OW Ian Fraser was awarded his VC, in July 1945, for an extraordinary act of gallantry at the close of WW2, is the culmination of wartime service characterised by dedication, courage and outstanding resourcefulness.

Ian Fraser commanded HM’s Midget Submarine XE-3 in the successful attack on the Japanese heavy cruiser, Takao, in the Singapore Straits. The citation reads as follows: 

“The XE-3 deliberately left the believed safe channel and entered mined waters…for 40 minutes, XE-3 pushed her way along the seabed until finally Lieutenant Fraser managed to force her right under the centre of the cruiser. Here he placed the limpets and dropped his main side charge. The courage and determination of Lieutenant Fraser are beyond all praise. Any man not possessed of his relentless determination to achieve his object in full, regardless of all consequences, would have dropped his side charge alongside the target instead of persisting until he had forced his submarine right under the cruiser.”

We remember all our OWs and all who served.