Navy News, May 3, 1999

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May 3, 1999

		Dingy Remembers Eighty-one-year-old Alex "Dingy" Bell sat down with his mates of the Clearance Divers Association at the Kirribilli RSL Club on ANZAC Day and remembered the day in 1944 when a Japanese fighter strafed his landing craft and he lost his right eye.

		STUART Slides In It is all go for the construction of the 10 vessel ANZAC class of warship being built by the Australian shipbuilders Tenix. Three are already commissioned and in service with the Australian and New Zealand navies while a fourth begins final sea trials in a few days.

		Lifesaving Dash by Boat The RAN patrol boat HMAS WARRNAMBOOL (LCDR Mark Shelvey) has dashed for 12 hours through 10 metre high waves to save the lives of two yachtsmen forced into a life raft after their yacht sank 140 nautical miles east of Sydney late last month.

		Former Sailor Killed A young father, out of the RAN for just 12 months, was stabbed to death in a Sydney street on ANZAC Day when he went to the aid of a young woman who had just been robbed by two men at an ATM.

		Chickens Culled The RAN, in one of its largest and ongoing Defence Aid to the Civil Community operations, has been committed to killing millions of chickens infected or feared infected with the deadly Newcastle disease.

		Hail Shatters Garden Peace Like the civilian community the Navy suffered extensively from the hailstorm which lashed Sydney last month with a damage bill which has already gone into six figures.

		Patrol Boats Busy With Illegal Fisherman Tracking down fish poachers and illegal immigrants is the job of all Australian warships, not just the RAN's 15 patrol boats.

		ONSLOW Finds New Home Although the historic decommissioning of HMAS ONSLOW was a little sad after 30 years of service, she made a short and majestic voyage to her new and welcoming home.

		Three Buoys and A Girl Who said there are no women divers in the Royal Australian Navy. Our photo from SGT Geoff Cox in Darwin shows ABBM Dutchie Dereus (left) and LEUT Cathy Hayes bobbing to the surface in Darwin Harbour at Easter.

		Floating Hospital To Be Put To Test The largest floating hospital within the ADF inventory will soon be put to the test. The hospital, more formally known as a "post casualty reception facility" (PCRF), is nearing completion aboard the amphibious transport HMAS MANOORA.

		TOBRUK is True Blue There were a few chuckles on her bridge when the master of the yacht Kasteel inquired on radio if HMAS TOBRUK was an American ship. The question came at the conclusion of a successful rescue by TOBRUK's helicopter of seven men from the racing yacht Mayhem which had gone aground on Pixie Reef near Cairns.

		HAWKESBURY Trial The second of the RAN's "plastic fantastics" the new fibre-glass minehunters, HAWKESBURY, went to sea for the first time last month. The MHC (Mine Hunter Coastal) is one of six of the 720 tonne minehunters being built for the RAN by ADI Newcastle.

		MELBOURNE'S ORE For Gulf The uses of helicopters and seaboats for boarding were practised extensively by HMAS MELBOURNE and her 220 men and women off the NSW coast last month. The skills honed by the drills will now be used for real as CMDR Peter Jones takes his 4,100 tonne guided missile frigate, the O5, to the Gulf for three months.

		Timely Gift for ARUNTA HMAS ARUNTA (CMDR Greg Yorke) has been presented with a number of special items that belonged to HMAS ARUNTA I. They now take pride of place in the ship.

		ANZAC's Sterling Effort Wins Softball HMAS ANZAC has won the annual HMAS STIRLING softball knockout beating Meet the Feebles, Joint Logistics Unit (West) 15-12.

		TROSS Retains Jubilee HMAS ALBATROSS has again won the 1999 Jubilee Shield hockey knockout. ALBATROSS, the reigning champion, proved too strong for the only fleet team in this year's competition, HMAS HOBART, winning 3-nil.