OUTSTANDING RECORD

Otago Daily Times, Issue 25849, 21 May 1945, Page 6

OUTSTANDING RECORD

GIANT BRITISH LINERS WAR-TIME SERVICE (Rec. 8 p.m.) RUGBY, May 19. The full story of the magnificent war service from 1940 to V-Day of Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth has been told in London. Since 1940 the liners have steamed over 958,000 miles —equivalent to 38 journeys round the world—to bring safely across the oceans 1,250,000 fighting men of the United Nations. The war-time service of Queen Mary and Queen Elizazbeth began with the first historic meeting of the ocean giants in New York Harbour. Queen Mary was the first to begin transport work, arriving in Sydney on April 17, 1940, and embarking 4000 Austalian troops for Britain. The partnership of Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth began in 1941. At the beginning of November, Queen Elizabeth sailed from New York for Singapore to De fitted out in readiness to join Queen Mary and other transports, carrying New Zealand and Australian troops to Suez. Throughout the summer of 1941 the two liners carried on their trooping service without intermission, and by the end of the year they had carried over 80.000 troops, the majority of whom had reinforced the forces in the Middle East. With the entry of Japan into the war they began their service as transports for United States troops, first from America to Australia and later from America to Britain. Another epic of the merchant navy is disclosed in an account of how eight pleasure steamers—chartered by D-Day planners for cross-channel work —endeavoured to cross the Atlantic in September, 1942. The ships were not designed for Atlantic travel, and were manned by British volunteer crews. The convoy was attacked by a U-boat pack and three of the ships—the Boston, New York, and Yorktown—were torpedoed and sunk, as well as H.M.S. Veteran.

One by one the gallant surviving ships made port in the United Kingdom. All the masters and chief engineers, together with 14 other - officers and ratings, received decorations from the King.