ESSO PURFLEET /  PRIMA JEMIMA 

ESSO PURFLEET WAS OWNED BY ESSO PETROLEUM, SHE WAS REGISTERED IN LONDON AND HAD A GROSS TONNAGE OF 2837.66.SHE HAD BEEN BUILT IN 1967.SHE WAS SOLD IN 1983 AND RE-NAMED " PRIMA JEMIMA ". I JOINED HER IN PURFLEET, WHICH IS A PRETTY SMALL PLACE, I ENDED UP GETTING A LIFT FROM THE RAILWAY STATION TO THE VESSEL IN THE BACK OF A BREWERY WAGON ( APPROPRIATE I GUESS ) AS THEY DIDN'T SEEM TO HAVE HEARD OF TAXI'S THERE. IT WAS NOT THE SORT OF SHIP I WOULD NORMALLY HAD LANDED, IT  BEING ON THE COAST ALL THE TIME, AS THESE SHIPS USUALLY WENT TO MARRIED MEN WITH A LOT OF TIME IN THE COMPANY WHO DIDN'T WANT TO GO DEEP SEA ANYMORE.BUT I WAS WAITING TO DO MY D.T.I RADAR MAINTENANCE COURSE AND DIDN'T WANT TO GO ONTO A LONG TRIP AND MISS THE COURSE, SO I WAS ONLY RELIEVING THE REGULAR R/O WHILE HE TOOK SOME LEAVE. I CAN REMEMBER GOING UP THE MANCHESTER SHIP CANAL A FEW TIMES, INTO BELFAST, DUBLIN AND MILFORD HAVEN AND OVER TO ROTTERDAM AND BREMEN. ALSO TO FAWLEY ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS TO LIGHTEN BIG SUPER TANKERS. I LEFT ESSO PURFLEET IN FAWLEY, AND RETURNED TO BRISTOL TO DO MY  RADAR COURSE, WHICH WAS A FIVE MONTH COURSE IN THOSE DAYS ON FULL PAY WITH EXPENSES, WHICH MADE A GOOD BREAK, ESPECIALLY AS BRISTOL WAS MY HOME TOWN

RADIO EQUIPMENT INSTALLED ON ESS0 PURFLEET

MAIN RECEIVER WAS THE MARCONI MARINE ATALANTA RECEIVER	MAIN TRANSMITTER WAS THE MARCONI MARINE OCEANSPAN