HMS Glory

First tour: 23rd April, to 30th September, 1951

Ship's Officers

Captain K.S. Colquhon, DSO
14th Carrier Air Group Commander: Lieutenant Commander (P) S.J. Hall, DSC
No.804 Squadron CO: Lieutenant Commander (P) J.S. Bailey, OBE
No.812 Squadron CO: Lieutenant Commander (P) F.A. Swanton, DSC

Captain K.S. Colquhon, DSO HMS Glory arrived in Sasebo on 23rd April to relieve Theseus, and had carried out intensive flying training on her way to Korea. On 27th April, Glory arrived to take over from USS Bataan as CTF 95.11 on her first patrol. Low cloud and fog prevented flying until the afternoon of 28th, when 15 sorties were launched. Her flying operations followed the usual lines following this, and on 2nd May, a Fury force-landed in a stream, North of the bomb line, and the pilot was rescued by helicopter,and the aircraft fired, by the RESCAP. Bataan joined Glory on 2nd May, and they operated together for a few days providing CAS to the army, but operations were marred by bad weather, flying being possible on two days only, when about 90 sorties were flown. The Chinese offensive was blunted and CAS was no longer urgent, and Glory went to Sasebo on 6th May, for a quick replenishment, before relieving Bataan on 11th May.

The patrol off the River Yalu was intensified, and a new patrol off the mouth of the River Hanchon was instituted. Kenya shelled gun positions North-East of Paengyong-dpo, and on 5th May, an RoK minesweeper sank, after hitting a mine to the east of Sok-to. Glory returned to port on 9th May.

Glory's second patrol started on 11th May, the Sea Furies were soon busy on AR details, attacking targets of opportunity, and on the 13th May, ox-carts became legitimate targets, as the enemy began using them to transport ammunition. On 14th, the ship replenished, and a stoker fell overboard, quickly rescued by the helicopter doing a photo-shoot. HMS Nootka caused some consternation, when she was caught North, when daylight came, and had to have a CAP, until she reached the safety of the fleet.

A simulated assault from the sea, was launched in the area of Cho-do, to relieve some of the Communist pressure on the army. While aircraft provided CAP for the diversionary force, led by Kenya and Ceylon, other aircraft spotted for the cruisers' shore bombardments. In the last three days of the patrol, variable weather affected flying, but 155 sorties were flown. A defective stern gland restricted Glory's speed on her journey to Sasebo, limiting her to 19 knots. The ship replenished and refitted at Sasebo, and the stern gland was fixed, while the hull was scraped.

On 3rd June, Glory sailed for her Third Patrol, she relieved USS Bataan, and flying started on 4th June, with the Furies going into action against junks, at Hanchon and Kumsan-ni. Sorties continued throughout the patrol, Pilot 3 S.W.E. Ford, was forced to ditch his Firefly, after it took some damage, and the aircraft pitched forward and sank almost immediately, the pilot being unable to escape. The attack rules were changed, as a result of increasing aircraft returning with light flak and small arms fire damage, and general debris being picked up from low-passes over targets.

Another Firefly ditched, after being hit, on the 7th June, and both crew were picked up by a shore based helicopter, and later returned to the Glory, courtesy of the carrier's own helicopter. Replenishment occupied the 9th June, and operations resumed on the 10th June. Combined strikes were successful against several targets over the next few days, before the Glory left for Sasebo on the 10th. She was relieved of some contaminated fuel, by the Green Ranger, and fresh fuel was embarked in Sasebo on 13th. She then travelled to Kure, having been relieved by USS Sicily, the Bataan's successor. At Kure, Glory exchanged her wrecked aircraft for Unicorns' last spares and rested, while the ship was replenished.

The fourth patrol began on 21st June, when Glory sailed from Kure, and was without a helicopter for the patrol, the area of operations shifting nearer to shore to be close to shore based helicopters, some 30 miles North of the usual position. CAS missions were flown over the Eastern end of a line over country the Air Group hadn't operated in before, and the aircraft from TF 77 over the West end of a line over country of which they were also unfamiliar with. This uneconomic practice continued through the patrol. Some bombardment spotting was done on the 26th, for Morecambe Bay, and Cardigan Bay. Replenishment occurred on 27th, both squadrons spotted for bombardment on the 28th. Lieutenant Howard's aircraft, lost the catapult strap during launch, and dived off the bows of the ship. After a considerable time under water, Howard surfaced and was picked up by HMS Constance. The catapult was disabled by this accident, and was out of action for the remainder of the patrol, RATOG being used for launches thereafter. After flying ceased on 29th June, the carrier headed for Sasebo, through a wet and windy passage, that was typhoon 'Kate' passing North. At Sasebo, five days leave was given to aircrew, on arrival on 3rd July, and the ship was repaired, and replenished.

On 10th July, Glory sailed from Sasebo on her fifth patrol, the new pilots carrying out some deck landing practice, which also tested the catapult, after it had been repaired in harbour. Fog and low cloud, made finding targets difficult on the 11th, and CAS details were given out the next day. More AR's were flown on 13th, and some spotting was done, for Mounts Bay, and Ceylon. PR was run the next day over Yondang Dong airfield, and plenty of flak was encountered, despite it being noted, as practically undefended, by the flak map. Replenishment was on the 15th July, and low cloud ruled out CAS on the next day. A Firefly bombing North of Sariwon, was hit by flak, and crashed behind enemy lines, both crew being killed; Lieutenant R. Williams, and Sub-Lieutenant L.R. Shepley. The Fury AR details noted increasing enemy activity on the 17th, in the Chinnampo area. Lieutenant Hart ditched after being hit by flak, but was quickly rescued by an RoK frigate, and returned the same day.

On the 18th, a Fury piloted by Commissioned Pilot T. Sparke, was hit by flak, and crashed into the ground shortly after, killing the pilot. In the previous detail, Lieutenant Davis had had to ditch after being hit by flak, and was picked up after one and a half hours of difficult time in the water, due to problems with his Mae West life jacket. During the next day, Glory was 70 miles further North, providing cover for a recovery party, attempting to remove a crashed MiG. On the 20th, the weather cleared after a bad spell, and the Glory provided CAP to the recovery operation. On completion of the flying, the ship headed for Kure. She arrived in Kure on 22nd, but on 24th, was ordered to reinforce USS. Sicily.

The rushed reinforcing of the West Coast, was caused by the UN need to emphasize that everything below the 38th Parallel was UN territory,despite the communists being in the area, and a UN Blockade was set up by CTE 95.12, and they bombarded the coast. Glory sailed from Kure only 9 hours after receiving her order to sail, heading out for her sixth patrol.

The short notice meant that several aircrew were left on shore, where they had been on leave, or test flying replacement aircraft. It was also not possible to embark the replacement aircraft, so the Air Group was short six aircraft for this patrol, the aircrew from Iwakuni joined the ship by helicopter on the way out, and the stragglers from leave followed by destroyer, some days later.

On 27th, heavy cloud restricted flying to CAP only, until 1500, after which, the Furies attacked three villages in the coastal area, from Yonan to Haeju, where 2,500 troops had been reported. Throughout the patrol, the Fireflies had varied duties, including bombardment spotting, and Photo Reconnaissances.

Weather the next day was much the same, and in the afternoon, one of Sicily's Corsairs landed on Glory after a crash rendered Sicily inoperable, and one of the Sicily's batsman was flown over. An asdic contact was reported by one of the destroyers, and the ship went to action stations, as the destroyer depth-charged the contact. Oil slicks were seen on the surface, but nothing more definite was seen. On 29th, the weather improved enough, to allow Furies to fly AR sorties in the Yonan area. Over 4,000 troops had been reported in the area, but they were not very conspicuous.

The weather was rough on the 30th, preventing most flying in the afternoon. 1st August saw replenishment, and some spotting in the afternoon and evening, and all spotting aircraft were armed with rockets, and attacked the enemy. Bad weather dogged the flying on 4th August, and Glory was relieved by Sicily, and sailed for Sasebo, arriving late on the 5th August.

After rest and refurbishment at Sasebo, equipped with replacements brought by Warrior, from the UK. On the 10th, Glory left Sasebo, and stopped over at Iw-akuni to pick up replacement aircraft, before sailing for Kure, where she stayed for another day, leaving at 0830 on 13th August. Glory began her Seventh Patrol, and flying resumed on 15th August, with Fireflies carrying out AR sorties, from Hanchon to Chinnampo. Spotting CAPs, were carried out for the frigates, and one aircraft was hit by flak, and forced to land at Kimpo, another aircraft landed at Paengyong-do, because of falling oil pressure. More junks were destroyed the next day, and several ox-carts were destroyed, with a gun position, and troops, being attacked with rockets and cannon. Lieutenant MacNaughton's aircraft was hit by flak, and landed on the beach at Chodo Island. Newton's aircraft burst a tyre, and ended up in a ditch at Kimpo, Newton returned the same day, but MacNaughton was stranded for some time.

Typhoon Marge headed their way, and Glory spent the next two days off the South-West tip of Korea, waiting to see where the typhoon would go. Glory skirted the typhoon on the 19th, and arrived in Okinawa on the 21st, and sailed for Kure. The swell prevented a day's flying,and she arrived alongside on the 25th August. All the aircraft on deck during the typhoon were found to have salt everywhere, and in some cases, the finish was beginning to flake off.

On 25th August, Kenya left for a refit and recommission in Singapore, having sailed 63,000 miles, and fired 3,386 six inch, and 1,000, 4 inch shells, during the war.Glory relieved Sicily on 31st August, for her eighth patrol, and strikes were laid on the Amgak region, due to scarcity of targets in the Han area, and spotting aircraft were provided, whenever requested. She returned to the operational area on 2nd September, and opened with a routine days flying. Sub-Lieutenant Howard's Fury was damaged by flak and landed on Paengyong-do beach, where the aircraft overturned in soft sand, and the pilot dug his way out, watched by a crowd of admiring South Koreans. He returned to the ship via the helicopter, and a second Fury was damaged, in an emergency landing on Paengyong-do, and both aircraft were salvaged some weeks later.

The next day saw more AR sorties, and the 4th saw a collection of Junks being saved by bad weather, although more junks and vehicles were found and attacked. Taedong Gang was attacked on the 8th, along with some PR sorties for the recently formed British Commonwealth Division, as well as spotting for the Frigates in the Han estuary, and an increase in the amount of flak was reported. The carrier replenished the next day, but, after two shaky catapult launches, the flying was ceased in the afternoon, and the two aircraft landed at Kimpo. The catapult continued to give trouble for most of the 7th September, and all but the last two details were launched by RATOG, creating a lot of additional work by the ordnance ratings. Most of the details were CAS, and Mosquito aircraft reported more than 100 troops killed.

Catapult problems continued on the 8th, but it was soon fixed, and RATOG was discontinued. On the 9th, the Air Group put in 84 sorties, 66 offensive, and 18 defensive, as a record, beating Theseus' 66 sorties. 100% serviceability was maintained throughout the day, and several pilots flew three sorties that day. One aircraft landed on a mud flat in enemy territory, and the crew were picked up by helicopter, which made a precautionary landing on a small island, due to a faulty fuel gauge. Fuel was ferried over, and the helicopter and Firefly crew returned the next morning, after which, Glory sailed for Kure. She entered Kure on the 11th September, receiving a signal from Admiral Scott-Moncrieff:

"Your magnificent performance yesterday, {9th}, makes an all time high.
Tune played on your arrival, now completely vindicated. My Heartiest congratulations to you all".

On Glory's arrival at Kure in April, the Royal Marine band on the flight deck, had had the temerity to be playing "Anything you can do, we can do better", to the Theseus. This was now well proven.

On 16th September, Glory sailed from Kure, for her ninth patrol. During her passage, the mobile flight deck crane was almost lost,when lowering a whaler over the side, and the carrier returned to Kure, to replace the crane with the Unicorn's. Glory then sailed once more, at 1600 hours. Operations started on 18th, with both squadrons flyings strikes on Wonsan, and spotting for US destroyers. Strong winds, and a heavy swell, delayed the start of operations on the 19th, and the catapult broke down. All aircraft had to be launched with RATOG, and the ship was getting very short of RATOG equipment, so, she left the area for Sasebo, and embarked RATOG gear there on the 20th, before sailing for the the West coast that evening, having transferred several Fireflies to Unicorn for Sydney, this meant, there were only seven Fireflies on board, and no more A/S patrols were flown.

One detail was flown on the 21st, in the late afternoon, and a full, but reduced, day's flying, was carried out on the 22nd, with all aircraft being RATOG launched. One Firfely's, piloted by Mr J.P. Hack, RATOG failed to fire, and the aircraft went into the sea. Hack was rescued by helicopter, but his observer, Sub-Lieutenant R.G.A. Davey, was not seen again. The catapult was fixed by late afternoon, and an increase in junk traffic was reported by the Fury pilots. Junks, were the main detail target, and buildings were also attacked.

On 23rd, No.804 squadron reached 1,000 accident free landings, and attacked many junks. The 24th September, saw more villages attacked, and, junks were strafed. Lieutenant Commander S.J. Hall, had engine trouble, and ditched, South of Chodo Island, and was picked up, by Glory's helicopter, after about an hour in the water.

The 25th September, was Glory's last day of operations for this tour, and the Furies notched up seven junks destroyed, and damaged many more, in the Chinnampo area. Lieutenant P.G. Young, transferred from Theseus, flew his 100th sortie, on his last mission. Lieutenant Commander Swanton, flew off in his Firefly with the last strike, and then went on to Kimpo. He was delayed in shore, and returned an hour or so after the strike, he was the last landing of the operational tour. During the 26th, Glory made for Kure, having spent the day servicing her Fireflies, which were transferred to the Sydney, and the USN helicopter and crew, which had served them so faithfully. Four days were spent transferring the Fireflies, and most of the air stores to Sydney. Rear Admiral Scott-Moncrieff, visited the ship, and Glory sailed from Kure, for Hong Kong at 1630, accompanied by Anzac, to the strains of the Royal Marine Band playing, "A birds-eye view of Sydney".

During her first tour, Glory had flown 2,875 sorties, suffered 9deck landing accidents, in 59 flying days, from 70 days at sea. She had steamed 37,159 miles, made 2,762 catapult launches, flown 7,231 hours, and made 113 RATOG launches. She had expended 538,000 rounds of 20mm ammunition, 9,242 rockets, 1,450, 500lb bombs, and 94, 1,000lb bombs. Over 1,200 casualties had been observed, and 1,261 buildings were confirmed destroyed, among many other targets.

Air Crew Casualties

Lieutenant E.P.L. Stephenson, 26 April, 1951.
Pilot 3 S.W.E. Ford, 5 June, 1951
Lieutenant J.H. Sharp, 28 June, 1951
Aircrewman G.B. Wells, 28 June, 1951
Lieutenant R. Williams, 16 July, 1951
Sub-Lieutenant I.R. Shepley, 16 July, 1951
Commissioned Pilot T. Sparke, 18 July, 1951
Sub-Lieutenant R.G.A. Davey, 22 July, 1951

Go to

Second tour: 27th January, to 5th May, 1952

Air Crew Casualties

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