Duncan Heys reunited with his
wartime escort vessel
Royal Navy veteran Duncan Heys has
been reunited with his wartime escort vessel - thanks to
the skills of a Pembroke Dock modelmaker.
Duncan, who lives in Neyland, is a
Volunteer with the Pembroke Dock Sunderland Trust.
During World War II he joined the Royal Navy and his
first seagoing draft in 1944 was to the American-built
Castle class frigate, HMS Hargood.
He remained with the vessel until
it was returned to the United States Navy after the war
had ended.
While volunteering with the
Sunderland Trust, Duncan told fellow volunteer Chris
Howell that he had long been searching for a photo and
information on HMS Hargood. Within days Chris had
found both - and also located a scale model kit of the
vessel.
This became one of several winter
projects for Chris and the result is a fine model of HMS
Hargood displaying her pennant number, K582.
Duncan was presented with the ‘new’
HMS Hargood recently when he joined other wartime
veterans at the Sunderland Trust’s Fleets to Flying
Boats Visitor Centre in the Royal Dockyard.
Gerry Price of Pembroke Dock, a
Navy veteran of Atlantic and Arctic convoys, and former
Sunderland flying boat pilot Ron Currell, who lives in
Pembroke, took part with Duncan in a series of radio
recordings.
The model of HMS Hargood,
and the story behind it, are now displayed in the
visitor centre and prompted considerable interest during
the town’s recent Battle of the Atlantic Anniversary
Weekend.
Chris - a member of the Penfro
Model Group - has ‘personalised’ the model incorporating
miniature signal flags which read ‘DUNCAN’.
Caption:
Modelmaker Chris Howell presents
the HMS Hargood model to Duncan Heys. Looking on are Ron
Currell (left) and Gerry Price.
PICTURE: Sunderland Trust.
From: John Evans, Pembroke Dock Sunderland
Trust, 01646 684220.