| Accession Number | CUN/68/0017/EC |
|---|---|
| Collection type | Photograph |
| Object type | Black & white |
| Physical description | Black & white |
| Maker |
Cunneen, William James |
| Date made | c 1968 |
| Conflict |
Vietnam, 1962-1975 |
| Copyright |
Item copyright: Copyright expired - public domain
|
Pyrmont Wharf, Sydney, NSW. February 1968. The first Australian tanks to serve overseas ready to ...
Description
Pyrmont Wharf, Sydney, NSW. February 1968. The first Australian tanks to serve overseas ready to be loaded on the SS Jeparit bound for Vietnam. The tanks, fifteen Centurions, were loaded on to the Jeparit last week (5 and 6 February) and the vessel sailed from Sydney at the weekend. The Jeparit was moved from her normal berth in Walsh Bay to Pyrmont to enable the tanks to be loaded. The Centurions had travelled from Puckapunyal to Sydney by rail, stopping at Bandiana to be readied for their journey to the Royal Australian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (RAEME). At Pyrmont wharf the huge floating Titan Crane of the Cockatoo Dock and Engineers Company Pty Ltd, went alongside the Jeparit and lifted each of the fifty ton tanks from its rail waggon and lowered it into one of the Jeparit's holds. The early stages of the loading operation was watched by the Director of the Royal Armoured Corps, Colonel J. M. Maxwell, and the Commanding Officer, 1st Armoured Regiment, Lieutenant Colonel I. J. Wilton.