Tony Fasson Lieutenant Francis Anthony Blair Fasson ( 17 July 1913 – 30 October 1942 ) , known as Tony Fasson , was a British Royal Navy officer . He was posthumously awarded the George Cross for the " for outstanding bravery and steadfast devotion to duty in the face of danger " he displayed on 30 October 1942 in action in the Mediterranean Sea . Biography . Fasson was born in the village of Lanton , Roxburghshire , the son of Francis Hamilton Fasson , a Captain of the Scottish Horse , and Lilias Clara Fasson ( née Bruce ) . Fasson was educated at Jedburgh Grammar School , and entered the Royal Navy on 6 September 1930 , serving aboard the battleship as a midshipman until June 1933 . Promoted to acting - sub - lieutenant on 1 September 1933 , he attended the Royal Naval College , Greenwich and received promotion to sub - lieutenant on 16 May 1934 , before being assigned to the light cruiser on 5 January 1935 . On 15 September 1935 he was attached to the Royal Air Force with the temporary rank of flying officer in order to train as a pilot at the No . 1 Flying Training School , RAF Leuchars . He returned to the navy on 16 June 1936 and joined the minesweeping sloop on 18 July 1936 , receiving promotion to lieutenant on 16 September 1936 . From 19 April 1937 he served aboard the escort vessel in the East Indies , before joining the destroyer as First Lieutenant on 5 August 1938 . Fasson was appointed First Lieutenant of the destroyer on 20 July 1939 , and saw action in her on 10 April 1940 during the First Battle of Narvik , after which he received a Mention in Despatches . In early 1941 Fasson was posted to , the naval headquarters in Alexandria , Egypt , finally returning to sea duty in March 1942 as First Lieutenant of the destroyer . Death . On 30 October 1942 " Petard " , in conjunction with the destroyers and , the escort destroyers and , and an RAF Sunderland flying boat of 47 Squadron based in Port Said , attacked and badly damaged the German U - boat . The crew of the " U - 559 " abandoned their vessel , with 7 dead and 38 survivors . Fasson and Able Seaman Colin Grazier , along with NAAFI canteen assistant Tommy Brown , swam naked to the " U - 559 " and entered the sinking submarine , which had water pouring in through seacock s left open by the Germans . Working in complete darkness , fully aware that the submarine could sink without warning at any time , Fasson and Grazier located documents which Brown carried up to men in a whaler . They continued searching until the submarine suddenly foundered - " sank like a stone , " drowning Fasson and Grazier ; Brown survived . Fasson and Grazier were subsequently awarded the George Cross , while Brown - as a civilian employee in the Navy - received the George Medal . The awards were published in the " London Gazette " on 14 September 1943 . The codebooks that Fasson , Grazier , and Brown retrieved were immensely valuable to the code - breakers at Bletchley Park , who had been unable to read U - boat Enigma for nine months . The captured material allowed them to read the cyphers for several weeks , and to break U - boat Enigma thereafter . Memorials . Fasson is commemorated with plaques at Bedrule Kirk and the Jedburgh British Legion Club , while his George Cross is held by the Scottish National War Museum at Edinburgh Castle .