Catalogue number 134001 Crash on board La Fayette, pilot Ramon Josa 1962 The Corsair hanging off the edge of the flight deck. Verso:"La Fayette 18.01.62" in light pencil 12.3cm x 9.5cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 134002 Crash on board La Fayette, pilot Ramon Josa 1962 The first lift is to place the rear fuselage on the flight deck. Verso:"La Fayette 18.01.62" in light pencil 12.3cm x 9.5cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 134003 Crash on board La Fayette, pilot Ramon Josa 1962 We can now see that the hook has broken off the arrestor (black and white bar resting in the catwalk). Verso:"La Fayette 18.01.62" in light pencil 12.3cm x 9.5cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 131063 Crash on board La Fayette, pilot Ramon Josa 1962 This Corsair from 17F squadron went over into the catwalk when the hook broke after catching the wire. The pilot was the ace Ramon Josa and the squadron was doing a period of training on the La Fayette. Verso:"La Fayette 18.01.62" in light pencil Credit:Il Tempo 12.3cm x 9.5cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 131064 Crash on board La Fayette, Ramon Josa 1962 The Corsair in this photograph (Bu N° 129352) is the AU-1 specialised ground attack version. The aircraft were coming close to, and perhaps were over, the end of their service life, from 1964 they were scrapped at the naval base of Cuers. Verso:"La Fayette 18.01.62" in light pencil 12.3cm x 9.5cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 134047 Grumman Avenger strikes object on flight deck The island was a favourite "hit" for landing aircraft as they wandered too far to starboard. Here a French Grumman Avenger hit something on the starboard deck before nosing down just before the island, it has lost its propeller. 11.4cm x 9.1cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 131072 Grumman Avenger crashed nose down Note the damaged starboard wing. This photograph gives a good view of the doral gun turret and the .50 calibre, 12.7mm machine gun. The squadron 4F was equipped with Avengers from 1951 to 1960 and landed on all the French carriers. Here it looks like either La Fayette or Bois-Belleau judging by the island. 11.2cm x 8.7cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 129057131072 Salvaging H.M.S. Montagu H.M.S. Montagu was a Duncan class pre-dreadnough battleship commissioned in 1903. Caught in fog and off course despite being given the correct bearing from a pilot cutter, ignored the advice and steamed on to run aground on Shutter Rock in May 1906. After several attempts to float the ship off, damage was so severe that the Navy gave up and handed over the salvage operation to a private company. Here preparations are underway to remove the main battery 12 inch guns.. Verso:"Taken on board H.M.S. Montagu" 8.7cm x 13.9cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 128044 Levasseur PL14 ditched The Levasseur PL14 was in service from 1929 to 1940 both as a floatplane and then an undercarriage version to fly off the carrier Béarn. As shown here, a water-tight fuselage enabled the aircraft to remain afloat after ditching. In addition, there were airbags in the lower wing and the prop could be blocked for ditching. Whilst the destroyers Ouragan (T42 right) and Orage (T43, left) are bearing down to take off the crew - of the three crew, one man is on the tail, a second on the upper wing. 12.9cm x 8 cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 128011 Bad landing, French Navy Corsair During the Korean War, this Corsair from the French Navy Aeronavale came to grief when landing on. Verso:"Korean War, the pilot was not injured in the crash" in Italian and in black ink Credit:Il Tempo 18.2cm x 14.2cm Gelatin silver print
Catalogue number 123098 Crashed Grumman Avenger This French Navy Avenger has nosed over on landing and ended up alongside one of the funnels of either the carrier Bois Belleau or Lafayette. Note the mobile crane behind the wreck. 11.3cm x 8.7cm Gelatin silver print
Catalogue number 125097 Pile up on a French carrier The French Bois Belleau and Lafayette were flat top carriers in the days before the angled flight deck and aircraft were parked forward. As a consequence, any aircraft that missed the arrester wire and, if the saftey barrier wasn't raised quick enough, could crash into the parked aircraft. Here it looks like aircraft 22 has crashed into a parked, wings folded aircraft. Judging by the number of bombs painted on the fuselage, aircraft 22 seems to have been active during the Indochinese war. A crewman is mopping up oil that has leaked onto the flight deck. 11.4cm x 9cm Gelatin silver print
Catalogue number 121117 A Corsair hard landing This Corsair caught the arrester wire but has slewn over to starboard and the undercarriage has gone into the walkway. The carrier is either Lafayette or Bois Belleau (note the four funnels starboard) and not Arromanches as noted on the photograph. Verso: ""Corsair"F.4.U.7. (Arromanche)(sic) Accident. Barriere." 23.2cm x 17.6cm Gelatin silver print
Catalogue number 127017 Early FBA flying boat accident The bow of this F.B.A. flying boat has been stove-in on landing, maybe it was a floating object and it is being brought aboard a French First World War seaplane carrier, perhaps Foudre but more likely Campinas. The ship is in the bay of Salamis, Greece. Verso: Text in French to a friend telling about the seaplane accident off Salamis 11.8cm x 8.5cm Matt gelatin silver print
Catalogue number 127076 Shot-up Heinkel, 1941 The port wings of the Heinkel 53 have collapsed after the floatplane was attacked by the R.A.F. off Tunisia in 1941. Verso: "German Heinkel 53 floatplane attacked at sea 10nm off Ras Kapoudia (editor's note: a coastal town in Tunisia) by R.A.F. aircraft on 4.4.41 (6 crew aboard)." in French 16.8cm x 12cm Gelatin silver print
Catalogue number 127028 Recovering downed aircrew by a U.S. Navy submarine. During the Pacific war, the U.S. Navy posted submarines at strategic points on the in and out routes of seaplane attacks with a view to recover any ditched aircraft. Credit: U.S. Navy 13.3cm x 8.5cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 124083 H.M.S. York and the blockade runner S.S.Arucas, 1940 S.S. Arucas was a German passenger ship that tried to get back to Germany after being trapped in Vigo, Portugal, 1940. Taking the North Atlantic route to Norway and hence Germany, she was caught by H.MS. York during a gale. To avoid capture, the Captain Möhring scuttled his ship whilst the crew took to the lifeboats. The Captain and 13 crew drowned whilst H.M.S. York saved the 39 survivors. This perhaps unique postcard of H.M.S. York is signed by the survivors. 13.6cm x 8.6cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 128052 German steamer Arucas, 1927 The German mixed passenger and cargo steamer was running on the Nord-deutscher Lloyd line between Bremen and the Canary Islands. She was interned in Vigo, Spain at the outbreak of WW2 and attempted to breakout and reach Germany in 1940. 13.8cm x 8.9cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 126081 Swamped whaler from H.M.S. Royal Sovereign On a lighter note, this whaler has been swamped out during a sailing race and is being recovered by H.M.S. Royal Sovereign with the help of the ship's motor launch. Note one of the whaler's crew in the sea hanging on to the stern of the launch. Boat races between ships were very intense and the crews would push their boats to the limit. 13.6cm x 8.6cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 125075 Collision between Bison and Georges Leygues, 1939 18 sailors on the French destroyer Bison were killed in a collision with the cruiser Georges Leygues during an exercise. 15cm x 11.7cm Photograph

Catalogue number 125082 Bison in drydock at Lorient The foredeck of Bison was sliced off as far back as the Y turret just before the bridge. 7.8cm x 5.4cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 125076 Damage to the Georges Leygues. Y turrent and the gonio poste ended up on the foredeck of the Georges Leygues. 16.9cm x 11.9cm Photograph

Catalogue number 125081 Georges Leygues bow on after the collision Whilst Bison was cut in two, the cruiser had no major damage, here we can see the gun of turret Y and the gonio room from Bison. Verso: "Georges Leygues having cut the "Bison" in two during manoeuvres (January 1939)" 9cm x 6.5cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 126027 Supermarine Walrus ditched This and the following photograph show a Royal Navy Walrus that has come down in the sea. A ship's whaler is alongside and the Walrus is still afloat in the calm sea so we may assume that a Royal Navy ship was nearby when the aircraft came down. Verso: ""Walrus" rescueing (sic) The Crew." in black ink. Stamped "Passed for transmission only (not for publication)" 12.6cm x 7.6cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 126026 Supermarine Walrus ditched We can see two men without caps and in light coloured clothing, one with an inflatable lifejacket, are they the crew from the Walrus? Verso: ""Walrus" in Water" in black ink. Stamped "Passed for transmission only (not for publication)" 12.6cm x 7.7cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 121119 Blackburn Rippon nose down on landing This Blackburn Rippon S1427 of 462 Flight hit the funnel of H.M.S. Glorious when landing 1932, we can see the damage to the lower starboard wing. The aircraft has tipped over onto its nose breaking off the engine from its mounting, note the two crew (pilot Lt Hooper) scrambling to get out. The meaning of the swastika on the wheel hub is unknown. Crown Copyright 15.6cm x 9.9cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 121118 Glorious in trouble again (detail) This Fairey FIII from H.M.S. Glorious has gone into the sea, maybe a take off gone wrong but the ship is around to pick them up. Note the three crew, two still on the fuselage and a third in the sea by the tail. 15.9cm x 9.9cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 117034 Fairey Barracuda runs into the safety barrier, 1944 Lots of activity around this Barracuda that has missed the arrester wires. The pilot is still in the cockpit, firefighters in asbestos suits are ready and the crash party are deploying foam hoses whilst others have standard fire extinguishers. Is it the ship's doctor with his first aid bag bottom left, just by the island? Verso: "The Fleet Air Arm strike Tirpitz. On board a Royal Navy aircraft carrier during another successful Fleet Air Arm operation against the German battleship Tirpitz and enemy shipping off Norway. A Barracuda on fire from enemy flack (sic) lands and the fire is put out by the crash party. Sept. 1944" 6.5cm x 4.8cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 94131 Vickers Supermarine Seafire in the barrier, 1949 This Seafire has floated over the wires and gone into the safety barrier on H.M.S. Illustrious. The pilot, Lt JS Toner, is being help out by the firefighter whilst others are approaching with foam hoses. Verso: "VS Seafire F.15 PR 497/MV-109 RNavy 767 Sq. on HMS Illustrious" 13.3cm x 8.3cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 117037 Prangs when working up on the French carrier Arromanches, October 1960 At the end of the war, France was loaned then, in 1951, bought H.M.S. Colossus. She played a major role in working up the French naval air arm l'Aeronavale. France entered the war with just the old carrier Béarn so few officers had experience in naval flying. Prangs and bangs were inevitable ! These three photographs show a Corsair (133836 of 12 Flotille) that has crashed on the Arromanche. In this photograph the starboard wing has gone and the tail is caught in the safety barrier. Note the arrester hook hanging down. 18.3cm x 12.9cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 117035 Damage to the island The aircraft had come out of the workshop but not been tested with the result that an oil leak obscured the vision of the pilot (Premier-Maitre pilote Gaëtan Inaud). On the third attempt to land on and with little visability for the pilot, the aircraft hit the crane. Verso: "Porte-Avions Arromanches Service-Photo" red stamped 18.3cm x 13cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 117036 Corsair 133836, 1960 It's back broken and a wing ripped off at the root, the aircraft was a write off. 18.2cm x 12.9cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 30022 Sully aground, bow on The French Gloire class cruiser Sully (completed 1904) ran aground on rocks in the baie d’Along, Indochina 1905. The Sully was in company with the Gueydon and the D’Assas. Note the ship’s boats working around the grounded ship. It is said that Commandant Guiberteau of the Sully had already risked running the ship aground on several occasions much to the consternation of the officers but here, the rock was not marked on the maps and so he was acquitted of any wrongdoing (see André Nédk, Le récit d’un marin rennais). Recto: "The "Sully" grounded in the bay of Along (Henriette Strait) in French 13.9cm x 9.1cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 90 F8 Leaving the sinking ship Initially, D’Assas had received a distress signal from Sully but considered it was a signals exercise and the wireless of Gueydon was being repaired. When the mistake was realised, the boilers were fired up and the ships got underway. As can be seen in this photograph, there is intense activity on the foredeck, Sully’s boats have got away and all the crew were saved. 8.4cm x 11.5cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 90 F8 Corsair 133836, 1960 First view of the Sully from the stern, the ship is down by the bows and has an important list to port. 8.5cm x 8.2cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 90 F8 Corsair 133836, 1960 Second view of the Sully from the stern, the ship is down by the bows and has an important list to port. 7.1cm x 7.1cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 28050 Sully down on the Canot recif Most of the crew have been taken off and the ship is well and truly stuck on the recif. 18.2cm x 12.9cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 29046 Sully, March 1905 Starboard view of the stranded Sully, March 1905. Recto: Postcard franked "Tonkin, 1905" 14cm x 9cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 123035 Attempt to salvage, pumps in action Pumps were used in an attempt to lighten the forward part of the ship and float the bows off the recif. 9cm x 9cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 90F8 Attemp to salvage Sully using a floating dock The French authorities contacted salvage companies whilst the ship was progressively lightened by disembarking the guns and ammunition but after the Danish Company of Hong Kong backed out of the contract and the Admiralty was left to deal with the salvage operation. A 5600-tonne floating dock belonging to a British company was brought over from Hong Kong but before any serious attempt of lifting the ship up by the bows and floating it off the recif, the weather deteriorated and cracks of the hull were opening up. In addition, there were two large holes forward and gashes in bottom of the hull. The idea was to lift the bow using buoyancy caissons then trim down the floating dock, pass it under the bows and float the ship off the recif. However, the dock was subsequently badly damaged and became unserviceable when a typhoon hit the bay. The ship continued break up and salvage attempts were abandoned. Recto: "Sully May 1905. The dock built in Hong Kong is brought to the bow of Sully" in French and fine black ink script 15.5cm x 11.3cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 94052 The wreck of Sully, May 1905 It would seem from this photograph dated May 1905 that Sully had broken in two before the typhoons of September and October. In 2002, the “Sailing Directions (Enroute), South China Sea and the Gulf of Thailand” mentions “le Canot, a 23m high islet lying 1.5 miles N of Ile Henriette….. A 4.6 m shoal, with a wreck on its S side, extends 0.1 mile SE of Le Canot.”. Is this the wreck of Sully, we have not found any information as to what became of the ship once salvaging was abandoned? Recto: “20th May 1905” in blue ink 14cm x 9cm Matt gelatin print

Catalogue number 90 F8 Officer from Sully Nobody was lost when Sully ran aground and her guns and most equipment were recovered although the ship became a total loss. This and several of the above photographs are on a single cardboard mount with the text "Photographs of "Sully" after running aground on the Canot recif in the Bay of Along 7th February 1905." in French and in fine black ink script. Recto: * and “M. le Commissaire of “Sully” who, when the vessel was lost, saved the ships' papers and had many tales to tell to his in-laws, living in Carpentras!” 4.3cm x 7cm Matt gelatin print

Catalogue number 118053 H.M.S. Raleigh aground, 1922 H.M.S. Raleigh ran aground at Point Amour/L’Anse Amour whilst sailing in very thick fog through the Straits of Belle Isle, Newfoundland on 8th August 1922. With a strong wind pushing her stern round she became firmly embedded on the rocks and eventually became a total loss. H.M.S. Raleigh had been in service for just over one year and had cost over 2 million pounds. Another Hawkins-class cruiser, H.M.S. Effingham came to a similar fate when she struck a charted rock during the 1940 Norwegian campaign - the navigator’s pencilled track went over and hid the marked rock on the navigation chart. Unable to be refloated , she was destroyed by gunfire and torpedoes. H.M.S. Vindictive was the third Hawkins -class cruiser to run aground - on a shoal in the Baltic Sea, 1919 - and was almost lost. After lightening the ship by removing fuel, ammunition and stores, the intervention of an favourable westerly wind raised the level of the sea just enough for Vindictive to be pulled off. Note the sounding boom still out off the starboard side. 8.2cm x 12.9cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 119013 H.M.S. H-41 leaving Blyth September 1919 H-41 was one of the numerous H-class submarines built during and just after the First World War. The design was strongly influenced by the H-class submarines of the U.S. Navy and engines, main motors and major fittings for several of the earlier boats came from the U.S.A. The second group of H-class submarines had four bow torpedo tubes and carried an outfit of six to eight 21-inch torpedoes. H-41 is shown here leaving the the submarine base in Blyth harbour late 1919. 13cm x 8cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 119012 Stern view of H.M.S. H-41 about to go into the open sea This and the preceding photograph were taken in September 1919 just prior to the accident in which H-41 sank. The officers are on the bridge and the casing crew are still on deck. Small submarines (52.4m oa), they could make 11.5 kts on the surface and 10.5 kts submerged. 12.8cm x 8cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 119011 H.M.S. Vulcan alongside at Blyth with two submarines The twin-screw submarine depot ship H.M.S. Vulcan was tied up alongside in the dock basin at Blyth following repairs to her main engines. Slow speed main engine trials were organized for the morning of 18th October and at the time, as is the case in this photograph for submarines H-26 and H-29, three submarines were on the aft trot with H-41 being on the inside. As the trial began, the aft part of H-41 was drawn by suction in the shallow water onto the port screw. The propeller blades cut through the casing and opened the pressure hull letting in the sea at the level of the main motors. 12.9cm x 7.8cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 119013 Salvaging of H-41 by a series of lifts The submarine sank by the stern but was held up forward by the mooring wires which eventually gave way and the remaining wire sling was eased off to let the submarine sink and rest upright on the bottom. With H.M.S. Vulcan moved out of the way, high tides over the next few days enabled the submarine to be lifted, in stages, and taken up river for pumping out and temporary repairs in shallow water. Here we can see H-41 after one of the lifts, probably on 8th November. 8.5cm x 6cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 119013 H-41 pumped out and refloated The hole in the hull has been temporarily plugged and the submarine pumped out. With a heavy tow from a tug and a light line from the stern of the harbour paddle tug, H-41 leaves Blyth. 12.3cm x 6.6cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 119013 H-41 under tow The paddle tug prepares to drop the tow as the tug and its tow go out into the open sea. H-41 was taken to the Tyne for repairs but was eventually sold off. 12.3cm x 7cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 119013 Damage to the conning tower The periscopes and radio mast were bent over when the submarine sank and perhaps we can see part of the damage to the pressure hull just aft of the conning tower. 12.8cm x 6.3cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 119013 Pumps on board H-41 The suction pipes are still in place over the engine room hatch and it looks like there is a small pump on deck. 13cm x 6.8cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 119014 Lieutenant-Commander N.R. Peploe, commander H-41 Lieutenant-Commander N.R. Peploe was commanding H-41 when she came to grief. This photograph was taken at Blyth in 1919. As a Lieutenant on the submarine E-17, Peploe spent the war in internement in the Netherlands when E-17 went aground in Dutch waters. On E-17, Peploe was one of the two lieutenants, the other being Lt C.V. Groves RNR, with Lieutenant-Commander J. R. G. Moncrieffe as commander and 24 crew. The submarine was badly damaged on an uncharted bank off Texel on 6th January 1916. After signalling for assistance, the officers and men were taken off by the Dutch cruiser Noord Brabant and interned initially in Den Helder then at Groningen where they joined other Royal Navy internees. Recto: "N.R. PEPLOE." in white ink 7.5cm x 12.6cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 116078 U.S.S. Memphis aground, 1916. U.S.S. Memphis was at anchor in the harbour of Santo Domingo, August 1916 when she was hit and cast ashore by a 100-foot tsunami. She had a displacement of 14,500 tons and was probably the only ship of such a size to have been thrown ashore by a tsunami. She was a total loss. Verso: "Another view showing the crew leaving the ship after court of inquiry was over." in black ink. 12.8cm x 8.1cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 114008 H.M.S. Hawke in collision with R.M.S. Olympic, 1911. H.M.S. Hawke was an Edgar class cruiser launched in 1891 and on 20th September 1911 was involved in an accident with the recently launched White Star liner R.M.S. Olympic. Olympic was the largest liner in the world at the time displacing 52,067 tons. In the shallow waters of the Solent, it was suggested that during a turn to starboard, the large amount of water displaced forward by the liner had generated a phenomenon of suction behind. With Hawke overhauling Olympic whilst on a parallel course, this suction may have drawn H.M.S. Hawke on to Olympic causing it to ram the hull on the starboard quarter. Here we can see the flattened bow of Hawke with one of the Portsmouth naval paddle tugs alongside. 13.2cm x 8.3cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 103098 U.S.S. S51 rammed, 1925. This photograph shows the American submarine U.S.S. S51 after being raised and in the dry dock of the Brooklyn Navy Yard. Whilst running on the surface on the night of 25th September 1925 off the coast near Block Island, S51 was rammed by the merchant ship City of Rome just forward of the conning tower. The submarine sank quickly and only three men survived. The damage to the hull can be seen at the level of the deck gun and the large cylinders are the pontoons used to raise the vessel. The damage to the bow is probably from when the submarine hit the sea floor. 13.8cm x 8cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 114118 The H.M.S. Truculent disaster, 1950. H.M.S. Truculent was a T class submarine that survived a wartime service in the Pacific Far East but came to grief on the night of 12th January 1950 when hit by the Swedish oil tanker Divina. This photograph taken on 13th January shows the marker buoy released by the submarine when it sank. Behind the buoy is a launch with a diver preparing to go down to the wreck in the Thames estuary. Legend: "Truculent: “All hope abandoned,” say Admiralty. Sheerness: All hope of rescuing the 58 men trapped in the submarine Truculent, which sank after a collision with the Swedish tanker Davina, has been abandoned. This news was contained in an announcement made by the Admiralty, to-day (Friday). There are 15 survivors. Photo shows:- A close-up of the marker buoy sent up by the submarine and indicating where the wreck lies. In the background a diver is seen about to make a descent in an effort to reach the trapped men. January 13th, 1950" 11.9cm x 9.2cm Cellulose negative

Catalogue number 114117 The H.M.S. Truculent disaster, 1950. This photograph of 13th January shows another diver going down to the submarine whilst the pumps are manned. Immediately after the accident most of the crew escaped from the submarine using the escape trunk but they were swept away by the fast flowing tide and many bodies were found on the mud flats down river, there were only 15 survivors. Legend: “Truculent “No Hope”, says Admiralty. Sheerness, Eng; All hope of rescuing the 58 men trapped in the submarine Truculent which sank after collision with the Swedish tanker Divina, has been abandoned. This news was contained in an announcement made by the Admiralty to-day (Fri). There are 15 survivors. Photo shows:- The scene of the wreck, showing the pumps being manned aboard one of the rescue ships as a diver descends. Jan 13th, 1950” 11.9cm x 9.2cm Cellulose negative

Catalogue number 113005 Ditching in the Pacific Ocean, 1944. This Boeing B-29 Superfortress has ditched in the Pacific Ocean after a bombing raid over Nagoya. The crew have left the aircraft and are waving to a patrol plane that has found them. We can presume that the ditching is recent because the B-29 is still afloat. Bombing raids were accompanied by patrol aircraft both on the way out and on returning in case accidents occured (see the topic "Airborne Lifeboats"). Verso: “Crashed B-29 attackers of Japan wave to patrol plane from rafts. While their huge bomber remains precariously afloat nearby, crew members of a crashed B-29 Superfortress wave to a patrol plane from their life rafts in the Pacific. The patrol plane directed a Navy warship to the rescue of the American flyers, who landed in the sea while returning to their base on Saipan from an attack on airplane factories in Nagoya, Japan's third city. A B-29 attack on Nagoya industrial targets on December 22, 1944, was the third in nine days, indicating an intensification of the U.S. aerial campaign to knock Japan's indistries out of the war.” Credit: Official U.S. Navy photo 15.8cm x 11.8cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 113006 Awaiting rescue, 1944. The black streaks on the fuselage of this Douglas diver bomber suggests that the engine has been damaged and is leaking oil. The crew are preparing to ditch, note the bomb under the fuselage. Verso: “Palau Incident. Washington, D.C......Badly damaged by anti-aircraft fire during the Navy raid on the Jap base at Palau, on March 29, this Douglas dive bomber became unmanageable and crashed into the sea. At top, the plane is flying a level course as the gunner tosses his machine guns overboard while the pilot attempts to jettison the bombs to prevent their exploding or dragging down the ship. Left below, the plane in the water as gunner and pilot clamber out of their cockpits and head for the automatically-inflated life raft. Lower right, the two airmen snuggle in their rubber boat and await rescue by a surface craft of the task force. W.4.27.44” Credit: U.S. Navy photo 23.8cm x 17.6cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 114087 A Sea Fury in the crash barrier. The pilot is out and there is no longer a risk of fire as the deck crew weigh up the state of this Sea Fury that has gone into the crash barrier. Verso: “3/11/53 Sea Fury as asked write Barrow” in light pencil 12.8cm x 7.8cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 107037 Recovery of a Farman Goliath. A heavily damaged Farman Goliath has been brought over to the quay by a floating crane and it will be lifted onto the wharf. The insignia of the head of a Sioux indian – which first appeared in the 1920s - shows that the Goliath was part of the Commission d'Etudes Pratiques d'Aéronautique (C.E.P.A.) based at the naval base of Saint-Raphaël. 12.8cm x 7.9cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 116033 Crashed prototype Hanriot floatplane. This photograph may also have been taken at the Saint-Raphaël base – flat land to the left, steeply rising hills to the right – and it shows a Hanriot Hd17 after a difficult landing. The float tips have been ripped out and the propeller has been destroyed as if the aircraft tipped over on its nose during landing in shallow water – the float tips and the blade hitting the sea bed. The floatplane may have been an experimental aircraft but it has all the characteristics of a Hanriot – vent at the bottom of the engine cowling, round fuselage and the quarter round part of the high tail with “HaD17” written on it. Verso: “A plane that came down just a short time ago. It happens!! Note the stripes of the Petty officer, a man from Brittany!” in French and in black ink 14.1cm x 9cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 105044 A badly damaged Vought from U.S.S. Cincinnati, 1924. There is not much left of this Vought O2U-1 from U.S.S. Cincinnati. The aircraft came down off the coast of Valparaiso in Chile whilst U.S.S. Cincinnati was on a shakedown cruise off South America following commissioning in January 1924. Verso: “Valparaiso Chile 15 2 39” with black ink stamp written "14 Jun 1924 Caras y Caret Archivo" 13.6cm x 6cm gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 22024 Battleship Hoche, 1895 The French battleship Hoche was completed in 1890 with an elaborated superstructure such that she was nicknamed "Le Grand Hôtel". This photograph was taken after a refit during which the secondary armament was reduced to twelve guns and a lighter pole mast fitted aft. Nevertheless, top heavy and with two big 34cm guns fore and aft, even in a calm sea as in this photograph, the ship would pitch such that the foredeck became awash with the consequent flooding below decks. Verso: ""Hoche" at 15 kts (3rd May 1895) in French and in pencil 21.8cm x 14.2cm Photograph

Catalogue number 18043 Explosion on the French battleship Iéna, 1907 The battleship Iéna was destroyed by a magazine explosion whilst in dry dock at Toulon. Impure nitrocellulose propellant became unstable and spontaneous combustion in the magazines was the cause of two disasters - Iéna, 1907 and Liberté, 1911. In this photograph, Iéna can be seen on fire behind the battleship Suffren, with, in the foreground, stretcher parties evacuating the dead and injured. 14.1cm x 8.9cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 25048 The loss of the French cruiser Chanzy, 1907 Whilst navigating amongst the numerous islands of the Chusan archipel, South of Shanghai, the French armoured cruiser Chanzy (commissioned 1894)ran agound in fog. The German gunboat SMS Luchs went to assist but the help was declined. Unable to be refloated and with the crew taken off, the ship broke up. 7.5cm x 5.8cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 15019 Training ship Duguay-Trouin,ex-Tonkin, aground 1903 The French ship Duguay-Trouin, ex-Tonkin, had a chequered career. Launched as the hospital ship Tonkin, she was renamed Duguay-Trouin in 1900 and became a training ship, troopship and again a hospital ship. It was during a training cruise that she went aground off Saint Jean de Luz in 1905. We can see the barges port and starboard used to float the ship off the seabed. 8.9cm x 14.2cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 128009 Duguay-Trouin, Saint Jean de Luz Duguay-Trouin alongside at Saint Jean de Luz not far from where she ran aground. 8.8cm x 14cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 111001 A ditched Grumman Avenger, French Aeronavale This French Avenger from the 6F squadron has ditched not too far away from help because someone has had the time to take a photograph. The three crew members are out of the aircraft which is still afloat and one of them seems to be holding something - an inflatable dingy? This squadron was based at Oran and was equipped with Avengers from 1952 to 1959. 17cm x 12.4cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 38141 H.M.S. Renown in dry dock, 1935. During a manoeuvre with H.M.S. Hood in January 1935, H.M.S. Renown hit Hood on the port quarter. The consequences of the collision went much further than repairing decking, hull plating and screws. It was a classic case of imprecise and unclear signals from Rear-Admiral Bailey with lack of initiative by Captain Tower on board Hood and ill judgement on behalf of Captain Sawbridge of Renown (sounds a lot like the Camperdown/Victoria collision of June 1893). Coming in the wake of the Invergordon mutiny of September 1931 (in which the crew of Hood took on a less enthusiastic attitude and were reproached for this by the more mutinous crews of the Battle Cruiser Squadron), ill-feeling between the two ships was rife. Following a court martial, Sawbridge was dismissed from the command of his ship but Bailey and Tower were acquitted. Three weeks later, the Admiralty changed the decisions of the court martial, attributing part of the blame to Bailey as he was responsible for the signals that led to the collision, Tower was blamed for not taking avoiding action soon enough and Sawbridge was still considered guilty but his sentence was reduced to a severe reprimand and he resumed command of his ship. The good relationship within the Battle Cruiser Squadron, so carefully built-up by Rear-Admiral James after the mutiny, was destroyed. Rear-Admiral James has suggested that Bailey did not like Sawbridge and the collision and ensuing attribution of blame enhanced this animosity which spread to the officers and men of the two ships. Verso: "A collision between the Renown and the Hood. H.M.S. Renown, which was heavily damaged in a collision with H.M.S. Hood, is in dry dock at Portsmouth where the necessary repairs will be made. Several officers were brought before a court martial." in French. 12.2cm x 16.2cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 107037 H.M.S. Laurel in 1914. This photograph maybe of the Laforey class destroyer H.M.S. Laurel, completed in 1914. During a patrol of the Heligoland Blight in 1914, along with other destroyers she engaged enemy forces and was greatly damaged, receiving four hits of which one enemy shell struck the fore funnel and exploded inside causing a fire in No. 1 boiler room. Here we can see the damaged fore funnel, steam pipe and base of mast with crew members wearing Sennet hats (discontinued in 1921). 8.3cm x 12.8cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 110001 Bad landing. Given the text that accompanied this photograph, it is surprising the Admiralty illustrated a successful operation with a photograph of a bad landing. In fact, the repeated attempts by the Fleet Air Arm to damage and sink the Tirpitz using the Barracuda underlined the inadequacy of this aircraft - too slow and an insufficient bomb load - to make a sufficiently destructive attack. The text states that the aircraft was involved in "another successful Fleet Air Arm operation against the German battleship Tirpitz ", one of the series of attacks made at the end of August 1944. However, analysis of Ultra signals intelligence showed that Tirpitz had not sustained any significant damage during these attacks. Tirpitz was eventually destroyed by three hits with 5,400kg Tallboy bombs. Verso: "The Fleet Air Arm strikes Tirpitz. On board a Royal Navy aircraft carrier during another successful Fleet Air Arm operation against the German battleship Tirpitz and enemy shipping off Norway." "Picture shows;- A Barracuda makes a bad landing and hits the crash barrier. Bits of the propeller can be seen flying in the air. No one was injured." "Must not be published before Sunday papers of September 10th 1944." Source: Admiralty photograph. Crown Copyright 19.1cm x 13.8cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 108035 Picking up a ditched pilot. The destroyer H.M.S. Tyrian is coming up fast to reach the ditched aircraft and the ship's boat is ready to be released from the falls to go and pick up the pilot. It must have been quite an art to lower the boat and get it away whilst the ship was moving fast. Tyrian, one of the numerous modified Trenchant class/S class destroyers, was completed in 1919 and sold in 1930. This class in general was fast and even after war service, Tyrian reached almost 40 kts on the measured mile and averaged just under 39.5kts over four hours steaming. Verso: "Tarjeto postal. Union postale universelle. Espana." Source: Crown Copyright 13.7cm x 8.5cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 108035 Detail: Picking up a ditched pilot. Detail. The pilot can be seen standing on the submerged wing waiting to be picked up. The aircraft looks very much like a Fairey III mk1. This accident may have occurred whilst Tyrian was on exercise with a carrier off the coast Spain. 13.7cm x 8.5cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 109105 Crashed Farman 168 floatplane. Several boats are gathered around this French Aéronavale Farman F 168 floatplane that has pitched over onto its nose. The two large floats seem to have been ripped out during the landing on water. The aircraft is from squadron 3B1. This bombing group was joined with 3B2 at the naval base on the Etang de Berre in 1928 and later became 3FB only to be reformed as 3B1 again at Port Lyautey in Morocco in 1939. Recto: "L'accident de Pulam (?)" in black ink Verso : " Farman F 168 " in pencil 10.5cm x 6.3cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 109015 A collision between R.N. Lampo et R.N. Pola, 1938. During an exercise in November 1938, the Italian destroyer Lampo suffered an unfortunate collision when she was rammed by the heavy cruiser Pola. Lampo's bow was destroyed and she lost several members of her crew. She was towed stern first back to port by the tug Tereo and laid up for repairs during the following six months. Verso: "R. CT. "Lampo" under tow by R.N. "Tereo" - 24th November 1938" in Italian Source: Salvatore Primo 9.2cm x 7.3cm Gelatin silver print
Catalogue number 80344 & 80345 Russian battleship Parizhskaya Kommuna, off Brest 1929. These two photographs clearly show the clipper bow that was added onto the Parizhskaya Kommuna (ex-Sevastopol, completed 1914) during a refit in 1928. Whilst crossing the Bay of Biscay in 1929, the ship ran into a strong storm and water was trapped in the well of the modified bow to the extent that the bow failed. The Parizhskaya Kommuna was in danger of sinking and reluctantly had to put into the port of Brest for repairs. After repairs by the crew, the bow again failed and the ship had to return to Brest but this time repairs were made by a French shipyard. She eventually reached her destination Sevastopol in January 1930. 80344 4cm x 5.7cm Glass plate negative 80345 4.1cm x 5.7cm Glass plate negative

Catalogue number 25037 Le Corse bow replacement. The bow of the " Escorteur rapide " Le Corse was ripped open when, on the 4th July 1973, the "Escorteur d'Escadre" Du Chayla rammed her during exercises in the North Sea. Rather than rebuild the bow, it was decided to replace it with the bow of the Le Bordelais, which was at the time held in reserve. Despite appearances, the joining of the two sections required a high degree of precision. 11.7cm x 11.6cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 104026 SS Florida seen from HMS Glorious During exercises with Royal Navy cruisers and destroyers off the coast of Spain and with some of her aircraft in the air, the aircraft carrier HMS Glorious was in collision with the three-year-old French liner Florida of the Societe Generale de Transport Maritime à Vapeur. There were banks of fog in the area on 1st April 1931 and the aircraft carrier, after entering a thick fog bank, turned to leave the fog so as to recover her aircraft. However, the manoeuvre was compromised by the presence of the screening cruisers and destroyers. The turn was cancelled and shortly after 9h00, HMS Glorious hit SS Florida just forward of the bridge as she crossed the starboard bow of HMS Glorious. After the collision, the carrier remained in contact with SS Florida and her passengers were transferred to HMS Glorious using improvised gangways. Verso: "A view after Glorious has backed out." in black ink. 14.2cm x 10.7cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 104028 HMS Glorious prepares to tow SS FLorida. With pumps running and collision mats over part of the hole, HMS Glorious backed out and prepared to tow SS Florida to Gibraltar. Verso: "Florida showing men from Glorious on board preparing to tow." in black ink. 12.7cm x 5.2cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 72057 The damaged bow of HMS Glorious. The collision damaged 60 feet of the flying-off deck and here the crew are trying to clear the bow. 13.9cm x 7.9cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 79025 Reviewing the damage at Gibraltar. Once in the Naval dockyard at Gibraltar, dockyard workers and Naval officers saw what had to be done and made temporary repairs before HMS Glorious sailed on to Malta for permanent repairs. Verso: "H.M.S. Glorious on arrival at Gibraltar" in black ink. 12.8cm x 8.2cm Gelatin silver print
Catalogue number 20030a & 20030b French Contre-torpilleur Vautour, 1939. On 22nd September 1939, as two Mediterranean convoys crossed one another South of the island of Pantelleria and with all lights extinguished, the passanger ship SS El Djezaïr hit the French Navy contre-torpilleur Vautour at 00h35. The collision tore a hole above the waterline in the foredeck and hull of the Vautour. These photographs show the Vautour alongside at Bizerte. In the second photograph, it seems to be washing day ! 20030a Verso: "Voila le Vautour avec ses blessures au retour de Beyrouth à son arrivé à Sidi-Abdellah (Bizerte) (1939)." in black ink (Here is the Vautour with its wounds back from Beyrouth arriving in Sidi-Abdella). 20030a 8cm x 5.5cm Gelatin silver print 20030b 8cm x 5.5cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 39037 USS Wasp. On 25 August 1945, USS Wasp found itself confronting a severe typhoon, with winds reaching 78 kn (140 km/h)and the port overhang was folded down over the bow. Despite the damage, USS Wasp continued to fly off and receive aircraft. Following this experience, carriers of the Essex class were rebuilt with hurricane bows to reduce the effect of heavy weather. USS Wasp was CV18, see the number 18 on the port bow. 19.7cm x 14.5cm Gelatin silver print
Catalogue number 33005, 33003 & 31049 A consequence of the great floods of 1952/1953. The winter of 1952-53 was particularly hard, with a severe storm on the night of 31st January/1st February. Coinciding with a high Spring tide coefficient the result was flooding that occurred on the coasts bordering the North Sea. In the dock at Sheerness, the rising tide lifted the main lock gates and the sea rushed in to overwhelm three dry docks. HMS Berkeley Castle F397 (a Castle-class corvette completed in 1943) and HMS Sirdar (an S-class submarine completed in 1943) were each in dry dock undergoing refits after coming out of reserve (see mothballed gun turret on the foredeck of HMS Berkeley Castle). The wooden shores holding the ship upright were washed away and she keeled over onto the port side with the mast hitting the side of the dry dock. The submarine was likewise engulfed by the incoming sea and sank in the dry dock. Both vessels were later refloated and repaired. Top Verso "Berkeley Castle" in blue crayon. Top 33005 23.8cm x 18.7cm Gelatin silver print Middle 33003 19.3cm x 14.1cm Gelatin silver print Bottom 31049 19.3cm x 14.1cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 33041 Collision and grounding of HMS Gladiator. These two photographs show HMS Gladiator (an Arrogant-class cruiser) over on her side and resting on the seabed off the Isle of Wight after being hit a glancing blow by the American steamer SS Saint Paul. The weather was bad on 25th April 1908 as HMS Gladiator was heading up the Western passage of the Solent with visibility down to 800 yds. Both the outbound SS Saint Paul and the inbound HMS Gladiator had to maintain speed to assure good steerage in the face of strong tides and gale force winds. The distance between the Isle of Wight and Hurst Point on the mainland is about 1000 yds and the standard crossing procedure of port to port was in application but, lacking sea room to manoeuvre, HMS Gladiator turned towards SS Saint Paul and in the inevitable collision, the steamer struck HMS Gladiator just aft of her engine room ripping open the hull. HMS Gladiator was salvaged at great cost then, being obsolete, she was sold for scrap with a considerable loss of money. 13.4cm x 8.2cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 21036 HMS Gladiator before being righted. During the time that HMS Gladiator was aground, she became a major tourist attraction being close to the coast and in this photograph we can see spectators being rowed around the wreck. 13.4cm x 9.5cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 45173 Morane Saulnier N-436 flipped over, 1939. Even if this is not a Naval subject, the story is good. This proud young pilot stands in front of his upturned Morane-Saulnier MS-230 almost in defiance of the accident that has just occurred. From the registration number N 436 and with the powers of Internet, it has been possible to trace the story of this photograph. The pilot is Corporal Bernard de Joybert, trainee pilot in the French Air Force. On 6th November 1939, when coming in to land at the airfield of Evreux-Fauville, he came in short of the runway, hit a pathway at the edge of the airfield and flipped over the aircraft. Apparently unhurt this time, his luck ran out when he was killed on active service on 1st December 1939 at the age of 22. 17.8cm x 11.9cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 27003 Naval Aircraft Factory PN-9, 1925. The US Navy was interested in developing long-range flying boats to patrol far out into the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. The Naval Aircraft Factory converted one of the PN-8 flying boats to a PN-9 with redesigned tail surfaces and different engine nacelles. This aircraft was used in an attempt to fly from San Francisco Bay to Hawaii, crossing 2,400 miles of ocean, but ran out of fuel some 559 miles away from Hawaii. Undeterred, the crew of five set about making sails from the lower wing fabric and began to sail the flying boat to Hawaii. Fortunately, after being adrift for ten days, the PN-9 was spotted by the US Navy submarine R-4 which rescued the crew of five and towed the flying boat to the port of Nawiliwili on the island of Kauai. Verso : "First actual photos of lost Navy fliers. Honolulu. Photo shows the Navy plane PN-9-1, at anchor in the harbour of Nawiliwili, to which port the plane was towed by the submarine R-4, which rescued the fliers on September 10th. The five fliers were given up for lost, but themselves never gave up hopes of being rescued. They were adrift for ten days in the Pacific/ 9-21-25". 22cm x 13.4cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 35218 Vought Kingfisher saves survivors. In September 1944, a powerful tropical cyclone that was later called the Great Atlantic Hurricane hit the East coast of the USA, reaching its peak on 13th September. Several ships of the US Navy sank during the storm as waves reached 21 metres in height. Two US Coast Guard cutters USCG Jackson and USCG Beldloe sank and this photograph shows eleven survivors of the two ships, as well as the pilot and the navigator, hanging on to one of the three Vought-OS2U Kingfishers which went out in search of the lost seamen. After giving the location by radio, the survivors were transferred to a Navy ship. Verso: "Coast Guard patrol plane sheltering survivors of Coast Guard cutter Jackson which sank in the Great Atlantic Hurricane, Sept. 14, 1944. Survivors of the Coast Guard Cutters Jackson and Bedloe climb aboard the wings of the Navy sea plane that sighted them after three days adrift at sea when their cutters sank in the Great Atlantic Hurricane of 1944." 21.3cm x 17cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 106046 Catalina crash, 1938. The Consolidated PBY Catalina flying boat was a successful patrol and bomber aircraft used by the US Navy. By mid-1938, there were 14 squadrons flying this type and by the end of the war over 3000 PBY had been built. The rapid introduction of this aircraft was followed by the inevitable increase in accidents and in this photograph we can see the wrecks of two Catalinas that collided during a formation landing at night. Four crew members were killed in this incident and the previous day another Catalina had crashed into the sea off San Diego. Recto: "San Diego, Cal., Aug. 16 - Navy planes crash in bay - Shortly after a sister-ship had crashed near here yesterday, two more Navy bombing planes plummeted into San Diego bay, bringing death total to seven, with one injured for the three crashes. Shown above on crane, is plane in which the flyers were killed and on barge platform is wreckage of plane from which crew escaped. Verso: "29 AUG 1938" red ink rubber stamp. 25.8cm x 19.7cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 56050 A Breguet Atlantic ditches, 1973. On 15th August 1973 a Bréguet SP 13A Atlantic 257 of the Royal Netherlands Navy ditched just off the coast, 1.5km West of Wassenaar in the Netherlands. With a faulty elevator control, the crew considered it too risky to attempt a landing at the Valkenburg Naval air base and decided to make a controlled ditching. 12.5cm x 10.2cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 56051 The aircraft under tow. The crew were quickly recovered and the aircraft was towed by the Naval tug Waddenzee to Den Helder where it was declared a write-off being damaged beyond repair. There were no casualties amongst the 14 crew. A similar accident, again due to a problem of elevator control, occurred on 18th January 1981. During the ditching, the aircraft broke-up and not all the crew were able to reach the life rafts, three died. 12.7cm x 10.5cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 16025 Recovering a crashed Levasseur PL-4. The Levasseur PL-4 was a reconnaissance/spotter biplane that operated from the aircraft carrier Béarn in the 1920s. This aircraft has come to grief and is being lifted on board the Béarn. Several features were incorporated in the design of the PL-4 to facilitate ditching at sea and we can see some of them here. No undercarriage is visible because it and tail skid could be jettisoned prior to ditching and the underside of the fuselage has a boat-like form. We can also see the small floats attached to the underside of the lower wing, the starboard lower wing has been folded back and the float is just by the roundel. The port float can be seen just under the gangway. 14.3cm x 14.7cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 44276 Austro-Hungarian Navy torpedo boat Csepel, 1916. The Tatra-class destroyer Csepel was hit in the stern by a torpedo from the French submarine Bernouilli on 4th May 1916 off Brindisi. The explosion ripped the quarter deck back as far as the engine room. As luck would have it, the loaded and armed twin torpedo mounting was thrown forward onto the deckhouse without exploding, we can see the warheads of the two torpedoes to the upper right of the photograph. The damaged ship was patched up at Kotor then towed to Fiume and then on to Porto Re where a new stern section was fitted. Verso: "Csepel Toryadatrapper (sic)" in pencil. 14cm x 9.1cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 45175 The wreck of the French battleship Liberté, 1923. The French pre-dreadnought battleship Liberté blew up and sank in the Toulon Naval base on 25th September 1911. The cause was the spontaneous ignition of unstable nitrocellulose propellant in a forward magazine which then set-off explosions in the other magazines. The deck was peeled back from the midline back towards the rear turret. Contemporary photographs show the extent of the damage with a 7.6-inch turret suspended upside down. The wreck sank well within the naval base and became a hazard to shipping. This photograph from 1923 shows a diver working around the stern of the Liberté prior to raising the ship in 1925 and scrapping it. Verso: "Recherché sur le Liberté. Detruit en 1911" in blue ink. 16.3cm x 11cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 44256 Into the crash barrier! This Fairey Fulmar has missed the arrestor wires on HMS Victorious and run into the safety barrier. In the days before angled flight decks, this was the only way out in the case of an overrun. Fortunately the net is in place otherwise the Fulmar right forward may have been damaged or pushed overboard. The pilot's canopy is slid back and the arrestor hook is down, the deck crew are moving quickly to get out of the way. During the time that HMS Victorious was operating Fulmars, at least three of them hit the barrier : N4136 Lt TW Harrington, 28.05.1941, DR715 Sub Lt JB Noble, 19.10.1942 and DR720 Commander EG Savage, 28.07.1942 (Information from Fleet Air Arm Aircraft 1939 to 1945, Sturtivant and Burrow, 1995, Air-Britain Ltd.) Verso: "Fighter on rocket launcher and plane just landing" in blue ink. 11cm x 8.6cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 105110 The grounding and evacuation of SS Northern Pacific, 1919. The USAT Northern Pacific went aground on a sandbar off Fire Island, New York on 1st January 1919 whilst bringing back about 2,500 US troops from France. The passengers included many sick and wounded men. As the storm intensified pushing USAT Northern Pacific further onto the sandbar, the stranded soldiers began to be evacuated by submarine chasers and small boats moving between the Northern Pacific and larger US Navy ships, including the hospital ship USS Solace, lying off the stranded vessel. The ship was floated off the sandbar on 18th January and towed to New York harbour. Here we can see Jacob's ladders in place over the side of SS Northern Pacific with small boats alongside. 7.5cm x 12.8cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 105113 USS Submarine chaser 292 evacuates stretcher cases. The wounded were taken off on 3rd and 4th January by a fleet of four submarine chasers, including SC-292 seen in this photograph, and small boats ferrying the men to the transport ship Henry R. Mallory and the hospital ship Solace, both standing by offshore. 12.8cm x 7.6cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 105112 USS Hospital ship Solace taking on the wounded. Once alongside USS Solace, the stretcher cases were lifted up and swung onto the deck of the hospital ship. 12.8cm x 7.5cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 25009 A French Navy Avenger almost goes over the side. It looks as though the port undercarriage of this Grumman T.B.M. Avenger has given way on landing and the aircraft has skewed to port and almost slipped off the flight deck. This Avenger, TBM 69442, was transferred to the Royal Navy in 1958 and then on to the French Navy in March 1958 to be struck off in December 1963. The aircraft carrier is the Arromanches and we can see a Piasecki HUP-2 in the background to the right of the tail. Verso: "Crash de T.B.M.". 17.5cm x 13cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 55006 Handling the cutter goes wrong. Here's an unfortunate mishap! The stern fall has come away, tipping the cutter over by the stern and apparently throwing a man into the sea. He can be seen hanging on to ropes just below the cutter's rudder. Whilst some men watch the poor chap in the water, others are up on the davit trying to remediate the situation on this Royal Navy battleship sometime around the Second World War. 14.3cm x 8.3cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 107064 A curtiss SB2C Helldiver in trouble. This time it is a French Aéronavale Curtiss Helldiver that has gone over the edge of the flight deck, was it a hard deck landing and the port undercarriage gave way or just the result of the poor handling characteristics at slow speeds attributed to the Helldiver? We can see the starboard wing racks for bomb or rockets. Source: Unknown 9.8cm x 7.3cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 46236 Wrecked seaplane on the Commandant Teste. Not much is left of this floatplane fished out of the sea by the French seaplane carrier Commandant Teste some time before 1939. Elements to identify the aircraft as a Levasseur PL14/PL15 are the struts on tailplane and two thin diagonal struts between the main wings, rounded tips to rudder, torpedo claps and part of the three-bladed fine-profiled screw appears in the centre of the photograph. Source: Unknown 6cm x 10.4cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 68044 Captured British pilot, Dakar 1940. Here is a British pilot in rather a sticky situation. In an attempt to rally the Vichy French forces to the Allied cause, a combined Free French and Royal Navy force approached the port of Dakar with the aim of landing troops. However, they received a hot reception and the mission was called off after a brief two-day engagement. The photograph shows Vichy French forces recovering a British airman after being shot down. In "A History of the Mediterranean Air War, 1940-1945 (Shores and Massimello), two Skuas and five Swordfish are given as being lost during the aerial attacks on Dakar harbour. Five crew were taken prisoner of which G.P. Dawson and D.G. Richardson were each the sole survivor of their aircraft, this photograph is probably one of the two. Source: Unknown 6cm x 10.3cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 69085 A bad landing at the Fréjus training school. A base for the French Aéronavale has existed at Fréjus-Saint Raphael since the early 1900s and served as a training base for naval pilots. Here a biplane has hit the hangar after a "bad landing" as the French text says! The aircraft is difficult to identify but other photographs from the same series show Sopwith biplanes at the base in the early 1920s. Source: Unknown 12.3cm x 5.2cm Gelatin silver print

Catalogue number 65045 More than just a mishap. Numerous stretcher cases are spread around the foredeck of PT 210 and for these wounded sailors the war is probably over. PT 210, a 78-foot Higgins motor torpedo boat of the US Navy, was part of the MTB squadron sent to the Mediterranean and integrated into the British Coastal Forces. It was in action during the Allied landings at Saint Tropez in 1944 and is seen here ferrying wounded sailors out to a hospital ship. The sailor top right has been given a stock of Lucky Strike cigarettes. Verso: "Transfer of wounded sailors aboard a PT boat to be carried to a hospital ship off Southern coast of France. 16 Aug 1944" Source: Offical U.S. Navy photograph 14.3cm x 8.3cm Gelatin silver print