Cockatoo Docks & Engineering Company

Cockatoo Docks & Engineering Company
Industry	Ship building
Founded	1 March 1933
Defunct	31 December 1992
Fate	Closed
Headquarters	Cockatoo Island , Australia
Owner	Australian National Industries

Last updated November 27, 2023

The Cockatoo Docks & Engineering Company was a ship building and maintenance company which operated the Cockatoo Island Dockyard on Cockatoo Island in Sydney, Australia, between 1933 and 1992.

History

The Cockatoo Docks & Engineering Company commenced trading on 1 March 1933 taking a 21-year lease over the dockyard on Cockatoo Island from the Federal Government.^[1]^[2]^[3]^[4]

Having held a minority shareholding since 1937, in 1947 Vickers-Armstrongs became the majority shareholder.^[5] In February 1954, the lease was renewed for a further 20 years and 8 months, and again from 1 January 1972 for 21 years.^[4]^[6]

In February 1984, Vickers merged its Australian interests were with the Commonwealth Steel Company to form Comsteel Vickers, Vickers and BHP each owning 38%, with the remaining 24% held by smaller investors.^[7] On 4 June 1986, the company was purchased by Australian National Industries (ANI).^[8]

As part of a review of Australia's ship building capabilities, the Federal Government decided in 1987 the lease would not be renewed.^[9] Although consideration was given to terminating the lease early, in the end it ran its course until 31 December 1992, although the only work performed in the last 18 months was decommissioning the dockyard. A lengthy legal action over various costs and liabilities between the government and ANI was settled in May 1997.^[4]

Ships built

Steam Tug Wattle 1933^[10]
Customs patrol vessel Vigilant, later HMAS Vigilant 1938, first aluminium ship built in Australia^[11]
Grimsby-class sloops HMAS Yarra 1935, HMAS Swan 1936, HMAS Parramatta 1939, HMAS Warrego 1940^[10]
Tribal-class destroyers HMAS Arunta 1940, HMAS Warramunga 1942, HMAS Bataan 1944^[10]
Net-class boom defence vessel HMAS Kookaburra 1938
Bar-class boom defence vessels HMAS Koala 1939, HMAS Kangaroo 1940, HMAS Karangi 1941^[10]
Bathurst-class corvettes HMAS Bathurst 1940, HMAS Goulburn 1940, HMAS Bendigo 1941, HMAS Cessnock 1941, HMAS Wollongong 1941, HMAS Glenelg 1942^[10]
A-class cargo steamships River Clarence 1943^[12] and River Hunter 1945^[13]
Battle-class destroyer HMAS Tobruk ^[10]
Daring-class destroyers HMAS Voyager 1952, HMAS Vampire 1956^[10]
River-class destroyer escorts HMAS Parramatta 1959, HMAS Stuart 1961, HMAS Torrens 1968^[14]
Empress of Australia 1964^[15]
Destroyer tender HMAS Stalwart 1966
Durance-class tanker HMAS Success 1984

Other work

In World War II the dockyard was the main ship repair facility in the Pacific Ocean, with more than 250 ships repaired. The Cunard liners RMS Queen Mary and RMS Queen Elizabeth were converted into troop ships at Cockatoo Island. In the eight months between August 1942 and March 1943, Cockatoo repaired four United States Navy cruisers: USS Chicago, USS Chester, USS Portland and USS New Orleans. Many ships of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) were repaired.^[4]

From the early 1960s, the dockyard refitted RAN vessels including British T-class submarines (5), Oberon-class submarines (14) and Attack-class patrol boats (43).^[4]

Related Research Articles

HMAS Bataan (D9/I91/D191) was a Tribal-class destroyer of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). Laid down in 1942 and commissioned in 1945, the destroyer was originally to be named Chingilli or Kurnai but was renamed prior to launch in honour of the US stand during the Battle of Bataan.

HMAS Success was a Durance-class multi-product replenishment oiler that previously served in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). Built by Cockatoo Docks & Engineering Company in Sydney, Australia, during the 1980s, she is the only ship of the class to be constructed outside France, and the only one to not originally serve in the Marine Nationale. The ship was part of the Australian contribution to the 1991 Gulf War, and was deployed to East Timor in response to incidents in 1999 and 2006. The ship was fitted with a double hull during the first half of 2011, to meet International Maritime Organization standards.

HMAS Onslow is one of six Oberon-class submarines, previously operated by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). The submarine was named after the town of Onslow, Western Australia, and Sir Alexander Onslow, with the boat's motto and badge derived from Onslow's family heritage. Ordered in 1963, Onslow was laid down at the end of 1967 by Scotts Shipbuilding and Engineering Company in Scotland, launched almost a year later, and commissioned into the RAN at the end of 1969.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cockatoo Island</span> Heritage listed island in Sydney Harbour

Cockatoo Island Wareamah is a UNESCO World Heritage Site at the confluence of the Parramatta River and Lane Cove River in Sydney Harbour, New South Wales, Australia.

HMAS Stuart was one of six River-class destroyer escorts built for the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). The ship was laid down by the Cockatoo Docks and Engineering Company at Cockatoo Island Dockyard in 1959, and commissioned into the RAN in 1963.

HMAS Warramunga (I44/D123) was a Tribal-class destroyer of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). Built during World War II, the destroyer entered service in late 1942. She was initially assigned to convoy escort duties, but was assigned to the joint Australian-American Task Force 74 in 1943, and was involved in supporting numerous amphibious landings through the South-east Asian region until the end of the war. From 1950 and 1952, Warramunga fought in the Korean War, then was converted into an anti-submarine destroyer. Returning to service in 1954, the destroyer was one of the first RAN ships to operate with the Far East Strategic Reserve, and undertook two tours with the organisation before she was decommissioned in 1959 and sold for ship breaking in 1963.

HMAS Tobruk (D37) was a Battle-class destroyer of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). Built at the Cockatoo Island Dockyard, the destroyer was completed in 1950. Tobruk was deployed to the Korean War twice, and served with the Far East Strategic Reserve on three occasions during the late 1950s. In 1960, she was damaged beyond economical repair by sister ship HMAS Anzac during a gunnery exercise, which led to the destroyer's decommissioning that year, and sale for scrap in 1971.

The Cockatoo Island Dockyard was a major dockyard in Sydney, Australia, based on Cockatoo Island. The dockyard was established in 1857 to maintain Royal Navy warships. It later built and repaired military and battle ships, and played a key role in sustaining the Royal Australian Navy. The dockyard was closed in 1991, and its remnants are heritage listed as the Cockatoo Island Industrial Conservation Area.

HMAS Torrens, named for the River Torrens, was a River-class torpedo-boat destroyer of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). The destroyer was built at Cockatoo Island Dockyard and entered service with the RAN in 1916. The destroyer was first deployed to East Asia, then the Mediterranean, where she remained for the rest of World War I. After returning to Australia, the destroyer was decommissioned, but saw use in several ports for reservist training before the decision to sell her for scrap was made. After being stripped, the destroyer was towed outside Sydney Heads, used for gunnery practice, and scuttled.

HMAS Huon (D50), named after the Huon River, was a River-class torpedo-boat destroyer of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). Originally to be named after the River Derwent, the ship was renamed before her 1914 launch because of a naming conflict with a Royal Navy vessel.

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HMAS Kookaburra (A331) was a Net-class boom defence vessel of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), which served during World War II.

HMS Tabard was a British submarine of the third group of the T class. She was built by Scotts, Greenock, and launched on 21 November 1945. So far she has been the only boat of the Royal Navy to bear the name Tabard, after the item of clothing. Having been launched after the war, she was selected, along with a number of boats of her class, to try out new streamlining techniques based on the German Type XXIII submarine. In May 1963, she was involved in a collision with HMAS Queenborough, and on 10 February 1964 she underwent exercises with HMAS Melbourne and HMAS Voyager in the hours before their collision. When she returned to the UK, she became the static training submarine at the shore establishment HMS Dolphin, until 1974 when she was sold and broken up.

HMAS Karangi was a Bar-class boom defence vessel operated by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) during World War II. It was constructed by the Cockatoo Docks and Engineering Company at Cockatoo Island Dockyard, Sydney and launched on 16 August 1941. The vessel was awarded the battle honour "Darwin 1942–43" for her wartime service. In 1952, Karangi participated during the atomic tests at Monte Bello Islands.

Sutherland Dock is a heritage-listed dockyard at the former Cockatoo Island Dockyard, Cockatoo Island, New South Wales, Australia. It was added to the Australian Commonwealth Heritage List on 22 June 2004.

Fitzroy Dock is a heritage-listed dockyard at the former Cockatoo Island Dockyard, Cockatoo Island, Sydney Harbour, New South Wales, Australia. It was added to the Australian Commonwealth Heritage List on 22 June 2004.

HMAS Waree (W128) was a tug boat operated by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) during World War II. She operated as a tug boat for the Waratah Tug and Salvage Company before being requisitioned by the RAN in 1942, and operating in northern Australia and Papua. She sank on 17 October 1946 off the New South Wales coast while sailing to Sydney from Thursday Island.

Cockatoo Island Industrial Conservation Area is a heritage-listed protected area relating to the former Cockatoo Island Dockyard at Cockatoo Island, Sydney Harbour, New South Wales, Australia. It was added to the Australian Commonwealth Heritage List on 22 June 2004.

Naval Base Sydney was a United States Navy base built during World War II at Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The base was built with Australian civilian contractors. As the US Navy expanded in the Island hopping campaign, Naval Base Sydney expanded to include a Naval Base Hospital, repair base and other facilities. US Navy operations started in 1943 and ended after the war in 1945.

References

↑ "Cockatoo Dockyard Leased". Daily Commercial News and Shipping List . No. 13, 762. New South Wales, Australia. 8 February 1933. p. 1 (Commercial Australia) – via National Library of Australia.
↑ "Cockatoo Company Takes Over". The Sun . No. 7229. New South Wales, Australia. 1 March 1933. p. 13 (Last Race Edition) – via National Library of Australia.
↑ "Engineering Work". The Sydney Morning Herald . No. 29, 691. New South Wales, Australia. 2 March 1933. p. 9 – via National Library of Australia.
1 2 3 4 5 Jeremy, John (2005). Cockatoo Island. Randwick: University of New South Wales Press. ISBN 0868408174.
↑ "Vickers Buys Sydney Dock". The Sun . No. 11581. New South Wales, Australia. 7 March 1947. p. 5 – via National Library of Australia.
↑ "New Lease on Docks". The Daily Advertiser . New South Wales, Australia. 23 February 1954. p. 1 – via National Library of Australia.
↑ Vickers Australia Limited Delisted
↑ Comsteel Vickers Limited Delisted
↑ "Dockyards to private sector". The Canberra Times . Vol. 61, no. 18, 808. Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 2 April 1987. p. 1 – via National Library of Australia.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Gillett, Ross (1977). Warships of Australia. Sydney: Rigby Limited. pp. 139–143, 148–149, 153–155, 164–171, 190–191, 204–207, 240, 270. ISBN 0 7270 0472 7.
↑ Jeremy, John (1998). Cockatoo Island: Sydney's historic dockyard. Sydney: UNSW Press. p. 85. ISBN 0-86840-817-4. OCLC 60607127.
↑ "Steamers & Motorships". Lloyd's Register (PDF). Vol. II. London: Lloyd's Register. 1945. RIP–RIV. Retrieved 9 May 2022– via Southampton City Council.
↑ "Steamers & Motorships". Lloyd's Register (PDF). Vol. II. London: Lloyd's Register. 1945. R (supplement). Retrieved 9 May 2022– via Southampton City Council.
↑ Moore, John, ed. (1979). Jane's Fighting Ships 1978–79. London: Macdonald & Jane's Publishers. p. 40. ISBN 0 354 00570 7.
↑ Plowman, Peter (2004). Ferry to Tasmania: A Short History. Dural: Rosenberg Publishing. pp. 118–119. ISBN 1 877058 27 0.