Senior officer in the Royal Australian Navy
Rear Admiral Otto Humphrey Becher, &amp; Bar (13 September 1908 – 15 June 1977) was a senior officer in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). Born in Harvey, Western Australia, Becher entered the Royal Australian Naval College in 1922. After graduating in 1926, he was posted to a series of staff and training positions prior to specialising in gunnery.
A lieutenant commander at the outbreak of the Second World War, Becher assisted in the extraction of Allied troops from the Namsos region of Norway while aboard the heavy cruiser , and was decorated with the Distinguished Service Cross. Following service in the Mediterranean theatre, he returned to Australia in 1942 as officer-in-charge of the gunnery school at . He spent two years at "Cerberus" before being given command of the Q class destroyer in March 1944. While commanding "Quickmatch" in operations against Japanese forces in the Pacific, Becher earned a Bar to his Distinguished Service Cross.
At the war's end Becher was posted to the Navy Office and later to the aircraft carrier ; in 1951 he was given command of the destroyer . "Warramunga" formed part of Australia's contribution to the United Nations forces engaged in the Korean War; Becher was promoted to captain and awarded the Distinguished Service Order while carrying out operations in Korean waters. On returning to Australia, he filled several staff positions and commanded the aircraft carriers and . Promoted to rear admiral in 1959, he served as Flag Officer Commanding Australian Fleet from 1964 to 1965, before taking up the post of Flag Officer-in-Charge East Australia Area. Becher retired from the RAN in 1966, and died in 1977 at the age of 68.
Early life and career.
Otto Becher was born in Harvey, Western Australia, on 13 September 1908, to Francis Joseph Becher, an orchardist, and Antonia Amalie (née Vetter). On 1 January 1922, at the age of thirteen, he enrolled in the Royal Australian Naval College at Jervis Bay, where he performed well both academically and at sport, receiving colours for hockey and tennis. Graduating in 1926, he served as a midshipman aboard and later , before being posted to the United Kingdom in September of that year for further sea-training and professional development with the Royal Navy.
Becher was promoted to acting sub-lieutenant in September 1928; the rank was made substantive the following March. He returned to Australia in January 1930 and was raised to lieutenant, gaining further seafaring experience over the next two years on and . Deciding to specialise in gunnery, he attended an advanced course at the Royal Navy's gunnery school at in England from September 1932 until April 1934. Returning to Australia in May 1934, Becher was posted to the gunnery school at the shore establishment HMAS "Cerberus" in Victoria until June 1935.
On 7 January 1935, Becher married Valerie Chisholm Baird at St Michael's Anglican Church in Vaucluse, New South Wales; the couple had three sons. From June 1935 to March 1937, he served aboard HMAS "Canberra" as intelligence officer, after which he was transferred to for flotilla duties. Promoted to lieutenant commander on 16 June 1938, Becher briefly returned to "Cerberus" before embarking for the United Kingdom on exchange with the Royal Navy in January 1939.
Second World War.
Becher was serving as squadron gunnery officer aboard the Royal Navy heavy cruiser when the Second World War broke out. In May 1940, "Devonshire" was dispatched to the Namsos region of Norway to assist in the extraction of Allied troops. Commended for his "daring, resource and devotion" during the operation, Becher was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. The notification for the decoration was published in a supplement to the "London Gazette" on 19 July 1940, and the investiture ceremony was held by King George VI at Buckingham Palace on 11 March 1941.
In late November 1940, Becher transferred to the recently launched destroyer as part of the ship's commissioning crew. While completing working-up exercises, "Napier" was tasked with transferring British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and his wife from Thurso in Scotland to the battleship , and later returning them to the mainland. With her working-up complete, "Napier" was initially posted to convoy duties in the North Atlantic, before setting sail in April 1941 with for the Mediterranean Sea. Arriving in May, she formed up as part of the Mediterranean Fleet.
"Napier" assisted in the evacuation of British and Commonwealth troops from the island of Crete in late May, following the successful Axis invasion. On one such occasion the vessel embarked 296 soldiers, three women, one Greek and one Chinese civilian, ten sailors, two children and a dog. Returning to Alexandria, the destroyer came under attack but arrived unscathed. Two days later "Napier" was less fortunate; having taken 705 soldiers on board, she was targeted on her return journey by a formation of twelve German dive-bombers. The ship was struck twice by bombs and suffered damage to the stern, the engine room and boiler room. One of the aircraft was shot down and a further three damaged. Although no allied casualties were sustained and the destroyer arrived safely in Alexandria, she spent the next two-and-a-half months in Port Said under repair.
Becher returned to Australia in early 1942, and from 17 May was appointed officer-in-charge of the gunnery school at HMAS "Cerberus". He remained at this post for almost two years until, on 12 March 1944, he was given command of the destroyer —formed up as part of the Eastern Fleet. On 22 July, "Quickmatch" was among a 23-vessel strong task force that set out from Trincomalee to assault the Japanese naval base off northern Sumatra at Sabang Island. The formation approached Sabang on the night of 24/25 July, launching fighter strikes on airfields in the area at first light. At 06:55, the fleet bombarded the harbour installations, coastal defence batteries and the military barracks. As the formation's two battleships maintained their fire, "Quickmatch" joined three other ships that entered the harbour to carry out close-range bombardment. After completing their task, "Quickmatch" and her fellows withdrew under the cover of fire from two cruisers. Praised for his "outstanding courage and skill" in pressing home the assault, Becher was awarded a Bar to his Distinguished Service Cross, announced in a supplement to the "London Gazette" on 31 October 1944.
In October 1944, "Quickmatch" was transferred to Australian waters and underwent her annual refit at Sydney from November to December. Once the refit was completed she operated mainly off the Australian coast. During the early hours of 25 December 1944, the Navy Office in Melbourne received an SOS from the SS "Robert J. Walker", reporting that she had been torpedoed by a submarine while travelling from Fremantle, Western Australia, to Sydney. Aircraft were dispatched to provide aerial cover, and HMA Ships "Quickmatch", "Kiama" and "Yandra" were directed to "Robert J. Walker"'s position. "Quickmatch" and "Yandra" were to operate against the submarine, while "Kiama" was to take the "Robert J. Walker" under tow. Arriving at the reported location at approximately 23:30 that evening, "Quickmatch", under the command of Becher, and "Kiama" patrolled the vicinity in search of the submarine and "Robert J. Walker"'s crew. Sixty-seven men were discovered in lifeboats at 05:45 the following morning and were taken aboard "Quickmatch"; "Robert J. Walker" had sunk two hours earlier with the loss of two crew.
Becher was promoted to commander on 31 December 1944, and the following month "Quickmatch" was transferred to the recently established British Pacific Fleet. On 28 February, the British Pacific Fleet, including "Quickmatch", sailed from Sydney Harbour for Manus Island to prepare for its role in support of the planned United States invasion of Okinawa. The fleet engaged in eleven days of exercises at Manus before departing for Ulithi, and on 23 March was attached to the United States Fifth Fleet with the designation "Task Force 57". Setting sail for Okinawa two days later, the fleet launched air strikes against airfield targets in the Sakishima Islands on 26 and 27 March. During these operations "Quickmatch" formed part of the escort for the fleet's aircraft carriers. Becher later stated: "These two days' operations were successful, the enemy airstrips being neutralised and a number of aircraft being destroyed on the ground." Task Force 57 continued operations around the Sakishima Islands for the following two months to cover the United States' left flank, with "Quickmatch" forming part of the carrier force's escort throughout this period.
On 25 June 1945, Becher relinquished command of the "Quickmatch" and returned to Australia, where he was attached to the shore base . For his "distinguished service ... in the Pacific" he received a Mention in Despatches. In August, he transferred to HMAS "Cerberus" for duties with the Navy Office.
Interbellum and Korean War.
Becher remained with the Navy Office until November 1947, when he was posted to the United Kingdom to join the aircraft carrier 's commissioning crew. Embarking from Melbourne during February 1948, he was temporarily attached to HMS "Drake" and later until "Sydney"'s commissioning on 16 December. His service aboard the aircraft carrier lasted for two years, and was followed on 23 January 1950 by an appointment as Commanding Officer to the shore establishment . However, Becher's time at "Watson" was cut short when, on 28 July, he relieved Captain Alan McNicoll as commander of the destroyer HMAS "Warramunga", which had been selected for service in the Korean War. "Warramunga" was to be attached to a force of five Royal Navy destroyers led by a captain, making it expedient to have the Australian ship commanded by an officer of lower rank.
"Warramunga" arrived in Korean waters in late August 1950. After some initial escort work, the destroyer joined as part of the carrier 's protective screen while the latter contributed air cover to the Allied landing at Inchon on 15 September. For the next three months, "Warramunga" engaged in patrol and screening duties, in addition to transporting food for famine relief.
On 4 December, "Warramunga" and "Bataan" supported the emergency withdrawal of Allied troops from Chinnampo. Becher decided to sail up a channel of the Taedong River known as Short Cut, which according to his charts should have allowed him five to ten feet of clearance. The chart proved inaccurate, and "Warramunga" ran aground at 23:15; Becher's only option was to wait for the rising tide to float the destroyer off. "Warramunga" came free at 23:50 without having sustained damage, and was able to resume her mission, escorting troop transports south. Later, Becher brought "Warramunga" alongside "Bataan" and entreated the latter's commander, via megaphone, to keep quiet about the incident. With Becher's promotion to captain due, he was concerned that if the Naval Board became aware of the grounding his promotion would be delayed until an investigation had taken place. His "well-earned" rise in rank came through as scheduled on 31 December. On the journey south, "Warramunga"'s crew developed a new way of signalling between ships that was considerably quicker than using international code flags. Known to the crew as the "Murphy Method", it involved wrapping messages around potatoes and throwing them from one ship to the other.
"Warramunga" participated in the siege of Wonsan during late February 1951, where she engaged and partially destroyed North Korean shore batteries, as well as shelling buildings and transport infrastructure. Despite coming under fire the destroyer sustained no damage. For the remainder of her tour in Korea, "Warramunga" took part in patrols and shore bombardments, earning special praise from Vice Admiral C. Turner Joy, Commander US Naval Forces Far East, for the accuracy of her gunnery.
On 17 July 1951, it was announced that Becher had been appointed as an honorary aide-de-camp to the Governor-General of Australia for a period of three years. Following "Warramunga"'s departure from Korean waters on 1 August, Rear Admiral Alan Scott-Moncrieff, Commander West Coast Blockade Force, commented: "She has been a tower of strength and done an incredible amount of steaming with no troubles at all. I cannot speak too highly of Captain O. H. Becher and his men ..." Together with "Bataan", "Warramunga" had borne the brunt of Australia's naval contribution to the Korean War. Noting his "courage, skill and determination", a recommendation for Becher to be awarded the Distinguished Service Order was approved by the Australian Government on 17 August 1951, and announced in the "London Gazette" the following month. For his "meritorious service ... as