Old Friend of 6th Brigade Leaves Wellington

Rotorua Morning Post, Issue 5307, 21 January 1947, Page 3

Old Friend of 6th Brigade Leaves Wellington

A vessel, well kncwn to many members of the 6th Infantry Brigade, left Wellington last Thursday j bound for Suva, after a five-day 1 turn-around. She is the motor ship i Comliebank, which played an impor- | tant part during the evacuation of i troops from Cretc in 1941. I Her passengers during that period j were members of the 6th Brigade of j the Second New Zealand Division, and | few of them will evcr i'orget the unicomfortable tlmee days that they spent ; while the vessel carried them to safety ' in Eg-ypt. The 6th Brigade foug'ht rearguard ' actious praetieally to the southern- | ; most tip of Greece, and was then j . hastily evacuated aboard H.M.S. | ■ Ajax. Tlie cruiser carried them to ; ' Suda Bay, Creie, where they expected j to stay and take part in the defence i of the island. However, the day before { ihe German paratroop landings be- l gan, the members recelved orders to go to Hgypt and take part in the defence of the Suez Can'al, where an attack was expec-ted. The only availahle ships were the Thurlind Castle and ; the Comliebank, and it was aboard the.se that the troops embavked. Xei--ther of these ships could be considered ' fast, and as the Comliebank eould nnly ' raise a'bout 10 knots she was a eomparativeiy easy target for su marine? or surface craft. For two days the voyage was neaeeful, but ihe shortage oi' food aad water made conditions unnleasant. ; On the second nigh: of Ihe voyage flares shot up on the Comiiebunk's staihoar.l (juarter, and E boats at- • temptod to atlaek the troopships. They were beaten off, however, and the shi}>s rearhed Pori Raid after whai was consjdered in those days to be a rather uiieventful tvip. Those aboard the Comliebank in- j cluded Bishop Gerard, Brigadier Clif- i ton, and Major E. A. Rolfe. ' who is ; at present living al Rongotai. i The Comliebank was also assorkited 1 with the evacuation oi' Greece. but | only a few New Zealanders were J aboard her on that occasion. 'I he vessel was expected to no on i the Xew Zealand coast for only i'our (iays, but lu\s been delayed more than a mnnth.