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09
Dec 2022
Harrogate woman takes command of Royal New Zealand Navy ship
A Harrogate woman has taken command of a Royal New Zealand Navy ship.
Yvonne Gray is a former student of Bilton Grange Primary School and Harrogate Granby High School.
She moved to the pacific with her wife Sharon 2012 after falling in love with the country following a camper van holiday.
She initially trained as a teacher, but joined the Royal Navy and then moved onto the Royal New Zealand Navy.
As the Commanding Officer of the RNZN’s Mine Counter Measures Team she participated in activities all over the world, and her role in maritime evaluation has seen her help ‘work up’ ships and crews to peak efficiency.
She said her eyes lit up at the thought of taking command of HMNZS Manawanui, which entered service with the Royal New Zealand Navy three years ago.
Commander Gray said:
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The vessel HMNZS Manawanui is based at Devonport Naval Base in Auckland. Manawanui is Māori for ‘steadfast’ or ‘big heart’.
The ship is the first Commander Gray has taken charge of in her career.
Commander Gray took charge the ship this week.
The Royal New Zealand Navy’s dive, hydrographic and salvage vessel HMNZS Manawanui at sea.
She joined the Royal Navy in 1993 as a warfare officer and signed an eight-year commission.
But several years in, she knew the Navy life was for her.
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