_________________
Graeme 'Smiley' Rhodes
R94714
Ex-CPOMTP(D)5
Jan'65 Leeuwin Intake (10th) - Jan'66 Nirimba Intake (20th)
Jan'65 to Mar '88
Leeuwin, Nirimba, Stalwart, Samarai, Lae, Penguin, Curlew, Buccaneer, Navy Office, Barbette, Cairns, RANTTU (based in Port Moresby), Stirling, Bunbury.

There back!!
https://youtu.be/5xDLO1SrkKI?si=tpyEwKqRCdiwGJIk

_________________
Mike (Pony) Moore
O42860
Ex-LT GLEN(ME)
16th MOBI intake
Jan 64 - Jul 88.
Anzac, Nirimba, Stalwart, Moresby, Creswell, Waterhen, Penguin, Vampire, GMGID (PJP), Coonawarra, Attack, Ardent, Cook, Kuttabull, Cerberus.

May your walls know joy; May every room hold laughter and every window open to great possibility.

I bloody love that one.

_________________

John Kelly (WEBMASTER)
R42620
Ex-WOMTH
13th MOBI Intake
July'62 to July'83
Nirimba x3 - Rushcutter - Sydney x2 (Carrier) - Melbourne (Carrier) - Penguin - Kuttabul - Creswell x3 - Stalwart x2 - Brisbane.

Bloody brilliant.

_________________
Bruce Francis
R112774
JRTE 40TH Intake
July 72-June73
Ex WM,QMG,Bosun,Paid off Sept 93
Leeuwin,Cerberus x3, Lonsdale, Watson, Coonawarra(DNB), Harman.
Supply, Melbourne, Vampire, Attack, Ardent, Brisbane x2, Fremantle(Commissioning Crew), Sydney-FFG 03(Commissioning Crew), Hobart, Cessnock. Go the Mighty Magpies

Just so good.

_________________
Graeme 'Smiley' Rhodes
R94714
Ex-CPOMTP(D)5
Jan'65 Leeuwin Intake (10th) - Jan'66 Nirimba Intake (20th)
Jan'65 to Mar '88
Leeuwin, Nirimba, Stalwart, Samarai, Lae, Penguin, Curlew, Buccaneer, Navy Office, Barbette, Cairns, RANTTU (based in Port Moresby), Stirling, Bunbury.

Must be an election coming up...

_________________

Rick Pengilly
WEBMASTER
Ex-CPOMTH3
R42630
13th MOBI Intake
July'62 to July'74
HMAS Nirimba - HMAS Melbourne - HMAS Cerberus - HMAS Tarangau - HMAS Lonsdale - HMAS Tarangau - HMAS Nirimba - HMAS Brisbane

Latest episode from Pauline Hanson "please explain" series ....
https://youtu.be/ZE4gL9avlos?si=YF_7fX03YfKs3W17

_________________
Mike (Pony) Moore
O42860
Ex-LT GLEN(ME)
16th MOBI intake
Jan 64 - Jul 88.
Anzac, Nirimba, Stalwart, Moresby, Creswell, Waterhen, Penguin, Vampire, GMGID (PJP), Coonawarra, Attack, Ardent, Cook, Kuttabull, Cerberus.

May your walls know joy; May every room hold laughter and every window open to great possibility.

They don't muck around!

_________________
Brian Carney
R43371
Ex-WOMTP5
22nd Mobi Intake
Jan 67 - Jan 89
RANATE, Sydney, Swan, Creswell, Stalwart (FMU), Cerberus, Derwent, Nirimba, Parramatta, Nirimba, FHQ (FMMO).

I stumbled over this interesting clip on the current sad state/ decline of Trades and Apprenticeships in Australia today, and how we got here...
This Is Why Australia Closed Every Technical School (And Now Has No Tradies)

"On the 31st of December 1987, Collingwood Technical School closed its doors after 75 years of training carpenters, plumbers, electricians, and welders.
The building is now an arts precinct.

It wasn't an accident. Within five years of the 1985 Blackburn Report, 120 Victorian technical schools were closed, merged, or repurposed. The Dawkins Reforms
of 1988 turned colleges into universities. Hawke's Clever Country speech in 1990 made the message official: trades were the past, degrees were the future.

Today, Australia is short 195,000 tradespeople. Plumbers charge $150 an hour because they can. Construction stalls. Waiting lists stretch into months.
The country that built itself on skilled trades cannot find a sparkie to come round.
This is the story of how it happened — and who is responsible."

From the same producers, this 'companion' video further explains the quandary... This Is Why Australia Has No Tradies Left...

"In 1965, every Australian town had a plumber, an electrician, a carpenter, and a builder you could call by name. The four-year apprenticeship was a serious
commitment that produced world-class skilled workers. A tradie earned enough to buy a house, support a family, and retire with dignity. Trades were respected.
They were the backbone of working life.

Today, Australia is short 83,000 tradies. Half of all advertised trade jobs cannot be filled. There are 27,000 fewer tradies than there were in 2023, a 7.1 percent
collapse in a single year. Wait weeks for a plumber. Pay 150 dollars before any work begins.

The tradies who built modern Australia are retiring with their tools, and there is nobody waiting to pick them up."

_________________

Rick Pengilly
WEBMASTER
Ex-CPOMTH3
R42630
13th MOBI Intake
July'62 to July'74
HMAS Nirimba - HMAS Melbourne - HMAS Cerberus - HMAS Tarangau - HMAS Lonsdale - HMAS Tarangau - HMAS Nirimba - HMAS Brisbane

To see the level of idiot who worked to make this happen:

"The tradies who built modern Australia are retiring with their tools, and there is nobody waiting to pick them up."

Even heard the term "skilled hands" in one of the articles..........

_________________
Brian Mackenzie
ex-Shipwright Instructor
Oct '88 to Dec '93 (NIRIMBA) before and beyond