HMAS Latrobe – The Story of an Australian Corvette 1942-1946

Description

Title: HMAS Latrobe – The Story of an Australian Corvette 1942-1946

Author: Smith, Windas

Condition: Very Good

Edition: 1st Edition

Publication Date: 1987

ISBN: 0731609808

Cover: Soft Cover without Dust Jacket – 90 pages

Comments: A brief history of HMAS Latrobe during World War 2.

HMAS LATROBE was one of sixty Australian Minesweepers (commonly known as corvettes) built during World War II in Australian shipyards as part of the Commonwealth Government’s wartime shipbuilding programme. Twenty were built on Admiralty order but manned and commissioned by the Royal Australian Navy. Thirty-six (including LATROBE) were built for the Royal Australian Navy and four for the Royal Indian Navy.

LATROBE commissioned at Sydney on 6 November 1942 under the command of Lieutenant Commander Basil T. Brewster DSC RN.

LATROBE commenced her wartime career in January 1943 escorting convoys to New Guinea. After several trips she passed to the operational control of the Darwin Command on 25 February and arrived there to begin duty escorting a convoy from Thursday Island on 10 March 1943. She remained in northern Australian waters shepherding convoys between Darwin and Thursday Island until June 1944 when she proceeded to New Guinea waters.

It was a period of routine escort duty, though on many occasions her crew were reminded of the enemy’s presence. On 12 February she unsuccessfully attacked a Japanese submarine. In July en route to Darwin her convoy was twice attacked by enemy aircraft. Again in December 1943 she was attacked by a single Japanese bomber. Raids were also experienced in Darwin Harbour.

On 17 June 1944 LATROBE arrived at Port Moresby to begin operating in the New Guinea area. The following seven months were spent escorting convoys to Madang, Hollandia, Morotai, Biak, Noemfoor and Mios Woendi. Considerable periods were spent on anti-submarine patrol mainly in the Morotai and Biak areas.

Returning to the mainland in January 1945, LATROBE spent seven weeks in refit in Adelaide, proceeding to Sydney at the end of March 1945. On 23 April she arrived at Langemak to begin a second tour of duty in the New Guinea area. In May she spent nine days operating as an anti-submarine unit off Tarakan, Borneo, followed by similar duties at Morotai. In July and August she returned to Borneo for a period as the duty minesweeper off Balikpapan, carrying out a bombardment of the Japanese held village of Separtim on 3 August. When hostilities ended on 15 August she was anchored at Morotai.

In September 1945 LATROBE operated between Morotai and the Celebes, evacuating Allied prisoners of war and civilian internees. In October she transported occupation forces to Menado and Sandakan, returning to Sydney in December from Labuan, Borneo, with two small craft in tow. On 19 December 1945 she reached Melbourne having steamed 92,819 miles and spent some 10,000 hours underway since commissioning.

In January 1946 she visited her town of Latrobe in Tasmania and shortly afterwards assumed the role of training ship attached to Flinders Naval Depot, a duty which kept her occupied until the close of 1952.

LATROBE paid off on 13 March 1953 and was transferred into the control of Williamstown Dockyard, passing into the Reserve Fleet on 17 September 1953. In her ten years of seagoing service LATROBE steamed 155,293 miles and spent more than 17,000 hours underway. She was sold on 18 May 1956 to Hong Kong Rolling Mills to be broken up.