SEAMANSHIP FEAT

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 61, Issue 247, 31 July 1941, Page 3

SEAMANSHIP FEAT

400 MILES WITHOUT RUDDER. DAMAGED IN AIR ATTACK. (P.A.) WELLINGTON, July 30. The adventures of a New Zealand Shipping Company vessel which ran the enemy’s aerial blockade in the Mediterranean just after Italy had entered the war were described by Captain E. E. Tether, Marine Superintendent or the company, in an address at t'he luncheon 6f the Wellington Returned Soldiers’ Association to-day. He paid a tribute to the marvellous work of the merchant navy, from ships’ masters to potato peelers, and gave this one particular instance of the risks run by merchant shipping in time of war. This ship, said Captain Tether, was on her way to England via Suez, just at the time of Italy’s *>ntry into the war. At Alexandria the master was sent for by Admiral Cunningham and was asked if he would accept the doubtful honour of taking the ship to Malta with greatly needed supplies. This involved running what might prove to be a blockade. The master asked for a couplo of high-angle guns, and was given two off a warship, no others being available.

His ship and two others then set out, and as expected, were attacked by dive-bombers. Several bombs were dropped miles away by Italians, but an aeroplane apparently piloted by a German made three determined attacks from a lower level than the other aeroplanes. . The first bomb hit the wireless cabin and killed the operator. The second struck the aft gun mounting and put out of action the two high-angle guns and the steering gear. The pilot came back, and with his last bomb scored a near miss right alongside the main injector. Water came into the ship and almost reached the furnaces before the engineers were able to, stop the leak with timber. They were then about 400 miles from Malta, and were expecting more raiders. Fortunately it was a twin-screw ship, and they carried on, steering by the engines. Talking to Captain Tether later, the mate of the ship said that when the action was on, it was ■nothing. So great was the excitement that he did not realise that a piece of one of the high-angle guns had been blown through the funnel on to the bridge until he picked the piece up afterwards; but after the bombers bad gone and the crew realised! that they could not reach Malta before daylight next day, and that more bombers would come after them—“that was the hell of it.”

At daybreak every man on the. ship, whether on watch or not, was on deck, smoking cigarette after cigarette, and watching for aeroplanes in the highest possible tension. Raiding aeroplanes did come; but fortunately the Navy had been informed, and was on the spot, with the result that five bombers were shot down, and none of them got near the merchant ships, which reached, Malta safely with the necessary supplies. The master received a civilian decoration.

Captain P. S'. Peterson, the harbourmaster, said that the ship was well known in New Zealand, and was regarded from the point of view of manoeuvrability as a “perfect beast.” That was with a rudder. “How he got her 400 miles without a rudder, heats me,” he added.