Cruising Yachts

pacific Shipping And Cruising Yachts

Russian fishing fleet to move into South Pacific

Russia’s Far East fishing fleet, which now produces about a third of the fish and marine products sold in the Soviet Union, is expected to begin fishing on a large scale in the South Pacific before long.

IVERAL New Zealand newspapers have recently quoted reports in Soviet Press on plans to send ts of the Far East fleet to the th Pacific. )ne report quoted Dr. I. Kizevetter stating in Pravda that as Russia’s consumption went up, it was in isingly difficult to meet the de id from the established fishing ands. )r. Kizevetter said that the Pacific itute of Fisheries and Oceano 3hy in Vladivostok was surveying is in the South Pacific most suit

: for commercial fishing,

be work began in 1956, but until ntly it had been carried out nly in the area around the ator. However, in the past two s ships from the institute had

made investigations not far from Aus tralia and New Zealand.

“The penetration of the Soviet fish ing fleet into the South Pacific is only just beginning,” Dr. Kizevetter was quoted as saying, “for up to now the Pacific institute has not had a sufficient number of ships for survey ing.

“There are only 29 research ships for 22.4 million square miles of the Pacific, whereas in the Atlantic three times as many ships of the same type are working over an area of 17.8 million square miles.”

In a comment on Russia’s new fish ing plans, the First Secretary of the Russian Legation in Wellington, Mr.

H. E. Shliapnikov, said: “We use all the world’s ocean resources because we need them.”

He added that Russian fishing vessels’ skippers had received very strong warnings not to intrude inside the fishing zones of any country.

Union Company Ends

Trans-Pacific Service

The 7,364-ton steamer Waitemata, run by the Union Steam Ship Company for 21 years between North America and New Zealand, has been sold to a Panamanian company, the Compania Naviera Pearl SA.

The ship was to be delivered to her new owners at the completion of her last voyage in Dunedin about the middle of April, She will be renamed the Amelia. Her disposal will bring an end to the trans-Pacific service which the Union company began more than 80 years ago.

The Waitemata is the last of five ships the Union company acquired in 1946 to maintain a regular monthly freight service across the

Pacific. The ships called at various Islands ports.

Two of the five ships— Waikawa and the Wairuna —were sold in 1962.

Waitomo was sold in 1963 and the Waihemo late last year.

The company began running to the United States in December, 1885, when its steamer, Mararoa, left Sydney for San Francisco.

Many well-known ships, such as the Makura, Niagara, Marama and Aorangi, were introduced on the run.

Its Deep Out There!

The French oceanographic research and survey vessel Coriolis, attached to ORSTOM (Office de la recherche scientifique et technique outre-mer), has recently been carrying out a

survey in the New brides.

Soundings were taken in the deep nch which separates the New brides and New Caledonia, and Mhs of 6,500 to 7,500 feet were ;orded.

Die greatest depth recorded in w Hebridean waters was 7,800 t, about 100 miles west of eityum.

Rt Managers Appointed

Papua-New Guinea

rwo more port managers were jointed in Papua-New Guinea re itly. rhey are Mr. R. S. McCoshim, 0 is to go to Lae, and Mr. G.

Pullen, who is expected to go to idang. rhe new port managers will take irge of the ports after the rbours Board assumes respon ility for territory ports on May 1. rtr. McCoshim, 37, comes from itland. He holds a first mate’s tificate of competency and has nt seven years at sea on a number routes including the Far East. * the past nine years he has held nagerial positions with commercial erprises. rtr. Pullen, 41, is from Norfolk, gland. He has worked in Japan, laysia and West Africa. He has 1 considerable experience in the idling of materials, movement of 'es, and the general direction of idling organisations. More recently was cargo surveyor and port cer in Tripoli. dr. P. A. J. Warman was ap nted port manager for Port resby in February. fourth port manager will control 1 administer the port of Rabaul.

Isore-Hazard In

Saul To Go

'he remains of an old wharf at jaul, considered a hazard to jping and an eyesore, will soon demolished by a Navy demolition n.

'he wharf is more than 50 years , having been built when Rabaul ; German territory. It extended jral hundred feet into the harbour. l fire before World War II burned much of the wharf and the rest dually fell apart till about 200 s were left standing above water.

Lors Caught With

Um In Tahiti

'wo Malayan sailors from the senger-freighter Thorsgaard were :sted in Papeete on April 8 for

attempting to smuggle nearly 5 lb of opium ashore.

The sailors, both from Singapore, were stopped for questioning when it was noticed that their shirts were unusually bulgy.

A paper found on them suggested that the opium was to be delivered to a Chinese temple at Mamao, but police later searched the temple without finding any indication that anyone connected with it was in volved in the drug traffic.

Because of the sailors’ lack of knowledge of French, English and Chinese, the police could gain no clue from them as to the origin nor destination of the opium.

New Hebrides Trader

Sinks Off Erromanga

The 464-ton New Hebrides trader Tutuba was reported to have sunk 18 miles off Erromanga early in April.

The reports said the engine’s con necting rod broke, shattering the engine casing and making a hole in the ship’s side.

Passengers and crew had to abandon ship when the pumps could not cope with the water. They reached Dillon’s Bay, Erromanga, in two of the ship’s boats.

The Tutuba, which was not carry ing cargo of any value at the time,

; recently transported heavy equip nt from Vila to Pot Narevin, omanga, for a new airstrip at ta. fhe airstrip is being built to serve new forestry industry which is be developed on Erromanga ( PIM, P. 51).

Ig Trader Sinks

'he Josie, a 48-ton P-NG trader, k off Kar Kar Island, Madang trict, on April 8. The master, )tain A. Gilbert, and a crew of were reported safe. ’he ship was owned by the North >t Trading Co,

Her Freight Rates

Union Company Ships

hipping freights between New land and ports in the Pacific iced by the USS Company’s ships, ua and Mania, have been lifted about 15 per cent, he USS Co. manager in Fiji, Mr. t St. Julian, announcing the new s, said that rising costs had caused increase.

Western Samoa’s Prime Minister a’afa said on April 22 that was “deeply disturbed” at the ease, and that he would look the possibility of buying a ship Samoa during his proposed aid ing trip to Japan in June.

Nus Naval Base

Be Restored

he Royal Australian Navy is to d $3.5 million to restore part of huge wartime defence complex Manus Island as a patrol boat plans to base five of 20 new ft patrol boats at Manus, which Imost 200 miles north of New lea mainland. he Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice firal Sir Alan McNicoll said in sane recently that the patrol boats Id mainly be used for training air-sea rescue work.

Jch Line May Stop

Rying Passengers

Noumea newspaper reported Uly that Messageries Maritimes i may stop carrying passengers between Marseilles and Sydney, issenger-carrving would be left 'utch or Italian interests, le paper said the rumour was stent, but that nothing of the sort intimated by Mr. Gilbert idval during a recent visit to mea. r. Grandval is Director-General fessageries Maritimes.

His company operates only two passenger liners on the run at present, Caledonien and Tahitien. A chartered Italian vessel, Oceanien, was taken off the run last year. The Caledonien and Tahitien carry 100 first class passengers, 100 tourist class and 200 third class. Freighters of Messageries Maritimes operating on the Suez and Panama Canal routes carry a limited number of passengers.

The MM service was once the Public Service line as all government officials, including military personnel, used it of necessity.

However, with the development of air services, the sea lane has taken a secondary place. Even conscripts serving their military time in New Caledonia are now flown out from France, and New Caledonians wish ing to serve their military time in France are also shuttled by air. The time factor offsets the extra costs.

The Messageries Maritimes line is subsidised by the French Govern ment.

New Ship For P-Ng

Coastal Trade

A Port Moresby shipping man, Mr. Bill Cunningham, has taken delivery of the cargo vessel Frisia for use on the coastal run in com petition against vessels from overseas lines.

The Dutch-built Frisia will operate between Port Moresby, Rabaul, Kavieng, Manus Island and Lae.

She will carry timber and general cargo.

Cannon Used As

Keel In New Boat

The barrel of a Japanese cannon, cut to 10 feet in length, filled with and encased in concrete, is the keel of a 26 ft yacht built by a lav missionary, Mr. Peter Meunnich, of Vunapope, Kokopo, New Britain.

The cannon was a war relic found near the Junior Technical School at Vunapope.

The yacht has been named the

Tavurvur and will be used for fish ing and pleasure cruising around Kokopo and Rabaul.

She is built of local timber to a Swedish Royal Yacht Club design and is equipped with three sails and a 3 hp diesel engine.

Trials at sea have proved the keel to be most efficient and satisfactory, according to the South Pacific Post.

New Master For New

Hebrides Touring Vessel

Commander F. W. Hunt, MBE, has arrived in Vila from the United King dom to take up an appointment with the Marine Section of the British Residency as successor to Captain H.

Kirkwood, QBE, DSC, RN (Ret.).

Commander Hunt will be super intendent of the Marine Section and master of the Euphrosyne 11.

Commander Hunt served in South

acific waters several years ago as Dmmanding officer of the Royal favy’s survey ship, HMS Cook.

Captain Kirkwood left the New [ebrides on March 15. He arrived i the group in 1961.

Captain Kirkwood established the ritish Marine Service which now as three ships, Euphrosyne 11, fangaru and Lopevi. He also took keen interest in the training of New ebridean seamen.

Two of his sailors attained their 50- >n master’s certificate after a course : study in Papua-New Guinea. One ? them, Mr. A. Kalchichi, subse aently took command of the touring ;ssel Mangaru.

Farewell parties to Captain Kirk ood were held at Santo and Vila f members of the British Marine id Police Services. Among the pre ntations made to him was an un ;ual wooden carving from Mota ava representing two policemen, one ritish and one French, standing side i side.

Intenary Cruise For

•Search Vessel

The 120 ft vessel Charles H. ilbert began her 100th scientific search cruise in the waters of the mtral Pacific in mid-April.

Her mission included the use of two-man underwater sea sled to rry scuba divers through feeding hools of skipjack tuna ( aku ). The ;d is towed by the ship.

The Charles H. Gilbert is owned id operated by the Bureau of

Commercial Fisheries Biological Laboratory of the US Department of the Interior in Honolulu.

Specially designed for research in the Central Pacific, the ship was completed in 1952 and carried out her first research mission on her voyage from San Diego to her home port of Honolulu in June, 1952, In her first 99 voyages she sailed 324,254 nautical miles, and has made eight cruises to the Marquesas and Tahiti, two to the Mexican coast, two to San Francisco, two to New Caledonia, six to the Line Islands, and three to the Leeward Islands.

A whole generation of oceanographers and fishery biologists have received their training in prac tical research at sea aboard the Charles H. Gilbert.

New Wholesale Society

Ship Due In May

The GEIC Wholesale Society’s new vessel Moana Raoi, which left the United Kingdom on March 6 for its voyage to the colony via Panama and Christmas Island, is expected in Tarawa early in May.

The new vessel was due at Christmas Island in mid-April to load 125 tons of electrical-generating equipment and other stores for the Public Works Department.

New Role For Former

G.E.I.C. Ship

The former GEIC Wholesale Society ship Moana Raoi, which has been sold to New Caledonian in terests, has been renamed Moana and will run a passenger-cargo service from Noumea to the New Hebrides, Fiji and the Wallis Islands.

The new owner is the Societe Francaise de Navigation, the leading lights of which are Captain H. J.

Helme and Mr. S. Leeman.

The new service, which will start immediately, will help greatly to ease the isolation of Wallis and Futuna.

More Care Needed In

Fruit, Vegetable Shipments

Australian and New Zealand fruit and vegetable exporters should exercise a little more care in their shipments to New Caledonia, accord ing to PI M’s correspondent in Noumea, Fred Dunn.

“A recent shipment of potatoes from New Zealand arrived in Noumea showing signs of deteriora tion,” he said. “Before they could be sorted and packaged the whole shipment suddenly collapsed like pricked balloons releasing an evil smelling liquid.”

In a similiar shipment of fruit from Sydney many cases of plums

"Charles H. Gilbert".

jre found to be rotten when they ;re opened.

The potato incident cause a minor mine In Noumea because there was tie local production.

Ineral Survey Ship

■Fitted

MV Craestar, Conzinc Riotinto’s ineral exploration ship, sailed from isbane to the Solomons early in 3ril after being refitted and having air-conditioned assay laboratory stalled.

She reached Honiara on April 15 collect sediment samples from aadalcanal and was then to sail for alaita to collect samples from the and’s river system.

A landing base has been built on ; Craestar’s deck for a helicopter.

I Government Retains

)Rfolk, N. Caledonia Service

The New Zealand Government has reed to continue the freight service [>vided by Holm and Company, d., to New Caledonia and Norfolk and for a further year.

The NZ Minister of Overseas ade, Mr. Marshall, said this in >ril.

NZ Press reports say the Govern ;nt’s agreement with the company avides for six trips at two-monthly ervals. Last year the company pro ed nine trips at six-weekly intervals.

Mr. Marshall said the Govern :nt’s action had been strongly sup rted by commercial interests, who re confident that, given a regular d more frequent service, trade uld be built up.

Jd A Few

Lef Items

• A new Chinese fishing vessel, ong Kuo, reached Santo from rmosa recently to join the fishing it operating from Palekula. • Mr. P. Corbett left Sydney in : Nuivakai on April 14 for ikualofa, where he will become sistant Superintendent of Marine. : planned to spend a week in Suva peering local shipping. Mr. Corbett s engaged in shipping management »rk in British territories on the st coast of Africa for several ars. • Mr. K. Payne, an instructor ide available by the China Naviga n Line for the GEIC’s new irchant Marine Training School, ived at Tarawa a few weeks ago. ie training school’s vessel Teraka •ived in Tarawa on April 7.