Originally Posted by bob10
Not quite as bad as that. Some very fine people , and excellent managers, came out of a wardroom. The general unofficial rule was the smaller the warship, the better the Officer. Or another take on it , from the lower deck, was the bigger the ship, the bigger the bull****. I was fortunate to serve under some of the good ones, and only one of the bad. Being an Articifer in the Engineering branch, we only had close contact with the Engineering Officers. Two of the best , in my experience were a LCDR Emille Dechaineux, son of the Captain that was killed on the Bridge of the Australia during a Kamikazi attack in WW2. And Kev Fanker, Senior Engineer, came up through the ranks, started as a Naval Apprentice . They complemented each other brilliantly. Lcdr. Dechaineux was an old school gentleman, who knew his stuff. The perfect foil between the Engineering branch and the Captain. Leut Fanker was a hands on Senior Engineer who was happiest ferreting around down below, torch in hand, note book in the other. Early in my seatime I was placed I/C of the maintenance of the aft engineroom. Woe & betide me if I missed a defect and ' kevvie' found it. Hard, efficient, and fair, you knew where you stood . He is no longer with us, I've been told. As for the bad, the less said the better.
This **** was the XO of a patrol boat that was run aground on Gabo Island, off Eden, on the south coast of NSW. Fortunately I had been posted DEE [ discharge engagement expired ] at the end of my service. I resigned before my time was up, primarily because I'd had enough, and he was just enough to push me . Best thing I ever did.I must thank him if I see him again. All up, most of the Officers I came across were ok, but the general rule was, the better the Senior NCO, the better the Officer. Any way I ramble.
bob, I'm sure you realise my above comment was TiC.
No? Well of course it was.
Nothing seems to change in any Navy (& not just the navies of the world, where you have the Jobsworths in charge) where you have the Bullied & the Bullies/Competent & the Incompetent, but I don't doubt your assessment of Hossifers isn't correct. I mean, they can't all be ***** or we would be in strife & they would get rumbled very early.
Even HMS Compass Rose had Lt. Bennet (You know the one, "Goodo, Snorkers", that one.
Re Morse.
My late Uncle & Aunt did that in an endeavour to teach me Morse at that time. Both were licensed Pilots, he with Ansett/ANA on various aircraft the last being the Lockheed Electra & Boeing 727, she had learned to fly years earlier in Tiger Moths.
They'd yack away in my presence, but no I never did pick it up. I got as far as ABC + SOS & that was it. Bloody Loser!
Unc made me a simple Morse code Sender/Key to help, but I reckon I was not a good Pupil. He must have picked up the parts at some Disposals joint in Melbourne. Proper serious gadget it is.
As a matter of fact I still have the Clipsal Morse Key on my Desk dated 1942. I wasn't even aware Clipsal were in existence back then.
Edit. 1920 they were established under the Gerard Family.
The Buzzer has departed this life but the Key still hangs in there.
As history shows Morse was just about obsolete by then.
.
As it was I lost 3 days..
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