Hutley-Horace-George

To honour those who served their country

“In this their finest hour”

T/168552

Driver

Horace George Hutley

Known as ‘Lyle’

1917/05/19 - Born Dagenham, Essex

Son of Arthur and Harriet (nee Ball) Hutley

1933 - Lyle left school to work as a van boy, later becoming a delivery driver.

Occupation HGV Driver

1940/03/05 - Enlisted

1941/05/04 - Lyle married Ivy Mary Simmons at St Mary Magdalene, Bermondsey, London.

Next of Kin - Wife, Ivy M, 4 Lullington Road, Dagenham, Essex

Royal Army Service Corps

18th Division

55 Infantry Brigade

Service

1941/10/30 - Left Britain in ‘Orcades’ with Convoy CT.5 from Liverpool to Halifax

Final Destination Unknown

1941/11/08 - Arrived Halifax

1941/11/10 - Transferred to USS West Point and departed Halifax in Convoy William Sail 12X

Convoy William Sail 12X continued with six American troopships, two cruisers, eight destroyers and the aircraft carrier Ranger, the Convoy William Sail 12X was under way, destination still unknown.

The convoy passed through the Mona Passage between Puerto Rico and St Domingo.

1941/11/17 - Arrived at Trinidad in glorious sunshine so troops changed to tropical kit, but no shore-leave, left Trinidad after two days of taking on supplies.

1941/11/24 - The equator was crossed, there was a crossing the line ceremony.

After a month the convoy arrived at Cape Town, South Africa. By this time the Americans were in the war as the Japanese had bombed Pearl Harbour and attacked Malaya and the rumours were that they were heading for the Far East and not the Middle East as first thought.

1941/12/08 - Japan attacked Pearl Harbour and Malaya

1941/12/13 - The convoy left Cape Town and sailed along the coast of East Africa past Madagascar and into the Indian Ocean heading for Bombay.

1941/12/27 - After 17,011 miles at sea Bombay was reached.

1942/01/18 - The convoy sailed with a British escort, the H.M.S. Exeter and H.M.S. Glasgow with British and Australian destroyers. Destination was the Far East. Passing Colombo, (Ceylon), crossing the equator for the third time, the convoy passed through the Sundra Straits between Java and Samatra and then the Banka Straits. The convoy was then bombed by Japanese Planes, there was no damage.

1942/01/19 - The convoy reached the safety of Keppel Harbour, Singapore. Ships were ablaze in the harbour, clouds of smoke drifted across the sky and the smell of fumes was overpowering, this was not the best of greetings. The Japanese had taken most of Malaya in the last three weeks and were only thirty miles away from Singapore.

1942/02/15 - Singapore surrendered to the Japanese

1942/04/03 - WO 417/41, Casualty List No. 788. Reported ‘Missing’.

1943/08/07 - WO 417/64, Casualty List No 1206. Previously posted on Casualty List No 788 as Missing now reported ‘Prisoner of War’ with Initial as H.

Japanese PoW

1952/02/15 - Captured Singapore

Changi Camp

PoW No. M-1320

Commander Col. Toosey

Japanese Index Card - Side One

Japanese Index Card - Side Two

1942/10/14 - Transported overland to Thailand, train 5

11th Train to Thailand with 390 PoWs

1942/10/22 - Arrived Nong Pladuk, Thailand

New PoW No. I 24218

Kinsiayok, 161.40km from Nong Pladuk

Kanchanaburi, 52km from Nong Pladuk

Early 1945 PoWs moved from Thailand-Burma Railway to Ubon Camp Thailand

New PoW No. I 9119

Commander RSM Alexander McTavish, Argyll and Southern Highlanders (MBE)

PoW’s work was to build an air strip.

1945/08/30 - Liberated Ubon

Flown from Bangkok to Rangoon, Burma to recuperate, then ship home

Liberation Questionnaire

1945/11/10 - WO417/99, Casualty List No. 1907. Previously shown on Casualty List No. 1206 as reported Prisoner of War now Not Prisoner of War. Previous Theatre of War, Malaya.


Pacific Star	War Medal	1939-1945 Star

Post War

Ivy and Lyle, note the RASC Blazer badge

2007 - Lyle and his neighbours winning a gardening award

In May 2017, Lyle a copy of his own war record and a letter from the Royal Army Service Corps current commanding officer wishing him well on his centenary.

The day before his birthday Lyle was taking the record to show his sister-in-law but called into the local Coop leaving the record in his mobility scooter outside and it was stolen.

In a later visit to the same Coop again leaving his mobility scooter outside, he found on leaving someone had put back the record in the same basket it was stolen from.