Ex blue funnel circa 1960 - 1975

[Clive Burrows]

Hi everyone,

I had a fortunate experience in leaving Australia in 1968 to join Blue Funnel for a few years (1968-1971) in the UK to Far East trade. After doing my second engineers in Glasgow College of nautical studies 1970, and a bit of sea time in the Jason, Talthybius (old Victory ship 1944) Patrocolus, Persius, Pelius, Hector & Ulysses. between 1968 and 1971.

I was even a DBS (distressed british seaman) when I had to leave a ship in the Canary Islands with an appendix, and then returned to UK on the MV Raphael (a tramper returning from South America).

I returns to Australia to local trade and ships including Woomera, Bogong, Mundoora, Solen, Wollongong, Meringa, Bogong Mundoora, Myara, Mittagong and Kooringa, gaining my chief engineers in Melbourne. I retired in 1976 to drive high rise buildings instead.

Would like to make contact with any Blue Flue crew of that era, who remember the good, the bad and the ugly times.

Kindest regards
Clive

[Ron B Manderson]

Welcome to the site Clive
Have a long and happy stay with the lads & lassies.
Ron the batcave

[Gulliver]

[QUOTE=CLIVE BURROWS;231735]Hi everyone,


I was even a DBS (distressed british seaman) when I had to leave a ship in the Canary Islands with an appendix....

Most of us left our ships with 200 fags, a bottle of duty free,and a few tatty souvenirs..What on earth possessed you to take an appendix?

Welcome Aboard Welcome Porthole.gifthis great site,Clive !

[Richard Quartermaine]

Welcome aboard Clive. A bit in common, Clive. in January I947 I 'landed' a berth on Port Line's 'Lowlander' and did two more trips on paper discharges -SS&A Raranga, Aberdeen & Commonwealth (SS&A) Moreton Bay. Then Aussie ships Bulolo, Morinda, Manunda, Koolinda, Coramba before going back to Port Line and SS&A and getting my Discharge book. Came home in 1956 and three years later left for another 30 years following a different career.
Cheers, Richard

[Doc Vernon]

Hello Clive
Welcome the site and thank you for the short story!
Always nice to have new Crew aboard!
Hope you will find lots here to take your interest!
Enjoy!
Cheers

Many of us here I feel had that DBS experience at some stage.i know I did as well!

[Clive Burrows]

Hi Richard, Thanks for the interesting comments.

I still have my UK Discharge Book R865333, and have also noted my Aussie ships (Post UK sea time) with sign-on sign-off dates etc.
I had the privilege of serving with Blue Flue (1968-1971) and got a good education and was looked after quite well.
I was engaged sight unseen in 1968 and joined the SS Jason as a Junior Engineer officer in Sydney, calling into Melbourne, Adelaide and Capetown on the homeward voyage to UK.

I had never set foot in UK before and had an appendicitis attack just before the Canary Islands off West Africa. A doctor came down to the ship (Doctor Stanley Pavillard MBE of The Bamboo Doctor of WW2 Burma Railway fame), who advised I needed an operation and was discharged at Las Palmas.
After the operation and recovery, I was put on a ship "MV Raphael" a Lamport & Holt tramp vessel homeward bound from South America.
The food on Blue funnel vessels was very good, but for the first breakfast on the Raphael I was confidentially advised by a young steward the Weetabix had weevils, so I ordered 2 boiled eggs.
I was surprised when told, "you can only have one" we are on rations.

Blue funnel certainly looked after their crew, and I was met in London, travelled by train to Liverpool, where I spent a week in Birkenhead & Liverpool recovering and fitted out with my uniforms.
It was then discovered I was Red-Green colour-blind, and Blue Funnel undertook to sign me on, regardless of the defect and merchant navy requirements.

My first ship was the Talthybius (ex-Salina Victory c.1944) a 7,671 Gross Tonnage WW2 Victory ship with a speed of 15 knots. The SS Talthybius was a rusty old wreck, brought back into service in 1967, the year before I joined to offset the loss of two vessels the "Agapenor" and "Melelaus" that were trapped in the Suez Canal.
I served a full year (365 days) on this vessel, on two voyages UK and Continent to China, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines and Borneo as well as coasting to unload and reload between the 2 voyages. I had no home to go to in UK).

What an education, the Talthybius nearly turned turtle on one part of the voyage when our consumption of fuel and water from double bottoms reduced the meta-centric height, where the ships righting moment was so soft the ship just flopped to one side, slowly recovered and flopped to the other side.
We were all relieved when we made Capetown to ballast before continuing across the Indian Ocean to Penang.

Love the stories all you guys post of your good and bad experiences at sea. Keep it up.

Kindest Regards Clive

[Chris Allman]

Good morning Clive - I would just like to kindly correct one of your observations - re I had to leave a ship in the Canary Islands with an appendix, and then returned to UK on the MV Raphael (a tramper returning from South America) and the weevils and rations issue.

Firstly Raphael was not a ' tramper ', far from it, she was in fact a much loved well kept cargo ship on a regular cargo liner service between Liverpool, Brazil and the River Plate and she more than often carried up to six or more passengers both to and from South America. I spent over 2 plus very happy years on her when her full crew hardly changed at all. The weevils happened once or twice and there was hell to play when it did, but it was not a regular occurrence and she was in fact an excellent feeder under her Chief Steward Mr Duncan and in all my many years with Lamport + Holt we were never on restricted food or on rations on any of their ships. I left Raphael in early 1968 on promotion and conditions were still excellent aboard her. Your above description is not a fair picture of her at all.

[Captain Kong]

I was on the RAPHAEL in 1954, a very smart looking ship on the BA - Liverpool run.
.
I was also in Blue Flu, in 1960, on the EURYADES, a Sam Boat,. six months in the Spice Islands, with a civil war, pure paradise, see my story, "A VOYAGE TO THE SPICE ISLANDS."
Then joined the MELAMPUS for her maiden voyage,. but walked off for the Seamens Strike in 1960, so sacked from the company.
Brian

[Ivan Cloherty]

Chris you must of course realise that all ships apart from Blue Flue are trampers, especially in their eyes. Don't forget that they carried Midship men, all other companies carried mere cadets or apprentices. Have read many excellent books by Richard Woodman, an ex Blue Flue Master, and it shines through that a MFG earned in Blue Flue is far superior to an MFG earned in other companies.

However I do recall that two BF Masters were recognised as being excellent when they collided after sticking to the course lines as dictated by the office whilst on their bus runs, a story doing the rounds in Liverpool in the 50's

[Chris Allman]

Thanks Ivan - its a shame that such complexes, as Blue Flu personnel held and which some still hold today, spoil happy and distant memories, stirring up resentment and causing disharmony. I see them as a slight on the many many fine shipping lines, their ships and seamen who sailed during that era. Rivalry is one thing and often gave way to a lot of fun and mischief, ( a good friend of mine watched a Blue Flu ship depart Melbourne one sunny day with " Sail P&O " in very large white letters painted on her starboard side ) but arrogance and pomposity did and does nothing to endear them to anyone which was and is a great shame really, as we were all and still are, of one brotherhood, and sadly a rapidly diminishing brotherhood, the brotherhood of the sea.