On 25 February 1964, the then Prime Minister of Australia, the Rt Hon Sir Robert Gordon Menzies formally reported to the House of Representatives on the collision of HMAS MELBOURNE and HMAS VOYAGER off Jervis Bay on 10 February 1964, and the establishment of a Royal Commission to investigate the tragedy. HMAS VOYAGER had been sunk with a loss of 82 lives ("Commonwealth of Australia Parliamentary Debates", House of Representatives, 25th Parliament, 1st Session, 1st period, p 30).
The Royal Commission into the loss of HMAS VOYAGER was established by Letters Patent issued on 14 February 1964, pursuant to the "Royal Commissions Act 1902-1933", and proclaimed on 17 February 1964. The Hon Sir John Armstrong Spicer, Chief Judge of the Commonwealth Industrial Court was appointed Royal Commissioner. His terms of reference were to inquire and report on:
(a) the cause or causes of the collision that occurred on the
tenth day of February, One thousand nine hundred and sixty-four,
between the ships of Our Australian Navy MELBOURNE and VOYAGER
and the resulting loss of VOYAGER and of the lives of persons on
board VOYAGER;
(b) the facts and circumstances leading up to, contributing to
or otherwise relating to the collision and the loss, including,
so far as relevant to the cause of the collision, the nature of
the exercise on which the ships were engaged and the suitability
and preparedness of the ships and of their equipment and crews
for that exercise; and
(c) the facts and circumstances relating to the rescue and
treatment of survivors ("Commonwealth of Australia Gazette" no
17, 17 February 1964, p 709).
Hearings began on 25 February 1964 and concluded on 25 June 1964. The report of the Royal Commission was submitted to the Governor General on 13 August 1964 and tabled in Parliament on 26 August 1964 ("Commonwealth of Australia Parliamentary Debates", House of Representatives, 25th Parliament, 1st Session, 2nd Period, p 602). Most of the records of the Royal Commission in the present series came to the Australian War Memorial in 1983 from the Department of Defence, being copies retained in that department (and previously, the Department of the Navy) for its own reference. The series comprises:
A Transcripts of Proceedings
B Transcripts of Proceedings (in Camera)
- A and B were Mr Norman Jenkyn QC's copies. Mr Jenkyn
appeared before the Royal Commission on behalf of the
Department of the Navy, and these bound volumes carry his
annotations.
C Transcripts of Proceedings
- unbound transcripts circulated within the Department of
the Navy, including to the Minister (eg. Sixth day, 23 March
1964; Thirty-sixth day, 19 May 1964). Some items carry a
security classification ("Confidential", "Restricted") and
occur in duplicate.
D Questionnaires of Officers and Crew HMAS MELBOURNE
- The three-page questionnaire includes personal details (name
in full, address, rank, service number, date of birth, length
and brief statement of service in Navy, date of joining and
brief statement of duties on HMAS MELBOURNE). The remaining
questions relate to the collision, and their completeness
varies.
E Index to Transcripts of Proceedings
- hand-written index books (2)
F Printed Paper
- copy of tabled report
G Charts
- relate to air and sea searches conducted 10-14 Feb 1964
H Statements of Witnesses
- signed and witnessed statements of officers and crew VOYAGER,
Melbourne, Nowra and Jervis BayQuantity in agency custody
2.85m held by CA 616, Australian War Memorial