SEALION still had enough life in her batteries to turn her around, then she came up to periscope depth and waited for the enemy ship. The crew was panting heavier and it was obvious that they were fairly near their limit of endurance.

They sighted a number of A/S vessels, but fortunately they were a long way off - but too near for SEALION to get away on the surface. By this time, the crew was getting pretty sick, so LCDR Ben Bryant, who had somehow procured some cylinders of oxygen and a pressure reducing valve before SEALION had sailed, had them opened, hoping they would help his crew to feel better. All you could hear in the boat was the hissing sound of the oxygen being released. There was no conversation in the boat except for an occasional order. It is not easy to talk when panting.

The long awaited ship did not come and although it was just as well, it must have been very disappointing to the crew of SEALION - so SEALION sank back into the water layer and waited, the hours dragging by and the crew’s headaches got worse. Just before midnight on the second day, the situation in the boat had become critical. The oxygen had run out and the batteries were on their last legs. LCDR Ben Bryant knew to save the boat and his crew, he had to surface.

He brought SEALION up to periscope depth again and looked around. The sea and the sky seemed clear of enemy patrols, so her surfaced. On surfacing, the hatch was opened and Ben Bryant came up, leaned over the side of the bridge and was sick. The lookouts came up and they too, were sick. SEALION had been submerged almost continuously for 45 harrowing hours. Down below the crew were trying to start the diesel; but it was some time after the fans had been running before they would fire. It seems diesels are more particular about the quality of air than humans.

Although it was quiet off Stavanger where SEALION was, across the Boknafjorden towards Skudesnshavn, something was going on. It was the evening of the 6th July and twilight, the nearest it ever got to darkness in those latitudes, and those on the bridge could see tracer bullets and gun flashes. Again SEALION tried to get a signal through to SHARK but it was too late; they were watching SHARK fight her last battle. The hunters had changed their foxes. SHARK was being sunk whilst SEALION laid sick and helpless. Unable to go to her assistance, for those on the bridge of SEALION who had witnessed the sinking of SHARK, all felt despondent watching their shipmates meet their end.

HARRY’S NOTE - A photo, taken by German cameras, shows HMS SHARK after damage from depth charges dropped by the German M-1803, M-1806 and M-1807 brought her to the surface. The German Navy men were going to capture SHARK, but her damage was too great and she sank.

It took nearly four hours for the crew’s headaches to wear off. All that night in darkness, the crew worked to repair the damage caused in the attacks on her. By daylight, they had succeeded in making SEALION fully seaworthy again.

Two days later off Obrestad, SEALION sighted a large ship that had run ashore. To make sure of her, LCDR Ben Bryant fired and hit her with a torpedo as she lay on the rocks, finishing her off, then proceeded across the North Sea and home without any more incidents. During the patrol, the half-yearly promotions to Commander and Captain had been announced and Ben Bryant had been promoted to Commander and on their passage home through the North Sea, the crew presented him with a home-made brass OAKLEAVES to the peak of his sea going cap, thus ending the seventh war patrol of SEALION.

The crew of SEALION who. on the 6th July, had witnessed the awesome spectacle engendered feelings of agony watching HM S/M SHARK’s last battle as they were unable to be of any help; did not realize the events which led up to it. SHARK had been attacked by air the previous day with depth charges off Skudesneshavn, which killed three men and wounded eighteen others and damaged her so badly she was unable to dive. The air attack had lasted over five hours, then surface craft came in and a running gun battle occurred. This is what the crew of SEALION had seen. SHARK’s Skipper, LCDR Peter Buckley, decided to save his men, especially the wounded ones, from further pointless punishment. He would scuttle his ship before surrendering to the enemy. He ordered everyone to abandon the boat, making sure all the wounded got off, then he opened the sea-cocks.

The German minesweeping trawlers picked up the crew and then tried to tow SHARK inshore, but she foundered and started sinking. The German trawlers M-1803, M-1806 and M-1807, then to make sure SHARK was sinking and they could not save her, finished her off with depth charges. SHARK was the 13th British sub lost in the War. Three days after the sinking of SHARK, HMS SALMON failed to report.