Norman Smart

'WE COULD NOT MOVE WITHOUT FALLING ON THE STEEPLY SLOPING DECK'

LAUGHING AND JOKING, MEN JUMPED OR SLID TO RESCUING DESTROYER

I was having a cup of tea in the Ark's vast wardroom at 3:40 p.m. yesterday. I had toasted myself a piece of bread by the electric fire. sitting beside me was the torpedo officer of the 27,000-ton aircraft carrier. we were talking about the new british film made at ealing, "ships with wings," dedicated to the ark royal.

Torps asked me what I thought the Daily Express Film Critic would say about the film, which features scenes taken aboard the Ark.

The Commander dashed in, grabbed himself a cup of tea, and said: "Hello, Torps. What are you pulling Smart's leg about?" My first piece of buttered toast was halfway to my lips when there was a tremendous crash.

All the lights went out. The Ark's tremendous bulk (she was nearly 300 yards long) shuddered as she spun around in the sea like a sailing ship in a gusty wind. Plates, cups, saucers, spoons and my piece of buttered toast were flung on to the deck.

The commander leaped to his feet, and was through the door like a flash. Daylight through the scuttles showed the scene as the officers rushed out to see what had happened.

I grabbed a life jacket from one of the pegs outside the wardroom, and followed the crowd, scrambling up ladders on to the flight deck, 30 feet above. I suppose that took five minutes.

'WHAT'S HAPPENED?'

On the flight deck, I found the ship already listing heavily to starboard. Every one was talking to every one else, asking what had happened. Nobody knew that a torpedo had hit us.

Looking to wards Gibralter, just 30 miles away, as the Ark listed, a naval officer on the flight deck said: "The man who fired that torpedo is the sort of fellow who would win the Calcutta Sweep." It was a lucky shot - a 10,000-to-1 chance.

Forward on the flight deck half a dozen aircraft, which had just landed, began to slide with the list of the ship until they were fastened with ropes.

Clouds of black smoke began to float over the flight deck. Out of it appeared weird figures in flying suits, goggles, and Mae West's.

Pilots who had just landed, and hundreds of us on the steeply sloping flight deck, stood upright with difficulty on the high side, which was lifting up out of the sea in the most extraordinary manner.

More and more people came up from below. The padre, who was walking on the weather deck, declared it was the first time in his life he had run.

'BARELY NOTICED'

A lieutenant-commander who was asleep in his cabin quite near the torpedo said he barely noticed it.

There was a flying officer with a hunk of bread and butter which he snatched from the wardroom; a rating in his underwear.

One pilot came up rubbing his chin. He had been looking through a scuttle in the Air Intelligence Office, and said the shock of the explosion gave him the neatest uppercut he had ever had.

We wandered about rather dazedly on the insecure side of the flight deck, trying to pretend that everything was going on as usual. We said silly things to each other.

"I have not has a swim for a couple of months," said a rating. We laughed with sheer relief for this silly joke.

Cigarettes were priceless at this moment. I had two packets and doled them round.

The Ark's deck was at an angle. If that doesn't mean much to you, let me say that it was almost impossible to move without falling down. Certainly not stumbling.

Two Crowded Years of glorious life.

Slowly the Ark Royal eased down in speed and began to drift - a tremendous hulk.

The men went quietly to their posts, lifebelts already on and blown up. Some of us realized then for the first time that with the Ark hanging over at that angle, she might sink quickly. It seemed incredible.

The ratings began to throw debris of all kinds into the water to cling on to when they had to jump. I remember watching destroyers, which had turned in their tracks and were coming back slowly like sorrowful dogs which had been ordered to heel.

They circled around us, stealing along on the surface of the water, listening for the submarine somewhere beneath. The satisfying woomph of depth charges chucking columns of water in the air was going on all around.

"Prepare to abandon ship" was the next order, as a destroyer slipped slowly up right along the side of the Ark.

One or two rating quite unhurriedly jumped the 30 feet from the flight deck on to the destroyer's fo'c'sle. I don't know why they did it, when it was easy to slide down a rope or clamber down a hosepipe.

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