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Reply With QuoteAttacking a U-boat in a Stringbag. Wow. RIP.
Is it just me or has not enough been written about Swordfish pilots?
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Lieutenant-Commander Stanley Brilliant | Times Online Obituary
Born in the East End of London in 1920 to parents who had arrived in England in the 1890s, having fled one of the anti-Jewish pogroms that were common in Tsarist Russia, Stanley Brilliant volunteered for the Navy at the age of 18 in the summer of 1940. Though at first told that his father’s not having been born a British subject was an impediment to his becoming a naval officer, he persisted and was commissioned into the Fleet Air Arm, where he trained as a pilot.
Among his postings in various theatres was one as a Fairey Swordfish pilot in the escort carrier Archer from which he was forced to ditch in the Atlantic in May 1943 when his engine gave up the ghost. He and his crewmen scrambled clear of their sinking aircraft and were subsequently picked up by a destroyer.
The following year he took part as a Swordfish pilot in the extraordinarily successful defence of the convoy JW58 during its voyage to Murmansk in north Russia in the spring of 1944. Brilliant was the pilot of one of three Swordfish of 819 Squadron that had been embarked in the escort carrier Activity which also carried seven Grumman Wildcat fighters.
The German high command was determined to wreak havoc on such a rich prize as the 48-ship convoy and, once its position and course had been established by Luftwaffe reconnaissance aircraft in the last days of March, a force of U-boats was assembled in the Barents Sea, southwest of Bear Island, to bar its path. Over the next few days, however, Activity’s Wildcats and the Grumman Avengers of 846 Squadron on board HMS Tracker, shot down six German long-range reconnaissance aircraft, thereby robbing the U-boats of the “eyes” in the air to which they were accustomed.
The hunters were now about to become the hunted. Two U-boats had already been accounted for in running battles involving surface ships and aircraft when, at 0345 on April 3, Brilliant, on patrol in his Swordfish from Activity, sighted what looked like a periscope in the vicinity of the convoy.
Nothing could be established for certain, so he dropped a sea marker and continued his patrol. Just as he was about to return to Activity at 0500, Brilliant decided to make one more pass over the area where he had dropped his marker, and suddenly saw U288 on the surface, six miles away. Like many U-boat captains, U288’s skipper decided to fight it out on the surface with her guns, and the Swordfish came under heavy fire.
By radio Brilliant summoned support from an Avenger and a Wildcat from Tracker, and between them the three aircraft — the two modern American-built fighters and the remarkable biplane “Stringbag” looking like a relic of a former era — took on the U-boat. The Wildcat fired 1,300 rounds of ammunition to silence the U-boat’s guns, enabling the Swordfish to attack it with a salvo of rockets. Most of these scored hits and the U-boat began to sink. At that point, the Avenger, which had been having trouble with its weapon-release mechanisms, managed to drop its depth charges and administer the coup de grâce to the submarine.
Save one ship that had to turn back because of ice damage, all the JW58 vessels reached Murmansk. It was a triumph for naval air power in the battle against the U-boats, and the homeward-bound convoy, RA58, also came through unscathed.
Brilliant and his Swordfish crew took part in several subsequent North Russian convoys, and in July 1944 he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his “undaunted courage, skill and devotion to duty”. His observer and telegraphist/air gunner were also decorated. Brilliant ended his war in the Far East where, on VJ-Day, he led a flypast in Colombo, capital of Ceylon (Sri Lanka).
His father had died in 1941 and after the war he entered the family wholesale tobacco and confectionary business, in which he had been left a share. He was to work in it for the next 45 years, also devoting himself to the activities of the Association of Jewish Ex-Servicemen and Women (AJEX), of which he was chairman, 1968-70. For many years he organised its remembrance parade and service at the Cenotaph each November.
Brilliant married, in 1950, Ruth Sussman, a former WAAF officer. He is survived by her and by two sons.
Lieutenant-Commander Stanley Brilliant, DSC, wartime naval aviator, was born on October 3, 1920. He died on March 24, 2008, aged 87
Attacking a U-boat in a Stringbag. Wow. RIP.
Is it just me or has not enough been written about Swordfish pilots?
In response to your comment I would add actually no. In individual or collective human endeavor there can never be enough recounting or reference made to any specific element.Originally Posted by Antipodean Andy
I feel it is an affront to the dignity and action of Lieutenant-Commander Brilliant, his team and family that your comment is voiced. You might just as well state that the Spitfire is done to death, or any other famous piece of military hardware. Perhaps Douglas Bader is a bore to you also?
I suggest a swift and courteous retraction is offered, particularly as the obituary is so recent.
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Robert, though not speaking directly for Andy, I believe that you have misinterpreted his comment. What he is actually saying is that not enough has been written about Swordfish crews, and that there should be more. If you had taken the time to read Andy's other posts you would realise that he has nothing but admiration for the pilots and crews of all Allied air forces. We have both had many discussions where we wondered at their sheer courage and determination.
So, as a newbie to the forum, take a second to read his (and my posts) before criticising.
Robert, please read all of the posts in a thread before replying okay? Then you won't get critized.
Andy if you can get hold of a copy of "Night Strike from Malta" by Kenneth Poolman you will learn how effective the Albacores and Swordfish of 830 Squadron were.
The Albacore found the shipping targets in the Mediterranean and lit them up with flares. The Swordfish then conducted the attack.
All the attacks were orchestrated by intelligence on shipping movements.
Brian, I've been trying but no luck so far (bit of a Maltaphile). Also keen to get hold of Bring back my Stringbag but am on a self-imposed book buying ban at present and have been remarkably (or sadly) good at resisting so far. To date, Charles Lamb's book is the only one I've read perhaps because it was readily available as a Cassell publication.
Robert, nothing but admiration here so I'm afraid you got hold of the wrong end of the stick with regard to my initial post.
Andy,
as the book has been out of print for some time I managed to get an ex Library copy. Either Abebooks or Amazon were the suppliers at a very cheap rate. A copy was needed for the reference it made to an attack on the Ariosto.
What I was fortunate enough to do was to contact the Author and have a couple of telephone conversations with him,but that was quite a few years ago.
Andy,
as the book had been out of print for some time I managed to get an ex Library copy. Either Abebooks or Amazon were the suppliers at a very cheap rate. A copy was needed for the reference it made to an attack on the Ariosto.
I did have the good fortune to contact the Author and have a couple of telephone conversations with him,but that was quite a few years ago.
Ariosto? The ship that is now the dive wreck despite being the grave site for 140 POWs or have I confused it with a similar-named ship?
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