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HMS Pathfinder
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Those known to have sailed in HMS Pathfinder during the Second World War 1939-1945. The names on this list have been submitted by relatives, friends, neighbours and others who wish to remember them, if you have any names to add or any recollections or photos of those listed,
please
Add a Name to this List
Records of HMS Pathfinder from other sources.
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The Wartime Memories Project is the original WW1 and WW2 commemoration website.
Announcements
- 1st of September 2024 marks 25 years since the launch of the Wartime Memories Project. Thanks to everyone who has supported us over this time.
- The Wartime Memories Project has been running for 25 years. If you would like to support us, a donation, no matter how small, would be much appreciated, annually we need to raise enough funds to pay for our web hosting and admin or this site will vanish from the web.
- 18th Dec 2024 - Please note we currently have a huge backlog of submitted material, our volunteers are working through this as quickly as possible and all names, stories and photos will be added to the site. If you have already submitted a story to the site and your UID reference number is higher than
265120 your information is still in the queue, please do not resubmit, we are working through them as quickly as possible.
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Want to find out more about your relative's service? Want to know what life was like during the War? Our
Library contains an ever growing number diary entries, personal letters and other documents, most transcribed into plain text. |
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Wanted: Digital copies of Group photographs, Scrapbooks, Autograph books, photo albums, newspaper clippings, letters, postcards and ephemera relating to WW2. We would like to obtain digital copies of any documents or photographs relating to WW2 you may have at home. If you have any unwanted
photographs, documents or items from the First or Second World War, please do not destroy them.
The Wartime Memories Project will give them a good home and ensure that they are used for educational purposes. Please get in touch for the postal address, do not sent them to our PO Box as packages are not accepted.
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Did you know? We also have a section on The Great War. and a
Timecapsule to preserve stories from other conflicts for future generations.
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Want to know more about HMS Pathfinder? There are:-1 items tagged HMS Pathfinder available in our Library
These include information on officers, regimental histories, letters, diary entries, personal accounts and information about actions during the Second World War. |
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Sidney Guest HMS Manchester Sidney Guest joined the Navy aged 18. He served onboard HMS Manchester during Operation Pedestal, when the ship was torpedoed he was identified as 'essential personell', and transferred to HMS Pathfinder.
In 2006 he was made an honorary citizen of the Maltese capital of Valletta in a newspaper article published in the Dorset Echo at the time he said:
"In many ways it was a nice surprise, but it brought up a few things which I would rather forget.
"I was quite moved when I received it. There are a couple of small incidents I recall that still upset me. I was on action stations on the bridge the whole time. One colleague nearby was firing a gun at German bombers overhead when his gun got stuck. The plane was bearing down on us but I managed to clear the ammunition for him, and he shot it down just in time. Some of the memories are a bit vague, but other parts I remember clearly. I will never forget being on that deck, drowned in seawater. We had plenty of near-misses, and of course I was scared. But I was so busy, I had a job to do and got on with it. We were awake solidly for five days and four nights. How we kept our eyes open and wits about us all that time, I'll never know. I remember longing to get to Valletta to put my head down, but we never got there. Once the merchant ships were in, we got out of there as fast as we could.
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Stwd. Henry Crossley Horn HMS Pathfinder He enlisted at HMS Glendower 8th Dec 1941. Served in various vessels including HMS Pathfinder (G10) which was involved in Operation Pedestal (Malta Convoys) and the sinking of U162 in the Caribbean. Following the Pathfinder he served on HMS Lynx, the Coastal Minesweeper and Patrol Base at Dover, before being transferred to HMS Royal Arthur and invalided out in 1945.
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Lt. Robert Edward "Scratch" Williams HMS Manchester  Robert Williams of Portsmouth, joined the Royal Navy in September 1938. He was on HMS Vindictive and went to Barbados and Puerto Rico in 1939. His next ship was HMS Nelson and during 1941 he crossed the Equator in her. His next ship was HMS Manchester serving as Captain's Secretary.
Many years later, Robert took part in the documentary shown on TV about the Manchester (the case of Captain Harold Drew). Robert was one of the crew survivors who returned to Britain on HMS Pathfinder.
Robert then joined HMS Argus. Argus was the first aircraft carrier ever built. The ship went under attack in Algiers when Robert was keeping the Action Log.
In August 1944 Robert was appointed to HMS Flycatcher, a Naval Air Station in Norfolk. Later Flycatcher moved to Middle Wallop in Hampshire (now Army Air Corps).
After the end of the war Robert was appointed to staff in Malta working for Admiral Sir Algernon Willis.
In the summer of 1948 Robert embarked on a course in Russian in Cambridge. Following his course he was appointed the staff of the Admiral Commanding Reserves in March 1950. The Naval Reserve at that time was a large command.
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