The drama of the Swordfish in the Kyles of Bute

"Many strange coincidences surround Tighnabruaich. Shortly after I'd completed my SCUBA diving training in 1980, I was advised to dive on the wreck of a Swordfish light torpedo bomber that had crashed in the Kyles of Rhubaan. I never did that dive, but on my return to work in London after that holiday I happened to mention to a colleague, a 'sleeping partner' who was then passed retirement age, that I had spent my summer in Tighnabruaich adding that I was sure he would never have heard of the place. I was struck dumb when he replied 'Tighnabruaich? Know it vaguely. Crashed a Swordfish there during the war'. Harold, who is now 85 and who was awarded the Military Cross for gallantry at Monte Casino, has kindly written down his story for me." Prelude by lan William

"It happened in the early forties. I was serving as a Corporal in the Royal Corps of Signals at the Headquarters of the 4th British Division as a wireless operator and had under my charge a 'Gin Palace' (a military style truck) equipped with a No. 9 set and also an operator and a driver as crew. At this length of time it is regretted that I have no memory for names at all. We were stationed, if I remember correctly, at Melrose and were engaged upon a series of exercises. We had completed "Shute I" some time ago, and "Shute 2" was carried out in the area of Inveraray. On completion of the exercise I, with my crew, was sent as an advance party to Campbeltown on Kintyre to await the start of "Shute 3".

"Having spent several days at Campbeltown living in our Gin Palace, which was far from comfortable, I, as Non-Commissioned Officer in Charge, to alleviate further boredom, approached the Adjutant of the Fleet Air Arm base which was, as far as I can recall, within walking distance to the west of our location, with a view to finding out what was going on. Perhaps I should explain that the Shute exercises were supposed to take the form of early combined operations between the Services. The Adjutant, or whatever he is called in the Fleet Air Arm, knew nothing about us or what we were supposed to be doing so, having scrounged some extra rations, I suggested that in the true way of combined operations it would be good for us to go up in his planes to see how the other side operated. Strangely enough he agreed and arranged for the three of us to be taken up on a training flight the next day at about 1400 hrs. We walked across and were invited to get into two of the Swordfish planes, which were to go out on training. We were given no instruction of any sort, no 'Mae West' (life jacket), no parachutes, no seat belts: nothing. My driver went in one plane and my operator and I in the other, sitting behind the pilot with whom we had no communication at all.

"I remember sitting upon a round seat something like a hard typist's chair, with no back or other support, and my head was poking out above the top of the plane in what was then the normal manner. We took off and flew mainly over water. I was fascinated by the odd wires going back and forth as the controls were operated, and the flapping of the canvas sides against the wooden framework. It was a most enjoyable experience. We were flying one behind the other and our plane was at the rear. After some little while our pilot waved his arms and, pointing downwards, indicated a small rowing boat in the water. The plane in front disappeared from view and then, as we followed, I assumed that we were carrying out a dive-bombing exercise on to the rowing boat. I saw the plane in front pull upwards in front of us and then I felt a considerable pressure on my seat as we started to follow, but this stopped and I remember a splash.

"My next memory is of sitting in the plane quite still and thinking 'I am wet! wet? - I am under water! - I had better get out! - It's light up there so that must be the way out.' Then I started to move, but I have no recollection of holding my breath or of breathing or of anything unusual. As I started to go up I got caught in a wire above my head and had to wriggle out of the way. Then I just 'stood still' until I appeared above the water. Not far from me I saw two heads, those of the pilot and my operator, and also the rowing boat which had a man using the oars and, as far as I can remember, two ladies, rowing away as fast as possible to the shore. I thought that this was strange but later understood when the oarsman returned with an empty boat that he had gone to lighten the boat before attempting to pick us up.

"When the boat returned we were all three hauled over the side and the row to shore began. The pilot was sitting on my right and I recall him saying: 'I say old chap - do you know your ear is bleeding?' I felt my ear and half of it was hanging off! The next comment from the same source was 'I say old chap - I wouldn't have had it happen for the world!'. He was a very charming fellow and, incidentally was wearing a 'Mae West'. As we arrived at the beach at what I was told was Tighnabruaich, we were taken from the boat and I remember being put to bed in a very nice room with beautiful clean sheets and a hot water bottle, all despite the filthy mess that I had been in. I was given a hot drink and I think that I slept for some time. In the evening the Doctor arrived after he had completed his visits in the hills. He looked at me first, then went to see the others who were not badly affected and came back to me. He sewed my ear back on and put in nine stitches in my head without anesthetic, then patched up the remaining smaller bits of damage that had been sustained. It was suspected that I had hit my head when we crashed and had suffered concussion.

"All three of us were wonderfully looked after for a day or two and nothing was too much trouble either for the doctor or for the kind people who took us into their homes. Later we went by boat to Tarbert and back to Cambeltown where my crew spent nearly 10 days in the sick bay, playing cards most of the time and getting very bored. We returned to Melrose having been told that 'Shute 3' had been cancelled almost immediately after the end of 'Shute 2', but nobody had bothered to let us know. I was brought up in front of a court of inquiry to find out what we had been doing in a plane, but was let off and told not to do such a thing again. At that Inquiry we were informed that there had been a power stall and that the pilot was not being held responsible. All therefore finished happily, but it could have had a quite different ending without the concern and care shown by the people of Tighnabruaich."

As told by Harold Bodley MC

More information on visiting the area can be found here.