Comments on: Ben Asdale

By: Richard Cradock

Richard Cradock — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 20:38:43 +0000

Sorry just realised I made a mistake it was not RAF Culdrose but RNAS. Culdrose apologies to all.

By: Richard Cradock

Richard Cradock — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 20:33:27 +0000

A friend of mine in Spain who had dived round the wreck told me about this website, I was Man. Director of fishing with Richard Irvin and totaly involved with the contracting and building of the Ben Asdale and 3 other Trawlers in Dieppe. On the night the Asdale broke adrift Iwas contacted by the Coastguard and thereafter was continually on ‘phone with they and RAF culdrose until rescue was completed, some time after my Brother(Chairman) and I commissioned a local ArtistJohn Hamiltan to paint in oil 2 paintings of the rescue showing the snow breeches buoy and helicopter we donated one to RAF Culdrose and the other is hanging onthe wall on my top landing here in the house I will try and see how I can send a copy of the painting to this website as I have taken photos of it, She was a wonderful ship in fact i went to Iceland on her maiden voyage.

By: malcolm davies

malcolm davies — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 18:56:13 +0000

I and my family climbed and dived on this wreck in the 80s and 90s.We met the Billcliffe brothers through Ken who had the beach cafe at maenporth. I have a bar in southern Spain. Imagine my suprise when a customer told me he lost a trawler off Falmouth , and his suprise when i told him i knew it. He has an oil painting of the helicopter rescue. I will contact him as im sure everybody connected would like to see it.

By: Rob Lowe

Rob Lowe — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 20:08:11 +0000

Interesting to read the above – I spent many happy holidays in Falmouth as a child in the 70s and also saw the wreck fairly soon after it was wrecked. Also have seen it in recent times as a rusty relic! Agree a memorial should be created to remember those that died and recognise the efforts of the rescuers.

By: Jillian Housman (Fowler)

Jillian Housman (Fowler) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 15:44:02 +0000

Spent many happy years at the Crag Hotel with all the Billcliffe family. Happy memories of Gran, Sam & Vera.

By: Jillian Housman (Fowler)

Jillian Housman (Fowler) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 15:41:34 +0000

This is to the Billcliffe brothers – spent many happy years at the crag hotel with all the Billcliffe family. Happy memories of Gran, Sam and Vera.

By: Mike Norman, Commader Royal Navy

Mike Norman, Commader Royal Navy — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 00:04:14 +0000

It is 33 years almost to the day since the tragedy of the South Shields trawler BEN ASDALE but to me it still feels like yesterday. I was the Captain of the aircraft. I have had couple of occasions in my naval career when the minute details of focussed and intense activity remain as clear as day; the other being the moment an Exoccet missile hit HMS SHEFFIELD in the Falklands WAR and sunk her. I was the Second in Command of that Type 42 Guided Missile Destroyer.
I am very heartened to read Skipper Barty Coe’s comments putting the record straight and I hope he gets to read mine. I was also pleased to read Peter and Mike Billcliffe’s comments although I don’t think I ever met them.
As regards the events on that wild night, the Captain of RNAS Culdrose , Captain ‘Jock’ Tofts decided the weather and icing conditions were outside limits and that it was a ‘no-go’. But then we heard in the Culdrose Ops Room from the Falmouth Coastguard that the ‘Breaches Buoy’ attempt had failed and since the Falmouth lifeboat could not get near the vessel the only remaining means of reacue was by helicopter. Captain Tofts left the decision with me and after consultation with the rest of my duty SAR crew we decided we would give it our best shot since if we didn’t it was unlikely those eight left onboard would see the morning.
I won’t go into a blow by blow account but suffice to say it was the most challenging bit of flying any of us had done before or since. One could say it was a close run thing since on lift number 3 when a survivor was picked up with a huge swing on the winch wire the aircraft became almost uncontollable. As one Coastguard Officer said later
” the rotor blades were almost touching the cliffs at one point” And as the rescue progressed the intercom between the crew failed and a lot of the internal communication was done on bits of paper being passed backwards and forwards ! On top of that we had also lost communiaction with the Air Station who we learned later had a power failure and there was no ‘get you home’ radar assistance. But we did manage to complete the rescue and make it home due in no small measure to our excellent training, good teamwork and quite a lot of luck!!
We were all grateful to have been acknowledged for our efforts later; that is the First Pilot Lt Tony Hogg, later to become the Captain of RNAS Culdrose; the Second Pilot, Lt Larry Jeram-Croft; Leading Aircrewman Jan Folland; Medical assistant Brain Steele, a volunteer from Culdrose Sick Bay and myself, the Captain and Observer. I wonder if the Billcliffe Brothers received recognition for their bravery ? They certainly deserved it.
After this long night we all went to the Sick Bay after putting the aircraft to bed, at around 0630, to see our survivors, one of them a Russian, all tucked up in bed and recovering, some from hypothermia. After a hearty breakfast and an hours kip we were off again to take a pregnant woman who was cut off in the snow, to hospital. It was a few days later that the reality sunk in and how close we had come to the BEN ASDALE rescue being a horrific disaster……..It will be a chapter in my memoires, as will HMS SHEFFIELD and the Falklands War!

By: Nick

Nick — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 08:34:28 +0000

I remember visiting the Ben Asdale when I was 4 years old, just after it happened. Another big mackerel boat the Conqueror was wrecked at Mousehole around the same time.These images still stick in my head.Funny it was rumoured that the crew of the Conqueror was drunk too.Being a fisherman myself,I wonder do people think we’re always drinking at sea,coz the truth is I’ve never seen alcohol on a fv at sea.
Great account of that night Barty,and respect to all those involved in the rescue

By: Dave West

Dave West — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 15:03:23 +0000

The mate who was lost was Peter Allen from South Shields who i knew fairly well and i had sailed with his brother Paul who was third hand in the old Abergeldie A391 back in the early sixties out of North Shields.
At the time of the loss i was no longer fishing but I can remember Peters father “Old Tim” coming into the Harbour Lights pub in South Shields on New Years Day to tell us of the tragic loss of the Ben Asdale. The news certainly took the shine off our celebrations. Tim was renowned as a tough old cookie but i don’t think he was ever the same after the tragedy

By: Tim Careless

Tim Careless — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 22:18:43 +0000

I made a comment in feb 2010, saying that I could not for life of me understand why there is no memorial somewhere to remember those who perished that night abd to the heroic efforts of all who assisted .
Richard young echoed my thoughts in Dec. There should be some sort of recognition. Too many times events like these are forgotton about or twisted into something that never happened, like some macbare chinese whispers. Take the example of the misguided barman at the hotel.
My family and I will be down there in august and I shall take a look at the wreck, only this time with a different perpective. On the beach you can hire canoes to paddle about the cove in. This is how I discovered the wreck. What about if the people hiring out the canoes gave out a leaflet informing people of what the wreck is and some background to it? This would raise its profile and maybe start a groundswell for having a permenent memorial.