HMS Sheffield survivor says new memorial would 'mean so much'

John Galway was on board when the destroyer was hit by an Exocet missile during the Falklands War on May 4, 1982, killing 20 crew members.

He is now leading the campaign to create a memorial in time for the 40th anniversary of the disaster next year.

The HMS Sheffield Association, which John chairs, is seeking to raise £15,000 to pay for the shrine at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire.

The monument will commemorate all three ships to have borne the name – the Second World War cruiser, the Type 42 Destroyer which was sunk, and the Type 22 Frigate which succeeded it – along with everyone who served on them, especially the 20 crew members who made the ultimate sacrifice during the Falklands conflict.

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Mr Galway said: “There are small memorials around the country, including in Portsmouth, with the names of those who lost their lives on the HMS Sheffield.

“But this would be a central point for people to go and reflect and feel close to comrades who are sadly no longer with us. It would mean so much.

“I think sometimes the Falklands conflict gets forgotten by people after everything that’s happened in Afghanistan and Iraq.

“But we always get such strong support in Sheffield, where there’s still that feeling of pride, and I’m hoping people in the city will show their support by donating to this appeal.

“We’ve already heard from the crew of an American ship which served alongside the HMS Sheffield in the Gulf and they’ve said they’re going to help us raise the money we need, which is a good start.”

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The design of the memorial has yet to be finalised but it will resemble the bow of a warship, the plan is that it will be made from stainless steel, and it will feature a dedication and poem inscribed on the deck of the forecastle.

A place at the arboretum has already been chosen, close to the South Atlantic Memorial, and any funds left over if the target is reached would be split between the arboretum and the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity.

The arboretum was opened to the public in May 2001, with the Armed Forces Memorial – a national monument to those who have lost their lives on duty or as an act of unlawful violence since the Second World War – being dedicated six years later in 2007.

It was announced in 2018 that one of the Royal Navy’s new fleet of submarine hunters would become the fourth HMS Sheffield.

The Royal Navy said the new HMS Sheffield is the fifth in line to be built out of the new £3.7bn fleet of eight Type 26 frigates, the first of which are due to enter service in the mid-2020s, and construction had yet to begin on the new HMS Sheffield.

To donate, visit: www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/hmssheffieldnationalarboretummemorial.