HMAS Kiama

HMAS Kiama in 1944
History
Australia
Name	HMAS Kiama
Namesake	Town of Kiama, New South Wales
Builder	Evans Deakin & Co
Laid down	2 November 1942
Launched	3 July 1943
Commissioned	26 January 1944
Decommissioned	3 April 1946
Identification	Pennant number: J353
Honours and awards	Battle honours: Pacific 1944–45 New Guinea 1944
Fate	Transferred to RNZN
New Zealand
Acquired	5 March 1952
Decommissioned	19 August 1976
Renamed	HMNZS Kiama
Reclassified	Training ship
Identification	Pennant number: M353
Fate	Paid off for disposal
General characteristics
Class and type	Bathurst-class corvette
Displacement	As built: 650 tons standard 1,025 tons (full war load) RNZN service: 790 tons
Length	186 ft (57 m)
Beam	31 ft (9.4 m)
Draught	8.5 ft (2.6 m)
Installed power	2,000 hp (1,500 kW)
Propulsion	Triple-expansion steam engine 2 shafts
Speed	15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Complement	As built: 85 RNZN service: 65
Armament	As built: 1 × 4 inch Mk XIX HA gun RNZN service: 2 × Bofors 40 mm guns

HMAS Kiama, named for the coastal town of Kiama, New South Wales, was one of 60 Bathurst-class corvettes constructed during World War II, and one of 36 initially manned and commissioned solely by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).^[1]

After World War II, the corvette was one of four sold to the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN). She served as HMNZS Kiama from 1952 until 1976, when the corvette was paid off and marked for disposal.