TNA ADM 199 788 A

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H.M.S MONA'S ISLE. A.B.V. Report of events covering period
Sat, 1st June to Sun 2nd June. To Dunkirk and back.
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1st June. Sat. Ship in Granville dock. "epaired and ready for service.
0909. Left Dock and proceeded to Dunkirk. by " X " route.
1305. Observed wreck of " Scotia " and another vessel, apparently on Dyck
Bank, with H.M.S. H. 15 alongside wreck taking off survivors.
Closed as requested by H. 15, in company with a great number of small craft proceeding to Dunkirk.
Lowered 3 boats, manned by various ratings of all departments, and picked up a few survivors. All other craft doing likewise. Took some survivors from other craft.
1422 When no more could be dona, proceeded towards Dunkirk. H.15 had left for Dover, crowded. Scotia was on fire aft and it was apparent that no more men were on the wreck itself, and very few alive in the water.
1448. Passed No 5 buoy. Heavily shelled and straddled by small calibre guns.
No hits after about 4 salvoes.
1505. Between Nos 11 and 13 bouys, was straddled by two salvoes from Dive bombers. Bombe were very close, deluging the entire ship with water, but apparently no damage, though ship was badly shaken.
1540. B erthed at inside berth, Eastern arm, Dunkirk. S.N.O wished me to go to Western arm, but tide being low there was insufficeent water.
1550. Com'ced to embark British troops, and numerous stretcher cases.
1730. Ship full and very congested with about 1500 men. Advised S.N.O I could not safely take more, being considerably worried about stability.
S.N.O strongly advised me to wait, under cover of the shore guns, until
2100. when it was high water and getting dark for the passage across.
This I agreed with; During this wait of nearly 4 hours, several dive bombing attacks were made by flights of aircraft on two wrecks outside the harbour, which seemed to indicate that they were anxious to get rid of their bombs on anything which did not fire back. as an intense fire was maintained on them from our 8 Lewis guns and several Bren guns which the soldiers had rigged up in various places and worked for us.
Several flights of aircraft passed overhead, apparently bombers, but whilst the R.A.F. were about there was peace.
This long wait was trying to all concerned.

H.M.S. MONA'S ISLE. ( Report Confinued.)
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A British Spitfire crashed outside the Harbour; the pilot rescued and put on board us where his coolness and help in identifying the aircraft was most useful.
Both ships and shore batteries opened fire on R.A.F. machines more than once when recognition was difficult.
2100. Proceeded; a sunken trawler just inside the entrance made approach to the wharf difficult which must have been much more so after dark for the ships which came in after us.
The enemy were apparently shelling the dock entrance from some distance whilst we lay there, but nothing came close to us.
2300 Passed North Goodwin L.V. The darkness was not deep enough to prevent ships seeing each other at some distance, or to pick up the wreck of the Scotia were she lay practically in the channel down to the No 5 buoy.
I consider the navigation of all the numerous small craft to have been of the highest order, all things considered.
June 2nd Sun. 0150. Reported arrival off Dover entrance to V.A.D.
0300. Berthed at Admiralty Pier and Com'ced discharging.
Ship was then found to be making water in No 2 hold; stokehold. is The main steam pipes joints were leaking in three places, and fracture was suspected. The
L.P. turbine rings collapsed; the base of a bilge pump suspected fracture.
The maintaining of a fairly good speed and working in the engine room on the passage back, with the escape of steam due to these defects was very creditable work.
On this occasion as before the behaviour of the ships company was most praiseworthy; ppp the conduct and courage of all ranks of the military was all of the very highest order and an inspiration to all connected with them theoughout these grievous times.
J.C.K.Drodung
Comdr R.N.R.

4457°
French with Staff, but I could up the Poilus and a few not find any so I filled shooting was extremely wild and in we German got away unscathed."
inner harbour was Tommies. already The furthest hands end but of their
He finishes up his letter with this characteristic remark -
in "That all." is all I did at Dunkirk (:). I went over five times
For brevity and preciseness in describing real achievement in the face of danger, the following from Lieut. C.W. Read,
R.N.R. is characteristic:-
"Made 7 complete return trips to Dunkirk Beaches; average number soldiers carried 60 = approx. 420 soldiers. Made
10 trips from Mole at Dunkirk to transports lying off, under shrapnel = 600 soldiers.
Rescued Chief Steward and 39 soldiers from water ex S/S
Scotia and bombed whilst doing SO.
On last return journey was caught in parachute flares, bombed and then machine-gunned, but escaped without damage owing to speed and quickness on helm of "Bonnie
Heather". Service finished at 5.0 p.m. on 4th June.
Estimated number of soldiers handled in launch:-
Dunkirk Beaches to Ramsgate
420/450
Dunkirk Mole to Transports lying off
600/650
Rescued from S/S Scotia
40.
With compasses of doubtful accuracy and no other navigating instrument but a lead pencil, the difficulties of navigation once a boat lost contact with the main convoy were immense.
Some of the small craft had not even a compass; yet all who left the other side in safety managed to reach the English coast to re-fuel and set off again to repeat the adventure.
One officer even tells how, after wandering all through the night with a compass he could not trust, he put into
Calais! Only after twenty minutes heavy shelling did he escape with his craft intact.
The narrowness of such escapes could be repeated again and again. The writer himself, whilst leading a column of six small white painted yachts was subjected to dive machinegunning from three successive flights of three enemy aircraft.
With no arms whatever with which to offer resistance, the column was almost a sitting target and the airplanes could approach till they almost touched the cabin roofs. Yet,
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