the Atlantic Ocean all the way to Durban, South Africa.
PORTS OFF CALL IN CHRONOLOGICAL
ORDER WERE AS FOLLOWS: -
Durban – South Africa
Singapore
Jesselton – Borneo
Labuan – Borneo
Manila – Philipines
Cebu – Philippines
Shanghai – China
Moji – Japan
Pusan – South Korea
Singapore
Penang
Port Swettenham – Malaya
Colombo – Ceylon
Tricomalli – Ceylon
Durban – South Africa
Las Palmas – Canary Islands
Liverpool – King George 5th Dock
IN THOSE DAYS BLUE FUNNEL ONLY
EMPLOYED WHITE ETHNIC OF FICERS AND
ALL OTHER CREW WERE EITHER CHINESE
OR MALAYSIAN. A TYPICAL CREW WAS AS
FOLLOWS:
CAPTAIN CHIEF ENGINEER
First mate Second Engineer
Second mate Electrical Officer
Third mate Third Engineer
Fourth mate Fourth Engineer
Cadets if any
on board. Fifth Engineer
Radio Officer Sixth Engineer
Chief Steward Seventh Engineer
NB - The fifth sixth and seventh engineers were all
ranked as Assistant Engineering Officers. You were graded
according to your academic qualifications, engineering
experience plus examinations by the “Board of Trade”.
This determined the amount of seagoing time required
before you were able to take the merchant marine
engineering examinations. We had three quartermasters
whose job it was to steer the ship. No such thing as
automatic steering in those days. We had a bowswain who
was also Malaysian. The Chinese crew comprised engine
room staff stewards and cooks. The total number of ships
crew was approximately 60 personnel.
In those days if the total crew was less than 100
personnel, there was no legal requirement to carry a ships
doctor and in our case, the Chief Steward was in charge
of medical matters having obtained a first aid qualification,
and he had a very good book for reference purposes.
There was a small hospital on board, which had
sterilised surgical instruments and step-by-step pictures to
assist in minor operations in the event of an emergency.
There was no mortuary on the ship and we were advise
in advanced, that in the event of a death on board it
would be a case of burial at sea.
The role of an Assistant Engineering Officer was
mainly a watch keeping activity. This involved monitoring
the main and auxiliary engines, maintaining the ships
log, and carrying out minor repairs as became necessary.
There were regular tasks such as checking the steering
mechanism at the end of each watch, and conducting
chemical analysis of the boiler water and dosage as was
necessary to maintain the correct quality of boiler water.
Standby duties involved partaking in the control over
the main engine during manoeuvres in and out of port,
and the recording of each change of the engine speed
and direction into the ships log. This was an exacting task,
which had to be accurate with the time logged to the
nearest second.
Standby duty was a two-man operation, usually
involving a senior plus an assistant engineering officer.
One would respond to a request from the bridge for
a change to engine speed or direction by manually
positioning the engine room telegraph and then entering
the change in the engine room manoeuvre log. Answering
the telegraph required training and involved more than
might be realised. It wasn’t just a matter of aligning the
indicating arrow to the new call from the bridge, and
there were rules requiring a swing of the arrow beyond
the new position and then back to align with the opposed
arrow, operated by the deck officer on the bridge. In
addition there could be emergency calls that required
a double swing, and if things became really dangerous
regarding the ships speed and movement, there was a red
flashing light activated from the bridge that really focused
the engine room officers on standby duties.
The other engineer on standby duty opened and
closed the steam valves controlling the turbines speed and
direction. This was quite hard work requiring considerable
physical effort.
Watch keeping occurred around the clock, whether
or not the ship was at sea or in port. When at sea the
watches were four hours on followed by four hours off.
Each watch was covered by a senior and assistant engineer
but in reality it was the assistant who spent all his time
on watch actually in the engine room. Senior engineers
had other duties that they carried out remotely from the
engine room.
With the Blue Funnel Line, each voyage was split into
three, one designated outward bound, one designated
homeward bound, and the third was known as the coast.
I was teamed with the second engineer outward bound