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#26
7th August 2017, 04:31
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A lot of you will have heard of the Cruise ship Lakonia disaster Xmas 63 around midnight. It was a fateful cruise and demise of the Lakonia cruise ship. Montcalm and other Merchant vessels went to assist and rescue many from lifeboats and water. Many life boats painted up and couldn't be freed. HMS Centaur and others recovered a lot of bodies from rhe sa and many ending up in Gibraltar. Prior to being sold and renamed Lakonia she was the Johan Von Oldenbarnevelt known as the JVO. In later years the JVO she shipped many Dutch emigrees out to Aussi. She had a very extensive refit before her short life as Cruise Ship Lakonia. Passengers were from UK and Channel Islands for this Xmas cruise promising a Xmas which they wouldn't forget. The survivors didn't forget it. Nor did the rescuers. Some of the rescuers HMS Centaur who were still affected by it pushed for a memorial and service in 2013 in Gibraltar North front cemetery. There is you tube of service.
There are many chapters of book about JVO and the last chapters of book about when she was Lakonia about when she was the Lakonia free to view on the site below. http://www.ssmaritime.com/jvo1.htm Last edited by Lucy Knight; 7th August 2017 at 04:35. 
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#27
27th August 2017, 20:28
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Two books I have read that might be of interest to those who sailed on Shell Tankers in 70s/late 60s or who were cadets in Plymouth are
From Watford to Woolloomooloo by John Moxley And Under a yellow sky by Simon Hall (follow up book to this one is Chasing Conrad) They are both well written but in different styles. Both of them were same intake Shell nav cadets 1969 with their college stints at Portland Place Plymouth. They also sailed together on an old H tanker. All their cadet time was on the old ex Eagle Oil midships/aft H class and V class. Both books can be easily Googled to read comments on Amazon. Both are also available as e books. John was uncert 3rd mate after he had just turned 19 and on Vietnam run beginning just before the closure when it got really hairy. He had been told the ship was going to all these exotic places like Hawaii to lure him back early and he got that instead. They describe many of the difficult characters on board in those days and also very open about the extra curricular activities they took part in e.g. Bougis Street. Both books take you up to the end of their cadetships. Simon's second book Chasing Conrad covers taking his 2nd mates returning as uncert third mate on H tanker and then cert 3rd mate on an M tanker (supertanker built in 6Os). That was first supertanker he had been on and he decided that type of tanker wasn't for him so resigned and then sailed on cargo ships for rest of time st sea. Both good reads. NB suggest the men don't give them to their wives to read if they think their hubbies were innocent in port back then. Last edited by Lucy Knight; 27th August 2017 at 20:36.
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#28
3rd September 2017, 15:01
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92 years old author and MN historian, ex Merchant Navy Capt still writing a book a year.
In the latest September Merchant Navy Union Nautillus International monthly paper sent out to members called Telegraph is a large double page article about MN historian and author Bernard Edwards who lives in Wales, ex Merchant Navy Capt who started off as officer cadet aged 17 in 1944 with Clan Line, and in WW2 convoys ending up Capt with Kuwait shipping line (later called United Arab shopping co). When he retired from sea in his late 50s he started on a new career writing books about MN. He concentrates on WW2 wartime ships. He is still writing a book a year. Each one involves 6 months research e.g. researching at Kew national archives London reading survivors reports etc. He also wrote one about Bibby ship Derbyshire which sank 1980 in Pacific and is called the Derbyshire Enigma - return of the coffin ships. He has written around 30 or so books. Not bad for an author aged 92 years who didn't take up writing books until after he retired from sea. Anyone interested in Merchant Shipping in WW2, convoys, about Uboat activity etc, the list of around books he has written can easily be Googled on Amazon. There looks to be some interesting reading material there. If you google his name there is a Welsh newspaper interview with him a few years ago. At last a Merchant Navy historian who has actually put in some MN working seatime. Here is a list of some of the books and displaying front covers, comments etc https://www.amazon.co.uk/Captain-Ber...s/e/B001HP7K8W Last edited by Lucy Knight; 3rd September 2017 at 15:25.
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