HMAS Jeparit was an Australian National Lines

Australian National Lines

The Australian National Line was an Australian Government owned overseas and coastal shipping line that operated in Australia between 1956 and 1998, when the container shipping operations and naming rights were bought by French shipping line CMA CGM....

 (ANL) bulk carrier

Bulk carrier

A bulk carrier, bulk freighter, or bulker is a merchant ship specially designed to transport unpackaged bulk cargo, such as grains, coal, ore, and cement in its cargo holds. Since the first specialized bulk carrier was built in 1852, economic forces have fueled the development of these ships,...

 which was operated 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) between 1969 and 1972. She was launched in 1964 and transported supplies to Australian military forces in South Vietnam

Military history of Australia during the Vietnam War

Australia's involvement in the Vietnam War began as a small commitment of 30 men in 1962, and increased over the following decade to a peak of 7,672 Australians deployed in South Vietnam or in support of Australian forces there. The Vietnam War was the longest and most controversial war Australia...

 between 1966 and 1972 under both civil and military ownership. She returned to service with ANL in 1972 until 1979 when she was sold to a Greek shipping company and renamed Pleias. She continued in civilian service under several names before being broken up in 1993.

Construction

Jeparit was built for the Australian Government-owned shipping line Australian National Lines. She was laid down at Evans Deakin & Co in Brisbane, Queensland in 1962 and launched in 1964.

Vietnam War

In June 1966, she was chartered by the Department of Shipping and Transport to transport equipment and supplies from Australia to South Vietnam for the 1st Australian Task Force

1st Australian Task Force

The 1st Australian Task Force commanded the Australian and New Zealand Army units deployed to South Vietnam between 1966 and 1972. 1 ATF was based at Nui Dat in Phuoc Tuy Province...

. This became an open-ended charter in August as the ship was needed to meet the supply needs of the Australian forces in South Vietnam, which were greater than had been anticipated by Army planners. The ship's cargo usually consisted of vehicles (including Centurion tank

Centurion tank

The Centurion, introduced in 1945, was the primary British main battle tank of the post-World War II period. It was a successful tank design, with upgrades, for many decades...

s), ammunition, civil aid program stores, and supplies for the Australian Services Canteen Organisation. The ANL coastal cargo ship Boonaroo

HMAS Boonaroo

HMAS Boonaroo was an Australian National Lines cargo vessel used to support Australian forces fighting in the Vietnam War...

 was also chartered to carry similar cargoes to South Vietnam, but was unable to embark tanks.

In February 1967, the Seamen's Union of Australia

Seamen's Union of Australia

The Seamen's Union of Australia was the principal trade union for merchant seamen in Australia from 1876 to the 1991. Australian seamen were forerunners of maritime trade unionism. Efforts to form trade unions amongst merchant seamen trading out of Australian ports can be traced back to 1874, with...

 decided that it would not provide crews to Jeparit or Boonaroo for further voyages to South Vietnam; its members left both ships and were subsequently sacked by ANL. This move was not supported by most of the union movement

Australian labour movement

The Australian labour movement has its origins in the early 19th century and includes both trade unions and political activity. At its broadest, the movement can be defined as encompassing the industrial wing, the unions in Australia, and the political wing, the Australian Labor Party and minor...

, and members of other maritime unions remained on board. While Boonaroo was commissioned into the RAN for a single voyage in March 1967, Jeparit remained under ANL control but was given a mixed crew of 20 merchant seamen and a RAN detachment of an officer and 17 sailors. The RAN detachment worked under the ship's civilian master, but was additionally under naval discipline.

The ship made 25 return trips to South Vietnam with a mixed crew between 1967 and December 1969. The naval and civilian sailors worked well together, though there was disquiet when it was discovered that the civilians' pay was doubled during time spent in the war zone while the RAN personnel received only the usual allowances. This was resolved by paying the difference into the RAN Relief Trust Fund. Most voyages were between Sydney

Sydney

Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

 and Vung Tau

Vung Tàu

Vũng Tàu is a city in southern Vietnam. Its population in 2005 was 240,000. The city area is including 13 urban wards and one village. It is the capital of Ba Ria-Vung Tau province, and is the crude oil extraction center of Vietnam. It is also known as one of the most beautiful cities of tourism...

, though the ship had to unload Centurion tanks at Cam Ranh Bay

Cam Ranh Bay

Cam Ranh Bay is a deep-water bay in Vietnam in the province of Khánh Hòa. It is located at an inlet of the South China Sea situated on the southeastern coast of Vietnam, between Phan Rang and Nha Trang, approximately 290 kilometers / 180 miles northeast of Hồ Chí Minh City / Saigon.Cam Ranh is...

 as there was no heavy lifting equipment at Vung Tau. Unloading and backloading times reduced over time as procedures improved and the crew gained experience, and by late 1967, the ship was operating on a three-day turnaround at Vung Tau.

Jeparit remained the occasional focus of anti-war attention between 1967 and 1969. The ship was targeted by a small protest in December 1967 and reloading in Sydney was occasionally disrupted by union activity. These protests came to a head in November 1969, when the Waterside Workers Federation

Maritime Union of Australia

The Maritime Union of Australia covers waterside workers, seafarers, port workers, professional divers, and office workers associated with Australian ports. As of 2011 the union has about 13,000 members. It is an affiliate of the International Transport Workers' Federation and represents the...

 refused to load or unload Jeparit. After a period of negotiation, the ship was commissioned into the RAN as HMAS Jeparit on 11 December. The ship's master was appointed Jeparits commanding officer the next day and received a commission in the Royal Australian Naval Volunteer Reserve, but the ship continued to operate with a mixed civilian-naval crew. This did not end the ship's problems, however, as RAN personnel assigned to load the ship were initially slow and a building contractor had to be engaged to load tanks onto Jeparit after civilian crane operators refused their services.

HMAS Jeparit continued to travel between Australia and Vietnam as a ship of the Royal Australian Navy. These voyages were generally uneventful, and the mixed crew continued to work together well and there were few further labour relations problems at Australian ports. Australian forces were withdrawn from South Vietnam in 1971 and 1972, and Jeparit completed her 43rd and final trip on 11 March 1972, when she returned to Sydney with the last Australian troops and equipment from Vietnam. The ship had conducted five voyages with a civilian crew, 21 as an ANL ship with a mixed crew and 17 in RAN service.

Jeparit was decommissioned on 15 March and returned to ANL. She received the 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....

 "Vietnam 1969-72" in recognition of her service while a commissioned vessel.

Post-war career

She continued in ANL service until September 1979 when she was sold the Greek company Massis Charity Shipping and renamed Pleias. She was later renamed Celestial I in 1984, Maria M. in 1987 and Sea Coral in 1988 and was broken up in early 1993.