A former Merchant Navy sailor, who was aboard one of the first ships to enter Nagasaki in Japan after it was destroyed by an atomic bomb during the second world war, raised the Red Ensign above County Hall, Nottingham, to mark Merchant Navy Day.

The annual, national event recognises and remembers the sacrifices and courage of the Merchant Navy, and the role it playes in keeping Britain’s supply lines moving during conflicts and, in peace time, battling the regular perils of the sea.

Bill McConville, (80), of Kirkby, who raised the Red Ensign, is the son of a Royal Navy sub-mariner.
Bill joined the Merchant Navy in the 1950s as a 17-year-old and served as a cook on passenger, troop and cargo ships around the world for 13 years.

Troop missions included moving approximately 1,500 Australian troops to Malaysia and returning members of the Foreign Legion from Saigon back home to France.

He was on one of the first ships to arrive in Nagasaki in the 1950s to deliver supplies to help the rebuilding of the area after it was reduced to rubble by an atomic bomb in 1945.

After leaving the Merchant Navy, Bill retained his affinity with the sea, going on to work for the National Coastwatch.

Mr McConville, an active member of the Mansfield and Ashfield branch of the Merchant Navy Association, said: “As a 17 year-old going out to sea for the first time, I remember suffering from illness and sea sickness terribly for the first few days, but once I found my sea legs I enjoyed my time in the Merchant Navy. I have some great memories.

“The opportunities for young people to have a career in the Merchant Navy are more limited these days, but we try to encourage and help them find opportunities when we can through the work of the association.”

Bill McConville is pictured, third left, with civic leaders at the Merchant Navy Day ceremony.