Vic Dale wrote: When we speak of PoW being a "Green Ship" it means she had not been in actual combat before the Denmark Strait, but most of her work-up had completed and in most respects she was a fighting ship.
The ship's workup was foreshortened, her crew were inexperienced, and was so new that she still had civilian technicians from Vickers-Armstrongs aboard her to help with the quad 14" mountings---yes, these men were still aboard when she battled
Bismarck (I hope they received hazard pay afterward)!
Vic Dale wrote: In the RN, no more than about 5% or 10% of a ship's company is represented by men straight out of training.
(**
Cough**) While this may have been the case in Vic's post-war time, or even since then, it seems rather optimistic for the WW2 RN. I think a more accurate picture can be gained in the following passage, written by the very captain of a KGV-class battleship, himself:
Travelling across the Atlantic in December 1941, Captain Charles Lambe saw deficiencies in the crew of the ship: ...60% of the ship's company have never been to sea before{emphasis mine-Dan}.
The proportion of RNR and RNVR officers is very high. They are a shapeless lot somehow and there is none of the active service sailor's swing about the ship. (AND)
"They are all worried little chaps doing a bigger job than they can cope with -- civilians dressed up in fact."
[Quoted from
Churchill's Navy - The Ships, Men and Organization 1939-45(Brian Lavery, 2006, ISBN: 978-1844860357]
Now to put a point on the above, the author explains that the "big" ships actually suffered LESS than other warships from these high percentages, as the pool of experience evaporated rapidly after 1939 (this is NOT a quote).
Note here, that I am not claiming
Prince of Wales had six to twelve times as many raw-green crewmen aboard in May of that same year---no doubt the proportions of H.O men increased as the war went on---but 5-10% doesn't fit well, either.
I post this just in case the "movie script" fails to match-up with the reality....
Cheers,
Dan