Coastal Forces of the Royal Australian Navy

Coastal Forces of the Royal Australian Navy

Coastal Forces was a division of the Royal Navy established during World War II. It consisted of small coastal defence craft such as motor launches, submarine chasers, air-sea rescue launches, motor gun boats and motor torpedo boats. It did not include minesweepers, trawlers or landing craft. This article is about the equivalent boats used by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

Contents

Units and craft

It included the following types of coastal defence craft:

Type Built Lost Notes
Harbour Defence Motor Launch
Fairmile B motor launch		 31[1]
35[2]
2[3]

31 Harbour Defence Motor Launches (HDMLs) and 35 Fairmile B-type Motor Launches entered service from October 1942. They were employed on routine patrols, convoy escorts, running special forces in and out of Japanese-held areas, boom defence patrols in harbours at home and abroad, courier operations, survey work, and raiding Japanese-held coasts.[4]

RAN HDMLs

Ship Commissioned Career Fate
edit] RAN Fairmiles

A Fairmile school was established at HMAS Rushcutter on 1 June 1942. The first Australian Fairmile, ML 813, entered service at the end of that year. Originally designed in the UK for coastal anti-submarine and convoy duties, the RAN Fairmiles performed these and a variety of other functions. Their tasks included convoy escort, servicing and supporting advancing troops, landing and recovering commandos and coastwatchers, rescuing civilians from enemy occupied territories, and invasion escort.[5][dead link]

Ship Commissioned Career Fate
edit] Surviving craft
Vessel Description Built Builder In the care of Condition

See also

References

  1. ^ "Australian HDMLs". http://www.warshipsww2.eu/lode.php?language=E&period=&idtrida=1456. 
  2. ^ "Australian Fairmile Bs". http://www.warshipsww2.eu/lode.php?language=E&period=&idtrida=1455. 
  3. ^ Straczek, J.H.. "RAN in the Second World War". Royal Australian Navy. http://www.navy.gov.au/RAN_in_the_Second_World_War. Retrieved 2008-09-19. 
  4. ^ "Patrol boats". The Navy Contribution to Australian Maritime Operations: RAN Doctrine 2 - 2005. Royal Australian Navy. ISBN 0642296154. http://www.navy.gov.au/Publication:Navy_Contribution_to_Australian_Maritime_Operations. 
  5. ^ "HMAS Rushcutter". http://www.navy.gov.au/speeches/2006/hmas_rushcutter.html. [dead link]

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External links



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