NAVAL COMMAND

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 23058, 8 June 1938, Page 14

NAVAL COMMAND

! CEREMONIAL OF CHANGE . transfer of pendants SALUTES TO BE FIRED OFFICERS' NEW TITLES A -ceremony which occurs only once every three years will take place at the Devonport Naval Base to-day, when Rear-Admiral the Hon. E. R. Drummond will officially lay down the command of the New Zealand Division of the Royal Navy, which ho has held since ApHl 26, 1935. The act will also mark a change in the title of the Bonior officer at the base, for instead of being Commodore Commanding tho New Zealand Station, his successor, Commodore I. G. Glennie, will be styled Commodore Commanding the New Zealand Squadron! This is a result of the arrangements made recently for a division in tho responsibility for commanding tho division. Tho senior naval officer in New Zealand will be Commodore H. E. Horan, Chief. of Naval Staff, who arrived from England this week and is stationed at Wellington, but Commodore Glennie, whoso rank as commodore dates from to-day, will command tho soil-going squadron and will move into the commodore's cabin on the flagship, H3I.S. Achilles. Departure Heir-Admiral Drummond's broad pendant as commodore will fly from the. masthead of the , Achilles for the last time to-day, although the rearadmiral himself left for Wellington last night for a short final visit before returning in order to leave New Zealand by the. tlnion Company's transtasman liner Awatea on Friday. The first step in the coremonial attached' to the change in command will be taken this morning at 8 o'Clock, when C6mmodore Glennie will hoist his first broad pendant in the depot Bhip Philomel. At the same time the new commodore will salute the retiring commodore with 11 guns from the the shore battery at the base. Simultaneously the broad pendant . of Rear-Admiral Drummond will be run up on his behalf in the Achilles and Commodore Glcnnie's salute will b<3 returned by the flagship's gups. The pendant on the Achilles will be kept flying until sunset and will _ then be hauled down for tho last time. The transfer of broad pendants will be completed to-morrow morning, when, at 8 o'dopk, Commodore Glennie's pendant will be broken out from the masthead of the Achilles. Another Salute Possible Further salutes will possibly be fired ; at the same time. It may be decided > that the commander of the other cruiser, Captain J. W. Rivett-Carnac, of the Leander, which is expected to .come out of Calliope Dock this afternoon, will salute the new pendant. If such a decision is made the Leander will first salute Commodore Glennie's broad pendant and the Achilles will rei turn the salute on his behalf. The change in Commodore Glennie's rank will' also necessitate a modificaI tion in his uniform. In place of the four narrow bands of a eaptain on the cuffs of hia coat, he will have a single broad band. A single broad band and a i single narrow band distinguish the rear-admiral's uniform worn by RearAdmiral Drummond. One of his last official acts was performed by Rear-Admiral Drummond yesterday. Officers and ratings of the ships in port were paraded at the base and the rcar-ndmiral expressed ■ pleasure at his kssociation with them on the New Zealand Station, thanked them for their co-operation, and ! fished them good-luck and good-bye.