Just before the Start Time all ranks had a welcome tot of British Army Rum- a great
custom. At 0859 hrs there were 5 artillery 'drop shorts' which fortunately landed on the A Coy position which we had just vacated and there were no casualties. The cool voice of the FOO. Capt Peter Abbott as he corrected the range impressed all who heard him.
Chronology of Events
0830 hrs Assault troops in FDLs of A Coy
0906 hrs Codeword CLANCY - Troops cross Start Line
0925 hrs Troops at Dog Outpost
0927 hrs Troops on Bunker D - rear of Hill 227
0933 hrs All assault troops on Summit Hill 227-objectives reached
0934 hrs Assault Troops engaged by enemy 60mm mortars
1005 hrs Bath Bunker and crawl trench held by own troops
1031 hrs Neath Bunker found destroyed. Aslt Pnrs withdrew with explosives
1041 hrs Heavy casualties reported by Coy Comd
1045 hrs Codeword INFERNO - withdrawal ordered by CO
1103 hrs Codeword BOOMERANG. Aslt tps clear of summit of Hill 227
1129 hrs Assault troops in A Coy position
The Assault
Within about 30 minutes the forward troops had reached the top of Hill 227, unseen by the enemy. There was no enemy reaction to the assault until we reached the summit when we came under quite heavy 60mm mortar and small arms fire.
1 Platoon
1 Sec took up a fire position and engaged the enemy on Harry.( 1 Sec was commanded by Cpl Charles Mene from the Torres Strait. He was one of the great characters of A Coy)
2 Sec (Cpl John McNulty) took up a position in front of A, B, and C Bunkers and engaged them.
3 Sec ( Cpl Harry Patch) was detailed for bunker destruction. All bunkers were in a battered condition due to our good artillery and mortar fire. A Bunker was inactive (probably knocked out), while the enemy in B and C Bunkers engaged us with SA fire and grenades. Neath Bunker was inactive and seemed to have been knocked out by 8 inch gun fire.
Lt Gil Lucas took charge of the destruction of B and C Bunkers. It was difficult to direct flame into the bunkers due to dogleg entry trenches. Gil Lucas tried to dig through the top of C Bunker, while Cpl Harry Patch and one other went into the trench and attempted to enter the mouth of the bunker. Both were wounded. Then the overhead cover of the bunker collapsed after an explosion inside. I was watching - it was dramatic but Gil Lucas was not hurt. This bunker was burning. It was sealed off and became inactive.
Then to B Bunker. The overhead cover of the entrance trench collapsed exposing the bunker entrance. Lucas directed five tanks of flame into the bunker. There was a smell of burning flesh. All activities inside ceased.
1 Pl suffered 5 casualties and claimed one enemy WIA. There were certainly enemy casualties in both B and C Bunkers- numbers unknown, and probably in A Bunker.
2 Platoon with 8 Sec of 3 Platoon
On reaching the top, 8 Section of 3 Pl commanded by Cpl L E(Squizzy) Taylor went forward to the unoccupied Dog Outpost on a spur to the right front without opposition, with the aim of preventing any enemy forward movement. There were 5 unoccupied bunkers at Dog Outpost, some badly damaged. The section gave good fire support with LMG and 2 inch mortar fire, silencing some enemy on Plug and on the reverse slopes of Harry. They suffered casualties and were short of ammunition, but stayed until ordered to withdraw.
4 Sec moved under mortar fire to Bath, which was unoccupied but a large active bunker was about 80 metres NW of Bath, which they engaged. The section also engaged enemy on the Plug feature, and other enemy active with LMGs on Harry. The section suffered 4 casualties but did well in engaging the enemy.
5 Sec moved to Woody Spur and the bunker area was swept by flame. E Bunker was completely destroyed and D Bunker was dealt with by flame and percussion grenades. The section knocked out one enemy LMG on Harry and silenced another. They suffered 3 casualties. The section commander was wounded by a shell on return to our lines.
6 Section moved with Pl HQ to a defiladed position between Woody spur and Dog Outpost. The platoon sergeant moved with the reserve section LMG and assisted in neutralising fire from Harry and Plug. 6 Sec was then moved to a position between Hill 227 and Bath where it gave covering fire until the Company withdrew. One man was killed by mortar fire. The platoon sergeant, Alec Smith received fatal wounds when he went to the assistance of 1 Platoon NCO at B Bunker.
The platoon casualties were 1 KIA,1 Died of Wounds, 7 WIA.
Known casualties inflicted on the enemy by the platoon totalled 2 KIA and 3 WIA. Other casualties were probably inflicted in Bunkers E and D, and by the high volume of fire maintained on Plug and Harry. Two inch mortar fire on the reverse slopes may have accounted for further enemy.