January 1942 and arriving at Greenock on 25 January, where Commander H G Walters took command. On 14 March 1942 Lightning was taking part in an anti-submarine ASDIC sweep in the Gibraltar Straits when her rudder was badly damaged, one of the depth charges exploded underneath her prematurely. She had to return to Gibraltar for repairs in number two dry dock. Operation Ironclad During Operation Ironclad Lightning played a key role in the taking of a naval base at Diego Suarez. Lightning played her part without any action during this opening stage. However, at 1710 on 5 May 1942, Lightning bombarded a hill position that was being used by the enemy. The next day Lightning again bombarded enemy positions, this time a castle on a hilltop and an ammunition dump. At 1530 Lightning along with Laforey and Lookout escorted the battleship out to sea to search for a reported enemy battleship which was not found, although Laforey sank an enemy submarine during night. On 7 May 1942 at 1030 Lightning bombarded an enemy shore battery, on the far side of the peninsula, that would not surrender. Within half an hour of ceasing fire the battery surrendered. After Operation Ironclad, Between May and July Lightning was temporary transferred to the Far East Fleet, sailing to Colombo in Ceylon, for a boiler clean. Completed by 11 July, the following day, at 0600, Lightning put to sea as 'A Force' with the battleship , the aircraft carriers , , the cruiser , and four destroyers including Laforey and Lookout. The task was to sweep the area to the Chagos islands to try to bring the Japanese to battle, and then proceed to Addu Atoll to oil. The monsoon season had arrived and no Japanese were found. Lightning returned to Colombo, and was ordered to proceed to the Mediterranean. Returning from the Indian Ocean, Lightning arrived at Freetown. On 1 August, she departed in company with Laforey, , Lookout and the aircraft carrier Indomitable. That same evening, at 2100, the ship's lookouts sighted three small boats and, after investigating, picked up all the crew of 35 plus 4 gunners and a dog (given to Lightning as a gift, and named ‘Flash’) from the 10,095 ton Norwegian merchant vessel Tankexpress. She had been sunk by a U-boat a week earlier (25 July 1942). The merchant crew, together with their captain, Anders Skånberg, were landed in