Themes

The Navy's People

• Naval Lives

  • Edward Pitcairn Jones

  • William Waller

  • Loftus William Jones

  • JT Cull

  • A C Green

  • Philip Needell

  • Astle Scott Littlejohns

  • EJF Records

  • Clifford Simkin

  • Frank Clements

  • Margaret Hodgson

  • Charles Sheppard

  • 'Buster' Crabb

  • Sir Frank Twiss

  • Jeff Tall

  • Phil Macquaid

  • Julia Massey

  • Nick Vaux

  • Wayland Austin

• In Focus: Women in the Navy

• In Focus: Recreation and Time off

• In Focus: Discipline and Punishment

Learning

• How To: Understand Naval Medals

Jeff Tall

Article highlights

• The career of a submariner who served in the Falklands War

• Choosing the Submarine Service

• Life as a Commanding Officer

• Service in the Falklands War

• The Belgrano Incident

• Post Falklands career

Choosing the Submarine Service

Jeffrey Tall grew up in Devon, the son of a Royal Air Force Warrant Officer. He turned down a place at Sheffield University, believing that he would find more excitement in a Naval career and enrolled at Brittania Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, in 1964 aged 21.

Tall served as a midshipman on minesweeper HMS Iveston in 1965. He was then seconded to HMS Opossum, one of the new Oberon class submarines, and thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

Tall received a promotion to Sub Lieutenant and decided to specialise in the submarine service. He joined the submarine officers' course at HMS Dolphin in 1966 and progressed well.

He became fourth hand on HMS Thermopylae, based at HMS Dolphin. Submarines and frigates practised anti-submarine tactics on the boat and Tall learned the basics of safe submarine operation whilst based there.

Tall then served on the Porpoise class submarine, HMS Finwhale, followed by commissions on Faslane's Third Submarine Squadron and Singapore's Seventh Submarine Squadron.

COQC graduating class in 1974. The 'Perisher' began in 1917 and is widely regarded as one of the toughest command courses in the world with an average failure rate of one in four. Candidates who fail cannot return to working within the submarine service. (RNSM)

Tall enrolled on the nuclear training course at Royal Naval College, Greenwich, in 1969 studying subjects such as nuclear theory and the safe management of nuclear reactors.

He next became supply officer to the newly constructed submarine HMS Churchill, attached to the Third Submarine Squadron in Faslane. Tall then received an appointment as First Lieutenant on the Porpoise class SSK Ocelot in 1973.

In 1974 Tall took the Commanding Officers' Qualifying Course (COQC), a 24 week command course, known by its participants as the 'Perisher'. All officers took the course before the Navy allowed them to serve as a Commanding Officer onboard a submarine.

Related External Links

• Royal Navy Submarine Museum