalled a time during an air raid as he was running to a bomb shelter outside the Hospital, he was lifted from the ground and thrown down the bomb shelters' steep steps. He was certain that was when he was made deaf. When I went to the Hospital site that July in 2004, many workmen from several different countries of origin that now lived in Malta, were busy converting the building into a residential centre for asylum seekers that were coming in large numbers to Malta. With their help I was able to find and enter the very same bomb shelter my Dad had taken refuge in on that awful day when he was deafened by the blast from an Italian bomb dropped so close to the Military Hospital. It was a very moving experience as many of the workmen had relatives that had served and some that had died in action during WW2. We shared a group hug before I left.
