Ferries tied up

Press, 30 August 1976, Page 1

Ferries tied up

PA Wellington Cook Strait ferries would not be manned by officers if soldiers were

used to get them sailing, it was said last night.

The secretary of Merchant Service Guild (Captain J. W. Dickinson) said his members had a longstanding policy of refusing to work with non-union labour.

The Government is believed to be considering using soldiers to untie the ferries from their terminals—a job normally done by the striking Wellington Harbour Board workers.

The three Cook Strait ferries and the Rangatira have not sailed since Thursday night, because of the presence of the nuclear-powered U.S.S. Truxtun in Wellington harbour.

Captain Dickinson said the officers were unlikely to work if a naval crew were provided for the ferries.

Mr Dave Morgan, president of the Seamen’s Union, said that his members would take a very serious view of any attempt to man the ferries with servicemen.

Thousands of ferry passengers and tonnes of freight have been stranded in Wellington and Picton by the ferry strike. Hotel accommodation in Wellington was fully booked tonight as stranded travellers and sailors from the Truxtun bedded down for another night. More than 20.000 tonnes

of freight is in the Railways Department’s pipeline, awaiting a ferry crossing of Cook Strait, and no more is being accepted. The railways airsea services manager (Mr R. D. Munro) said the department would start accepting freight for the ferries when the back-log was cleared. Safe Air made four special Bristol Freighter flights across Cook Strait on Saturday to carry ferry passengers and their cars, at the request of the Railways Department. Ten cars were carried. N.A.C. ran two return Friendship flights from Wellington to Blenheim, and one to Nelson, yesterday, to carry ferry passengers.

The Engineers’ Union, which covers airport ground staff, was not happy tonight with suggestions that Air Force Hercules aircraft would be used across Cook Strait tomorrow. The R.N.Z.A.F. has five Hercules planes based with No. 40 Squadron at Whenuapai, near Auckland. Mr Brian Landers, secretary of the Union’s Wellington branch, said ground staff would no doubt make up their own minds whether to work if the Government brought in Hercules aircraft to shift cargo.