On This Day

1976-1999 > Post Vietnam

July 27, 1984

HMAS BUCCANEER, (Attack class patrol boat), was paid off at Sydney.

July 23, 1984

RAN Clearance Divers completed a survey of islands between Townsville and Bowen, QLD, to establish the concentration of reef-destroying Crown of Thorns starfish on the Great Barrier Reef. A previous survey was undertaken in 1973, and the 1984 survey showed numbers greatly reduced.

July 21, 1984

The FFG-7, (Adelaide), class guided missile frigate HMAS DARWIN, (CMDR R. Bayley, RAN,), was commissioned at Seattle, USA. DARWIN was laid down in Todd Shipyard, Seattle, USA, and launched on 26 March 1982. Mrs Johnston, (Wife of the Administrator of the Northern Territory), performed the launching ceremony.

July 16, 1984

RADM Nigel Berlyn was the last naval commander of Garden Island, Sydney.

July 8, 1984

The personnel strength of the RAN was 16,696 officers and ratings.

July 5, 1984

HMAS COOK, (survey ship), located the wreck of the Japanese submarine I-24, some 37 miles off Darwin. I-24 was the first Japanese vessel sunk by the RAN. She was sunk by HMA Ships DELORAINE, KATOOMBA, and LITHGOW, (corvettes), on 20 January, 1942.

June 30, 1984

724 Squadron decommissioned at NAS Nowra

June 28, 1984

The remaining ten serviceable Skyhawk fighter-bombers of the RAN Fleet Air Arm, were sold to New Zealand for $50.5 million.

June 27, 1984

A former crewman of HMAS MELBOURNE, (aircraft carrier), staged a hunger strike at Sydney in protest against the sale of his old ship to Korea.

June 21, 1984

HMAS BUCCANEER, (patrol boat), intercepted and turned back the 20,000 ton Argentinian container ship CALETA LEONES, which was attempting to escape Sydney Harbour without paying outstanding harbour dues and repair bills.

June 20, 1984

Training ship HMAS JERVIS BAY, (CMDR J. Scott, RAN), rescued five survivors from the sinking yacht SHALOM, in heavy seas off Port Macquarie, NSW.

June 16, 1984

The former HMAS MELBOURNE was sold to a Korean consortium for $1.7 million. It was later resold before delivery to Chinese interests.

June 15, 1984

HMAS Barbette decommissioned streaming a 38.5 metre long decommissioning pennant. She was then transferred to the Indonesian Navy on 22 February 1985 and renamed KRI Siada.

June 8, 1984

The last of the RAN’s new AS 350B Squirrel helicopters was delivered to 723 Squadron at NAS, Nowra. The first of the helicopters was accepted into service in March of that year

June 4, 1984

HMAS IBIS, (Ton class minesweeper), was decommissioned at Sydney.

June 2, 1984

The Fremantle class patrol boat HMAS GEELONG, was commissioned.

June 1, 1984

A flight of Grumman Tracker aircraft flew over the decommissioned HMAS MELBOURNE, (aircraft carrier), to mark the end of fixed wing aircraft in the RAN’s Fleet Air Arm.

May 28, 1984

The landing craft heavy HMAS BALIKPAPAN, (LEUT W. Richards, RAN), set out on the longest voyage ever undertaken by a vessel of her class. She departed Brisbane on a 5400 nautical mile journey to Malaysia, carrying RAAF equipment, vehicles, and personnel.

May 27, 1984

The RAN was rated as the sixth most powerful navy in the Pacific, behind the USSR, USA, India, Taiwan and South Korea.

May 21, 1984

The first Ecureuil UH-1B (Squirrel), helicopter, joined the RAN’s HC 723 Squadron at HMAS ALBATROSS, Nowra, NSW.

May 18, 1984

The RAN established the world’s first seabed mine de-magnetising range, at Shark Point, Sydney. Ships passing over the range are automatically de-magnetised.

May 14, 1984

The first of six Aerospatiale AS350BA Squirrels Helicopters arrived at HMAS Albatross for naval service. The Squirrels were initially acquired to provide an interim embarked capability for the RAN’s Adelaide Class guided missile frigates until the introduction of the Sikorsky S-70B-2 Seahawks

May 4, 1984

HMAS IBIS, (minesweeper), was paid off at Sydney for disposal after 22 years service in the RAN.

April 14, 1984

HMAS GEELONG, (patrol boat), and the second ship of the name to serve in the RAN, was launched at Cairns, QLD.

March 23, 1984

HMAS CESSNOCK, (patrol boat), rushed emergency medical aid and food supplies to cyclone devastated Borrodoola in Western Australia.