HMAS Cessnock (J175)

HMAS Cessnock c. 1942
History
Australia
Namesake: City of Cessnock, New South Wales
Builder: Cockatoo Docks and Engineering Company
Laid down: 16 April 1941
Launched: 17 October 1941
Commissioned: 26 January 1942
Decommissioned: 12 July 1946
Motto: "No Steps Backward"
Honours and
awards:
Fate: Sold for scrap in 1947
General characteristics
Class and type: Bathurst-class corvette
Displacement: 650 tons (standard), 1,025 tons (full war load)
Length: 186 ft (57 m)
Beam: 31 ft (9.4 m)
Draught: 8.5 ft (2.6 m)
Propulsion: Triple expansion, 2 shafts, 1,750 hp
Speed: 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Complement: 85
Armament: 1 × 4 inch Mk XIX gun, 3 × Oerlikon 20 mm cannons (later 2), 1 Bofors 40 mm gun (installed later), various machine guns and small arms, Depth charge chutes and throwers

HMAS Cessnock (J175/B240/A114), named for the town of Cessnock, New South Wales, 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 (RAN).[1]

Design and construction

In 1938, the Australian Commonwealth Naval Board (ACNB) identified the need for a general purpose 'local defence vessel' capable of both anti-submarine and mine-warfare duties, while easy to construct and operate.[2][3] The vessel was initially envisaged as having a displacement of approximately 500 tons, a speed of at least 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph), and a range of 2,000 nautical miles (3,700 km; 2,300 mi)[4] The opportunity to build a prototype in the place of a cancelled Bar-class boom defence vessel saw the proposed design increased to a 680-ton vessel, with a 15.5 knots (28.7 km/h; 17.8 mph) top speed, and a range of 2,850 nautical miles (5,280 km; 3,280 mi), armed with a 4 inch Mk XIX gun, equipped with asdic, and able to fitted with either depth charges or minesweeping equipment depending on the planned operations: although closer in size to a sloop than a local defence vessel, the resulting increased capabilities were accepted due to advantages over British-designed mine warfare and anti-submarine vessels.[2][5] Construction of the prototype HMAS Kangaroo did not go ahead, but the plans were retained.[6] The need for locally built 'all-rounder' vessels at the start of World War II saw the "Australian Minesweepers" (designated as such to hide their anti-submarine capability, but popularly referred to as "corvettes") approved in September 1939, with 60 constructed during the course of the war: 36 ordered by the RAN, 20 (including Cessnock) ordered by the British Admiralty but manned and commissioned as RAN vessels, and 4 for the Royal Indian Navy.[2][7][8][9][1]

Cessnock was laid down by Cockatoo Docks and Engineering at Sydney, New South Wales on 16 April 1941.[1] She was launched on 17 October 1941 by Lady Gordon, wife of Sir Thomas Gordon, a director of the constructing firm, and commissioned on 26 January 1942.[1]

Operational history

After a period of working up, Cessnock commenced duty as an escort vessel and escorted Allied shipping travelling between Townsville and New Guinea until September 1942.[1] Cessnock was then assigned as an anti-submarine patrol ship operating in Western Australian waters from October until November 1942, when she was assigned to the British Eastern Fleet and based in Kenya.[1]

Cessnock escorted Allied convoys in the Indian Ocean and Mediterranean Sea during 1943 and 1944.[1] In January 1945 she returned to Australia and became part of the British Pacific Fleet in February.[1] The ship operated as an escort in the Pacific until the end of the war.[1]

Cessnock was present in Tokyo Bay on Victory over Japan Day (2 September 1945), when the Japanese Instrument of Surrender was signed.[10]

Four battle honours were awarded to Cessnock for her wartime service: "Pacific 1942", "New Guinea 1942", "Indian Ocean 1942–45", and "Sicily 1943".[11][12]

Fate

Cessnock paid off on 12 July 1946 and was sold for scrap to the Nan Chiao Shipping and Salvage Company of Shanghai, China on 23 April 1947.[1]

Citations

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "HMAS Cessnock (I)". HMA Ship Histories. Sea Power Centre – Royal Australian Navy. Retrieved 21 December 2008.
  2. 1 2 3 Stevens, The Australian Corvettes, p. 1
  3. ↑ Stevens, A Critical Vulnerability, p. 103
  4. ↑ Stevens, A Critical Vulnerability, pp. 103–4
  5. ↑ Stevens, A Critical Vulnerability, pp. 103–5
  6. ↑ Stevens, A Critical Vulnerability, p. 104
  7. ↑ Stevens, A Critical Vulnerability, pp. 105, 148
  8. ↑ Donohue, From Empire Defence to the Long Haul, p. 29
  9. ↑ Stevens et al., The Royal Australian Navy, p. 108
  10. ↑ "Allied Ships Present in Tokyo Bay During the Surrender Ceremony, 2 September 1945". Naval Historical Center – U.S. Navy. 27 May 2005. Retrieved 13 January 2007. Taken from Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet and Pacific Ocean Areas (CINCPAC/CINCPOA) A16-3/FF12 Serial 0395, 11 February 1946: Report of Surrender and Occupation of Japan
  11. ↑ "Navy Marks 109th Birthday With Historic Changes To Battle Honours". Royal Australian Navy. 1 March 2010. Archived from the original on 13 June 2011. Retrieved 23 December 2012.
  12. ↑ "Royal Australian Navy Ship/Unit Battle Honours" (PDF). Royal Australian Navy. 1 March 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 June 2011. Retrieved 23 December 2012.

References

Books
Journal and news articles


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