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Ian Edward Fraser
Ian Edward Fraser, VC, DSC, RD, JP (18 December 1920 – 1 September 2008) was an English diving pioneer, sailor and recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Fraser was born in Ealing in Middlesex and went to school in High Wycombe. After initially working on merchant ships and serving in the Royal Naval Reserve, he joined the Royal Navy at the start of the Second World War. After being awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for actions while serving on submarines, he was placed in command of a midget submarine during an attack in Singapore codenamed Operation Struggle. For his bravery in navigating the mined waters, and successfully placing mines on a Japanese cruiser, Fraser was awarded the Victoria Cross.
After retiring from the Royal Navy, Fraser set up a commercial diving organisation after realising the ease of use of new frogman-type diving equipment. After serving in several honorary positions on the Wirral, Fraser retired from the Royal Naval Reserve as a lieutenant commander in 1965. He died on 1 September 2008, on the Wirral, Merseyside.
Fraser was born in Ealing in 1920. He was the elder son of Sydney Fraser, a marine engineer. He attended the Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe, and the school ship HMS Conway. He worked on merchant ships from 1938 to 1939.
Fraser joined the Royal Naval Reserve in 1939, initially with the rank of midshipman, serving on several destroyers. In 1943, he joined the submarine HMS Sahib. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross in 1943 for "bravery and skill in successful submarine patrols." In 1944, at age 24, he became a lieutenant in the Royal Naval Reserve, and volunteered to serve on the 'X' craft midget submarine depot ship HMS Bonaventure from 7 November 1944 to July 1945.
Ian Fraser was played by actor Martin Delaney in a TV show entitled, Victoria Cross Heroes. The show was narrated in part by Charles, Prince of Wales. It tells the story of Fraser's attempt to sink the Takao on a secret mission aboard a midget submarine.
On 31 July 1945 in the Straits of Johor between Singapore and Malaya, Lieutenant Fraser, in command of an improved X-boat, HMS XE-3, attacked the Japanese heavy cruiser Takao, after making a long and hazardous journey through mined waters. Fraser slid the submarine under the Takao, which lay over a depression in the sea bed, and his diver Acting Leading Seaman James Joseph Magennis went out to fix the limpet mines to the bottom of the ship. The two side-charges then had to be released from XE-3, but the starboard charge stuck and Magennis climbed out again and after a nerve-wracking seven minutes released the charge. XE-3 then made for home. Magennis was also awarded a Victoria Cross, and Fraser became a lieutenant commander.
The citation was published in a supplement to the London Gazette of 9 November 1945 (dated 13 November 1945) and read:
ADMIRALTY
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Ian Edward Fraser
Ian Edward Fraser, VC, DSC, RD, JP (18 December 1920 – 1 September 2008) was an English diving pioneer, sailor and recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Fraser was born in Ealing in Middlesex and went to school in High Wycombe. After initially working on merchant ships and serving in the Royal Naval Reserve, he joined the Royal Navy at the start of the Second World War. After being awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for actions while serving on submarines, he was placed in command of a midget submarine during an attack in Singapore codenamed Operation Struggle. For his bravery in navigating the mined waters, and successfully placing mines on a Japanese cruiser, Fraser was awarded the Victoria Cross.
After retiring from the Royal Navy, Fraser set up a commercial diving organisation after realising the ease of use of new frogman-type diving equipment. After serving in several honorary positions on the Wirral, Fraser retired from the Royal Naval Reserve as a lieutenant commander in 1965. He died on 1 September 2008, on the Wirral, Merseyside.
Fraser was born in Ealing in 1920. He was the elder son of Sydney Fraser, a marine engineer. He attended the Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe, and the school ship HMS Conway. He worked on merchant ships from 1938 to 1939.
Fraser joined the Royal Naval Reserve in 1939, initially with the rank of midshipman, serving on several destroyers. In 1943, he joined the submarine HMS Sahib. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross in 1943 for "bravery and skill in successful submarine patrols." In 1944, at age 24, he became a lieutenant in the Royal Naval Reserve, and volunteered to serve on the 'X' craft midget submarine depot ship HMS Bonaventure from 7 November 1944 to July 1945.
Ian Fraser was played by actor Martin Delaney in a TV show entitled, Victoria Cross Heroes. The show was narrated in part by Charles, Prince of Wales. It tells the story of Fraser's attempt to sink the Takao on a secret mission aboard a midget submarine.
On 31 July 1945 in the Straits of Johor between Singapore and Malaya, Lieutenant Fraser, in command of an improved X-boat, HMS XE-3, attacked the Japanese heavy cruiser Takao, after making a long and hazardous journey through mined waters. Fraser slid the submarine under the Takao, which lay over a depression in the sea bed, and his diver Acting Leading Seaman James Joseph Magennis went out to fix the limpet mines to the bottom of the ship. The two side-charges then had to be released from XE-3, but the starboard charge stuck and Magennis climbed out again and after a nerve-wracking seven minutes released the charge. XE-3 then made for home. Magennis was also awarded a Victoria Cross, and Fraser became a lieutenant commander.
The citation was published in a supplement to the London Gazette of 9 November 1945 (dated 13 November 1945) and read:
ADMIRALTY
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