-H.M.S. Hood Crew Information-
H.M.S. Crew List

It is estimated that as many as 18,000 men served aboard the 'Mighty Hood' during the operational portion of her 21 year career. Unfortunately, there is no surviving official single listing of ALL men who served in her. Here you will find our attempt at creating such a listing. We are using the few, fragmentary crew lists known to exist, Navy Lists, various official reports, public records, and most importantly of all, inputs from the families of former crew.

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Eric James Thomas

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Date of birth: 28th October 1905
Place of birth: Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales
Service: Royal Navy
Rank: Ordinary Seaman
Service Number: J102072
Joined Hood: 13th May 1922 (Boy First Class)
Left Hood: 7th May 1925 (Able Seaman)








Biographical Information: Eric James Thomas enlisted in the RN 1921, was drafted to the Hood as a Boy First Class and was successively rated Ordinary Seaman and Able Seaman while in this ship. From the biggest ship in the Navy he went to one of the smallest - the gunboat Widgeon, deployed on the upper Yangtse River (1926-28). She was involved in the Wanhsien Incident in 1926 and Thomas was Mentioned in Despatches (MiD.) In 1937 he joined the destroyer HMS Foresight and remained in her until her loss in August 1942. Early in 1942 she was deployed on Russian convoys and was in action against enemy destroyers. She was torpedoed during the operation to relieve Malta (Operation Pedestal) and so badly damaged that she had to be scuttled.

Eric Thomas was invalided in November 1942. He returned to Swansea, where he died in 1965.


Additional Photographs
None at this time.


Memorials
No known memorials


Sources
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
'Register of Deaths of Naval Ratings' (data extracted by Director of Naval Personnel (Disclosure Cell), Navy Command HQ, 2009)
The Empire Cruise by VC Scott O'Connor
Chris Bilham, medal collector from Auckland, New Zealand - information 2020