WINTER CRUISE TO ISLANDS

Southland Times, Issue 23538, 18 June 1938, Page 7

WINTER CRUISE TO ISLANDS

H.M.S. Achilles Sails For Tonga FOUR NAVAL VESSELS TO MAKE VISIT (Special to The Times) AUCKLAND, June 17. On her usual winter cruise to the Pacific Islands, the flagship of the New Zealand Division of the Royal Navy, H.M.S. Achilles, left the Devonport naval base this afternoon for Tonga. In command was Commodore Glennie, who is making his last visit to the i»lands before he relinquishes command of the sea-going squadron early next year after the cruiser has gone to England for her periodic recommissioning. The Achilles is the third of the ships of the squadron to leave for the islands this winter. Two escort vessels, H.M.S. Wellington and H.M.S. Leith, left recently from Sydney, where they had been docked during a visit of about five weeks for the installation of certain additional equipment. Now the only sea-going warship left at Devonport is H.M.S. Leander, which will leave on July 6 for a winter cruise to the islands. The special duty of the Leander will be to take the Governor-General (Lord Galway) for his first visit to Western Samoa, Niue, Rarotonga, and other islands of the Cook group since he has been Governor-General of New Zealand. The last such visit to the islands administered by the New Zealand Government was by Lord Bledisloe in 1933. Although these winter cruises by ships of the New Zealand station have been commonplace for many years, this year’s combined visits by four ships will cover a particularly comprehensive field. Almost every island group of importance under the British flag will be visited, and courtesy calls will also be paid to American and French island ports. In addition to performing the valuable function of “flying the flag” in Imperial outposts which have little contact with the rest of the world, the visits are also regarded as important in that they give the big number of Royal Navy officers, who pass through the New Zealand station, an intimate knowledge of possible zones of operation in the Pacific. The Achilles will be the first ship to return to Auckland, being due back on August 1, her last port of call being Suva. She will make a short visit to southern ports before leaving for England, probably late this year. The next to return to Auckland will be the Leander, which is due on August 19. On July 22, the Leander has a rendezvous at Fakaofu to embark the acting Administrator for Western Samoa (Mr A. C. Turnbull), who is to be taken back to Apia. The two escort vessels, which will spend the last few days of their itinerary at Sydney, will not return to Auckland until September, H.M.S. Wellington at present being due on September 9, and H.M.S. Leith on the following day.