HMAS Vendetta;  Naval RTO; North of Crete; Chains & Sampson Posts

Ship's Barber in a Corvette. By VX93432

HMAS VENDETTA; HER RECORD IN TWO WARS

SHIP OF THIS NAME IN THE ROYAL NAVY

1st November, 1916: Commenced building.

3rd September, 1917: Launched.

17tb October, 1917: Completed.

17th October, 1917: First commissioned in Home Station, under command of Commander C. G. Ramsey, R.N - now Admiral Sir Charles Ramsey, K.C.B., (ret.).

November, 1917: In action with German minesweeping trawlers in the Kattegat.

17th November, 1917: In action with German light cruisers of the "Konigsberg" class in the Heligoland.

R. R., COMMANDER, R.A.N.

THE NAVAL R.T.O.

• Have you ever heard the grizzles of a Naval R.T.O., 
  • The bloke who never gets to sea but sees all who come and go? 
  • They arrive in ones and hundreds from the dawn's first early light; 
  • They're going out on duty and on leave till late at night. 
  • You meet Admirals and W.R.A.N.S., you see brass-hats and O.Ds. 
  • There are some who're always cheerful, but some you'd never please 
  • If you gave them each two sleepers and a blonde upon their knees.
• The problems that they tender as they go their different ways 
  • Would overwhelm a mastermind and leave him in a daze. 
  • "The first lieutenant's sister has a box at Parramatta: 
  • Can't you send it free of charge to a place near Wangaratta?" 
  • "Won't you mind my family baggage? Can't you keep it by your table,"' 
  • "Can't you swindle a priority for the wife's old Auntie Mabel?" 
  • "Can you tell me where's my hammock, gone adrift without a label?"
• "The Captain wants a lower berth for self and Pekinese 
  • In a cabin with a passenger who won't object to fleas." 
  • off to Melbourne. Will you just advance the fare? 
  • be five pounds or so, you've surely got it there. 
  • I'll pay you back, old man, next week or some such day. 
  • You surely must remember me! I passed through here last May. 
  • I know that you've been caught before, but I'll be sure to pay."
• With Finance Regulations and Standing Orders too, 
  • You fight "stand over" merchants till their faces turn quite blue. 
  • Legitimate inquiries and some extras you don't mind, 
  • But the really decent questions come from friends they've left behind. 
  • "My husband might come home on leave. I know it's just a hunch. 
  • Can't you say what train he'll be on and will it be for lunch? 
  • I want to get the weekend meat. He loves a steak to munch."
• "My nephew's in the Navy and I've never seen him yet. 
  • If he should come to Sydney, will you ring me? Don't forget!" 
  • Or "My husband's in the Navy-Commander Such and Such
  • Stop work and run my errands or he'll blast you very much." 
  • "Please tell me if a boy named Jim has gone away tonight. 
  • He wears a sailor's collar and his eyes are very bright. 
  • He says he helps the Captain and he's single. Is that right?"
• When the trains are running late and the phones are running hot, 
  • When special buses don't turn up and lorries can't be got, 
  • When the luggage is adrift and some bloke that once you knew 
  • Wants swindles worked "quite honestly" for more than he is due, 
  • You find some self-important cove, in midst of all your woes, 
  • Must speak to you in person on the smallest thing, 
  • although If it were not for discipline, you'd tell him where to go.
• If you were only R.T.O. and faced this day by day, 
  • And heard the dits of, hundreds as they travel on their way, 
  • Or had to deal with personnel who'd had too many beers, 
  • Or had to send lads on their way despite their sweethearts' tears, 
  • Or find accommodation when it really was not there, 
  • Or deal with ships and depots that just make you tear your hair, 
  • I'll guarantee in six months' time you'd be the worse for wear.
• Next time that you are travelling, if the R.T.0's not meek, 
  • Recall you're one of thousands he sees travel week by week. 
  • He does a job you would not like and helps you get around 
  • And knows when out of hearing, he's an adjectival hound; 
  • But when you make your harsh comment he knows just what it's worth
  • The R.T.0's a "whatnot" if there's not a vacant berth, 
  • But if you get a sleeper he's the greatest guy on earth.

LIEUT. F. D., R.A.N.R.

NORTH OF CRETE

She accompanied H.M. ships Orion and Ajax during the battle of Matapan; stood by Illustrious during her dash to Malta; and withstood the Germans' first fierce attack on that island. Other brushes with the victorious Luftwaffe had followed over most of the eastern Mediterranean, with perhaps the fiercest in the Aegean Sea during the evacuation from Greece, in which Perth took part.

So much had air control passed to the hands of the enemy that some bombing was expected. But surely no ship could ever have expected to find such a concentrated attack as Perth and her companion ships experienced north of Crete during the time of Hitler's attack in the latter days of May. In company with the Dido Class cruiser Naiad, and the converted six-inch cruisers Calcutta and Carlisle, Perth found herself at 8 a.m. on the 2 1st May standing off Candia. 

All night before had been spent sweeping through the Aegean islands with the hope of meeting the expected German sea-borne convoy. With the clear light of a Mediterranean morning came the first German planes. Maybe size helps in a rough sea, but it does not help when a ship is the biggest in a squadron, and Perth's few extra tons (by the number of bombs rained at her) must have made her appear far bigger than the others.

In this first attack, one big bomb fell so close that all the bridge complement was quite soaked. One of the most popular men aboard was the master-at-arms-Chief P.O. Jan Creber -and telling of the bomb, a young sailor said, "It was as big as the jaunty" (Chief Creber)  and he is eighteen stone. Why, it took ten minutes for the hole to fill up! " Being very close to their bases on Scarpanto and Rhodes, the Germans were able to keep machines constantly overhead-and they certainly did. The first raid lasted half an hour-then a five-minute respite and back came more planes, and the anxious weaving and turning began again. 

So on the day wore, through Kaso Strait, known to many as Bomb Alley and many other such names, with hope for the best high in every heart. At three o'clock yet another attack was launched, and the destroyer Juno was hit. She sank in an incredibly short time with some loss of life. After survivors had been rescued, the "party" moved once more towards Alexandria, until just dark, when the squadron turned towards Crete and again found itself north of Candia as the sun rose next day. With the sun came Goering's envoys. Many planes that day bore the yellow noses of Goering's special squadrons, and for daring those planes deserved their special insignia.

Unlike the previous day, however, the course this time was northward to meet the convoy which had been reported by air as moving amongst the Greek islands. Every turn of the screws taking Perth northwards seemed to bring more planes, and when an Italian destroyer was engaged at 10.3o enemy bombers seemed to reach plague proportions, and the destroyer was lost. The constancy of the attack on top of the previous day's ordeal took heavy toll of the ship's store of four-inch projectiles, and by noon the position had become desperate. 

As a consequence, Perth's station at the rear of the squadron had to be surrendered to Naiad, and the course was set for Kythera Channel. So close had near misses been that no instrument, such as gyro compasses, etc., still worked; and to add to the difficulties, Naiad had been damaged, so that the speed of advance was only fourteen knots. When ack-ack shells were finally expended, fifty men a side were served with rifles to try to drive off the persistent enemy.

Most welcome sight, at 1300, was the Battle Fleet -Warspite and Valiant, with cruisers Gloucester and Fiji. By this time Hitler's invasion of Crete was well under way, and countless huge transport planes with gliders in tow could be plainly seen making for the island. The arrival of bigger ships made the conditions much more pleasant for Perth, as the bigger ships drew the fire. Indeed, in the very first few moments Valiant and Warspite were both hit, fortunately without being seriously damaged. Carlisle also survived a bomb on her boat deck, and staggered astern for some time before continuing on in her position.

The destroyer Greyhound went to try to shoot down some of the low flying transport planes, but was pounced on and mortally hit.

To protect the destroyers Kandahar and Kimberley whilst picking up survivors, Fiji and Gloucester stood by, while the remainder of the force plodded slowly out of the Kythera Channel. Perth's last sight of these two ships was belching guns; ever and anon both disappeared behind a wall of bomb splashes. After two hours a message from Fiji said that Gloucester had been badly hit, and that she herself was out of shells. Fiji herself made a good forty miles from that spot before being sunk. When the final attack came that day Perth had been bombed almost incessantly for thirteen hours, and, by a miracle, survived. At a later date during, the Syrian campaign, Perth had the happy experience of fighting with friendly planes overhead, and what a relief!

M. B. L.

CONCERNING P/V CHAINS & SAMPSON POSTS!

The Commander sauntered in the following morning and instructed us to make the following signal: "Naval Stores Officer from Hobart. Request permission to land P/V chains and Sampson posts." 

We dispatched the message by dispatch boat and gave the matter no further thought beyond pinning a reference on to the "awaiting reply" board.

A word about the system in force then for the transmission and reception of messages.

the batch of -signals for news of our P/V chains and Sampson posts. Nothing! The Bloke was visibly affected. For some time he said nothing, but just stood pondering in his cabin whilst the Chief hopped from one leg to another. Finally he spoke, and his voice was pregnant with menace-"Chief Yeoman, how did that signal leave the ship?" The Chief had everything lined up and explained to the Commander the careful routine which accompanied its departure.

The Commander "Hm'd" thoughtfully. "How did we send the other one which they did receive? "

This the Chief couldn't answer without reference, and he retired to the S.D.O., where we went into conference. On looking up the signal concerned we found that it had been passed by light to the flagship with instructions to pass to Naval Stores Officer. On the

A commander's instructions we passed our request for a reply to our repetition to the flagship, as had been done with the original request for reply. We barked our shins badly here. The flagship curtly informed us that all messages of such nature were to be handed to the duty dispatch boat which existed for that purpose! The previous signal we had made to Naval Stores had been passed as a favour in view of our recent arrival, but we had been there long enough now, etc., etc., etc.-all very encouraging!

I have seen men waiting half an hour for their wives. I have seen matelots sitting patiently on the steps of the Ship Inn. But nothing rivalled the expression on the Bloke's face when we laid the facts before him. He chewed the end of his pencil. placed it carefully on his blotter, picked it up again, tapped it gently against the edge of the table, then threw it out the scuttle. The curtain is best drawn reverently over the next two or three minutes. Not for nothing is the Navy known as the Silent Service. But there are times--!

In the meantime the cause of all the trouble lay in the starboard waist, a boon to the spine-bashers and the bane of all sweepers. During the dark hours, relieving quartermasters made its acquaintance at the expense of a barked shin. "Ords" dropped their cigarette butts behind the posts and the ship's cat eyed the locality meditatively. Over all the Commander cast a baleful glare. In the S.D.O. we thrashed the matter out. The flagship wouldn't pass it, the duty boat returned no dividend, and we didn't know where the central distributing office was located. Meanwhile all other signal traffic continued to flow happily.

We obtained a quarto-size envelope, wrote "Hobart" all over it, drew a large boomerang across the face, and marked it in prominent letters "Return to H.M.A.S. Hobart". With the. offending message carefully inserted in the presence of witnesses, the envelope was carried to the quarter-deck ladder and handed personally to the coxswain of the duty boat. He took the missive gravely as if realizing it's importance, and with a cheery wave of the hand betook himself, his motor boat, and Our Message off towards the docks. We made certain that nothing happened to the boat, and were assured that it had made the wharf safely. So far so good.

At 1000, the following morning the dispatch boat drew alongside and the quarter-deck messenger delivered a quarto-size envelope to the S.D.0. We handled it reverently and handed it to the yeoman of the watch, as surely no lesser person could open it! Three pairs of eyes followed his every movement. There was an audible gasp as he drew from within its bosom a signal form. We crowded round it and read-holy- mackerel, it was our own signal! 

The envelope had been for a pleasant tour round the ships, and by its appearance it had been subjected to the malicious handling of practically every signalman in the Mediterranean Fleet. It was autographed conspicuously with the names of practically every unit in the Eastern Mediterranean Fleet complete with their battle honours! Added to the name "H.M.A.S. --" was "Booma" and "Kanaa"! We didn't tell the Commander anything about this.

It was "on" now with a vengeance, and we suspected a conspiracy. Forthwith the envelope was decorated with red-pencil marks, rubber-stamp impressions, and readdressed. Two days later we received a reply. Considering the circumstances it was rather flat and to the point, though I don't suppose we could have expected anything else. 

It said: "Approved", just like that. We bore it in triumph to the Commander, who promptly dispatched a further signal: "Intend dispatching P/V chains and Sampson posts to Ras El Tin at 1000 tomorrow Thursday." We thought this was making too much of a good thing and rather like tempting providence, but providence took a hand herself. We sailed at 0500 the following morning and our P/Vs, etc., stayed on board whilst a bewildered party of seamen waited on the wharf at Ras El Tin for ships that never came in.

After a few days of hunting fictitious Italian men-o'-war, and exposing our hides to Wop submarines, during the course of which I am sure the Commander toyed with the idea of consigning the offending chains and posts to the blue waters of the Lake, we returned to Alexandria and took up the cudgels once more. This time Naval Stores beat us to it. We couldn't believe our eyes. Briefly their signal read: "When can Sampson posts and P/V chains referred to in your o6o6/3 be expected?" The Commander gazed goggle eyed and murmured, "My sainted aunt!" This was a backhander of some account. Anyway we landed them, just four months and fifteen days after we first dispatched a signal requesting permission to land them.

We sailed for Singapore a and had to get them back on fortnight later board!

"WUSTON."

ASH WEDNESDAY AT THE R.A.N.C.

"WUN."

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