The Muara Naval Base ( ms, Pangkalan Tentera Laut Muara), is a

naval base A naval base, navy base, or military port is a military base, where warships and naval ships are docked when they have no mission at sea or need to restock. Ships may also undergo repairs. Some naval bases are temporary homes to aircraft that us ...

that serves as the main headquarters for the

Royal Brunei Navy The Royal Brunei Navy ( ms, Tentera Laut Diraja Brunei, abbreviated TLDB) is the naval defence force of Brunei Darussalam. It is a small but relatively well-equipped force whose main responsibility is to conduct search and rescue missions and ...

(RBN), which is located in Muara,

Brunei-Muara District Brunei-Muara District ( ms, Daerah Brunei dan Muara; Jawi: برونائی-موارا ضلع) or simply Brunei-Muara is one of the four districts of Brunei. It has the smallest area among the four districts, with , yet is the most populous, wi ...

Brunei Brunei ( , ), formally Brunei Darussalam ( ms, Negara Brunei Darussalam, Jawi alphabet, Jawi: , ), is a country located on the north coast of the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. Apart from its South China Sea coast, it is completely sur ...

. It can also be noted that the base sits near the mouth of the

Brunei River The Brunei River ( ms, Sungai Brunei) is a river which flows through Brunei and empties into the Brunei Bay towards the north-east direction. The Istana Nurul Iman, the official residence of the Sultan of Brunei, stands on its banks. The Brun ...

, which flows into the

Brunei Bay Brunei Bay ( ms, Teluk Brunei) is on the northwestern coast of Borneo island, in Brunei and Malaysia. Brunei Bay is located 5°00'43.44", 115°17'26.66"; east of Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei. It is the ocean gateway to the isolated Temburong Dis ...

History

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, then occupied Muara was previously used by the

Japanese Navy , abbreviated , also simply known as the Japanese Navy, is the maritime warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, tasked with the naval defense of Japan. The JMSDF was formed following the dissolution of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) ...

as a naval base until the country was liberated by the

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Au ...

9th Division. The Royal Brunei Navy's administration of First Sea Battalion was relocated to its current location in 1974. The

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

warship USS ''Robert E. Peary'' (FF-1073) was berthed at the naval base in 1989. Brunei ordered three Nakhoda Ragam-class corvettes and were planned to be based at the naval base in 1991. Despite that, all three ships of the class were never commissioned into the navy. In 1997, the base's upgrade project costed B$140 million, in which it included the construction of a new 314m long

quay A wharf, quay (, also ), staith, or staithe is a structure on the shore of a harbour or on the bank of a river or canal where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers. Such a structure includes one or more berths (mooring location ...

shiplift A shiplift is a modern alternative for a slipway, a dry dock, floating dry dock or a dry dock, graving dry dock. A shiplift is used to dry dock and launch ships. It consists of a structural platform that is lifted and lowered exactly vertically, ...

and renovation of its existing facilities. The project was carried out in order to facilitate the three new ''Darussalam''-class offshore patrol vessels. Between 2007 and 2012, ammunition and explosive storage bunkers were constructed not far from the base, at

Kampong Kapok Kampong Kapok is a village in the north-east of Brunei-Muara District, Brunei and has an area of ; the population was 2,791 in 2016. Name The village is named after the kapok tree, ''Bombax ceiba'', that cane be seen in its immediate surroun ...

. Another B$44.6 million project was carried out in July 2011, to provide new accommodation facilities for the base's personnel. During BRIDEX 2011, the navy celebrated its 46th Anniversary at the naval base. In which 24 warships from 10 countries were invited. On February 23, 2014, a

ro-ro Roll-on/roll-off (RORO or ro-ro) ships are cargo ships designed to carry wheeled cargo, such as cars, motorcycles, trucks, semi-trailer trucks, buses, trailers, and railroad cars, that are driven on and off the ship on their own wheels or usin ...

car carrier Roll-on/roll-off (RORO or ro-ro) ships are cargo ships designed to carry wheeled cargo, such as cars, motorcycles, trucks, semi-trailer trucks, buses, trailers, and railroad cars, that are driven on and off the ship on their own wheels or using ...

Trans Future 2 collided with KDB ''Berkat'' (18) and another ''Ijtihad''-class patrol boat while in port. Later in May,

Sultan Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it ...

Hassanal Bolkiah Hassanal Bolkiah ibni Omar Ali Saifuddien III ( Jawi: ; born 15 July 1946) is the 29th and current Sultan and Yang di-Pertuan of Brunei since 1967 and the Prime Minister of Brunei since independence from the United Kingdom in 1984. He is one ...

landed his

Sikorsky S-70 The Sikorsky S-70 is an American medium transport/utility helicopter family manufactured by Sikorsky Aircraft. It was developed for the United States Army in the 1970s, winning a competition to be designated the UH-60 Black Hawk and spawning a ...

at the naval base in which he visited the KDB ''Afiat'' (20) and witness a naval exercise. Later that year on November 11, the 20th annual

Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training The Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (Exercise CARAT) is a series of annual bilateral military exercises conducted by the United States Pacific Fleet with several member nations of ASEAN in Southeast Asia. Currently, the navies of Banglad ...

(CARAT) between the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and Brunei began at the naval base. May 29, 2013,

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Tony Tan Tony Tan Keng Yam (; born 7 February 1940) is a Singaporean former politician who served as the seventh president of Singapore between 2011 and 2017. He did not seek for a second term as president in 2017 due to a constitutional amendment. ...

made visit to the Muara Naval Base. On November 12, 2018, the 24th annual CARAT began at the naval base in which it involved several exercises in the

South China Sea The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by the shores of South China (hence the name), in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan and northwestern Phil ...

with USNS ''Fall River'' (T-EPF-4) and a P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft. The 25th annual CARAT was once again held at the naval base on October 31, 2019.

Units

Three naval divisions are based in the naval base: * Operation Division * Administrative Division * Support Division

References

External links

Royal Brunei Navy official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Muara Naval Base 1974 establishments in Brunei Brunei-Muara District Royal Brunei Navy