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HMAS Westralia (O 195)
Encyclopedia
HMAS Westralia (O 195) was a modified Leaf class
replenishment oiler which served with the Royal Australian Navy
(RAN) from 1989 to 2006. Formerly RFA Appleleaf (A79), she served in with the British Royal Fleet Auxiliary
(RFA) from 1975 to 1989. The ship was initially leased to the RAN, then purchased outright in 1994. In 1998, a fire onboard resulted in the deaths of four sailors. Westralia was decommissioned in 2006, and the ship was sold into civilian service for use as a Floating Production Storage and Offloading
vessel, under the name Shiraz. However, the ship was laid up in Indonesia until late 2009, when she was sold to a Turkish ship breaking
company. Arriving in January 2010, the vessel was scrapped.
14 PC2-2 V400 diesel engines, supplying the single, controllable-pitch propeller with 14000 bhp. Maximum speed was 17 knots (9.3 m/s). The ship's company consisted of up to 96 personnel. The ship was configured to replenish two ships abeam (one on either side), or one following astern. Up to 25,000 tonnes of fuel were carried, including aviation fuel.
The vessel was originally built by Cammell Laird
as Hudson Cavalier, one of four STaT 32 class oil tankers ordered by John Hudson Fuel and Shipping. She was laid down at the Birkenhead shipyard on 5 November 1973. After construction had started on three of the four ships, John Hudson found it could not afford to pay for the ships. Cammell Laird completed the three vessels, with Hudson Cavalier launching on 24 July 1975, and after sea trials were completed, all three were laid up in port while the shipbuilder sought to charter
or sell them. On 27 October 1978, the Ministry of Defence
expressed interest in chartering two of the tankers, and after conversion for use as an underway replenishment
vessel, Hudson Cavalier entered service with the RFA on 8 June 1979 as RFA Appleleaf. The ship was acquired under a ten-year bareboat charter
.
in 1982, Appleleaf was one of the Leaf class ships that were involved in supplying the Task Force sent south to retake the islands. The vessel later received the battle honour
"Falkland Islands 1982" for her involvement in the conflict.
In December 1983, while visiting New Zealand, a member of the ship's company was charged with killing a woman and injuring three others in an alcohol-fuelled incident.
Between November 1986 and October 1988, Appleleaf was deployed to the Persian Gulf
with the Armilla Patrol
.
On 5 July 1989, the ship completed her last replenishment at sea as part of the RFA. Her ten-year charter concluded on 24 September 1989.
, problems and cost overruns during construction of the first, , over the course of the mid-1980s meant that the option for a second was never taken up. The RAN needed a second replenishment vessel to operate in the Indian Ocean as part of the Two-Ocean Policy, and plans were made to instead acquire a less capable vessel. As Appleleaf was coming to the end of her RFA charter, the decision was made to lease the vessel to the RAN on 27 September 1989, and after a brief refit, she commissioned as HMAS Westralia on 9 October. Part of the A$30 million, five-year lease was covered by the decommissioning and sale of fleet tender in 1990. Westralia arrived at Fremantle in December 1989.
In March 1990, Westralia sailed from Fremantle on her first overseas deployment. During this, the ship called into at least seven South-east Asian ports, participated in 55th anniversary celebrations for the Royal Malaysian Navy
, and was part of several training exercises. In late June, Westralia docked at Singapore, where she underwent a four-month refit. During this, she was fitted to carry an RBS 70
missile system and two .50 calibre machine guns as defensive armament, and was fitted with a flight deck on the aft superstructure to facilitate vertical replenishment. The ship had returned to her home port of by late October.
On 26 January 1991, Westralia relieved Success as part of Combined Task Group 627.4, the Australian naval contribution
to forces involved in the Gulf War
. Five female sailors and two female officers were included in Westralias ship's company: the first time Australian women had been deployed to a combat zone. The ship remained in the Gulf until June, when she was replaced by . Westralias service was later recognised with the battle honour "Kuwait 1991". On 26 August, Westralia and sailed for Luzon
in the Philippines, to provide humanitarian aid following the eruption of Mount Pinatubo
.
In 1994, the five-year lease of the ship concluded, and the Australian government purchased the ship from the British. On 5 May 1998, a flexible fuel hose in the ship's engine room burst. The spraying fuel ignited when it came into contact with hot machinery, and the first-response extinguishers were unable to cope with the fire's intensity. It took two hours for the fire to be extinguished, and four sailors died from carbon monoxide
poisoning. A Board of Inquiry reported in December that a different type of hose inappropriate for an engine-room environment was fitted, the civilian contractors that fitted the hose had not passed the configuration changes past the Lloyd's Register
classification society
as required, and that personnel aboard Westralia did not have the training and qualifications required for their responsibilities. Repairs and modifications were made to the ship, and she returned to operational service during 2000.
During January 2002, Westralia and the frigate were deployed to the Southern Ocean
to capture illegal fishing vessels reported in the area. Two vessels were captured, with six people arrested for poaching
A$2.5 million worth of fish, and 37 more people deported.
ed vessel, which was slated to be purchased in 2005 for entry into service during 2006. Westralia was decommissioned on 16 September 2006 at HMAS Stirling, with about half of Westralias personnel transferring to her replacement, , when she commissioned on the same day.
After being decommissioned, Westralia was sold to the AGR Group and Helix Energy Solutions Group for conversion to a Floating Production Storage and Offloading
(FPSO) vessel. The ship was renamed Shiraz, and was marketed to help South-east Asian companies assess the long-term potential of their oil fields. After leaving Stirling in February 2007, Shiraz was transported to Indonesia, where from May 2007 she was laid-up in Karimun
and advertised for sale. In December 2009, the vessel was sold to a Turkish ship breaking
yard, and was towed to Aliağa
, Turkey, where she arrived on 16 January 2010. Shiraz was broken up by Leyal Ship Recycling Ltd.
Leaf class tanker
The Leaf class is a class of support tanker of the British Royal Fleet Auxiliary . The class is somewhat unusual as it is an amalgam of various civilian tankers chartered for naval auxiliary use and as such there have been many different designs of ship in this particular class...
replenishment oiler which served with 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) from 1989 to 2006. Formerly RFA Appleleaf (A79), she served in with the British Royal Fleet Auxiliary
Royal Fleet Auxiliary
The Royal Fleet Auxiliary is a civilian-manned fleet owned by the British Ministry of Defence. The RFA enables ships of the United Kingdom Royal Navy to maintain operations around the world. Its primary role is to supply the Royal Navy with fuel, ammunition and supplies, normally by replenishment...
(RFA) from 1975 to 1989. The ship was initially leased to the RAN, then purchased outright in 1994. In 1998, a fire onboard resulted in the deaths of four sailors. Westralia was decommissioned in 2006, and the ship was sold into civilian service for use as a Floating Production Storage and Offloading
Floating Production Storage and Offloading
A floating production, storage and offloading unit is a floating vessel used by the offshore industry for the processing of hydrocarbons and for storage of oil. A FPSO vessel is designed to receive hydrocarbons produced from nearby platforms or subsea template, process them, and store oil until it...
vessel, under the name Shiraz. However, the ship was laid up in Indonesia until late 2009, when she was sold to a Turkish ship breaking
Ship breaking
Ship breaking or ship demolition is a type of ship disposal involving the breaking up of ships for scrap recycling. Most ships have a lifespan of a few decades before there is so much wear that refitting and repair becomes uneconomical. Ship breaking allows materials from the ship, especially...
company. Arriving in January 2010, the vessel was scrapped.
Design and construction
The vessel had a length of 171 metres (561 ft), a beam of 26 metres (85.3 ft), and a maximum draught of 12.03 metres (39.5 ft). Propulsion machinery consists of two SEMT PielstickSEMT Pielstick
SEMT Pielstick is a French diesel engine manufacturer based in Villepinte, France and owned by MAN Diesel, a subsidiary of MAN AGSEMT Pielstick was formed in 1988 when the business was acquired from GEC Alsthom by MAN and MTU, originally as a 50/50 partnership...
14 PC2-2 V400 diesel engines, supplying the single, controllable-pitch propeller with 14000 bhp. Maximum speed was 17 knots (9.3 m/s). The ship's company consisted of up to 96 personnel. The ship was configured to replenish two ships abeam (one on either side), or one following astern. Up to 25,000 tonnes of fuel were carried, including aviation fuel.
The vessel was originally built by Cammell Laird
Cammell Laird
Cammell Laird, one of the most famous names in British shipbuilding during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, came about following the merger of Laird, Son & Co. of Birkenhead and Johnson Cammell & Co. of Sheffield at the turn of the twentieth century.- Founding of the business :The Company...
as Hudson Cavalier, one of four STaT 32 class oil tankers ordered by John Hudson Fuel and Shipping. She was laid down at the Birkenhead shipyard on 5 November 1973. After construction had started on three of the four ships, John Hudson found it could not afford to pay for the ships. Cammell Laird completed the three vessels, with Hudson Cavalier launching on 24 July 1975, and after sea trials were completed, all three were laid up in port while the shipbuilder sought to charter
Chartering (shipping)
Chartering is an activity within the shipping industry. In some cases a charterer may own cargo and employ a shipbroker to find a ship to deliver the cargo for a certain price, called freight rate. Freight rates may be on a per-ton basis over a certain route or alternatively may be expressed in...
or sell them. On 27 October 1978, the Ministry of Defence
Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)
The Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
expressed interest in chartering two of the tankers, and after conversion for use as an underway replenishment
Underway replenishment
Underway replenishment or replenishment at sea is a method of transferring fuel, munitions, and stores from one ship to another while under way.-History:...
vessel, Hudson Cavalier entered service with the RFA on 8 June 1979 as RFA Appleleaf. The ship was acquired under a ten-year bareboat charter
Bareboat charter
A bareboat charter is an arrangement for the chartering or hiring of a ship or boat, whereby no crew or provisions are included as part of the agreement; instead, the people who rent the vessel from the owner are responsible for taking care of such things....
.
Appleleaf
During the Falklands WarFalklands War
The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict or Falklands Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...
in 1982, Appleleaf was one of the Leaf class ships that were involved in supplying the Task Force sent south to retake the islands. The vessel later received 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....
"Falkland Islands 1982" for her involvement in the conflict.
In December 1983, while visiting New Zealand, a member of the ship's company was charged with killing a woman and injuring three others in an alcohol-fuelled incident.
Between November 1986 and October 1988, Appleleaf was deployed to the Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
with the Armilla Patrol
Armilla patrol
The Armilla patrol is the British Royal Navy's permanent presence in the Persian Gulf.The Royal Navy withdrew its forces from the Persian Gulf in 1971 in line with the UK's general retreat from imperial commitments. However, tensions in the area remained high and Royal Navy ships were still a...
.
On 5 July 1989, the ship completed her last replenishment at sea as part of the RFA. Her ten-year charter concluded on 24 September 1989.
Westralia
Although the RAN had originally intended to acquire two Durance class replenishment oilersDurance class tanker
The Durance class is a series of multi-product replenishment oilers, originally designed and built for service in the French Navy. Besides the five ships built for the French Navy, a sixth was built for the Royal Australian Navy, while the lead ship of the class currently serves with the Argentine...
, problems and cost overruns during construction of the first, , over the course of the mid-1980s meant that the option for a second was never taken up. The RAN needed a second replenishment vessel to operate in the Indian Ocean as part of the Two-Ocean Policy, and plans were made to instead acquire a less capable vessel. As Appleleaf was coming to the end of her RFA charter, the decision was made to lease the vessel to the RAN on 27 September 1989, and after a brief refit, she commissioned as HMAS Westralia on 9 October. Part of the A$30 million, five-year lease was covered by the decommissioning and sale of fleet tender in 1990. Westralia arrived at Fremantle in December 1989.
In March 1990, Westralia sailed from Fremantle on her first overseas deployment. During this, the ship called into at least seven South-east Asian ports, participated in 55th anniversary celebrations for the Royal Malaysian Navy
Royal Malaysian Navy
The Royal Malaysian Navy is the naval arm of Malaysian Armed Forces. All commissioned ships of the RMN have the prefix KD , which means Royal Ship.-Straits Settlement Naval Volunteer Reserve:...
, and was part of several training exercises. In late June, Westralia docked at Singapore, where she underwent a four-month refit. During this, she was fitted to carry an RBS 70
RBS 70
RBS 70 is a man-portable air-defense system designed for anti-aircraft warfare in all climate zones and with little to no support from other forces. Originally designed and manufactured by the Swedish defence firm of Bofors Defence...
missile system and two .50 calibre machine guns as defensive armament, and was fitted with a flight deck on the aft superstructure to facilitate vertical replenishment. The ship had returned to her home port of by late October.
On 26 January 1991, Westralia relieved Success as part of Combined Task Group 627.4, the Australian naval contribution
Australian contribution to the 1991 Gulf War
Australia was a member of the international coalition which contributed military forces to the 1991 Gulf War, also known as Operation Desert Storm. While the Australian forces did not see combat, they did play a significant role in enforcing the sanctions put in place against Iraq following the...
to forces involved in the Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
. Five female sailors and two female officers were included in Westralias ship's company: the first time Australian women had been deployed to a combat zone. The ship remained in the Gulf until June, when she was replaced by . Westralias service was later recognised with the battle honour "Kuwait 1991". On 26 August, Westralia and sailed for Luzon
Luzon
Luzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon...
in the Philippines, to provide humanitarian aid following the eruption of Mount Pinatubo
Mount Pinatubo
Mount Pinatubo is an active stratovolcano located on the island of Luzon, near the tripoint of the Philippine provinces of Zambales, Tarlac, and Pampanga. It is located in the Tri-Cabusilan Mountain range separating the west coast of Luzon from the central plains, and is west of the dormant and...
.
In 1994, the five-year lease of the ship concluded, and the Australian government purchased the ship from the British. On 5 May 1998, a flexible fuel hose in the ship's engine room burst. The spraying fuel ignited when it came into contact with hot machinery, and the first-response extinguishers were unable to cope with the fire's intensity. It took two hours for the fire to be extinguished, and four sailors died from carbon monoxide
Carbon monoxide
Carbon monoxide , also called carbonous oxide, is a colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas that is slightly lighter than air. It is highly toxic to humans and animals in higher quantities, although it is also produced in normal animal metabolism in low quantities, and is thought to have some normal...
poisoning. A Board of Inquiry reported in December that a different type of hose inappropriate for an engine-room environment was fitted, the civilian contractors that fitted the hose had not passed the configuration changes past the Lloyd's Register
Lloyd's Register
The Lloyd's Register Group is a maritime classification society and independent risk management organisation providing risk assessment and mitigation services and management systems certification. Historically, as Lloyd's Register of Shipping, it was a specifically maritime organisation...
classification society
Classification society
A classification society is a non-governmental organization that establishes and maintains technical standards for the construction and operation of ships and offshore structures...
as required, and that personnel aboard Westralia did not have the training and qualifications required for their responsibilities. Repairs and modifications were made to the ship, and she returned to operational service during 2000.
During January 2002, Westralia and the frigate were deployed to the Southern Ocean
Southern Ocean
The Southern Ocean comprises the southernmost waters of the World Ocean, generally taken to be south of 60°S latitude and encircling Antarctica. It is usually regarded as the fourth-largest of the five principal oceanic divisions...
to capture illegal fishing vessels reported in the area. Two vessels were captured, with six people arrested for poaching
Poaching
Poaching is the illegal taking of wild plants or animals contrary to local and international conservation and wildlife management laws. Violations of hunting laws and regulations are normally punishable by law and, collectively, such violations are known as poaching.It may be illegal and in...
A$2.5 million worth of fish, and 37 more people deported.
Decommissioning and fate
In 2003, the Australian Defence Capability Review indicated the need to replace Westralia with a new, double hullDouble hull
A double hull is a ship hull design and construction method invented by Leonardo da Vinci where the bottom and sides of the ship have two complete layers of watertight hull surface: one outer layer forming the normal hull of the ship, and a second inner hull which is some distance inboard,...
ed vessel, which was slated to be purchased in 2005 for entry into service during 2006. Westralia was decommissioned on 16 September 2006 at HMAS Stirling, with about half of Westralias personnel transferring to her replacement, , when she commissioned on the same day.
After being decommissioned, Westralia was sold to the AGR Group and Helix Energy Solutions Group for conversion to a Floating Production Storage and Offloading
Floating Production Storage and Offloading
A floating production, storage and offloading unit is a floating vessel used by the offshore industry for the processing of hydrocarbons and for storage of oil. A FPSO vessel is designed to receive hydrocarbons produced from nearby platforms or subsea template, process them, and store oil until it...
(FPSO) vessel. The ship was renamed Shiraz, and was marketed to help South-east Asian companies assess the long-term potential of their oil fields. After leaving Stirling in February 2007, Shiraz was transported to Indonesia, where from May 2007 she was laid-up in Karimun
Karimun
For the car, see Suzuki KarimunKarimun is one of the islands in the Riau Islands province of Indonesia. It is southwest of Singapore and west of Batam. The island's main city is Tanjung Balai Karimun. As of 1997, the island had a population of 155,000.In the past, Karimun was the destination of...
and advertised for sale. In December 2009, the vessel was sold to a Turkish ship breaking
Ship breaking
Ship breaking or ship demolition is a type of ship disposal involving the breaking up of ships for scrap recycling. Most ships have a lifespan of a few decades before there is so much wear that refitting and repair becomes uneconomical. Ship breaking allows materials from the ship, especially...
yard, and was towed to Aliağa
Aliaga
Aliaga can refer to:* Aliaga, Aragon, Spain* Aliağa, Turkey* the Filipino municipality of Aliaga, Nueva Ecija on Luzon* a family name, as in the case of the Peruvian writer Felipe Pardo y Aliaga...
, Turkey, where she arrived on 16 January 2010. Shiraz was broken up by Leyal Ship Recycling Ltd.