HMAS Ovens

HMAS ''Ovens'' (S 70) was an ''Oberon''-class submarine of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). She was one of six ''Oberon''s built for the Royal Australian Navy by the Scottish Scotts Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, and entered service in 1969. The vessel was named for Irishman and Australian explorer John Ovens (1788–1825) and for whom the Victorian river Ovens was named. During her career, ''Ovens'' was the first RAN submarine to deploy with the ANZUK force, and the first RAN submarine to fire an armed Mark 48 torpedo, sinking the target ship . The boat was decommissioned in 1995, and is preserved at the Western Australian Maritime Museum as a museum ship.

Design and construction

The ''Oberon'' class was based heavily on the preceding ''Porpoise'' class of submarines, with changes made to improve the vessels' hull integrity, sensor systems, and stealth capabilities.Chant, ''A Compedium of Armaments and Military Hardware'', pp. 167–8 Eight submarines were ordered for the RAN, in two batches of four.Cooper, in Stevens, ''The Royal Australian Navy'', p. 188 The first batch (including ''Ovens'') was approved in 1963, and the second batch was approved during the late 1960s, although two of these were cancelled before construction started in 1969, with the funding redirected to the Fleet Air Arm.Cooper, in Stevens, ''The Royal Australian Navy'', p. 194Bastock, ''Australia's Ships of War'', p. 366 This was the fourth time the RAN had attempted to establish a submarine branch.Dennis et al., ''The Oxford Companion to Australian Military history'', p. 399

The submarine was long, with a beam of , and a draught of when surfaced. At full load displacement, she displaced 2,030 tons when surfaced, and 2,410 tons when submerged. The two propeller shafts were each driven by an English Electric motor providing 3,500 brake horsepower and 4,500 shaft horsepower; the electricity for these was generated by two Admiralty Standard Range supercharged V16 diesel generators.Shaw, ''HMAS Onslow'', p. 15 The submarine could travel at up to on the surface, and up to when submerged, had a maximum range of at , and a test depth of below sea level. When launched, the boat had a company of 8 officers and 56 sailors, but by the time she decommissioned, the number of sailors had increased to 60. In addition, up to 16 trainees could be carried.

The main armament of the ''Oberon''s consisted of six torpedo tubes. The British Mark 8 torpedo was initially carried by the submarine; this was later replaced by the wire-guided Mark 23.Shaw, ''HMAS Onslow'', p. 21 Between March 1980 and August 1982, the Australian ''Oberons'' were upgraded to carry United States Navy Mark 48 torpedoes and UGM-84 Sub Harpoon anti-ship missiles. As of 1996, the standard payload of an Australian ''Oberon'' was a mix of 20 Mark 48 Mod 4 torpedoes and Sub Harpoon missiles. Some or all of the torpedo payload could be replaced by Mark 5 Stonefish sea mines, which were deployed through the torpedo tubes.Sharpe (ed.), ''Jane's Fighting Ships, 1996–1997'', p. 23 On entering service, two stern-mounted, short-length torpedo tubes for Mark 20 anti-submarine torpedoes. However, the development of steerable wire-guided torpedoes made the less-capable aft-firing torpedoes redundant; they were closed off, and later removed during a refit.Shaw, ''HMAS Onslow'', p. 19

''Ovens'' was laid down by Scotts Shipbuilding and Engineering Company at Greenock, Scotland on 17 June 1966, launched on 4 December 1967, and commissioned into the RAN on 18 April 1969.Sharped (ed.), ''Jane's Fighting Ships 1992–93'', p. 22

Operational history

In 1970, ''Ovens'' visited ports in New Zealand.Bastock, ''Australia's Ships of War'', p. 369 The submarine visited New Zealand again during late August and early September 1971, and was used to train Royal New Zealand Navy vessels in anti-submarine warfare.

In January 1972, ''Ovens'' was deployed to South East Asia to serve with the ANZUK force: the first RAN submarine to do so. During the deployment, which lasted until June, the boat participated in SEATO Exercise Sea Hawk. On 3 August, the submarine encountered the launch ''Sea Witch'', abandoned and adrift, about off Newcastle, New South Wales.

In May 1976, the submarine was sent to the Far East on a five-and-a-half-month deployment. Additional context on the exercise taken from p. 1 of the same issue of Navy News. Before returning to home port, ''Ovens'' participated in the Kangaroo 2 multinational exercise, which simulated an attack on a coastal area. Assigned to the Orange (defending) force, ''Ovens'' was able to claim successful 'attacks' on 170,000 tonnes of shipping, including the aircraft carrier . Returning to after the exercise, the submarine sailed into Sydney Harbour claiming a "clean sweep" by lashing a broom to the attack periscope.

''Ovens'' became the first RAN submarine to fire an armed Mark 48 torpedo, when she sank the decommissioned on 4 March 1987. On her return to port, ''Ovens'' flew a 'Jolly Roger' to indicate a successful mission: the first time a RAN submarine had done so.

The submarine made a port visit to Geelong, Victoria in June 1995.

Decommissioning and fate

''Ovens'' paid off on 1 December 1995. The submarine was gifted to the Western Australian Museum in November 1998. She is preserved as a museum ship at the Western Australian Maritime Museum in Fremantle, Western Australia.

Citations

References

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External links

RAN webpage for HMAS Ovens

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ovens (S 70)
Oberon-class submarines of the Royal Australian Navy
Ships built on the River Clyde
1967 ships
Museum ships in Australia
Museums in Western Australia
Ships built by Scotts Shipbuilding and Engineering Company