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A Royal Bahamas Defence Force officer prepares to place a wreath at sea in memory of HMBS Flamingo during the 41st Anniversary Service on Monday, May 10, 2021 at HMBS CORAL HARBOUR. (RBDF PHOTO: ABLE SEAMAN MICHAEL TURNER II)
NASSAU, BAHAMAS Marines of the ill-fated HMBS FLAMINGO were remembered with a gun salute in military form and a wreath-laying ceremony during the 41st Anniversary Service in memory of the vessel and crew on Monday, May 10, 2021, at HMBS CORAL HARBOUR.
The RBDF guard gives a gun salute during the ceremony. (RBDF PHOTOS)
Governor General Cornelius A Smith brought remarks and placed a wreath at the HMBS Flamingo Memorial Park Monument.
Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF) Captain Whitfield Neely.
NASSAU, BAHAMAS The Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF) over the weekend extended congratulations to Captain Whitfield Neely, who was bestowed with the honor of Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) by Queen Elizabeth on the Queen’s New Year’s Honors list.
A member of the RBDF’s Entry 5 squad, Neely was one of 15 survivors of the ill-fated HMBS Flamingo, which was bombed and sunk by Cuban MIG jets on May 10, 1980.
Every May, the country holds a memorial service in recognition of the tragic event during which four marines lost their lives.
Retired Commodore Leon Smith and Mrs. Helen Smith along with and The Commander Defence Force, Commodore Raymond King and Mrs. Fredricka King presenting Leading Seaman Melvin Smith with the Leon Smith Award at the force’s Annual Christmas Carol and Awards Ceremony on Monday, December 21, 2020. Also shown are: Deputy Commander Defence Force, Captain Shonedel Pinder and Captain Glenn McPhee, Acting Captain Coral Harbour. (RBDF Photo by Chief Petty Officer Mark Armbrister)
Coral Harbour Base, (RBDF): In keeping with the Commander Defence Force, Commodore Raymond King’s strategic intent of developing a professional and high-performance workforce focused on excellence and succession planning, Leading Seaman Melvin Smith was awarded the Leon L. Smith Award as the Royal Bahamas Defence Force’s overall Marine of the Year for 2020.