Date of birth:

1920

Date of death:

1997

Nationality:

Dutch

Mooij served aboard the HMS Kortenaer, which was sunk by the Japanese cruiser 'Haguro' during the Battle of the Java Sea in February 1942. Of the 151 crew members, about 40 perished immediately. He survived, but was taken to a military hospital in Surabaya where our mother worked as a nurse. They got married in Jogjakarta on the island of Java.

After his recovery, Mooij served on board HMS Colombia, which in turn was sunk off the South African coast by the German submarine "U516" in February 1943. After his rescue, he was brought to East London in South Africa, where he had surgery and a piece of his intestine was removed (he ingested oil). After his recovery, Mooij left South Africa for England. He was stationed in Dover on the Motor Torpedo Boat (MTB) 231, which was used for coastal surveillance, patrol services and small-scale surprise raids.

Mooij served in the Navy until his retirement (age 50). He then worked at Radio Holland.

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• Photo 1: Tristan Mooij
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