MYSTIC / SEA SWALLOW

BUILT IN 1958 BY THE BURNTISLAND SHIP BUILDING COMPANY, SHE WAS A VESSEL OF 6,656 TONS.

MYSTIC WAS WRONGLY BELIEVED TO BE A SHAW SAVILL & ALBION LINE  VESSEL, SHE WAS  IN FACT A JOHNSTON- WARREN LINE VESSEL WHICH WAS ON CHARTER TO SHAW SAVILL & ALBION FOR 11 YEARS HAVING BEEN TAKEN ON CHARTER WHILST SHE WAS STILL ON THE STOCKS AT HER BUILDERS.

 SHE TOOK  OVER FROM THE GALLIC / GREYSTOKE CASTLE.

HER RADIO CALLSIGN WAS ' GBTH '

WHEN SHAW SAVILL & ALBIONS VESSEL 'GOTHIC' LEFT WELLINGTON AFTER BEING TEMPORALLY REPAIRED AND RE-FITTED WITH NEW RADIO EQUIPMENT AFTER HER FIRE, MYSTIC WAS USED ON THE HOME WARD VOYAGE TO RELAY MESSAGES BACK TO PORTISHEAD RADIO ( AS GOTHIC'S NEW OCEANSPAN TRANSMITTER WAS  SUPPLIED WITH LIMITED H.F CRYSTALS, WHICH HAMPERED HER ABILITY TO COMMUNICATE )

 THE RADIO OFFICER ONBOARD AT THIS TIME WAS NIGEL HARDY ( ZL2TX )

THE WARREN LINE HAD BEEN FORMED IN 1922 ( IT HAD STARTED AS THE WHITE DIAMOND LINE BACK IN 1857 )

 IN 1934 THEY TOOK OVER THE JOHNSTON LINE & NEPTUNE STEAM NAV CO AND FORMED THE JOHNSTON-WARREN LINE. FURNESS WITHY HAD THE CONTROLLING INTEREST IN THE COMPANY SINCE 1912.

AFTER 1947 THEY OFFICIALLY WERE KNOWN AS THE FURNESS-WARREN LINE.BUT STILL SEEMED TO BE REFERRED TO AS THE JOHNSTON-WARREN LINE.MYSTIC WAS SOLD IN 1975 TO A LIBERIAN COMPANY WHO RE-NAMED HER ' SEA SWALLOW '.