Hi from Francis Rook RO

[Francis Rook]

Hi,
Would love to hear from anyone who served with me and went to Grimsby Nautical College between 1964 to 1967.
Didn't spend long at sea but the experience was so intense it is something burned into your psyche.
Experienced the Communist takeover in Calcutta, riots in Indonesia New Guinea, unrest in Djakarta, shot at in Manilla and ended up in Saigon during the war.
Not least taking my new wife to sea as stewardess with her first job on board was serving me in the officers mess! The marriage was doomed to failure.
Took my radio knowledge ashore and very proud in making the Seaphone, a very rugged radio that went into the RNLI's inshore lifeboats. The only radio on the market then that would float!
Now into printing and stationery in Kent plus local government and trying to retire and sail my boat.
Miss the days when I would race the chief to see who could do five star sights quickest.

[j.sabourn]

Francis if you had the star sight reduction tables, the Americans brought out during the war, you could work out in 20 minutes. However never saw a shipowner willing to put on board and unless you could find a copy privately were stuck with the at least the one hour job, much longer in some cases. Also could take your azimuths from the book for those stars in common use so knew where to look on cloudy nights with their approx. altitudes. Wouldn't have liked to have been in that snipers sights recently who took out his target at about a mile, a head shot too. Welcome to the site. No doubt someone will know you. Hope you didn't owe them any money. Cheers JS