Both men were transferred to Melbourne for medical attention before the more seriously injured of the two was transferred by air back to Singapore. They contain the following information for each crew member: The ledgers for each ship have been bound as volumes for each quarter, or three-month period, that the ship was on active service. [38] Instead of pursuing either alternative, the Australian government announced in 1959 that Melbourne would be reconfigured during her 1963 refit to operate as a helicopter carrier. [33] After docking at Garden Island in December, the carrier was accidentally flooded by an officer who was impatient to commence leave. [79] In September, Melbourne reprised her role as the leader of Exercise Tuckerbox II. Responsible for maintaining carpet and hard surface floors in commercial buildings using industry approved methods and chemistry. The service life of the Sea Venoms and the Gannets, meanwhile, was extended past 1963. These generally involve requisitioned vessels. That September Melbourne sailed for what was to be the first of many deployments to South East Asia. At the end of January 1959 Melbourne returned to her namesake city for the unique experience of filming scenes for the movie On The Beach. On completion of these exercises she made port visits to both Wellington and Auckland before returning home to Sydney. A crew member of the search and rescue helicopter entered the water but could not find him, and tragically, subsequent search and rescue efforts found no trace of him. [132] The carrier's engineers often resorted to making replacements from scratch. Melbourne went on to visit Yokohama and Djakarta before arriving back in Fremantle on 24 June. [12][61] Aboard were the 64 aircraft of RAN squadrons 808, 816, and 817, as well as the racing yacht Samuel Pepys (named after the English naval administrator and diarist), which was a gift to the RAN Sailing Association from the Royal Navy. Melbourne's first major refit started in December 1967 and continued until February 1969, during which she was upgraded to operate S-2 Tracker and A-4 Skyhawk aircraft. Melbourne was damaged but sustained no casualties. Melbourne returned to sea on 6 February 1964 and proceeded to Jervis Bay to commence exercises with HMA Ships Voyager (II) and Kimbla. Melbournes South East Asian deployment began slightly earlier in 1961, as the ship departed from Fremantle on 20 February in order to participate in Exercise JET 61 in the Indian Ocean off Ceylon (Sri Lanka). [77] The 10,000th catapult launch from Melbourne occurred in late 1962. Post-war technological developments saw a rapid evolution in naval aviation driven primarily by the advent of jet propulsion. List of shipwrecks: 6 February 1969 Ship Country Description USS ATC-132-1 United States Navy The armoured troop carrier capsized off Vietnam. Here the new aircraft carrier was again warmly greeted and a civic reception was held in honour of the occasion at the Melbourne Town Hall. [70] In November, the carrier took part in disaster relief exercises. A proposal to convert her for use as a floating casino failed, and a 1984 sale was cancelled, before she was sold for scrap in 1985 and towed to China for breaking. [85] Both ships' measures were too late to avoid a collision; Melbourne hit Voyager at 8:56pm. [113] Melbourne re-entered service at the conclusion of the refit on 14 February 1969. [16] At launch, the carrier was 213.97 metres (702.0ft) long overall, but this was increased by 2.43 metres (8.0ft) during a refit in 1969. Athol Townley MP, announced that fixed wing naval aviation would be disbanded in 1963 when Melbourne became due for a major refit. Some records include terms and views that are not appropriate today. [38] Under consideration were British carrier HMSAlbion and a ship of the United States' Essex class. [1] [16] The size of the ship's company averaged 1,350 officers and sailors, including 350 personnel from the embarked Fleet Air Arm squadrons. Petty Officer Telegraphist. Melbourne put to sea briefly from 8 to 11 July 1971 to test the hull and propulsion machinery prior to the completion of the refit in August and the commencement of shakedown and workup exercises on 13 August. [149] In his haste to shut down the carrier, he failed to deactivate the water pumps, and over 180tons of fresh water were pumped in before a maintenance party discovered the flooding the next day. [85] At 8:55pm, with Voyager approaching, Melbourne's navigator ordered the carrier's engines to half astern speed, with Robertson ordering an increase to full astern a few seconds later. de Havilland Sea Venom FAW.53 fighter aircraft were flown by 805 Squadron RAN and 808 Squadron RAN, while Fairey Gannet anti-submarine strike aircraft were operated by 816 Squadron RAN and 817 Squadron RAN. [36] Approximately 350 Fleet Air Arm personnel were stationed aboard the carrier. Vessels requisitioned for the War are not listed here but you can see the full list with their Pendant Numbers. Hard-a starboard. [164] At this time, few western experts expected that the Chinese government would attempt to develop aircraft carriers in the future. HMAS Melbourne was a Town class light cruiser operated by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). [23] The four Bofors twin mountings were removed in 1980. [84] It was initially assumed by Melbourne's bridge crew that Voyager was conducting a series of tight turns to lose speed before swinging behind Melbourne, but Voyager did not alter course again. In 1964, Melbourne was involved in a collision with the Australian destroyer HMAS Voyager, sinking the smaller ship and killing 82 of her crew. [155] She was towed to the mooring dolphins near Bradley's Head, where she remained until 1985. [82] The trials involved interactions between both ships, and when Melbourne performed night-flying exercises that evening, Voyager acted as the carrier's plane guard escort. [155], Plans to replace Melbourne changed in July 1981; the British 1981 Defence White Paper had marked the recently commissioned HMSInvincible as surplus to requirements, and she was offered to the RAN for the 'bargain' price of GB175million (A$285million). She departed Sydney on 27 January 1972 for that years South East Asian deployment and arrived in the Philippines, via Papua New Guinea, on 10 February. A search was immediately commenced which included aircraft from Melbourne but, sadly, no sign of Gartside could be found. Melbourne was the only British Commonwealth naval vessel to sink two friendly warships in peacetime collisions. [147] During this cruise two Skyhawks were lost: on 2 and 21 October. The RAN lost only 2 Vessels during World War 1 and these were both Submarines, AE1 & AE2. Their boat was towed back to Sydney by a police launch. [107] Utilising the carrier was suggested again by RAN officials in March 1966, when the United States Seventh Fleet was having difficulties maintaining anti-submarine patrols around Yankee Station, but Melbourne could only remain on station for a single, ten-day period, a third of the time that US carriers were operational for on rotating deployments. USS Frank E. Evans in 1963. [164] The carrier was not dismantled for many years; according to some rumours she was not completely broken up until 2002. [114][118] Evans had performed the manoeuvre four times over the course of the night. Their actions and behaviour left nothing to be desired. [150] The only cost to the RAN would have been the modifications required to make the carrier operationally compatible with the RAN's primarily British-designed fleet. Left: A Royal Navy Westland Whirlwind. Our sources include the logs and reports of proceedings. of 2 Download Low Res Image Order a copy Download Low Res Image Order a copy Description Crew members aboard HMAS Vampire. Occurring off the New South Wales coast in 1964, the aircraft carrier Melbourne and destroyer Voyager were engaged in night flying exercises when Voyager inexplicably turned in front of Melbourne's bow. [121] The board found Evans partially at fault for the collision, but also faulted Melbourne for not taking evasive action sooner, even though international sea regulations dictated that in the lead-up to a collision, the larger ship was required to maintain course and speed. All of Melbournes available boats were ordered into the water while inflatable life rafts were deployed, scrambling nets prepared and other preparations made to receive and care for survivors. [94], A Joint RAN-USN board of inquiry was established to investigate the incident, and was in session over June and July 1969. [8][9] Incorporation of new systems and enhancements caused the cost of the RAN carrier acquisition program to increase to AU8.3million. In April 1946 the RAN received prime ministerial permission to investigate the establishment of a naval Fleet Air Arm along British lines. A flash appeared to come from Voyagers A Boiler, and she emitted high pressure steam and black smoke. [23] The modifications cost A$8.5million, and included an overhaul of the hull and machinery, strengthening of the flight deck, improvements to the catapult and arrestor cables, modification of the aviation fuel systems and flight control arrangements, and upgrades of the navigational aids and radar. HMAS Melbourne was originally one of six Majestic Class light fleet aircraft carriers ordered for the Royal Navy (RN) during World War II. [151], The deal was put on hold in April 1982, following the outbreak of the Falklands War. Melbourne received a warm and colourful reception in Western Australia and there was great media interest in her arrival. Melbourne maintained this commitment with the Strategic Reserve and later with ANZUK forces, participating in many exercises conducted under the auspices of the South East Asia Treaty Organisation (SEATO). [23] On 24 August 1973, Melbourne returned to Hawaii to participate in RIMPAC 73. The Melbourne-Evans collision was a collision between the light aircraft carrier HMAS Melbourne of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) and the destroyer USS Frank E. Evans of the United States Navy (USN). The crew formed the caption 20,000 LANDINGS on the flight deck to be photographed by helicopter. En route, on 2 August, she participated in the search for survivors from the collier Birchgrove Park which had foundered north of Port Jackson the previous night resulting in the loss of ten lives. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Upon her return to Sydney, Melbourne commenced preparations for a major refit and modernisation, conducted at Garden Island Dockyard, to enable her to operate her new aircraft. [49][138] Following participation in RIMPAC 77, Melbourne was sent to San Diego to collect replacement aircraft. The collision of HMAS Melbourne and HMAS Voyager remains the Royal Australian Navy's (RAN) worst peacetime disaster. [151] The performance of Invincible and other Royal Navy aircraft carriers during the conflict showed that the report which suggested reductions in the size of Britain's carrier fleetwith the follow-on effect of making Invincible available for salewas flawed, and both sides withdrew from the deal in July. She departed Singapore on 3 July and arrived back in Sydney, after disembarking her aircraft at Jervis Bay, on 15 July. [151] A 2012 article in Jane's Navy International stated that the large quantity of equipment recovered from Melbourne "undoubtedly helped" Admiral Liu Huaqing secure the Chinese government's support for his proposal to initiate an aircraft carrier development programme.[164]. SEALION concluded on 13 May at Singapore. A veteran from the HMAS Melbourne and HMAS Voyager collision on February 10, 1964 that killed 82 people believes changes to floodlighting on the aircraft carrier caused Australia's worst peacetime . While Melbourne was undergoing temporary repairs in Singapore, the ship's band spend time at the Singapore School for the Blind. Work resumed on Melbourne in 1949 at which time it was decided to increase the size of the flight deck lifts to accommodate the larger aircraft coming into service. [73] The rest of the year was spent visiting Australian and New Zealand ports. [39], From March 1965 until mid-1967, Melbourne underwent a regular pattern of deployments to Southeast Asia, exercises, and flag-showing visits to nations in the Asia-Pacific region. Rank/Class/Branch. They reflect the period in which they were created and are not the views of the National Archives. A Sea Venom on one of Melbourne's flight deck lifts. [93] Several of the Southeast Asian deployments were related to the IndonesiaMalaysia confrontation, and involved participation in show of force exercises off the coast of Malaysia. [32] During this refit, on 3 March, a boiler explosion caused minor damage to the carrier. She then went on to visit Hong Kong before proceeding to Singapore to participate in the SEATO exercise SEA SERPENT, which in 1963 was being conducted congruently in Manila and Singapore. The integrity of the initial Board of Inquiry has since been questioned, particularly as it was presided over by Rear Admiral Jerome H King, USN, the officer in overall tactical command of Evans at the time of the collision. [1] In mid-1971, the Australian military's Joint Planning Committee considered using Melbourne as a transport to help complete the withdrawal of the Australian Task Force from Vietnam before the end of 1971. [17][71] On return to Sydney, Melbourne entered a short refit, which concluded on 13 October and was immediately followed by a visit to Port Phillip, where the carrier was displayed to Australian Army and Royal Australian Air Force officer cadets before the carrier returned to Sydney. [150] In the late 1960s, the British made a similar offer, following a 1966 review indicating that HMSHermes was a superfluous naval unit. [45] In 1969, the RAN purchased another ten A-4G Skyhawks, instead of the proposed seventh and eighth Oberon-class submarines. [14] These carriers were intended as "disposable warships": to be disposed of at the end of World War II or within three years of entering service. Melbourne undergoing trials at Barrow-in-Furness, England 1956. Abaft the funnel, an SPN-35 carrier-controlled approach radar was mounted within a dome, and on the lattice mast a new tactical air navigation (TACAN) aerial and electronic countermeasures (ECM) pods were mounted. HMA Ship List 1911-1939. The Gannet fleet was grounded pending an investigation and was cleared to recommence flying operations on 12 February. Sources are inconsistent regarding who attempted to purchase. [4] Work progressed on Majestic at a slower rate, as she was upgraded with the latest technology and equipment. All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, age, color, sex (including pregnancy . Then we want you! 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