Yes, It's quite well known, the defence of Malta is second only to the Battle of Britain in 'against all odds' legends. Smith was awarded a pair of US Navy wings in honour of his achievement. He got to Malta with a later batch from the RN carrier Eagle. Sadly he was killed within months. Actually he was a Pilot Officer and he didn't drop the tank, it failed to feed. I've seen a picture of it with tank still attached.
[This message has been edited by jigsawblue (edited 03 April 2000).]