HMAS Buccaneer (P 100)

HMAS Buccaneer (P 100) was an Attack-class patrol boat of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

History
Australia
Builder: Evans Deakin and Company
Launched: 14 September 1968
Commissioned: 11 November 1969
Decommissioned: 27 July 1984
Motto: "Seek and Find"
Fate: Sunk as target
Badge:
General characteristics
Class and type: Attack class patrol boat
Displacement:
  • 100 tons standard
  • 146 tons full load
Length: 107.6 ft (32.8 m) length overall
Beam: 20 ft (6.1 m)
Draught:
  • 6.4 ft (2.0 m) at standard load
  • 7.3 ft (2.2 m) at full load
Propulsion:
  • 2 × 16-cylinder Paxman YJCM diesel engines
  • 3,460 shp (2,580 kW)
  • 2 shafts
Speed: 24 knots (44 km/h; 28 mph)
Range: 1,200 nautical miles (2,200 km; 1,400 mi) at 13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph)
Complement: 3 officers, 16 sailors
Armament:

Design and construction
Main article: Attack-class patrol boat

The Attack class was ordered in 1964 to operate in Australian waters as patrol boats (based on lessons learned through using the Ton class minesweepers on patrols of Borneo during the Indonesia-Malaysia Confrontation, and to replace a variety of old patrol, search-and-rescue, and general-purpose craft.[1] Initially, nine were ordered for the RAN, with another five for Papua New Guinea's Australian-run coastal security force, although another six ships were ordered to bring the class to twenty vessels.[1] The patrol boats had a displacement of 100 tons at standard load and 146 tons at full load, were 107.6 feet (32.8 m) in length overall, had a beam of 20 feet (6.1 m), and draughts of 6.4 feet (2.0 m) at standard load, and 7.3 feet (2.2 m) at full load.[2][1] Propulsion machinery consisted of two 16-cylinder Paxman YJCM diesel engines, which supplied 3,460 shaft horsepower (2,580 kW) to the two propellers.[2][1] The vessels could achieve a top speed of 24 knots (44 km/h; 28 mph), and had a range of 1,200 nautical miles (2,200 km; 1,400 mi) at 13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph).[2][1] The ship's company consisted of three officers and sixteen sailors.[2] Main armament was a bow-mounted Bofors 40 mm gun, supplemented by two .50 calibre M2 Browning machine guns and various small arms.[2][1] The ships were designed with as many commercial components as possible: the Attacks were to operate in remote regions of Australia and New Guinea, and a town's hardware store would be more accessible than home base in a mechanical emergency.[3]

Buccaneer was built by Evans Deakin and Company at Brisbane, Queensland,[4] launched on 14 September 1968, and commissioned on 11 November 1969.[4]

Fate

Buccaneer paid off on 27 July 1984,[4] and was sunk by gunfire during target practice on 8 October 1988.

Citations
  1. Gillett, Australian and New Zealand Ships since 1946, p. 86
  2. Blackman (ed.), Jane's Fighting Ships, 1968–69, p. 18
  3. The patrol boat, Australian National Maritime Museum
  4. Gillett, Australian and New Zealand Ships since 1946, p. 87

References
  • Blackman, Raymond, ed. (1968). Jane's Fighting Ships, 1968–69 (71st ed.). London: Jane's Publishing Company. OCLC 123786869.
  • Gillett, Ross (1988). Australian and New Zealand Warships since 1946. Brookvale, NSW: Child & Associates. ISBN 0-86777-219-0. OCLC 23470364.
  • "The patrol boat". Australian National Maritime Museum. Archived from the original on 6 July 2011. Retrieved 30 June 2011.
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