Stephen Jones (Whitlam, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Tonight I want to talk about a friend of mine, a constituent who did a remarkable thing 51 years ago. He put his life at risk to save the lives of others. The event I'm talking about occurred on 3 June 1969. The HMAS Melbourne and the USS Frank E. Evans were participating in a naval exercise in the South China Sea. The Melbourne was one of 40 ships from six nations taking part in the exercise. At 3 am, after being ordered to a new escort station, the Evans sailed under the Melbourne's bow. It was cut in two and, sadly, 74 of the Evans crew perished. It was the second time the Melbourne had struck another vessel and, to this day, the Melbourne remains the only Commonwealth naval vessel to sink two friendly warships in a collision. The Melbourne-Evans disaster had a huge impact on the Australian Navy, even though the aircraft carrier was subsequently found not to have been at fault in the incident.

The gentleman I am talking about is Robert 'Bob' Wilson Winston. He lives in Dapto and he showed enormous bravery and risked his own life that night. At the time, Bob was one of two landing signal officers. His main role was to scribe and check the aircraft to ensure that everything was correct and ready for landing—a crucial role on any naval ship. He was only 21 years old at the time. On the night of the collision, Bob came off watch at around 1.30 in the morning. When the ship collided, Bob was thrown out of his bed. He witnessed the front section of the ship being ripped apart. He headed to the flight deck and, within minutes, the front section of the Evans went below the waterline. Reports say this happened within three minutes. It was on the flight deck that Bob first heard the cries for help. Within seconds, he was pulling an American crew member from the rubble and had him on a stretcher. It was on the flight deck that he noticed the back section of the Evans was going down on the Melbourne's starboard side. He jumped onto the stern of the Evans and tied the ship to the Melbourne. He then went down to the ship's quarterdeck and began to move crewmembers onto the Melbourne.

After getting a number of American crew members to safety, Bob then proceeded to search the first deck for survivors. He personally conducted a search of all accessible command compartments in order to check that all USN survivors had been taken to safety. He did not leave the Evans until he was ordered to do so by Lieutenant Commander Patterson. Mr Winston and Lieutenant Patterson were the last two men to leave the ship. Bob said that, throughout the entire ordeal, he was only given one order and that was to leave the sinking ship. He acted on instinct to save his fellow men and he was the first aboard the Evans. Throughout the entire rescue operation, Bob showed complete disregard for his own safety and displayed an outstanding initiative. As a result, he received the Queen's Commendation for Brave Conduct.

Footage of the aftermath of the event showed pure destruction and carnage. When recounting the event, other Navy personnel talk about how the night sky lit up, to the point where it was just like daylight. All survivors were rescued within an hour of the disaster, but the search continued for 15 hours. Throughout the search, body parts began to float to the surface. Nobody should have to see that.

Bob is concerned that the current Defence records do not correctly reflect the incidents of 3 June 1969. According to Mr Winston, the current records state that he was the second individual to act and jump across to the USS Frank E. Evans. He disputes this. He says he was the first there. I believe him. Mr Winston has one request which is very straightforward, and that is that the Navy correct his record so that it accurately reflects what happened on that fateful evening 51 years ago. If this happens, it won't be the first time that the HMAS Melbourne incident is revisited and reviewed. Commanding officer Captain Stevenson was originally blamed for the disaster. He was publicly made a scapegoat for the incident. Minister for Defence Stephen Smith later officially apologised to Captain Stevenson and stated that the captain was unfairly treated.

I've written to the minister and asked that the Navy review the record of my friend Bob Winston to ensure that it correctly reflects exactly what went on that night and his role within it.