HMAS Maryborough (ACPB 95)
HMAS Maryborough , named after the city of Maryborough, Queensland, is one of fourteen Armidale-class patrol boats operated by the Royal Australian Navy.
Design and construction
The Armidale-class patrol boats are long, with a beam of, a draught of, and a standard displacement of 270 tons. The semi-displacement vee hull is fabricated from aluminium alloy, and each vessel is built to a combination of Det Norske Veritas standards for high-speed light craft and RAN requirements. The Armidales can travel at a maximum speed of, and are driven by two propeller shafts, each connected to an MTU 16V M70 diesel. The ships have a range of at, allowing them to patrol the waters around the distant territories of Australia, and are designed for standard patrols of 21 days, with a maximum endurance of 42 days.The main armament of the Armidale class is a Rafael Typhoon stabilised gun mount fitted with an M242 Bushmaster autocannon. Two machine guns are also carried. Boarding operations are performed by two, waterjet propelled rigid-hulled inflatable boats. Each RHIB is stored in a dedicated cradle and davit, and is capable of operating independently from the patrol boat as it carries its own communications, navigation, and safety equipment.
Each patrol boat has a standard ship's company of 21 personnel, with a maximum of 29. The Armidales do not have a permanently assigned ship's company; instead, they are assigned to divisions at a ratio of two vessels to three companies, which rotate through the vessels and allow the Armidales to spend more time at sea, without compromising sailors' rest time or training requirements. A 20-berth auxiliary accommodation compartment was included in the design for the transportation of soldiers, illegal fishermen, or unauthorised arrivals; in the latter two cases, the compartment could be secured from the outside. However, a malfunction in the sewerage treatment facilities aboard in August 2006 pumped hydrogen sulphide and carbon monoxide into the compartment, non-fatally poisoning four sailors working inside, after which use of the compartment for accommodation was banned across the class.
Maryborough was one of two patrol boats ordered in 2005, following a 2004 federal election promise that the Coalition would provide a dedicated patrol force for the oil and gas producing facilities located off the north-west coast of Australia. Maryborough was constructed by Austal at their shipyard in Henderson, Western Australia. She was commissioned into the RAN in Brisbane on 8 December 2007.