HMAS Duchess (D154)

HMAS ''Duchess'' was a destroyer that served in the Royal Navy as HMS ''Duchess'' from 1952 to 1964, and in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) from 1964 to 1980. She was laid down by John I. Thornycroft and Company, and commissioned into the Royal Navy in 1952.

Initially assigned to the Home Fleet, ''Duchess'' spent her early career on exercises and port visits. She was involved in celebrations for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II during 1953, and escorted the royal yacht in 1954. The destroyer was reassigned to the Mediterranean Fleet in late 1954, and was involved in exercises, port visits, and anti-weapons-smuggling patrols of Cyprus. During the 1956 Suez Crisis, ''Duchess'' operated as plane guard and escort to the British carrier force, and was the last ship to leave Port Said after the British-French invasion failed. The destroyer was reassigned to the Home Fleet in early 1957, then was sent back to the Mediterranean as leader of the 5th Destroyer Squadron later that year. A modernisation refit ran from late 1958 to the start of 1961, after which, ''Duchess'' resumed operations with the Mediterranean Fleet. In 1963, tensions leading to the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation resulted in ''Duchess'' being assigned to the Far East Fleet as part of a strengthening of British assets in South East Asia.

Following the 1964 ''Melbourne''-''Voyager'' collision, ''Duchess'' was loaned to the RAN as a temporary replacement for . The ship was deployed to the Far East Strategic Reserve throughout the 1960s, and operated as an escort for the Vietnam War troopship on several occasions. The original four-year loan was extended to 1972, at which point the ship was purchased outright by the Australian government. ''Duchess'' was converted into a training ship during 1973 and 1974, and spent the rest of her career operating on midshipman training cruises in Australian, New Zealand, and South Pacific waters. ''Duchess'' was replaced in the training role in 1977, and was decommissioned. The destroyer was sold for scrap in 1980.

Design and construction

The ''Daring'' class was an evolution of the Battle-class destroyer; larger and with a heavier armament built around three twin turrets. Sixteen ''Daring''s were provisionally ordered on 20 July 1944, as part of the 1944 wartime construction programme.McCart, ''Daring Class Destroyers'', p. 219 ''Duchess'' was the last of eight to have her order confirmed, on 29 March 1945, the other eight were later cancelled as unnecessary due to the end of World War II. Their size and capability made the ships capable of performing duties previously restricted to light cruisers, and as the destroyer classification was initially considered inappropriate, they were referred to as "''Daring''-class warships" for the first part of their careers.McCart, ''Daring Class Destroyers'', p. x

As designed, the ''Daring''-class ships had a standard displacement of 2,950 tons, with a full load displacement of 3,580 tons. Length was overall and between perpendiculars, with a beam of and a maximum draught of . Propulsion machinery consisted of two oil-fuelled boilers (for ''Duchess'', these were supplied by Forster Wheeler), connected to Parsons double reduction geared turbines from English Electric, which supplied to the ship's two propeller shafts. Top speed was , with an effective range of , while a cruising speed of allowed the ship to cover . ''Duchess'', along with three of her sister ships, were fitted with alternating current internal electrics; a break from Royal Navy practice. The intended ship's company for ''Duchess'' was 278.

The main armament of a ''Daring''-class destroyer consisted of six QF 4.5-inch Mk I – V naval guns, arranged in three twin turrets, two located forward, the third aft.McCart, ''Daring Class Destroyers'', p. ix For anti-aircraft warfare, the ships were fitted with four to six 40 mm Bofors guns: a reduction from the wartime-intended eight.McCart, ''Daring Class Destroyers'', pp. 219–20 Both main and anti-aircraft guns were radar-controlled. Two 5-tube launchers for 21 inch (533 mm) torpedoes were installed, along with a Squid anti-submarine mortar.

''Duchess'' was laid down by John I. Thornycroft and Company of Woolston at Southampton on 8 July 1948. Construction of the ''Daring'' class was a transition away from riveting as a method of hull fabrication: some ships had a mix of riveting and welding, while ''Duchess''s hull was all-welded.McCart, ''Daring Class Destroyers'', p. 220 She was launched on 9 April 1951 by the Countess Mountbatten of Burma, and commissioned into the Royal Navy on 23 October 1952.Cassells, ''The Destroyers'', p. 35

Operational history

Royal Navy

1953–1956

''Duchess'' was initially assigned to the British Home Fleet in January 1953.McCart, ''Daring Class Destroyers'', p. 52 During January, the ship was involved in training exercises with other Home Fleet units. On 26 January, while alongside in Portland Harbour, a furnace explosion and oil fire in A boiler room killed a stoker and severely burned three others. Although able to sail that afternoon, it took a further ten days of dockyard work to repair the damage. During February and March, ''Duchess'' and other ships of the Home Fleet sailed to Gibraltar for exercises. Most of April was taken up with self-maintenance, and May was spent on further training. At the end of May, ''Duchess'', , and sailed to London, where they participated in the opening celebrations of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. After a brief visit to the Isle of Wight, ''Duchess'' sailed to Spithead for the Coronation Fleet Review, which occurred on 15 June. After the review, ''Duchess'', ''Swiftsure'', and visited east coast ports before sailing to Invergordon for fleet exercises.McCart, ''Daring Class Destroyers'', p. 53 During the exercises, ''Duchess'' was plane guard for the carrier . ''Duchess'' returned to Portsmouth in July, underwent six weeks of maintenance, then sailed on 1 September to rejoin ''Eagle'' and other ships for exercises in the Denmark Strait. The exercise ended on 3 October, and after transporting personnel of 812 Naval Air Squadron to Loch Goyle, ''Duchess'' joined ''Eagle'' while the latter undertook flying training. On 6 October, a helicopter crashed while attempting to deliver mail to the destroyer: ''Duchess'' seaboat was able to rescue one of the two flight crew, while the other sank with the helicopter. ''Duchess'' continued to accompany ''Eagle'' until 24 October, when she detached to return to Portsmouth. The rest of 1953, along with most of January 1954, was spent in refit.

On 5 February, ''Duchess'' joined units of the Home Fleet on the Spring Training Cruise. The cruise included multi-national exercises in the Mediterranean, a port visit to Oran, and a joint Home-Mediterranean Fleets exercise. ''Duchess'' returned to Portsmouth on 23 March. On 29 April, the destroyer departed for Gibraltar to meet the royal yacht ''Britannia'', which was carrying Queen Elizabeth II on the final legs of her Commonwealth Tour. ''Duchess'' was part of the escort force until ''Britannia'' reached the Thames Estuary on 13 May.McCart, ''Daring Class Destroyers'', p. 54 The destroyer then proceeded to Invergordon for Home Fleet exercises. On 19 June, ''Duchess'' and sister ship were detached for a three-week flag-showing cruise