twin 20 mm Oerlikon cannon in the X turret position, a single 20 mm Oerlikon on either side forward of the bridge, and two twin .303 Vickers machine guns on the bridge wings. They were also equipped with smoke-making equipment, basic radar and depth charges. Service In the early years of the war, MGBs saw action defending shipping against enemy torpedo boats, such as the German E-boats, on the southern and eastern coasts of the UK, with the faster 'short' boats frequently undertaking patrols hunting for the enemy. MGB flotillas (particularly under Robert Hichens' command) also developed the tactic of accompanying MTBs on their patrols across the North Sea to attack enemy coastal shipping. On these missions, the MGBs' role was to close stealthily with the enemy and then attack with guns from an unexpected quarter, drawing the convoy escort's attention, while the MTBs manoeuvred into position unseen by the Germans, so as to better attack the protected convoy shipping with their torpedoes. The modest speed of the larger & heavier Type 'C' compared with the short boats saw them assigned much more frequently to defensive & convoy escort duties as well as clandestine work. The latter duties often involved extraction of Allied agents/escapees from occupied France but also included the commando raid 'Operation Chariot': Robert Ryder used a Type 'C' MGB for command of the St Nazaire Raid. Ryder and William Savage, the gunner of the unprotected two-pounder gun on MGB 314, received Victoria Crosses for their part in the raid, Savage posthumously. In the Mediterranean, MGBs were used in an attacking role to sink Italian and German shipping. They were formed into flotillas which often operated alongside motor torpedo boats (or US PT boats) and helped interdict supplies being sent from Italy to Axis forces in North Africa in 1943. After that campaign, they moved northwards and assisted with the invasion of Sicily, Sardinia, Corsica and Elba. Operating from island bases they patrolled along the western coast of Italy, attacking small coastal ships and E-boats until mid-1944. As Italy was progressively liberated, certain flotillas, such as the 56th, were sent around Italy to the Adriatic to assist partisans in the islands off Yugoslavia. MGBs were also involved in the protection of shipping after D-Day. MGBs did not take the prefix HMS as they were boats, not ships, and instead used the prefix "HMMGB" on formal occasions. The crews