Commonwealth gifts Australian Navy guided missile destroyer to WA [Audio]

29/8/99
Premier Richard Court today announced the Federal Government had gifted the Australian Navy guided missile destroyer HMAS Perth to Western Australia.
Mr Court said the decision would provide Western Australia with an added tourism asset that could, for example, be used as a dive wreck
"The gifting of HMAS Perth is a great coup for Western Australia as there is stiff competition throughout the nation for decommissioned naval vessels," he said.
"Given her name, it is most fitting that her final destination will be in WA."
Mr Court praised Prime Minister John Howard and Defence Minister John Moore for their foresight in not converting the vessel to scrap metal.
"HMAS Perth will be a great addition to the tourism product of WA and build on what has been achieved through the previous gifting of the destroyer escort HMAS Swan," the Premier said.
"The Swan, which was decommissioned and sunk off Dunsborough 20 months ago, has become one of the State's great tourism success stories.
"In the first 12 months, Swan attracted at least 10,000 divers from all around the world, and built a reputation as the best dive wreck in the Southern Hemisphere.
"The number of divers on the wreck is expected to nearly double this year.
"The regional tourism benefits have been enormous. Already, the Swan has been responsible for creating new jobs and generating an estimated $5.2 million in economic impact."
Mr Court said there was already considerable interest from coastal towns throughout WA in having the HMAS Perth located in their region.
The Premier said the WA Tourism Commission would co-ordinate a rigorous Expressions of Interest process to determine the most appropriate location and use for the Perth.
A steering committee of independent experts would be set up to assess submissions.
The three-month expressions-of-interest period will open shortly and be widely publicised throughout the State.
Mr Court said considerable experience and expertise existed in WA to successfully manage decommissioned vessels.
The Royal Australian Navy has scheduled the decommissioning of HMAS Perth in Sydney for late this year.
The vessel will be stripped of all its operational equipment and infrastructure for use as spare parts on other vessels of the same class in the fleet.
The Federal Government will then make the 'deed of gift' to the WA Government.
The Premier said the vessel would be ready to be towed to WA early next year.
Media contact: Casey Cahill 9222 9475

DESCRIPTION - HMAS PERTH
Description HMAS Perth is a guided missile destroyer in the Royal Australian Navy fleet. Her main task is air defence, but with significant anti-submarine and surface gunnery capabilities. HMAS Perth has a distinguished record. Between 1967 and 1969, the ship completed two tours of duty with the US forces off Vietnam. For her performance in bombardments of enemy positions, during which HMAS Perth was hit once and had many near misses, the ship was awarded the US Navy Unit Commendation and the Meritorious Unit Commendation. The awards give HMAS Perth the unique privilege of flying the two distinct burgees. Built in the USA, she has two sister ships, HMAS Brisbane and HMAS Hobart.
Laid down 21 September 1962
Launched 26 September 1963
Commissioned 17 July,1965; arrived in Australia in March 1966
Displacement 4,720 tonnes
Length 133.2 metres
Beam 14.3 metres
Speed More than 30 knots
Complement 333 men
Machinery Two General Electric steam turbines drive two shafts. Propulsion comes from four superheated boilers and two main engines that produce more than 70,000 shaft horsepower at top speed. Four turbo generators driven from the boilers provide 2,000 kilowatts of electrical power.
Armament HMAS Perth is a versatile fighting ship. For air defence, she is fitted with long range surveillance radars capable of detecting aircraft more than 300 kilometres away. The major anti-aircraft weapon is the Standard surface-to-air missile with a range of more than 35 kilometres. A powerful sonar under the bow provides anti-submarine capability. For close-range attack, torpedoes are launched from tubes on each side of the ship. Two 127mm rapid-fire guns enable HMAS Perth to deliver 70 rounds per minute on to targets up to 20 kilometres away, and are used for air defence, surface action and shore bombardment.

"It is a great coup for WA to have the HMAS Perth gifted to our State. We will make it another tourism success story." [9.8secs/214Kb]

"The HMAS Swan which has been used as a dive wreck off Dunsborough saw 10,000 divers in its first year alone." [9secs/194Kb]