Onyx was until recently part of the historic ships collection at Birkenhead.
I'm not sure what's happened to her now that they have lost their berth and the Trust which ran them has gone bust.
Onyx has been sitting in Buccleuch Dock in Barrow for several years. It is understood from the local newspaper that she may well depart Barrow shortly, to be towed to Hull for disposal. It is all being undertaken with some subterfuge by whoever the owner is.
This is a shame. She appears to be in average condition and considering its part in the Falklands War it is a national treasure and really should be dry-docked and after some TLC, put on display again.
There is considerable support for this option by former crew members. Frustration is knowing who to approach and deal with.
You tend to see some surprising things while on a long drive in the country, but few could beat coming into a town that has its very own submarine.
Even more surprising when you consider Holbrook is more than 200 kilometers inland and on the Hume Highway between Sydney and Melbourne.
The vessel isn't the full submarine, but it is the above-waterline structure of the HMAS Otway.
The Otway was one of six Oberon-class subs built for the Royal Australian Navy between 1966 and 1979.
It is 90 meters long, some eight meters wide, and was powered by diesel/electric motors.
The Otway was usually crewed by at least 65 men.
The sub was brought to Holbrook by local fundraising, although the widow of the Victoria Cross-winning Commander Norman Holbrook, donated the bulk of the moneys - some $100,000.
In World War One, the then Lt Norman Holbrook took submarine B-11 into the Dardenelles Strait and torpedoed the Turkish battleship Messoudieh.
Upon the vessel's safe return he was awarded the first naval VC, while his crew earned the Distinguished Service Medal.
Near the submarine final resting spot is a small museum that is worth popping in to see. Plans are underway to reconstruct the control area of the Otway.
Meantime, the Otway is much beloved by local children - and parents desperate for a break in a long drive.
And fancy being a truck driver heading into town for the first time in a fog - it would make the person wonder if he'd taken a wrong turn somewhere!
Above three Paid Off and laid up in Halifax, Nova Scotia, awaiting decision on sale or scrapping.
Olympus
Osiris
Long gone, will check disposition and let you know.
Submarines are not the most popular topic here since we bought the four, new to us, Trafalgar class from Britiain. Only one, HMCS Victoria partially working on the West Coast, two. HMCS Cornerbrook and HMCS Windsor in refit to do work that we should made part of the deal before we bought them and HMCS Chicoutimi hidden in a shed out of the media's sight in Halifax after the disasterous fire off Northern Ireland. Good old Joseph Lucas strikes again. Now using her for spare parts to keep the others afloat.
Still think we got one hell of a deal albiet badly built and then badly maintained to our "expert" Ottawa desk Admirals specifications while in lay up in the UK. Our policticians didn't want to announce the purchase for 2 years.
BAE built them and guess what, just been awarded the contract to maintain them for the next five years. The mind boggles.
Thank you very much.
Actually, my question comes from a text I read some time ago stating that two ex-brit O-Class were sold/transfer or given to Egypt.
But I can't confirm.
Keltic Star said:
Royal Canadian Navy
Submarines are not the most popular topic here since we bought the four, new to us, Trafalgar class from Britiain.
I believe you mean Upholder. The T-boats are not for sale.
Well, their fate is half yours.
I was living in Canada at that time.
They took ten years to take the decision, couldn't find the arguments to pass the bill.
Sade thing some had to pay that mistake with their life...
Thank you very much.
Actually, my question comes from a text I read some time ago stating that two ex-brit O-Class were sold/transfer or given to Egypt.
But I can't confirm.
I believe you mean Upholder. The T-boats are not for sale.
Well, their fate is half yours.
I was living in Canada at that time.
They took ten years to take the decision, couldn't find the arguments to pass the bill.
Sade thing some had to pay that mistake with their life...
Thank you very much.
Actually, my question comes from a text I read some time ago stating that two ex-brit O-Class were sold/transfer or given to Egypt.
But I can't confirm.
I believe you mean Upholder. The T-boats are not for sale.
Well, their fate is half yours.
I was living in Canada at that time.
They took ten years to take the decision, couldn't find the arguments to pass the bill.
Sade thing some had to pay that mistake with their life...
My mistake Francois5, should have been Upholder class, probably just wishful thinking on my part that we had Trafalgar class.
Yes, no doubt about it, we are equally to blame but as I said, I stil think they were the deal of the Century despite the ongoing costs.
Cheers
Bob
The thing about the Upholder class is that they were designed from the start to have the stern machinery spaces cut off and a reactor compartment added in a lengthened hull which would have made them almost identical to the Trafalgar class SSN's. They're also very strong , built from the same steel as SSN's so they have a far greater diving depth than most SSK's. The fire onboard and the sad loss of life was totally avoidable too , the captain decided to surface in poor weather and when they opened the hatch ( think it was part of a drill too ) the sea poured in shorting out the main distribution panel causing the fire.
She should be repairable but depending on cash it could take a long time to see her back at sea. They were initially going to have a full AIP ( Air Independant Propulsion ) system fitted similar to the Swedish SSK's but thats been put back by 8 years at least.
The fire onboard and the sad loss of life was totally avoidable too , the captain decided to surface in poor weather and when they opened the hatch ( think it was part of a drill too ) the sea poured in shorting out the main distribution panel causing the fire.
She should be repairable but depending on cash it could take a long time to see her back at sea. They were initially going to have a full AIP ( Air Independant Propulsion ) system fitted similar to the Swedish SSK's but thats been put back by 8 years at least.
Davie:
I have to jump to the Captain's defence here, he was not held accountable in the Official Inquiry which was conducted by professional mariners who were in possesion of detailed facts that we in the public are not aware of. Furthermore I have not heard any scuttlebutt from those on the mess decks to suggest a cover up.
Quote by the CBC on May 5th. 2005 with extracts from the Inquiry report as follows:
* An air vent in Chicoutimi's tower wasn't working because a nut had fallen off, just 24 hours into the vessel's first trip to Canada. Crewmembers had to leave two hatches open to fix the problem, and were working on it when a wave broke over the vessel, flooding the compartments below.
* A series of electrical connectors in the captain's room that were soaked in the flooding had only one layer of waterproof sealant instead of the three layers that British navy specifications required.
The investigation also found that the British navy upgraded its specifications for insulating the electrical connections on Upholder-class vessels in the 1990s. Two additional layers of sealant were recommended to provide "backup protection." The sealant was added to the other three British subs as they were being built, but not to HMS Upholder, the vessel that would later be named HMCS Chicoutimi and sold to Canada.
On May 5, 2005, a Canadian naval board of inquiry released a 700-page report on the accident. It found that no one was to blame for the series of events that led to the fire.
"This was a combination of human, technical and operational factors that led to a tragic death," said Admiral Bruce MacLean, commander of the Canadian navy, at a news conference in Halifax.
The report concluded that Luc Pelletier, the Chicoutimi's captain, made rational and reasonable decisions the day the fire broke out.
Pelletier's decision to leave both hatches on the submarine open because of the mechanical problem with their vents was at the root of the inquiry. The board found that there was no way he could have predicted that a rogue wave would wash in, flooding the submarine with 2,000 litres of water and cause the events that led to the fire.
Remember the shelter deck design, we never expected that to leak into the lower decks because it was designed and built properly in the first place. Neither do I remember considering that a rogue wave might swamp the ship when deciding to open a watertight access for emergency maintenence purposes, in what, in my judgement was reasonable weather,
I think ovens was cut up at the old ASI shipyard in Henderson WA,now hanseatic marine.One of them is on display on land at the maritime museum in Fremantle,not sure which one.I think one is in reserve for the Collins class which replaced them,built at ASC outer harbour Adelaide.six Collins class.
Hms Onslaught was a frequent visitor to my home town of Blyth in Northumberland, I beleive her crew were given "Freedom of the Borough".
She was held in great respect in Blyth, so much so that when she was decommissioned her Conning tower name plaque was presented to the town and now hangs up in our local community hospital.
One sad point was that with the demise of the "O" class subs the replacment class were deemed too large to visit Blyth, hence now no subs visit Blyth a town with such strong Submariner traditions.
Hi Steve, just looked at the sad state of two of my old boats, Oberon was my first boat and I did my part III to become a fully fleged submariner and I served on her for four years 1976-1980, Otter was my second boat, she was a target boat and I had three happy years on her 1980-1983, by now they will have been cut up and disposed of, sad not because they were disposed of but because the goverment sold our four replacement Upholder class diesel boats to Canada and now we only have nuc's (Cloud)
The OTAMA..now moored at Crib Point in Westernport Bay Victoria is to come ashore at Crib Point where the ship and an associated Interpretation Centre will be built ..The site will be named Hastings Cerberus maritime Memorial Centre ...Collin
I'm a little late to this party but I'll add some pictures.
HMCS Onondaga, HMCS Ojibwa, HMCS Okanagan and the Olympus in Halifax, Summer 2004.
Sorry - I don't know which is which (except Olympus, with the older sonar, is 2nd from the dock).
Two Restigouche class DDEs as well - I believe HMCS Gatineau alongside with HMCS Terra Nova rafted to her. Terra Nova was used to film K-19 - The Widowmaker, playing a USN destroyer.
Porpoise Class
Cachalot - Scrapped Blyth 1980
Finwhale - Scrapped Cantabria (spain) 1988
Grampus - Lost whilst in use as a target 1980
Narwhal - Sunk as a dive / salvage training site 1983
Porpoise - Sunk as a target 1985
Rorqual - Scrapped Plymouth 1977
Sealion - Sold to Inner Action charitable group in 1988 and later scrapped Blyth.
Walrus - Sold to Humber Ship Repairers 1987
Oberon Class
Oberon - Sold to Humber Ship Repairers 1987
Odin - Scrapped Aliga Turkey 1991
Orpheus - Scrapped Pounds 1994
Olympus - Sold to Canada 1989
Osirus - Sold to Canada 1992 and stripped for spares then scrapped Garston
Onslaught - Scrapped Aliga Turkey 1991
Otter - Scrapped Pounds 1991 (stripped for spares to Chile)
Oracle - Sold to Pounds 1995 (resold for scrapping Aliaga but foundered off
Gibraltar 2004
Ocelot - Museum Chatham 1992
Otus - Sold Pounds 1991 later resold to become museum in Germany
Oppossum - Scrapped Pounds 1995
Opportune - Scrapped Pounds 1995
Onyx - Museum 1991
With regards to the sale of subs to Egypt, Humber Ship Repairers hoped to refurbish and resale the Walrus and Oberon which were renamed Seaforth A and Seaforth B to the several interested parties including the Egyptians. No deal was forthcoming and the subs were eventually broken up at Grimsby (as seen in the earlier posted pictures).
I'd be interested to know where you got this info please.
I was of the opinion Finwhale was accidently sunk of the Western approaches during some trial.
Hi Stevo
I read last post with interest as I had mistakenly thought it was the Osiris the Fairplay XIV towed from Pounds. I used a photograph to brighten up my web page so I'll have to alter the name.
Very intersesting posts on shipsnostalgia.
Thanks.
I have a fond memory of HMS OTTER on what must have been her last commission, in 1990.
I was in Copenhagen to call on AP Moller, who had expressed interest in chartering our two spare newbuilding containerships, Chekiang and Chengtu, which we had ordered because we knew we had a good design and the price was right, with the idea that they might fit into our trades later. Having done most of the preliminaries through Maersk Broker's Hong Kong office it had been agreed that a face to face meeting would, unusually in chartering, be useful.
This was in part because it was quite obvious that no-one in Maersk had ever heard of CNCo, and they clearly doubted our ability to run a ship. For our part, of course, since we had been doing so more than thirty years before D/S Svendborg was set up, we were on our mettle.
As I walked down the quay towards the entrance to the Blue Kremlin I spotted a fin and level with the entrance was HMS OTTER, displaying as is normal her battle honours ...
.
.
.
...which included "COPENHAGEN" ! (Thumb)
I grew about six inches on the spot and strode into the building for a meeting which included such gems as:
"Do you visit your ships?"
"Yes"
"What do you take with you?"
"The daily paper, what do you take?"
and:
"Do your crews repair reefer containers?"
"Do you supply manuals?"
I reckon the sight of HMS OTTER was worth US$200 a day on each of two charters for two years!
I went aboard the Otter in Birkenhead Dry Dock, in the late 60s early 70s.
We met up with a couple of Matelots on a run ashore, and they invited us back to have a look around. We were in the BP tanker in the next drydock. No one seemed to turn a hair as we clambered on board to have a look around. It was about 1am and those asleep didn't even twitch. We weren't loud, though bevvied up. I guess sub mariners are used to sleeping through almost anything, even in those confined spaces.
as of this date, (05/06/10) ex "Fraser", "Olympus", "Ojibwa", "Okanagan" are alongside NAD jetty in Halifax, "Onondaga" left last fall for a museum "up river". Just about cried seeing french lettering on one of MY boats. Worked in the Dartmouth Marine Slips 17 years, we were the only civvy yard to service these vessels. Did a day dive in '88 after "Okanagan" completed her DED. Aparently available for $60,000 each, last summer "Okanagan" spent time at Shearwater testing hull thickness, my sources can't or won't tell me why.
Wasn't aware of "Osirus", was she bought in UK and scrapped there, don't recall her making it over here. Have mostly pleasant memories, except when I got stuck under the ballast pump Stbd aft servicing the "Orseal" valve located there.
Appreciate any and all info pertaining to these boats, they proved to be very good vessels. As to "Chicoutmi" she has been transported to the "left coast", presumably as parts for "Victoria". I sincerely hope and trust that she NEVER leaves the wall under her own power, rather convert her to a Harbour training vessel.
As a volunteer here at the Maritime Museum in Sydney I am pleased to tell you that we have the Onslow which is maintained in excellent condition by the museum employed maintenance team. She is still afloat and has been here since April 1999, having made her last dive in March of the same year. The aim has always been to maintain her as if the crew had just gone ashore. We also have the Daring Class destroyer HMAS Vampire completed in 1959 and retired from service in 1986. She has been at the Musuem since it was opened in 1991. She has just returned from her regular 'wash and brush up' at Garden Island Dockyard so she is looking pretty good. If you are ever in Sydney come and see us! We have over four hundred volunteers many from naval or merchant marine backgrounds. Onslow's sister HMAS Ovens is at the West Australian Maritime Museum in Fremantle where she is out of the water and is probably not in quite so good condition as Onslow but still available to view.
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Related Threads
?
?
?
?
?
Ships Nostalgia
1.1M posts
124.7K members
Since 2004
A forum community dedicated to Ships, boats, and vessel owners and enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about crew logs, maritime history, shipping lines, shipwrecks, cruise ships, weather, and more!