In August 1942 British Merchant Navy veteran Ray Morton was an eyewitness to one of the most celebrated Allied achievements of World War II – Operation Pedestal, or the Convoy ...
Operation Pedestal and the Tanker Ohio
The Sinking of HMS Glorious – Evacuation From Norway 1940
Colonial Coastal Defence Guns from Kings Park, Perth
Two 7″ LARGE RIFLED muzzle-loading coast defence guns are undergoing refurbishment by the Navy at HMAS Stirling, WA. Dating from 1866, they were manufactured by the Royal Ordnance Factory in ...
Australian Naval History on 1 December 2004
CAPT P. G. Lockwood, DSC, CSC, RAN, was awarded the United States Bronze Star, in recognition of his meritorious service as the Commanding Officer of HMAS ANZAC, (guided missile frigate), ...
Australian Naval History on 19 November 2004
A Seahawk helicopter from 816 Squadron, en-route from Perth, WA, to Nowra, NSW, on completion of an exercise in Western Australian waters, was diverted to take personnel from the Royal ...
Australian Naval History on 15 October 2004
The ANZAC class guided missile frigate HMAS ARUNTA, (CMDR W. J. Bairstow, CSC, RAN), visited the Russian port of Vladivostok. ARUNTA became only the second RAN warship to visit this ...
Australian Naval History on 7 October 2004
The guided missile frigate HMAS MELBOURNE, (CMDR. R. V. S. Dutschke, RAN), responded to a distress call from the iron ore carrier LOWLANDS GRACE, which was anchored off Port Hedland ...
Special Service
You could say it all began when I pounded on the desk of the elderly Commander at the Admiralty. I was a young officer with a great grievance. Looking back, ...
HMAS Australia – Kamikaze Attack 1944
This year (2004) marks the 60th anniversary of the first kamikaze attack on HMAS Australia. As Roger de Lisle reports, Japanese suicide pilots hurled their aircraft onto Allied ships with ...
The Gift Minesweepers
The first dedicated minesweeping vessels in the RAN made their appearance in Australian waters at the end of WW1 to sweep minefields sown by a German raider during the war, ...
Sydney Memorial to HM Submarine K13
Alongside Pennant Hills Road in Carlingford, a Sydney suburb, is a memorial comprising a pond, rocks, the lettering K13 and brass plates. Of those who have seen it, how many ...
HMAS Vendetta WW2
This is part 3 of an hitherto unpublished personal account was given to the Editor shortly before the death of the author, together with several other brief accounts of his ...
Commander J.M. Alliston DSO, DSC*, US Legion of Honour, Royal Navy
Commander John Alliston, who has died aged 94, was one of the Second World War’s most highly decorated destroyer captains, who afterwards brought up his family on a remote island ...
Helm Orders
HELM ORDERS GIVEN in British ships prior to 1934 were relative to tiller movement irrespective of whether steering was by tiller or wheel. The orders of the Officer of the ...
Torpedo Firings in Port Shelter, Hong Kong 1964
As a junior officer, the author enjoyed a great variety of memorable experiences in a destroyer of the Far East Fleet, including several live firings of torpedoes and A/S weapons. ...
The Great Amphibious Invasion: D-Day, 6 June 1944
One of the clearest demonstrations of sea power occurred on 6 June 1944, when the Allies landed in German-occupied Normandy in the greatest sea-borne invasion in history. Operation OVERLORD was ...
Australian Naval History on 23 September 2004
The mine-hunter HMAS DIAMANTINA, (LCDR Peter Bartlett, RAN), returned to Sydney after six weeks service in the Solomon Islands, as part of Operation Anode. During her deployment her ships company ...
Australian Naval History on 22 September 2004
ADML A. L. Beaumont, AC, RAN, (Retired), died after a lengthy illness. He had joined the Navy as a 13 year old Cadet Midshipman in 1948, and had risen through ...
Book Review: The Royal Navy-An illustrated Social History
The Royal Navy – An illustrated Social History 1870 – 1982 By Captain John Wells ISBN 0-905-778-308. Sutton Publishing Ltd. rrp $49.95 or GBP19.99 Reviewed by A. M. Downes When ...
Book Review: The Global Reach of Empire
The Global Reach of Empire By Alan Frost The Miegunyah Press the University of Melbourne, 2003. ISBN 0 522 85050 2 rrp $59.95. Reviewed by Bob Nicholls This is a ...
Book Review: Minesweeper HMAS Hawk, Indonesia 1965-66
Hands To Boarding Stations: The Story Of Minesweeper HMAS Hawk, Confrontation With Indonesia 1965-66 By John Foster Published by Australian Military History Publications 13 Veronica Place Loftus NSW 2232 Available ...
Australian Naval History on 13 September 2004
Exercise Bersama Lima 2004 commenced in Singaporean and Malaysian waters. This majorFive-Power Defence Arrangement (FPDA) Exercise involved over 30 ships, 80 aircraft, and some 3,000 personnel. The RAN was represented ...
Naval Officers’ Ceremonial Cocked Hat And Frock Coat
A photo, recalling a bygone age, of the late Captain Bill Cook in his full-dress uniform drew the attention of one of our dedicated volunteers, who produced the following newspaper article ...
Australian Naval History on 27 August 2004
The frigate HMAS ANZAC, (CAPT Richard Menhinick, CSC, RAN), rescued 15 Indonesians from a sinking vessel south of Batam Island. The crew of the vessel lit a fire to attract ...
Australian Naval History on 16 August 2004
15 sailors from HMNZS ENDEAVOUR, (tanker), were injured during a life boat drill that went awry, while the ship was berthed at Fleet Base East, Sydney. During a regular test ...