Anniversary of USS Pueblo Incident

The USS Pueblo, captured off the coast of North Korea in 1968, is a symbol of the deep mistrust between North Korea and the United States.

It has been said by the North Koreans "A spy boat monitoring ship movements and military transmission from just off the coast."

Despite unexpected progress at talks on North Korea's nuclear programme and talk from US president George Bush of a formal end to the Korean War, the Pueblo remains a symbol of the tense relations between Pyongyang and Washington.

Reemans New Book In Progress

As Rough As It May Seem,It's Still Steady As You Go...

Path of the Storm
Hutchinson, 1966
Hong Kong, 1960s ... The old submarine-chaser USS Hibiscus, re-fitting in a Hong Kong dockyard before being handed over to the Nationalist Chinese, is suddenly ordered to the desolate island group of Payenhau. For Captain Mark Gunnar - driven by the memory of his torture at the hands of Viet Cong guerillas - the new command is a chance to even the score against a ruthless, unrelenting enemy. But Payenhau is very different from his expectations, and as the weather worsens a crisis develops that Gunnar must face alone. I' m reading his 42 year classic as we speak. It was in a book box in the basement. Smells rather musty,but still readable.



Douglas Reeman's most recent novels are Heart of Oak, written as Alexander Kent, which will be launched on 4 January 2007, and Knife Edge, launched in 2004.

Heart of Oak
William Heinemann, 2007
It is February 1818, and Adam Bolitho longs for marriage and a safe personal harbour. But with so much of Britain's fleet redundant, he knows he is fortunate to be offered HMS Onward, a new 38-gun frigate whose first mission is not war but diplomacy, as consort to the French frigate Nautilus.
Under the burning sun of North Africa, Bolitho is keenly aware of the envy and ambition among his officers, the troubled, restless spirits of his midshipmen, and the old enemy's proximity. It is only when Nautilus becomes a sacrificial offering on the altar of empire that every man discovers the brotherhood of the sea is more powerful than the bitter memories of an ocean of blood and decades of war.


Knife Edge
McBooks Press, 2005

January 1970, and the final chapter in the Blackwood history appears to have closed with the murder in Cyprus of Lieutenant-Colonel Mike Blackwood, and the subsequent sale of the ancestral home. Disillusioned and grieving for his distinguished father, Lieutenant Ross Blackwood believes there is no future for him in the Corps. The Royal Marines have been reduced in strength, and their role in a modern world, after so splendid a tradition, diminished to policing and paperwork.
But Ross remains a Blackwood and a Royal Marine, and the loyalty and dedication of a Blackwood to the Corps sustain him from vicious guerrilla warfare in Malaysia through the moral and political minefields of Northern Ireland, where one man's terrorist is another's patriot, to the South Atlantic, and a conflict as bloody as it is unpredictable.
And he learns, as every Blackwood has before him, that jungle or moor, insurrection or invasion, mere courage is not enough. Survival and victory balance on the knife edge of destiny.

A real stinker.. gas masks and all...Beauty bath!!

As Rough As It May Seem,It's Still Steady As You Go...

FOUR navy sailors narrowly escaped death when they were "gassed" aboard an Armidale class patrol boat.

The fleet inspectors, who conduct war readiness inspections aboard navy vessels, were asleep on HMAS Maitland in Darwin when they were overcome by hydrogen sulphide (rotten egg) gas in the spare bunk room.

The gas was generated by a failure of the boat's sewage treatment plant, a defence spokesman said.

The fault has not been fully rectified and the accommodation areas on the Armidales remain off-limits.

Despite the seriousness of the incident, it was kept a secret by the navy.

"All casualties have been provided with the best standard of medical care available post-incident and have been regularly followed up by both military and civilian medical staff," the spokesman said.

According to the navy, operating restrictions implemented after the August 2006 emergency remain in place on the boats, known by their crews as "Armifails".

Both the navy and Comcare investigated the gassing incident and recommended "configuration" changes.

"As a precaution, compartment restrictions and monitoring remain in place until technical feasibility studies are completed and any subsequent configuration changes can be implemented," the spokesman said.

According to the 2007 defence annual report the Armidale boats, which are designed and built to commercial rather than naval operating standards, achieved just 60 per cent of their performance targets for the year.

Sailors serving on the $40 million boats say they are riddled with faults, and morale is at rock bottom. And according to navy sources, crews are leaving in droves to join the mining boom.

The 14 boats were built by West Australian company Austal, under a $550 million contract, to replace the ageing but reliable Fremantle class fleet.

The entire Armidale fleet was tied up last year due to a water/fuel contamination problem.

Other problems with the boats include blocked toilets, lack of personal storage space, American two-pronged 115-volt power points, unsecured anchors, inadequate lighting, communications failures, and lack of training.

The navy defended the Armidales, saying that just one of 12 now in service was tied up with problems.

HMAS Maitland has been deployed, the first time an Australian has participated in this 22nd Indian Ocean Fleet Exercise named MILAN 2008. 13 nations have been invited to participate, 9 will show for sure. Eight nations with 20 ships are expected to be apart of the exercise.

Hope the shelia is all "spic and span" and tighter than a "mud puppy". Oh she smells wonderful. Follow us in for the fresh-tivities will ya!!

Hairy Band Of Mates it seems...the whole lot of ya!

As Rough As It May Seem,It's Still Steady As You Go...


Sensational 'sets' on HMAS Perth during Movember

By LEUT Andrew Silver
HMAS Perth during Movember

A few heads turned when the crew of HMAS Perth (CMDR M.H. Miller) came alongside on Friday 24 November sporting moustachioed upper lips. After spending three weeks at sea, the ship's company had grown an array of moustaches, goatees and beards, in support of 'Movember', a fund-raising initiative and awareness program in support of male specific illnesses, principally prostate cancer and depression. Both males and females donned the hairy upper lip, raising over $2,000 for the worthy cause.

ABCSO Julian Canaider initiated the fund-raising effort, collecting pledges while HMAS Perth participated in the Anti-Submarine Warfare Exercise (ASWEX) and PWO sea assessments. The ship's company was at 'lazy shavers' throughout the period.

"We were definitely flat out over the first three weeks in November, ASWEX meant long hours, but the unshaven looks around the ship always got a laugh," said AB Canaider. "When we shaved in our mo's there were a few strange ones, I don't think anyone had the same look."

While the males grew real moustaches, the women donned fake upper lip hair that would have made Magnum P.I. proud. Overall the fundraising effort was a success, with the Perth crew looking forward to creating a tradition and ditching the razors in November for a very worthwhile cause.

ANZAC memorial Aussies, Newzzies, Newfies

As Rough As It May Seem,It's Still Steady As You Go...

After leaving Athens Toronto sailed directly for Aksaz, Turkey – one of their main naval bases. The landscape in that part of Turkey reminded me a lot of British Columbia. Large hills rose from the sea, creating coves for countless private yachts and perfect natural barriers to protect the base. Apart from 50% of the crew getting tattoos (including myself), and buying leather coats on the cheap, there wasn’t too much to do in Marmaris – the closest real city to the base at Aksaz.

Marmaris was a beautiful, and seemingly rich, port city. The ship receives “R&R” funds and is allowed to spend this money on events for the whole ship’s company. Some of the things we’ve done with these funds include: sharkdiving in Cape Town; scuba diving in the Seychelles; and, from Aksaz, a tour of the dramatic ruins of Ephesus and the last known dwelling place of the Virgin Mary in Turkey.

Upon leaving the harbour at Aksaz our Task Group conducted an asymmetric threat exercise. The Turkish forces sent small boats at high speeds out at us to simulate a small boat attack. They were also supposed to have low flying aircraft, however a massive thunderstorm rolled in just as we slipped the jetty and all the aircraft were grounded for the duration of the exercise.

In the following days the original plan was to conduct a series of exercises with the Turkish navy, and then head to Izmir – Turkey’s second largest city. However, plans changed and we ended up heading to Istanbul instead.

FORGOTTEN ROYAL NEWFOUNDLANDERS REGIMENT


We passed through the historic Dardanelles where Australian, New Zealand, British, French, and Newfoundland regiments fought and died during the Gallipoli campaign in World War One. It was a significant battle that doesn’t get too much publicity in our history classes, mainly because there were so few Canadians that fought there. However, in Australia and New Zealand, it is the reason for ANZAC day. It is sort of the equivalent to the Battle of Vimy Ridge for Canada. This was where their national identity was founded, and every year on the 25th of April tens of thousands of ANZACs hold an elaborate ceremony of remembrance there.

Fighting alongside the ANZACs was the Royal Newfoundland Regiment. 49 Newfoundlanders died there during that campaign, and very few people know this. Now, however, there are at least 47 Canadian sailors that know about it and have been to the Canadian gravesite on Hill 10 at Gallipoli. The ship organized a tour on Remembrance Day to go to Gallipoli with a small contingent and hold a ceremony there. The peninsula that the campaign was fought on is approximately 4 hours from Istanbul by bus. So while the rest of the crew conducted a ceremony aboard Toronto, 47 members of the ship woke up at 0500 hrs to get on a bus to Gallipoli.

We first stopped at a few of the ANZAC memorial sites, then we asked the tour guide and bus driver if they could take us to the Canadian grave sites. They had trouble finding it because nobody had ever asked them to go there. Our ceremony on Hill 10 was very simple. There was no music (because our stereo broke!), but PO1 Skinner – a Newfie himself – gave a very stirring speech, which happened to bring several other people to tears.

It was a very unique experience to be a part of such a somber yet simple ceremony in a faraway land for such a little known campaign. There aren’t too many people that know Newfoundlanders died on Turkish soil, and there certainly aren’t too many people that have done Remembrance Day ceremonies at Gallipoli.

SHOPPING BAZAAR STYLE


The following day I took a walk through Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar, where thousands of shops and even more people sprawl through a huge section of the city’s “old quarter”. I walked through the Topkapi palace, centre of power for the Ottoman Empire and dwelling site of countless emperors. The only way I can describe it is: supremely extravagant. The halls were lined with 13th century carpets, thrones laced with diamonds, rubies, and inlaid with mother of pearl. And the view from the Caliph’s bedchambers is unmatched anywhere else.

Istanbul felt like the centre of the universe. It’s the only city to straddle two continents, Asia and Europe. It sits at the crossroads of so much commerce, and seems to be geographically at the centre of everything. Its population is so nomadic and fluid that the only number they can put on how many people actually live there is an estimation between 12 and 15 million.

BROWNY POINTS

I know it sounds cliché to write about how much I love my job…but I really love my job. It sounds like I’m constantly brown-nosing. I’m not denying that these articles do give me some serious brownie points, but what else can I write? They send me all over the world to learn my job – how could I complain about that? I get paid (a lot) to travel and to represent my country. Sometimes the job is hard, like a 72 hour boarding, or a 48 hour SAR operation in the Red Sea – but it’s all worth it. And I don’t care if it sounds like I’m sucking up. I love my job.