What happened to HMNZS MANAWANUI?
Does anyone know what happened to the old HMNZS Manawanui diving training tender? Brian Moyse was a sparker onboard in 1965 and he would be interested to hear from any Tels who may have followed him.
The following is from Jim Blackburn
If they are talking about the OLD Manawanui P622 of early 1950s. Which was the Diving Tender. From memory the Manawanui & Arataki were Yankee built and were Diesel Engine, and probably a bit bigger than the TID, certainly had a bigger Bridge/Wheelhouse.
The CO in those days was Lieut Trevor Wickman, and the Chief Diver CPO Bill Short
I did numerous trips on her during 1952-55 period. including the recovery of the RNZAF Avenger which crashed in the Hauraki Gulf.. A saga in it’s own right believe me.
The Arataki was civilian manned and was used as a tug in the Naval dockyard when required. I am not sure which one of the two it is/was, but one of them was moored, with some of the Fishery ML’s, up the river in Ngatea. (Hauraki Plains) sort of a “Naval Ships Museum”..
I believe these were owned by a Mr Barclay, the father of Neil Barclay (member of Otago Assn) of Hamilton.
Recent information indicates that the old MANAWANUI was broken up around 3 years ago in Paeroa. Maybe one of our members in the area can confirm.
She is currently sitting at Paeroa at the Paeroa Historic Maritime Park. Unfortunately, she looks like a rusty old bucket.
Thanks Jim, that confirms what I thought. Pity it’s been allowed to deteriorate like that – I guess nobody cares. Was Koura an ML or Fairmile?
cheers
Brian
Koura was an ML
……HMNZS Koura is also there.
Hi Brian
I think there would be heaps ‘designated’ to Manawanui. In 1964 when being kept useful at North Head I was informed that I was to be the sparker for the next diving training trip out to Great Barrier etc. It was an amazing trip and at the end of each training day it was fishing for crays,scallops,fish etc so we ate fantastic meals. I pestered the skipper until eventually I was given a shallow ‘deep sea dive’ in the ‘suit’ which was a great experience too. On return we had a share of the fishing spoils that were left to take home. We were lucky to have a dream run of good weather and she was a great little craft.I have a couple of photos I will email to you.
thanks Mike, was the type 618 still at the back of the bridge? I spent a lot of time doing presets so hope you found them useful !., hope to see you at the F148 reunion this year, health permitting.
cheers
Brian
fm what ive seen driving past the musuem where koura is berthed, it is in the process of being “done up”
Did a couple of trips on MANAWANUI, one was a diver training trip, 1st time I visited GBI, and again the meals were pretty good from the seafood that was gathered.
Second was for target towing for Taranaki’s workup before deploying. The 618/CAS was sited at the back of the bridge, this was in 1966 not long after I passed out from the RO Basic course. Not long after this trip, I was posted to Taranaki for the 1967 Far East deployment.
Hi guys from the UK hope you are all well and managing your Arthritis.
I too was seconded from North Head to Manawanui I think four or five times.
The Chief Diver was a guy called Brady. I remember because he was the Diver who did the deep dive on the Holmglen which went down mysteriously with all hands I believe. Somewhere of the East Coast Am watching intently at the Christchurch situation. Noted Dave Neals name. How are you Casper long time no hear.
Cheers to all
Beenz
THE FIRST MATE ON HOLMGLEN WAS EX PO BARKER . A SEAMAN PO AND INSTRUCTOR OF 25TH BOYS . HE HAD DRINK PROBLEM BUT APART FROM THAT HE WAS A REAL NICE GUY FRANK ELLIOTT
Will be travelling down there at the end of the month going thru to Whangamata. Will take some pics and get them posted or will send to anyone interested. Let me know.
hi all peter here in Tas any one out there who served on Koura,,, by the photos she could do with restoring
I went past the “Museum” on Thursday (16th Feb) & whilst I saw Koura sitting looking a bit sad, I didn’t see Manawanui.
Maybe I drove by too fast!
I’ll ask Alan Pope to have a look. he is nearby.
Sadly Frank Brady was killed in a car accident when crashed into a bridge at Albany highway.
Well, it is no longer there.
Apparently the engine(s) have been removed & used elsewhere. The remainder is scrapped.
Koura doesn’t belong to the museum any longer, & whilst still at the site,is slowly being worked on to be “done” up.
Hi, just putting my spoke in if I may. Manawanui was built in Auckland to a US design which was modified in NZ to give it some better seakeeping. We built some 20 of them for the US for Pacific towing during WW2 in Auckland and NZ Gvt took over three incomplete boats. They became Arataki, Manawanui and Kawateri (later James O’Brien).
Arataki is in Port Chalmers in the process of being dismantled. James O’Brien is in Picton in loving hands and Manawanui was wrecked by the Paeroa Museum vandals in a fit of panic and poor judgement. Her engine was indeed saved and was got going in a matter of months although the Paeroa guys felt it was nbg. I was taken out in Arataki several times and she is remembered as one of the two ships I have said my prayers at the leeward rail! The other time may have been the foul stew on the Aramoana in a Cook Strait blow.
I done quite a lot of trips on both Arataki and Manawanui during my Divers training.
I have some very nice photos of my Divers courses from both Ships.
I see on some photos that Arataki had RNZFA on the lifebouys. She was crewed by Civies.
Manawanui was HMNZS Manawanui and was crewed by Pussers. I have some great photos
taken while on was on a Diver Two’s Course.
Kawateri is the Maori name for the Buller River, and the Westport area.
The Kawateri become the Westport Harbour Tug/Tender, under the name of
James OBrien. She was retired about 1985 I think. It is good to hear that she is in good
hands now.
How lucky I was to have the forethought to take heaps of photos during my
time in Pussers. They bring wonderful pleasure today.
I took heaps of Pics during a combined Banyon run with ZMPS Comms and
HMS Fife, Comms crew. Bob Olsen, Jaques, Hing Hong etc, totally out of control,
getting arrested, and our Comms Officer, getting stoppage of leave and punishment
for the rest of our Far East Deployment. We had great times with Fife Comms Crew.
I will get some Photo’s to Frank for posting. That will bring a smile to a few faces.
Cheers to all.
JET
Hi Guys,
I am seeking a photo of Manawanui when she worked with Tui in the Gulf 1974.
Peferable in colour.
Send to gerrywright@xtra.co.nz. I’m writing up Tui’s story.
Cheers
Gerry
Hi there , i am looking for Photos of the Kawateri( James O,brien) , Arataki or Manawanui. I am in the process of building a scale RC tug Based on the James O’brien. I am Aware that these 3 fine vessels were built at the same time and to the same design in Auckland 1945 for the US Navy. these YTL 422 CLASS do differ dramatically to there counter-parts built else where in the world. Ie; the hulls were layed differently as was their Wheelhouse. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I have fond memories of YTL 625 (jAMES O’brien ) when living in Westport and that distinctive long stroke sound of the engine.
What i am looking for is details of the wheelhouse and superstructures. I am aware that (James Obrien) is being worked on in Picton and i will be able to get pics for myself however its the original structures of these vessels that i want to incorperate in my build. These vessels are truely in a league of their own and a real shame that only one has survived the scrap heap.
Again thank you for any help .
Regards Philip
Hi Philip – did you get the photos you required. The YTL 625 (james O’Brien) is now in the Port of Havelock. Arrived yesterday. I went aboard today for a look around – a lovely old lady – definitely in good hands.
I also did a trip as the comms number on Manawanui, Divers course, up to B.O.I. while between ships, must have been the early 70s. Chef was Shorty Rayner and MEO Shorty McLeod. Slept in the wheelhouse as the hammock over the messdeck table wasn’t much fun.
Great trip…
For those interested in seeing Manawanui’s old 6HM1588 Atlas Imperial engine running again, I filmed it yesterday (11.08.2012) whilst it was running in a construction yard in Whenuapai (saved by an ex-dockyard apprentice!). If your ISP can handle a 20 Mbyte video clip and you want a copy, send an e-mail to and I will send it through.
Cheers
Skilly
(ex ME2 Tamure, Koura, Kuparu, Manga – 1969-73)
Yep, it was nice to see the old thing running again. Even if on dry land.
There hasn’t been a trend to saving navy machinery. Look at all that lovely gear that has gone down with the frigates for the fish and divers to frolic round. Mega bucks worth of engineering -I remember seeing Canterbury’s turbine gearing all exposed to the air alongside at Pahia before she was sunk. Criminal waste really.
The 75′ tugs were a fine example of our WW2 boatbuilding effort. Only two left now. Arataki is not so good. James O’Brien still has a loving owner and thus some hope.
Hi everyone. I am the son of Trevor Wickman. I am very keen to touch base with anyone who served with my father. I’d also be very grateful for copies of any photos of him and of the Manawanui.
Hello Lance, I knew your father well when he was driving Manawanui and I was employed by the Defense Scientific Establishment In R.N.Z.F.A.Tui and H.M.N.Z.S.Tui. in the 1960’s and70’s. He was a great guy to work with. Regarding Manawanui, the last time I saw her she was in the Waihau River just North of Paeroa where it is crossed by S.H. 2. She was still afloat but the creek is so narrow here I doubt she could turn round.. There was a lot of other Naval junk. This would heve been about 1997.
Regards, Allan.
Lance, further to the above,I replied before reading all the previous posts and did’nt realise how many people knew where she was.
Regards, Allan.
Sad to hear that the Manawanui was scrapped. I visited the museum in 2007 and went aboard for a look around. Sadly she was not in the best of condition but didn’t appear to be beyond redemption. I have a few photos I took on the day if anyone is interested.
Hello, I would like to have further information on my Father, Trevor Wickman. I am Cherryle Dwyer (nee Wickman) and am interested in any photos or information that you could possible share. Thanks
Yes Sad to hear about Manawanui, last year I called into the Paeroa, to visit Koura and have a look around, in the last couple of years I have seen an forma RNZML, be refurbished in on out. it looked a Picture with the black and white hull, the inside was still been worked on, this was in Picton.
so I wondered what was going on with Koura???? I learn’t that a guy had taken on Koura and was slowly going to put her back together, has anyone been there recently?
Peter, Koura was evicted from Paeora -who needs boats in a Maritime Park after all for God’s sake! After 20 years of neglect by the “museum” -they all do this act, they decided she was beyond it and sold her off to a strange man who continued the neglect with a fair amount of hacking her structure about. Sad because he got a lot of encouragement from the Paea followers.
He had big ideas of setting up a museum in Evans Bay Wellyviille but the Council had him sussed.
She was towed down river to Thames and is in a backwater down there still composting…..
James O’Brien’s main engine can be seen at start up on Youtube; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDr4Rh2O74o.
With the scrapping of Arataki in Dunedin (Jul 2015), a section of tumble-home from her stern was salvaged and is currently (Sept 2015) being fitted to JoB. (JoB’s stern was modified when fishing out of Auckland). Once complete and the steering gear restored she will be re-positioning back to Picton as her Havelock berth is required for a large barge.
With only the bridge left for refurbishing, JoB is 90% complete.
Stern section fitted (as above) and ship re-positioned. Steaming at 80% power, JoB uses less than 14lph@7.4kn. That’s a measly 2 litres per nautical mile! Not bad for a 90ton, 60+ year old vessel.
More on the rovings of JoB.
Steamed from Picton to Wellington, 18 Dec ’15, in ‘trying’ conditions arriving alongside Hikitia at 0100 on the 19th. Ship spent 3 weeks in and around the harbor before returning to Picton on 5 Jan.
Re-positioning to Havlock is scheduled for the first week of March for a concerted effort to refurbish the wheelhouse.
Recent work includes fitting of Arataki’s stern tumble home, commissioning 2x 1000L FW tanks in lazarette and cement bags in main hold bilge spaces. This has improved her trim aft.
We are looking at decommissioning the after two fuel tanks and pressing them up with water, then gravel, to further lower her in the water and stiffen the roll somewhat.
As noted elsewhere, JoB is 90% complete and in a fine as condition as she ever was. She is in safe hands for the foreseeable future.
It is now called the James O Brian and is tied up in Picton and has been re done up and is owned by a guy called yorg mureshart who is living on it and doing it up and takes it out with friends when he can and it looks really good it has had a paint job to and other work done to it as well and is well looked after.
No, Belynda, A bit of confusion here. The tug that became James O’Brien was launched about the same time as Manawanui and Arataki -the three were finished off for HMNZ Gvt back in the days when we had money. The third boat was called Kawateri and ended up in Greymouth and spent a lot of her time surveying the bar and standing in for the Stewart Island ferry when the latter was on servey -would have been a bumpy trip across sometimes. James O’brien was a politician on the coast and landed the distinction of having a tug named for him. Didn’t deserve it IMHO.
James O’brien was sold off private when they finished with her.
I cam remember when I was a boy of 12 years old, I was on the trip that bought the Manawanui down from Auckland down the river to the Paeroa Historic Maritime Museum. Over time it simply deteriorated, it is such a shame it couldn’t have returned back to Auckland maybe to the Maritime Museum for all to enjoy. NZ has a rich heritage of Maritime Vessels, it is a shame when these are lost.