Haapalah / Aliyah Bet

Yoash 'Chato' Tzidon served in the Gidonim and in the 4th Battalion.

On March 17, 1946, Tel Hai תל חי Asya, the first Haapalah ship to sail from La Ciotat, a jewish community on the coast near Marseille, carried 736 passengers, including 195 French immigrants and 548 members of a youth movement from Belgium, carrying visas to South America.
Paul H. Silverstone's Aliyah Bet Project cites: Tel Hai תל חי Asya sailed from Sète.
Palmach Information Center cites: TTel Hai תל חי Asya, the first Haapalah boat to sail from a French port, sailed from a port near Marseille, carrying 736 passengers.
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum cites: Tel Hai תל חי Asya sailed from Marseille, carrying 733 passenger.
Idith Zertal cites: Tel Hai תל חי Asya sailed from La Ciotat, carrying 743 passengers, including 548 Holocaust survivors from the DP Camps in Germany, 'both preparation of the ship and its launching were carried out, as noted, under the supervision and with the assistance of an agent of the French General Intelligence Services Renseignements généraux."
Ninian Stewart cites: Tel Hai תל חי Asya carried 733 passengers.
She had a German doctor on board, with two nurses working int the sick bay and dispensary.
She was crewed by three Greeks and nine Turks.
Tel Hai תל חי Asya sailed under the Turkish flag.

Yoash 'Chato' Tzidon served as Gidoni גדעוני, wireless radio operator aboard Tel Hai.

Gad Hilb served as Captain aboard Pan York Kibbutz Galuyot קיבוץ גלויות.
Gad Hilb cites: "Yosef (Yossi) Hamburger, the CEO of the operation involving these two ships, joined us. With him came the Palyamnik, Akiva Offenbach."
"On 15th August 1947 I was appointed captain of the “Pan York” with a crew consisting of 3 professional Israeli officers (me, Ephraim Tzuk and Werner Salomon). There were three other officers, six experienced Spanish seamen, and 7 American Jewish volunteers. There were also 3 men of the Mosad for Aliya Bet, Nissan Levitan, Reuven (Pupchen) Oren and Shlomo Hans Rosen."

Nimrod Eshel served as Palyam Escort aboard Pan York Kibbutz Galuyot קיבוץ גלויות.

Esteban 'Captain Steve' Hernandorena served as 1st Mate aboard Pan York Kibbutz Galuyot קיבוץ גלויות.

Donald 'Donny' Aaron Molofsky served in the Catering Department aboard Pan York Kibbutz Galuyot קיבוץ גלויות.

Akiva Offenbach served as Palyam Escort aboard Pan York Kibbutz Galuyot קיבוץ גלויות.

In December, 1947, Willie Rostoker was appointed 3rd Mate by by the Captain, Gad Hilb, aboard Pan York Kibbutz Galuyot קיבוץ גלויות.

Efraim Tzuk served as Chief Engineer abaord Pan York Kibbutz Galuyot קיבוץ גלויות.

Irving Weingarten served as Senior Deckhand aboard Pan York Kibbutz Galuyot קיבוץ גלויות.

Yoash 'Chato' Tzidon served as Palyam Escort aboard Pan York Kibbutz Galuyot קיבוץ גלויות.

On August 15, 1947, Gad Hilb was appointed Captain of Pan York Kibbutz Galuyot קיבוץ גלויות, with a crew of 3 Israeli officers, Gad Hilb, Ephraim Tzuk as Chief Engineer, and Werner Salomon.
The crew also included three other officers, including Estaban Hernandorena "Captain Steve', six experienced Spanish seamen, 7 American Jewish volunteers, and 3 men from Mossad le'Aliyah Bet, Nissan Levitan, Palyam Commander and Shlomo Hans Rosen, and Palyamniks, Zalman Perach, Akiva Offenbach, Willie Rostoker, David Lowenthal, Irving Weingarten, and Gidonim, Reuven Oren and Malka Rofeh.

On December 23, 1947, Dr. Harden Ashkenazy sailed on Pan York Kibbutz Galuyot קיבוץ גלויות. from Constanţa, for Palestine.

On December 23, 1947, Eugene Herzberger, and his wife, Magda, and Magda's mother, a relative of Magda's helped arrange the voyage, sailed on Pan York Kibbutz Galuyot קיבוץ גלויות, from Constanţa, for Palestine.

On November 4, 1946, Lohita Knesset Israel כנסת ישראל, along with MS Anastasia, sailed from Bakar, on a two-and-a-half week voyage, carrying 4,000 passengers.
Palyam.org cites Lohita Knesset Yisrael כנסת ישראל sailing on November 5, 1946, carrying 3,445 passengers.
Reuven Yatir cites: Lohita Knesset Yisrael כנסת ישראל carried 3,500 passengers and a small vessel, Saint, carried 500 passengers, but on their "way to the open sea the “Saint” ran into a small island and sank. We transferred her passengers to our vessel and continued our voyage in an orderly manner."
Benyamin Yerushalmi served as Commander aboard Knesset Israel כנסת ישראל.
Yossi Harel served as second-in-command aboard Knesset Israel כנסת ישראל.
Yoash Tzdon served as Gidoni, wireless radio operator, aboard Knesset Israel כנסת ישראל.
She sailed close to the Dalmatian coast.
Before she set sail, she had been given the name, תנועת המרי העברי Tnuat haMeri haIvri, the Hebrew Resistance Movement, and her captain told the passenger at muster, prior to sailing, that they should be accountable to her name.
The resistance group included 2,000 individuals, most from youth movements.
Her name was changed to Knesset Yisrael כנסת ישראל on orders from the Yishuv.

Benyamin 'Ben' Yerushalmi served as Commander aboard Knesset Israel כנסת ישראל.
Reuven Yatir cites: a group of Maapilim he had trained in seamanship took over running of the ship, when they left the Aegean Sea and let the Greek crew go, and "They went back to Piraeus in a small boat, together with Ben Yerushalmi."

Yoash 'Chato' Tzidon served as Palyam Escort מלווה and Gidoni גדעוני, wireless radio operator, aboard Knesset Israel כנסת ישראל.
He came to Bakar with the Maapilim, from the transit camp in Zagreb.

Yossi Harel served as Second-in-Command aboard Knesset Israel כנסת ישראל.

Reuven Hirsch Yatir served as Palyam Escort מלווה aboard Knesset Israel כנסת ישראל.

Reuven Yatir cites "In November 1946, 4,000 mMaapilim arrived and Yoash Tzidon, the Gideoni (radio operator), came with them from the transit camp in Zagreb. Knesset Israel took on 3,500 Maapilim and a small vessel, the Saint, took the other 500."

Jacob Berger, his wife, Klara, and daughter, Carmela, sailed for Palestine aboard Knesset Israel כנסת ישראל.

Moshe Malkiel, age 17 years, sailed for Palestine aboard Knesset Israel כנסת ישראל.

Matilda and Pnina Wiesel sailed for Palestine aboard Knesset Israel כנסת ישראל.

At the end of January, 1947, Yoash Tzidon replaced Aryeh Kippy Kaplan as commander of the defense of the Detention Camps on Cyprus.

Yoash 'Chato' Tzidon became a test pilot, flight trainer, squadron commander and a deputy Air Force base commander.

Before being demobilised in 1966, Yoash Tzidon became head of the Weapons Systems and Planning in the Air Force,