HMAS Arrow (P 88)

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Hmas-attack.jpg
HMAS Arrow beached in Francis Bay in early 1975
History
Naval Ensign of Australia.svgAustralia
BuilderWalkers Limited
Launched17 February 1968
Commissioned3 July 1968
Motto"Straight as an Arrow"
FateDestroyed by Cyclone Tracy on 25 December 1974
Badge HMAS arrow crest.png
General characteristics
Class and type Attack-class patrol boat
Displacement
  • 100 tons standard
  • 146 tons full load
Length107.6 ft (32.8 m) length overall
Beam20 ft (6.1 m)
Draught
  • 6.4 ft (2.0 m) at standard load
  • 7.3 ft (2.2 m) at full load
Propulsion
  • 2 × 16-cylinder Paxman YJCM diesel engines
  • 3,460 shp (2,580 kW)
  • 2 shafts
Speed24 knots (44 km/h; 28 mph)
Range1,200 nmi (2,200 km; 1,400 mi) at 13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph)
Complement3 officers, 16 sailors
Armament

HMAS Arrow (P 88) was an Attack-class patrol boat of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

Contents

Design and construction

The Attack class was ordered in 1964 to operate in Australian waters as patrol boats (based on lessons learned through using the Ton-class minesweepers on patrols of Borneo during the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation), and to replace a variety of old patrol, search-and-rescue, and general-purpose craft. [1] Initially, nine were ordered for the RAN, with another five for Papua New Guinea's Australian-run coastal security force, although another six ships were ordered to bring the class to twenty vessels. [1] The patrol boats had a displacement of 100 tons at standard load and 146 tons at full load, were 107.6 feet (32.8 m) in length overall, had a beam of 20 feet (6.1 m), and draughts of 6.4 feet (2.0 m) at standard load, and 7.3 feet (2.2 m) at full load. [1] [2] Propulsion machinery consisted of two 16-cylinder Paxman YJCM diesel engines, which supplied 3,460 shaft horsepower (2,580 kW) to the two propellers. [1] [2] The vessels could achieve a top speed of 24 knots (44 km/h; 28 mph), and had a range of 1,200 nautical miles (2,200 km; 1,400 mi) at 13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph). [1] [2] The ship's company consisted of three officers and sixteen sailors. [2] The main armament was a bow-mounted Bofors 40 mm gun, supplemented by two .50-calibre M2 Browning machine guns and various small arms. [1] [2] The ships were designed with as many commercial components as possible: the Attacks were to operate in remote regions of Australia and New Guinea, and a town's hardware store would be more accessible than home base in a mechanical emergency. [3]

Arrow was built by Walkers Limited at Maryborough, Queensland, [4] launched on 17 February 1968,[ citation needed ] and commissioned on 3 July 1968. [4]

Operational history

Arrow was transferred to the Melbourne Division of the Royal Australian Navy Reserve in mid-1968, then was returned to active service in the early 1970s.[ citation needed ]

Fate

During Cyclone Tracy on 25 December 1974, Arrow was driven ashore and sank at Stokes Hill Wharf in Darwin with the loss of two sailors: Petty Officer Leslie Catton and Able Seaman Ian Rennie. [4] [5] [6]

Memorial

On 24 April 2019, a memorial, to HMAS Arrow and the sailors that lost their lives, was unveiled at the Royal Flying Doctor Service and The Bombing of Darwin Tourist Facility at Stokes Hill Wharf by two surviving crew members and family of the two sailors that died.[ citation needed ]

See also

Citations

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Gillett, Australian and New Zealand Ships since 1946, p. 86
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Blackman (ed.), Jane's Fighting Ships, 1968–69, p. 18
  3. ↑ The patrol boat, Australian National Maritime Museum
  4. 1 2 3 Gillett, Australian and New Zealand Ships since 1946, p. 87
  5. ↑ "Defence:Commemoration Services". Parliament of Australia Hansard. 10 February 2005. Retrieved 18 July 2011.
  6. ↑ "OCCASIONAL PAPER 51" (PDF).

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References

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