HMAS Leeuwin

HMAS Leeuwin Statistics

Pennant	A 245
Class	Leeuwin Class
Based	Cairns
Launched	June 1997
Commissioned	27 May 2000
Displacement	2550 tonnes2,550,000 kg 2.55e+9 g 5,621,786.1 lb 89,948,603.1 oz
Length	71.2 metres7,120 cm 0.0712 km 0.0442 mi 233.596 ft 2,803.15 in
Beam	15.2 metres1,520 cm 0.0152 km 0.00944 mi 49.869 ft 598.425 in
Draught	4.3m (full load)
Main Machinery	4 x Ruston diesel generators, 2 x electric propulsion motors
Equipment	1 multi-beam medium / shallow echo-sounder Dual frequency single beam echo-sounder Digital hydrographic data logging and data processing system HF medium range differential GPS Hull mounted forward looking sonar Towed dual frequency side scan sonar 3 x 10 metre Survey Motor Boats equipped with shallow water multi-beam echo-sounders and short range UHF differential Fitted with helicopter flight deck and hanger
Speed	12 - 14 knots
Company	46

HMAS Leeuwin and and her sister ship HMAS Melville replaced the now decommissioned vessels HMA Ships Moresby and Flinders in 2000. Both ships take their names from prominent points on the Australian coast. Leeuwin is named after Cape Leeuwin, on the SW tip of Western Australia. Leeuwin was launched midway through 1997. The ships were built by NQEA in Cairns, North Queensland.

Leeuwin and Melville enable the Australian Hydrographic Service to gather high quality hydrographic information at a much greater rate than the ships they replace. The ships are 71 metres in length, with a beam of 15 metres, and a draught of 5.4 metres. Each ship displaces 2,550 tonnes and is manned by a crew of 46 officers and sailors. A state of the art Hydrographic Survey System (HSS) developed by STN Atlas will integrate accurate position information with data from a multi-beam echo sounder, towed side-scan sonar, single beam echo sounder and a forward-looking sonar. The ships will also carry three fully equipped 9 metre Survey Motor Boats for surveys in waters not suitable for the ships themselves. Both ships are capable of carrying a helicopter to assist in survey operations.