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John Currin

15 years in Royal New Zealand Navy

USS YORKTOWN 1944 PUGET SOUND


USS Yorktown (CV/CVA/CVS-10) is one of 24 Essex-class aircraft carriers built during World War II for the United States Navy. Initially to have been named Bonhomme Richard, she was renamed Yorktown while still under construction, after the Yorktown-class aircraft carrier USS Yorktown (CV-5), which was sunk at the Battle of Midway. She is the fourth U.S. Navy ship to bear the name, though the previous ships were named for 1781 Battle of Yorktown. Yorktown was commissioned in April 1943, and participated in several campaigns in the Pacific Theater of Operations, earning 11 battle stars and the Presidential Unit Citation.

Decommissioned shortly after the end of the war, she was modernized and recommissioned in February 1953 as an attack carrier (CVA), and served with distinction during the Korean War. The ship was later modernized again with a canted deck, eventually becoming an anti-submarine carrier (CVS) and served for many years in the Pacific, including duty in the Vietnam War, during which she earned five battle stars. The carrier served as a recovery ship for the December, 1968, Apollo 8 space mission, the first crewed ship to reach and orbit the Moon, and was used in the 1970 film Tora! Tora! Tora!, which recreated the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, and in the 1984 science fiction film The Philadelphia Experiment.

Yorktown was decommissioned in 1970 and in 1975 became a museum ship at Patriots Point, Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, where she was designated a National Historic Landmark.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Yorktown_(CV-10)

HMS Oardacious win World’s Toughest Row and become fastest military team ever

Alex Candlin

17th January 2024 at 1:47pm

HMS Oardacious crew of Rob Clarke, Daniel Seager, Mike Forrester, lan Allen and Matthew Main were the first team to cross the finishing line in Nelson's Dockyard (Picture: Alligin UK).
HMS Oardacious win the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge 2023 and become the fastest military team in the history of the race (Picture: Atlantic Campaigns)

A Royal Navy team of submariners have crossed the finish line in first place in the World’s Toughest Row after sailing across 3,000 miles of the Atlantic Ocean in 35 days, four hours and 30 minutes.

HMS Oardacious arrived in Antigua with a significant lead over the remaining 36-boat fleet – and their time also makes them the fastest Oardacious crew to complete the row as well as the fastest military team.

Commander Matthew Main, Commander Daniel Seager, Commander Michael Forrester, Petty Officer Ian Allan and Lieutenant Rob Clarke also became the first team to travel 100 nautical miles in 24 hours during the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge, better known as the World’s Toughest Row.

“Sometimes it seemed like it would never end,” said Cdr Main.

This year was the third time an HMS Oardacious team had taken part in the competition. 

Beginning their journey on 13 December, the team set off from San Sebastian de la Gomera in the Canary Islands in their boat Captain Jim, named in memory of a former colleague.

They were unable to beat the world record, but did become the fastest military crew to complete the race and also became the first five-man team to lift the title as the race is typically won by teams of four due to the weight advantage.

Their efforts this year have become a major fundraising initiative for the submarine community.

The team have raised £15,000 since leaving the Canaries, and around £70,000 for the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity.

Cdr Main said: “It was pretty challenging. It’s a really long way. I don’t recommend rowing it – fly it!”

He added: “It was amazing. We had a real mixture. We had some really challenging conditions.

“We thought going in challenging weather would make it good for us.

“But overall, it’s been a brilliant experience. It’s demanded a lot of love – and tolerance at times – but these four men are amazing. We made a real bond.

“We had some beautiful times rowing in the moonlight. Racing through the night on big waves. Brilliant fun.”

HMS Oardacious crew of Rob Clarke, Daniel Seager, Mike Forrester, lan Allen and Matthew Main were the first team to cross the finishing line in Nelson's Dockyard (Picture: Alligin UK).
HMS Oardacious crew of Rob Clarke, Daniel Seager, Mike Forrester, lan Allen and Matthew Main were the first team to cross the finishing line in Nelson’s Dockyard (Picture: Alligin UK).

Scientists confirm arrival of bird flu in Antarctic animals with help from HMS Forth

17th January 2024 at 11:28am

HMS Forth pays the island of South Georgia a visit 17122023 CREDIT HMS Forth X
Results confirm High Pathogenicity Avian Influenza (HPAI) has been found in elephant and fur seals on the sub-Antarctic island of South Georgia (Picture: HMS Forth)

The crew of Royal Navy patrol ship HMS Forth, which has resumed South Atlantic duties after nearly a year away, helped scientists confirm for the first time a highly infectious form of bird flu in Antarctic seals and birds.

The ship transported an expert virologist from the UK’s Animal Plant Health Agency (APHA) to the remote island chain of South Georgia after an unusual number of dead birds were noted in the autumn. 

Access to the archipelago, which lies about 800 miles from the Falkland Islands and is barely habited by humans, is only possible by sea as there is no airstrip. 

HMS Forth ferried the APHA’s Dr Marco Falchieri to the islands and helped him take samples from dead wildlife, notably elephant seals and birds.

At labs back in the UK, the samples were found to prove that the disease – officially known as High Pathogenicity Avian Influenza or HPAI – has reached the fringe of Antarctica, probably carried there by migratory birds.

Although not prevalent yet, it is threatening one of the most fragile ecosystems on the planet.

The virus was found in elephant seals, fur seals, brown skuas, kelp gulls and Antarctic terns but has so far not infected the penguin population. 

South Georgia is a British Overseas Territory and part of HMS Forth’s mission, as the Royal Navy’s permanent presence in the South Atlantic, is to regularly patrol the waters.

Forth’s remit is to protect the nation’s interests at sea, whether that means safeguarding fishing stocks in UK waters, or offering reassurance and protection in the Falklands.

The ship also has a flight deck and is armed with an array of weaponry, meaning she can support a range of operations from counter-piracy to anti-smuggling.

Monte Cassino: Remembering the brutal four-month Second World War battle 80 years on

Claire Sadler

17th January 2024 at 9:45am




Watch: Claire Sadler explains why the campaign took four months and four attempts.

The battle of Monte Cassino was a pivotal event in the Italian campaign during the Second World War.

It was one of the bloodiest engagements of the war, and was infamous for its destruction of the monastery.

Monte Cassino eventually resulted in an Allied victory, but it cost 55,000 Allied casualties and the deaths of 2,000 civilians.

Why did it take the Allies four months and four attempts to capture it and secure the route to Rome? Claire Sadler’s video above explains.

HMS Somerset is a Type 23 frigate of the Royal Navy. She is the eleventh ship of the class to join the fleet since 1989.

HMS Somerset

She was built by Yarrow Shipbuilders Ltd on the River Clyde, in Scotland and was launched in June 1994 by Lady Elspeth Layard, wife of then 2nd Sea Lord Admiral and Commander-in-Chief Naval Home Command Admiral Sir Michael Layard. She entered service in 1996. Lady Layard is the ship’s sponsor. She is named after the Dukedom of Somerset.

The fourth Somerset to serve in the Royal Navy, she has inherited four battle honours from previous ships of the name; Vigo Bay (1702), Velez Malaga (1704), Louisburg (1758) and Quebec (1759). The previous ships all served during the 18th century and ensured that the name Somerset played a significant part in that period of naval history.

Somerset’s home port is HMNB Devonport. The ship has the Freedom of the City of Wells and is also affiliated with the County of Somerset, the Worshipful Society of Apothecaries, the 2nd and 4th Battalions of The Rifles (inherited from affiliation with the Royal Green Jackets), TS Weston and TS Queen Elizabeth Sea Cadet Units, Downside, Baytree and Helles Schools, Bridgwater College and the Somerset Legion House of The Royal British Legion. The 19th Duke of Somerset takes a keen interest in the ship and is a regular visitor, and the ship also hosted Harry Patch, Simon Weston (in place of Johnson Beharry) and Marcus Trescothick whilst docked at Avonmouth for a remembrance service to launch the 2008 British Legion Poppy Appeal.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Somerset_(F82)

Keeping the connection going

Thinking about joining the NZ Naval Reserve Force? Lieutenant Commander Jonathan Otto would wholeheartedly encourage it.

Lieutenant Commander Jonathan Otto wears a RNZN uniform and smiles at the camera. Behind him are models and pictures of ships in a wooden cabinet.

18 JANUARY, 2024

For him, it’s getting to do something a bit different from his full-time role, with a different set of challenges. He’s the Cyber Security Operations Manager for Waka Kotahi New Zealand Transport Agency and the Executive Officer of Navy Reserve Force unit HMNZS Olphert, based in Lower Hutt.

He came to Waka Kotahi over two years ago, transitioning to the Royal New Zealand Navy Reserves after a career as a Weapons Engineer and cyber defence specialist in the Royal New Zealand Navy.

Growing up in Howick, Auckland, he attended Santa Maria and Macleans Colleges before completing a Bachelor of Engineering Technology (Electrical).

“I joined the Navy in 2013, starting as a marine engineer officer. I saw a lot of possibilities in the Navy, to do that next step of development beyond a degree. And I felt I had more to learn, as well as becoming a people leader.

“I had a number of really interesting roles in the regular force which led to my specialisation in cyber defence, including as an engineering manager in defence digital, establishing the Navy’s cyber team and in the cyber security and support capability programme.”

He left the Navy feeling great about the experience – which included overseas deployments in frigates – and feeling he’d tackled everything he could do in the defence cyber security role. But he was keen to keep contributing to the Defence Force.

Since joining Olphert, he’s been the Initial Training Officer and now the Executive Officer. “Both roles have given me some great opportunities to broaden my skills and contribute to the unit.

“One of the biggest perks in my view is the sense of comradeship and the culture of working with Navy people which is a difficult concept to explain to those who haven’t experienced it.”

“Another fantastic benefit from being at Olphert is that we have the Reserve Small Arms Training Team attached to the unit, and as such I’ve never been at risk of falling out of date for my Annual Weapons Qualification!”

As well as his specialisation, his officer training has provided a useful skillset in the civilian sector.

“The Navy teaches you about being a leader and looking after a team, particularly during operations. It’s about having a calm, collective approach, when you’re under pressure.

“The Navy Reserves give you some really unique opportunities to both develop new skills, meet like-minded people, contribute to protecting New Zealand’s interests, and get paid to do it.”

USS CALIFORNIA

USS California

USS California (BB-44) was the second of two Tennessee-class battleships built for the United States Navy between her keel laying in October 1916 and her commissioning in August 1921. The Tennessee class was part of the standard series of twelve battleships built in the 1910s and 1920s, and were developments of the preceding New Mexico class. They were armed with a battery of twelve 14-inch (356 mm) guns in four three-gun turrets. California served as the flagship of the Battle Fleet in the Pacific Ocean for the duration of her peacetime career. She spent the 1920s and 1930s participating in routine fleet training exercises, including the annual Fleet Problems, and cruises around the Americas and further abroad, such as a goodwill visit to Australia and New Zealand in 1925.

California was moored in Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941 when the Japanese attacked the port, bringing the United States into World War II. The ship was moderately damaged by a pair of torpedoes and a bomb, but a fire disabled the ship’s electrical system, preventing the pumps from being used to keep the ship afloat. California slowly filled with water over the following three days and eventually sank. Her crew suffered heavy casualties in the attack and four men were awarded the Medal of Honor for their actions during the attack. She was raised in April 1942, repaired and heavily rebuilt, and returned to service in January 1944.

The ship thereafter supported the amphibious operations conducted during the Pacific War, including the Mariana and Palau Islands campaign (though she was damaged in a collision with Tennessee and thus missed the Battle of Peleliu) and the Philippines campaign, during which she took part in the Battle of Surigao Strait. She was hit by a kamikaze during the invasion of Lingayen Gulf in January 1945, but after undergoing repairs, she rejoined the fleet supporting troops fighting on Okinawa during the Battle of Okinawa. Her crew took part in the occupation of Japan after the end of the war, and after returning to the United States via the Indian and Atlantic Oceans, was laid up in Philadelphia in 1946. She remained in the fleet’s inventory until 1959, when she was broken up for scrap.