In 1943 the Japanese joined the war so all the troops in India had to return home to England.

My family boarded HMS Aorangi in June 1943 in Bombay as part of a convoy of two troop ships and many other warships.

We sailed around the Cape of Africa and called at Capetown.

We carried on up the East Coast of Africa but the convoy were alerted that there were u-boats ahead.The navy

quickly take the troop ships into the nearby Congo river and a minesweeper laid mines across the mouth of the river.

The warships carried on and managed to sink the U-boats and then came back to get the troop ships.

We carried on and eventually arrived in Greenock in Scotland in Late August/Early September 1943.

We DEFINITELY did not call at Gibralter or anywhere else but went straight to Greenock.

Although I was only 7 years old at the time I can remember everything VERY clearly because it was such a significant journey.

11th April 1943, boarded the Aorangi at Liverpool

14th April in the Firth of Clyde where the ship stayed for several days while work was done on the engines.

20th April, ship left the Clyde

27th April, put into Casablanca for a few hours.

4th May anchored at Freetown

5th May, left Freetown in a convoy of 18 ships including a cruiser and seven destroyers.

19th May, left the convoy and heading north-east.

21st May arrived in Durban and disembarked

7th June boarded Aorangi

9th June Aorangi sailed at mid-day

15th June, docked in Mombasa for a few hours then left the same day

16th June in convoy of 10 troopships and a cruiser

27th June, arrived in Colombo

28th June, sailed from Colombo

1st July, arrived in Bombay

3rd July, disembarked.

He spent just under 3 years in India