DAVID HEPPER has had a lifelong interest in maritime history and served for twenty-five years in the Royal Navy, specializing in electronic warfare, before moving to the Civil Service. Several years research into ships histories, using original documents in the National Archives, has led to published works on naval losses during the First World War and the era of sail. His recent work British Warship Losses in the Modern Era 1920-1982 was recently published by Seaforth to great acclaim. He is now retired and lives near Woodbridge, Suffolk.