Commissioned on 27 July 1961 HMAS Yarra underwent significant configuration enhancements during its 24 years of distinguished service in the Royal Australian Navy. Its major refits involved the installation of ...
Naval Technology
Book Review: “Safe to Dive – Submarine Support in Sydney 1914 to 1999”
“Safe to Dive – Submarine Support in Sydney 1914 to 1999” by John Jeremy was published by The Naval Historical Society of Australia in 2023, under licence agreement with the ...
Letter: Ikara
I recently received the excellent work Ikara by Angus Britts which rightly and effectively highlights the development of the Ikara weapons system. The book also highlights the forerunner of Ikara, ...
Remediation of the Australian Landing Helicopter Dock (ALHD) Propulsion Problems
By Phil Baldwin, CEng CMarEng FIMarEST Background In November 2007 the Australian Department of Defence procured two ALHDs through BAE Systems Australia. The platform was based on the Navantia (Spain) ...
How did we get USN 16-inch gun projectiles to Australia?
By Geoff Davidson In 1994 I was posted for three years to Washington DC as the RAN representative to provide weapon and ship follow-on support for the FFG ships HMA ...
Occasional Paper 127: Commitment, Persistence and Science; Behind the Search for HMAS Sydney II
By Commodore Bob Trotter OAM RAN & FIEAust (Retd)© Bob Trotter is an engineer and submarine specialist. He retired from the RAN in 1998 and after a period with ...
Occasional Paper 126: A New Crane for Sydney’s Skyline
By John Jeremy Cranes are a regular feature of Sydney’s skyline, particularly the many construction cranes which, at a glance, reveal the state of the construction industry in Australia’s largest ...
A Mortar Mystery
In November 2020 the Naval Historical Society was approached by colleagues from across the Tasman for help in finding a Mortar Mark 10 which was required for their museum. During ...
The Emden Guns
By Wes Olson When the small German cruiser SMS Emden was destroyed by HMAS Sydney at the Cocos-Keeling Islands on 9 November 1914 the British Admiralty was presented with a unique opportunity ...
Occasional Paper 38: RAN Returns to the Unit System of Machinery Layout
After World War 2 the Daring Class destroyer was designed taking into account the lessons learnt for the ships damaged during the war. Many destroyers had been rendered unpowered because ...
Royal Navy Colours of World War Two – Standard Camouflage Colours
Author James Duff Introduction In the final months of and in the years after World War Two, many resources, documents and records relating to Royal Navy camouflage were purposely destroyed. ...
Royal Navy Colours of World War Two – The Patterns 507, G10 and G45
Collaborative works by: Michael Brown, Sean Carroll, James Duff, Lindsay Johnson Introduction In the final months of and in the years after World War Two, many resources, ...
The World’s Fastest Ship
The RAN’s experience with catamaran hulls has been limited and has produced mixed results. The first experiment with catamaran hulled fibreglass minehunters, built by Carrington’s at Newcastle between 1986 and ...
Occasional Paper 2: Operation Damask – HMA Ships Brisbane and Sydney
November 2016 The following story was contributed by Hugh Hyland. Hugh worked for the variously named Defence departments for over 50 years until retiring in December 2015. He held numerous ...
Book Review: A Century of Carrier Aviation
A Century of Carrier Aviation: The Evolution of Ships and Shipborne Aircraft. By David Hobbs. Seaforth Publishing (2009). ISBN 978-1-84832-019-2. Reviewed by Commodore (P) John Da Costa RAN (Rtd) This large ...
Book Review: The Collins Class Submarine Story
Book Review: Fairey Gannet in Service with the RAN Fleet Air Arm
Book Review: The Plimsoll Sensation
The Plimsoll Sensation: The Great Campaign to Save Lives at Sea. By Nicolette Jones. Published by Abacus Books 2007. ISBN 978-0-349-11720-1. Reviewed by Sandy Saunders This book chronicles, in great ...
Book Review: Compass
Compass by Alan Gurney W.W. Norton & Company, New York, 2005. rrp A$30.00 Reviewed by Tony Howland In the year 1552, one John Hamilton wrote ‘a skipper can not guide ...
Book Review: Nelson to Vanguard
Title: Nelson to Vanguard, Warship Design and Development 1923-1945 Author: D.K. Brown Publisher: Chatham Publishing Nelson to Vanguard, Warship Design and Development 1923-1945 is the final volume in a three ...
Book Review: Nothing to do with me, I’m Radar!
Title: Nothing to do with me, I’m Radar! Author: P.R.H. (Lofty) Watson Publisher: Self-published On the inside cover, this book describes itself as “a segment of Royal Australian Navy history, covering ...
Book Review: Bombers and Battleships
Book Review: Contact!
Title: “CONTACT! HMAS RUSHCUTTER and Australia’s Submarine Hunters 1939 -1946.” The disproportionate contribution of Australia to Allied victory in World War II, bearing in mind her limited resources, is common knowledge. ...
Book Review: Seagulls, Cruisers, and Catapults
By Ray Jones, 134 pages, Illustrated, Pelorus Publications, Tasmania – 1989 This fascinating book is not only a history of the amphibian aircraft used by the Royal Australian Navy but a ...
Book Review: The Naval Steam Reciprocating Engine
Title: The Naval Steam Reciprocating Engine Author: Norman Rivett Published by: Naval Historical Society of Australia Card No. ISBN 09587 456 0 9 The Naval Historical Society of Australia is to ...