Reunion of cruiser ships’ companies

Press, 9 March 1982, Page 9

Reunion of cruiser ships’ companies

TIMARU REPORTER , ■ Those men who served in the cruisers H.M.S. Bellona, H.M.S. Black Prince, and ! H.M.N.Z.S. Royalist, will I muster at Timaru at Labour Day week-end for a unique . ‘‘get together” — the first ■ reunion in Zealand, of cruiser ships’ companies.* Organised by the South Canterbury branch of the Royal New Zealand ExNavalmen’s Association, it will be a reminder not only of the halcyon days before World War II but also an aide-memoire of the bonds , forged among the Dido class cruisers in many theatres of war. notably the Arctic, Atlantic, and Mediterranean. H.M.S. Bellona and HMS. Black Prince were handed over to the Royal New Zealand Navy in 1948. Eight years later, the Bellona was» replaced by H.M-N.Z.S. Royalist. The reunion will be held as close as possible to Trafalgar Day (October 21). Registrations were sent to about 500 former personnel. So far, there;; have been 100 acceptances.. Last year, the Royal New Zealand Navy; Band visited Timaru and the band has agreed to return to the city and play at the reunion. The combination will also give a public display. , It is fitting that.the reunion should take place in Timaru. The White Ensign is sanctified in the Chapel of St Michael’and All Angels, in St Mary’s Anglican Church: it is bprne With pride on special occasions — Trafalgar Day. Anzac Day, and at. the annual Seafarers' service. It is expected that about 500 former cruiser men and their wives will assemble at the Bay Hall on October 22. The next day, there will be bus excursions, golf, a harbour cruise, scenic flights,

and a cabaret at the Aorangi Stadium. A church parade will take place on Sunday, October 24, and there will be a service at St Mary’s Church. The reunion will end with a “champagne” breakfast on Labour Day, October 25. Many of those attending the reunion will recall the days when escort vessels ran the gauntlet of German and Italian sea and air attacks en route to the beleaguered island of Malta, fought off Crete and in the Gulf of Sirte, and fought battles of a •heroic kind from the Norwegian and Barents Seas to Murmansk at the head of the Kola inlet. " ■ \ It was an era which saw the advent of the Dido class cruisers. ■■ Theirs was a hazardous

mission. The convoys passed through miles of enemy-held territory. The Luftwaffe had air superiority. The sea was patrolled by most of the surviving enemy fleet and Üboats. Both the Bellona and the Black Prince, an anti aircraft cruiser, were on Arctic co-'voys, sailing under conditions that bordered on the limits of human endurance. The cold was so intense that no amount of clothing could keep it out, and the spray froze on masts, rigging, and decks as it fell inboard, so that it was a- constant struggle to keep the guns in working order. . H.M.S. Bellona was in the last two convoys to encounter serious opposition,' and also in JW66, one of the last six Arctic convoys.