HMAS Castlemaine
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History | |
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Australia | |
Namesake | City of Castlemaine, Victoria |
Builder | HMA Naval Dockyard in Williamstown, Victoria |
Laid down | 17 February 1941 |
Launched | 7 August 1941 |
Commissioned | 17 June 1942 |
Decommissioned | 14 December 1945 |
Reclassified |
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Motto | "Watch and Prey" |
Honours and awards |
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Status | Preserved as a museum ship in Williamstown, Victoria |
Badge | |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Bathurst-class corvette |
Displacement | 650 tons (standard), 1,025 tons (full war load) |
Length | 186 ft (57 m) |
Beam | 31 ft (9.4 m) |
Draught | 8.5 ft (2.6 m) |
Propulsion | triple expansion engine, 2 shafts. 2,000 hp |
Speed | 15.5 knots (28.7 km/h; 17.8 mph) |
Complement | 85 |
Armament |
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HMAS Castlemaine (J244/M244/A248), named for the city of Castlemaine, Victoria, was one of 60 Bathurst-class corvettes constructed during World War II, and one of 36 initially crewed and commissioned solely by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).[2]
Launched in 1941 and commissioned in 1942, Castlemaine operated during World War II in the waters of Australia, New Guinea, and Timor. She remained in service until 1945, when she was decommissioned into reserve and converted into an immobilised training ship. In 1973, Castlemaine was presented to the Maritime Trust of Australia for conversion to a museum ship. She is one of two surviving examples of the Bathurst class, the other being HMAS Whyalla.[3]