On This Day

1976-1999 > Post Vietnam

October 23, 1985

A gas leak from a sullage tank in HMAS STALWART, (escort maintenance ship), caused the death of three sailors. Another fifty of the ship’s crew were affected by the gas, and required medical the treatment.

October 18, 1985

HMAS ASSAIL, the last of the RAN’s Attack class patrol boats still in commission, was transferred to the Indonesian Navy as a gift.

October 13, 1985

The guided missile destroyer HMAS PERTH, (CAPT G. Sloper, RAN), rescued the crew of the Singaporean ship HOE LIEN, in mountainous seas off Newcastle, NSW. PERTH took the ship in tow and proceeded towards Sydney. The tow was passed to the tug WONGA the next morning, however HOE LIEN later sunk 30 miles north of Sydney.

October 11, 1985

HMAS CURLEW, (mine hunter), and RAN Clearance Divers recovered the bodies from the Pel-Air freighter aircraft which had crashed into Botany Bay, Sydney.

October 9, 1985

Service in HMA Ships SYDNEY, JEPARIT, and BOONAROO, (troop supply ships), was accepted as ‘war service’ in the Vietnam War, under the terms of the Repatriation Act.

September 28, 1985

The RAN, Port Authorities, and shipping lines, participated in Operation Bell Buoy, a world-wide exercise to standardise procedures in the naval control of commercial shipping in states of emergency.

September 23, 1985

HMAS Balikpapan was temporarily decommissioned and placed in a state of reserve at Cairns. She remained in reserve until mid-1989, when it was decided that she would be reactivated as a training vessel for the Darwin Port Division of the RAN Reserve.

September 19, 1985

The strength of the RAN’s heavy landing ship squadron was cut by half when HMA Ships TARAKAN, WEWAK, and BALIKPAPAN, were decommissioned

September 18, 1985

A naval court martial convened at HMAS PENGUIN, Sydney, found the Commanding Officer of HMAS WOLLONGONG, (patrol boat), guilty of negligence in grounding his ship off Gabo Island on 31 May, 1985.

September 6, 1985

The first official rum issue made in a ship of the RAN in 30 years, was made to the crew of HMAS HOBART, (guided missile destroyer), at Victoria, British Columbia. HOBART was representing Australia at the 75th Anniversary of the Royal Canadian Navy

September 2, 1985

A RAN Sea King helicopter, piloted by LCDR T. King, USN, rescued the crew of the yacht VOSS in heavy seas off Newcastle NSW

August 16, 1985

HMAS Wewak decommissioned at HMAS Moreton, and the following day departed for Cairns for refit and operational lay-up.

August 1, 1985

CAPT F. N. Cook, DSC, RAN, died in Sydney. He distinguished himself in operations in Occupied France in WWII.

July 16, 1985

HMAS BENDIGO, became the first patrol boat to circumnavigate Australia.

June 30, 1985

The uniformed strength of the RAN was 15,536 officers and ratings.

June 13, 1985

HMAS MELBOURNE, (aircraft carrier), reached China under tow. The Chinese Navy telexed the following message: ‘Pls B advised that HMAS MELBOURNE arrived at Port Huangpu intact n safely afloat, proud n majestic. She has bn innocent, never once bowed to the natural or human force, in spite of the heavy storm n the talked abt jinx.’

June 7, 1985

Naval Forces (Women’s Services) Regulations repealed (the term WRAN was retained for administrative purposes). The Sex Discrimination Act 1984 had made separate women’s branches for the Australian Defence Force unsustainable. WRANS and RANNS staff were integrated into the RAN.

May 31, 1985

The Fremantle class patrol boat HMAS WOLLONGONG, (LCDR I. Gulliver, RAN), was extensively damaged when she ran aground at Gabo Island during a storm. LCDR Gulliver was court-martialled, and found guilty of negligence in grounding his ship. WOLLONGONG was later repaired and rejoined the fleet in late 1986.

May 3, 1985

RADM I. W. Knox was appointed Flag Officer Commanding Her Majesty’s Australian Fleet.

April 30, 1985

CDRE John Matthews, RAN, (Retired), was appointed as the Administrator for Norfolk Island.

The ex aircraft carrier, HMAS MELBOURNE, was towed in to Moreton Bay, QLD, when heavy winds and strong seas threatened to break her tow. The ship was bound for China to be broken up.

April 27, 1985

The former aircraft carrier HMAS MELBOURNE, departed Sydney under tow by the Chinese tug DE PING. She was bound for Canton, (Guangzhou), to be broken up. Despite inclement weather, hundreds of former crew members lined the foreshore to see her leave Sydney Harbour for the last time.

April 24, 1985

A civilian workman was killed onboard the ex-HMAS MELBOURNE, (aircraft carrier), berthed at Garden Island Dockyard, SYDNEY. He fell from the flight deck into the hangar when the aircraft hoist was lowered. He was part of a team preparing MELBOURNE for towing to China for breaking up.

April 23, 1985

The prestigious Royal Geographic Society of Australia’s J. P. Thompson Foundation Gold Medal, was awarded to the survey vessel, HMAS FLINDERS, (LCDR G. J. Bond, RAN), for the survey of, and production of, a new chart for a recently discovery passage through the Great Barrier Reef near Mackay. This passage was named Hydrographers Passage.

April 21, 1985

VADM M. W. Hudson, AC, was appointed Chief of Naval Staff. On his last day of service in 1991, he was promoted to the rank of Admiral.

April 19, 1985

HMAS BETANO was the first landing craft heavy, (LCH), in the RAN, to be assigned to survey duties. Over the next eight years other LCH’s were used as interim survey vessels until the new survey motor launches were commissioned in the early 1990’s. Once this occurred, the LCH’s returned to their amphibious role.