Here are some pics of our carriers through out our history
HMAS Melbourne III, Colossus class, formerly HMS Majestic, which was never completed untill bought by the RAN in 1948 along with her sister HMS Glory which went on to become HMAS Sydney III, Sydney was completed straight away and ships to Australia, Melbourne was sent after completion to Holland to gain an Angled flight deck and a mirror landing system as well as up graded electronics she was supposed to be here in 1950 but didn’t arvive here untill 1956 during which time the RAN leased HMS Vengence as HMAS Vengence (later sold to Brazil as Minas Gearis and undergoing a similar refit as Melbourne).
Aft flight deck of HMAS Melbourne note how wide it is
Melbourne down in the Bight
Next is HMAS Sydney she was decomissioned in 1953 when HMAS Melbourne came to Australia but recomissioned during the Vietnam war as a fast troop transport (aka the Vung Tau Ferry).
Here she is just having been accepted by the RAN and getting ready to depart for Australia.
Here she is as the Vung Tau Ferry with the Army making their pressence felt and again below.
Here is HMAS Vengence which served with the RAN from 13th Novemeber 1952 untill 12th August 1955, during the service of both Sydeny III and Vengence all flight training was done in England and wasn’t taken on in Australia untill 1965.
Finally HMAS Albatross, Australia’s first carrier, she was a sea plane carrier which had Seagull III planes on board, nine could be carried at one time. She was built in Australia during the in between years and served for only nine years in the RAN, after which she was passed to the RN as part payment for the new Light Crusiers. She served during WWII ans a troop ship and ferry and was eventually sold to a Greek Shipping company in 1952, she did suffer a fire on board in 1958 after which details of her have been lost.
Pics of this ship are hard to come by even here in Australia, I’ve been looking for info for years on what happened to it when the greeks had her, there is a rhoumor that she is still afloat somewhere in the Med.
Wow I found some good photos after I got the designation right, thanks guys!
Given that last pic, What would be the biggest Helo she can take? The Seaking of could you get an MH-53 on it?
Here’s an old scratchy pic of Hercules back when she was new, from Hazegrey
If you look carefully down the sides you can see two of the container launchers for the SSM’s
Thanks Glenn, I found something now, this is a pic of it just a few years ago, note the size of the hangar which holds a Seaking.
Also of note is the different funnel tip, this seems to have the German style funnel tip that was used on the Lutjens class DDG’s
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