Royal Australian Navy minesweeping after World War II

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Royal Australian Navy minesweeping after World War II
HMAS Warrnambool sinking 1947.jpg
HMAS Warrnambool sinking after striking a mine on 13 September 1947
Location
Waters off Australia, New Guinea and the Solomon Islands
ObjectiveMinesweeping around Australia and New Guinea
DateDecember 1945 – August 1948
Executed by Royal Australian Navy
Outcome1,816 mines cleared
CasualtiesFour killed, 25 wounded

Following World War II the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) was required to clear naval mines from the waters around Australia and New Guinea. Minesweeping in these areas began in December 1945 and was completed in August 1948. One ship, the Bathurst class corvette HMAS Warrnambool, was sunk during these operations.

Contents

History

During World War II both the Allies and Japanese laid mines in Australian and New Guinean waters. The RAN's minelayer, HMAS Bungaree, laid almost 10,000 mines in Australian waters alone, and further mines were laid around Australian ports. [1] Following the war Australia was legally responsible for clearing mines from its territorial waters as part of an international minesweeping effort coordinated by the Mine Clearance Board in London. [2]

The RAN's 20th Minesweeping Flotilla was assigned the task of sweeping Australian waters for mines. The flotilla was based at Cairns, Queensland and was commanded from the sloop HMAS Swan. Clearance operations began in December 1945, and were generally conducted by Bathurst class corvettes. [2] Ships involved included HMAS Swan, Ararat, Cowra, Deloraine, Echuca, Katoomba, Lithgow, Mildura and Warrnambool as well as harbour defence motor launches 1323, 1328, 1329 and general purpose vessels 960 and 963. [3] Over 1,200 sailors were involved in the operation. [2]

Minesweeping was arduous and dangerous and the sailors involved were granted danger money of 6d per day. [4] On 13 September 1947 Warrnambool struck a mine off North Queensland which had been laid by Bungaree in November 1943 and sank shortly afterwards with four sailors killed and another 25 wounded. [2] [5] Warrnambool is the only RAN warship to have ever been sunk by a mine. [6]

The 20th Minesweeping Flotilla completed its task in August 1948. By this time 1,816 mines had been swept. [2] Eleven officers and sailors were recommended for honours and awards for their role in the operation, with all recommendations being fully endorsed by Vice Admiral John Collins, the First Naval Member, Australian Commonwealth Naval Board. Some of the awards were delayed and others never granted, however, due to disagreements between the RAN and the Government over whether post-war minesweeping constituted 'operational' service. [7]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Straczek, J.H. "RAN in the Second World War". Royal Australian Navy. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Fogarty (1998), p. 123
  3. ↑ Fogarty (1998), pp. 123–124
  4. ↑ Fogarty (1998), p. 124
  5. ↑ "HMAS Warrnambool (I)". Royal Australian Navy. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  6. ↑ Cooper (2006), p. 157
  7. ↑ Fogarty (1998), pp. 124–125

Related Research Articles

HMAS <i>Ararat</i> (K34) Bathurst-class corvette

HMAS Ararat (K34/M34), named for the city of Ararat, Victoria, was one of 60 Bathurst-class corvettes constructed during World War II, and one of 36 initially manned and commissioned solely by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

HMAS <i>Burnie</i>

HMAS Burnie (J198/B238/A112), named for the port city of Burnie, Tasmania, was one of 60 Bathurst-class corvettes constructed during World War II and one of 20 built for the Admiralty but manned by personnel of and commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

HMAS <i>Cowra</i>

HMAS Cowra (J351/M351), named for the town of Cowra, New South Wales, was one of 60 Bathurst-class corvettes constructed during World War II, and one of 36 initially manned and commissioned solely by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

HMAS <i>Deloraine</i>

HMAS Deloraine (J232/M232), named for the town of Deloraine, Tasmania, was one of 60 Bathurst-class corvettes constructed during World War II, and one of 36 initially manned and commissioned solely by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). In January 1942 she evaded an attack by the Japanese submarine I-124 north-west of Darwin and was jointly credited with the submarine's sinking after inflicting the initial damage. She was present at the bombing of Darwin and survived unscathed.

HMAS <i>Echuca</i>

HMAS Echuca (J252/M252), named for the town of Echuca, Victoria, was one of 60 Bathurst-class corvettes constructed during World War II, and one of 36 initially manned and commissioned by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

HMAS <i>Goulburn</i>

HMAS Goulburn (J167/B243/A117), named for the city of Goulburn, New South Wales, was one of 60 Bathurst-class corvettes constructed during World War II, and one of 20 ordered by the British Admiralty but subsequently manned and commissioned solely by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

HMAS <i>Kalgoorlie</i>

HMAS Kalgoorlie (J192/B245/A119), named for the city of Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, was one of 60 Bathurst-class corvettes constructed during World War II and one of 20 built for the Admiralty but manned by personnel of and commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

<i>Bathurst</i>-class corvette

The Bathurst-class corvettes were a class of general purpose vessels designed and built in Australia during World War II. Originally classified as minesweepers, but widely referred to as corvettes, the Bathurst-class vessels fulfilled a broad anti-submarine, anti-mine, and convoy escort role.

HMAS <i>Katoomba</i>

HMAS Katoomba (J204/M204), named after the tourist resort of Katoomba, New South Wales, was one of 60 Bathurst-class corvettes constructed during World War II, and one of 36 initially manned and commissioned solely by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

HMAS <i>Lithgow</i> (J206)

HMAS Lithgow (J206/M206), named for the city of Lithgow, New South Wales, Australia was one of 60 Bathurst-class corvettes constructed during World War II, and one of 36 initially manned and commissioned solely by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

HMAS <i>Mildura</i>

HMAS Mildura (J207/M207), named for the city of Mildura, Victoria, was one of 60 Bathurst-class corvettes constructed during World War II, and one of 36 initially manned and commissioned by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). The ship was laid down by Morts Dock & Engineering Co in 1940 and commissioned into the RAN in 1941.

HMAS <i>Stawell</i>

HMAS Stawell (J348/M348) was a Bathurst-class corvette named for the town of Stawell, Victoria. Sixty Bathurst-class corvettes were constructed during World War II, and Stawell was one of 36 initially manned and commissioned solely by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

HMAS <i>Bendigo</i> (J187)

The first HMAS Bendigo (J187/B237/A111) was a Bathurst-class minesweeper, a group commonly known as corvettes and including escort and patrol duties along with minesweeping.

HMAS <i>Bathurst</i> (J158)

HMAS Bathurst (J158), named for the city of Bathurst, New South Wales, was the lead ship of 60 Bathurst-class corvettes constructed during World War II and one of 20 built for the Admiralty but manned by personnel of and commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). Constructed during 1940, the ship spent most of her early career operating with the British Eastern Fleet in the Indian Ocean. She returned to Australian waters in late 1944, then was deployed to New Guinea in 1945, but saw little action. Bathurst was paid off in 1946, and sold to a Sydney scrap merchant in 1948.

HMAS <i>Ballarat</i> (J184)

HMAS Ballarat (J184), named for the city of Ballarat, Victoria, was one of 60 Bathurst-class corvettes constructed during World War II and one of 20 built for the Admiralty but manned by personnel of and commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

HMAS <i>Warrnambool</i> (J202)

HMAS Warrnambool (J202), named for the city of Warrnambool, Victoria was one of 60 Bathurst-class corvettes constructed during World War II, and one of 36 initially manned and commissioned solely by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). Warrnambool sank after she hit a mine in the Great Barrier Reef on 13 September 1947. She was one of only four Bathurst class corvettes lost while in Australian service, and the only one lost after World War II.

HMAS <i>Bungaree</i>

HMAS Bungaree was an auxiliary minelayer of Royal Australian Navy (RAN), serving during World War II. The ship was built as a cargo vessel for the Adelaide Steamship Company by Caledon Shipbuilding & Engineering Company at Dundee, and launched in 1937. The ship operated in Australian waters and was requisitioned by the RAN in October 1940. Decommissioned on 7 August 1946 and returned to her owners on 5 November 1947, she was sold in 1957 and renamed Dampier. She was then sold in 1960 and renamed Eastern Mariner and while operating in South Vietnamese waters she struck a mine on the Saigon River and was sunk on 26 May 1966. She was salvaged by a Japanese company and subsequently scrapped in 1968.

HMAS <i>Fremantle</i> (J246)

HMAS Fremantle (J246/M246), named for the port city of Fremantle, Western Australia, was one of 60 Bathurst-class corvettes constructed during World War II, and one of 36 initially manned and commissioned solely by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

HMAS <i>Gawler</i> (J188)

HMAS Gawler (J188/B241/A115), named for the town of Gawler, South Australia, was one of 60 Bathurst-class corvettes constructed during World War II and one of 20 built for the Admiralty but manned by personnel of and commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). The ship was laid down by Broken Hill Pty Co Ltd in early 1941, launched later that year, and commissioned in 1942.

HMAS <i>Geraldton</i> (J178)

HMAS Geraldton (J178/B242/A116), named for the city of Geraldton, Western Australia, was one of 60 Bathurst-class corvettes constructed during World War II and one of 20 built for the Admiralty but manned by personnel of and commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

References

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