John Gaimes

Lieutenant-Commander John Austin Gaimes, DSO, was a submarine commander for the Royal Navy. He died 20 January 1921, at the age of 33, when HMS K5 sank with the loss of all hands during a mock battle in the Bay of Biscay.

History of service

 * 1901, posted to the training ship HMS Britannia.
 * Served as second-in-command of the destroyer HMS Syren for a year.
 * Volunteered for British submarine command in 1908, appointed January 1909.
 * Served on the C-class submarines.
 * Appointed command of HMS A9 on 5 October 1911.
 * A year later, appointed command of HMS B9.
 * March 1913, captained HMS C37 in Hong Kong.
 * 10 April 1917, commanded submarine in Harwich flotilla.
 * Located the secret Heligoland passage, marked out by buoys for German warships to follow.
 * June 1918, awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) for war services.
 * After World War I, commanded submarines attached to depot ship HMS Dolphin at Portsmouth.
 * November 1919, appointed to cruiser HMS Inconstant for steam-driven vessels of the K-class in the First Flotilla.
 * 1 April 1920, appointed command of HMS K5.