MINESWEEPER.

Press, Volume LXII, Issue 18670, 20 April 1926, Page 11

MINESWEEPER.

TRAWLER FOR N.Z. (mOJI OUS OWM COBBBSrONDIXX.) i LONDON, March 10. The announcement is made by the First Lord in his Memorandum on the Navy Estimates that a trawler is being fitted out for tho New Zealand Government for service in minesweeping training. This is a Canadianbullt 125 ft "Castle" type vessel, similar to the class designed by Messrs Smiths' Dock Company, South Shields, In 1917. and of which a number of craft were built for service in the war. These were of 547 tons, 125 ft long between perpendiculars (134Jtt over-all), with a beam of 23jft, and engines of 480 horse-power gave them a speed of 10i knots. They had capacity for 164 tons of coal. The New- Zealand trawler is being fitted out by the Rose Street Foundry and Engineering Company, Limited, at Inverness, under Adrrilralty supervision, and will embark her crew and stores at Sheerness for the voyage to the Antipodes. The equipment of this ship, which is to. be named the Wakakura, has been concerning the High Commissioner's Department for some months. A certain amount of delay has occurred in refitting, but it is hoped to get her away some time next month. Officers and crew now on the New Zealand pay list, who would otherwise have gone out to the Dominion by passenger vessel, have been kept back as a complement for the voyage out. Lieut. R. A. Micdonald, R.N., who has recently been at the torpedo school at Portsmouth, will be in command, and Lieut. A. H. B. Atkinson, R.N., will be second-in-com-mand. Mr W. A. R. Imrie, gunner, R.N., will be chief petty officer. .The crew consists of sixteen ratings. TKreo similar minesweepers' were bought by the Brazilian Government some time ago. One of these reached its destination in South America; the other two foundered. The commanding officer of the Wakakura has been reminded of these casualties, just to show him he has no easy task before him to get his ship out to New Zealand waters. If all goes well, the passage will take three months. The difficulty will be with regard to coal, and a long route has had to be chosen ao that the ports of call may be as numerous as possible.

The Itinerary. After leaving Sheerness the Wakakura will tail down the French coast and on to Lisbon. She will then make for Tenerlffe, and down the coast of Africa-' to Cape Verde. From there she sails to Barbados, half-way across the Atlantic, and ao on to Colon, at the entrance to the Panama Canal. A call will be made at* Balina Crui, on the west coast of Mexico, and San Diego, at the boundary between California and Lower California. A long Stretch ot about 2000 miles will then have to be covered to Honolulu, another long stretch to Fiji, and bo on to Auckland. The danger In this voyage lies in the necessity of carrying a maximum amount of coal for the long sectiohß. Every available space will have to be used'for coal, and heavy weather will considerably jeopardise-the ship. There will be little or no comfort for the crew. The main object of the commander will be to «V»d« bad weather, bat naturally he will have to take hie chances during the long sections Of the voyage.