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I was born in Malta before the Ohio came to us.Malta, "Pedestal" planning and OhioIn 1942, Britain was waging war in the Mediterranean against the German Africa Corps and Italian forces in North Africa. Crucial to this theatre of operations was the island of Malta, sitting in the middle of Axis supply lines and, if supplied with sufficient munitions, aircraft and fuel, capable of causing severe shortages to the German and Italian armies in North Africa. Munitions and aircraft were available—during a brief lull in the Axis attacks, for example, the island's defenses were reinforced by thirty eight Spitfire Mk V aircraft flown in from HMS Furious—but these, along with food and fuel, remained in critically short supply. Successive attempts at resupplying the island had mostly failed; the convoys "Harpoon" (from Gibraltar) and "Vigorous" (from Alexandria, Egypt) saw most of their merchantmen sunk and escort ships damaged.One of the ships lost during "Harpoon" was Ohio's sister ship SS Kentucky, crippled by a German air attack and then abandoned. The tanker was eventually finished off by the Italian cruisers Raimondo Montecuccoli and Eugenio di Savoia and two destroyers.On 18 June, following the failures of "Harpoon" and "Vigorous", the Commander in Chief of the Mediterranean Fleet cabled the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill to express his doubts about attempting another convoy.Three days later, Ohio steamed into the mouth of the Clyde, under the command of Sverre Petersen, a former Master in Sail from Oslo, in Norway. In early May 1942, a radio message had reached Captain Petersen which diverted the ship to Galveston in Texas, and then ordered the tanker to proceed to Britain. Before leaving, Ohio was fitted with one 5-inch (130 mm) gun on her stern, and a 3-inch (76 mm) AA gun in the bows. She then moved to Sinclair Terminal, Houston in Texas, where the ship loaded a full cargo of 103,576 barrels (16,467.3 m3) of petrol (gasoline), finally sailing on 25 May. Ohio discharged her cargo at Bowling-on-the-Clyde, then steamed out into the tideway and anchored, awaiting orders.Here, the captain received a letter from Lord Leathers, the head of the British Ministry of War Transport, bidding the master a personal welcome and "...your safe arrival in the Clyde with the first cargo of oil carried in a United States tanker." However, the euphoria that such a message brought to the crew soon turned into resentment and anger. A telegram was received the same day by the head office of Texaco, from the War Shipping Administration, announcing simply that Ohio was being requisitioned "pursuant to the law". The immediate reaction was a cabled message from Mr. T. E. Buchanan, General Manager of Texaco's Marine Department to the firm's London agent, that on no account was Ohio to leave her discharging port of Bowling-on-the-Clyde. A period of indecision, meetings and debates between the highest American authorities and their British counterparts soon ensued. The master was told that further orders would arrive soon afterwards. The decision was finally taken two weeks later, when a launch sped out to the ship anchored in the Clyde and Texaco's London agent, accompanied by an official of the British Ministry of War Shipping came over the side. They met the Captain, who was informed that the ship was to be confiscated and handed over to a British crew. The American crew and the captain were exasperated by the seemingly outrageous order, but had no other option but to give in, and started to pack their kit whilst British seamen began to take the ship over.On 10 July, Captain Petersen handed over the ship. There was no formal ceremony, and little goodwill. The American flag was taken down, and Ohio henceforward sailed under the "Red Duster". Overnight, she was transferred from American to British registry. For convenience in management, the tanker was handed over on 25 July to the Eagle Oil and Shipping Company, which was warned of the importance of the impending convoy and that "...much might depend on the quality and courage of the crew."Rear-Admiral H M Burrough, CB, who commanded the close escort, shook hands with Captain Dudley MasonAs the British crew started to assemble, it became clear that a large convoy was being planned. Command of the ship passed to Captain Dudley W. Mason, who at thirty nine had already held other commands, while James Wyld was to be Chief Engineer. Forty eight hours after Ohio had been transferred to British registry, her crew was completed. The ship's company numbered seventy seven, including no fewer than twenty four naval ratings and soldiers to serve the guns. The ship was then moved to King George V Dock in Glasgow, for the fitting of Oerlikon and Bofors anti-aircraft guns.As the Ohio limped into the Grand Harbour, my father and mother saw it all from Vittoriosa, a city situated around the Grand Harbour. My parents and family went to live inland away from the Harbour to Mqabba and Siggiewi to have a better chance to live longer. At the age of 14 I started work as an apprentice and often toured the Dockyard and places around the Grand Harbour which had such an active time to keep us all alive. I served the British Navy at Malta and at Chatham Kent, working on O and S class submarines, I often went up the conning tower when working overtime at night and looked around Chatham three dockyard basins, to get an idea what those brave men on either side felt when they fought each other. In war no side wins.

It is fairly interesting, but on a scale of 1 to 5. I could only rate it as a five. My view maybe a little biased, but there again I live in London where probably the world’s most interesting exhibits are. If you are in Kent and looking for a really interesting place to visit. I would recommend the Chatham Historic Dockyard. It is a maritime museum on part of the site of the former royal/naval dockyard at Chatham in Kent, South East England. Chatham Dockyard covered 400 acres (1.6 km²) and was one of the Royal Navy's main facilities for several hundred years until it was closed in 1984. However the museum is totally engrossing and will take you at least a day to view all the exhibits. The museum is static and always there to view, but They also are the venue for many specialist exhibitions. I have visited it on a number of occasions to view very differing exhibitions. The most interesting being the Kent Steam rally, with trains steam engines, steam road rollers and vintage modes of transport. Check their web site to see what will be there on the day you intend to visit.