HMAS Whyalla (J153)

In 1938, the Australian Commonwealth Naval Board (ACNB) identified the need for a general purpose 'local defence vessel' capable of both anti-submarine and mine-warfare duties, while easy to construct and operate.^[1][2] The vessel was initially envisaged as having a displacement of approximately 500 tons, a speed of at least 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph), and a range of 2,000 nautical miles (3,700 km; 2,300 mi)^[3] The opportunity to build a prototype in the place of a cancelled Bar-class boom defence vessel saw the proposed design increased to a 680-ton vessel, with a 15.5 knots (28.7 km/h; 17.8 mph) top speed, and a range of 2,850 nautical miles (5,280 km; 3,280 mi), armed with a 4-inch gun, equipped with asdic, and able to fitted with either depth charges or minesweeping equipment depending on the planned operations: although closer in size to a sloop than a local defence vessel, the resulting increased capabilities were accepted due to advantages over British-designed mine warfare and anti-submarine vessels.^[1][4] Construction of the prototype HMAS Kangaroo did not go ahead, but the plans were retained.^[5]

The need for locally built 'all-rounder' vessels at the start of World War II saw the "Australian Minesweepers" (designated as such to hide their anti-submarine capability, but popularly referred to as "corvettes") approved in September 1939, with 60 constructed during the course of the war: 36 ordered by the RAN, 20 (including Whyalla) ordered by the British Admiralty but manned and commissioned as RAN vessels, and 4 for the Royal Indian Navy.^{[1][6][7][8][9]}

Whyalla was laid down by BHP at its Whyalla shipyard on 24 July 1940 as Yard Number 8.^[9][10] The corvette was launched on 12 May 1941 by Lady Barclay-Harvey, wife of the Governor of South Australia, and commissioned on 8 January 1942.^[9] Whyalla was the first ship built by the Whyalla shipyard.^[a][12] The ship was originally to be named Glenelg, for the Adelaide suburb of Glenelg.^[13] That name was later used by another Bathurst-class vessel.

In 1942, the corvette worked supporting convoys off the south eastern Australian coast, and was in Sydney Harbour during the Japanese midget submarine attack of 31 May 1942.^[9][14] 12 days later, Whyalla was escorting a southbound convoy when the freighter Guatemala was torpedoed and sunk by Japanese submarine I-21, the only ship to be lost in a convoy escorted by Whyalla.^[9]

In December 1942, the corvette was assigned to New Guinea, where she performed convoy escort, hydrographic survey work, and was involved in the leadup to the Battle of Buna-Gona.^[9] On 2 January 1943, Whyalla and two small Australian survey ships, Stella and Polaris, were attacked by Japanese dive-bombers while in McLaren Harbour, Cape Nelson, New Guinea.^[9][15] The corvette received minor damage from near-misses, with two crew injured by shrapnel.^[9] The corvette continued survey work until relieved by sister ship Shepparton in April 1943.^[9] Whyalla proceeded to Milne Bay, and was present when the anchorage was attacked by a force of approximately 100 Japanese aircraft.^[9] Again, Whyalla was not seriously damaged, and the corvette assisted sister ships Kapunda and Wagga in the rescue and salvage effort.^[9]

Whyalla returned to Australia for refits in June 1943, and on completion was assigned to convoy duty off Australia's east coast, where she remained until February 1944.^[9] Between February and June, she was involved in anti-submarine patrols off Sandy Cape, then was again assigned to New Guinea.^[9] In December 1944, Whyalla was one of nine Australian Bathursts assigned to the British Pacific Fleet's 21st Minesweeping Flotilla.^[9] Whyalla spent the rest of the war performing minesweeping, escort, and anti-submarine duties with the British Pacific Fleet, as well as participating in the occupation of Okinawa from March to May 1944, and entering a short refit in June 1944.^[9] Following the conclusion of World War II, Whyalla spent a short time operating in Hong Kong before returning to Brisbane in October 1945.^[9] She was decommissioned on 16 May 1946.^[9]

The corvette received three battle honours for her wartime service: "Pacific 1942–45", "New Guinea 1942–44", and "Okinawa 1945".^[16][17]

 

Whyalla was sold to the Victorian Public Works Department on 10 February 1947.^[9][18] The corvette was modified for civilian service, renamed Rip, and towed to Melbourne, where she entered service as a lighthouse maintenance vessel at the entrance to Port Phillip Bay.^[9] The ship was in service until 1984, and was to be sold for scrap.^[9]

When the Whyalla City Council learned that the corvette was to be scrapped, it negotiated to purchase the ship.^[9] Whyalla was purchased for $5,000 and sailed back to Whyalla with a volunteer crew of 11 and under her own steam in late 1984.^[9] The corvette was located in her launching slipway until April 1987, when she was moved 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) inland to become the centrepiece of the Whyalla Maritime Museum, which opened on 29 October 1988.^[9] Whyalla is one of only two Bathurst-class corvettes still in existence as museum ships; the other being HMAS Castlemaine.^[9]

• Donohue, Hector (October 1996). From Empire Defence to the Long Haul: post-war defence policy and its impact on naval force structure planning 1945–1955. Papers in Australian Maritime Affairs. Vol. 1. Canberra: Sea Power Centre. ISBN 0-642-25907-0. ISSN 1327-5658. OCLC 36817771.
• Stevens, David (2005). A Critical Vulnerability: the impact of the submarine threat on Australia's maritime defense 1915–1954. Papers in Australian Maritime Affairs. Vol. 15. Canberra: Sea Power Centre Australia. ISBN 0-642-29625-1. ISSN 1327-5658. OCLC 62548623.
• Stevens, David; Sears, Jason; Goldrick, James; Cooper, Alastair; Jones, Peter; Spurling, Kathryn (2001). Stevens, David (ed.). The Royal Australian Navy. The Australian Centenary History of Defence (vol III). South Melbourne: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-554116-2. OCLC 50418095.

• Stevens, David (May 2010). "The Australian Corvettes" (PDF). Hindsight (Semaphore). 2010 (5). Sea Power Centre – Australia. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 March 2011. Retrieved 13 August 2010.

  Media related to HMAS Whyalla (J153) at Wikimedia Commons

• https://web.archive.org/web/20070926223414/http://home.vicnet.net.au/~mildura/corvettes_6.htm#Whyalla
• HNSA Ship Page: HMSA Whyalla Archived 14 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine

33°01′10″S 137°34′30″E / 33.019307°S 137.574888°E / -33.019307; 137.574888