Photographer on deck: Alan White left a valuable record of HMAS Sydney in Korean waters

On 14 October 1951, Royal Australian Navy (RAN) Majestic-class light aircraft carrier HMAS Sydney (III) was anchored in Sasebo Harbour, Japan, in preparation for her next operational patrol in the Korean War. When warning came of the approach of Typhoon Ruth, Sydney and other large ships were ordered to put to sea to ride it out. Sydney experienced the peak of the typhoon, losing one aircraft overboard and sustaining major damage to several other aircraft and to equipment.

Veterans have since donated photographs of this huge storm to the Memorial’s National Collection. Most of the photographs were taken after the storm had subsided, and focus on the damage to the aircraft on deck; but one exceptional photograph was actually taken during the typhoon. The photographer braved the conditions and photographed the Sydney pitching in the violent sea, with its aircraft tied to the deck. Prints of this photo have been offered to the Memorial a number of times, yet no one could identify the photographer.

Several years ago the family of the late Chief Radio Electrician (CRE) Alan Wallace White contacted the Photographs Section to ask that he be recorded as the photographer. They could be sure it was him because they held the original negative of the Typhoon Ruth photograph in their father’s collection of photographs. In fact there were consecutive negatives of HMAS Sydney in Typhoon Ruth. This confirmed White as the photographer – and also led to the generous donation of his collection of negatives from his RAN service.

Alan White had passed away in 1981. There was no supporting documentation for the collection, and the family did not have a detailed knowledge of what it contained. They just knew that most of the photographs had been taken during their father’s Korean War service. Curatorial research later identified activities, ships and aircraft; it soon became clear that the photographs formed a significant record of  HMAS Sydney’s deployment. Sydney was mainly involved in patrolling off the western coast of Korea, while its Hawker Sea Fury aircraft of No. 805  and No. 808 Squadrons, and Fairey Fireflys of No. 817 Squadron, Royal Australian Air Force, carried out strikes against North Korean units and supply lines.

White’s eleven year career in the RAN began in 1946, when he gave his occupation as labourer’s assistant. White served on the Sydney from 31 August 1951 until 22 February 1952. He was not a professional photographer and not an official RAN photographer, but he managed to get official permission to photograph in a situation with strict security controls. A vintage print of the famous Typhoon Ruth photograph was also donated by the family. On the back is confirmation that White took it and that he had authority to take photographs on the ship. A rubber stamp says, “Copyright Alan W. White CH R E. Authorized Photographer. HMAS Sydney”. Below this he wrote, “Typhoon Ruth. Sold over 1,000 prints so far of this shot alone, with orders still coming in as we’re out of print of these at present.” This entrepreneurial spirit explains the many offers of donation of the Typhoon Ruth print to the Memorial; it also suggests that there are likely to be more of White’s photographs in the collections of HMAS Sydney veterans.

The excitement of serving on an active warship is evident in the content and style of White’s photographs. No long-distance shots of ships on the horizon for CRE White. Instead he concentrated on close-ups of deck activities, damaged aircraft, take-offs and landings, Bofors guns being fired, and various transfers of people and goods between Sydney and ships of the United States Navy, Royal Navy and Royal Canadian Navy. His willingness to get close to his subject, and his use of interesting perspectives and angles, bring to life the ship’s activities in Korean waters.

Alan Wallace White’s delight in his position as “authorised photographer” is evident in a portrait of him, probably taken on the deck of Sydney. Cameras and other photographic equipment hang from his neck, and the broad grin on his face tell us clearly that he is in his element.

The HMAS Sydney photographs from the negative collection of Alan Wallace White can be found in the Collections area of the Memorial’s website www.awm.gov.au at P05890.001 – P05890.075.

First published in Wartime Issue 56, October 2011.