An injured sailor, possibly R23349 Naval Shipwright 1 Thomas 'Jesse' James, rests in a sick bay ...

Accession Number NAVY04183
Collection type Photograph
Object type Negative
Maker Unknown
Place made At sea, Australia: New South Wales
Date made c 11 February 1964
Conflict Period 1960-1969
Second World War, 1939-1945
Vietnam, 1962-1975
Copyright

Item copyright: Copyright expired - public domain

Public Domain Mark This item is in the Public Domain

Description

An injured sailor, possibly R23349 Naval Shipwright 1 Thomas 'Jesse' James, rests in a sick bay bunk of the RAN aircraft carrier HMAS Melbourne (II). He was rescued following the sinking of HMAS Voyager on the night of 10 February 1964, the result of a collision with HMAS Melbourne during exercises off Jervis Bay, southern NSW. The disaster claimed the lives of 82 crew members of the Voyager. Naval Shipwright James served in the RAN during the Second World War, enlisting on 10 July 1939. After the collision between HMAS Melbourne and HMAS voyager, Naval Shipwright James stayed in the RAN and served a tour of duty in the Vietnam War on HMAS Sydney, from March 1967 to November 1968. He retired from the navy in 1971.