On This Day

On This Day - 17 January

1901

Sir John Forrest was appointed Defence Minister, and CAPT R. Muirhead Collins, (former RN officer), became Secretary of Defence in the Commonwealth administration.

1940

HMAS Westralia commissioned after conversion to Armed Merchant Cruiser.

1942

HMAS ECHUCA was launched at Williamstown Naval Dockyard, VIC. The lugger, HMAS ST. FRANCIS, (LEUT (Brother) Andrew Smith, RANVR), sighted a Japanese submarine on the surface off Melville Island. In 1914 the ST. FRANCIS, a 15 metre mission lugger was blown 400 miles out into the Indian Ocean on her maiden voyage and was found by HMAS SYDNEY. HMS QUEENBOROUGH later HMAS QUEENBOROUGH, was launched at Swan and Hunter's Yard, England. CAPT J. A. Collins, CB, was appointed Commodore Commanding China Force.

1943

Japanese submarine I-21 sank the merchant ship KALINGO, 110 miles east of Sydney.

1944

The River class frigate, HMAS BARCOO, was commissioned at Sydney.

1945

A fire broke out at No. 8 Berth, North Wharf, (Port of Fremantle), and engulfed the merchant ship MV PANAMANIAN, which was alongside loading flour. The fire took seven days to be totally extinguished. The submarine tender HMS MAIDSTONE also caught fire, and had to be moved by tugs to prevent the fire spreading to other ships. The fires were fought by RAN, RN, USN and civilian personnel. The fire in MAIDSTONE was quickly brought under control, but the PANAMANIAN became a total loss. Only one life was lost in the fire, that of AB Kenneth Shooter, a RNZN sailor serving in HMS RULER, who fell down a hatch onboard PANAMANIAN while fighting the fire on 23 January.

1946

HMAS Cairns was transferred to the Royal Netherlands Navy at Brisbane and was renamed Ambon. She was transferred to the Indonesian Navy on 6 April 1950 and renamed Banteng

1952

In the period 17.to 25 January, HMAS SYDNEY, (aircraft carrier), flew 293 sorties against Communist targets in North Korea.

1956

HMS NAPIER, (destroyer), formerly HMAS NAPIER, was paid off for disposal.

1971

HMAS PERTH, (guided missile destroyer), fired on Viet Cong ambush sites at An Xuyen, Vietnam, inflicting casualties.

1985

Divers from Clearance Diving Team 1 raised a Japanese aerial bomb from the seabed under Darwin's new Fort Hill Road.

1991

During Operation DESERT STORM HMA Ships Sydney and Brisbane formed part of the air defence screen around Battle Force Zulu, in the Arabian Gulf, which included up to three USN aircraft carriers.