Built under yard no 651 by Wm. Beardmore & Co. Ltd. at Glasgow for the Adelaide Steamship Company, at Adelaide, Australia.
16 Nov. 1928 launched under the name MANUNDA. The aboriginal word for waterhole.
Tonnage 9.115 gross, 5.064 net, 5.000 dwt., dim. 136.5 x 18.2m.
Powered by two H&W diesel engines ?hp., service speed 15 knots, twin screws.
Passenger accommodation for 176 first and 136 second class.
She was built for the holyday market on the coastal service in the Australian market.
21 April 1929, sailed from Glasgow for her delivery voyage passed the Suez Canal and arrived Adelaide on 21 May.
27 May sailed from Adelaide on her maiden voyage for Melbourne, Sydney then to the north as far as Cairns.
Used during the winter months in the service between Melbourne and Cairns and in the spring in the Fremantle service.
Her only incident before the war was, when her towing line snapped on 2 October 1929 when she was turned in Adelaide Bay by the tug WOONDA. She crashed in a wharf and destroyed a sailing ketch, which sank, and damage two other sailing ketches moored alongside the wharf.
1935 Only used in the service to Cairns.
September 1935 converted in a hospital vessel and commissioned on 25 May 1940 as HMAS MANUNDA.
She made on voyage to Darwin and Port Moresby, and then she made four voyages to the Middle East to bring back wounded soldiers.
Then she was ordered to Singapore, but by the quickly worsening situation at Singapore, she was diverted to Darwin.
She dropt her anchor in the harbour and on 19 February still at anchor the town and port were attacked by Japanese airplanes.
At first when not attacked her crew and medical staff gave assistance to survivors of other vessels. Then a near miss exploded alongside and shrapnel killed four persons on board. Thereafter two Japanese dive-bombers attacked her. A bomb went trough the music room skylight and exploded on C deck killing twelve persons, injuring 7 severe and 150 got minor injuries. A fire started but was within an hour extinguished.
During the attack she continued to operate as an emergency vessel. When the evening came she had on board 76 patients, and the next day 190 patients from shore hospitals were ferried out to her. The same night at 11.30 pm she sailed from Darwin bound for Fremantle with on board her patients.
It was a difficult voyage her compasses smashed, one engine out of action and a jurry rudder had been rigged, but she arrived safely at Fremantle but during the voyage 19 patients died.
After her repairs at Fremantle she sailed for Milne Bay in New Guinea, where she was used as a floating hospital. During August 1942 regular Japanese raids took place on the bay, but the hospital vessel with clearly marked signs was not attacked.
Also she was not attacked fully alight and marked, when Japanese forces on 25 August sent in the bay an invasion force supported by warships. The battle continued until 7 September when the Japanese withdraw.
She made then several voyages from Milne Bay to Australia with wounded men. Later in the war she followed the Allied forces when they captured more and more islands. During the war years she carried over 30.000 wounded or sick people to safety.
After the surrender of Japan she sailed to Singapore to repatriate Australians back home, who had been imprisoned in the Changi prison during the war.
September 1946 handed back to owners. Her final wartime trip was with civilian passengers to New Zealand, before she was refitted at Melbourne for her liner service, refit took 18 months.
Her first sailing after her wartime duties was when she sailed from Sydney on 2 April 1948 for Cairns.
Then still used in the coastal trade until a broken crankshaft in February 1953 put her out of service for four months.
Again used in the coastal service the next three years, but cheaper airlines did dry up the passenger supply for the liner, and in 1956 she could not longer operated with a profit and was in September that year withdrawn from service and put on the sale list.
The same year already sold to Okada Gumi K.K., Japan and renamed HAKONE MARU.
She was taken over at Sydney and sailed from that port on 4 October 1956 for Japan. The intention of the new owners was to use her in the liner service between Japan and nearby countries, but this did not eventuate, she was broken up already in 1957 in Japan.
On the stamp she is the larger passenger steamer on the right of the stamp.
Australia 1992 45c sg1338, scott1253.
Source: register of Merchant Ships completed in 1929. Passenger Ships of Australia & New Zealand Vol II by Peter Plowman.