Pembroke Docks, I was one of the divers which spent close on 2 years of weekends, in black water between blasts, planting explosives Blasting the mud, blasting the slipway rails, plus the Slipways pillar structures for the new Irish Ferry Terminal to be installed, our Premises owned by Tom Shone & called Pembroke Diving buildings was & still is just inshore of the second Dock from the right of the Pic.  This pic is how it was in WW2.,

Just upriver from Hobbs point where the Cleddau Bridge Crosses the Haven was Llanion Cove, a large Oil Fuel Hulk Vessel C77 was kept there for vessels & such in 'The Haven'.  It had been named Vernon 3 from 1904, just huts on a Hulk contributing to fuelling running of Services craft within the Haven.   So sadly it had lain there for 50 years until leaving in 1979 when it began dawing on some people that Royal Navy C77, Temporarily named Vernon 3 had originally been the Royal Navy's first Iron Clad Warship, 'ready, aye ready by 1860.

50 years as a Depot for Fuel, Warrior bunkered & supplied Lube, stores plus transerring items far enough away from that Munitions store further down river on the other bank!

'Queen Victoria' had just taken over, the French had decided to aim for a fully iron Hulled French Navy fleet, panic spread that their vessel La Gloire specified for Napoleon 3 had been started in 1858 & was lauched 1859 with a iron thickness of 5 inches above waterline & ready to destroy wooden hulled vessels by 1860.   'Old joke about them never managing to produce the iron hulled fleet at the drop of a hat was due to the metal being required for Eiffel Towers plus Statues of Liberty as priorities.  1st Lord of Admiralty Sir John Pakington supported rushing to produce iron CLAD wooden Hulls, new French "engines of war" inspired distrust, Isambard Kingdom Brunel became immediately commanded to produce a design & one actually became sold to Japan when the initial ships were produced, Admiral Sir Baldwin Wake Walker remained a stolid wooden hulled vessel devotee.  The Anglo Franco war thankfully did not occur.   The Welsh, with exactly the same national anthem as Brittany could not really have been counted upon to support England.  That is period one the earliest Channel Tunnel started from France became attempted, Duty Free trips benefits could well have been what thwarted warmongers.

When Warrior was launched the Brunel Leviathan Great Eastern was a regular visitor ( here in 1961) to Milford Haven & would berth near where the Armament Depot became established, one of it's Cable Laying Companions, the CLV Faraday still lays wrecked around a mile and a half towards Gateholm bay from St Annes Head, 'visited it a time or 2!  Here we see Great Eastern across the river from Pembroke Dock, people sadly did not have Box Brownies or Digital Cameras readily to hand in those days.

The Warrior remained at Llanion Cove, across the river Cleddau from Neyland & Jenkins Boatyard at Burton, just an Oil Depot Hulk, it was there when these Short Singapores plus Short Sunderlands plied their trade there, now it has been towed away & is proudly laying at Portsmouth. It left in 1979.

The old girl WARRIOR withdrawn from Service as an Armoured Cruiser in 1883 seems to have lasted darned well, she never fired  shot in anger & stands now restored, proudly at Portsmouth, another part of the handiwork of Mr I K Brunel.

Short 1928 S8 Civilian Calcutta Tri motor machines

The Earlier Flying Boats at Pembroke! Military, up to 1934?  versions called the Short Rangoon of those 1928 Civilian S8 Calcutta, open cockpit machines. Possibly the 210 Squadron?

Pembroke Dock had been Lord Nelson's ideal Haven for his Navy, between Neyland & Milford the Naval Armament location had nestled unobtrusively whilst the ancient Iron Clad Warrior carried out it's fuelling duties & just upstream of Hobbs Point seaplanes flying boats had been there from early days too, as u see these Saunders Roe London aircraft which thanks to Ace Historian John Evans who identified them we can find they were not ever actually based here & could have been visiting.

A team of at least 3 Supermarine Southamptons were used for courtesy & show off visits around UK plus far abroad too

Here's a better one fm Dave Martin's Collection

Around the World exploits were being publicised this 1930 German Dornier DO X had been produced way over the size allowed after Arms & Vessels & Crafts restrictions following WW1.  You cannot stop us seems the tone.

This was when Italian eyes viewed World Colonies, Visits to all parts of the World with Publicity gushing, their Flying boat covered routes and places others had not thought of! rapidly followed by British efforts.

A few years on & USA could not resist the long pre Spruce Goose concept, this seemed to lag behind & the economical Catalina just took over as a far better option from 1934.   Flying Boats were however in Civilian plus Military demand, visits to remote or underdeveloped locations without Airfields

Britain tried to get a Tri motor Monoplane 'Biggie', a little like a Junkers 52 3M to compete before turning to the more robust & stable SUNDERLAND! here is the Short Valetta, which never quite 'made it.

By 1934, the Catalina with 2 motors of common aircraft with ability to exist on one motor alone made these THE cost effective & crewing too flyingboats of the future

Here we go, Naval use for flying Boats as well saw these Short Singapore machines appearing at Pembroke Dock, 4 engined push-me-pull-you machines according to the old lads terms for them

The Older Singapore? Flying Boats, can anyone identify with make & date.

A risky one lifts its wing & float over the photographer's craft, this has 4 Pull & pusher motors, I believe this one was to make it's way to Singapore & crashed into a mountain en route, I'm told it was a Welsh Crew too .

ACTUALLY From Inside the Cockpit

 This Short Sunderland lost was actually P9603 of 10 Squadron RAAF with 2 casualties 25 06 1941, John Evans tells us from the Registration lettering.  The very first lost was actually No 6135 which was then scarapped at Pembroke Dock ohn Evans of the Sunderland Trust and Pembroke Museum helping us unravel data relating to pictures supplied from New Orleans by Dave Martin.

We later used one of these Naval Pinnaces, one named the ML Transit as a Crayfish diving vessel (Share fishing Boat)

One of the Air Sea Rescue boats one of which wd be often anchored just off Tenby as well

764 Squadron, Originally founded  at Lee on Solent as a training Squadron for land plus Floatplanes 8 Aug 1940 using Seafox, Swordfish & Walrus aircraft came to Pembroke & used Lawrenny Ferry area moorings a little further & less exposed & calmer up river.  They stayed from October 1941 having dispensed with Swordfish & Seafox Aircraft, with Walrus plus Curtiss Kingfisher machines until disbanded 7 November 1943.  They reformed at Gosport 1944 & continued impressively.  (John Evans a Historian who knows FAR more than I about these things advises divers had recovered the tail wheel from the lost aircraft down at the moorings & it is now on view in Pembroke Museum)

look at Walrus from other angles

Supermarine Walrus, well suited to be near Sunderland since it also used Bristol Pegasus Power unit.   The Walrus & Curtiss Kingfisher shared upper reaches of the Pembroke region towards Lawrenny, Kingfisher was called Vought , Chance Vought & a Variety of manufacturers names.  

Basically Curtiss Kingfishers design originally aimed to be a land or Float plane.  An all round all metal robust Monoplane with conversion unit, these primarily aimed for carrying aboard Warships or Patrol & Observation Scouting were on 'Lease Lend' from USA and early ones had 450 hp motor and could carry 2 116 lbs Bombs & had a single .30 calibre nose mounted machine gun.  Later more powerful could carry 2 Depth charges circa 325 lbs. each, 'heckuva job to get pics of these with RN Roundel markings THEN and now, their spacious cockpit layout below.

These looked pretty mean but with a top speed of 175 mph & a 116 mph Cruising speed....  

A touching plus most poignant picture of the HOOD, in 1941, not leaving Milford Haven as originally thought, but seen here leaving PLYMOUTH to hunt for BISMARK, with a picture taken from the Mountbatten Airbase there, my thanks again to John Evans & Dave Martin.

Aussies & Welsh (Brits of course as well) Guys there passing the time!

John Evans tells us the Australian Air Force uniforms were darker than British , plus Austin 7's ran well on Airplane fuel!! this is taken of T9114 of 461 Squadron RAAF at Angle where Pilot Gordon Singleton got it to the Grass landing after getting a holed hull in a sea takeoff, the aircraft itself was scrapped at West Angle Bay.  (Thanks yet again to John Evans with one of Dave Martin's photo collection) 

Top left is the Pembroke Diving Building we worked from.

PEMBROKE DOCK SUNDERLAND TRUST ASSOCIATION possess this fine view of Pembroke Docks Station layout, here is a Superb pic allowed to us by John Evans, after the Hangars had been camouflaged into rows of housing plus fields. the planes of course stand out in contrast where they have been deliberately parked plus berthed around, in this view, with the Aircraft kept covered as well this wd be an unobtrusive station/base. 

As an old diver:- (we all know about the difference between old divers & bold divers!) I initially thought I was an indestructible one who got away with risks galore, progressively more cautious as I survived longer & grew older whilst witnessing avoidable mishaps aplenty!, this one working on a Sunderland is an absolute gem from Dave Martin's Collection. An over the bow roller lift vessel lurks in the background at top left.

Hard to think now that I actually blew up most of the Slipways there underwater, explosives of several sorts, possibly this one too to clear the way for the ferry Terminal etc.

Near the base Chapel

Not quite home sweet home!

RNZAF Sunderland on tow at Pembroke Dock believed 1944.  this year on 11 June, 1-U of 228 Squadron became lost,  (ML 770) anyone with ANY information, John Evans wd be delighted to hear from you)

This is definitely a picture listed as taken at Watwick Bay inside Milford Haven.   this is the E39 Scrap WW1 Sub vessel being towed for dismantling which came to rest here seaward of Dale on the Dale side of the Haven, the stern part rests about 120 metres outside of the bay along with loads of Telegraph cable which may have been pulled from the CABLE LAYER Faraday to be stripped easily in shelter!!.   If my old mate Pino Antoniazzi was around to see it, he wd know right away!!.  Concrete steps enabled folks to board vessels virtually over the then more sunken wreckage. On Gower shipwrecks & Civil construction work all the way up the Bristol Channel & Ports, I had pro Diving work, after being a Crayfish Diver on Cornish vessels, covering wrecks like pre WW1 Battleship Montague on South end of Lundy Island & inshore wrecks on the English side & all along & around Islands inside plus outside Milford Havens out to the Hats & Barrels reef.   Smalls offshore! Ramsey Island Grassholm etc., wrecks abound, all divers seem to visit mv Lucy on Skomer which sits upright, however there is one beyond the reach of most, called HMSP or HMHS Drina in far deeper water, well east of North end of Skokholm sunk by U boat UB 65 or UC65 or U65 11KDWT, 15 were killed on St Davids Day 1917 the night torpedos struck & had been buried locally, the rest of the almost 340 complement which is unnaturally large has always been difficult to account for & Cargo manifest & purpose seems to vary widely, look in www.taffthehorns.com  website on the page showing 'One dive to the Drina' to see more on what became the very first British Navy Hospital ship. I did one dip on air to the ship itself where it lies upside down on a 200 ft or so sandy bottom.   So much seems mysterious & the one dip many years ago now only confirms she is there, how the fwd end lies & the angle of the hull on the bottom, a few more dives could provide so much more information.  6 Miles off Padstow lies UB65 virtually intact with hatches open, no listed survivors though, so much more associated mystery.

This is the 1949 one used to Track the Queen Mary Voyage, operational pics follow.

An impressive head on view of Sunderland 4XX

Same again & you can see the Markings embarking on Tracking the Queen Mary in the Atlantic

from inside the Cockpit of 4XX heading to track the Queen Mary!

 In 4XX Setting course

'nuff said

'In the Galley' with posh toast too.

Guess which vessel!

Guess which Flying Boat plus which Vessel.

Closer look to make sure

Pembroke Dock August 1955? Royal visit, can anyone advise whether this is anything to do with Duke of Gloucester?, & was he perhaps the chap made Governor of Bermuda or somewhere else nice to be 'retained' OOTW after some involvement in 'financial irregular' happenings?.  It'd be so nice to know. 

Looking down aft on a Sunderland with yet more thanks, pic. from the Dave Martin collection

The last Sunderland we saw was actually flying over us at near Llawhaden circa 18 yrs ago, with 2 turboprop inner motors.

New Zealand Air force had been making a farewell courtesy visit with the last machine in service.   Dave Martin tells us that old girl is now at Orlando USA.  I actually as an Air Cadet had a spin from here in one, it took practically the entire Haven length to get airborne & rattled memorably!. I seem to recall the engineer complaining about the heating shields failing to open on one of the motors.

Seletar block F (Malaya?) where Dave Martin's dad spent a few months with practically derelict old Sunderlands outside as lots in 58/59/60 for auction John Evans told me it was such a shame, they were to end up with local scrap merchants!.

Such a sad sight, thanks for this pic plus the one above to Dave Martin