longest time between ports

[j.sabourn]

89 days. Passage B.A. to Japan in 1955. Ship Avonmoor 3 Cylinder Doxford built 1943. However this includes being anchored off Durban for a number of days, but had no communication as such with the shore. Ship used to stop approx. every 3 days for scavenge fires and to effect engine repairs. Eventually had to blank off one cylinder and proceed on two. This was at time supposedly impossible to do, but have since heard (Sea Breezes) was done by another vessel of similar design a number of years ago also. Engine repairs must have been effective in Japan, as from there on only stoppages were occasional scavenge fires. J.Sabourn

[Evan Lewis]

Sorry Charles,but you are way out on the dates of that voyage. As Singapore fell to the Japs ,15th Feb !942
and was held by them, till September !945.
The U.S.S. West -Point (S.S AMERICA) later to become the Australis ,on the Migrant run .The deck Crew ,Cut the mooring ropes with axes ,as the Jap Troops were advancing along the Wharf. That was early february;42.

[Captain Kong]

Evan this why Lou went to Singapore after the Japanese took over.

Lou was on the Gloucester Castle bound for Cape Town, when she was sunk just south of Ascension Island by the German raider Michel killing 93 passengers and crew, including a friend of mine. Joe Farnworth, they were later transferred to a German tanker Margaret Schlieman and then taken to Singapore which was in Japanese hands, some of the survivors, including Lou were taken ashore there to work in terrible bad conditions for the Japs and the rest were taken to Kobe in Japan. They did not get home until late 1945



part of the story
The "Gloucester Castle", 8,000 tons was the smallest and oldest of the Union-Castle passenger liners. Already in retirement at Netley, she had been pressed into service once again owing to the exigencies of war. From September, 1939, she voyaged for three years, more or less with regularity, between Great Britain and South Africa, being, in fact, the only Union-Castle liner thus to be continuously employed.
On June 21, 1942, at noon, the "Gloucester Castle" (Captain H.H. Rose) sailed from Birkenhead direct for Cape Town, Port Elizabeth and East London. In addition to her cargo she carried parcel mails and twelve passengers. The passengers were all women and children going out to Simonstown to join relatives at the Naval Dockyard there. The ship sailed in convoy for some days and the proceeded, unescourted, on her way to Cape Town. She never reached her destination. Two months passed, and on August 31, 1942, the Shipping Casualty Department of the Admiralty informed the Union-Castle Company that their vessel "Gloucester Castle", 'gravely overdue', must be presumed lost. For those who had relatives on board the ship, months of anxiety and suspense were now to follow. The full story of the vessel's fate was not known until the war was over.
On Wednesday, July 15, the "Gloucester Castle" was some 1,300 miles south-east of Freetown and was approaching the point almost midway between Ascension Island and the African coast. In those equatorial latitudes it had been hot and sticky; all through the day there had been tropical showers. Night came, as it does in those parts, quickly. It was quiet and still and overcast. The vessel had been blacked-out, and to the look-out at the masthead nothing now was visible but the bow-wave of the "Gloucester Castle". It was seven o'clock, and complete darkness reigned.
Suddenly there came a bright flash close by on the starboard bow, a loud report, and a sickening crash as a shell burst on the "Gloucester Castle", hitting the vessel just below the starboard wing of the bridge. In rapid succession more shells followed, accompanied by pom-pom and machine-gun fire. The wireless room was wrecked immediately; the aerials came toppling down; the radio operators were killed. No message could be sent telling that the raider had attacked the "Gloucester Castle". How many were killed by gunfire will never be known; everything happened very quickly. In less than ten minutes all was over.
The second shell demolished the dining saloon, at the forward end of the deckhouse. A lady passenger and one of the engineers had just come in to dinner. Petrol stored on the foredeck outside the saloon went up in flames. The ship was listing heavily to starboard. All the lifeboats on the starboard side had been shot away or rendered useless. Mr. R.G. Pargiter, senior second officer, who had been on the bridge, rushed along the port side, and, with some of the deck hands, tried to get one of the boats away. As he was passing a woman and child into No 3 boat, the "Gloucester Castle" suddenly righted herself and then, almost at once, took a heavy list to port. The frapping ropes holding the boat carried away; the boat swung out into space; the woman and child were thrown into the sea and were never seen again. The ship was settling so fast that the lifeboat was waterborne almost at once, level with the deck rail where some women and children were standing. The officer shouted to them to jump. Four jumped, but just before the fifth was to make the attempt, The "Gloucester Castle" suddenly sank. As the painter was still attached the lifeboat went down with the ship. Where once had been the "Gloucester Castle", there was only swirling flotsam and a mass of struggling people."
(from 'The Union-Castle Chronicle 1853-1953' by Marischal Murray.)


SS Gloucester Castle was part of a section of twenty-four vessels from OS.32 sailing on to the Cape and beyond. On July 15, 1942, she was shelled and sunk by the auxiliary cruiser, Michel, in position 08S 01E (about 840 miles west of Luanda, Angola). There were sixty-one survivors but ninety-three crew members were killed and are commemorated on Tower Hill, Panel 52.
Another two men died in japanese captivity.

[B]2001
October 2001, I was on the Queen Elizabeth 2 on our way to
Cape Town, South Africa, I had taken a Merchant Navy Wreath with me
and told Captain Ron Warwick about the story of the Gloucester Castle.
When we arrived over the site of the Gloucester Castle, 8 degrees
South Latitude and 1 degree East Longitude A table was prepared for
the Service covered with the Red Ensign of the Merchant Navy and the
Wreath.
We had a Service for the dead of the Gloucester Castle, some of the women passengers wept during the Service. Then the Master at Arms, walked
aft and cast the Wreath into the sea over the Gloucester Castle and
then Saluted.
The dead of the Gloucester Castle could now Rest in Peace.

Brian Aspinall.

[Tony Wilding]

That is an amazing story, never realised ships did that, what was the ships speed over the ground when in the current, ? Must have saved the company thousands. Tony wilding.

[Kevin Mercer]

Hi Ivan,
I have no doubt you are right about the blue peter, I am only going off what was explained to me at the time. I remember being told that the P flag was to indicate the vessel would be leaving in 24 hrs. I did see a Blue Flue ship turn round in a day so I swallowed the info. Maybe it was one of those courtesy calls to keep the trade open.
I have also waited for a berth at Lagos when I was with the Guinea Gulf line on the Florence Holt, sometimes we used to anchor off Diamond Point ? and the duty officer on anchor watch used to have the Aldiss lamp handy to spot agmies trying to climb aboard in the night. It was rumoured that he also had a 2-2 rifle !!
I better leave this;; we are getting off the thread!
Kevin

[Ivan Cloherty]

Hi Kevin

Its when we go off thread some of the best stories surface, so don't worry about it, sitting round the messroom or saloon table we always went off thread, I think the threads alternated between women and bars, were there any other subjects discussed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ivan

[happy daze john in oz]

Interesting article about the Blue Peter. Have yet to see it flown on a cruise ship, even when they are in port for two nights which they do on special occasions. Yet I can recall it being flown when we were in port for only the day on UCL.

[Dennis McGuckin]

My understanding was. When the blue Peter was hoisted, we were due to sail in 24 hours.
Bad news if you were in a good port.
Den.

[Lin Treadgold]

Does 4 months count between Lobito and The Canaries? 1974 Angolan War time.

Lin

[Ivan Cloherty]

My understanding was. When the blue Peter was hoisted, we were due to sail in 24 hours.
Bad news if you were in a good port.
Den.

Hi Dennis, in the International Code of Signals

"P" = "All persons are to report on board as the vessel is about to proceed to sea"

But you are quite right, it was hoisted 24 hours before the vessel was due to sail, the reason being in the old days most crews lived in sight of the docks so it warned those on leave that their leave was at an end and they should report on board to prepare the vessel for sea, which used to be a long job in the old days of sail.

In the eras after sail to 70's it was still traditional to fly it even though crews lived further afield and it was always flown in foreign ports, hoisted as soon as the vessel berthed if the vessel was to be in port less than 24 hours. It was a kind of signal for "alright lads you have been warned, don't go making any arrangements for any all-nighters!" to re-inforce the gangway notice. Always remember being sent off the bridge as a cadet before the pilot left to hang the "shore leave expires at ---- hours" before any crew hoofed it down the gangway, the Blue Peter re-enforced the message.

Ivan