Best Photos
Best Combat Photos, Ship Portraits, People and Meetings
HMS Invincible sinks in the first few minutes of the Australian Battle Group's
January 2001 Meeting, Bowning, NSW.
Photo: Simpson
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The Photo Sets
Warships Sinking
RMS Conte Di Cavour, June 2000
USS South Dakota, January 2001
HMS Invincible, January 2001
RMS Littorio, January 2001
RMS Littorio, May 2001
HMS Nelson, June 2001
USS Indiana, June 2001
USS Alabama, June 2001
VNS Strasbourg, December 2001
HMS Lion, December 2001
USS Houston, January 2001
DKM Deutschland, May 2001
HMS Terrible, June 2001
Merchants Sinking
Japanese Cargo Ship Tokyo Rose Maru, June 2000
Liberty Ship SS Maybe, June 2001
Troop Transport Fuso Maru, June 2001
Tanker USS Mission Capistrano, June 2001
Tramp HMS Royal (Rusty) Oak, October 2001
Ships Firing
USS Alabama fires on Japanese Freighter Tokyo
Rose Maru, January 2001
USS Alabama fires at VNS Richelieu, January 2001
USS Alabama fires at Iowa class battleship "Mick Dundee",
January 2001
USS Alabama fires at USS Indiana, January 2001
USS Alabama fires on the SS Maybe, June 2001
USS Indiana fires on the troopship Fuso Maru, June 2001
VNS Richelieu & USS Alabama exchange fire, December
2001
Ships Portraits
HMS Lion, British Lion class Battleship (WWII)
USS Alabama, American South Dakota class Battleship (WWII)
USS South Dakota, American South Dakota class Battleship
(WWII)
USS Houston, American Indianapolis class Heavy Cruiser (WWII)
DKM Deutschland, German Graf Spee class Heavy Cruiser (WWII)
VNS Strasbourg, French Strasbourg class Battleship (WWII)
RMS Conte Di Cavour, Italian Conte class Battleship (WWII)
RMS Attilio Regolo, Italian Capitani Romani class Light
Cruiser (WWII)
HMS Royal (Rusty) Oak, Tramp steamer
SS Tokyo Rose Maru, Japanese Freighter
USS Mission Capistrano, T2 class tanker
Miscellaneous Photos
Speedcheck, June 2001
USS Indiana and USS Alabama set sail, June 2001
HMS Invincible launches, June 2001
Brett Farquharson explains the hobby to passers by
Michael Raue and son sail a freighter, June 2001
Recovering VNS Strasbourg, June 2001
Scott D'arcy and Michael Raue sail their ships,
June 2001
Skippers of the AusBG sail their vessels, June 2001
Gordon Cranfield drains water from HMS Invincible,
June 2001
Draining water from USS Alabama, September 2001
Ashley and Debora Clodd with SS Ellie Sue, September
2001
ABC TV crew from "Dimensions: On The Move" come to visit,
October 2001
Recovering Mission Capistrano, December 2001
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Sinking Warships |
Italian Battleship Conte Di Cavour sinks,
June 2000
Australian Battle Group's June 2000 National Meet, Bowning, NSW.
The rebuilt Italian battleship "Conte Di Cavour" from the South Australian Battle
Squadron defeated DKM Graf Spee after a hard fought battle, but progressive flooding
made it vital she return to port immediately. She made it, but what happened then
made for one of the nicest photos we have.
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USS South Dakota Is Sunk By VNS Richelieu,
October 2000
October 2000 Meeting of the Australian Battle Group's Canberra
Battle Group.
In October 2000 a new recruit attended his first battle armed only with a 35mm
SLR with a 75-300mm zoom lens. USS Houston and USS South Dakota took on VNS Richelieu
and VNS Strasbourg. At different times in the battle every battleship had problems
with reliability, but USS South Dakota paid the ultimate price. After blowing
her 'rubber tube' dog-bone substitutes, USS South Dakota could no longer drive
her propellers and drifted out of control across the battlefield into a reed bank
where she sank, 12 feet from port and right in front of the camera.
Photos: Richard Simpson.
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HMS Invincible Is Sunk By VNS
Strasbourg, January 2001
Australian Battle Group's January 2001 National Meeting, Bowning,
NSW.
The British battlecruiser HMS Invincible, a brand new boat with a brand new skipper,
launched at the start of the AusBG's National Meeting in January 2001. She quickly
ran into the Vichy French fast battleship "Strasbourg" skippered by the founder
of the hobby in Australia, Bill Kirwan.
It was sharp, short and decisive. With an experienced skipper, heaver armour,
more guns and a higher speed "Strasbourg" showed what she can do and HMS Invincible
departed this world moments later.
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Italian Battleship Littorio Sinks
After Sinking USS South Dakota, January 2001
Australian Battle Group's January 2001 National Meet, Bowning,
NSW.
The Italian battleship "Littorio" (skipper Glendon Pryor - Newcastle Battle Squadron),
met the American Battleship USS South Dakota (skipper Ant Burden - Canberra Battle
Group) at Bowning in January 2001. Two of the most agressive skippers in the AusBG
squared off and went for each other. Matching speeds, they sailed from one side
of the pond to the other, broadside to broadside, a foot separating them. Parts
of each ship's superstructure flew through the air as the two ships pounded each
other apart. Hole after hole appeared in each ship's hull. Both were in danger
of sinking; neither would back off.
Suddenly, Littorio found that her rudder would not respond and she stopped,
just outside the Axis port, rather than sail on out of control. South Dakota overshot,
then turned 180 degrees to re-engage and abruptly sank a few feet from Littorio.
Now Littorio just had to get into port - sitting about 1 foot to starboard, but
it was not to be. RMS Littorio settled until her quarterdeck was underwater and
then went down in a rush. The failure of the 50 gram rudder servo having doomed
this battleship to visiting the bottom of the Bowning dam.
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Italian Battleship Littorio Is
Sunk By USS Alabama, May 2001
May 2001 Meeting of the Australian Battle Group's Newcastle Battle
Squadron.
The next time the Italian Battleship "Littorio" was sunk, it was once again due
to an equipment failure.
DKM Deutschland had already sunk, along with all the merchants on each side,
and USS Indiana's skipper had gone to pick up his son. That just left RMS Littorio
fighting USS Alabama. Each landed effective hits on the other and both were taking
on water but all of Alabama's systems continued to work while Littorio was again
having trouble with her rudder servo. She continued on, struggling for control
and encouraged by the large stream of water being pumped out of USS Alabama. What
no-one realised was that the reason Littorio was not pumping as heavily was not
because she had less damage, but because her pump had come adrift inside the hull.
Suddenly Littorio circled to port and went down by the stern.
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Battleship HMS Nelson Is Sunk, June
2001
Australian Battle Group's June 2001 National Meet, Newcastle,
NSW.
During the "Last Man Standing" action, HMS Nelson had a bit of a problem; her
guns did not work and had been landed. So, instead of a deadly war machine she
was just a target, but when she sank her loss was photographed in exquisite detail
by John Shaw. Look in particular at the way the surging water has been frozen
in these shots.
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Battleship USS Indiana Sinks, June
2001
Australian Battle Group's June 2001 National Meet, Newcastle,
NSW.
For the second time running, the "Last Man Standing" battle came down to USS Indiana,
USS Alabama and RMS Littorio.
Last time USS Alabama ran aground and was out, leaving the American Battleship
USS Indiana to contest the title with the Italian Battleship Littorio. This time
USS Alabama was more careful and USS Indiana came out worse from their turning
duel.
In particular interest in this sequence is the last photo. Notice the ball
bearing in flight just above the water, fired by the USS Indiana's forward turrets
as they sank, and slowed by the water sufficently to be captured on film.
Photos: First two, John Shaw. The rest, Richard Simpson.
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USS Alabama Is Sunk By Italian
Battleship Littorio, June 2001
Australian Battle Group's June 2001 National Meet, Newcastle,
NSW.
A dozen ships had already gone down in the "Last Man Standing" battle of the AusBG's
June 2001 meeting. Two remained; USS Alabama and RMS Littorio. The two tired warhorses,
so used to battling each other, circled, fired and dodged across the pond. Returning
to port to re-arm Alabama started to settle, Littorio was settling as well but
Alabama was going faster.
She desperately backed out of port to sink with dignity and Littorio followed,
but no action was required. Alabama settled until she had no freeboard at all
then, moving forward, she started a slow turn to port and slipped away.
In these shots the light is just right; the water is clear, and the whole
of USS Alabama is visible underwater as she sinks towards the dam floor, 12 feet
down and 6 feet from shore.
Photos: John Shaw.
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HMS Lion Sinks Just Short Of Port,
December 2001
December 2001 meeting of the Australian Battle Group's Sydney
Battle Squadron.
Visiting from Armidale, NSW, the WWII British battleship HMS Lion teamed up with
USS Alabama to take on the French fleet from Canberra (VNS Jean Bart, VNS Richelieu
and VNS Strasbourg). Alabama had retreated to repair, as had Jean Bart and Strasbourg;
Richelieu and Lion continued to battle. Far from home, Lion started to settle
and turned desperately to reach safety. The drama was soon seen from shore and
the crowd started to call out encouragement to the wounded British battleship
as she raced for home, settling ever lower in the water.
It was going to be touch and go as Lion stretched desperately for the line,
only to fall a metre short and sink less than a boat length from port.
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VNS Strasbourg Is Sunk By USS
Alabama, December 2001
December 2001 Meeting of the Australian Battle Group's Sydney
Battle Squadron.
After a long day of battling, VNS Strasbourg overloaded her forward/reverse propulsion
switch and stopped dead in the water. After calling '5 minutes' the wind and Strasbourg's
guns kept USS Alabama from putting her under quickly. With 1 minute left on the
clock until she could be recovered, power to the engines was regained and VNS
Strasbourg ran in to beach herself to avoid sinking.
She survived her 5 minutes but, just as her skipper reached for her, she rolled
on her side and fell off the bank into deeper water, sinking out of sight in an
instant and leaving Bill clutching air.
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The Sinking Of USS Houston, January
2001
Australian Battle Group's January 2001 National Meeting, Bowning,
NSW.
At the start of the "Last Man Standing" battle at the January 2001 Meeting, USS
Houston found herself surrounded by opponents. Shooting off at flank speed she
crossed in front of RMS Littorio and was thrown onto her beam ends. She shrugged
this ram off and continued to accelerate away, but in those few moments she was
hit so many times her fate was sealed and she was the first vessel to sink in
the "Last Man Standing" battle.
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DKM Deutschland Is Sunk, May
2001
May 2001 Meet of the Australian Battle Group's Newcastle Battle
Squadron.
In May 2001, 'pocket battleship' DKM Deutschland and 'treaty battleship' RMS Littorio
took to the water to battle the American South Dakota class battleships USS Indiana
and USS Alabama. The fight was fast and furious and, despite having 2 battleships
vs 1 battleship and a heavy cruiser, the Allies were soon hurting with USS Indiana
pumping hard. DKM Deutschland and USS Alabama then ended up sailing parallel to
each other and a foot apart. A single broadside was exchanged and 20 seconds later
DKM Deutschland was on the bottom of the dam.
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HMS Terrible, 1st Class Protected
Cruiser, Sinks, June 2001
Australian Battle Group's June 2001 National Meet, Newcastle,
NSW.
During the first campaign battle of the June 2001 National Meet, HMS Terrible,
a 1st class protected cruiser on her maiden combat mission was hit one too many
times. Water got to her radio receiver and she went out of control, reversing
away from the shore until she suddenly rolled onto her beam ends, then sank spectacularly
by the stern. Just lovely to watch.
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Sinking Merchant Ships |
SS Tokyo Rose Sinks, June 2000
Australian Battle Group's June 2000 National Meet, Bowning, NSW.
Tokyo Rose Maru was Bill Kirwan's Japanese freighter, based on a Liberty hull.
Sunk more times than anyone can remember, Tokyo Rose Maru would normally settle
on an even keel until her decks were just about awash, then go down quickly. At
the June 2000 National Meeting of the AusBG the calm water let her settle very
low indeed.
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SS Maybe Is Sunk, June 2001
Australian Battle Group's June 2001 National Meet, Newcastle,
NSW.
Matthew Shaw had just completed his first ship, the transport "SS Maybe" and had
sailed her through the June 2001 Nationals, helping put the final nails in the
coffin of the Axis war effort. She did not take a hit all meeting, that is until
the victory was secure and the "Last Man Standing" battle rolled around.
Matthew soon learnt that is not such a good idea to ram a battleship with
a Liberty ship. The battleship will not be hurt, and the Liberty ship? Well, take
a look at the photos below.
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The Sinking Of The Troop Transport
"Fuso Maru", June 2001
Australian Battle Group's June 2001 National Meet, Newcastle,
NSW.
With Michael Raue at the helm, the Japanese troop transport "Fuso Maru" completed
so many convoy runs she nearly won the meeting for the Axis forces. Michael had
handled her deftly, picking when to sail and when to go home with great finesse,
and manouvring with skill.
In the "Last Man Standing" battle there was no retreat and the unarmed Fuso
Maru's luck eventually ran out. Hit hard by USS Indiana she survived for a time,
but it was obvious she was doomed. She went down by the bow and was recovered
after the battle.
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USS Mission Capistrano Goes Down,
June 2001
Australian Battle Group's June 2001 National Meeting, Newcastle,
NSW.
Very manouvrable for a tanker, USS Mission Capistrano survived repeated attacks
during the "Last Man Standing" battle of the AusBG's June 2001 meeting. Eventually
she was caught, and down she went, right in front of John Shaw who took some wonderfully
clear pictures of her sinking.
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The Sinking Of The Tramp Steamer
"HMS Royal (Rusty) Oak", October 2001
October 2001 Meeting of the Australian Battle Group's Canberra
Battle Group meet at Bowning, NSW.
What do you do when your side is outnumbered 3 to 1 in battleships, and you are
the only merchant?
Well, if you are Tony Lawson-Brown sailing the tramp "HMS Royal (Rusty) Oak"
you sail, and sail, and sail. When you are sunk you recover your vessel, patch
her and sail, and sail, and sail some more.
The tramp HMS Royal (Rusty) Oak is one of the most finely detailed vessels
in the AusBG, the only finer vessels also being built by the same man, Tony Lawson-Brown.
On this day the Allies were outnumbered terribly, 3 battleships to 1, and the
Allies were desperate for convoy runs. Tony and Rusty Oak delivered.
Royal (Rusty) Oak went out again and again against three enemy battleships,
she was caught in the morning and put under, but Tony just patched her up and
sent her out again. In the end she completed 7 convoy runs and was sunk twice,
winning the convoy portion of the battles for the Allies every time. These photos
are from her second sinking, where she was finally caught by RMS Littorio after
hours of stalking.
Of particular note in these photos is the fine detail on this vessel. The
equal of that on some "display" models.
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Ships Firing |
USS Alabama Fires On The Tokyo Rose
Maru, January 2001
Australian Battle Group's January 2001 National Meet, Bowning,
NSW.
Right at the start of the January 2001 National Meet of the AusBG, the Tokyo Rose
Maru ran herself firmly aground. The new battleship USS Alabama closed for some
target practice. The proximity of the bottom making the double splash from A &
B turrets particularly impressive.
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USS Alabama fires On The VNS
Richelieu, January 2001
Australian Battle Group's January 2001 National Meet, Bowning,
NSW.
Early in the piece USS Alabama and VNS Richelieu had a long engagement. While
neither was victorious, one photo stands out.
The manouvring was so intense that in this shot Richelieu was caught with
her guns pointing to starboard while Alabama fires on her from the port side.
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USS Alabama fires On The Mick Dundee,
January 2001
Australian Battle Group's January 2001 National Meet, Bowning,
NSW.
During the "Last Man Standing" battle of the AusBG's January 2001 meeting, all
surviving warships attacked the Mick Dundee; unwilling to face this Iowa class
battleship individually, they faced the threat together.
Crippled, the Mick Dundee drifted across the battlefield and USS Alabama moved
in for the kill.
Photo: Gordon Cranfield
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USS Alabama fires On The USS Indiana,
January 2001
Australian Battle Group's January 2001 National Meet, Bowning,
NSW.
Three warships are left; USS Alabama, USS Indiana and RMS Littorio fight for the
title of "Last Man Standing". USS Indiana has a serious list, which saves her
as USS Alabama lets loose a broadside into one of the Indiana's impenetratable
sections.
Miss or not, the splash has to be seen to be believed.
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USS Alabama fires On The SS Maybe,
June 2001
Australian Battle Group's June 2001 National Meet, Newcastle,
NSW.
After sailing for two days without a hit, SS Maybe got much more aggressive during
the "Last Man Standing" battle of the June 2001 meeting.
She rammed USS Alabama and learned why it is not such a good idea.
NOTE: This shot also appears in the photoset "SS
Maybe is sunk"
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USS Indiana Fires On The Japanese
Troopship "Fuso Maru", June 2001
Australian Battle Group's June 2001 National Meet, Newcastle,
NSW.
Everyone's luck runs out sometime.
After a charmed life Fuso Maru takes a punishing blow from USS Indiana.
NOTE: This shot also appears in the photoset The
sinking of the troop transport "Fuso Maru"
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USS Alabama And VNS Richelieu
Engage, December 2001
December 2001 Meeting of the Australian Battle Group's Sydney
Battle Squadron.
Neither vessel was sunk this day but both took a fair amount of damage.
Notice how in this exchange, Richelieu has got an effective hit on Alabama
while Alabama has missed, shooting past Richelieu's bow.
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Ship's Portraits
HMS Lion
A British "Lion" class battleship, laid down just before WWII but never completed.
A handsome, reliable and effective combatant from the TONE (Armidale, NSW)
Battle Squadron.
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USS Alabama
Short (1400mm), slow (27.5 knots) but highly manouvrable, USS Alabama sails with
the Sydney Battle Squadron and is one of the most reliable ships in the AusBG.
If her skipper was a better shot, she would be a very dangerous opponent.
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USS South Dakota
In the hands of Anthony Burden, USS South Dakota has proved time and again to
be the most dangerous Allied battleship in the AusBG.
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USS Houston
As a small heavy cruiser Houston was a real challenge to build and arm, but her
skipper Steven Burden was up to the challenge and she is now the top convoy killer
in the AusBG.
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DKM Deutschland
The 1st armed ship in the AusBG, DKM deutschland has had several owners over the
years and is now sailing with the Newcastle Battle Squadron.
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Vichy French Battleship Strasbourg
Built to replace VNS Richelieu, which Bill found hard to transport, VNS Strasbourg
is skippered by Bill Kirwan and sails with the Canberra Battle Group.
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Italian Battleship Conte Di Cavour
Armed with experimental cannon, Conte Di Cavour has not been sailing recently.
She is a lovely looking ship though.
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Italian Light Cruiser Attilio Regolo
A "Capitan Romani" class light cruiser from the Italian Navy of WWII, the Attilio
Regolo runs as an unarmed high speed transport in the service of the TONE (Armidale,
NSW) Battle Squadron. At 40 knots she is very hard to catch and with the care
and attention her builder, Michael Raue, has lavished on her she is one of the
most attractive vessels in the battlegroup.
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HMS Royal (Rusty) Oak
Easily the most handsome tramp in the battlegroup, HMS Royal (Rusty) Oak hails
from the Midway (Wagga Wagga, NSW) Battle Squadron and is skippered by Tony Lawson-Brown.
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SS Tokyo Rose Maru
Built by Bill Kirwan on a Liberty hull, SS Tokyo Rose Maru is one of the most
sunk vessels in the AusBG.
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USS Mission Capistrano
A T2 tanker built by Michael Raue, USS Mission Capistrano has graced many battlefields,
getting sunk at Bowning, Newcastle, Sydney and Armidale.
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Miscellaneous Photos
Speedcheck
Australian Battle Group's June 2001 National Meet, Newcastle,
NSW.
At the start of each meeting, each vessel's speed is checked. Due to environmental
conditions speeds often vary from site to site and a check helps make sure the
relative speeds are correct. In this shot, Matthew Shaw tests the speed of his
new Liberty Ship, the SS Maybe.
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Two Sodaks Go Hunting
Australian Battle Group's National Meet, June 2001, Newcastle,
NSW.
USS Alabama and USS South Dakota, the backbone of the Allied forces at the June
2001 meet, launch together from the Allied port.
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Battlecruiser HMS Invincible
Comes Out To Play
Australian Battle Group's June 2001 National Meet, Newcastle,
NSW.
The world's 1st Battlecruiser, HMS Invincible, is launched by her skipper Gordon
Cranfield from Western Australia as Richard Simpson launches USS Alabama in the
foreground. Some idea of the growth in size of battleships during the "Dreadnought"
era can be grasped from this shot, as you compare the size of the 1942 Alabama
to the 1906 Invincible. (Note: Alabama was not the largest "Dreadnought" class
vessel, nor was Invincible the smallest.)
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Briefing The Public
Australian Battle Group's June 2001 National Meet, Newcastle,
NSW.
Brett Farquharson, club secretary, force behind the Bowning Shipyards, irrepressable
volunteer and referee/safety officer for the June 2001 Nationals, makes sure passing
members of the public are wearing safety glasses before briefing them on what
this mad hobby is all about.
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Father And Son
Australian Battle Group's June 2001 National Meet, Newcastle,
NSW.
Michael Raue holds his son up high as the young man guides USS Mission Capistrano
around the convoy course. She did not make it home, but they gave it a very good
try and had a ball together.
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Recovering Vichy French Battleship
Strasbourg
Australian Battle Group's June 2001 National Meet, Newcastle,
NSW.
French fast battleship VNS Strasbourg went into a complete electrical shutdown
during the June 2001 National Meet and ended up 20 feet underwater just before
her '5 minutes' ran out. In this shot Bill Kirwan, her skipper, waits with heart
in mouth, desperate to find out what had gone wrong, as Owen Foster and daughter
land his recovered ship.
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Scott D'arcy And Michael Raue
Australian Battle Group's June 2001 National Meet, Newcastle,
NSW.
Michael Raue (Armidale, NSW) - sailing Fuso Maru - and Scott D'arcy (Newcastle,
NSW) - sailing DKM Deutschland - stand shoulder to shoulder as they sail for the
Axis forces at the June 2001 Nationals.
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Skippers Of The AusBG
Australian Battle Group's June 2001 National Meet, Newcastle,
NSW.
During the "Last Man Standing" battle which concluded the June 2001 Meeting, skippers
from all over Australia stand shoulder to shoulder as they compete to have their
ship be the "Last Man Standing".
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Draining HMS Invincible
Australian Battle Group's June 2001 National Meeting, Newcastle,
NSW.
At her second battle, HMS Invincible was not sunk even once. Instead she survived
drama after drama until a low battery forced her withdrawal from the "Last Man
Standing" battle.
This photo is taken just after Invincible has withdrawn from the water in
the last battle and shows Gordon Cranfield draining his baby through the holes
in her side.
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Draining The USS Alabama
September 2001 Meeting of the Australian Battle Group's Sydney
Battle Squadron.
The USS Alabama is drained of water after sinking just off shore at the September
2001 meeting of the AusBG in Sydney. Note the water spurting out of the hole in
her bow.
Alabama was back on the water 20 minutes after this photo was taken.
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Two Visitors Help Out
September 2001 Meeting of the Australian Battle Group's Sydney
Battle Squadron.
Two visitors hold the SS Ellie Sue, sunk twice during the Sydney September 2001
meeting. Ashley and Debora Clodd came to visit and sailed a merchant each that
day. Debora sailed Ellie Sue and handled her well, being quite unfortunate to
go down twice.
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The ABC Comes To Visit
Australian Battle Group's October 2001 Meet, Bowning, NSW.
The crew from the ABC television program "Dimensions: On the Move" came to film
the battlegroup in September (in Canberra, ACT) and again in October (in Bowning,
NSW). They spent 2 days filming, to produce the segment "Battleships", 3 minutes
and 45 seconds long. This went to air on ABC TV on the 22nd of November 2001 across
Australia.
In this shot, Bill Kirwan - founder of the hobby in Australia - is answering
questions about the hobby and handling himself with his characteristic dignity.
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Recovering The American T2 Tanker
USS Mission Capistrano
December 2001 meeting of the Australian Battle Group's Sydney
Battle Squadron.
Mission Capistrano (Armidale, NSW) was lent to the visiting French Fleet from
Canberra, for prospective members to sail, for the duration of the Dec 2001 Sydney
Meeting. After HMS Lion and USS Alabama combined to sink her twice in two sorties
the French visitors gave up on sailing her. In this shot, Ian Bailey recovers
Mission Capistrano from just outside the French port.
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