The Marine Institute paid tribute to the courage and sacrifice of the men and women of the Merchant Navy in a ceremony outside it’s St. John’s campus yesterday.

The annual gathering was held at the Allied Merchant Navel Memorial.

Director of the centre for marine simulation at the Marine Institute, and a member of the master mariners of Canada, Chris Hearn co-hosted the event.

Hearn says ships would be picked off individually by enemy fire before the convoy system was put in place.

“Just as determined as we were to get across, the enemy was determined to stop us at all costs. So the Merchant Navy was very much on the front lines as they had to fight weather, torpedo action, attacks from the air and all the things aiming to destroy the ships,” says Hearn.

“The naval ship is one thing, but the ship carrying guns and bombs and fuel and tanks is the one they want.”