- Author
- Newspaper, Daily Telegraph
- Subjects
- Obituaries
- Tags
- RAN Ships
- HMAS Gascoyne I, HMAS Arunta I, HMAS Albatross, HMAS Nirimba, HMAS Canberra I, HMAS Warramunga I, HMAS Vengeance, HMAS Voyager I, HMAS Melbourne II, HMAS Sydney III, HMAS Stalwart I
- Publication
- December 1999 edition of the Naval Historical Review (all rights reserved)
Born: Millthorpe, October 26, 1918 Died: Balmain, May 23, 1999
Harry Train gave 30 years of his life to serving his country with the RAN.
After enlisting in 1936 as a stoker he sailed the oceans of the world and fought in two wars.
Ships in which he served included two from the famous scrap-iron flotilla, the Stuart and Voyager, Australia’s seaplane carrier Albatross, the Australia during the early part of World War II and the cruiser Canberra, which was sunk in 1942.
He was a member of the commissioning crew of the Australia-built Tribal class destroyer Warramunga, which took part in the World War II Philippines campaign. He was also on board the Arunta when it was attacked by a Japanese suicide bomber, resulting in the loss of two of his shipboard mates. In the same ship he took part in the Surigao Straits battle.
In the Korean War he served in Australia’s first aircraft carrier, Sydney. Later he was a member of the crews of two other carriers, Vengeance and Melbourne.
In the early 1960s, by now an engineering officer, he spent a year on board the Gascoyne. He was an engineering instructor at the apprentice: school, HMAS Nirimba.
Within six years of enlisting Mr Train became a petty officer. He studied and passed the artificers’ course and was commissioned as an engineer sub-lieutenant. He left the service with the rank of lieutenant.
Mr Train was educated at Millthorpe and Orange. Before enlisting he had worked for a photographer in Sydney, which led to a life-long interest in the subject.
Mr Train, who did not marry, is survived by his brothers, a sister and a niece.
Daily Telegraph, 28.6.99