The second of the Royal Australian Navy warships to carry the name HMAS VENDETTA was an Australian built Daring Class Destroyer similar to the vessels of the Royal Navy's Daring class but with modifications for Australian conditions. Between 1956 and 1959, the RAN considered acquiring a larger carrier to replace Melbourne, as the Fleet Air Arm was becoming obsolete and the RAN did not believe the ship could be modified to operate newer, heavier aircraft. [17] Following this, she travelled to New Zealand, where she participated in exercises with HMNZS Royalist and visited several New Zealand ports. By the time she returned to sea for SEA DEMON, all nine of her Gannets were flying once again, however a defect in her B1 boiler once again forced her to return to Singapore and ended her involvement in phase one of the exercise. [150] In the late 1960s, the British made a similar offer, following a 1966 review indicating that HMSHermes was a superfluous naval unit. 555 mi - Jacksonville, FL. She has bn innocent, never once bowed to the natural or human force, in spite of the heavy storm n the talked abt jinx. Search using the name of the vessel as a keyword, and the series number as A4624. [17], Initially, two types of fixed-wing aircraft were operated from Melbourne. [19] The flight deck, hangar deck and aircraft lifts were strengthened, and reinforced arrestor cables were installed. [49][138] Following participation in RIMPAC 77, Melbourne was sent to San Diego to collect replacement aircraft. Left: HMAS Melbourne (II) in company with HMA Ships Vendetta (II) and Voyager (II). Department of Defence users will not be able to view this video on the Defence Protected Network. [67][68] The carrier spent the rest of the year visiting Australian ports for open inspections by the public. 808 Squadron in 1955 posing before a Sea Venom onboard Melbourne. [30] While moored in Sydney Harbour, on 24 July, Melbourne was struck by Japanese cargo ship Blue Andromeda. [14] These carriers were intended as "disposable warships": to be disposed of at the end of World War II or within three years of entering service. Some records include terms and views that are not appropriate today. Long shot of the Evans cut in two . The three carriers astern of her are, from forward to rear, HMS Bulwark, HMAS Melbourne and HMS Victorious. She then returned to Singapore for the SEATO exercise OCEAN LINK. Following a brief refit and docking, Melbourne sailed for Jervis Bay in July 1956 to embark her aircraft squadrons and commence work-ups. [85] Both ships' measures were too late to avoid a collision; Melbourne hit Voyager at 8:56pm. For more information, you can ask us a question. Not long afterwards the first fixed wing aircraft, a Hawker De Havilland Sea Venom and a Fairey Gannet, arrived during trials in the English Channel. In the foreground is the Landing Signal Officer, Lieutenant Peter James. Abaft the funnel, an SPN-35 carrier-controlled approach radar was mounted within a dome, and on the lattice mast a new tactical air navigation (TACAN) aerial and electronic countermeasures (ECM) pods were mounted. [125] The stern did not sink, and was later recovered, stripped of parts, and sunk for target practice. They covered around 555 miles (893km) in a little more than two and a half days, and at the end of the month had raised over $6000 with donations still coming in. The forward section of Evans sank in 3 minutes. [4], A review by the Australian Government's Defence Committee held after World War II recommended that the post-war forces of the RAN be structured around a Task Force incorporating multiple aircraft carriers. Left: One of HMAS Melbourne's boats with HMAS Voyager survivors aboard. [77][78] It was the first time a flagship of the RAN had entered Indian waters. The collision of HMAS Melbourne and HMAS Voyager remains the Royal Australian Navy's (RAN) worst peacetime disaster. [135] Melbourne, Brisbane, and eleven other ships were deployed as part of the largest peacetime rescue effort ever organised by the RAN: Operation Navy Help Darwin. The forward section of Evans sank quickly while her stern section was secured to Melbournes starboard side enabling that part of the ship to be searched for survivors. Crew members aboard HMAS Vampire. [25], The next major refit was required in 1971 for the scheduled rebuilding of the catapult, which was only possible after components were sourced from HMCSBonaventure and USSCoral Sea. [147] On 24 October, a Tracker from Melbourne observed Soviet warships Storozhevoy and Ivan Rogov shadowing the squadron. [16] The carrier could achieve a top speed of 24 knots (44km/h; 28mph), and a range of 12,000 nautical miles (22,000km; 14,000mi) at 14 knots (26km/h; 16mph) or 6,200 nautical miles (11,500km; 7,100mi) at 23 knots (43km/h; 26mph). [117] Subsequent action narrowly prevented a collision. [3] It is unclear whether the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) orchestrated the acquisition of Melbourne or simply took advantage of the situation; Rear Admiral Zhang Zhaozhong, a staff member at the National Defence College, has stated that the Navy was unaware of the purchase until Melbourne first arrived at Guangzhou. However some crew records may be restricted because they contain sensitive personal information. She departed Sydney for Asian waters on 5 May and visited New Guinea before continuing on to the Philippines to participate in the SEATO exercise, SEA SPIRIT. [97] The Royal Commission and its aftermath were poorly handled, and following pressure from the public, media, and politicians, combined with revelations by Voyager's former executive officer that Stevens may have been unfit for command, a second Royal Commission was opened in 1967. [1][56] A decision was made in 1959 to restrict Melbourne's role to helicopter operations only, but was reversed shortly before its planned 1963 implementation. She departed for the return journey to Australia on 31 October. [4] Work progressed on Majestic at a slower rate, as she was upgraded with the latest technology and equipment. It was decided that two of the Majestic Class, HM Ships Terrible and Majestic, would be taken over by the RAN and named Sydney (III) and Melbourne (II) respectively. Melbourne departed Pearl Harbor on 25 November and arrived back in Sydney, via Suva, on 10 December. The Melbourne-Voyager collision, also known as the Melbourne-Voyager incident or simply the Voyager incident, was a collision between two warships of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN); the aircraft carrier HMAS Melbourne and the destroyer HMAS Voyager.. On the evening of 10 February 1964, the two ships were performing manoeuvres off Jervis Bay. [9] Construction and fitting out did not finish until October 1955. Note: This video is hosted on YouTube and has no audio. Following acceptance and work-up trials in the United Kingdom, Melbourne sailed from Glasgow for Australia on 11 March 1956 with 808 Squadron (Sea Venom all weather fighters) and 816 and 817 Squadrons (Gannet anti-submarine aircraft) embarked. [169] Another anchor and the starboard side ship's bell are on display at the RAN Heritage Centre at Garden Island. After further visits to Manila and Singapore, she arrived back in Fremantle on 25 May. . [23][62] The ship visited Gibraltar, Naples, Malta, Port Said, Aden, and Colombo, before arriving in Fremantle on 24 April 1956. She departed Sydney on 27 January 1972 for that years South East Asian deployment and arrived in the Philippines, via Papua New Guinea, on 10 February. [166] The journey was delayed when the towing line began to part, requiring the carrier and tug to shelter in Queensland's Moreton Bay, on 30 April. Available from cooeehistory.com RRP $49.95. [41] The acquisition of 18 Douglas A-4 Skyhawk fighter-bombers was also suggested, but these were dropped from the initial plan. On completion of these exercises she made port visits to both Wellington and Auckland before returning home to Sydney. [19] At Melbourne's commissioning, the standard air group consisted of eight Sea Venoms and two squadrons of eight Gannets, with two Bristol Sycamore search-and-rescue helicopters added shortly after the carrier entered service. [30][31] The refit was lengthened by industrial action at the dockyard. On 1 May, the evening before the conclusion of SEA DEVIL, it was discovered that Leading Engineering Mechanic James Gartside was missing from HMAS Vendetta (II) and believed lost overboard. Debris, including the revolution table from Voyager's bridge, and a pair of binoculars, was thrown onto Melbourne's flight deck. Later that year she participated in Fleet Concentration Period off Jervis Bay in October, and visited New Zealand in November. The Forgotten Cruiser HMAS Melbourne 1913-1928 By Andrew Kilsby and Greg Swinden, Longueville Media, Woollahra, NSW, 2013. [23][36], These aircraft were due to become obsolete in the late 1950s, and the RAN considered purchasing modern aircraft of French or Italian design, which were better suited to light carrier operations than equivalent British aircraft, or replace Melbourne with a larger carrier. [60] Commanding officers were changed on average every fifteen months, with few remaining on board for more than two years. There were 232 survivors. [154] By February 1981, the Iwo Jima class was the preferred option. A BritIsh Avro Vulcan flies over HMAS Melbourne during exercises in SE Asia. The Australian War Memorial also holds relevant information. [76] The carrier's Strategic Reserve deployment ran from April to June, and was followed by manoeuvres along the east coast of Australia until September. [30] Melbourne underwent another refit from late 1978 until August 1979. We will commemorate crew members from HMAS Voyager (II) (pictured) who paid the supreme sacrifice in the service of their country, and the persons who answered the call for assistance including HMA Ships Melbourne, Stuart, Hawk, Ibis, Curlew, Snipe and Teal and search and rescue (SAR) vessels from HMAS Creswell (Air Sprite and Air Nymph), air [70] In November, the carrier took part in disaster relief exercises. She participated in Exercise SWAN LAKE in Western Australian waters in November and visited Adelaide and Hobart en route back to Sydney. He was 31 years of age. Melbourne struck Voyager at the after end of her bridge, heeling her over to an angle of about 50 degrees. One of the Fleet Air Arm's new A4 Skyhawks being craned onto a lighter for disembarkation in Jervis Bay. [82] This required Voyager to maintain a position 20 off Melbourne's port quarter at a distance from the carrier of 1,500 to 2,000 yards (1,400 to 1,800m). She once again escorted Sydney for three days between 14 and 17 September northwards off the Queensland coast towards New Guinea before detaching for Port Moresby and, later, on to Rabaul. [15], Melbourne had a standard displacement of 15,740 long tons (17,630 short tons), which increased to 20,000 long tons (22,000 short tons) at full load. Here the new aircraft carrier was again warmly greeted and a civic reception was held in honour of the occasion at the Melbourne Town Hall. While in the Philippines Melbourne embarked the Philippine President Ramon del Fierro Magsaysay as well as the three Philippine service chiefs and the Australian ambassador for a flying demonstration. The impact pushed Voyager through the water laterally for a few seconds, and then she broke in two. On 18 March Melbourne deployed for a five month deployment that saw her circumnavigate Australia and return to South East Asian waters where she participated in the international Exercises TRADEWIND and ASTRA. Work resumed on Melbourne in 1949 at which time it was decided to increase the size of the flight deck lifts to accommodate the larger aircraft coming into service. Gannet 858 precariously suspended over Melbourne's port side after the pilot had unsuccessfully attempted to 'wave off' his landing. These incidents, along with several minor collisions, shipboard accidents and aircraft losses, led to the belief that Melbourne was jinxed. Photo courtesy Lieutenant Commander J Brown. [23] The first of several annual three-month deployments to Southeast Asia as part of the Far East Strategic Reserve began in April, with Melbourne returning to Darwin at the end of June. 74 Evans sailors were killed. References to many ledgers appear at item level on RecordSearch. While the construction of the RAN's first carrier, HMAS Sydney (III), was too advanced to include these modifications, the construction of Melbourne was still at an early enough stage for their inclusion. Rank/Class/Branch. [1] [80] The 20,000th landing on Melbourne was performed in April by a Gannet, and in September, Melbourne participated in Exercise Carbine near Hervey Bay, Queensland. [44][141] Following the Jubilee Review and participation in Exercise Highwood in July, Melbourne and her escorts returned to Australia, arriving in Fremantle on 19 September and Sydney on 4 October. [39], From March 1965 until mid-1967, Melbourne underwent a regular pattern of deployments to Southeast Asia, exercises, and flag-showing visits to nations in the Asia-Pacific region. She visited Singapore and participated in Exercise FESTOON en route to Hong Kong, where members of her ship's company took part in the Queen's Birthday Parade on 21 April. The passage proved a difficult one as cyclonic conditions caused a number of accidents and injuries throughout the fleet, including a shipwright aboard Melbourne who injured his hand in a circular saw and required surgery. [10] As the carrier neared completion, a commissioning crew was formed in Australia and first used to return Vengeance to the United Kingdom. Captain Willis hands over command of the Australian Flagship HMAS Melbourne to Captain McDonald, 24 May 1972. Ralston, M. G. Watson, D. T. The following is a list of Officers and Ratings serving in Lt. Smith, W. N. Ian Critchley LM (E) Served from 1956 - 1969 Served in HMAS Vampire. 2 Topics 3 Posts Mon 02 Feb 2015, 11:05 Dutchy805 ; Crossed the Bar Information on all Voyager crew who have crossed the bar including time, date, location and date of funeral . HMAS Melbourne was originally one of six Majestic Class light fleet aircraft carriers ordered for the Royal Navy (RN) during World War II. [53], Melbourne was the third and final conventional aircraft carrier to operate with the RAN. Athol Townley MP, announced that fixed wing naval aviation would be disbanded in 1963 when Melbourne became due for a major refit. [132] Components were failing due to wear and age, but the companies responsible for manufacturing the parts had gone out of business during the previous twenty years, sometimes immediately after World War II ended. Special Forum to pay respects to the 82 men who lost the lives in the collision on 10th February 1964 when HMAS Voyager was sunk by the Aircraft Carrier HMAS Melbourne. [72][73] After filming concluded, the carrier participated in a demonstration exercise off the coast of Sydney before embarking on a Far East Strategic Reserve deployment from March until May. She has been innocent, never once bowed to the natural or human force, in spite of the heavy storm and the talked about jinx. Melbourne commenced her South East Asian deployment shortly after her visit to Hobart, departing Sydney on 7 March. [52] The majority of the aircraft ditched or crashed over the side, but some losses were due to catapult or arrestor cable failures. NSW. She once again departed for her South East Asian deployment from Fremantle, with a fleet of warships comprised of HMAS Voyager, HMNZS Royalist, HM Ships Chichester, Cheviot, Cossack and Albion, and the Royal Fleet Auxiliaries Reliant, Resurgent and Olna. Surgeon Commander Brian Treloar helps Lieutenant Barry Tuke, RN, down the gangway. At the end of January 1959 Melbourne returned to her namesake city for the unique experience of filming scenes for the movie On The Beach. [23] A major refit scheduled to begin in late 1981 was postponed pending the decision on a replacement carrier. Following her return, the carrier spent six months in Australian waters, before a two-month deployment to Southeast Asia. The remainder of the year was spent exercising in Australian waters, including Exercise ASTROLABE in the Tasman Sea, before returning to Sydney for Christmas leave. Not all ledgers for 1950 to 1956 are individually listed on RecordSearch. [101] Robertson and the other officers of Melbourne were absolved of blame for the incident. She visited Pearl Harbor and Suva en route, and arrived in Jervis Bay, where the Skyhawks were landed, on 21 November. A line was attached to Morris hammer and he bridged the gap between the two ships with ease, striking Ponchatoula's smokestack. [36] A TACAN aerial and electronic countermeasures pods were also installed during this refit. [36] The three 277Q radars were replaced with updated American and Dutch designs: a LW-02 air search set and a SPN-35 landing aid radar. [1] This was followed by goodwill visits to numerous Southeast Asian ports, including Hong Kong, Jakarta, Manila, Singapore, and Surabaya, before Melbourne returned to Sydney at the end of April. | Australian War Memorial Home Collection Crew members aboard HMAS Vampire. [23] The modifications cost A$8.5million, and included an overhaul of the hull and machinery, strengthening of the flight deck, improvements to the catapult and arrestor cables, modification of the aviation fuel systems and flight control arrangements, and upgrades of the navigational aids and radar. The Sycamores crew and all four passengers were safely retrieved by Hermes. [158] On 14 March, following the election of Bob Hawke's Labor Government, the announcement was made that Melbourne would not be replaced. This event not only revived memories of the Voyager tragedy five years earlier, but also pre-empted another tragedy to come. [16] She had a beam of 24.38 metres (80.0ft), and a draught of 7.62 metres (25.0ft). She participated in Exercise JUC 63 in August, visited New Zealand in September, and took part in Exercise SWORDHILT in the Coral Sea in October. [84] The procedure to accomplish this required Voyager to turn away from Melbourne in a large circle, cross behind the carrier, then take position off Melbourne's port side. While conducting flying exercises off Manus Island on 16 March, one of Melbournes Gannets ditched into the sea when the pilot was unable to control the aircraft after relighting her second engine. She visited her namesake city in September ahead of her departure on 11 October for Hawaii to participate in the inaugural RIMPAC exercise. [121] Melbourne hit Evans amidships at 3:15am, cutting the destroyer in two. The PLAN subsequently arranged for the ship's flight deck and all the equipment associated with flying operations to be removed so that they could be studied in depth. [159] A Sydney-based group proposed in 1984 to purchase Melbourne and operate her as a floating casino moored in international waters off Eden, New South Wales, but nothing came of this. [1], Melbourne began 1974 by transporting 120 Australian soldiers to a temporary assignment with an American infantry battalion based in Hawaii. HMAS Melbourne was originally one of six Majestic Class light fleet aircraft carriers ordered for the Royal Navy (RN) during World War II. [114] Rear Admiral John Crabb, the Flag Officer Commanding Australian Fleet, was also embarked on the carrier. A crew member of the search and rescue helicopter entered the water but could not find him, and tragically, subsequent search and rescue efforts found no trace of him. [129] In a repeat of the aftermath of the Voyager collision, Melbourne's captain resigned amid accusations of scapegoating. Kimbla had preceded them to sea bound for Sydney. [35], During the 19671969 refit, thirteen Bofors were removed, leaving four twin and four single mountings. [105] Despite the carrier being the centrepiece of several plans to involve Australian forces in the Vietnam War, the escort runs were the extent of Melbourne's participation in the conflict, and the carrier remained outside the Market Time area while Sydney and her other escorts proceeded to Vng Tu. The aircrew was rescued and hauled back on board, however, attempts to recover the aircraft were unsuccessful and it was lost over the side. [3] It has also been claimed that the Royal Australian Navy received and "politely rejected" a request from the PLAN for blueprints of the ship's steam catapult. [50][51], Over the course of her career, over thirty aircraft were either lost or heavily damaged while operating from Melbourne. Melbourne put to sea briefly from 8 to 11 July 1971 to test the hull and propulsion machinery prior to the completion of the refit in August and the commencement of shakedown and workup exercises on 13 August. References to many ledgers appear at item level on RecordSearch. Melbourne leads a column of RAN ships into Sydney Harbour for a ceremonial fleet entry celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the granting of the royal assent to the RAN as a Sycamore helicopter flies overhead. En route, on 2 August, she participated in the search for survivors from the collier Birchgrove Park which had foundered north of Port Jackson the previous night resulting in the loss of ten lives. [1][23] The carrier spent May performing exercises off the New South Wales coast, during which she was called on to rescue three fisherman who had been stranded at sea for the previous two days. Logs include information on: Most records about crew and ships are available for public access. Melbourne then continued on to Japan and Hawaii for Exercise REX with USN units before returning home via Western Samoa and Fiji. Both the carrier and destroyer were 'darkened' with only navigational/operational lighting in use. [77][81], On 10 February 1964, Melbourne was performing trials in Jervis Bay under the command of Captain John Robertson, following the annual refit. [30] On 11 July, the passenger liner SS Australis hit and damaged Melbourne in Sydney Harbour. [1] In mid-1971, the Australian military's Joint Planning Committee considered using Melbourne as a transport to help complete the withdrawal of the Australian Task Force from Vietnam before the end of 1971. [25] Melbourne re-entered service at the conclusion of the refits on 14 February, and performed sea trials in Jervis Bay from 17 February until 5 May. [123] All of the survivors were located within 12 minutes of the collision and rescued before half an hour had passed, although the search continued for fifteen more hours. [28] The refit took seven months to complete, and cost A$2million. A small team of RAN officers developed a detailed plan for the acquisition of two of these vessels along with two Carrier Air Groups (CAGs) and the establishment of a naval air station. : USS Redfish United States Navy The decommissioned Balao-class auxiliary submarine was sunk as a target in the Pacific Ocean off San Diego, California, by . [1] I am also proud to record that Voyagers officers and men displayed the same high standards of individual behaviour. [121] Melbourne deployed her boats, life rafts, and lifebuoys, before carefully manoeuvring alongside the stern section of Evans, where both ships' crews used mooring lines to lash the ships together. [30] This was immediately followed by a visit to the Solomon Islands in early April. Later that month she participated in the SEATO exercise SEA IMP in Philippine waters. $32,998. Not all ledgers for 1950 to 1956 are individually listed on RecordSearch. [8][9] Incorporation of new systems and enhancements caused the cost of the RAN carrier acquisition program to increase to AU8.3million. [100] The second commission found that Stevens was medically unfit for command and that some of the findings of the first Royal Commission were therefore based on incorrect assumptions. [4] Construction resumed in 1946, and major modifications to the design were incorporated. [132] The carrier's engineers often resorted to making replacements from scratch. [24][25] Air conditioning systems and a liquid oxygen generation plant were also installed. [4] The ship was laid down as HMS Majestic on 15 April 1943, and was launched on 28 February 1945 by Lady Anderson, the wife of Sir John Anderson, the British Chancellor of the Exchequer. Melbourne 's aircraft were performing flying . (John Francis collection). Melbourne has been deployed to the Persian Gulf on several occasions, and served as part of the INTERFET peacekeeping taskforce in 2000. Front row, left to right: LEUTs Ronald McIver, Stanley Carmichael, Keith Potts, Neil Ralph and Bernard Brennan. [158], Following the decision to replace Melbourne with HMS Invincible, the postponed refit was cancelled outright. They reflect the period in which they were created and are not the views of the National Archives. [147] During this cruise two Skyhawks were lost: on 2 and 21 October. On 28 April during flying operations in the Sulu Sea, one of Melbournes Sea Venoms crashed over the side when an arrestor wire failed on landing, and the aircraft did not regain enough airspeed to once again get airborne. The remainder of 1976 and early 1977 were occupied with maintenance, leave periods and local exercises. [44][45] The aircraft did not fly from Melbourne until the conclusion of her refit in 1969. HMAS Voyager sank on the night of 10 February 1964 off Jervis Bay, southern NSW, following a collision with the Melbourne during exercises off Jervis Bay, southern NSW. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. possessed 63 Ships, 22 of these were requisitioned. [148] The carrier's deployments for the second half of the year consisted of two exercises, Sea Hawk and Kangaroo 81. Following an overhaul of the RAN battle honours system completed in 2010, Melbourne was retroactively awarded the honour "Malaysia 196566" for her service during the Indonesia-Malaysia Confrontation.[170][171]. [114] Stevenson held a dinner for the five escort captains at the start of the exercise, during which he recounted the events of the MelbourneVoyager collision, emphasised the need for caution when operating near the carrier, and provided written instructions on how to avoid such a situation developing again. The fleet was divided into two with Melbourne's group operating out of Manila, the second group operating out of Bangkok. [149] In his haste to shut down the carrier, he failed to deactivate the water pumps, and over 180tons of fresh water were pumped in before a maintenance party discovered the flooding the next day. She departed for her annual South East Asian deployment on 3 March. Since both ships had just completed refits, this was the first time they had been involved in close quarters manoeuvring for almost six months. She arrived in Pearl Harbor, via Suva, on 25 October. [114] A radio message was sent from Melbourne to Evans' bridge and Combat Information Centre, warning the destroyer that she was on a collision course, which Evans acknowledged. [26] This was the largest project undertaken by Garden Island Dockyard to that date. [23] During this deployment, a fire ignited inside the ship's main switchboard. Budgetary constraints from the late 1950s had placed some doubt over the future of naval aviation given the large financial outlay required to operate aircraft carriers and their associated aircraft. The need to secure a replacement for Melbourne grew as the carrier's age caused the operating costs to increase to over A$25million per year. HMAS Melbourne undergoing temporary repairs in Singapore. [77] In August, Melbourne was called upon to lead Exercise Tuckerbox, in the Coral Sea. The Flag Officer in Command of the Philippine Navy, Commodore Jose Francisco, who had recently been present at a United States Navy (USN) flying demonstration, noted that while the Americans could put more planes in the air, "the standard of airmanship displayed by Melbourne's pilots was much higher than that shown by the USN pilots, and that in precision and variety Melbourne's demonstration was a much more effective one.". 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Japanese cargo ship Blue Andromeda industrial action at the RAN had entered Indian waters on this the! During this refit, including the revolution table from Voyager 's bridge, and was later recovered stripped... Hmas Vampire 138 ] Following participation in RIMPAC 77, Melbourne sailed for Jervis Bay in July to... The foreground is the Landing Signal Officer, Lieutenant Peter James changed average! A collision ; Melbourne hit Evans amidships at 3:15am, cutting the destroyer in two undertaken by Garden Island to. 24 ] [ 138 ] Following participation in RIMPAC 77, Melbourne was jinxed East Asian deployment on 3.! 24 July, Melbourne sailed for Jervis Bay this video is hosted on YouTube and has no audio consisted two. ] on 24 July, Melbourne was jinxed led to the design incorporated... Suggested, but also pre-empted another tragedy to come in Jervis Bay in July 1956 to embark her squadrons... ( 25.0ft ) ) worst peacetime disaster able to view this video on the Defence Network! His Landing flies over HMAS Melbourne 1913-1928 by Andrew Kilsby and Greg Swinden, Longueville Media, Woollahra NSW.