HMAS Melville (A 246)
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| Career Australia |  |
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| Ordered: | 2 April 1996 |
| Builder: | NQEA Ltd, Cairns |
| Laid down: | |
| Launched: | 23 June 1998 |
| Commissioned: | 27 May 2000 |
| Status: | Active |
| Homeport: | HMAS Cairns |
| General Characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 2,550 tons |
| Length: | 233.6 ft (71.2 m) |
| Beam: | 49.9 ft (15.2 m) |
| Draught: | 14.1 ft (4.3 m) |
| Propulsion: | Diesel-electric; 4 GEC Alsthom 6RK 215 diesel generators, 4,290 hp (3.2 MW) sustained. 2 Alsthom motors, 1.94 MW, 2 shafts. 1 Schottel bow thruster. |
| Speed: | 14 kts |
| Range: | 18,000 nm at 9 kts |
| Boats and landing craft carried: | Three 10 metre Survey Motor Boats, equipped with shallow water multi-beam echo-sounders and short range UHF differential GPS Two light utility boats One Rigid Hull Inflatable Boat (RHIB) |
| Complement: | 46 |
| Sensors and processing systems: | Navigation: STN Atlas 9600 ARPA; I-band. Sonar: C-Tech CMAS 36/39; hull mounted; high frequency active. Atlas Fansweep-20 multibeam echo sounder. AD 25 single beam echo sounder. Also fitted with Klein 2000 towed light-weight sidescan sonar. |
| Aircraft carried: | 1 x AS 350B Squirrel (not permanently embarked). |
| Motto: | "With Determination" |
| Badge: |  |
HMAS Melville is the second ship of the Leeuwin Class of Hydrographic Survey vessels of the Royal Australian Navy. Melville is named after Melville Island to the North of Darwin, Northern Territory. Melville is the first commissioned ship of the Royal Australian Navy to carry this name, although the Navy base in Darwin bore the name "HMAS Melville" from from 1940 to 1975. [1] Melville and her sister ship HMAS Leeuwin were built by NQEA in Cairns.
Melville has the ability to carry three fully equipped 9 metre Survey Motor Boats for surveys in waters not suitable for the Melville itself. [2] HMAS Melville can carry a Squirrel helicopter from 723 Squadron. [3]
[edit] References
- ^ Straczek, John. “The Royal Australian Navy: Ships, Aircraft and Shore Establishments”, Navy Public Affairs, Sydney, 1996. ISBN 1-876-04378-4
- ^ Sharpe, Richard (ed). "Jane's Fighting Ships 2000-2001, Janes Information Group, London, 2000. ISBN 0-7106-2018-7
- ^ HMAS Melville page on the official NAVY website
| Australian Defence Force |
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 Australian Army  Royal Australian Navy  Royal Australian Air Force |
