NAVAL REVIEW

Taranaki Central Press, Volume IV, Issue 457, 15 June 1937, Page 2

NAVAL REVIEW

KING INSPECTS FLEET Sight To Be Remembered London, May 22. The Coronation Naval Review ait ppitliead saw the concentration of shipping over an area of 24 square miles, and the most cosmopolitan array of vessels to congregate off Portsmouth since the Coronation review of 1911. When the King, accompanied by the Queen and Princess Elizabeth, sailed between the nine long lines of vessels he saw Britain’s mightiest battleships, the pride of her merchantmen, and’ the most graceful of her yachts. Flags' of lai! Ithe great nations, -with the exception of Italy—still peevish because Abyssinian representatives should have been invited to the Co-ronation,-—fluttered in the mist and sunshine as the Royal yacht, the Victoria -and Albert, proceeded slowly past. German, Russian, Japanese, and French cheers? echoed those from British throats.

It was a sight to be remembered as the lines were approached on the tour of inspection. A haze hung low over the waiter, shrouding the huge grey shapes, but the sun struggled through the. woolly clouds, changed the sea from dull grey to dancing green, and lit the strings of bunting on the battleships. A. silence enshrouded the s,cene, punctured on two occasions only, once when more than 100 warships (thundered a salute as the Royal Yacht slipped out on its voyage of inspection, and again, after the review, when four long lines of aeroplanes—loB machines of the Fleet Air Arm—'roared out of the mist and over the Fleet. Naval rat ings lined the deck rails and linked hands as the King was passing. With their dark clothing and whitetopped hats, picked out by the sun. they provided a living fringe to each vessel.

Down the Lines. First, the great battleship?;, were passed, the dark grey of the Homo Fleet contrasting sharply with the lighter tones of .the Mediterranean, Fleet. Then the gigantic and seemingly unwieldly aircraft carriers •dipped by, dim lights hiding in the huge dark spaces under (the massive decks accentuating the impression that they were gloomy caverns. Next came the destroyers and submarines, the former almost small and squat in comparison with the battleships Und the latter like great rolling whales—an impression belied only by the straight lines of Ithe crews and the fluttering bunting. Vessel aftervessel was passed,, each appearing gradually out of the mist and then receding again, so many big bulking shadowy forms.

As the Victoria and Albert swung round to proceed up another lane on its return, yachts of the Royal Yacht Squadron came into view, all gaily decorated, small fry, but colourful. Behind them, in the haze reared the four huge red funnels of the Aqui. tama, keeping company wSth the Comorin, the Orontes, the Otranto, and other familiar vessels. Soon the warships were reached again and foreign voices greeted .the Kin./, from the Asigiara (Japan), -the Admiral Graf Spee (Germany), the Marat (U.S.S.R.), the Dunkerque (France), and the New York (America) on the starboard. To port of the Royal Yacht were the giants of . ue Horne Fleet, the Resolution, Ramilles, Rodney, and Nelson. So the Kmg reached the top of the line and completed his review of his battleships, and then watched the swift passing of the Air Arm, flying j ow and dipping i n salute.

Strength of the Fleet, There were at the Review nearly 150 men_o.f_war and auxiliaries representing every type of vessel in the Navy, .and 30,000 officers and men. The Reserve Fleet was also assembled, under the (command of Admiral G. C. Dickins, who flew his flag from H.M.S. Dunedin, the cruiser which returned some weeks ago from long service in the New Zea land Division. Although taken over by the British Admiralty- at the beginning of May, there were still a number of New Zealand railings on board for the review. Memories were stirred by sight of the Iron Duke, which lay next to the gigantic Hood, the bigsent battleship lafloat. Twenty-five years old this year, the Iron Duke was the only warship present which had taken part in the 1914 review, the only ship which had flown the flag of a commander_in_chief at Jutland—Jellicoe’s- at Jutland. Another interesting warship was France’s Dunkerque, which had only just finished her trials in time to be present. A vessel of 26,500 tons; she carries eight 13-inch guns and sixteen s.l_inch guns. The 13-inch guns are mounted in two four-gun turrets—the iflrslt quadruple heavy gun .to appear in (any navy.

The Dunkerque is France’s reply to the German “pocket battleships,” and astern of the Dunkerque in the Review lay an example of 'these powerful little German 'bafltleships, the Admiral Graf Spec.