Left; a pilot's view of the angled flight deck. [93] During this deployment, the carrier visited Subic Bay, where the RAN performed flight deck trials with S-2 Tracker anti-submarine aircraft and A-4 Skyhawk attack fighters. Upon her return to Sydney, Melbourne commenced preparations for a major refit and modernisation, conducted at Garden Island Dockyard, to enable her to operate her new aircraft. Photo courtesy Lieutenant Commander J Brown. [30][31] The refit was lengthened by industrial action at the dockyard. 82 of Voyager's personnel were killed, and two Royal Commissions were held to investigate the incident. The remainder of the year was spent exercising in Australian waters, including Exercise ASTROLABE in the Tasman Sea, before returning to Sydney for Christmas leave. [19] The flight deck, hangar deck and aircraft lifts were strengthened, and reinforced arrestor cables were installed. [23][note 3] She was sold again in February 1985 to the China United Shipbuilding Company for A$1.4million, with the intention that she be towed to China and broken up for scrap. [164] The carrier was not dismantled for many years; according to some rumours she was not completely broken up until 2002. A joint USN/RAN Board of Inquiry into the tragedy held Captain Stevenson partly responsible, stating that as Commanding Officer of Melbourne, he could have done more to prevent the collision from occurring. [149] Melbourne remained in dock at the start of 1982, and did not leave before the decision regarding her replacement was made. Melbourne rendezvoused with Sydney on 30 April and remained in company until 4 May, when she detached south of Vung Tau for Hong Kong. list price. She participated in Exercises JUC 61 and HOMERUN with USN units off the New South Wales coast in March, before departing Sydney on 24 February for South East Asian waters. [159] A Sydney-based group proposed in 1984 to purchase Melbourne and operate her as a floating casino moored in international waters off Eden, New South Wales, but nothing came of this. [45] In 1969, the RAN purchased another ten A-4G Skyhawks, instead of the proposed seventh and eighth Oberon-class submarines. Corrective action from both ships was required to avoid a collision. [157] The Australian government began to reconsider the previous contenders for replacement, as well as considering requesting the United Kingdom or United States to build a simple carrier capable of operating F/A-18 Hornet strike fighters, but the issue was suspended at the commencement of the 1983 Australian Federal Election. [126] However, an industrial dispute amongst the shipyard workers meant that, although the work was completed in early September, the ship remained in the drydock until 11 October. She participated in the SEATO exercise SEA HAWK in the South China Sea that month at the conclusion of which she visited Hong Kong before proceeding to Singapore conducting Exercise TRANSITEX with other ANZUK units en route. She entered refit in November in preparation for embarking the RANs new Skyhawk and Tracker aircraft in 1967, though a longer and more extensive modernisation would be required to make her fully operational with her new aircraft. NSW. The text of the telex message has been altered for readability. ABERNETHY, Roderic Bell. [36][39] The decision to retire the fixed-wing component of the Fleet Air Arm was rescinded in 1963, and on 10 November 1964, a AU212million increase in defence spending included the purchase of new aircraft for Melbourne. [30] These were prophetic, as on the night of 2425 December 1974, Cyclone Tracy destroyed the city of Darwin. [60] The carrier was also called on to perform underway replenishments and command and control functions. [50][51], Over the course of her career, over thirty aircraft were either lost or heavily damaged while operating from Melbourne. Note: This video is hosted on YouTube and has no audio. She went on to participate in the international cross service Exercise TUCKER BOX in the Coral Sea in August before visiting New Zealand in September. She joined Sydneys escort group for the final time early in June, and visited Malaysia later in the month before returning home. [114] Despite these warnings, a near-miss occurred in the early hours of 31 May when Larson turned towards the carrier after being ordered to the plane guard station. Not long afterwards the first fixed wing aircraft, a Hawker De Havilland Sea Venom and a Fairey Gannet, arrived during trials in the English Channel. [130] In December 2012, Stevenson announced that he had received a letter from the Minister for Defence, apologising for his treatment by the RAN and the government of the day.[131]. In the foreground is the Landing Signal Officer, Lieutenant Peter James. The ship was a long-range escort prioritised for area air defence and fully capable of surface and undersea warfare, surveillance, reconnaissance and interdiction. The fleet was divided into two with Melbourne's group operating out of Manila, the second group operating out of Bangkok. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people should be aware that the National Archives' website and collection contain the names, images and voices of people who have died. [77] In August, Melbourne was called upon to lead Exercise Tuckerbox, in the Coral Sea. She participated in Exercise FIRST TIME in January 1965, and on 2 February departed Sydney for Hobart and the Royal Hobart Regatta. Captain Willis hands over command of the Australian Flagship HMAS Melbourne to Captain McDonald, 24 May 1972. [151] Prior to the ship's departure for China, the RAN stripped Melbourne of all electronic equipment and weapons, and welded her rudders into a fixed position so that she could not be reactivated. On completion of the exercise, Melbourne led the four nation fleet in ceremonial fleet entry into Sydney Harbour on 22 November. [167] Melbourne arrived in China on 13 June. She has bn innocent, never once bowed to the natural or human force, in spite of the heavy storm n the talked abt jinx. The missing vessel was located on the morning of 6 July some 60kms offshore, and the three occupants, suffering from exposure but otherwise in good health, were embarked in Melbourne by the carriers rubber Gemini dinghy. In June 1981, crew on the Australian Navy's HMAS Melbourne were flying in an anti-submarine patrol plane, a Grumman S-2G Tracker 851, when they helped rescue 99 refugees from their broken-down vessel in the South China Sea, 250 nautical miles east of Vietnam. Melbourne maintained this commitment with the Strategic Reserve and later with ANZUK forces, participating in many exercises conducted under the auspices of the South East Asia Treaty Organisation (SEATO). She arrived back in Sydney on 1 August where she recommenced a routine program of exercises, training and maintenance. Right: A Hawker De Havilland Sea Venom. [122] Sailors from Melbourne dived from the flight deck into the water to rescue overboard survivors close to the carrier, while the carrier's boats and helicopters collected those farther out. [3] It is unclear whether the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) orchestrated the acquisition of Melbourne or simply took advantage of the situation; Rear Admiral Zhang Zhaozhong, a staff member at the National Defence College, has stated that the Navy was unaware of the purchase until Melbourne first arrived at Guangzhou. Repair work kept Melbourne alongside in Sydney for three months. Melbourne struck Voyager at the after end of her bridge, heeling her over to an angle of about 50 degrees. This was followed by radio sea trials between the two ships. Behind him from left to right are Chaplain Alan Batt, Chaplain Louis Breslan, the Minister for the Navy, the Hon Charles 'Bert' Kelly, MP, and Melbourne's Commanding Officer, Captain John Stevenson, RAN. The deployment was further marred when, just a week later while the ship was en route to Japan, a sailor was injured on the flight deck. The remainder of 1976 and early 1977 were occupied with maintenance, leave periods and local exercises. The PLAN subsequently arranged for the ship's flight deck and all the equipment associated with flying operations to be removed so that they could be studied in depth. [146] The carrier was in Sydney from mid-April until mid-August, during which the 25th anniversary of Melbourne's service in the RAN was celebrated on 15 August with a cocktail party aboard the carrier, popularly referred to as 'The Night of the Admirals'. The RAN lost only 2 Vessels during World War 1 and these were both Submarines, AE1 & AE2. The Douglas and McDonnell aircraft companies merged in 1967 so that the Skyhawk was known as the McDonnell-Douglas Skyhawk by the time it entered RAN service. In the early hours of 3 June 1969, in a manoeuvre almost identical to the near-miss with Larson a few days earlier, the destroyer USS Frank E Evans crossed Melbournes bows while attempting to move in the planeguard position, and was cut in two. She visited Pearl Harbor and Suva en route, and arrived in Jervis Bay, where the Skyhawks were landed, on 21 November. [154] By February 1981, the Iwo Jima class was the preferred option. While conducting flying exercises off Manus Island on 16 March, one of Melbournes Gannets ditched into the sea when the pilot was unable to control the aircraft after relighting her second engine. The forward section of Evans sank quickly while her stern section was secured to Melbournes starboard side enabling that part of the ship to be searched for survivors. Melbourne in San Francisco Bay with the Golden Gate Bridge in the background. A shore party took part in an internal security exercise at RNAS Sembawang in August before the ships departed for home later that month. [38] Under consideration were British carrier HMSAlbion and a ship of the United States' Essex class. We hold several sources of information on RAN ships. [125] The stern did not sink, and was later recovered, stripped of parts, and sunk for target practice. In November and December Melbourne again visited Port Melbourne where she contributed to the staging of the 16th Olympic Games. Hard-a starboard. She returned to sea on 11 October to commence workup exercises and shortly thereafter resumed a regular program of exercises, training and maintenance. [116] In preparation for launching a Tracker, Stevenson ordered Evans to the plane guard station, reminded the destroyer of Melbourne's course, and instructed the carrier's navigational lights to be brought to full brilliance. The final leg of her voyage home was via Jervis Bay where the 64 aircraft that Melbourne had brought from the UK were transferred ashore via lighter for road transport to the Naval Air Station at Nowra. A search was immediately commenced which included aircraft from Melbourne but, sadly, no sign of Gartside could be found. On 5 July Melbourne, along with other RAN and RAAF units, conducted a search and rescue operation for a fishing boat, Fishing News, which had not returned to Sydney after putting to sea the previous morning. On returning to Sydney in July she commenced a refit and leave period before sailing again for work-ups in September. The impact pushed Voyager through the water laterally for a few seconds, and then she broke in two. Additional medical officers were embarked by aircraft from Nowra, and members of Melbournes ships company not directly involved in search and rescue efforts tended to the survivors immediate needs. The Melbourne-Voyager collision, also known as the Melbourne-Voyager incident or simply the Voyager incident, was a collision between two warships of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN); the aircraft carrier HMAS Melbourne and the destroyer HMAS Voyager.. On the evening of 10 February 1964, the two ships were performing manoeuvres off Jervis Bay. Period 1970-1979 HMAS Melbourne (FFG 05) was an Adelaide-class guided-missile frigate of the Royal Australian Navy, which entered service in 1992. 644 mi - Melbourne, FL. [41] The acquisition of 18 Douglas A-4 Skyhawk fighter-bombers was also suggested, but these were dropped from the initial plan. Their boat was towed back to Sydney by a police launch. [30], Following Navy Help Darwin, Melbourne participated in RIMPAC 75, then returned to Sydney for a fourteen-month refit, which was delayed by industrial action at the dockyard. [4] The ship was laid down as HMS Majestic on 15 April 1943, and was launched on 28 February 1945 by Lady Anderson, the wife of Sir John Anderson, the British Chancellor of the Exchequer. [66] On return to Australia in mid-November, the carrier visited Melbourne for the 1956 Olympics, where 200 of Melbourne's complement were provided to work as signallers, event marshals, carpenters, and medical workers. [36], On 5 December 1976, a fire at the Naval Air Station HMASAlbatross destroyed or heavily damaged 12 of the Fleet Air Arm's 13 S-2E Trackers. [7], The Majestic experienced delays in its construction due to labour difficulties, late delivery of equipment, additional requirements for Australian operations and the prioritisation of the construction of merchant ships. [156] The Invincible class had been considered and discarded during the investigation, but the decreased price and the fact the already-constructed carrier would be ready for RAN service in 1983 prompted the Australian government to announce its intention to purchase Invincible on 25 February 1982 and close the carrier acquisition program. [158], Following the decision to replace Melbourne with HMS Invincible, the postponed refit was cancelled outright. [71] At the start of 1959, Melbourne spent four days in her namesake city, where she was used for the filming of On The Beach, based on Nevil Shute's post-apocalyptic novel of the same name. [136] While working up following the refit, Melbourne and HMASTorrens provided assistance to MV Miss Chief off the coast of Bundaberg, Queensland on 16 August 1976. [103] Following the repairs, Melbourne was involved in Strategic Reserve deployments and exercises in Southeast Asia from June until September 1964. [30][137], On 5 December 1976, a fire deliberately lit at HMASAlbatross by a member of the Fleet Air Arm damaged or destroyed all but one of Australia's S-2 Trackers. Responsible for maintaining carpet and hard surface floors in commercial buildings using industry approved methods and chemistry. She fired a 15 gun salute as she rounded Bradleys Head and then held position as the rest of the fleet passed and FAA aircraft performed a fly over. [23] On 24 August 1973, Melbourne returned to Hawaii to participate in RIMPAC 73. [117] The escorts were again warned about the dangers of operating near the carrier and informed of Stevenson's expectations, while the minimum distance between carrier and escorts was increased from 2,000 to 3,000 yards (1,800 to 2,700m). [135] Melbourne remained off Darwin until 18 January 1975, acting as operational headquarters and a helicopter base. Following temporary repairs at Singapore, Melbourne returned to sea on 27 June bound for Australia. [33] After docking at Garden Island in December, the carrier was accidentally flooded by an officer who was impatient to commence leave. She arrived in Fremantle, via Jakarta, on 14 April. [14] These carriers were intended as "disposable warships": to be disposed of at the end of World War II or within three years of entering service. [39] A reduction of embarked plane numbers to four Sea Venoms and six Gannets, along with regular rotation and careful use of the aircraft, extended their service life until the mid-1960s, while the size of the air group was maintained by carrying up to ten Wessex helicopters. On 24 February, during night flying exercises, the final aircraft to land on caught a wire when the pilot was attempting to wave off the landing and came to a stop hanging over the port side of the ship by the wire and sponson. [64] The carrier immediately underwent a two and a half-month refit, allowing for the inspection of machinery and repair of defects detected during the maiden voyage. She visited Hong Kong before proceeding to Subic Bay in the Philippines for the SEATO exercise SEA DEVIL. [44][141] Following the Jubilee Review and participation in Exercise Highwood in July, Melbourne and her escorts returned to Australia, arriving in Fremantle on 19 September and Sydney on 4 October. [28] The 1969 and 1971 refits did improve conditions, although there was little scope for upgrade, and the system was still inadequate: temperatures inside the ship continued to reach over 65C (149F), and on one occasion a hold reached 78C (172F). 74 Evans sailors were killed. Ten members of Melbournes ships company embarked on a relay marathon from Melbourne to Sydney to raise money for Legacy. Naval units from Australia, the USA, the UK, New Zealand and Canada participated in the exercises which concluded on 18 November. [94], A Joint RAN-USN board of inquiry was established to investigate the incident, and was in session over June and July 1969. Her steam catapult, arresting equipment and mirror landing system were not removed. That afternoon a Gannet experienced a total power loss on take off and ditched into the sea about 500 yards from the ship. Her deployment took her to Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong where she participated in Exercise ALBATROSS, the Philippines and Papua New Guinea before arriving back in Sydney on 11 November. The defect was rectified in time for her to take her place in phase two, which once again saw the fleet proceeding north to the Philippines. Early in 1957 Melbourne visited Hobart to coincide with the Royal Hobart Regatta in February before crossing the Tasman to participate in exercises with the New Zealand cruiser HMNZS Royalist. They contain the following information for each crew member: The ledgers for each ship have been bound as volumes for each quarter, or three-month period, that the ship was on active service. [23] The modifications cost A$8.5million, and included an overhaul of the hull and machinery, strengthening of the flight deck, improvements to the catapult and arrestor cables, modification of the aviation fuel systems and flight control arrangements, and upgrades of the navigational aids and radar. [8][9] Incorporation of new systems and enhancements caused the cost of the RAN carrier acquisition program to increase to AU8.3million. The aft section of USS Frank E Evans carefully being brought along side in Subic Bay. [1][23] The carrier spent May performing exercises off the New South Wales coast, during which she was called on to rescue three fisherman who had been stranded at sea for the previous two days. Later that year she participated in Fleet Concentration Period off Jervis Bay in October, and visited New Zealand in November. 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