WITH THE DEPARTURE OF THE EIGHTH SUBMARINE FLOTILLA for the South West Pacific in August and September 1944, it is appropriate to review the strategic situation in South East Asia that it left behind and into which the operations of the Second and Fourth Submarine Flotillas now had to be fitted. The Fourteenth Army in Burma had been locked in combat with the Japanese around Kohima and Imphal throughout the summer of 1944. The Japanese invasion of India had been held in April and then halted, and after a period of attrition in May and June, it had been thrown back in July. Coupled with successes by the Chindits and General Stilwell's Sino-American Forces in the north, the recapture of the whole of Burma, leading to the re-opening of the Burma Road, seemed a distinct possibility. The recapture of the port of Rangoon was, of course, an essential feature of such a plan and the requisite amphibious forces were expected to become available from Europe after the completion of the landings in the south of France¹. The part of the submarines left in South East Asia was clear. It was to continue to try to cut off the supplies to the Japanese Army in Burma by sea². The sea route to Burma by the Malacca Strait had very nearly been cut already and the sea supply lines from Japan to Indo China and Singapore, which continued to Burma by rail and road, had suffered serious losses from the American submarine campaign in the Pacific. Submarines on both sides of the Malay Peninsula can undoubtedly claim some credit for the recent successes on land in Burma. During the summer of 1944, the submarine campaign in the Malacca Strait was joined by long-range aircraft from both the RAF and USAF, laying mines. These aircraft operated from Ceylon and the Chittagong area in India and laid mines in the Indian Ocean ports of Burma, Siam and northern Malaya. The German and Japanese U-boats from Penang, though there were few of them, still took a toll of Allied shipping in the Indian Ocean. The Japanese main fleet which had been based at Lingga for most of the year, left to take part in the Battle of Leyte Gulf in October and the bulk of it did not return.

After the Eighth Flotilla's departure, sixteen submarines were left in the Second and Fourth Flotillas at Trincomalee, although three of them³ were getting old and difficult to maintain. At this time too, a substantial build up of modern battleships and aircraft carriers was taking place in the Eastern Fleet. Most of these ships were destined for the Pacific but over the next few months they took part in a number of operations on the East Indies Station.

Nine submarines set off on patrol during October. In the first batch were Strongbow (Lieutenant JAR Troup DSC RN), Subtle (Lieutenant BJB Andrew DSC RN) and Stygian (Lieutenant GS Clarabut DSO RN). Subtle was on her first patrol and the other two on their second and they sailed between 2nd and 7th of the month. Strongbow, in the southern part of the Malacca Strait, attacked a convoy consisting of a merchant ship escorted by two subchasers on 11th October. She fired five torpedoes at a range of 3000 yards using CCR pistols. Two of them prematured and the others missed. Lieutenant Troup then set all his remaining torpedoes to 'impact only' but another chance to sink a merchant ship had to be given up due to shallow water. On 12th, Strongbow encountered two Japanese U-boats in quick succession. She fired four torpedoes at 2500 yards at the first from fine on the quarter and missed. Just over half an hour later she fired two more torpedoes at the second at 4500 yards with no more success. These were Ro113 and Ro115 on their way from Singapore to Penang to operate in the Bay of Bengal. Strongbow then reloaded her one remaining bow torpedo and two hours later fired it, hitting and sinking Manryo Maru of 1185 tons at a range of 1500 yards. Subtle on 11th, off Sabang, fired three torpedoes at a minesweeper at 4000 yards and understandably missed this small target. On 15th, off the Nicobars, she made an attack on a convoy of five coasters with three escorts, firing five torpedoes at 2000 yards and hitting and sinking Kaiyo Maru No 2 of 500 tons.

On 18th October, both Strongbow and Subtle were ordered to take up positions off Sabang and Nancowry for air-sea-rescue duties during a carrier borne air attack on the Nicobar Islands by the Eastern Fleet. This attack was designed to distract attention from the American landings on Leyte. Afterwards Strongbow fired her stern torpedo into the harbour but it was intercepted by torpedo nets. Stygian, on 14th October off Penang, sighted a U-boat but was unable to attack. On 24th, however, she sighted another U-boat⁴, firing two torpedoes with CCR pistols at 1200 yards but the U-boat saw the tracks and altered away. Both torpedoes exploded in her vicinity but were not close enough to damage her. Before returning to base, Stygian sank two coasters, two junks and a landing craft by gunfire and demolition charges.

Eleven submarines left for patrol during November and their activities extended from the west coast of Siam in the north, to the Indian Ocean coast of Sumatra in the south as well as inside the Malacca Strait. During the month, Stratagem was lost and Spark went on to join the Eighth Flotilla at Fremantle so only nine boats returned to Trincomalee. The first batch were all of the T-class. Tudor (Lieutenant SA Porter DSC RN) sailed on 2nd to patrol off the west coast of Sumatra and on 16th, drove a coaster ashore by gunfire. She then fired a torpedo at a range of 2000 yards which, although set to run at a depth of four feet, exploded short probably hitting the bottom. Nevertheless Tudor set the coaster on fire with more gunfire. During the action, she was bombed by an aircraft and suffered minor damage. Thorough (Lieutenant Commander JG Hopkins RN) sailed on 4th and laid twelve magnetic ground mines on 19th near the Mati Bank off the north coast of Sumatra. She also sank three junks and drove two coasters ashore and destroyed them by gunfire. Thule (Lieutenant ACG Mars DSO DSC RN) left on 7th for a special operation in the Langkawi area but it was cancelled. She had to return early to seek medical assistance after a stoker died of heat stroke and another rating became seriously ill.

Both Statesman (Lieutenant RGP Bulkeley RN) and Stratagem (Lieutenant CR Pelly DSC RN) sailed on 10th, Statesman for the north coast of Sumatra where she stopped and boarded a junk on 16th. While the boarding party was still away, Statesman had to dive for an aircraft that bombed her, fortunately without damage, and she was able to recover the boarding party later. Stratagem was sent farther up the Strait than any submarine had been before. On 19th, she attacked a convoy of five ships escorted by three torpedo boats off Malacca. She fired three torpedoes at 2500 yards and secured one hit which damaged a ship. She was counter attacked with some twenty depth charges which were not close, and she was able to return to periscope depth and fire her stern torpedo at a range of 1000 yards which hit and sank the damaged Nichinan Maru of 1945 tons after which Stratagem was able to withdraw successfully. She went on up the Strait another thirty miles or so before returning to patrol off Malacca. Here, three days later, she encountered a destroyer and a seaplane on patrol. At midday on 22nd, her presence was detected and she was accurately depth charged by the destroyer causing lethal damage and sinking her. The total casualties included the Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Pelly, four other officers and forty men. One officer and nine men escaped by DSEA and eight of them were taken prisoner⁸. This was only the second casualty so far in the British submarine campaign in the Far East.

Spark (Lieutenant DG Kent RN), sailing on 14th November on her first patrol, was sent to the Mergui area where she sank two schooners by gunfire and demolition charges. On 27th, she was positioned for air-sea-rescue duties and then went on to Fremantle to join the Eighth Flotilla. Strongbow (Lieutenant JAR Troup DSC RN) and Supreme (Lieutenant TE Barlow RN) sailed on 15th for the west coast of Sumatra and the Andamans-Langkawi area respectively. Strongbow sank a tug and lighter by gunfire on 28th and next day carried out a special operation successfully. On 30th she sank three junks, obtaining 33 hits out of 36 rounds fired, even though, at the time, she was being engaged by shore batteries. Supreme was on her first patrol and had just arrived in Trincomalee. She was a new variation of the S-class with a four inch instead of a three-inch gun, for which she had to sacrifice her stern torpedo tube. She attempted a submerged torpedo attack on a merchant ship off Port Blair on 19th but lost trim and had to break it off. On 26th, she undertook air-sea-rescue duties and during the patrol sank six junks by gunfire. The large and elderly Clyde (Lieutenant RH Bull DSC RN) sailed on 18th November and carried out two special operations landing and recovering reconnaissance parties on the west coast of Siam.

The last two submarines to sail in November were Stygian (Lieutenant GS Clarabut DSO RN) and Shalimar (Lieutenant WG Meeke MBE DSC RN) and they sailed on 22nd and 29th. Stygian sank two coasters and a landing craft by gunfire in the Sabang area and on 10th, attacked a convoy of five coasters escorted by two subchasers. She fired two salvoes of three torpedoes each at 4000 and 3700 yards but it was flat calm and she either missed or the torpedoes were avoided. The attack was followed by an ineffective counter attack. Shalimar on 6th December fired three torpedoes with CCR pistols at a convoy of eight small ships at a range of 500 yards. She either missed or the pistols failed. A second shot with one torpedo with a contact pistol of the old type, fired at 700 yards, was no more successful. On 14th she attacked a coaster in a convoy of four and fired three more torpedoes with CCR pistols at a range of 1200 yards but two of them prematured and the third missed. Another single torpedo was then fired at 1500 yards at the same convoy and a hit was claimed but has not been substantiated. These disappointments were, however, offset by sinking six junks, a tug and two lighters by gunfire and damaging another.

Subtle (Lieutenant BJB Andrew DSC RN) was the first away in December, sailing on the first day of the month. She sank three small junks with demolition charges and then took up a position for air-sea-rescue duties on 18th- 20th December for an air strike by Indomitable and Illustrious on the oil refinery at Belawan Deli in northern Sumatra. Porpoise (Lieutenant Commander HB Turner DSC RN) sailed on 3rd and on 9th laid fifty moored contact mines off Penang. She then sank a junk with demolition charges and next day had an encounter with enemy patrols, in which she was subjected to a minor depth charge attack. She patrolled on her way home in the Nicobars but found no targets.

Tradewind (Lieutenant Commander SLC Maydon DSO* RN) sailed on 5th December and on 11th landed and recovered agents on the north coast of Sumatra. She then went on her way to Fremantle to join the Eighth Flotilla. Thule (Lieutenant ACG Mars DSO DSC RN) left Trincomalee on 11th and laid twelve magnetic ground mines north of Penang on 16th December. On 28th she sighted the Japanese U-boat Ro113 and fired a stern salvo of three torpedoes at 1000 yards but they had CCR pistols and the torpedo that should have hit, prematured, and the U-boat escaped. Ro113 was returning from operations in the Bay of Bengal⁹. Thule had to be satisfied with sinking thirteen junks and two lighters by gunfire, demolition charges and ramming and bringing back twenty prisoners for interrogation.

During the three months so far covered by this chapter, there were substantial changes in strategy in the area. The continuation of the war in Europe beyond the end of 1944 meant that the amphibious forces for the attack on Rangoon had not been forthcoming. It was essential to take Rangoon if the Burma Road was to be opened. A new strategy was therefore planned to take it by land by an advance down the Irrawaddy by the Fourteenth Army from central Burma. An advance down the Arakan coast was part of this plan in order to establish airfields in support. The considerable naval reinforcements which had arrived in the East Indies, amounting to five fleet aircraft carriers and two modern battleships, were not required for these operations on the station and were about to go on to Australia to form the British Pacific Fleet. It had been planned for the Fourth Submarine Flotilla to go on to the Pacific at the end of the year too, but the C-in-C postponed this move for three months until a suitable forward base could be arranged and because he considered the flotilla was doing good work in the Malacca Strait at this time. The good work alluded to by the C-in-C was the virtual severing of sea communications to Burma by the Malacca Strait. From now on the Japanese did not attempt to use ships of any size in this area. Such sea transport as existed consisted of coasters, junks and other small ships, keeping as far as possible to shallow water.

Sinkings were therefore no longer an indication of the success of the campaign but it was still necessary to keep up patrol activity to prevent the sea communications starting up again. During the three months, our submarines sank six ships totalling 11,597 tons, a small tanker and three small warships as well as one hundred coasters, junks and other small craft. Torpedoes, mines, chariots, gunfire, demolition charges and ramming were all used to achieve these results. The most successful weapon was the chariot, which not only scored 100% hits but also sank and damaged the greatest tonnage. There were twenty-six torpedo attacks firing 86 torpedoes. Eight attacks were successful and five more failed because the torpedoes prematured or did not explode. Five attacks using sixteen torpedoes were against the difficult U-boat targets and all missed. One hundred moored contact mines were laid and also sixty magnetic ground mines. The results were disappointing, only one small ship of 593 tons being sunk. The magnetic mines, of course, would not fire under wooden ships such as junks and the mass-produced Japanese coasters. The sinking and damaging of over a hundred coasters, junks and landing craft by the gun coupled with demolition charges and ramming, was probably the most important type of attack because the enemy traffic consisted mainly of these small craft. Submarines also, in this period, carried out eight special operations for landing or recovering agents, including one on a large scale by Clyde. They were also positioned for eleven air-sea-rescue missions and bombarded shore targets four times. The opposition was by no means without teeth. Of the nine depth charge attacks made on our submarines, one caused the loss of Stratagem, another forced Strongbow to leave patrol and two more caused minor damage. Shakespeare was seriously damaged by return gunfire from a target, and submarines were bombed and missed by aircraft twenty-eight times¹².

IN JANUARY, THE MAIN FOURTEENTH ARMY was still engaged in central Burma but by the middle of the month had excellent prospects of defeating the Japanese near Mandalay. On 2nd January, the advance down the Arakan coast began when a Commando brigade landed unopposed at Akyab. A landing at Myebon on 12th, to cut off the Japanese forces, however, failed to trap them. On 21st, the 26th Indian Division landed on Ramree Island and next day another landing at Kangaw, to cut off the enemy's retreat, also failed to do so. Finally on 26th, the Royal Marines of the Fleet landed and took Cheduba Island.

The submarine campaign in the Malacca Strait continued into 1945 much as before but early in the year suffered the loss of another submarine. Porpoise (Lieutenant Commander HB Turner DSC RN) left Trincomalee on 3rd January and laid two minefields west of Penang on 9th, sinking a coaster and Subchaser Che57. She reported laying her mines by wireless. She was never heard of again. The cause of her loss is unknown and there are no indications from post war British or Japanese sources to show what happened. All that can be said is that her mine-fields, which consisted of fifty moored-contact and twelve magnetic ground mines, were ordered to be laid within three miles of her earlier field laid on 9th December and she may have struck one of these¹³. Porpoise was, at the time of her loss, the oldest British submarine still used for operations. She had, however, a well-trained crew on their fourth patrol in the Far East and an experienced Commanding Officer. Although, of course, it was not known at the time, Porpoise was the last British submarine to be lost during the Second World War. She went down with all hands, including her Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Commander Turner, six other officers and 67 men.

Stygian (Lieutenant GS Clarabut DSO RN) and Supreme (Lieutenant TE Barlow RN) left Trincomalee on 4th and 5th January for patrol in the southern end of the Malacca Strait and in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands respectively. It will be recalled that it was Stygian who met the damaged Shakespeare on 6th January and escorted her until she was taken in tow by a destroyer. Stygian sank a small tanker and five junks by gunfire and demolition charge, and then went on to Fremantle to join the Eighth Submarine Flotilla. Supreme drove three coasters ashore by gunfire but she could not finish them off because of a defect in her gun: a torpedo fired at them prematured¹⁴.

Two more S-class set out on patrol during February, Supreme (Lieutenant TE Barlow RN) on 19th and Scythian (Lieutenant CP Thode RNZNVR) on her first patrol on 24th. Supreme was sent to the east coast of Sumatra and Scythian to the Mergui area. Both submarines were used for air-sea-rescue early in March and Supreme sank four junks by gunfire and also destroyed a beached coaster and another beached junk. Scythian destroyed eight junks by gunfire and demolition charge. Finally during February, Clyde (Lieutenant RH Bull DSC RN) set off on 25th on another special operation on the west coast of Sumatra. This was to land a reconnaissance party, which she did between 3rd and 5th March. On 4th March, she found time to drive an armed trawler of 233 tons ashore with her gun in spite of the return fire of some field guns on the coast.

On 3rd March, the Fourteenth Army had captured Meiktila, and on 9th, Mandalay as well. On 13th, yet another landing at Letpan failed to encircle the elusive Japanese in the Arakan. Surface forces of the East Indies Fleet now began to operate south of Burma in areas heretofore reserved for submarines. Naval aircraft flying from aircraft carriers also made attacks on the west coast of Burma and Siam. On 26th March, the 26th Destroyer Flotilla intercepted and sank a whole convoy, albeit of very small ships, east of the Andamans¹⁷. By the end of the month, the Fourteenth Army was pursuing the Japanese down the Irrawaddy towards Rangoon.

Eleven submarines set off to patrol during March but as the move of the Fourth Flotilla to Fremantle was scheduled to take place in early April, four of these did not return to Trincomalee but went straight on to Western Australia. The first two to sail, on 3rd, were the newly arrived Torbay (Lieutenant Commander CP Norman DSO RN) on her first, and Thrasher (Lieutenant Commander MFR Ainslie DSO DSC RN) on her second patrol. Both were sent to the west coast of Siam and Malaya. Torbay landed beach reconnaissance parties between the 8th and 15th and on 16th, drove a coaster ashore and set it on fire with her gun. Thrasher also landed and contacted agents between 8th and 14th and again on 22nd and sank five junks by gunfire. On 4th, Subtle (Lieutenant BJB Andrew DSC RN) also put to sea for the Malacca Strait and did air-searescue duty on 10th-12th March. She sank four junks by gunfire and demolition charge.

Three submarines sailed on 13th: two of these were the brand new T-boats Trump (Commander EF Balston DSO RN) and Tiptoe (Lieutenant Commander PRH Harrison DSO DSC* RN), which were not only of the all-welded type with an increased diving depth, but had the American SJ radar fitted and great things were expected from them. The third submarine to sail on 13th was Selene (Lieutenant Commander HRB Newton DSC RN) and she was followed on 18th by Rorqual (Lieutenant JPH Oakley DSC RN). Selene went to the north and east coasts of Sumatra, where she sighted destroyers on 17th but they proved to be British. She sank four junks before returning to Trincomalee. Trump and Tiptoe went to the west coasts of Burma and Tiptoe also to the Andamans. Both carried out air-sea-rescue duties on 28th-30th March. Trump was attacked by an enemy aircraft but was undamaged and both left patrol on 31st for Fremantle. Rorqual was sent to the west coast of Sumatra and carried out two special operations, landing and contacting agents between 24th and 29th March and also on 3rd April. She also drove two coasters ashore on 27th March after firing four torpedoes at one of them and missing at a range of 1600 yards. She then also went on to Fremantle leaving patrol on 3rd April. Thule (Lieutenant Commander ACG Mars DSO DSC RN), who had already carried out a special operation on the far side of Malaya, sailed on 23rd for one on the near side. This was to capture a southbound junk on the west coasts of Siam or Malaya with its cargo and papers. She failed, however, to find a suitable vessel but sank five small junks by demolition charge. Clyde (Lieutenant RH Bull DSC RN) made another short trip on 25th to the Andamans to contact and recover agents, which she accomplished successfully. Thorough (Lieutenant AG Chandler RNR) sailed on 27th March for the Nicobars, Andamans and the north coast of Sumatra. She sank a motor gunboat and three armed landing craft by gunfire. She also damaged a coaster and a pier by firing five torpedoes into a harbour. She was engaged by shore batteries and was slightly damaged. On 11th April she left patrol for Fremantle. Statesman (Lieutenant RGP Bulkeley RN) left on 31st March for the southern part of the Malacca Straits and on 5th April, sank an unescorted convoy of seven armed landing craft, six by gunfire and one by demolition charge. Between the 6th and 15th, she sank a schooner, eight junks and three motor lighters, expending in all 493 rounds of ammunition¹⁸.

The submarines of the Second and Fourth Flotillas at Trincomalee which sailed to patrol in the Malacca Strait in January, February and March 1945, were only able to make eleven torpedo attacks and of these, only one was really aimed at a proper torpedo target. This was a U-boat and the attack missed partly because one of the torpedoes fired prematurely. The total damage done by torpedo was two coasters sunk and two harbour piers and three coasters damaged. This result was, however, more an illustration of how the Japanese had been driven from the sea in this area than of poor torpedo marksmanship. Most of the damage was done by gunfire, supplemented on occasion, by ramming and demolition charge. These methods sank Subchaser No 5, two armed trawlers, a motor gunboat and eleven landing craft of the Japanese Navy; and two small tankers, six coasters, a tug and six lighters and no less than 84 junks and a schooner. The same methods also damaged or drove ashore an armed trawler, fourteen coasters and four landing craft. The one hundred and twenty-four mines laid do not seem to have caused many casualties. In addition, submarines were used for air-searescue on ten occasions and carried out ten special operations. Only one submarine, Porpoise, was lost in this period. The Japanese had now clearly lost command of the sea in the Malacca Strait and on the west coasts of Malaya, Sumatra, Siam and Burma. Their island garrisons were virtually cut off and were short of every kind of supplies. The main Japanese army in Burma was half starved, diseased and exhausted and the submarines of the East Indies Fleet can claim a share of the credit for bringing this situation about.