Facts: - death place: wirral , merseyside - caption: lieutenant , who was also awarded the vc for the action fraser -lrb- right -rrb- with leading seaman magennis - death date: yes 87 -rrb- 1 september 2008 1 september 2008 -lrb- aged - commands: xe-3 - placeofburial: landican , birkenhead , wirral , merseyside - awards: victoria for officers of the royal naval reserve and bar cross distinguished service cross legion of merit decoration - birth date: yes 18 december 1920 18 december 1920 - serviceyears: 1939 & ndash ; 1965 -lrb- as reserve -rrb- & ndash ; 1947 -lrb- active -rrb- , - name: ian edward fraser - branch: united kingdom - laterwork: scuba diving pioneer - image: james 26940a.jpg magennis vc and ian fraser vc wwii iwm - birth place: ealing , london - rank: lieutenant commander Based on these bullet points, write a short biography describing the life of ian edward fraser .
Answer:
ian edward fraser , vc , dsc , rd and bar , jp -lrb- 18 december 1920 -- 1 september 2008 -rrb- was an english diving pioneer and recipient of the victoria cross , the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to british and commonwealth forces .fraser was born in ealing , london and went to school in high wycombe .after initially working on merchant ships and serving in the royal naval reserve , he joined the royal navy at the start of the second world war .after being awarded the distinguished service cross for actions while serving on submarines , he was placed in command of a midget submarine during an attack in singapore codenamed operation struggle .for his bravery in successfully navigating the mined waters , and successfully placing mines on a japanese cruiser , fraser was awarded the victoria cross .after retiring from the royal navy , fraser set up a commercial diving organisation after realising the ease of use of new frogman-type diving equipment .after serving in several honorary positions in wirral , fraser retired from the royal naval reserve as a lieutenant-commander in 1965 .he died on 1 september 2008 , in wirral , merseyside .