HMAS Cootamundra (J316/M186), named for the town of Cootamundra, New South Wales

Cootamundra, New South Wales

Cootamundra is a town and Local Government Area in the South West Slopes region of New South Wales, Australia and within the Riverina. At the 2006 census, Cootamundra had a population of 5,566. It is located on the Olympic Highway at the point where it crosses the Muttama Creek, between Junee and...

, was one of 60 Bathurst class corvettes

Bathurst class corvette

The Bathurst class corvettes were a class of general purpose vessels produced in Australia during World War II. Originally classified as minesweepers, but widely referred to as corvettes, the Bathurst class vessels fulfilled a broad anti-submarine, anti-mine, and convoy escort role.Sixty Bathurst...

 constructed during World War II, and one of 36 initially manned and commissioned solely by 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).

Construction

Cootamundra was laid down by Poole & Steele Limited at Sydney, New South Wales on 26 February 1942. She was launched on 3 December 1942 by Lady Davidson, wife of the general manager of the Bank of New South Wales, and commissioned into the RAN on 30 April 1943.

Compared to other Bathurst class corvettes, Cootamundra is slightly longer (186 in 2 in (56.74 m) as opposed to 186 feet (56.7 m)) and has a slightly shallower draught (8 in 3 in (2.51 m) compared to 8 in 6 in (2.59 m)).

World War II

After commissioning, Cootamundra was assigned to convoy escort duties along the east coast of Australia. On 15 June, a thirteen-ship convoy heading for Brisbane and escorted by Cootamundra and sister ships Bundaberg

HMAS Bundaberg (J231)

HMAS Bundaberg , named for the city of Bundaberg, Queensland, was one of 60 Bathurst class corvettes constructed during World War II, and one of 36 initially manned and commissioned solely by the Royal Australian Navy ....

, Deloraine

HMAS Deloraine

HMAS Deloraine , named for the town of Deloraine, Tasmania, was one of 60 Bathurst class corvettes constructed during World War II, and one of 36 initially manned and commissioned solely by the Royal Australian Navy .-Construction:...

, Kalgoorlie

HMAS Kalgoorlie

HMAS Kalgoorlie , named for the city of Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, was one of 60 Bathurst class corvettes constructed during World War II and one of 20 built for the Admiralty but manned by personnel of and commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy .-Construction:Kalgoorlie was laid down by...

, and Warrnambool, was attacked off Smoky Cape

Smoky Cape

Smoky Cape is a headland in Australia on the New South Wales Mid-North Coast. It lies just east of the town of South West Rocks, and within the Hat Head National Park.- Cape :...

. The United States Army Transport Portmar and the US Navy Landing ship LST-469

USS LST-469

USS LST-469 was a Landing Ship, Tank operated by the United States Navy during World War II. She was commissioned in 1943 and decomissionsed in 1946.- Service history :...

 were torpedoed by Japanese submarine I-174

Japanese submarine I-174

Japanese submarine I-174 was a Kaidai class submarine operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy between 1938 and her sinking in 1944. She completed eight war patrols during the Pacific War. She attacked the Convoy GP55 on 16 June 1943. During her ninth war patrol she was sunk near Truk on 12 April...

: the former sinking in minutes with the loss of only two lives, while 26 were killed aboard the latter ship, which survived and was towed to port. This was the last submarine attack to be made on the east coast of Australia during World War II.

Cootamundra was reassigned to Darwin in early June, and began to escort shipping between Darwin and Thursday Island. On 6 August, while escorting the merchantman SS Macumba, the two ships were attacked by two Japanese aircraft. Macumba’s engine room was destroyed, and despite efforts to tow the ship to safety, the merchantman's crew were taken aboard the corvette that evening and the ship was allowed to sink. Cootamundra remained in her role until April 1944, when she sailed to Sydney for refit. The refit finished at the end of May, and after a brief period operating as an escort from Darwin, Cootamundra was reassigned to New Guinea waters. The corvette served as a convoy escort and anti-submarine patrol ship from 5 July until the end of World War II.

The corvette was awarded three battle honour

Battle honour

A battle honour is an award of a right by a government or sovereign to a military unit to emblazon the name of a battle or operation on its flags , uniforms or other accessories where ornamentation is possible....

s for her wartime service: "Darwin 1943", "Pacific 1943-45", and "New Guinea 1944".

Post-war

Following the end of the war, Cootamundra was used to transport Allied prisoners-of-war back to Australia, and carry an occupation force to Ambon

Ambon Island

Ambon Island is part of the Maluku Islands of Indonesia. The island has an area of , and is mountainous, well watered, and fertile. Ambon Island consists of 2 territories: The main city and seaport is Ambon , which is also the capital of Maluku province and Maluku Tengah Ambon Island is part of the...

, before leaving New Guinea waters on 29 September 1945 while towing HMAS Leilani. The corvette arrived in Melbourne on 26 November 1945, where she was decommissioned into reserve.

On 12 December 1951, Cootamundra was re-commissioned as a training ship. In 1954, the corvette visited New Zealand. In 1957, she was assigned to northern Australian waters, to supervise the Japanese pearling fleet.

Decommissioning and fate

Cootamundra was decommissioned for the second time on 8 June 1959. She was marked for disposal on 27 September 1961, and was sold for scrap on 28 March 1962.