Movies etc.

[Cosmick]

Just finished watching second season of Das Boat on SBS, looks like there will be another. Than watched Greyhound (Tom Hanks) destroyers Vs Uboats Atlantic convoys. I thought very good.

[Admin]

We watched Greyhound the other night and thought it a great movie although short...90mins long and that includes 10mins of credits

[old man emu]

This is better by a long shot

 

[Old Koreelah]

Greyhound was an excellent movie spoiled by ridiculous concessions to non-technical audiences. 

The range at which most naval gun battles were fought was too extreme for cameras to adequately capture.

 

Why would a U-boat surface alongside a superior enemy to use his single main deck gun?

[willedoo]

On 17/07/2020 at 8:45 AM, Cosmick said:

Just finished watching second season of Das Boat on SBS, looks like there will be another. Than watched Greyhound (Tom Hanks) destroyers Vs Uboats Atlantic convoys. I thought very good.

Mike, you're talking my favourite movie type there - submarine movies. Have only ever been inside one, the Oberon class sub in dry dock in W.A..

[Cosmick]

Hey Willedoo, I've been on 2 american WW2 subs in the 80's one at Hawaii USS Bowfin and the other at San Fran. the USS Pampanito. Mid 90's scored a vip visit on the USS Tucson while in Brisbane HUGE inside, something like 3 or 4 levels.

Another good movie U571.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Bowfin_(SS-287)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Pampanito_(SS-383)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Tucson_(SSN-770)

 

[old man emu]

It always amazed me that in combat, German U-boat crews were always shown as unshaven, and grubby - which was undoubtedly true, while the US submariners were always wearing clean, crisp clothing.

[Old Koreelah]

Despite being a land lubber, I've been thru a U-boat and was amazed at how cramped it was.

The boat in question was actually an ex-Soviet diesel-electric, based closely on later German designs.

The only place I could stand up straight was next to the periscope. It had "hot bunks" shared by three men in shifts, and must have been a stifling, smelly, noisy and terrifying place to work.

[Subria]

Watched "Sully" the move last night, only about the third time I've seen it. Whilst the story behind the movie is amazing personally I found Clint Eastwoods version of events hard to watch. It's storyline is all over the shop and there are so many inacurancies in it that it made me realise that 'Hollywood' really is a make believe false place!

[willedoo]

On 21/07/2020 at 7:00 PM, Old Koreelah said:

Despite being a land lubber, I've been thru a U-boat and was amazed at how cramped it was.

The boat in question was actually an ex-Soviet diesel-electric, based closely on later German designs.

The only place I could stand up straight was next to the periscope. It had "hot bunks" shared by three men in shifts, and must have been a stifling, smelly, noisy and terrifying place to work.

Reminds me of the accommodation when I used to do FIFO work; half a square meter of floor space for two blokes. You couldn't get out of bed in the morning until your room mate had left the room. When I visited the Oberon Class sub in W.A., I was surprised how roomy it was, must have been quite a bit bigger than that old Soviet sub.

[Old Koreelah]

4 hours ago, willedoo said:

Reminds me of the accommodation when I used to do FIFO work; half a square meter of floor space for two blokes. You couldn't get out of bed in the morning until your room mate had left the room. When I visited the Oberon Class sub in W.A., I was surprised how roomy it was, must have been quite a bit bigger than that old Soviet sub.

Crickey Willedoo, I thought FIFO people were better-housed than that! Did you work in Siberia?

[willedoo]

9 minutes ago, Old Koreelah said:

Crickey Willedoo, I thought FIFO people were better-housed than that! Did you work in Siberia?

The problem was that it was a highly mobile job, so the accommodation is not like you get in mines and drill rigs. At one stage we had good roomy camps. They were South Australia railway fettler's accommodation wagons. Purpose built with sleeping accommodation, showers etc.. The company would buy them at auction, cut off the rolling stock, weld on a turntable skid plate, rear bogey wheels and wind down legs. Then we'd hook it up to a Kenworth and we had the perfect camp. The body was plate steel so it could handle any rough roads you could throw at it. We also had ringfeeders on the back to road train them as doubles. At that stage, we could get a 12 month permit to take them on a public road even though they were over length.

 

That worked good until the company was sold to a complete tool. You know the type, 50 something year old with a sports car and much younger trophy wife. His parents gave him the money to buy the company. He didn't like our trains and wanted to replace them with nice shiny white transportable dongas to achieve the corporate wanker look. Hence the broom cupboards we had to sleep in. The excuse they used to get rid of our trains was a S.A. regulation change that made them illegal to tow. The train carriages had a balcony at the rear. The people who bought them cut the balconies off and they were legal length.

 

I once overnighted in the accommodation at a work over rig. It was luxury compared to what we got in our line of work. Like a big motel room. Two to a room, but they worked two 12 hour shifts and put a day shift worker in with his night shift counterpart, so they would never cross paths in the room.

[Subria]

1. I only ever got the chance to experience the mine type donga living once many years ago at Roxby Downs (YOLD). I was flying engineers in and out day and night for a few weeks so got to stay at one of their dongas dur G the day. Pretty flash, roomy one person per room. Man the facilities there where incredible! Food, steaks any kind of meat or fish you wanted 24/7. Swimming pool, gym, games room, TV rooms with hundreds of VHS tapes, best short term gig I ever had, accept for the 50deg at the drome and the bloody flies!

Edited August 29, 2020 by Subria

[Jerry_Atrick]

Did the rooms iinclude geiger counters? 😉