FINE MODERN SHIP

Evening Post, Volume CXXXVI, Issue 114, 10 November 1943, Page 6

FINE MODERN SHIP

(Special P.A. Correspondent.)

Rec. 1 p.m. '" LONDON, November 9. The Admiralty has handed over to the New Zealand Government H.M.S. Gambia, a 6-inch cruiser of the Mauritius class, and she * has been commissioned for service in the Royal New Zealand Navy. Seventy-five per cent, of the ship's company are New Zealanders. The Gambia is a modern ship, with the latest equipment, and was first commissioned in February, 1942. She served in the Indian Ocean and took part in the Madagascar campaign.

The Gambia was taken over on behalf of the New Zealand Government by the High Commissioner (Mr. W. J. Jordan) who visited the ship, accompanied by Mr. S. R. Skinner, naval affairs officer. It was a simple cere-

mony. The ship's company was drawn. up on the quarterdeck, and Mr. Jor- j dan was received by the commanding officer, Captain N. J. W. William-. Powlett, D.S.C., R.N., who introduced., him to the officers. It was a Sunday1 morning, so a church service was held before Mr. Jordan addressed the ship's , company. It was a typical naval ser- ;

vice, the ship's company standing bareheaded. The cries' of gulls mingled with the strains of the Royal Marines band which played the hymns, while a reminder oi the war was an ack-ack battery testing a few miles away, occasionally dotting the sky" with the black puffs of shellbursts and punctuating the prayers with explosions. A picturesque touch was given by dockyard workers who sat on. places overlooking the deck and lined the dock alongside. ':. _„.„. ■After the service Captain WilliamPowlett briefly introduced Mr. Jordan. MR. FRASER'S MESSAGE. The High Commissioner iread a message from the Prime Minister, Mr. Fraser, who said, "On behalf of the New Zealand Government I wish to convey to the officers and' men on , the commissioning of the Gambia for service in the Royal New Zealand Navy best wishes for a successful commission. We know you will add to the laurels already gained by the Royal New Zealand Navy, that your ship will prove a source of pride to the colony whose name it bears, and in which the people of Gambia have shown such great interest. The link which you form between the Dominion of New Zealand and the colony of Gambia will, we trust, be a firm and lasting one. Kia Ora." Mr. Jordan said that on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand he wished the ship every success. Men of the Royal New Zealand Navy had already had the opportunity of serving side by side with men of •the Royal Navy, and nothing had given the people of New Zealand a ■greater thrill than hearing satisfaction expressed about them by the First t Lord of the Admiralty. : Captain William-Powlett asked Mr. to convey thanks to the Prime I Minister for his message and to - tell and the Government and people y that "we have here a fine ship. We v intend to do our utmost to make it the f'most efficient ship in the fleets of. the '•'Allied nations, wherever we may ';'. serve or in whatever units we may »' serve." After this brief ceremony Mr. Jor- ■ dan met the officers in the wardroom, lunched with the captain, and then '*' spent an hour going round the ship, ;* meeting New Zealanders in thevari- :. ous messes. When he asked, "Well, : gentlemen, how are you getting on?" "they replied that they found the quarters much- more cramped than within previous "ships. Mr. Jordan learned thattrfis was accounted for by the various types of new equipment, which requires extra personnel. COMMANDER'S RECORD. Several New Zealanders serving in the Gambia formerly served in a ship well known throughout New Zealand, and some in H.M.N.Z.S. Monowai. Captain William-Powlett is a brother of Captain P. R. B. W. WilliamPowlett, who commanded H.M.S. Dunedin in 1935 when she was on loan to New Zealand. He won the D.S.C. at Jutland as a sub-lieutenant in H.M.S. Tipperary, which was sunk in that action. Lord Jellicoe's recommendation for the decoration stated: "This officer showed wonderful coolness under most trying circumstances, and his pluck and cheerfulness after his ship was sunk were certainly the means of saving the lives of several •who would otherwise have given in or succumbed. I cannot speak too highly of this officer's conduct." He was appointed captain on December 31, 1928, commanding H.M.S. Dauntless. When the Gambia visited Bathurst, the capital of Gambia, she was opened for inspection. The' Governor of Gambia referred to her as "their own ship."The colony subscribed £800 for the ship's company, and also presented a ' silk ensign. The Governor of Gambia has been advised that the ship has been lent to New Zealand. DETAILS OF THE SHIP H.M.S. Gambia is one of a class of twelve 8000-ton cruisers named after British colonies, and is larger and more heavily armed than the Leander class, which displaced about 7000 tons. She is 550 feet long, 62 feet beam, and draws 16£ feet. Her armament includes twelve "6-inch guns,' in four triple v turrets, eight 4-inch, and a number of smaller guns, three aircraft (one catapult); the Leanders have eight 6-inch guns in twin turrets. The Gambia has Parsons geared turbines, of 72,500 horse-power, driving four shafts, and giving a speed of 33 knots. She .was built at Walsend by Swan, Hunter, and Wigham Richardson, laid down in 1939 and completed in 1942. Gambia, after which the cruiser is named, is a small colony in West Africa, a strip of territory along the Gambia River, which flows into the Atlantic south of Dakar, which is at the most westerly point of Africa. . BROADCAST OF CEREMONY The proceedings on the occasion of the Gambia's commissioning will be •broadcast in the Pacific radio newsreel at 7 p.m. today, and rebroadcast after the 9 o'clock news session over national stations tonight. ' ,