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HMAS Platypus (1917)
Encyclopedia
HMAS Platypus was a submarine depot ship
Depot ship
A depot ship is a ship which acts as a mobile or fixed base for other ships and submarines or supports a naval base. Depot ships may be specifically designed for their purpose or be converted from another purpose...
and base ship 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 1919 and 1946. Ordered prior to World War I to support the Australian submarines AE1
HMAS AE1
HMAS AE1 was an E-class submarine of the Royal Australian Navy . She was the first submarine to serve in the RAN, and was lost at sea with all hands near East New Britain, Papua New Guinea, on 14 September 1914, after less than seven months in service...
and AE2
HMAS AE2
HMAS AE2 was an E class submarine of the Royal Australian Navy . She was commissioned into the RAN at Portsmouth on 28 February 1914 and was scuttled little more than a year later in the Sea of Marmara after being hit by enemy shellfire during the Battle of Gallipoli.-Construction and...
, Platypus was not completed until after both submarines had been lost, and she was commissioned into the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
from 1917 to 1919.
After the RAN acquired six J class submarines
British J class submarine
The J class of submarines was a seven submarine class developed by the Royal Navy prior to the First World War in response to claims that Germany was developing submarines that were fast enough to operate alongside surface fleets...
, Platypus was recommissioned as an Australian warship. She was reroled as a destroyer tender
Destroyer tender
A destroyer tender is a ship designed to provide maintenance support to a flotilla of destroyers or other small warships. The use of this class has faded from its peak in the first half of the 20th century as the roles of small combatants have evolved .Due to the increased size and automation of...
after the J class was removed from service in the 1920s, tasked with supporting the two O class submarines
Odin class submarine
The Odin class submarine was a class of nine submarines developed and built for the Royal Navy in the 1920s. The prototype was followed by two ships originally ordered for the Royal Australian Navy, but transferred to the RN in 1931 because of the poor economic situation in Australia, and six...
during 1929 and 1930. After the submarines were placed in reserve, Platypus was renamed HMAS Penguin and operated as a depot ship
Depot ship
A depot ship is a ship which acts as a mobile or fixed base for other ships and submarines or supports a naval base. Depot ships may be specifically designed for their purpose or be converted from another purpose...
until 1941. The ship assumed her old name and was relocated to Darwin, then Cairns for use as a base ship. After a refit in 1944, Platypus operated as a repair vessel in New Guinea waters until she was placed into reserve in 1946.
Platypus was sold for scrap in 1958.
Construction and acquisition
Platypus was ordered by the Australian government before the outbreak of the war to service the new E class submarinesBritish E class submarine
The British E class submarines started out as improved versions of the British D class submarine. All of the first group and some of the second group were completed before the outbreak of World War I....
, AE1
HMAS AE1
HMAS AE1 was an E-class submarine of the Royal Australian Navy . She was the first submarine to serve in the RAN, and was lost at sea with all hands near East New Britain, Papua New Guinea, on 14 September 1914, after less than seven months in service...
and AE2
HMAS AE2
HMAS AE2 was an E class submarine of the Royal Australian Navy . She was commissioned into the RAN at Portsmouth on 28 February 1914 and was scuttled little more than a year later in the Sea of Marmara after being hit by enemy shellfire during the Battle of Gallipoli.-Construction and...
. She was built by John Brown and Company at Clydebank
Clydebank
Clydebank is a town in West Dunbartonshire, in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. Situated on the north bank of the River Clyde, Clydebank borders Dumbarton, the town with which it was combined to form West Dunbartonshire, as well as the town of Milngavie in East Dunbartonshire, and the Yoker and...
in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, and launched on 28 October 1916. By the time she was completed, both submarines had been lost, and she was instead commissioned into the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
on 21 March 1917.
Royal Navy
At the conclusion of the war, the ship was transferred to the Royal Australian NavyRoyal 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...
and was commissioned into the RAN on 25 March 1919.
Royal Australian Navy
Platypus’s main role was to support the RAN's six J class submarinesBritish J class submarine
The J class of submarines was a seven submarine class developed by the Royal Navy prior to the First World War in response to claims that Germany was developing submarines that were fast enough to operate alongside surface fleets...
, which she sailed with from Britain to Sydney between April and July 1919.
Platypus and all six J class submarines were based at Geelong in February 1920. Due to the poor condition of the submarines and financial pressure on the RAN the Royal Australian Navy Submarine Service
Royal Australian Navy Submarine Service
The Royal Australian Navy Submarine Service is the collective name of the submarine element of the Royal Australian Navy. The service currently forms the Navy's Submarine Force Element Group and consists of six Collins class submarines....
was disbanded in May 1922 and Platypus was redesignated as a destroyer tender. Platypus reverted to her original role as a submarine tender in 1929 when the RAN acquired two O class submarines
Odin class submarine
The Odin class submarine was a class of nine submarines developed and built for the Royal Navy in the 1920s. The prototype was followed by two ships originally ordered for the Royal Australian Navy, but transferred to the RN in 1931 because of the poor economic situation in Australia, and six...
but was used as a depot ship
Depot ship
A depot ship is a ship which acts as a mobile or fixed base for other ships and submarines or supports a naval base. Depot ships may be specifically designed for their purpose or be converted from another purpose...
after these submarines were placed into reserve in 1930. She was renamed HMAS Penguin on 15 August 1930.
In October 1932, a mutiny occurred aboard Penguin. The mutiny was in protest of the decreases in sailor pay and conditions: Depression-era cutbacks had impacted them harder than officers, as they had no avenues of protest. The ship's commanding officer was sympathetic, promising that he would forward their concerns to the Australian Commonwealth Naval Board
Australian Commonwealth Naval Board
The Australian Commonwealth Naval Board was the governing authority over the Royal Australian Navy from its inception and through World Wars I and II. The board was established on 1 March 1911 and consisted of civilian members of the Australian government as well as naval flag officers....
(which refused to consider them) and that they would not be punished.
She continued as a depot ship until 26 February 1941 when she was renamed HMAS Platypus and returned to seagoing service as a training ship. In May 1941, Platypus sailed to Darwin to serve as a base ship. She survived the Japanese attack on Darwin in February 1942 and remained at Darwin until January 1943 when she sailed to Cairns, Queensland
Cairns, Queensland
Cairns is a regional city in Far North Queensland, Australia, founded 1876. The city was named after William Wellington Cairns, then-current Governor of Queensland. It was formed to serve miners heading for the Hodgkinson River goldfield, but experienced a decline when an easier route was...
where she again served as a base ship until May 1944. In June 1944 Platypus received a major refit and sailed to New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
as a repair and maintenance vessel. She operated off New Guinea and Morotai Island until returning to Australia in December 1945. The wartime service of Platypus was later recognised with 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....
"Darwin 1942-43".