Armidale class patrol boat - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Armidale class is a class of patrol boat

Patrol boat

A patrol boat is a relatively small naval vessel generally designed for coastal defense duties.There have been many designs for patrol boats. They may be operated by a nation's navy, coast guard, or police force, and may be intended for marine and/or estuarine or river environments...

s built for the Royal Australian Navy

Royal Australian Navy

The Royal Australian Navy is the naval branch of the Australian Defence Force. Following the Federation of Australia in 1901, the ships and resources of the separate colonial navies were integrated into a national force: the Commonwealth Naval Forces...

(RAN). Planning for a class of twelve vessels to replace the fifteen Fremantle class patrol boats

Fremantle class patrol boat

The Fremantle-class patrol boats were coastal patrol vessels operated by the Royal Australian Navy from 1979 to 2007. Designed by British shipbuilder Brooke Marine and constructed in Australia by North Queensland Engineers and Agents, the Fremantle class were larger, more powerful, and more...

began in 1993 as a joint project with the Royal Malaysian Navy

Royal Malaysian Navy

The Royal Malaysian Navy is the naval arm of Malaysian Armed Forces. All commissioned ships of the RMN have the prefix KD , which means Royal Ship.-Straits Settlement Naval Volunteer Reserve:...

, but was cancelled when Malaysia pulled out of the process. The project was reopened in 1999 under the designation SEA 1444, with the RAN as the sole participant. Of the seven proposals tendered

Request for tender

A request for tender, commonly abbreviated to RFT, is a formal, structured invitation to suppliers for the supply of products or services. In the public sector, such a process may be required and determined in detail by law to ensure that such competition for the use of public money is open, fair...

, the Austal Ships/Defence Maritime Services

Defence Maritime Services

DMS Maritime, formerly Defence Maritime Services, is an Australian company providing port services to the Australian Defence Force and Australian Customs Service National Marine Unit. DMS was founded in 1997 and currently operates 8 ocean going vessels and over 100 harbour craft and has around 350...

proposal based on an enlarged was selected. The first vessel, , commissioned into the RAN in June 2005. Two more patrol boats were ordered in 2005, bringing the class to fourteen.

The Armidales are longer and heavier than their Fremantle class predecessors, with improved seakeeping

Seakeeping

Seakeeping ability is a measure of how well-suited a watercraft is to conditions when underway. A ship or boat which has good seakeeping ability is said to be very seaworthy and is able to operate effectively even in high sea states....

ability and increased range, allowing them to reach Australia's offshore territories

States and territories of Australia

The Commonwealth of Australia is a union of six states and various territories. The Australian mainland is made up of five states and three territories, with the sixth state of Tasmania being made up of islands. In addition there are six island territories, known as external territories, and a...

. The ships are multi-crewed, with three ship's companies available for every two vessels; this allows the patrol boats to spend more time at sea without cutting into sailors rest or training time. However, during their early service life, there were problems with the fuel systems across the class, and a 20-bunk auxiliary accommodation compartment has been banned from use after toxic fumes were found in the compartment on at least two occasions.

All fourteen vessels were constructed by Austal Ships at Henderson, Western Australia

Henderson, Western Australia

Henderson is a suburb of Perth, Western Australia, located within the City of Cockburn.-History:The suburb of Henderson comprises land resumed by the Commonwealth Government in 1915 for defence purposes. A large naval base was planned by Admiral Sir Reginald Henderson, and the was area sometimes...

, with the last entering service in February 2008. The Armidale class ships are operated by the Australian Patrol Boat Group

Australian Patrol Boat Group

The Australian Patrol Boat Group is a Force Element Group of the Royal Australian Navy. The group's mission is to provide patrol boat capability for the protection of Australia's national interests....

, and based in Cairns and Darwin. They are primarily tasked with border protection, fisheries patrols, and the interception of unauthorised arrival

Unauthorised arrival

An unauthorised arrival is a person who has arrived in a country when they are not a citizen of that country and does not have a valid visa or does not satisfy other required conditions for entry to that country....

s by sea, although two vessels are permanently assigned to protecting the oil and gas production facilities of the North West Shelf Venture

North West Shelf Venture

The North West Shelf Venture, situated in the north-west of Western Australia, is Australia's largest resource development project. It involves the extraction of petroleum at offshore production platforms, onshore processing and export of liquefied natural gas, and production of natural gas for...

. A fictional Armidale class boat, HMAS Hammersley, appears in the Australian military drama series Sea Patrol

Sea Patrol

Sea Patrol may refer to:*Sea Patrol, an Australian television series from 2007-2011**Sea Patrol **Sea Patrol , known as Sea Patrol II: The Coup**Sea Patrol , known as Sea Patrol: Red Gold...

from the second season onwards.

Development and tendering

Planning for the Armidale class began in 1993, as a plan to replace the Fremantle class

Fremantle class patrol boat

, which was due for retirement in 1998. This evolved into a joint program with Malaysia to construct an offshore patrol craft. When Malaysia pulled out, the plan was scrapped, and the Fremantles underwent a life-extending refit. The cost of maintaining the aging vessels prompted the Department of Defence

Department of Defence (Australia)

The Australian Department of Defence is a Federal Government Department. It forms part of the Australian Defence Organisation along with the Australian Defence Force . The Defence mission is to defend Australia and its national interests...

to create the Replacement Patrol Boat program, which received the procurement project designation SEA 1444.

SEA 1444 marked several departures from the Department's standard acquisition requirements. Instead of specifying a number of vessels, the coverage of 3,000 ship-days per year (with 1,800 to be spent on border protection operations, and a surge capability of 3,600 days) was given, with the producer to determine how many ships were needed to meet this. The ships had to meet specific performance parameters, such as the ability to conduct boarding operations in conditions up to Sea State

Sea state

In oceanography, a sea state is the general condition of the free surface on a large body of water—with respect to wind waves and swell—at a certain location and moment. A sea state is characterized by statistics, including the wave height, period, and power spectrum. The sea state varies with...

4, and to maintain surveillance capability up to Sea State 5. The producer was also required in the contract to provide support and maintenance for the ships, for fifteen years after construction completed.

Nine companies expressed interest in the project; of these, seven had the required capability to build the ships. These seven were narrowed down to three based on each tender's merit, competitiveness with the other tenders, and successful meeting of Australian industry involvement targets for both construction and long-term support. Austal Ships and Defence Maritime Services

Defence Maritime Services

(DMS) partnered to offer twelve ships based on an expanded version of the latter's Bay class patrol boat

Bay class patrol boat

The Bay class is a class of eight patrol boats, built by Austal Ships and used by the Customs Marine Unit of the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service. They entered service during the late 1990s and early 2000s, and are primarily used on border protection duties.The class was due to be...

, in use with the Australian Customs Service

Australian Customs Service

The Australian Customs and Border Protection Service is the Australian Federal Government agency responsible for managing the security and integrity of the Australian border, facilitating the movement of legitimate international travellers and goods, and collecting border-related duties and...

. The companies submitted two proposals for a 56 metres (183.7 ft) vessel, one with a steel hull, and one with an aluminium hull; the latter offering a 21% reduction in fuel consumption. Australian Defence Industries

Australian Defence Industries

Thales Australia is a primary defence contractor for the Australian Defence Force. Thales Australia is best known for its naval ship repair operations, and currently leases the Captain Cook graving dock at Garden Island Naval Base in Sydney, New South Wales and also leases and occupies many of the...

(ADI) tendered a design based on the Royal Danish Navy

Royal Danish Navy

The Royal Danish Navy is the sea-based branch of the Danish Defence force. The RDN is mainly responsible for maritime defence and maintaining the sovereignty of Danish, Greenlandic and Faroese territorial waters...

's Flyvefisken class

Flyvefisken class patrol vessel

The Flyvefisken class patrol vessels are warships of the Royal Danish Navy. The class is also known as the Standard Flex 300 or SF300 class.-Containerised weapon systems:...

patrol vessel. The vessel was to be built with a glass-reinforced plastic

Glass-reinforced plastic

Fiberglass , is a fiber reinforced polymer made of a plastic matrix reinforced by fine fibers of glass. It is also known as GFK ....

hull, similar to ADI's Huon class

Huon class minehunter

The Huon class Minehunter Coastal ships are a group of minehunters built for the Royal Australian Navy . Following problems with the Bay class minehunters, a request for tender was issued in 1993 for a class of six coastal minehunters under the project designation SEA 1555...

minehunters. The Tenix proposal was a variant of the 56 metres (183.7 ft) search and rescue vessel constructed for the Philippine Coast Guard

Philippine Coast Guard

The Philippine Coast Guard is a maritime law enforcement agency operating under the Department of Transportation and Communications of the Philippines....

. The tender was awarded to the Austal/DMS partnership in December 2003. The contract was valued at A$553 million, with each ship costing between A$

Australian dollar

The Australian dollar is the currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu...

24 million and A$28 million to construct.

During the 2004 federal election, the Coalition

Coalition (Australia)

The Coalition in Australian politics refers to a group of centre-right parties that has existed in the form of a coalition agreement since 1922...

promised to acquire two more patrol boats to provide a dedicated patrol force for the oil and gas producing facilities

North West Shelf Venture

located off the north-west coast of Australia. These were ordered in 2005.

Design and construction

All fourteen ships were constructed by Austal at their shipyard in Henderson, Western Australia

Henderson, Western Australia

. Lead ship was commissioned into the RAN in June 2005. Two other patrol boats were delivered to the RAN in 2005, six in 2006, and five in 2007, with the final ship in the class, , delivered in October 2007 and commissioned in February 2008. At one stage, six vessels were being constructed simultaneously.

Each patrol boat has a length of 56.8 metres (186.4 ft), a beam

Beam (nautical)

The beam of a ship is its width at the widest point. Generally speaking, the wider the beam of a ship , the more initial stability it has, at expense of reserve stability in the event of a capsize, where more energy is required to right the vessel from its inverted position...

of 9.5 metres (31.2 ft), a maximum draught of 2.25 metres (7.4 ft), and a displacement

Displacement (ship)

A ship's displacement is its weight at any given time, generally expressed in metric tons or long tons. The term is often used to mean the ship's weight when it is loaded to its maximum capacity. A number of synonymous terms exist for this maximum weight, such as loaded displacement, full load...

of 270 tons. The hull is of the semi-displacement vee type, and is fabricated from aluminum alloy. The ship is designed to a combination of Det Norske Veritas

Det Norske Veritas

Stiftelsen Det Norske Veritas is a classification society organized as a foundation, with the objective of "Safeguarding life, property, and the environment". The organization's history goes back to 1864, when the foundation was established in Norway to inspect and evaluate the technical condition...

standards for high-speed light craft and RAN requirements: a lot of effort went into avoiding attempts to overengineer the Armidales or turn them into 'miniature warships'.

The Armidales can travel at a maximum speed of 25 knots (13.6 m/s), and are driven by two propeller shafts, each connected to an MTU 16V M70 diesel. The ships have a range of 3000 nautical miles (5,556 km) at 12 knots (6.5 m/s), allowing them to patrol the waters around the distant territories of Australia

States and territories of Australia

, including the Cocos (Keeling) Islands

Cocos (Keeling) Islands

The Territory of the Cocos Islands, also called Cocos Islands and Keeling Islands, is a territory of Australia, located in the Indian Ocean, southwest of Christmas Island and approximately midway between Australia and Sri Lanka....

and Christmas Island

Christmas Island

The Territory of Christmas Island is a territory of Australia in the Indian Ocean. It is located northwest of the Western Australian city of Perth, south of the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, and ENE of the Cocos Islands....

. The Armidale class has demonstrated an improved seakeeping ability over the preceding Fremantle class: the Armidales are 15 metres (49.2 ft) longer, 85 tons heavier, and have hydraulic stabiliser fins and trim tabs incorporated into the design, allowing them to survive conditions up to Sea State

Sea state

9. The vessels are designed for standard patrols of 21 days, with a maximum endurance of 42 days.

Weapons and systems

The main armament of the Armidale class is a Rafael Typhoon stabilised 25 millimetre (0.984251968503937 in) gun mount

Typhoon Weapon System

The Typhoon is a type of remote weapon station manufactured by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems of Israel, and it shares similar design principles and common technologies with Samson Remote Controlled Weapon Station , a land-based system manufactured by the same developer...

fitted with an M242 Bushmaster

M242 Bushmaster

The M242 Bushmaster is a 25 mm chain-fed autocannon. It is used extensively by the US armed forces, as well as by NATO's and some other nations' forces in ground combat vehicles and watercraft...

cannon. This cannon has a rate of fire

Rate of fire

Rate of fire is the frequency at which a specific weapon can fire or launch its projectiles. It is usually measured in rounds per minute , or per second .-Overview:...

of 200 rounds per minute, and is controlled remotely from the bridge. Two 12.7 millimetre (0.5 in) machine guns are also carried.

Boarding operations are performed by two 7.2 metres (23.6 ft), waterjet propelled rigid-hulled inflatable boat

Rigid-hulled inflatable boat

A rigid-hulled inflatable boat, or rigid-inflatable boat is a light-weight but high-performance and high-capacity boat constructed with a solid, shaped hull and flexible tubes at the gunwale. The design is stable and seaworthy...

s (RHIB), which carry ten people (a fully equipped, eight-strong boarding party, and two boat crew). The RHIBs are larger and more powerful than the single RHIB aboard a Fremantle, are capable of operating independently of their mothership, and carry their own communications, navigation, and safety equipment. Each RHIB has a dedicated cradle and davit

Davit

A davit is a structure, usually made of steel, which is used to lower things over an edge of a long drop off such as lowering a maintenance trapeze down a building or launching a lifeboat over the side of a ship....

, the boats can be launched and recovered easily, and a centralised 'dressing room' incorporated into the ship's design has streamlined the deployment and return of personnel.

The patrol boats are fitted with S band

S band

The S band is defined by an IEEE standard for radio waves with frequencies that range from 2 to 4 GHz, crossing the conventional boundary between UHF and SHF at 3.0 GHz. It is part of the microwave band of the electromagnetic spectrum...

and X band

X band

The X band is a segment of the microwave radio region of the electromagnetic spectrum. In some cases, such as in communication engineering, the frequency range of X band is rather indefinitely set at approximately 7.0 to 11.2 gigahertz . In radar engineering, the frequency range is specified...

surface search radars, a Toplite electro-optical detection system, and a Warrlock direction finding system. A Prism III radar warning system was fitted to the last two boats during construction, and refitted to the rest.

Complement

Each patrol boat has a standard ship's company of 21 personnel, with a maximum of 29 (not including use of the austere compartment). Unlike the Fremantle class patrol boats, the Armidales do not have a permanently assigned ship's company. Instead, there are 21 crews established for the 14 Armidale class patrol boats, which are divided up into four divisions: Attack, Assail, Ardent, and Aware. The first three of the Divisions are assigned six crews for four ships, while Aware has three crews for two ships. The ships are continually manned, with two out of three crews actively deployed while the third undergoes leave or training, or prepares to transfer into a ship: a handover can be accomplished in less than six hours. The intention of multi-crewing is to allow the ships to spend more time at sea, without compromising sailors' rest time or training requirements.

Junior sailors are housed in four-berth cabins, as opposed to the central sixteen-berth mess deck

Mess

A mess is the place where military personnel socialise, eat, and live. In some societies this military usage has extended to other disciplined services eateries such as civilian fire fighting and police forces. The root of mess is the Old French mes, "portion of food" A mess (also called a...

of the Fremantles, while senior sailors and commissioned officers either have individual or share two-berth cabins. Personnel have access to e-mail and satellite television, and the galley is better equipped than that on a Fremantle class vessel and better suited to use in heavy seas. The comfort of personnel is also significantly improved over the Fremantles, with air conditioning throughout the entire ship (excluding engine and machinery compartments).

Introduction into service

The introduction of the class into service has not been without problems. Since June 2005, all active Armidales have undergone operating restrictions on two occasions, both due to water contamination of the main fuel systems. The first occurrence, in September 2006, led to the suspension of operations by the patrol boats for a month, and the engineering controls were redesigned. The problem occurred again in January 2007, and led to an 'operational pause' while Austal redesigned the fuel system, engineering procedures were altered, and fuel quality criteria were tightened. The five ships yet to be completed were fitted with the modified fuel system during construction, while the active ships were refitted over the course of 2007. As of December 2007, no further fuel problems have occurred.

A 20-berth auxiliary accommodation compartment was included in the design, for the transportation of soldiers, illegal fishermen, or unauthorised arrivals; in the latter two cases, the compartment could be secured from the outside. However, a malfunction in the sewerage treatment facilities aboard in August 2006 pumped hydrogen sulfide

Hydrogen sulfide

Hydrogen sulfide is the chemical compound with the formula . It is a colorless, very poisonous, flammable gas with the characteristic foul odor of expired eggs perceptible at concentrations as low as 0.00047 parts per million...

and carbon monoxide

Carbon monoxide

Carbon monoxide , also called carbonous oxide, is a colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas that is slightly lighter than air. It is highly toxic to humans and animals in higher quantities, although it is also produced in normal animal metabolism in low quantities, and is thought to have some normal...

into the compartment, non-fatally poisoning four sailors working inside. Use of the compartment as accommodation was banned across the class. In 2009, a sailor working in the compartment on a different vessel was also gassed with hydrogen sulfide, and carbon monoxide was regularly detected in the enclosed space.

Operations

The Armidale class ships are operated by the Australian Patrol Boat Group

Australian Patrol Boat Group

and are primarily tasked with border protection and fisheries patrols. As of 2009, up to seven Armidale class boats are assigned to patrols of Australian waters at any given time as part of Operation Resolute

Operation Resolute

Operation Resolute is the Australian Defence Force's contribution to patrolling Australia's Exclusive Economic Zone. Operation Resolute began on 17 July 2006 and consolidated a number of previous ADF operations, including Operation Relex....

, with an increase to nine of the fourteen vessels when required.

Ardent Division and four ships are based at HMAS Cairns

HMAS Cairns (naval base)

HMAS Cairns is a naval base of the Royal Australian Navy located in Cairns, Queensland. Although used regularly as a port-of-call since before World War II, a permanent RAN presence was not established until 1971, when a maintenance and support base for patrol boats was set up...

in Cairns, while the other three divisions and ten ships are located at HMAS Coonawarra

HMAS Coonawarra

HMAS Coonawarra is a Royal Australian Navy base located in the city of Darwin and is home to twelve fleet units of the Royal Australian Navy.-History:...

in Darwin. Up to two ships (typically HMA Ships and , plus Aware Division) can be forward-based at Dampier, Western Australia

Dampier, Western Australia

Dampier is a major industrial port in the north-west of Western Australia. The Dampier Port is part of the Dampier Archipelago. The port services petrochemical, salt, iron ore and natural gas export industries. Rio Tinto exports large volumes of iron ore through the port, and in September 2010...

, facilitating patrols of the oil and gas producing facilities located off the north-west coast of Australia.

Units

Ship	Commissioning date	Commissioning location
Attack Division (6 crews, based at HMAS Coonawarra HMAS Coonawarra HMAS Coonawarra is a Royal Australian Navy base located in the city of Darwin and is home to twelve fleet units of the Royal Australian Navy.-History:... , Darwin Darwin, Northern Territory Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 127,500, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities... )
	24 June 2005	Darwin, Northern Territory Darwin, Northern Territory Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 127,500, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities...
	10 February 2006	Darwin, Northern Territory
	10 February 2006	Darwin, Northern Territory
	15 July 2006	Albany, Western Australia Albany, Western Australia Albany is a port city in the Great Southern region of Western Australia, some 418 km SE of Perth, the state capital. As of 2009, Albany's population was estimated at 33,600, making it the 6th-largest city in the state....
Assail Division (6 crews, based at HMAS Coonawarra HMAS Coonawarra HMAS Coonawarra is a Royal Australian Navy base located in the city of Darwin and is home to twelve fleet units of the Royal Australian Navy.-History:... , Darwin Darwin, Northern Territory Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 127,500, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities... )
	29 July 2006	Port Pirie, South Australia Port Pirie, South Australia -Transport:Port Pirie is located off National Highway One. It is serviced by an airport five minutes out of the city.- Railways :The first railways in Port Pirie were of the narrow [3' 6"] gauge....
	29 September 2006	Newcastle, New South Wales Newcastle, New South Wales The Newcastle metropolitan area is the second most populated area in the Australian state of New South Wales and includes most of the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie Local Government Areas...
	13 November 2006	Melbourne, Victoria
	10 February 2007	Broome, Western Australia Broome, Western Australia Broome is a pearling and tourist town in the Kimberley region of Western Australia, north of Perth. The year round population is approximately 14,436, growing to more than 45,000 per month during the tourist season...
Ardent Division (6 crews, based at HMAS Cairns HMAS Cairns (naval base) HMAS Cairns is a naval base of the Royal Australian Navy located in Cairns, Queensland. Although used regularly as a port-of-call since before World War II, a permanent RAN presence was not established until 1971, when a maintenance and support base for patrol boats was set up... , Cairns)
	3 March 2007	Bundaberg, Queensland Bundaberg, Queensland Bundaberg is a city in Queensland, Australia. It is part of the Local Government Area of the Bundaberg Region and is a major centre within Queensland's broader Wide Bay-Burnett geographical region...
	23 June 2007	Sydney, New South Wales
	7 July 2007	Cairns, Queensland Cairns, Queensland Cairns is a regional city in Far North Queensland, Australia, founded 1876. The city was named after William Wellington Cairns, then-current Governor of Queensland. It was formed to serve miners heading for the Hodgkinson River goldfield, but experienced a decline when an easier route was...
	22 September 2007	Launceston, Tasmania Launceston, Tasmania Launceston is a city in the north of the state of Tasmania, Australia at the junction of the North Esk and South Esk rivers where they become the Tamar River. Launceston is the second largest city in Tasmania after the state capital Hobart...
Aware Division (3 crews, based at HMAS Coonawarra HMAS Coonawarra HMAS Coonawarra is a Royal Australian Navy base located in the city of Darwin and is home to twelve fleet units of the Royal Australian Navy.-History:... , Darwin Darwin, Northern Territory Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 127,500, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities... )
	8 December 2007	Brisbane, Queensland
	22 February 2008	Adelaide, South Australia

Appearances in fiction

From the second season onwards of Sea Patrol

Sea Patrol

Sea Patrol may refer to:*Sea Patrol, an Australian television series from 2007-2011**Sea Patrol **Sea Patrol , known as Sea Patrol II: The Coup**Sea Patrol , known as Sea Patrol: Red Gold...

, an Australian military drama series, the fictional Armidale class patrol boat HMAS Hammersley (pennant number

Pennant number

In the modern Royal Navy, and other navies of Europe and the Commonwealth, ships are identified by pennant numbers...

82) is used as the main setting. In 2008, two ships were conflated to represent Hammersley: 42 of the 86 days of filming were spent aboard , with later pick-up filming aboard .

External links

Armidale Class - Royal Australian Navy webpage for the Armidale class
Delivery Royal Australian Navy 56m - Austal Ships webpage for the Armidale class
The Armidale Class Patrol Boat Project: Project Management - Australian National Audit Office report on the acquisition of the class
New patrol boats named after regional cities - Department of Defence press release detailing the meaning behind the names of the first 12 Armidales

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