WesWorld

News Summary

Saturday, January 1, 1944
The new destroyer Deirdre was laid down today in the Irish Shipbuilding Company's Rushbrooke Shipyard. The new ship was designed in Ireland as a replacement for the failed Contae II-class destroyers, which proved to be unseaworthy in the usual Atlantic Ocean conditions.

Tuesday, February 15, 1944
The Irish Army announced that they intended to purchase an unspecified quantity of GTE's indigenously-developed MICA infantry carrier. The MICA will replace the "makee-learnee" ACW-IP infantry carrier built by Ford Ireland during the League of Nation's Afghanistan deployment. The MICA was developed using the lessons from the ACW-IP's service. Attempts to sell the MICA internationally have yet to bear fruit.

Friday, March 17, 1944
Ireland celebrates St. Patrick's Day. It's particularly nice since today is a Friday, so everyone gets a three-day weekend.

Thursday, March 23, 1944
Mr. Robert Hyde's illustrated children's book Patches entered print today. The book tells the story of Patches, an animate Westland Lysander which becomes lost in Central Asia, separated from its friend The Pilot. Patches decides to fly across all of Asia searching for The Pilot. In the end, Patches is reunited with The Pilot at Casement Aerodrome.

Saturday, March 25, 1944 - Irish Independent
Mr. George Malone of Arklow reported he and his brother, fishing in the Irish sea on their boat Caoimhe, were nearly brutally killed by an object of unknown nature which plunged precipitously into the sea near their vessel. Mr. Malone, a native of Arklow, reported that he was approximately six miles off Anglesey when the object fell unexpectedly from the sky, landing in the sea quite near his boat. Malone recovered blackened pieces of the object and believes that it is definitely man-made and probably valuable. If anyone recognizes the nature of the object from the photos below, please write to the Irish Independent for a five pound reward.

Sunday, April 9, 1944
Ireland celebrates Easter Sunday.

Friday, April 14, 1944
The Jefferson Smurfit company, Ireland's largest box manuacturer, announced their intentions to gain a listing on the Irish Stock Exchange by the end of the year.

Wednesday, April 26, 1944
The Universe Tankships Company Ltd was founded today in Dublin. The company will serve as an operator for oil tankers operating between Europe and abroad.

Thursday, April 27, 1944
The Dail shelved the proposed Transport Bill of 1944 after a reading in the Oireachtas. The bill, proposed by the Fianna Fáil ruling party, was opposed by Fine Gael and its leader Desmond Myles.

Tuesday, May 9, 1944
A second reading of the Transport Bill failed today in the Oireachtas. In response to the body's failure to pass bills supported by the ruling party, Taoiseach Éamon de Valera dismissed the Oireachtas and called a snap election, scheduled for the 30th of May.

Monday, May 15, 1944
The Irish Shipbuilding Company launched the hull of the destroyer Deirdre today in Rushbrooke. The American-designed warship is planned to enter the Irish Naval Service by the end of the year, whereupon she will take over as the flagship of the destroyer forces.

Tuesday, May 30, 1944
Ireland holds their general election. Preliminary counts indicate 'too close to call.'

Friday, June 2, 1944
Election officials announced that Fine Gael, under the leadership of Desmond Myles, has squeaked out a narrow victory in the general election, to the surprise and horror of the opposition party, which expected to strengthen their hold on the Dail.

Friday, June 9, 1944
Desmond Myles is sworn in as the new Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland, heading the 4th Government of Ireland. In his initial address by radio to the state, Myles confirmed that his government would maintain a strong pro-neutrality stance in Europe and would "continue to achieve the independent ideals of the Republic of Ireland."

Monday, July 10, 1944
Grúpa Thionscal Éireann's MICA wheeled infantry carrier arrived in Britain today for the first stop in a major demonstration tour across Europe. GTÉ's vehicle division vice-president, Gerard O'Conner, confirmed that the three MICA demonstrator vehicles would continue on to tour Denmark, Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia in a "Baltic Tour", followed by a "Balkan Tour" to Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey, Greece, Yugoslavia, and Hungary. GTÉ hopes to establish their firm as an export success. O'Conner noted that marketing outside of Europe may follow in 1945.

Monday, July 31, 1944
The Oireachtas passed the Dairy Produce Marketing Act of 1944 today, establishing the Irish Dairy Board to serve as a marketing cooperative for Irish dairy products.

Saturday, August 5, 1944
Irish astronomer Kenneth Edgeworth returned today to Ireland following eleven months of study at the Chajnantor Observatory in Chile. Mr. Edgeworth's research focused around his discovery of an icy disk of heavenly bodies outside the orbit of Neptune. Ireland's preeminent astronomer intends to spend the next year in Ireland writing and publishing papers dealing with the evidence of his discoveries.

Friday, August 11, 1944
The Donegal Bay Fishing Company (Ltd.) was founded today. The company, to be based in Ballyshannon, is in the process of acquiring a pair of cannery ships, to be named Donegal Star and Donegal Pride, as well as a number of trawlers. A press release from the company's unnamed financial backers stated their hope that the new firm would help enliven the Irish trawler business, which has suffered setbacks from larger and more industrialized European fishing companies.

Monday, August 21, 1944
The GTÉ's MICA infantry carrier demonstration group arrived today in Sofia, Bulgaria, where the three MICA demonstrators will be shown to Bulgarian Army officials, following a "Baltic tour" which resulted in good international press but no purchase commitments. The demonstrator team has higher hopes in Bulgaria, which is reportedly shopping for new equipment.

Tuesday, August 22, 1944
The National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI, or Údarás um Chaighdeáin Náisiúnta na hÉireann) is founded.

Tuesday, September 19, 1944
In a report delivered today to the public press, the government reported that the Irish gross domestic product has risen eight percent in the last eight years. The report identified three main causes for the rise, including a rejuvenation of manufacturing in the regions of Dublin, Cork, and the Shannon Duty-Free Zone; more stable political relations affecting trade with Great Britain and the Continent; and the consistent efforts by the government to maintain low taxes and operate within its means. The Irish open shipping registry was also identified as an increasingly significant contributor to the government's budget, partially-funding military expenditures. The report advised six actions for the government to take (or avoid) in the next five years in order to continue to encourage economic growth.

Thursday, October 19, 1944
The Dail extended permission to the Irish Air Corps to establish a new air base in Ireland. The Air Corps has tentatively proposed a site near Kilmacthomas, just west of Waterford, for the creation of the base. The IAC requested the new base as a result of congestion at Casement and Baldonnel Aerodromes near Dublin, which has caused the IAC's Bv146s and Avro Ansons to fly out of civil airports such as Shannon during training missions.

In exchange for establishing a new base, the Air Corps has dropped several active requests to purchase new aircraft in 1945. Air Corps chief of staff John Michaels had previously indicated a desire to replace or refit the eighteen Boulton-Paul P.94 Resistants of No.4 Fighter Squadron. The P94s, in service since 1938, are still very well-liked aircraft, comparable in many ways to the Fw190As used by No.1 Fighter Squadron. Despite this, some officers feel the eighteen Resistants ought to be replaced, either by more Fw190s or some other modern type.

Michaels has also stated an interest in replacing the three types of aircraft used by No.6 Squadron: two Grumman Ducks used aboard the cruiser Granuaile, three D.A.F. Ro(W)XVI Ronne flying boats employed with the Fisheries Service, and six Sunderland flying boats used by the Irish Coast Guard. For now, one of the Ronnes and two of the Sunderlands will be grounded for use as part hulks. Their duties will be taken up by the Bv146s of No.5 Squadron, which were acquired with the secondary roles of maritime patrol.

Wednesday, October 25, 1944
The Continental Tyre and Rubber facility in Tyrrelstown announced that it would begin an expansion of operations in the new year, adding approximately eighty jobs to the economy.

Wednesday, November 1, 1944
GTÉ's demonstrator MICA armoured vehicles returned to Ireland today following an extensive demonstration tour. The company's spokesman noted that the only foreign order received so far has come from Monaco's Compagnie des Carabiniers du Prince, which ordered four vehicles. Despite this, GTÉ anticipates further foreign orders.

Tuesday, December 5, 1944
The Irish Naval Service's newest destroyer, the Deirdre, was handed over to the Naval Service for trials at Rushbrooke Shipyard. The Deirdre is the first destroyer built by the Irish Shipbuilding Company's Rushbrooke yards.

Thursday, December 14, 1944
The Irish Air Corps officially confirmed their selection of a site near Waterford for a new air corps base. The site will be named Kilmacthomas Aerodrome, and will eventually serve as the base for one of the nation's fighter squadrons, as well as the No.7 Reserve Squadron. Construction is set to begin in April of 1945, with major work to be complete a hundred and eighty days after the project starts.

Saturday, January 1, 1944
The new destroyer Deirdre was laid down today in the Irish Shipbuilding Company's Rushbrooke Shipyard. The new ship was designed in Ireland as a replacement for the failed Contae II-class destroyers, which proved to be unseaworthy in the usual Atlantic Ocean conditions.

Tuesday, February 15, 1944
The Irish Army announced that they intended to purchase an unspecified quantity of GTE's indigenously-developed MICA infantry carrier. The MICA will replace the "makee-learnee" ACW-IP infantry carrier built by Ford Ireland during the League of Nation's Afghanistan deployment. The MICA was developed using the lessons from the ACW-IP's service. Attempts to sell the MICA internationally have yet to bear fruit.

Friday, March 17, 1944
Ireland celebrates St. Patrick's Day. It's particularly nice since today is a Friday, so everyone gets a three-day weekend.

Thursday, March 23, 1944
Mr. Robert Hyde's illustrated children's book Patches entered print today. The book tells the story of Patches, an animate Westland Lysander which becomes lost in Central Asia, separated from its friend The Pilot. Patches decides to fly across all of Asia searching for The Pilot. In the end, Patches is reunited with The Pilot at Casement Aerodrome.

Saturday, March 25, 1944 - Irish Independent
Mr. George Malone of Arklow reported he and his brother, fishing in the Irish sea on their boat Caoimhe, were nearly brutally killed by an object of unknown nature which plunged precipitously into the sea near their vessel. Mr. Malone, a native of Arklow, reported that he was approximately six miles off Anglesey when the object fell unexpectedly from the sky, landing in the sea quite near his boat. Malone recovered blackened pieces of the object and believes that it is definitely man-made and probably valuable. If anyone recognizes the nature of the object from the photos below, please write to the Irish Independent for a five pound reward.

To Mr Malone, care of the Editor of the Irish Independent,

One of our departments have noted your advertisement in the Irish Independent newspaper published on Saturday 25 March. Having examined the photographs closely and the location of your unfortunate incident our department has identified the article you salvaged as a piece of meteorological equipment that fell off one of our aircraft on routine weather patrol in the Irish Sea. We would be more than happy to collect the item from you as soon as possible and amply reimburse you the sum of ten pounds to both compensate for your experience and reward your diligence in salvaging the fragments.

Yours Faithfully,

Director of Information, Squadron Leader G.F. Duckworth, D.F.C.

Meteorological equipment? So it was a UFO!

Mr. Duckworth.
Ten pounds for a bunch of metal pieces? Certainly. I can then buy Mrs. Malone a nice present and still have a bit left over for a nice bottle of whiskey!
Sincerely,
Mr. Malone, Arklow, Republic of Ireland

... maybe someone should offer him a bit more.

Quoted

Originally posted by Rooijen10
... maybe someone should offer him a bit more.

A nice man from the Hungarian legation in Dublin drops by Mister Malone's home to at least discuss the matter with him.

The Hungarian delegation might get a shock if he's recovered the live warhead and has it hanging over the mantelpiece!

[No, it was unarmed and probably the heavy nose section fell to the seabed but Mr Malone could have had a nasty accident had it been live. Of course he boat might have had a few holes in it...]

Sunday, April 9, 1944
Ireland celebrates Easter Sunday.

Friday, April 14, 1944
The Jefferson Smurfit company, Ireland's largest box manuacturer, announced their intentions to gain a listing on the Irish Stock Exchange by the end of the year.

Wednesday, April 26, 1944
The Universe Tankships Company Ltd was founded today in Dublin. The company will serve as an operator for oil tankers operating between Europe and abroad.

Thursday, April 27, 1944
The Dail shelved the proposed Transport Bill of 1944 after a reading in the Oireachtas. The bill, proposed by the Fianna Fáil ruling party, was opposed by Fine Gael and its leader Desmond Myles.

Tuesday, May 9, 1944
A second reading of the Transport Bill failed today in the Oireachtas. In response to the body's failure to pass bills supported by the ruling party, Taoiseach Éamon de Valera dismissed the Oireachtas and called a snap election, scheduled for the 30th of May.

Monday, May 15, 1944
The Irish Shipbuilding Company launched the hull of the destroyer Deirdre today in Rushbrooke. The American-designed warship is planned to enter the Irish Naval Service by the end of the year, whereupon she will take over as the flagship of the destroyer forces.

Quoted from "Brockpaine"

Tuesday, May 9, 1944
A second reading of the Transport Bill failed today in the Oireachtas. In response to the body's failure to pass bills supported by the ruling party, Taoiseach Éamon de Valera dismissed the Oireachtas and called a snap election, scheduled for the 30th of May.

Dun-dun-dah!

Does this mean that de Valera may finally get the boot?

Well, the snap election did work for him historically...

Tuesday, May 30, 1944
Ireland holds their general election. Preliminary counts indicate 'too close to call.'

Friday, June 2, 1944
Election officials announced that Fine Gael, under the leadership of Desmond Myles, has squeaked out a narrow victory in the general election, to the surprise and horror of the opposition party, which expected to strengthen their hold on the Dail.

Friday, June 9, 1944
Desmond Myles is sworn in as the new Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland, heading the 4th Government of Ireland. In his initial address by radio to the state, Myles confirmed that his government would maintain a strong pro-neutrality stance in Europe and would "continue to achieve the independent ideals of the Republic of Ireland."

Monday, July 10, 1944
Grúpa Thionscal Éireann's MICA wheeled infantry carrier arrived in Britain today for the first stop in a major demonstration tour across Europe. GTÉ's vehicle division vice-president, Gerard O'Conner, confirmed that the three MICA demonstrator vehicles would continue on to tour Denmark, Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia in a "Baltic Tour", followed by a "Balkan Tour" to Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey, Greece, Yugoslavia, and Hungary. GTÉ hopes to establish their firm as an export success. O'Conner noted that marketing outside of Europe may follow in 1945.

Monday, July 31, 1944
The Oireachtas passed the Dairy Produce Marketing Act of 1944 today, establishing the Irish Dairy Board to serve as a marketing cooperative for Irish dairy products.

Saturday, August 5, 1944
Irish astronomer Kenneth Edgeworth returned today to Ireland following eleven months of study at the Chajnantor Observatory in Chile. Mr. Edgeworth's research focused around his discovery of an icy disk of heavenly bodies outside the orbit of Neptune. Ireland's preeminent astronomer intends to spend the next year in Ireland writing and publishing papers dealing with the evidence of his discoveries.

Friday, August 11, 1944
The Donegal Bay Fishing Company (Ltd.) was founded today. The company, to be based in Ballyshannon, is in the process of acquiring a pair of cannery ships, to be named Donegal Star and Donegal Pride, as well as a number of trawlers. A press release from the company's unnamed financial backers stated their hope that the new firm would help enliven the Irish trawler business, which has suffered setbacks from larger and more industrialized European fishing companies.

Monday, August 21, 1944
The GTÉ's MICA infantry carrier demonstration group arrived today in Sofia, Bulgaria, where the three MICA demonstrators will be shown to Bulgarian Army officials, following a "Baltic tour" which resulted in good international press but no purchase commitments. The demonstrator team has higher hopes in Bulgaria, which is reportedly shopping for new equipment.

Tuesday, August 22, 1944
The National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI, or Údarás um Chaighdeáin Náisiúnta na hÉireann) is founded.

Tuesday, September 19, 1944
In a report delivered today to the public press, the government reported that the Irish gross domestic product has risen eight percent in the last eight years. The report identified three main causes for the rise, including a rejuvenation of manufacturing in the regions of Dublin, Cork, and the Shannon Duty-Free Zone; more stable political relations affecting trade with Great Britain and the Continent; and the consistent efforts by the government to maintain low taxes and operate within its means. The Irish open shipping registry was also identified as an increasingly significant contributor to the government's budget, partially-funding military expenditures. The report advised six actions for the government to take (or avoid) in the next five years in order to continue to encourage economic growth.

Thursday, October 19, 1944
The Dail extended permission to the Irish Air Corps to establish a new air base in Ireland. The Air Corps has tentatively proposed a site near Kilmacthomas, just west of Waterford, for the creation of the base. The IAC requested the new base as a result of congestion at Casement and Baldonnel Aerodromes near Dublin, which has caused the IAC's Bv146s and Avro Ansons to fly out of civil airports such as Shannon during training missions.

In exchange for establishing a new base, the Air Corps has dropped several active requests to purchase new aircraft in 1945. Air Corps chief of staff John Michaels had previously indicated a desire to replace or refit the eighteen Boulton-Paul P.94 Resistants of No.4 Fighter Squadron. The P94s, in service since 1938, are still very well-liked aircraft, comparable in many ways to the Fw190As used by No.1 Fighter Squadron. Despite this, some officers feel the eighteen Resistants ought to be replaced, either by more Fw190s or some other modern type.

Michaels has also stated an interest in replacing the three types of aircraft used by No.6 Squadron: two Grumman Ducks used aboard the cruiser Granuaile, three D.A.F. Ro(W)XVI Ronne flying boats employed with the Fisheries Service, and six Sunderland flying boats used by the Irish Coast Guard. For now, one of the Ronnes and two of the Sunderlands will be grounded for use as part hulks. Their duties will be taken up by the Bv146s of No.5 Squadron, which were acquired with the secondary roles of maritime patrol.

Wednesday, October 25, 1944
The Continental Tyre and Rubber facility in Tyrrelstown announced that it would begin an expansion of operations in the new year, adding approximately eighty jobs to the economy.

Wednesday, November 1, 1944
GTÉ's demonstrator MICA armoured vehicles returned to Ireland today following an extensive demonstration tour. The company's spokesman noted that the only foreign order received so far has come from Monaco's Compagnie des Carabiniers du Prince, which ordered four vehicles. Despite this, GTÉ anticipates further foreign orders.

Tuesday, December 5, 1944
The Irish Naval Service's newest destroyer, the Deirdre, was handed over to the Naval Service for trials at Rushbrooke Shipyard. The Deirdre is the first destroyer built by the Irish Shipbuilding Company's Rushbrooke yards.

Thursday, December 14, 1944
The Irish Air Corps officially confirmed their selection of a site near Waterford for a new air corps base. The site will be named Kilmacthomas Aerodrome, and will eventually serve as the base for one of the nation's fighter squadrons, as well as the No.7 Reserve Squadron. Construction is set to begin in April of 1945, with major work to be complete a hundred and eighty days after the project starts.

If you want more Sunderlands as replacements/ parts sources, then the RAF is happy to transfer further airframes.
I've 16 Mk.I , 3 Mk II and 17 Mk.III in storage.