Editor: Tony (Doc) Holliday Email: [email protected] Mobile: 0403026916

Volume 1 September 2018 Issue 3

Greenbank Sub Section: News and Events………September / October 2018.

Saturday 01 September 2018 1000-1400 Merchant Marine Service Tuesday 04 September 2018 1930-2100 Normal Meeting RSL Rooms Wednesday 26 September 2018 1000 Executive Meeting RSL Rooms

Tuesday 02 October 2018 1930-2100 Normal Meeting RSL Rooms Wednesday 31 October 2018 1000 Executive Meeting RSL Rooms

Sausage Sizzles: Bunnings, Browns Plains.

Friday 14 September 2018 0600-1600

Executive Members of Greenbank Sub. Section

President Michael Brophy Secretary Brian Flood Treasurer Henk Winkeler Vice President John Ford Vice President Tony Holliday State Delegate John Ford

Vietnam Veterans Service 18August 22018

Service was held at the Greenbank RSL Services Club.

Wreath laid by Gary Alridge for Royal Australian Navy Vietnam Veterans.

Wreath laid by Michael Brophy on behalf of NAA Sub Section Greenbank.

It is with sadness that this issue of the Newsletter announces the passing of our immediate past President and Editor of the Newsletter. Len Kingston-Kerr. Len passed away in his sleep in the early hours of Tuesday 21st August 2018. As per Len’s wishes, there will be no funeral, Len will be cremated at a private service and his ashes scattered at sea by the Royal Australian Navy. A wake will be held at Greenbank RSL in due course.

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ROYAL AUSTRALIAN NAVY ADMIRALS:

Rear Admiral James Vincent Goldrick AO, CSC.

James Goldrick was born in Sydney NSW in 1958. He joined the Royal Australian Navy in 1974 as a fifteen-year-old Cadet Midshipman. A graduate of the Royal Australian Naval College, he holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of New South Wales and an M.Litt. From the University of New England. He is a graduate of the Advanced Management Program of Harvard Business School (AMP 168) and has been honoured with the degree of Doctor of Letters honoris causa by the University of New South Wales. He is an author, naval historian and analyst of contemporary naval and maritime affairs. He currently holds the position of Fellow at the Sea Power Centre, Australia. He is also a Non-Resident Fellow of the Lowy Institute, an Adjunct Professor in the School of Humanities and Social Sciences in the University of New South Wales at the Australian Defence Force Academy, an Adjunct Professor in the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre of The Australian National University and a Professorial Fellow of the Australian National Centre for Ocean Resources and Security at the University of Wollongong. He was a Visiting Fellow at All Souls College, University of Oxford in the first half of 2015. A Principal Warfare Officer and anti-submarine warfare specialist, he has seen sea service around the world with the RAN and on exchange with the British Royal Navy, including the patrol vessel HMS Alderney, the frigates HMS Sirius, HMAS Swan and HMAS Darwin and the destroyer HMS Liverpool. He has served as Executive Officer of HMAS Tarakan and HMAS Perth. He was Commanding Officer of HMAS Cessnock and twice commanded the frigate HMAS Sydney before serving as the inaugural Commander, Australian Surface Task Group. During this posting, he commanded the Australian task group deployed to the Persian Gulf in early 2002 and also served as commander of the multinational naval forces conducting maritime interception operations to enforce UN sanctions on Iraq, including units from the RAN, the United States Navy, the Royal Navy and the Polish Armed Forces. He was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for this service. Goldrick’s shore postings have included serving as Aide to the Governor-General of Australia, as an instructor on the RAN's Principal Warfare Officer course, as Officer-in-Charge of the RAN's tactical development, tactical training and warfare officer training faculty, as Research Officer and later as Chief Staff Officer to the Chief of Navy, as Director of the RAN Sea Power Centre and as Director-General Military Strategy in the Australian Department of Defence. For his service, particularly at the Sea Power Centre, he was awarded the Conspicuous Service Cross. He commanded the RAN task group and the multinational maritime interception force in the Persian Gulf (2002) and the Australian Defence Force Academy (2003-2006). He was promoted to Rear Admiral and assumed duties as Commander Border Protection in May 2006. In May 2008, he was appointed Commander Joint Education, Training and Warfare (a position retitled in 2009 as "Commander Australian Defence College"). After completing his posting in August 2011, he served as Acting Commandant of the Australian Defence Force Academy until March 2012. He retired from full time service in 2012. Rear Admiral James Goldrick transferred to the Royal Australian Navy Reserve in June 2012 after 38 years of service. He was awarded Officer of the Order of Australia at the 2013 Australia Day Honours for distinguished service as Commander, Border Protection Command, Commander, Joint Education and Training, and Commandant of the Australian Defence Force Academy and for outstanding scholarship in the study of Australian naval history. James Goldrick has lectured in naval history and contemporary naval affairs at many institutions. He spent 1992 as a Research Scholar at the US Naval War College and is a Professorial Fellow of the Australian National Centre for Ocean Resources and Security. He was President of the Australian Naval Institute from 2005 to 2008 and is an Overseas Corresponding Member of the Society for Nautical Research. Published books include The King's Ships Were at Sea: The War in the North Sea August 1914- February 1915, With the Battle Cruisers (edited), Reflections on the Royal Australian Navy (co- edited), Mahan is Not Enough (co-edited) and No Easy Answers: The Development of the Navies of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. He has contributed to many other works, including The Royal Australian Navy and The Oxford Illustrated History of the Royal Australian Navy and to professional journals, including The United States Naval Institute Proceedings.

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As a junior officer he twice won the Guinness Prize of the British Naval Review. He has been a long term and active member of the Australian Naval Institute including a significant period on the Institute's governing council where he was President between 2005 and 2008. He is an Overseas Corresponding Member of the Society for Nautical Research and is a Councilor of the Navy Records Society. James Goldrick has contributed to many international journals and books on both historical and contemporary naval subjects. His research interests include naval and maritime strategic issues and the development of naval capabilities in the Indo-Pacific, as well as world navies in the twentieth and twenty first centuries, with a focus on their response to changing technologies and operational challenges. He is currently a Visiting Fellow of the Sea Power Centre-Australia, a Visiting Fellow of the Lowy Institute for International Policy and a Professorial Fellow of the Australian National Centre for Ocean Resources and Security at the University of Wollongong. James Goldrick is married with two sons.

NAVAL DISASTERS: HMS COBRA

Type Destroyer Displacement 400 long Tons 410T Builder Armstrong Whitworth Length 223 ft Launched 28 June 1899 Installed Power 11,500 Shp Acquired 8 May 1900 Propulsion Parsons Turbines Yarrow Boilers 4 x sharfts Speed 36.6 knots Fate Sank near Cromer 1901 Armament 1 x 12 pounder 5 x 6 pounders 2 x torpedo tubes

HMS Cobra was one of twenty-four "B" class turbine-powered destroyers built for the Royal Navy — a "30 knotter". She was built speculatively by Armstrong Whitworth and then offered for sale to the British Admiralty. She was launched on 28 June 1899, and purchased by the Navy on 8 May 1900 for £70,000. Her short career came to an end when she broke her back and sank near Cromer, North Norfolk UK, on 18 September 1901. The break occurred 150 ft (46 m) from her bows, between the two aft boilers. Twelve men — including the chief engineer — were saved; 44 Navy officers and men were drowned and 23 staff from the contractors, mostly employees of the turbine manufacturers, Parsons Marine. A court-martial enquiry held in October absolved the surviving officers of all blame, finding that "Cobra did not touch the ground or come into any contact with any obstruction, nor was her loss due to any error in navigation, but was due to structural weakness of the ship." This was contested by the manufacturers and other shipbuilders, with examples of equivalent boats being navigated to Australia or Japan without incident. The loss of Cobra came only six weeks after that of the destroyer Viper, the only other turbine- powered ship in the navy. Both ships had been intended as trial vessels to demonstrate the capabilities of the new technology. Neither loss was caused by problems with the turbines, but the losses were still a setback for the general introduction of turbines into warships.

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The losses came after the loss of Serpent in 1890 and created an aversion in the Royal Navy towards snake names, and these names were not reused. Cobra was constructed by Armstrong Whitworth and company as a private venture and was one of two which they offered for sale to the British Admiralty on 12 December 1899. Ship number 674 was fitted with Parsons Marine turbines similar to those installed in the destroyer Viper. Such engines were expected to be 60% more powerful than reciprocating engines usually fitted to similar ships at that time. There were four shafts from the engines, each driving three propellers. The overall design was based on that for the destroyers Swordfish and Spitfire recently built in the same yard. The Director of Naval Construction, Sir William Henry White inspected the vessel and although considering it to be less strong than would have been the case had it been specified by the navy, could find no particular objections to its hull design. It was considered that the Admiralty should purchase it rather than permit its sale to a foreign navy. The ship had her first steam trials in June 1900. She was completed including Admiralty alterations and had finished steam trials by September 1901. Lieutenant Bosworth Smith — with a crew of two officers and 48 men — was appointed to collect the ship from Newcastle and take her to Portsmouth where she would be fitted with guns and ammunition. She left Elswick at 11:00 on 17 September, proceeding down the river Tyne, where the crew adjusted the compass, only reaching the mouth of the river by 19:00. Wind from the NNW and a rough sea caused the ship to roll heavily, so that there was difficulty feeding coal to the boilers and two had to be extinguished, reducing speed to 5 knots (5.8 mph; 9.3 km/h) by around 22:00. Stoker John Collins reported that in the early morning of the 18th, the crew could hardly stand in the stokehold. By dawn on the 18th, it was possible to increase speed to 8 kn (9.2 mph; 15 km/h). At 07:00, the 'Outer Dowsing' light vessel was seen about 3 mi (4.8 km) away. Cobra altered course towards the light to confirm that it was what they believed it to be and was seen approaching by the light vessel. Its crew reported that Cobra was seen to be "plunging heavily', then stopped in a cloud of steam, before breaking in two. The stern section sank, while the bow continued to drift in the wind. The Chief Engineer stated that he was in the engine room and felt an impact as though the ship had hit something. He went on deck and discovered that the ship was breaking in two, he being on the aft part. An attempt was made to launch the ship's whaler, but this capsized from overcrowding as 40-50 men tried to get aboard. There were three collapsible boats, but there was insufficient time to assemble them before the ship sank. A 14 ft (4.3 m) dingy was successfully launched containing Petty Officer Francis Barns and seven others. Barns threw out everything he could from the dinghy and managed to get onboard four more survivors, including the Chief.

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ROYAL AUSTRALIAN NAVY….SHIP HISTORY:

HMAS HOBART (1) Continued:

1941

During the first half of 1941 Hobart operated chiefly on the Australia station and in New Zealand waters visiting Auckland and Wellington on a number of occasions. At the beginning of June, the cruiser underwent a brief refit in Sydney which saw her aircraft landed and catapult machinery removed in preparation for a deployment to the Mediterranean theatre of operations to relieve HMAS Perth. On 20 June she sailed from Sydney calling at Fremantle, the Seychelles and Aden enroute. She arrived at Port Tewfik, at the southern end of the Suez Canal, on 12 July where Captain Howden learned that the canal had been closed due to the presence of enemy sea mines. On the night of 14 July German bombers made a determined effort to close the canal when they attacked the port. The 28,000 ton merchant vessel Georgic, crowded with troops, was hit during the raid, catching fire. Hobart's boats were ordered away and during the hours that followed her crew went alongside the burning troopship rescuing many of those on-board.

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The situation worsened when the captain of Georgic attempted to beach his stricken ship, colliding with the landing ship Glenearn in the process and setting it alight. Both ships later grounded. Hobart's seamen continued to render assistance rescuing both embarked troops and the ship's crews. Dawn revealed a scene of destruction with both ships locked together on the North Shoal. Flames and smoke still gushed from he troopship although the fire in Glenearn had been extinguished. Later that day a line was passed from Hobart to Glenearn and she was towed clear.

On 15 July Hobart, in company with the battleship HMS Anson, was led by the destroyer HMS Kipling into the Suez Canal and after a six-hour transit the three ships reached the Bitter Lakes. On 17 July Hobart berthed at Alexandria, in close proximity to her sister ship HMAS Perth. During the next five months Hobart operated from Alexandria, Egypt, participating in the Mediterranean campaign as part of the Royal Navy’s 7th Cruiser Squadron. She routinely ferried troops to where they were most needed in support of the campaign in the Western Desert and took part in shore bombardments of both Tobruk and Bardia during October and November 1941. The cruiser was also involved in operations off Cyprus, Malta and Syria as well as participating in a number sweeps with the Royal Navy 1st Battle Squadron in company with HM Ships Queen Elizabeth, Barham and Valiant. Throughout her deployment Hobart was subjected to frequent air attacks both at sea and in Alexandria, however, her luck held and she suffered no major damage. Hobart sailed on her last operation with the Mediterranean Fleet on 5 December 1941, in company with the Royal Navy cruisers Galatea and Carlisle and supported by five destroyers. Together they escorted the supply ship Breconshire from a position to the south of Crete, safely into Alexandria where they arrived on 7 December, the day the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. Shortly afterwards Hobart sailed for Fremantle calling at Aden, Colombo and Batavia enroute.

1942

With the entry of Japan into the war, Hobart transferred to Far East waters becoming part of the American, British, Dutch and Australian (ABDA) forces operating in Southeast Asia. She arrived in Malayan waters in January 1942 and it was during her period in these waters that Hobart withstood some of the severest bombing of her career. On Sunday 1 February 1942 Hobart berthed at Keppel Harbour, Singapore. By then the Japanese army had breached the causeway and a desperate rear-guard action was being fought by Allied soldiers. Hobart took on ammunition and stores while her crew commandeered anything of value to deny it to the advancing enemy, this included a small 1939 Austin tourer motor car that Captain Howden brought back to Australia and which later became his pride and joy. Seven air raids were recorded during the day and a considerable number of bombs fell into the harbour. Hobart and HMS Tenedos cleared the harbour at 18:00 on 2 February and shaped a course for Tanjong Priok in the Dutch East Indies. Singapore was clearly lost and its surrender on 15 February came as no surprise. Three hours out of Singapore the ships encountered HMAS Vendetta under the tow of the tug Stronghold. After a long, slow tow she eventually made it back to Australia. On 3 February 1942 Hobart and Tenedos sighted a lone merchant ship under attack from three enemy bombers. Howden ordered both ships to increase speed and close with all guns firing. The initial attack was beaten off but twenty minutes later more aircraft appeared renewing the attack with vigour. The burning merchant ship was identified as the Norah Moller, and many on board had become casualties.

The stricken vessel was subsequently anchored and the wounded and passengers, including women and children, were evacuated to the two warships. The vessel was then abandoned. Four members of her crew were buried at sea and six of the 28 casualties died before Hobart reached Tanjong Priok early on the morning of 4 February. On another occasion when operating as a unit of a combined Dutch-British-American-Australian (ABDA) striking force, Hobart and the ships around her were attacked thirteen times. Her commanding officer, Captain H Howden RAN, wrote:

‘The bombs fell close enough for me to see the red flash of their burst and to feel the heat of their explosions across my face’.

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Hobart was fuelling at Tandjong Priok on 25 February 1942 when 27 bombers attacked her and the tanker from which she was fuelling. It was estimated that 60 bombs fell near and around her. She suffered some damage from bomb splinters and some casualties and it was her inability to complete fuelling on this occasion that prevented her from taking part in the disastrous Battle of the Java Sea on 27 February 1942. Hobart took part in the western ‘extension’ of the Battle of the Coral Sea in May 1942. One of the covering force for the United States aircraft carriers, she was the target of an attack by eight Japanese twin engine torpedo bombers and 19 heavy bombers on 7 May. The naval force was without fighter cover but escaped damage by evasive action, shooting down three of the enemy aircraft.

Hobart under attack in the Coral Sea.

On 7 August 1942 Hobart was one of the Cruiser Covering Force for the American landings on Guadalcanal and Tulagi in the Solomon Islands. Again, she was successful in evading fierce attacks by Japanese torpedo and high level bombers and inflicted severe damage on the enemy in both shore bombardments and anti-aircraft fire. Following a refit at Sydney from 8 to 21 October 1942, Hobart re-joined the Australian Task Force (TF74) on Coral Sea patrols.

1943

On 20 July 1943, Hobart was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine whilst enroute to Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu, as part of Task Force 74. The torpedo struck aft on the port side causing considerable damage in the vicinity of the wardroom. Thirteen officers and sailors were killed and another seven injured. She made it to Espiritu Santo under her own power the following day where she underwent temporary repairs and was escorted to Sydney by HMA Ships Warramunga and Arunta. She arrived on 26 August for extensive repairs which kept her out of service until December 1944.

Damage sustained by Hobart following an attack by an enemy submarine 20July 1943.

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She was back at sea on 15 December 1944 for sea trials and work up, which was cut short on Christmas day by a submarine attack on a merchant vessel in the area. Hobart returned to the relative safety of Sydney Harbour and put to sea again on 30 December. She rendezvoused with the British Pacific Fleet at Manus in February 1945 and the following month comprised part of the covering and support group for the Allied landing at Cebu, Philippines, on 26 March.

On 24 April 1945 Hobart was part of the covering force for the landings at Tarakan in Borneo. On 11 May she supported the landings near Wewak of elements of the Australian 6th Division. From 7 to 9 June 1945 she was operating off Brunei, Borneo, where cover was provided for minesweeping and preliminary bombardments carried out for the subsequent landing there. Hobart was also in the force which provided cover and bombardment for the landings at Balikpapan early in July. On 31 August she arrived in Tokyo Bay and was among the Australian ships present at the time of the Japanese surrender.

In the two years following the end of hostilities, Hobart remained in service as a unit of the Australian Squadron. Three periods were spent in Japanese waters in support of the occupation forces; November 1945 to March 1946; September to November 1946; and April to July 1947.

In August 1947 she returned to Sydney for paying off into Reserve. She paid off on 20 December 1947. From 1953 to 1956 Hobart underwent an extensive refit and modernisation at Newcastle State Dockyard to convert her to a training ship, but was not again brought into seagoing service. On 5 February 1960 it was officially announced that Hobart had been added to the list of obsolete RAN ships for sale as scrap. On 22 February 1962 Hobart was sold for breaking up to the Japanese firm of Mitsui & Co (Aust) Pty Ltd for £186,886, comprising £170,876 for the ship and £16,010 for spares. The ship left Sydney under tow on 3 March 1962 and arrived at Miyachi Shipyard, Saki, Osaka, on 2 April 1962.

The end of the line for Hobart and one of the Royal Navy’s Modified Dido class cruisers at the breakers yard in Japan 2 April 1962.

Editors Request: Articles for the newsletter can be handed in at meetings, or by email: articles may be edited to fit the newsletter.

The contents of this edition of the newsletter have been obtained from information provided from Len Kingston-Kerr whom I thank greatly, various publication, History of the RAN and NAA information emailed in.

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HAVE A LAUGH

Three Blondes

Three blondes were all applying for the last available position on the Texas Highway Patrol. The detective conducting the interview looked at the three of them and said, "So y'all want to be cops, huh?" The blondes all nodded. The detective got up, opened a file drawer, and pulled out a folder. Sitting back down, he opened it, pulled out a picture, and said, "To be a detective, you have to be able to detect. You must be able to notice things such as distinguishing features and oddities like scars and so forth." So saying, he stuck the photo in the face of the first blonde and withdrew it after about two seconds. "Now," he said, "Did you notice any distinguishing features about this man?" The blonde immediately said, "Yes, I did. He has only one eye!" The detective shook his head and said, "Of course he has only one eye in this picture! It's a profile of his face! You’re dismissed!" The first blonde hung her head and walked out of the office. The detective then turned to the second blonde, stuck the photo in her face for two seconds, pulled it back, and said, "What about you? Notice anything unusual or outstanding about this man?" "Yes! He only has one ear!" The detective put his head in his hands and exclaimed, "Didn't you hear what I just told the other lady? This is a profile of the man's face! Of course you can only see one ear! You're excused too!" The second blonde sheepishly walked out of the office. The detective turned his attention to the third and last blonde and said, "This is probably a waste of time, but . . He flashed the photo in her face for a couple of seconds and withdrew it, saying, "All right, did you notice anything distinguishing or Unusual about this man?" The blonde said, "I sure did. This man wears contact lenses.” The detective frowned, took another look at the picture, and began looking at some of the papers in the folder. He looked up at the blonde with a puzzled expression and said, "You're absolutely right! His bio says he wears contacts! How in the world could you tell that by looking at his picture?" The blonde rolled her eyes and said, "Well, Hellooooooooooooo! With only one eye and one ear, he certainly can't wear glasses."

Three Golfers Moses, Jesus, and an old man were enjoying a friendly round of golf together. Moses stepped up to the tee and hit the ball. It went sailing over the fairway and landed in the water trap. Moses then parted the water and chipped the ball onto the green. Jesus stepped up to the tee and hit the ball. It went sailing over the fairway and landed in the water trap. Jesus just walked onto the water and chipped the ball onto the green.

The old man stepped up to the tee and hit the ball. It went sailing over the fairway and headed for the water trap. But, just before it fell into the water, a fish jumped up and grabbed the ball in its mouth. As the fish was falling back down into the water, an eagle swooped down and grabbed the fish in its claws. The eagle flew over the green where a lightning bolt shot from the sky and barely missed it.

Startled, the eagle dropped the fish. When the fish hit the ground, the ball popped out of its mouth and rolled into the hole for a hole-in-one. Jesus then turned to the old man and said. "Dad, if you don’t stop fooling around, we won’t bring you next time."

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Royal Australian Navy: SHIPS FROM THE 70’s/ 80’s

HMAS ADELAIDE FFG 01

Class Adelaide Class Displacement 4,200 tonnes Class Frigate. Guided Missile FFG Length 138.10 Metres Type Surface Combatant Beam 14.30 Metres Builder Todd Pacific Shipyards USA Draught 7.50 Metres Laid Down 29 July 1977 Speed 30 Knots Launched 21 June 1980 Crew 221 Commissioned 15 November 1980 Machinery 2 x General Electric LM 2500 Gas Turbines. Driving a Single controlled pitch propeller. De-Commissioned 19 January 2008 Battle Honours East Timor 1999- Persian Gulf 2001-2

Armament Missiles: Harpoon anti-ship Guns 1 x 76mm OTO Melora Gun Standard SM-1MR Surface to air Torpedoes 2 x Triple 324mm Mk 32 Mk 3 Missile launcher

HMAS Adelaide (II) (FFG-01) was a long-range escort frigate with roles including area air defence, anti- submarine warfare, surveillance, reconnaissance, and interdiction. The ship could simultaneously counter threats from the air, surface and sub-surface. Built in the United States, Adelaide (II) was commissioned on 15 November 1980 and was the first of six Adelaide class guided missile frigates to be delivered to the Royal Australian Navy. Adelaide (II) was the second ship in the RAN to carry this name. The first was a light cruiser that served from 1922 to 1945. Along with her five sister ships, Canberra (II), Sydney, Darwin, Melbourne and Newcastle, Adelaide (II) was powered by gas turbines for its main propulsion. Guided missile frigates could be underway from a cold start in less than 30 minutes. In addition, two forward mounted auxiliary propulsion units provided a secondary means of propulsion and excellent manoeuvrability in confined waters Adelaide (II) was equipped with a number of sensors that included long range radars for air and surface surveillance, electronic warfare and optical surveillance systems, a medium range sonar and a command and control system, that incorporated target data received by data link from other ships and aircraft. The principal weapons installed in Adelaide (II) were the Standard medium range anti-aircraft missile and the Harpoon anti-shipping missile. Both missiles were launched from the Mk 13 launcher on the forecastle. A 76mm gun to counter both air and surface threats was fitted forward of the funnel. A 20mm Phalanx close-in-weapons-system, Nulka decoy and chaff systems were fitted for anti-missile defence. Adelaide (II) had a capacity for two S-70B-2 Seahawk helicopters and was fitted with two sets of Mk 32 triple torpedo tubes to provide a counter to submarines.

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Adelaide (II) was the first guided-missile frigate to be home-ported in Western Australia. The ship participated in the 1990/91 Gulf War, peacekeeping operations in East Timor in 1999 and was deployed to the Arabian Gulf as part of the International Coalition against Terrorism in 2001 and 2004.

Contributing to stable, rules-based global security is one of Australia's national objectives. Since 1990, the Royal Australian Navy has conducted maritime security operations in the Middle East region (MER), which remains strategically important to Australia's economic and trade interests

HMAS Adelaide (11) Fate: Scuttled 13 April 2011, as dive ship off Avoca NSW

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Picture Funnies

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