HMAS Derwent (DE 49)

HMAS ''Derwent'' (F22/DE 22/DE 49), named for the Derwent River, was a River-class destroyer escort of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). She was laid down by Williamstown Naval Dockyard in 1959, and commissioned into the RAN in 1964. During the ship's career, she was deployed to South East Asia on 23 occasions, including operations during the Indonesia-Malaysia Confrontation, and escort of the troopship to and from the Vietnam War. Multiple flag-showing cruises were also embarked upon, with port visits throughout Asia, the Indian Ocean, and the Pacific Ocean. ''Derwent'' was also briefly used to portray a fictional vessel for the British drama series ''Warship''.

A major modernisation occurred between 1981 and 1985. In 1987, the ship's home port was changed to (Fleet Base West). In addition to usual exercises and operations, ''Derwent'' assisted with the 1987 America's Cup and the First Fleet Re-enactment Voyage. Between 1992 and 1993, the ship was used for pilotage training cruises. ''Derwent'' was paid off in 1994, and used by the Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO) for ship survivability testing. Although it was originally intended to sink the ship as a dive wreck, the nature of the damage from the DSTO program made it unaffordable to render the ship diver-safe, so ''Derwent'' was towed to deep water off Rottnest Island and scuttled.

Construction

''Derwent'' was laid down by the Williamstown Naval Dockyard at Melbourne, Victoria on 16 June 1959.Royal Australian Navy, ''HMAS Derwent'' She was launched on 17 April 1961. The ship was officially accepted by the RAN on 23 April, and began a period of sea trials. The ship was commissioned on 30 April 1964.

Operational history

1964–1979

On 25 May 1964, ''Derwent'' became the first RAN ship to launch a guided missile when she fired a Sea Cat missile.Commemorative plaque for ''HMAS Derwent (DE 49)'' at Rockingham Naval Memorial Park Most of 1964 was spent on exercises and trials, along with visits to Brisbane, Sydney, and Hobart. In December, the ship was deployed to Malaysia: Indonesia was seeking to destabilise the newly federated nation, and British Commonwealth military forces were deployed to support the Malaysian government during the three-year Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation.Dennis et al., ''The Oxford Companion to Australian Military History, p. 152 After spending time as guardship at Tawau, ''Derwent'' sailed to Bangkok in early 1965 to participate in multinational naval exercises under the South East Asia Treaty Organisation (SEATO). Further operations in Malaysian waters concluded in late April 1965, with the ship docking at Williamstown on 3 May for refits. The six-month refit included installation of an Ikara missile launcher.

In February 1966, ''Derwent'' and were deployed to Malaysia. Much of the deployment consisted of patrolling the Singapore and Malacca Straits for incursions by Indonesian ships into Malaysian territorial waters and intercepting civilian ships attempting to transport Indonesian soldiers to Malaysia. In March, ''Derwent'' returned to Tawau for guardship duties, and fired on Indonesian targets three times between 22 and 31 March. During April, the ship provided naval gunfire support to ground forces on four occasions. In late May and early June, ''Derwent'' was one of four RAN ships providing escort for the troopship fourth voyage to South Vietnam.Nott & Payne, ''The Vung Tau Ferry'', p. 171Grey, ''Up Top'', p. 108 Arriving in Vũng Tàu on 6 June, ''Derwent'' remained with the former aircraft carrier during the 48-hour disembarkation of personnel and cargo. The deployment also saw ''Derwent'' visit Hong Kong, Manila, and the Salakan Islands; during the latter, personnel from ''Derwent'' began construction of a jetty as an aid project. The deployment concluded in August, with ''Derwent'' docked at Williamstown on her return for maintenance. The ship's service during the Confrontation was later recognised with the battle honour "Malaysia 1964–66"; the only one to be earned by the ship.

After training exercises during October, the ship made several port visits before returning to Sydney for Christmas. On 7 February 1967, personnel from ''Derwent'' were involved in fighting the 1967 Tasmanian bushfires. The ship was deployed to South East Asia between May and October for a series of official port visits. The ship visited ports in the Philippines, Japan, Singapore, and Hong Kong. ''Derwent'' was then docked for a major refit, lasting until May 1968. June was spent working the ship up post-refit, and in July, ''Derwent'' visited New Zealand before sailing to South East Asia. In October, the ship was deployed on another flag-showing cruise