Daily Event for January 2, 2007

On January 2, 1945 (other sources give the date as Jan. 3 or even 4) the submarine HMS Porpoise N-14 sailed from Trincomalee, Ceylon (Sri Lanka) to conduct a minelaying operation off Penang Island, Malaya (Malaysia). The boat signaled at the completion of the operation on Jan. 9th giving their position as 05.20N-100.08E, but they were never heard from again.

The Japanese claim to have attacked and sunk a submarine in the the Malacca Strait about 105 miles W by N of Penang on Jan. 11th which could have been Porpoise. The aircraft dropped two bombs, one missed, but they claim the second hit the boat as it was diving. A second attack came seven hours later when they sighted a surfaced submarine leaking oil, but apparently not moving. A third attack three hours later brought oil and bubbles to the surface.

While it is not known if these attacks were against Porpoise, it is known that Porpoise made no distress signals between the first two attacks. At least no known signals have been found in Admiralty records. Having seven hours (according to the Japanese) between the attacks, unless the aerial was somehow damaged, one would think they would have sent a signal if they could have. It is interesting to note that the position of the attack given by the Japanese (postwar) and the position given by Porpoise after the operation are only about 105 miles apart, the boat could easily made that distance in two days. And while there have been attempts to locate the boat, to date the wreck has not been found.

All seventy-four crewmen are still within her hull. A signal sent to the Admiralty on Jan. 19, 1945 stated that the boat was overdue, had failed to answer signals and must be presumed lost. Porpoise was the last Royal Navy submarine lost in combat in the Second World War. One more Royal Navy submarine, an X-Craft (XE-11) would sink during the war, but this was caused by an accident.
© 2007 Michael W. Pocock
MaritimeQuest.com



Roll of Honour
In memory of those who lost their lives in
HMS Porpoise N-14
"As long as we embrace them in our memory, their spirit will always be with us"

Name
Rank/Rate
Notes
Adams, D.S.C., Albert E.
Warrant Engineer
Ansell, Leonard B. A.
Able Seaman
Bolden, Jack
Able Seaman
Brennan, James
Petty Officer
Brockbank, Arthur P.
Steward
Bullen, Herbert
Stoker 1st Class
Carter, Jack
Leading Signalman
Chitty, Clement A. C.
Able Seaman
Clark, William M.
Engine Room Artificer 4th Class
Clarke, Kenneth E.
Able Seaman
Cooper, Arthur
Able Seaman
Coupe, Trevor
Leading Seaman
Cowton, Alan D.
Engine Room Artificer 4th Class
Crouchman, Victor P. T.
Able Seaman
Draper, Arthur D.
Stoker Petty Officer
Drew, Victor H. F.
Lieutenant (RNVR)
Dyall, Walter F.
Able Seaman
Edwards, Walter G.
Leading Telegraphist
Fraser, James N. McK.
Electricial Artificer 3rd Class
Gascoigne, William
Able Seaman
Gibson, Adam
Able Seaman
Griffiths, Arthur E.
Able Seaman
Healey, Alfred
Stoker Petty Officer
Henderson, Arthur
Engine Room Artificer 4th Class
Henson, Leslie
Leading Stoker
Hiscock, Wilfred J.
Chief Engine Room Artificer
Hood, Alfred G.
Able Seaman
Hughes, Charles W. T.
Stoker 1st Class
Julian, Richard E. B.
Able Seaman
Kennedy, Mungo H. McL.
Lieutenant
Lee, Arthur
Engine Room Artificer 4th Class
Livingstone, Alexander
Leading Stoker
Lucking, Cecil J.
Leading Stoker
Malliband, Guy G.
Stoker 1st Class
Martin, Basil H.
Petty Officer
Nash, John R.
Able Seaman
Oliffe, John
Able Seaman
Oliver, Terance
Stoker 1st Class
Palliaser, Harry
Leading Stoker
Passmore, Jack
Petty Officer Telegraphist
Proudfoot, Abraham P.
Leading Seaman (RNVR)
Ranken, Terence A.
Leading Telegraphist
Richardson, Thomas S.
Able Seaman
Roberts, Douglas D. G.
Lieutenant
Rodgers, Phillip
Able Seaman
Rogers, Richard
Petty Officer
Rowlands, George
Able Seaman
Sant, Albert W. J.
Leading Stoker
Sherriff, John
Telegraphist
Simpkins, George A.
Petty Officer
Skeoch, James McK.
Able Seaman
Smith, Albert G.
Stoker 1st Class
Smith, Frank
Petty Officer Cook (S)
Smith, Jack
Engine Room Artificer 4th Class
Smith, Leslie J.
Able Seaman
Smith, Philip R.
Stoker 2nd Class
Spencer, Edward R.
Leading Stoker
Taylor, Edward O. M.
Lieutenant (RNVR)
Thomas, Ralph
Leading Seaman
Trier, Colin E.
Sub Lieutenant (RNVR)
Turner, DSC, Hugh B.
Lt. Commander
Commanding Officer
Tyler, Walter J.
Able Seaman
Vaughan, Frederick J.
Engine Room Artificer 4th Class
Webb, John H. T.
Leading Stoker
Webber, Grahame M.
Telegraphist
Weeden, William H.
Stoker 1st Class
Weston, James
Stoker 1st Class
Whittaker, Robert
Able Seaman
Wilkins, Arthur F.
Stoker 1st Class
Williams, Arthur F. C.
Petty Officer
Williams, Frederick S.
Able Seaman
Wimble, Will
Stoker 1st Class
Woodward, Stanley
Leading Stoker
Wright, James
Stoker 1st Class
In addition to those lost on the final patrol, three other men serving in Porpoise died while in service.
Date
Name
Rate/Rank
Cause
Mar. 30, 1938
Richardson, John J. W.
Stoker 1st Class
Died of illness
Apr. 15, 1942
Thomas, James
Lieutenant
Car accident
July 9, 1942
Kerry, Lewis L.
Leading Telegraphist
Unknown


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1.
Jan. 23, 2019

Thank you for hosting the account of the service record and loss of HMS Porpoise. It makes for sober but impressive reading.

Phil Rodgers was my mother Sarah Hawkins (née Rodger's) older brother. My mother remembered the months of waiting for news toward the end of the war while his status was missing in action. His mother was Mary Rodgers (née Monaghan) and his father was Dennis Rodgers of Kilcoo, County Down. Phil's father Dennis was an armourer for his local brigade of the Irish Republican Army at some point during the Irish War of Independence and Irish Civil War. He suffered exile for his Republican sympathies, and suffered again when Phil lost his life fighting for Britain, the country he intended to make his home (Phil was engaged to a local girl in Portsmouth, my mother told me).

I never met Phil, but proud memories of him were strong in my grandfather's house. When I was a small child, the house was raided by the British Army. (This would have been during an IRA campaign in the mid-1950s, perhaps.) The raid was called off when soldiers came on Phil's medals in the bottom of a trunk they were searching. That kind of thing could have happened in many Northern Irish Catholic homes, where loyalties had shifted in the sons and daughters who had emigrated to England, creating ambivalence and sorrow where before things had seemed relatively straight forward.

Mary McNutly