HMAS ''Kinchela'' (Z96) was an auxiliary boom gate vessel of the

Royal Australian Navy The Royal Australian Navy (RAN) is the principal naval force of the Australian Defence Force (ADF). The professional head of the RAN is Chief of Navy (CN) Vice Admiral Mark Hammond AM, RAN. CN is also jointly responsible to the Minister of ...

(RAN). She was built in 1914 as a cargo vessel for the Macleay River Co-operative Steamship Company. Built by

Morrison & Sinclair Morrison & Sinclair was a Sydney, New South Wales based company and one of the great ship and boat-building names of Port Jackson. The company was founded in the early 1890s and ceased trading in 1970. History In 1923, Morrison & Sinclair Ltd ...

, Balmain, as ''Tamban'', for the Macleay River Co-operative Steamship Company, she was launched in 1914. Her compound engines were installed by Wildridge a Sinclair, Balmain. She was operated on the

Milsons Point Milsons Point is a suburb on the lower North Shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The suburb is located 3 kilometres north of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of North Sydney Council. Mil ...

run. She was renamed ''Kinchela'' in October 1915. She collided with a lighter at

Darling Harbour Darling Harbour is a harbour adjacent to the city centre of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia that is made up of a large recreational and pedestrian precinct that is situated on western outskirts of the Sydney central business district. Origin ...

on 25 June 1918. She was sold in 1922 to the

North Coast Steam Navigation Company The North Coast Steam Navigation Company was a shipping company that operated in Australia, formed as the Grafton Steam Navigation Company in 1855. The company was later renamed the Clarence & Richmond River Steam Navigation Company before being ...

. She collided with ''Newcastle'' in Newcastle Harbour on 22 August 1922. She ran aground on the spit at

Port Macquarie Port Macquarie is a coastal town in the local government area of Port Macquarie-Hastings. It is located on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, Australia, about north of Sydney, and south of Brisbane. The town is located on the Tasman Sea co ...

, New South Wales in March 1933. She was hulked in 1936 and her machinery was removed. Part of her machinery was fitted in ''Nambucca''. Her hull was requisitioned by the RAN on 28 August 1942 and she was converted into an auxiliary boom gate vessel for use in the

Brisbane River The Brisbane River is the longest river in South East Queensland, Australia, and flows through the city of Brisbane, before emptying into Moreton Bay on the Coral Sea. John Oxley, the first European to explore the river, named it after the Go ...

Fort Lytton Fort Lytton is a heritage-listed 19th century coastal fort in the suburb of Lytton in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The name “Fort Lytton” is also used to describe the military base that surrounded the fort. Fort Lytton was built in ...

. She was paid off for disposal in 1945 and while being towed to Sydney she almost sank. She was sold in July 1946.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kinchela 1914 ships Ships built in New South Wales Boom defence vessels of the Royal Australian Navy