,Those who would like to hear from Fellow ADG's.
Alan Atherton...........02-66875920
Paul Tuck....................02-49911964
Mick Brodie................ 02-99404340
Paul Pannowitz...........02-49500306
Bushy Bill Trevethan..02-68290177
Trevor Nye...................07 41256279
Mr Ian (Shortie), Lee
c/- Hollywood Private (Repatriation), Hospital
Monash Avenue
NEDLANDS WA 6009
======================================
VA153 Friday 29 November 2002
STORIES OF THE DEFENCE OF AUSTRALIA - 1942
In 1942, the people of Australia were called upon for the first time to
defend our own shores. Throughout that year, supported by their allies,
Australians fought to turn the initial defeats of 1942 into the beginnings
of victory in the Pacific. This series, issued by the Minister for
Veterans' Affairs, Danna Vale, to mark the 60th anniversary of the defence
of Australia, highlights some of the key events of those 12 momentous
months.
THE WAR AT SEA
The Royal Australian Navy experienced its toughest year of operations in
1942. Australian warships took part in several major naval actions, in
addition to vital patrol and convoy escort duties. Losses against the
Japanese in the Indian and Pacific Oceans included HMA Ships Perth and Yarra
(March), Vampire (April), Canberra (August), Voyager (September) and
Armidale (December), while Nestor was sunk by German aircraft in the
Mediterranean (June).
The last warship lost that year was HMAS Armidale. The lightly armed
corvette was one of the ships supporting Australian guerrillas in East
Timor. Ordered to proceed alone and land Dutch and Indonesian troops,
without fighter cover, it was attacked on 9 December 1942 by 13 enemy
aircraft. Armidale weaved and its gunners put up terrific fire, but two
torpedoes struck.
Ten sailors and 37 Indonesian soldiers were killed in the attack, with 102
men left to abandon ship. Ordinary Seaman Teddy Sheean, 18, won lasting
renown, going down with the ship still firing at Zeroes strafing his mates
in the water.
His selfless action matched that of another young Australian, Midshipman
Robert Davies, 19, who a year earlier went down in the British battle
cruiser HMS Repulse off Malaya also firing an anti-aircraft gun. Davies'
and Sheean's acts of gallantry fittingly were recognised each with a Mention
in Despatches, the highest honour after the Victoria Cross for a person
killed in action. In 2001, the Royal Australian Navy commissioned a Collins
class submarine as HMAS Sheean, the first time an RAN vessel has been named
after a junior sailor.
Armidale's survivors faced an epic struggle for survival, far from base.
One group headed south in a motor launch, hoping to attract the attention of
Allied aircraft or ships; they were rescued five days later. The Dutch and
Indonesians went in another direction and were never heard of again. The
remaining Australians built a raft from flotsam and refloated a damaged
whaler, a magnificent effort for men weak, sore, sunburnt and thirsty.
Eight days after the sinking, 28 men in the whaler were rescued in shocking
condition but they had been forced to leave some mates clinging to the
makeshift life-raft. Their mates were spotted by a search aircraft but
disappeared before a rescue could be effected.
This courageous and tragic episode - just one of many for the Navy in 1942 -
cost the lives of 40 Australian sailors and 60 Dutch and Indonesian
soldiers.
======================================
hi,
My name is Tom Pern (JRN). My dad and i were going through his photo album and wondered if u would like copies for the sight. He has photos from alot of exercises such as Hells Gate and others. He also has alot of pass out photos from 1RTU.
If these are of any intrest please e-mail me.
thanks.
Thank,s Kathie we would only be to happy to see some of Tom,s photo,s especially of his ADG involvement and exercises
, I,m sure there are many out there who would appreciate jogging the old grey matter.
The Pom.
I think I may of finally done it after a bit of help from one of dads co workers. We'll try for third time lucky.
Thanks for being patient let me know though if you get this . By the way do you have a direct web address for the Electronic Blue beret my brother gets into it through yahoo and then RAAF but dad wants to give another ADG the web address and we go through our history to get to it.
Cheers Kathie
