Admiral Sir Victor Smith was a pioneering figure in Australian naval history who made significant contributions to naval aviation and service in major World War II and postwar conflicts.
Admiral Sir Victor Alfred Trumper “VAT” Smith AC KBE CB DSC MiD RAN is a towering figure in Australian naval circles, his extraordinary career spanning almost 50 years. As the first graduate of the Royal Australian Naval College to be promoted full admiral he was the founding father of the Australian Fleet Air Arm.
Joining the navy in 1927 aged thirteen, Smith specialized in aviation. As the senior observer of a Royal Navy Swordfish squadron, he led the first mass torpedo strike against a major warship at sea, the daring attack on the battlecruiser Scharnhorst off Norway in 1940. Then, at Churchill’s insistence, he embarked the very first catapult fighter for convoy protection. His subsequent service in two-seat Fairey Fulmar fighters saw him twice shot down in the Mediterranean and escape the torpedoed HMS Ark Royal in 1941.
Recalled to Australia to fly Walrus amphibians, Smith survived the August 1942 destruction of HMAS Canberra at the Battle of Savo Island. Returning to Europe he served in the escort carrier HMS Tracker in the Atlantic and Arctic before participating in the Normandy landings.
Postwar he was closely involved in the Australian decision to develop a carrier-based Fleet Air Arm and was executive officer of the carrier HMAS Sydney in the Korean War. Command of frigates, an air station and the carrier HMS Melbourne followed. As Chief of Naval Staff, he dispatched forces to the war in Vietnam before serving as chairman of the tri-service Chiefs of Staff in the 1970s.
The author, Graeme Lunn, also a RANC graduate and aviator, began his naval career when Smith was still serving.
Foreword Introduction Chapter 1 Family & Childhood Chapter 2 Cadet Midshipman 1927 – 1930 Chapter 3 Junior Officer Under Training 1931 – 1934 Chapter 4 Background to Australian naval aviation and Smith’s RAN service 1935 – 1937 Chapter 5 Observer 1937 – 1939 Chapter 6 To War in the Ark 1939 – 1941 Chapter 7 The Pacific 1942 Chapter 8 Air Staff Officer Afloat 1942 – 1944 Chapter 9 Air Staff Officer Ashore 1944 – 1947 Chapter 10 Brass Hat and the Korean War 1948 – 1953 Chapter 11 Captain in Command 1954 – 1962 Chapter 12 Admiral 1962 – 1975 Postscript
Graeme Lunn is a former naval aviator and airline pilot.
“The workmanlike prose explains in full the nuances of a go-getter who served his country with distinction in war and in peace. Enjoyed it.”
~Historical Miniatures Gaming Society
"Admiral VAT Smith is a handsome full colour book and is profusely illustrated with over 180 photographs. They are not just of people, ships and aircraft, but of Smith’s memorabilia. All this makes for a first-class biography for anyone with an interest in our Navy or naval aviation."
~Austrialian Naval Institute/Peter Jones
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