A famous ship indeed

I READ with interest reader Rosemary Sandford’s thoughts on the Nairana, a very famous ship indeed (Letters, February 18). Nairana is an Aboriginal word, Tasmanian ferries often had Aboriginal names, Taroona, Coogee, Loongana, to name a few. Nairana was being built in Scotland for the Bass Strait run before being requisitioned by the British Navy for service in World War I as a seaplane carrier.

My grandfather George Ovens was a flight mechanic on the carrier. Nairana’s most famous service was during the Russian

Revolution when she was sent to attack and seize the Russian city of Archangel in combination with other vessels during the Russian Revolution. The first time a carrier had been used in an attack on a port city. The Royal Navy was so impressed by the actions of the vessel, they named another carrier after her during World War II.

After WWI, she was returned to her owners to resume the Bass Strait run. She went on to become the longest serving ferry on the Bass Strait run, including being the only ferry operating across Bass Strait during WWII.

Rosemary mentioned an incident involving three fatalities at the entrance to Port Philip Bay. Nothing unusual about that, the entrance to Port Phillip Bay can be one of the world’s most dangerous, casualties have occurred in relatively recent times, even with the best of modern safety equipment and weather reporting. Nairana carried many passengers and crew safely across Bass Strait despite being only a fraction the size of a modern Bass Strait ferry.

I congratulate Sealink on naming their vessel after such an illustrious ship, I only hope she is worthy of the name. Christian Bell

Mt Nelson