NEW ZEALAND NAVY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20366, 21 September 1929, Page 12

NEW ZEALAND NAVY.

tfAil/F IN RECRtll'flNG.

TJO MORE FOR TWO YEARS.

REFITTING OF CRUISERS.

PROGRAMME FOR MANOEUVRES

"The Navy was never flioro popular in England than it is to-day, and the Standard, of recruits is.really higher than before the. war; it, is regrettable that ovying to the extensive refittings planned for the cruisers Diomede.and Dunedin, recruiting of-New Zcalanders must cease for'about two years," said Commodore Geoffrey Blake, D.5.0., the new commodore: of the Now Zealand Division of the Royal Navy, after his arrival from Wellington in the flagship Dunedin yesterday.

Recruits in great numbers were coming forward, to-join, tho Navy in Great Britain,; and there was no difficulty in eeciiring mor> of the highest standard, said the commodore. A factor, of course, was the extent of unemployment, through whioh £ho Navy was benefiting by being given a wider choice than over. Why should riot the Navy bo popular, he asked, since to day it rankod as one of the very best, professions open to young men. Good pay ; liberal leave, and really, in tlie main,' a gjtfoid time, 'offered attracjlion's, enptigh. r . . .. ' '

It was an unpleasAnt necessity that recruiting of New Zealhnders must, cease for ,the.tiext two years, but the Diornede Would leaon Octobpr 1 for England, via Manama, to refit, and would not be ready to return to tho New Zealand station :> rintil about October of next year. Then the. Dunedin would be sent Home lor the same purpose. Recruiting in New jZealand' had attained fair proportions, and. Cist' year. 68 men had been accepted, However,' although the brake must be applied temporarily, the one cruiser remaining In' New Z'mlind waters would continue to carry put exercises on the mujji. plan, and next March, the New Zealand navai and military forces would carry out combined manoeuvres at Akaroa. - v • , ,

/ > Probably the air arm of the Dominion forces would 'join the navy and military in thepe exercises, and it was quite likely that whop th&VHobsonville air base was fully established manoeuvres would be carried out at" Auckland by the fighting aircraft arid cruisers in' conjunction. It was very, doubtful whether the Dunedin. and Diomede would over carry aircraft, although it was an interesting fact that they had originally been designed to do so. Before the completion of the however, it had been decided not to complete the plans for a catapultlaunching apparatus on each, although jjart of txie' semi-constructed platforms remained. ' "

•The New Zealand cruisers were really quite modern in type and armament—more so than some' other light cruisers irj .regular- service with British fleets—and the remainder of their class were doing duty at present with tho Atlantic Fleet. Th« first cruise of the Dunedin under he#..hew command would commence on October. 2, when th«i cruiser would leave for. Akaroa, Lytteltou and Dunedin. '■ ' ■ ......