Old and New Afloat

Series

Series Name: British Movietone News

Issue

Issue No.

1731

Date Released

6 Aug 1962

Stories in this Issue:

Story

Story No. within this Issue

4 / 4

Summary

MOVIETONE CARD TITLE: Old and New Afloat. DESCRIPTION: The training ship Arethusa is seen here heading for a Chatham dockyard re-fit. Formerly a German grain-carrier trading between Hamburg, Australia and South America, she’s been a training ship since 1932, and she’s been over 50 years afloat. On the way in we spotted the brand-new submarine Onslaught, one of the latest additions to the Royal Navy. The first ship to bear the name Albion was launched two hundred years ago. Now, the latest Albion is to be commissioned. She’s a Commando ship, converted from a Light Fleet Carrier, and she will carry 680 officers and men of 41 Royal Marine Commando. Prince Philip helicoptered in to attend the Commissioning Ceremony. With her Commando force, aided by Wessex and Whirlwind helicopters, Albion, a 26,000 tonner, will provide a highly mobile spearhead. A new idea which could be applied to conventional aircraft carriers is the hydraulic arrester gear. It features two long tubes full of water, with outlet nozzles along their length. Arrester wires passing down the tubes are fixed to pistons. When the plane lands, it pulls on the arrester wire, forcing the pistons against the resistance of the water. One of the most unusual ships ever built is the Flip, a floating instrument platform putting out to sea from San Diego, California. A turn of a water intake valve and her stern begins to settle. She becomes a vertical tube reaching down into the depths, allowing oceanographers to study wave motion, marine biology etc. SHOTLIST: Key scene. GV Arethusa (training ship). MLS now of Arethusa. LS Arethusa in Chatham Dockyard. MS same. MS rug - pan to Arethusa sailors on deck make fast the ropes (3 shots). MS captain on bridge. GV Arethusa in dock. GV Albion (Commando ship) (2). CU name on side of ship. GV pan - Albion. MS pan - landing craft on hoists. GV flight deck. MLS helicopter landing on deck. MS pan - sailors on deck for commissioning ceremony. MLS Prince Philip is greeted by Captain Madden. MS Prince Philip is greeted by guard of honour. MS Captain Madden’s wife cuts cake. CU Prince Philip. MLS Albion. MS plane landing on flight deck of ship equipped with arrester gear (hydraulic). CU arrester gear across deck of ship. CU tubes are wound in. CU pulley. CU rope. plane lands. CU pipes. CU water squirted from pipe. Plane landing. LS Flip ship. MLS same. MCU man opens valves of ship. MLS pan ship gradually turns on its end. MS sailors holding onto rail. MS Flip ship turned on end. CU wake of ship. MS ship on end. MCU pan down ship. CU men descend ladder.

Keywords

Ships and boats

Locations

United States of America; Kent; Chatham

Footage sources

United States of America
Movietone

Card file number

84848

Credits:

Commentator: Leslie Mitchell

Length of story (in feet)

302

Story extras:

Film clip

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