HMAS Leeuwin operating off Singapore in 2010 |
|
| Career (Australia) | |
|---|---|
| Namesake: | Cape Leeuwin |
| Ordered: | 2 April 1996 |
| Builder: | NQEA Ltd, Cairns |
| Launched: | 19 July 1997 |
| Commissioned: | 27 May 2000 |
| Homeport: | HMAS Cairns |
| Motto: | "I Shall Maintain" |
| Status: | Active as of 2012 |
| Badge: | |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Leeuwin class hydrographic survey ship |
| 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 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph) |
| Range: | 18,000 nautical miles (33,000 km; 21,000 mi) at 9 knots (17 km/h; 10 mph) |
| 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 AS 350B Squirrel (not permanently embarked) |
HMAS Leeuwin (A 245) is the lead ship of the Leeuwin Class of Hydrographic Survey vessels of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).
Leeuwin is named after Cape Leeuwin, in the South West of Western Australia, and is the first ship of the Royal Australian Navy to carry this name (the naval base HMAS Leeuwin operated from 1940 to 1986).[1] Leeuwin and her sister ship HMAS Melville were built by NQEA in Cairns.
Leeuwin has the ability to carry three fully equipped Fantome class survey motor boats for use in waters not suitable for Leeuwin herself.[2] Leeuwin can carry a Squirrel helicopter from 723 Squadron.[3]
On entering service, the ship was painted white. Following the start of Operation Relex, Leeuwin was repainted naval grey and began deployments in support of border protection operations in addition to her normal duties.[4]
|
||||||||