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HMS
Sirius relived HMS Londonderry at sea taking the latter’s
place with the NATO ‘Standing Naval Force Atlantic’ which had the
acronym of STANAVFORLANT. This ‘force’ comprised of ships, on a
rotating basis, from the various NATO countries. At this particular time
the countries represented were USA, Canada, Holland, Norway, Denmark, West
Germany, and, of course the Royal Navy. The Commodore was Dutch, but soon
to be replaced by a Canadian. It was said that when either the Dutch or
British flew the Commodore’s Pennant; one did a lot of sea time. On the
other hand, when the Yanks or Canadians were in charge one seemed to be
alongside a lot, particularly on their side of the pond! However memory
can be fickle and rumour is rife at sea, particularly when the company is
multinational. Our first port of call was Newcastle, and what a great run
ashore that place was! Tiffany’s nightclub was the place to go in those
days, the lasting memory being the ‘Bird in a Cage’ dancers.
Our
next destination was Halifax, Nova Scotia via, the Azores. Whilst on route
we encountered the beginnings of a huge Atlantic storm, which had caused
some concern with some of the ships in company. While taking on fuel and
stores at Ponta Delgada and, after some discussion, it was decided that
the majority of the squadron would by-pass the storm and proceed to
Halifax by a different route. However the Dutch and the British would
steam through the storm and head there direct. When we arrived at Halifax
it was icers! In fact it was so cold the sea was steaming off. Sirius
had taken a fair battering and many of us had been seasick. The
upper-works had orange and brown rust streaks defacing the paintwork, and
the Buffer’s Party were particularly busy on arrival. It was the only
time I saw water freeze in the bucket before it could be used. We had been
alongside for about a week before the ‘also rans’ finally arrived. No
rust on their paintwork or broken and bent fittings; no, but they had a
lovely suntan, for they had gone via Bermuda!
So,
down to business and the changing of Commodores. The Dutch were to had
over to the Canadians. A parade took place in a large hanger in the Naval
base in Halifax. All the ship’s companies provided a Guard of Honour;we
Royals representing Sirius. As the Dutch were handing over to the
Canadians, they were out in front separate from the rest. We were lined up
on the right flank. To our left was the US Navy then the other nations.
The petty officer in charge of the US contingent became indignant hat we,
as mere marines were on the right flank, and taking the senior position.
He thought that, as he was Navy, and senior to marines that the US Navy
should be on the right flank. He approached the DSM, (Detachment Sergeant
Major), and remonstrated. Bill Eades eyeballed him from under the peak of
his pith helmet and said calmly,
“What
you say may or may not be true. However, what is true is that my Corps is
older than your country, so piss off and stop wasting my time”.
At
that moment the OCRM approached asking if there was a problem. With that,
the Petty Officer saluted and returned to his place in a huff
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