Shipping Briefs

• The Tata Jyoti, an Indian shrimp catcher, has been towed off Nasilai Reef, Fiji. She went aground during Hurricane Bebe. Salvage men used heavy tackle to draw her across the reef into the lagoon, after first remov ing 20 to 30 tons of equipment to lighten her. The Salmar, a salvage vessel, then towed the Tata Jyoti to Suva for repairs to a slightly damaged hull. • Mr Hasan Raza, a well known Fiji shipowner has bought the Cook Islands trader, Akateri, from Silk and Boyd Ltd, of Rarotonga. The Akateri, 200 tons, was built in Holland in 1946. • Narain Shipping, of Fiji, has bought a Union Steam Ship Co tug, the Tapuhi, which has been lying idle in Wellington for more than a year.

The tug will be used in the Narain tug and barge business. The Tapuhi, 232 tons, built in Aberdeen in 1945, is one of the few steam boiler powered tugs left in the world. • Sitmar Cruises, between August, 1973, and February, 1974, will oper ate 10 cruises from Sydney to Pacific Islands tourist areas with the Fairstar.

Cruises will vary from 15 to 21 days.

Ports on various itineraries are Lae, Madang, Noumea, Honiara, Vila, Lautoka, Suva, Savusavu, Apia, Pago Pago, Nukualofa and Vavau.

Some cruises will also take in Opua in the Bay of Islands (NZ) and Auck land. In Australia, some itineraries include Whitsunday Passage, Cairns and Melbourne. On one cruise the Fairstar will be in Melbourne for the Melbourne Cup. • American Samoa's seagoing tug, Talitiga, towed a big barge 2,200 miles from Savaii to Deep Cove, Doubtful Bay, on the far south-west

coast of NZ in December. She was chartered by a NZ firm, Wilkins Davies Construction Ltd. The gross charter fee was expected to be from $25,000 to $30,000.

O The Dutch Line, Nedlloyd will add the BSIP and Papua New Guinea to some of its services from Europe to the Pacific Islands. The first service taking in additional ports will be with the Main Lloyd, scheduled to leave Hamburg on February 3. She is due at Honiara on March 27, Port Moresby, March 29, Rabaul, April 1, Lae, April 3 and Madang, April 4. • Stevedoring charges have been increased by 20 per cent in Fiji fol lowing an increase in wages for fork lift and tow motor drivers. Cartage costs for transporting cargo to and from ships’ slings have been increased from 20c to 30c a ton. Because of continually spiralling costs, stevedor ing companies are finding it difficult to work outset costs. There could be further rises in wharf charges after April as the union agreement will then be due for revision. • Freight charges will rise by 50 per cent and passenger fares by 25 per cent on GEIDA vessels on January 1. The increases were ap proved recently by the GEIC Gover nor-in-Council. Charter rates for the vessels will also be raised by 50 per cent. • Rabi Holdings Ltd, the company owned by the Banabans in Fiji, has bought the inter-island trading ship Komaiwai from the Carpenter group.

PIM in Sydney, said that after visi the Cook Islands, Niue and To he arrived in Fiji just in time to r.

Bebe. They ran for shelter to Su Bay of Islands and while there, ft ing off bigger craft which had dra£ their anchors and were nud; L’Affranchi, took wind measureme Some of the gusts, he said, reac 110 knots but they escaped dam After calling at Beqa they headed New Caledonia. According to C zague the New Caledonian coas notoriously difficult to approach to avoid making a night landfall steered for Mare. Coffee was 01 the galley at 2.30 am with L’Affm riding a calm sea. A shock can few minutes later, when a huge w almost from nowhere, swamped cockpit. Gonzague rushed on ( and found they were only 50 mi from the reef. He and Olivier to tack around it but they were late and L’Affranchi was on the Gonzague and Olivier managec reach the shore and spent six with the islanders before gettin, Noumea.

“We will never forget the waj villagers helped us in this situat; he said. • SHEBESSA, 42 ft steel keto British yacht owned by Norman ] tin and his wife Sheila arrive* Sydney on December 9. They England in December, 1970 sailed across the Atlantic to the Indies. After 10 months there, sailed over to Dutch Antillas on South American coast, San Bias.

Panama. The voyage continued t« South Pacific in January, 1972 calls were made at Galapagos, Marquesas, Tuamotus, Tahiti, < Islands, Tonga and Fiji.

While in Fiji last October, were caught up by hurricane Bebe managed to escape damage. Q who sailed in her from Fiji to Sy were Frank Roedel, from Gen and a Canadian, Ted Culley. She\ plans to leave for Melbourne stay there for two months b: cruising to Indonesia, across to A and back to England.

Mr Martin is an Australian, be left for England in 1937 when met his English wife. They have children —two sons and a daughlj

• Sarabande, 36 Ft If

owned by Basil Diethelm of Aus and his Singaporean wife, Ai. will sail to Singapore from Syf next March. This will be the first, they have left Australia in two having spent the time cruising au the continent. They plan to visit S pore and some European countn well. Angela flew over to Singap<( Christmas to visit her parents? hopes to be back in a few weeks: