Fish-class torpedo recovery vessel

Class overview
Builders: Williamstown Dockyard, Williamstown, Victoria
Operators:  Royal Australian Navy/Defence Maritime Services
Built: January 1970 – April 1971
Active: None
Retired: 3
General characteristics
Type: Torpedo Recovery Vessel
Displacement: 94 long tons (96 t) full load
Length: 26.8 metres (88 ft)
Beam: 6.1 metres (20 ft)
Draught: 1.1 metres (3 ft 7 in)
Propulsion: 3 x V8 GM diesels, 890 horsepower (660 kW), 3 shafts
Speed: 9.5 knots (17.6 km/h; 10.9 mph)
Endurance: 63 hours at 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph)
Crew: 9
Sensors and
processing systems:		 I-band navigational radar

The Fish class was a ship class of three torpedo recovery vessels previously operated by Defence Maritime Services (DMS).

Design and construction

The class was ordered in 1969 as replacements for World War II-era torpedo recovery vessels.[1]

The vessels each had a full load displacement of 94 long tons (96 t), a length of 26.8 metres (88 ft), a beam of 6.1 metres (20 ft), and a draught of 1.1 metres (3 ft 7 in).[2] Propulsion machinery consisted of three GM V8 diesels, which supplied 890 horsepower (660 kW) to the three propeller shafts.[2][1] Top speed was 9.5 knots (17.6 km/h; 10.9 mph), and the vessels had an endurance of 63 hours at 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph).[1][2] Each Fish-class vessel could recover up to eight torpedoes via a watertight stern gate.[2][1] They were unarmed, and their sensor suite was limited to an I-band navigational radar.[2] Nine personnel made up the crew.[2]

All three vessels were built at Williamstown Dockyard for the Royal Australian Navy between January 1970 and April 1971.[3][2]

Operational history

Originally identified only by the numbers 253–255, the vessels were named in 1983 and renumbered 801–803.[1]

On entering service, TRV 253 was assigned to the target range at Jervis Bay, while the other two vessels were attached to HMAS Waterhen in Sydney.[1] In addition to torpedo recovery, the boats were used as dive tenders and as training vessels for the Royal Australian Naval Reserve.[1]

In 1988, the three vessels were sold to DMS.[4] As part of the company's role in providing maritime support for the RAN, the vessels were assigned to various bases: Tuna to nearby HMAS Creswell, Trevally remaining at Waterhen, while Tailor sailed to HMAS Stirling in Western Australia.[3]

As of 2012, only Tailor remained in service.[2]

As of 2018, Tailor was decommissioned and put up for sale to the public effectively ending the service of this class[5]

Ships

Citations

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Gillett, 'Australian and New Zealand Warships since 1946, pp. 104–5
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Saunders (ed.), IHS Jane's Fighting Ships 2012–2013, p. 36
  3. 1 2 Wertheim, The Naval Institute Guide to Combat Fleets of the World, p. 32
  4. ↑ Saunders (ed.), IHS Jane's Fighting Ships 2012–2013, p. 35
  5. ↑ "Unreserved Ex-Navy - 27m Torpedo Recovery Vessel "Tailor"". www.graysonline.com. Retrieved 2018-09-06.

References

  • Gillett, Ross (1988). Australian and New Zealand Warships since 1946. Brookvale, NSW: Child & Associates. ISBN 0867772190. OCLC 23470364.
  • Saunders, Stephen, ed. (2012). IHS Jane's Fighting Ships 2012–2013. Jane's Fighting Ships. Coulsdon: IHS Jane's. ISBN 9780710630087. OCLC 793688752.
  • Wertheim, Eric (2007). The Naval Institute Guide to Combat Fleets of the World. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-59114-955-X.
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