The Escape of the 2nd MTB Flotilla

Ronald John Charles Priestley P/KX.81900 of MTB 09 the 2nd MTB Flotilla

ActingStoker P.O. Ronald J C (Jez) Priestley [MTB 09] (Portsmouth) is 3rd row 7th from the left in the Waichow group photo]

Priestley was "Mentioned in Despatches" for his action in Kowloon Harbour on the 19th December 1941.

After 3000 miles traveling overland through China and Burma he arrived in a deserted Rangoon. After five weeks he left onboard the SS heinrich Jessen bound for Calcutta along with Lt-Cmdr Gandy & Lt Ashby, Jix Prest, Buddy Hide, Charlie Evans, John pawley, Al Rutter, Jack Holt, Les Barker, Bill Schillemore, & Lofty Gurd. From Calcutta it was by train across the Indian sub-Continent to Bombay where they boarded the SS Narkunda bound for the UK via Durban at 15.30 on 26th March 1942.

In Durban they took 657 Italian POW's onboard before shaping course for Cape Town where more of the flotilla crew had arrived onboard the SS Larconia including Lt Kennedy, Bill Dyer & Al Downey, who then transferred to the Narkunda. Arriving in Glasgow in the afternoon of the 22nd May there were three officers and 27 ratings of the flotilla who had escaped from Hong Kong 148 days previously.

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MTB 09 Crew at Waichow, photo by Lt Ashby