Future HMCS MAX BERNAYS

(Note: A previous version of this blog post incorrectly indicated that the WILLIAM HALL was rolled out, however, it is actually the MAX BERNAYS. The keel for the WILLIAM HALL was laid recently, hence my confusion on the subject. The quickest way to find the answer to something is to post the incorrect answer on the internet.)

The future HMCS WILLIAM HALL MAX BERNAYS is taking shape at the Halifax Shipyard, with the stern and midships sections having rolled out of the building hall within the last few months, and having recently been joined together. MAX BERNAYS will be the third Arctic and Offshore Patrol Vessel (AOPV) to enter service in the Royal Canadian Navy. The first, HARRY DEWOLF, is currently undergoing sea trials and has recently operated in ice off Baffin Island. She will commission into the RCN later this year.

The arrangement of the building yard, storage for snow, ship's cradles, and high fencing does not make for easy photography, but one manages.

The opening for the port stabilizer can be seen just to the right of the yellow debris chute - it is retracted into the hull, as it would be when the ship is operating in ice or coming alongside. Icebreaking hulls are not known for great handling in rough sea conditions, and these stabilizers will help to make the ships a little more comfortable and prevent excessive rolling.

Photography from the ferry at dusk is similarly not easy, as it is taken from a distance at high ISO levels, but it can certainly be pretty. I need to find a better vantage point for this sort of night time image.

For those interested, I have a two-part article on these ships coming out in the April and May editions of Warships International Fleet Review magazine, and these articles greatly benefitted from an interview with the commander of HMCS HARRY DEWOLF.

Old photos of St. John's and Harbour

 In scanning my grandfather's old slides, I came across some interesting images showing the harbour at St. John's, NL, between 1947 and the early 1970s. He seems to have travelled there several times over the years, with several trips to Newfoundland during the early 1970s. I'm assuming most or all of the images were taken by my grandfather, but it is possible some were purchased in a store at some point.

My grandfather would have arrived in St. John's by sea in both 1947 or so as well as in 1954 - the former while following his family who were travelling in the RMS Aquitania (only he stopped in St. John's, not the rest of the family) and the second crossing on the RM Ships Newfoundland and Nova Scotia with his family.

The first few images were taken from around Cabot Tower looking back up the harbour, and the first two were taken as early as 1947. The first two were processed by the Munshaw company, in contrast with all the rest of the slides, so I think the 1947 date is correct. Later slides from the 1950s appear to be Kodak, but using a different backing than the 1970s Kodak slides.

The quality of the older slides isn't the greatest. Compare the image above to the next image taken in the early 1970s.

The different lighting hides some of the contrasts between the two images, but the buildings along the waterfront certainly seem to have sprung up in the intervening years. I would love to know the name of what appears to be a tied up cruise ship.

A still later image than the preceding ones, though regrettably not taken from quite the same vantage point:

The following images appear to have been taken from a ship entering the harbour, but I'm not positive which ship nor which trip they were taken on. I'm assuming from the fact that these slides have Kodak backing, rather than Munshaw, that they are from the 1954 trip.

Taken from shore again, the next image shows al the fishing shacks and boats that used to line the harbour mouth.

The next two images presumably date from 1947 or so, and seem to show the same ship alongside. I can't make out a name.

The rest of the images are from the early 1970s. I believe this next image is of one of the French Atlantic Cable & Submarine Telegraphy Company's ships, Ampere.

The next two images from 1970 show a Portuguese fishing vessel, the Celeste Maria. Although the ship lasted 18 years under this name, which Nova Scotia's probably view as somewhat unlucky, she was lost to a fire at sea in 1972.

Look at the stacked dories!

The next cable ship, Northern, belonged to the Great Northern Telegraph Company. This photo was taken in 1972.

This final image is probably from 1954, and appears to show a back alley.