Richard Bishop

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Operation Grapple Nuclear Test Veteran

Ship: Pukaki

Rating at Operation Grapple: Junior Seaman

Please note this article contains sensitive themes.

I was 15 years old when I joined the Navy in 1955 and 17 when I went to Operation Grapple.

My Navy nickname is Basher so everyone will know me as that.

Going to Operation Grapple as a 17 year old kid I thought we were going on a jolly.

We didn’t realize what we were in for!

As a young fella I was a Seaman Boy working on the forecastle – the sharp end of the boat! I remember the big explosion, the colours and the round ball that formed into a mushroom which was quite spectacular.

Some of the bomb tests were bigger than others. I think the scary part was sailing through Ground Zero after a detonation. It was quite eerie, with all the dead fish and birds in the water, and that was 4-6 hours after!

We always showered on deck when it rained as there were always water restrictions on the boat, so you would position yourself around the awning so you could have a wash. We went ashore at Christmas Island and played soccer. I remember cutting myself on the coral, getting drunk and catching fish. It was an adventure.

We worked tropical hours because of the heat so we had a routine from 7am – 1pm. The conditions on the ship were not conducive to being in the tropics either. The heat was intense and our mess was right down by the Engine Room which only added to the heat.

There was a lot of time where it was boring, sitting there letting off weather balloons. The only big excitement was when someone caught a shark. They would keep the teeth. I remember the manta rays too, they were absolutely huge.

We came home and had leave between some of the tests and then went back.

I was one of the few that went to Mururoa also. I was in the Navy for 26 years. I got a British Empire Medal for Services to the Singapore Government, for instructing their Navy for three years.

This portrait and story were part of the photography exhibition, Operation Grapple – We Were There, by Denise Baynham.

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