HMAS ''Labuan'' (L3501) (formerly HMA ''LST 3501'') was a Mark III

Tank Landing Ship Landing Ship, Tank (LST), or tank landing ship, is the naval designation for ships first developed during World War II (1939–1945) to support amphibious operations by carrying tanks, vehicles, cargo, and landing troops directly onto shore with ...

that served in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

(as HMS ''LST 3501'') during World War II, and with 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) from 1946 until 1951. In RAN service, the landing ship was primarily used in support of the

Australian National Antarctic Research Expedition The Australian National Antarctic Research Expeditions (ANARE ) is the historical name for the Australian Antarctic Program (AAp) administered for Australia by the Australian Antarctic Division (AAD). History Australia has had a long involv ...

(ANARE). The vessel transported ANARE personnel and equipment two and from

Heard Island The Territory of Heard Island and McDonald Islands (HIMI) is an Australian external territory comprising a volcanic group of mostly barren Antarctic islands, about two-thirds of the way from Madagascar to Antarctica. The group's overall size ...

and

Macquarie Island Macquarie Island is an island in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, about halfway between New Zealand and Antarctica. Regionally part of Oceania and politically a part of Tasmania, Australia, since 1900, it became a Tasmanian State Reserve in 197 ...

. While returning from Heard Island in 1951, ''Labuan'' broke down and had to be towed to the mainland. The ship was

paid off Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to placing a warship in ...

, and disposed of in 1955.

Design and construction

''LST 3501'' was built by

Canadian Vickers Canadian Vickers Limited was an aircraft and shipbuilding company that operated in Canada during the early part of the 20th century until 1944. A subsidiary of Vickers Limited, it built its own aircraft designs as well as others under licence. C ...

at their shipyard in

Montreal, Quebec Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-pea ...

, Canada.Gillett, ''Australian and New Zealand Warships since 1946'', p. 35 The vessel was launched on 31 August 1944. The Mark 3 LST had a light load displacement of , with a maximum beachable displacement of beaching. They were in

length overall __NOTOC__ Length overall (LOA, o/a, o.a. or oa) is the maximum length of a vessel's hull measured parallel to the waterline. This length is important while docking the ship. It is the most commonly used way of expressing the size of a ship, an ...

, with a beam of , and a maximum draught of at the stern. Propulsion was provided by triple expansion engines, which delivered to the two propellers. Maximum speed was , with a range of at . The LCTs had a ship's company of 104, and a maximum load of 168 troops, 18 40-ton tanks, 27 trucks, and 7

Landing Craft Mechanized The landing craft mechanized (LCM) is a landing craft designed for carrying vehicles. They came to prominence during the Second World War when they were used to land troops or tanks during Allied amphibious assaults. Variants There was no ...

. In RAN service, ''LST 3501'' was armed with ten

20 mm Oerlikon The Oerlikon 20 mm cannon is a series of autocannons, based on an original German Becker Type M2 20 mm cannon design that appeared very early in World War I. It was widely produced by Oerlikon Contraves and others, with various models emplo ...

s: four twin and two single mounts.

Operational history

''LST 3501'' operated with the Royal Navy during World War II. In 1946, ''LST 3501'' and five other Mark 3 LSTs were loaned to the RAN. They were all commissioned into RAN service on 1 July 1946. In 1947, ''LST 3501'' was selected to assist in the establishment of, then provide logistic support to, the

(ANARE) research facilities on

and

.Forbes, ''RAN Activities in the Southern Ocean'' The vessel was repainted yellow to assist with visual identification in Antarctic waters, and modified slightly to carry a

Supermarine Walrus The Supermarine Walrus (originally designated the Supermarine Seagull V) was a British single-engine amphibious biplane reconnaissance aircraft designed by R. J. Mitchell and manufactured by Supermarine at Woolston, Southampton. The Walrus f ...

seaplane, which was launched by

derrick A derrick is a lifting device composed at minimum of one guyed mast, as in a gin pole, which may be articulated over a load by adjusting its guys. Most derricks have at least two components, either a guyed mast or self-supporting tower, and a ...

. On 28 November 1947, ''LST 3501'' departed from Fremantle with fourteen ANARE personnel and twelve months of supplies, arriving at Heard Island on 12 December and offloading the supplies and scientists. On 5 January, the Walrus was lost during foul weather, and was not replaced. The ship returned to Melbourne, where more stores and a second group of 13 ANARE personnel were loaded before ''LST 3501'' sailed to Macquarie Island on 28 February 1948, arriving seven days later. After unloading for the second time, the landing ship waited for the arrival of the research vessel in late March before returning to Australia. ''LST 3501'' was renamed HMAS ''Labuan'' on 16 December 1948, after the amphibious landings at Labuan. The 1948 ANARE expedition named

Cape Labuan Cape Labuan () is a rocky point midway between Cape Arkona and Lavett Bluff, forming the southwest extremity of Heard Island. It was charted in 1948 by the Australian National Antarctic Research Expeditions The Australian National Antarctic R ...

on Heard Island after the ship, and used names of officers and senior enlisted personnel for

Lavett Bluff Lavett Bluff () is a rock bluff between Deacock Glacier and Fiftyone Glacier on the south side of Heard Island in the southern Indian Ocean. It was surveyed in 1948 by an Australian National Antarctic Research Expedition (ANARE) and named "Cape L ...

, Mount Dixon,

Cape Lockyer Cape Lockyer () is a steep rock headland northeast of Lambeth Bluff on the southeast side of Heard Island. It was surveyed in 1948 by Australian National Antarctic Research Expeditions and named by them for Lieutenant H.C.J. Lockyer, Royal Austra ...

, and Hayter Peak.

Geographic Names Information System The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is a database of name and locative information about more than two million physical and cultural features throughout the United States and its territories, Antarctica, and the associated states of ...

:

She returned to the islands on five occasions to deliver supplies and transfer personnel: Heard Island during January to March 1949, 1950, and 1951, and Macquarie Island in April 1949 and 1950.

Decommissioning and fate

The landing ship was heavily damaged during the 1951 visit to Heard Island. ''Labuan'' attempted to sail home, but broke down completely en route.Australian Antarctic Division, ''HMALST 3501/HMAS Labuan 1947–51'' The vessel had to be towed back to Fremantle, arriving on 1 March. ''Labuan'' paid off to reserve on 28 September 1951 and was sold for disposal on 9 November 1955.

Citations

References

;Books * * ;Websites * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Labuan LST (3)-class tank landing ships of the Royal Australian Navy 1944 ships