LUCKY LEANDER

Camp News, Volume 2, Issue 90, 19 September 1941, Page 5

LUCKY LEANDER

Cruiser’s Adventures In Middle East

RED SEA CONVOY WORK <

Comparatively little has been heard in recent months of the doings of the cruiser Leander, but from time to time information has been released which shows that though her activities have not leu to the spectacular success which attended her sister ship Achilles in the sinking of the Graf Spee, she has. had adventures of her own and has done excellent work since her departure from New Zealand in May, 1940.

In about 16 months, Leander has travelled more than 100,000 miles — something like five circuits of the globe — and her engines have changed 50,000 tons of fairly expensive fuel into what

the text-books describe as "a tU iU brown haze.” A third of her wardroom officers have been replaced aid also 80 men from the lower deck, mostly Imperial ratings who have gone to join the Royal Navy. All have been replaced by young New Zealanders, the first products of the new and intensive training schemes now in force. All are reported to be shaping very well. News of Leander’s activities in the

Mediterranean and the Red Sea was ought to New Zealand by members of the naval contingent who were in Wellington recently after a period of service in the Middle East. Luck seemed to have smiled on the cruiser from the start, they said. Right at the outset she had been lucky to intercept the Umbriathe ex-German Bahia Blanca with more than 10,000 tons of war materials, including 5000 tons of bombs. The Umbria had been scuttled by'her crew and at 11 o’clock the same night Italy had entered the war.. Had the Umbria escaped to Massawa, all that material would have been used against Britain. In the early part of the war, the Italian bombing raids had been well pressed home, but it had been obvious that they- did not have the bombs.

The Leander had acted as part of the escort of 26 convoys in the Bed Sea and from June till November, 1940, only one ship had been damaged. The average speed of the convoy, on a zig-zag course, was only five knots and enemy flying fields were often only fine minutes’ flying time away. Yet 3.000,000 tons of shipping had been safely escorted and in 13 enemy bombing raids on convoys, only 'one shin, the. Bhima. had been damaged and she had been able to reach port. The. largest convoy had been 53, ships and yet the enemy had not attacked nt. The reason, it was considered, was shortage of fuel and bombs, mainly as a result of f the destruction of the Umbria.-' '

Captured Italian Guns.

Captured in thousands from Tobruk and in the Libyan campaign, Italian Breda guns had been placed on board many British ships and they had been found extremely useful for close-range WO! k. In all the time she has been away Leander has not yet been hit by a shell, though the explosion of a mine near her in Haifa Harbour and a near nils* by a heavy bomb caused some sliglu damage. Not a single member of be' crew has lost his life on board, tliouali two were killed by bomb-blast in an enemy air raid on AlexandriaAt one stage, the Italians were <■ short of bombs that they were drop ping oil-drums filled with scrap-iron one man said. On of these improvised bombs burst near Leander scattering nuts and bolts and pieces of old file* over the deck of the cruiser. Tin crew thought it a huge joke and thi blacksmith was accused of leaving souvenirs about.