Rear Admiral Jack Statton MESLEY CBE MVO DSC
 Jack Statton Mesley was born in Brunswick, Victoria on 11
December 1910, the son of Arthur and Annie Mesley. His
family moved to Leongatha in late January 1912 when his
father took up the position as the first Headmaster of the
new Leongatha Agricultural High School. Jack started
his schooling at Leongatha State School, in 1916, and
continued on to study at Leongatha Agricultural High School.
He was a very good student and did well in all areas of the
curriculum. He entered the RAN College in 1924 as 13-year-old Cadet Midshipman.
His parents had hoped he would become a doctor and only let
him sit the college entrance exam because they thought his
puny size and previous poor health would prevent him being
accepted as Cadet Midshipman. They were very surprised
when he was selected as one of the 12 Cadet Midshipmen to
attend the college at Jervis Bay. While at the college
he excelled at sport, playing in the first XI cricket team,
the first XV rugby team and also the hockey team. He
was awarded his colours for rugby and hockey. He
topped his class academically and on graduating in 1927 he
was awarded the prize for the grand aggregate score and also
came first in navigation, mathematics, English, history,
physics and chemistry.
In February 1928, he traveled to England for training in HM
Ships Tiger, Marlborough and Renown.
While he was on board Tiger the ship carried out
secret trials on the multi-barrelled pom pom guns (later
known colloquially as the Chicago Piano).
Marlborough served in the Mediterranean and Midshipman
Mesley visited places such as Gibraltar and Barcelona, where
he witnessed a bull fight. Jack Mesley also spent
quite a bit of time playing rugby union in Scotland.
He was promoted Sub Lieutenant in January 1931.
Due to the Depression there were a number of cuts to the RAN
and some of Jack’s fellow Midshipmen were returned to
Australia and retrenched. Jack Mesley was retained in
the service and proceeded to the Royal Naval College,
Greenwich for six months training before completing courses
in gunnery, navigation, torpedo, signals and divisional
duties. He received first class certificates in all
his courses and a special mention for the high standard of
his mathematics skills.
Mesley returned to Australia
in December 1931 and was promoted Lieutenant on 1 February
1932. He joined the heavy cruiser HMAS Australia
in February 1932 and then in July, of that year, transferred
to the sea plane carrier HMAS Albatross where he
was awarded his watchkeeping certificate. During
1933-34, Lieutenant Mesley served in the survey ship HMAS
Moresby carrying out surveying work in the Great
Barrier Reef area; mostly in the Whitsunday Passage.
In 1934 he served in the destroyer HMAS Stuart (the
leader of the RAN destroyer flotilla). He rejoined
Australia in late 1934 and took part in the Royal Tour
which involved taking the Duke of Gloucester to a number of
the Britain's Pacific Island Territories and then back to
England via the Panama Canal. On arrival in England,
Jack Mesley went immediately to HMS Dryad to
undertake the long navigation course. He then spent
time in the cruiser HMS Orion, based at Gibraltar,
during 1935-36 as the navigator.
Jack Mesley returned to Australia in 1936 in the SS
Moloja and joined Moresby again to conduct
survey work. This involved the surveying of Darwin
Harbour and later Rabaul Harbour. During 1937-39 he
served in the sloops HMA Ships Swan and Yarra.
On 8 May 1939, he married Sydney socialite Edna Gay Curtis
at St Marks Church of England at Woollahra, Sydney. In
July 1939 the Mesleys sailed to England and Jack joined the
navigation school at HMS Dryad.
In September
1939 war broke out and in November Lieutenant Mesley joined
the cruiser HMS Hawkins as the navigator for
service in the South Atlantic. Hawkins
visited several ports on the east coast of South America and
rounded Cape Horn many times while on patrol.
Mesley
was promoted Lieutenant Commander in February 1940.
Hawkins then went to East Africa and was involved in the
bombardment of Mogadishu, in Italian Somaliland, as well as
capturing several Italian merchant ships off Kismayu in
April 1941.
Portrait of Lieutenant
Commander (Lt Cmdr) Jack Statton Mesley, RAN
In July 1941 he traveled to Egypt and transferred to the
light cruiser HMAS Hobart. She operated in
the eastern Mediterranean, bombarded Bardia and Tobruk and
also transported troops to Cyprus and Beirut.
Lieutenant Commander Mesley returned to Australia in
November 1941 and joined the heavy cruiser HMAS Canberra
in February 1942. She was sunk off Savo Island on 8/9
August 1942, during the Solomon Islands campaign.
After his rescue by the US Navy, he returned to Australia in
the transport USS President Grant and was appointed
to the staff of the Flag Officer in Command, Sydney.
In July 1943 he became Staff Officer (Operations) at Port
Moresby and was also briefly Naval Officer in Command of
Port Moresby.
The stricken HMAS Canberra
(I) following the action at Savo Island. After being
struck by at least two Japanese torpedoes
and numerous enemy salvos, she was deemed unsalvageable and
consequently evacuated and sunk off Savo Island on
9 August 1942. This stretch of water is now known as
Iron Bottom Sound after 32 Allied ships were sunk there
during WWII.
On 16 November 1943 he took command of the destroyer HMAS
Vendetta, engaged in convoy escort duties in
Australian and New Guinea waters. He served briefly at
Navy Office in Melbourne from September-November 1944 before
joining Australia as the Squadron Navigating
Officer in late November 1944. Australia saw
intense action at the battle of Lingayen Gulf, in January
1945, in which she was struck several times by Japanese
kamikaze aircraft.
Mesley transferred to the heavy
cruiser HMAS Shropshire in March 1945 and
participated in numerous operations during the closing
months of the war, including the Allied landings at
Balikpapan and Brunei, for which he was awarded the
Distinguished Service Cross (DSC).
for outstanding courage, skill and initiative.
Shropshire
was present at the Japanese surrender in Tokyo Bay in
September 1945 and Jack Mesley was promoted to Commander on
31 December 1945. While still serving in
Shropshire he took part in the victory celebrations in
London in 1946.
Mesley took command of HMAS Rushcutter, a shore
establishment in Sydney, in February 1947, where his duties
included management of the RAN Reserve personnel in the
Sydney area and recruiting. In January 1949 Commander
Mesley joined the joint planning staff in Navy Office,
Melbourne and then in May 1950 he was appointed as Executive
Officer of the RAN's main training establishment, HMAS
Cerberus at Westernport, Victoria.
In April 1952
he took command of the destroyer HMAS Anzac and she
saw active service in the Korean War during September
1952-June 1953 conducting naval gunfire support missions and
aircraft carrier escort duties. In March 1953 he took
on the additional responsibility of commanding the 10th
Destroyer Squadron and was promoted Captain on 30 June 1953.
 During the royal visit to Australia by Queen Elizabeth II in
1954, Anzac was assigned as the escort ship for the
royal yacht (HMY Gothic) and Captain Mesley was subsequently
appointed as a Member of the Royal Victorian Order (MVO) for
his services. He then served in Navy Office, in
Melbourne, as Deputy Chief of Naval Staff (then still a
Captain's billet) during 1955-56.
In January 1957, Jack Mesley was given command of the
aircraft carrier HMAS Sydney and after 14 months of
service in her, came ashore to briefly command the training
establishment HMAS Watson which also carried with
it the command of Rushcutter as well. Mesley
became Chief Staff Officer to the Flag Officer Commanding
the Australian Fleet in July 1958 and following this
attended the course at the Imperial Defence College in
London in 1959; in preparation for more senior staff
positions.
Upon return to Australia he commanded the
RAN's flagship, the aircraft carrier HMAS Melbourne,
during 1960 and then in January 1961 he took command of the
Sydney shore base HMAS Penguin. After a year
in command of Penguin, Captain Mesley assumed
command of the Naval Air Station, HMAS Albatross,
in January 1962.
In the 1965 New Years Honours List he was appointed a
Commander of the most excellent Order of the British Empire
(CBE)
CAPTAIN JACK STATTON MESLEY, M.V.O., D.S.C., R.A.N.,
of Nowra, N.S. W.
In Command, R.A.N. Air Station Nowra.
Captain Mesley joined the Royal Australian Navy as a Cadet
Midshipman in January, 1924 and has served continuously
since that date. After some years general service in
H.M. and H.M.A. Ships, he qualified in 1935 as a Navigating
Officer. During World War II, Captain Mesley served on
a number of H.M. and H.M.A. Ships which included command of
H.M.A.S. Vendetta. Since the war his appointments have
included Captain and Commanding Officer of some six of
H.M.A. Ships and Shore Establishments. In recognition
of his long and distinguished service.
After three years in command of Albatross
he then took up his final posting to Navy Office in
Canberra. Jack Mesley was promoted Rear Admiral in
July 1965 and held the dual position of Second Naval Member
and Chief of Naval Personnel before retiring from the Navy
in December 1967.
Known throughout the Navy simply as 'Mes' he had earned a
reputation as a highly capable and experienced sea-going
officer who possessed a brisk and cheerful disposition.
He died on 24 February 1987 in Sydney, NSW and was cremated;
he was survived by his wife and three sons.
Sources:
Sea
Power Centre
Australian Dictionary of Biography - John Perryman
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