HMAS Oxley (S 57)

Last updated

HMAS Oxley bow front.jpg
The bow section of HMAS Oxley, on display outside the Western Australian Maritime Museum
History
Naval Ensign of Australia.svgAustralia
Builder Scotts Shipbuilding and Engineering Company
Laid down2 July 1964
Launched24 September 1965
Commissioned21 March 1967
DecommissionedFebruary 1992
FateSold for scrap
General characteristics
Class and type Oberon-class submarine
Displacement
  • 1,610 tons standard
  • 2,030 tons surfaced
  • 2,410 tons submerged
Length295.2 ft (90.0 m)
Beam26.5 ft (8.1 m)
Draught18 ft (5.5 m)
Propulsion
  • 2 × Admiralty Standard Range supercharged V16 diesel generators
  • 2 × English Electric motors
  • 3,500 bhp, 4,500 shp
  • 2 shafts
Speed
  • 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph) surfaced
  • 17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph) submerged
  • 11 knots (20 km/h; 13 mph) at snorkel depth
Range9,000 nautical miles (17,000 km; 10,000 mi) at 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph)
Test depth200 metres (660 ft)
Complement
  • As launched:
  • 8 officers, 56 sailors
  • At decommissioning:
  • 8 officers, 60 sailors
Sensors and
processing systems
  • Sonar:
  • Atlas Elektronik Type CSU3-41 bow array
  • BAC Type 2007 flank array
  • Sperry BQG-4 Micropuffs rangefinding array
  • Radar:
  • Kelvin Hughes Type 1006
Armament
  • Torpedo tubes:
  • 6 × 21-inch (53 cm) bow tubes
  • 2 × short-length 21-inch (53 cm) stern tubes (later removed)
  • 1996 payload: Mix of 20:
  • Mark 48 Mod 4 torpedoes
  • UGM-84 Sub Harpoon missiles

HMAS Oxley (S 57) was an Oberon-class submarine of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

Contents

Design and construction

The Oberon class was based heavily on the preceding Porpoise class of submarines, with changes made to improve the vessels' hull integrity, sensor systems, and stealth capabilities. [1] Eight submarines were ordered for the RAN, in two batches of four. [2] The first batch (including Oxley) was approved in 1963, and the second batch was approved during the late 1960s, although two of these were cancelled before construction started in 1969, with the funding redirected to the Fleet Air Arm. [3] [4] This was the fourth time the RAN had attempted to establish a submarine branch. [5]

The submarine was 295.2 feet (90.0 m) long, with a beam of 26.5 feet (8.1 m), and a draught of 18 feet (5.5 m) when surfaced. [6] At full load displacement, she displaced 2,030 tons when surfaced, and 2,410 tons when submerged. [6] The two propeller shafts were each driven by an English Electric motor providing 3,500  brake horsepower and 4,500  shaft horsepower; the electricity for these was generated by two Admiralty Standard Range supercharged V16 diesel generators. [7] The submarine could travel at up to 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph) on the surface, and up to 17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph) when submerged, had a maximum range of 9,000 nautical miles (17,000 km; 10,000 mi) at 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph), and a test depth of 200 metres (660 ft) below sea level. [6] [7] When launched, the boat had a company of 8 officers and 56 sailors, but by the time she decommissioned, the number of sailors had increased to 60. [6] [7] In addition, up to 16 trainees could be carried. [7]

The main armament of the Oberons consisted of six 21-inch (533.4 mm) torpedo tubes. [1] The British Mark 8 torpedo was initially carried by the submarine; this was later replaced by the wire-guided Mark 23. [8] During the 1980s,[ clarification needed ] the Australian Oberons were upgraded to carry United States Navy Mark 48 torpedoes and UGM-84 Sub Harpoon anti-ship missiles. [5] As of 1996, the standard payload of an Australian Oberon was a mix of 20 Mark 48 Mod 4 torpedoes and Sub Harpoon missiles. [6] Some or all of the torpedo payload could be replaced by Mark 5 Stonefish sea mines, which were deployed through the torpedo tubes. [8] On entering service, two stern-mounted, short-length 21-inch (53 cm) torpedo tubes for Mark 20 anti-submarine torpedoes. [9] However, the development of steerable wire-guided torpedoes made the less-capable aft-firing torpedoes redundant; they were closed off, and later removed during a refit. [9]

Oxley was laid down by Scotts Shipbuilding and Engineering Company at Greenock, Scotland on 2 July 1964, launched on 24 September 1965, and commissioned into the RAN on 21 March 1967. [10]

Operational history

After completing sea trials, Oxley sailed to Sydney via the Panama Canal. [11] The submarine arrived on 18 August 1967, the same day as the submarine base Platypus was commissioned and the Australian Submarine Squadron replaced the British 4th Submarine Squadron. [11]

In October 1977, Oxley docked at Cockatoo Island Dockyard for the Submarine Weapon Update Program, a major overhaul of the Australian Oberons' warfighting capability. [12] The upgrade was completed in February 1980. [12]

Decommissioning and fate

Oxley paid off on 13 February 1992 and was scrapped. [5] [10] Her fin is on display outside the Submarine Training and Systems Centre at HMAS Stirling [10] and her bow is preserved at the Western Australian Maritime Museum in Fremantle. An anchor forms part of a Submariners Memorial at HMAS Platypus, dedicated on 18 August 2017, on the 50th anniversary of the boats arrival in Sydney Harbour.

Citations

  1. 1 2 Chant, A Compedium of Armaments and Military Hardware, pp. 167–8
  2. ↑ Cooper, in Stevens, The Royal Australian Navy, p. 188
  3. ↑ Cooper, in Stevens, The Royal Australian Navy, p. 194
  4. ↑ Bastock, Australia's Ships of War, p. 366
  5. 1 2 3 Dennis et al., The Oxford Companion to Australian Military history, p. 399
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Sharpe (ed.), Jane's Fighting Ships, 1996–1997, p. 23
  7. 1 2 3 4 Shaw, HMAS Onslow, p. 15
  8. 1 2 Shaw, HMAS Onslow, p. 21
  9. 1 2 Shaw, HMAS Onslow, p. 19
  10. 1 2 3 Royal Australian Navy, HMAS Oxley (II)
  11. 1 2 Owen, in Mitchell, Australian Maritime Issues 2010, p. 30
  12. 1 2 Owen, in Mitchell, Australian Maritime Issues 2010, p. 32

Related Research Articles

HMAS <i>Quiberon</i> (G81) Australian royal navy ship

HMAS Quiberon (G81/D20/D281/F03) was a Q-class destroyer of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). Although built for the Royal Navy and remaining British property until 1950, Quiberon was one of two Q-class destroyers commissioned into the RAN during World War II. She was passed into full RAN ownership in 1950, and converted into an anti-submarine frigate.

HMAS <i>Dechaineux</i>

HMAS Dechaineux is the fourth of six Collins class submarines operated by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

HMAS <i>Sheean</i> Submarine of the Royal Australian Navy

HMAS Sheean is the fifth of six Collins-class submarines operated by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

HMAS <i>Onslow</i> Royal Australian Navy submarine (1969–1999)

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.

HMAS Orion was an Oberon-class submarine of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). One of six submarines ordered by the RAN during the 1960s, Orion, named after the constellation in a break from ship-naming tradition, was built in Scotland and commissioned in 1977. Orion was one of two Oberon-class submarines designed for intelligence gathering and conducted regular patrols in Soviet, Indian and Chinese waters to gather information regarding enemy capabilities.

HMAS <i>Otama</i> RAN Oberon Class submarine

HMAS Otama was an Oberon-class submarine, formerly of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). Built in Scotland, the submarine was the last of the class to enter service when commissioned into the RAN in 1978. Otama was a specialist, one of two "Mystery Boats", fitted with additional surveillance and intelligence-gathering equipment. Otama was routinely deployed on classified operations to obtain intelligence on Soviet Pacific Fleet vessels and Chinese Navy vessels, and conducted associated coastal surveillance, throughout Asia.

HMAS <i>Ovens</i>

HMAS Ovens is an Oberon-class submarine, formerly of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). She was one of six Oberons built for the Royal Australian Navy by the Scottish Scotts Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, and entered service in 1969. The vessel was named for Irishman and Australian explorer John Ovens (1788–1825) and for whom the Victorian river Ovens was named. During her career, Ovens was the first RAN submarine to deploy with the ANZUK force, and the first RAN submarine to fire an armed Mark 48 torpedo, sinking the target ship Colac. The boat was decommissioned in 1995, and is preserved at the Western Australian Maritime Museum as a museum ship.

HMS <i>J1</i> J class submarine

HMS J1 was a J-class submarine operated by the Royal Navy and the Royal Australian Navy.

HMS <i>J2</i> J class submarine

HMS J2 was a J-class submarine operated by the Royal Navy and the Royal Australian Navy.

HMS J3 was a J-class submarine operated by the Royal Navy and the Royal Australian Navy.

HMS <i>J4</i> J class submarine

HMS J4 was a J-class submarine operated by the Royal Navy and the Royal Australian Navy.

HMS <i>J5</i> 1916 J class submarine

HMS J5 was a First World War J class submarine operated by the Royal Navy and the Royal Australian Navy.

HMS <i>J7</i> Submarine of the Royal Navy

HMS J7 was a J-class submarine operated by the Royal Navy and the Royal Australian Navy.

<i>Oberon</i>-class submarine British-designed underwater naval vessel

The Oberon class was a ship class of 27 British-designed submarines operated by five nations. They were designed as a follow-on from the Porpoise class; physical dimensions were the same but stronger materials were used in hull construction and improved equipment was fitted.

HMAS <i>Vampire</i> (D11) 1959-1986 Daring-class destroyer of the Royal Australian Navy

HMAS Vampire was the third of three Australian-built Daring-class destroyers serving in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). One of the first all-welded ships built in Australia, she was constructed at Cockatoo Island Dockyard between 1952 and 1959, and was commissioned into the RAN a day after completion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Australian Navy Submarine Service</span> Submarine element of the Royal Australian Navy

The Royal Australian Navy Submarine Service is the submarine element of the Royal Australian Navy. The service currently forms the Navy's Submarine Force Element Group (FEG) and consists of six Collins class submarines.

HMAS <i>Otway</i> (S 59) 1968–1994 Oberon-class submarine of the Royal Australian Navy

HMAS Otway was an Oberon-class submarine of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). One of the first four Oberon-class boats ordered for the RAN, Otway was built in Scotland during the mid-1960s, and commissioned into naval service in 1968. The submarine was decommissioned in 1994. The submarine's upper casing, fin, and stern are preserved at Holbrook, New South Wales.

HMS <i>Otway</i> Submarine of the Royal Navy

HMS Otway was an Odin-class submarine of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) and Royal Navy (RN).

HMS <i>Oxley</i> Odin-class submarine of the Australian and British navies, in service from 1927 to 1931

HMS Oxley was an Odin-class submarine of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) then Royal Navy (RN). Very slightly off course, near Obrestad, on the south-western cape of Norway, she was hit by friendly fire seven days after the start of World War II costing 53 lives and leaving two survivors.

HMAS Platypus is a former Royal Australian Navy (RAN) submarine base, located at 118 High Street, North Sydney with moorings in Neutral Bay, a suburb of Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. It was located upon the site of the Royal Australian Navy Torpedo Maintenance Establishment (RANTME), it built on the site of the former North Sydney Gas Works that operated on the site from 1877 and resumed by the Commonwealth in 1942. The Fleet Intermediate Maintenance Activity (FIMA) Workshops building on the site was originally used for torpedo assembly and storage during World War 2. It was later modified for submarine maintenance and repair, with a steel tower added to the northern end of the building for testing, cleaning and maintenance of periscopes.

References

Books

Websites

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.