After a glamorous six months’ cruise in H.M A.S. Melbourne, the Air Group returned to its nest at Albatross on July 20. At 7.30 in perfect weather, 11 Sea Venoms, ...
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Navy Chopper Rescues RAAF Sabre Jet Pilot
Navy Chopper Rescues RAAF Sabre Jet Pilot Navy News March 1963 Another Royal Australian Navy “first” was recorded last week when one of the Navy’s new Westland Wessex helicopters went ...
Occasional Paper 121: Captain Morton Henry Moyes, OBE, RAN 1896-1981
By Martin Linsley Morton Moyes was a man to admire. ‘He was a true leader – a simple man – a modest man – in very truth a gentle man.’ ...
Book Review: Prince Philip Revealed
Prince Philip Revealed by Ingrid Seward. Published in 2020 by Simon & Schuster, available in hard cover, paperback and e-book. Her Majesty the Queen, whilst speaking at the Banqueting House ...
Letter: HMVS Cerberus and her Flag
The following email was received from Jim Lorrimar of Perth, Western Australia. With regard to the June edition of the NHR which I recently received, I was admiring the Australia ...
Book Review: Guy Griffiths: The Life and Times of an Australian Admiral
Guy Griffiths: The Life and Times of an Australian Admiral. Paperback by Peter Jones, Australian Scholarly Publishing, Melbourne, 2021. After the highly effective Vietnam deployment of HMAS Hobart in 1967 ...
Book Review: Australia’s Colonial Navies
Australia’s Colonial Navies by Ross Gillett is a revised and expanded edition published by the Naval Historical Society of Australia and released in 2021. In the 21st century most Australians ...
The Koolama Incident
One of the most intriguing wartime dramas occurred off the Western Australian coast in February 1942 concerning attacks made by Japanese aircraft on the motor vessel Koolama. The story of ...
Mission Creep in the Dardanelles
By CMDR Max Speedy DSC RAN Rtd Captain Arthur Edward Dunn CBE RD ADC RNR was married to my great-aunt and as a result I have his voluminous papers and ...
Melville Neilson Cumming: An Albany hero known by many names
By David Theodore, Curator, Princess Royal Fortress Military Museum Melville, Skinny or Bob? Over a lifetime a person can be identified by a number of names. From all official documents ...
A/Captain Ross V. Wheatley OBE, RAN: A distinguished officer wrongly criticised
By Hector Donohue and Mike Turner Ross Wheatley was born in Adelaide on 19 December 1900, joined the Naval College in 1914 and subsequently specialised as a hydrographer, qualifying as ...
Tulagi: an Historic Outpost of Empire A little island with a big history
Tulagi is one of more than 900 islands and atolls in the nation of the Solomon Islands, a beautiful archipelago stretching over 1,400 kilometres in the Coral Sea. It lies ...
The Battle of Cape Spada – 19 July 1940 Part 1: The Genesis of Italy’s Light Cruiser Force
By Andreas Biermann Introduction This article is the first of two that aim to provide a new perspective on the Battle of Cape Spada on 19 July 1940, one of ...
A Mortar Mystery
In November 2020 the Naval Historical Society was approached by colleagues from across the Tasman for help in finding a Mortar Mark 10 which was required for their museum. During ...
Naval Sub Lieutenant awarded the Distinguished Service Order
By Colin Randall Many years ago I was involved in the coal mining industry based in the Hunter region and became a member of the Newcastle Club. The club remembers ...
Occasional Paper 122: Royal Australia Navy 75th Anniversary Celebrations, 1986: Planning
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Occasional Paper 123: Royal Australian Navy 75th Anniversary Year: 1986
By Ross Gillett During 1986, more than any other time since the formation of the RAN, the focus of public and media attention was directed at events both naval and ...
1986 RAN Fleet Review Programme
The programme is available via the following link 1986 RAN Fleet Review Programme.pdf ...
The First Duke of Edinburgh in Australia
The death of Prince Philip on 9 April 2021 at the age of 99 gave rise to considerable interest in his association with Australia. This was described in an article ...
Occasional Paper 120: A History of Australian Navy Health Sailor Uniforms and Ranks (Part 3)
By Commander Neil Westphalen, Royal Australian Navy Reserve Purpose More than a century after its establishment, many Royal Australian Navy (RAN) uniforms and ranks continue to reflect those used by ...
Occasional Paper 119: Darwin, 19 February 1942: a forgotten moment in the history of naval air operations
By Angus Britts The Japanese air attacks against Port Darwin in the forenoon of 19 February 1942 were a salient moment in Australia’s modern history. For the first time the ...
VADM Sir Victor Smith – From Sea to Chair in Colourful Career
In 1970 Sir Victor Smith spoke on personal recollections of his career in the RAN when he accepted an invitation to address the newly formed Naval Historical Society of Australia, ...
Action of Cape Spada – 19 July 1940
Plan for operations against enemy submarines and shipping in the Aegean. On 18 July 1940, four destroyers departed Alexandria for an anti-submarine hunt towards the Kaso Strait and then along ...
Bombardment of Bardia, 21 June 1940.
Operation MD 3 Bombardment of Bardia, 21 June 1940. An Allied force sailed on 20 June 1940 to carry out operation MD 3, the object was to destroy military objectives ...
Rear Admiral Herbert James Buchanan
Herbert James Buchanan was born in North Fitzroy in Melbourne on 10 March 1902 and briefly attended Scotch College before joining the Royal Australian Naval College as a thirteen year old ...