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HMAS Anzac III

Occasional Paper 47: HMAS ANZAC III

March 2019

HMAS ANZAC (FFH150) III

Al Faw Peninsula Iraq – NGS MISSION

By Dennis J Weatherall JP TM AFAITT(L) LSM

Volunteer Researcher, Naval Historical Society of Australia

HMAS ANZAC III

It took 31 years for the RAN to go to war and use a destroyer as a gun platform.  HMAS Brisbane was the last DDG to serve on the Vietnam Gun Line and its last NGS mission occurred in September 1971.

HMAS ANZAC departed Fleet Base West for her deployment to the Gulf on 28th October 2002.  She was to be the first RAN destroyer since the Vietnam conflict to be used for the duty she was designed, Naval Gun Support (NGS).

ANZAC was under the command of Captain Peter G. Lockwood, RAN, later to become Commodore P.G. Lockwood DSC, CSC, RAN now retired. Commodore Lockwood has been good enough to share his unclassified paperwork with the author.

His Supply officer, CMDR Stuart Wheeler RAN, wrote a paper titled “Five Inch Friday”.  This paper was the only article other than the Captain’s post operation report which is still classified.  In future this report may become general reading material so there is little information on which to base this paper in open source.

ANZAC was fitted with the following armament:

Single 5 inch 54 calibre (127mm)

Two Raphael Typhoon 12.7mm

Phalanx 20mm close-in-weapons system

Eight Harpoon Surface-to-surface missiles

Mk. 41 vertical launch system – Sea sparrow and evolved Sea Sparrow

Two triple Mk 32 torpedo launchers

Various 12.7mm Browning and small arms

ANZAC third deployment to the Persian Gulf took her through to May 2003, as part of Operation Falconer.  On 21st March, ANZAC was called on to support a Royal Marine assault on the “Al Faw” Peninsula.  The Royal Marine’s mission was to capture the peninsula before the Iraq forces could sabotage the oil terminals.

On 19th March, US Navy Seals and Polish GROM forces commenced a sea and air assault under the command of Naval Special Warfare Task Group (CTG 561).  ANZAC stood by to extract forces if required.  The US Navy Seals secured both oil terminals.  This action was followed by a wave of “Tomahawk” land attack missiles.  Over 800 missiles were delivered in the first 24 hours from 35 allied warships and submarines stationed in the Gulf.

On 20th March, Royal Navy ships Marlborough (Type 23), Chatham (Type 22) and Richmond (Type 23) were detached for bombardment duties.

HMS Marlborough, Duke class, Type 23 Guided Missile Frigate             Royal Navy image

The Royal Marines were faced by resistance from the Iraq Forces and called for immediate NGS to engage Iraq Command Posts.  ANZAC received the first call-for-fire at 05:58.  ANZAC fired six ranging salvos followed by a five-round fire-for-effect with the salvoes hitting bunkers and artillery positions. ANZAC answered another call-for-fire destroying a T59 artillery piece in a fire mission of just three rounds.  It was extremely accurate fire and at near maximum range.

“Naval Gunfire Support was used to encourage capitulation with success on a number of occasions.  It was employed to suppress enemy activity at short notice, to shatter confidence and neutralise fixed protective gun positions.  The Battery Commander reported “success on the Al Faw was due to the aggressive use of indirect fire support, especially the swift response to NGS ships which had a huge impact on the ground and shattered the enemy’s will to fight.”  A total of 17 fire missions were executed with just 155 rounds of 5 inch and 4.5 inch ammunition being expended”. Vice Admiral Peter Jones: “The Maritime Campaign in Iraq”.

 ANZAC completed seven fire missions over a period of three days.  The ship received a Meritorious Unit Citation on 27th November for her service during this deployment.  In March 2010, ANZAC was awarded the battle honours “Persian Gulf 2001-03” and “Iraq 2003”.

References:

  • Semaphore newsletter of the Sea Power Centre Australia Issue # 6, August 2003
  • Maritime Campaign in Iraq, Vice Admiral Peter Jones AO DSC RAN Rtd.
  • Battle of Al Faw (2003) – 3 Commando Brigade, Royal Marines
  • The War in Iraq – ADF Operations in the Middle East 2003, Australian Ministry of Defence – paper
  • Five Inch Friday – paper by CMDR Stuart Wheeler RAN, HMAS ANZAC Supply Officer
  • HMAS ANZAC – Ship’s general details RAN ships web page

The Three Ships called Anzac

The following tributes to the three ships which have borne the proud name Anzac have been brought together from information held in our archives. It is perhaps the expected problem of the historian that over time more information is held upon the more distant past, and in this instance we find many aged records concerning Anzac (I) and considerable material on Anzac (II), whereas that on Anzac (III) is still being assembled.

The main characteristics of these three ships demonstrate the many changes in surface ships and their capabilities covering much of the history of the RAN. Anzac (I) was an advanced ship of her time with oil burning boilers driving steam turbines, whereas many ships of this vintage were coal burning, driving reciprocating engines.  Anzac (II) had the benefits of lessons learned in WW II, and although her design was somewhat obsolete she was a capable and graceful ship. Anzac (III) was the lead ship of a most successful construction program proving Australia’s capability as a successful builder of contemporary warships to demanding schedules.

While ships become marginally larger with improved weapon systems, some things such as speed have not changed. The importance of escalating costs should not be overlooked; allowing for inflation, the real cost declined during the first two building programs from 1917 to 1948, but more than doubled to 1996. Perhaps the overall surprise is how little the size of ships of European origin as weapons platforms has changed during the intervening eighty years when compared with other types of maritime vessels, which have shown quantum increases in tonnage.

The very name Anzac evokes fine traditions of dedication, endurance, mateship and selflessness shared by Australian and New Zealand forces during a period of bitter and dogged fighting and resistance on the Gallipoli Peninsula in 1915 against a worthy adversary. All three have been fine ships which have lived up to the proud motto ‘United We Stand’.

Note: Keen observers will have noted changes to the ship’s badges, starting with Anzac (I), a design inherited from the Royal Navy; there are also subtle differences to the surrounds of the Anzac (II) badge which was changed in 1964. The 1964 version is similar to that now displayed by Anzac (III).

Anzac (I)

Anzac (II)

Anzac (III)
Builder Denny Bros Williamstown Naval Dockyard Tenix Defence Systems
Where Built Dumbarton, Scotland Williamstown, Victoria Williamstown, Victoria
Laid Down 31 January 1916 23 September 1946 05 November 1993
Launched 11 January 1917 20 August 1948 16 September 1994
Commissioned 24 April 1917 14 March 1951 18 May 1996
Length 99 m (325 ft) 116 m (379 ft) 118 m (387 ft)
Beam 9.4 m (31 ft) 12.5 m (41 ft) 14.8 m (49 ft)
Draught 3.7 m (12 ft) 4.8 m (16 ft) 4.4 m (14 ft)
Displacement full load 1,670 tons 2,436 tons 3,600 tonnes
Armament 4 x 4” guns 2 x 2 pdr pom poms 4 x Lewis guns 4 x 4.5” guns 12 x 40 mm BoforsSquid A/S mortar 1 x 127 mm (5“) gun, 2 x Quad Harpoon Sea Sparrow, 1 x Phalanx ciws, 4 x 50 cal machine guns, 1 x Seahawk helicopter
Torpedos 4 x 21” tubes 2 x 5 x 21” tubes 6 x 324 mm (12.75”) tubes
Machinery Brown Curtis steam turbinesTriple screws 2 x Parsons geared steam turbinesTwin screw CODOG with 1 x GE LM 2500 gas turbine + 2 x MTU dieselsTwin screw
Designed shp 36,000 50,000 33,600
Designed Speed 34 kts 35 kts 27 kts
Range 2,500 n. miles 4,400 n. miles 6,000 n. miles
Complement 122 290 173
Cost £209,337 ($418,674) £250,000 ($500,000) $600 m (approx)

 

HMAS Anzac (III) – first in class

The third ship to carry the proud name of Anzac was the lead ship of a class of ten similar vessels built by Transfield Defence Industries, later known as Tenix Defence Systems, at Williamstown, Victoria. Two of the class were built on behalf of the Royal New Zealand Navy.

‘Meko’ Class and Built in Australia

Selected in 1989, the design (based upon the German ‘Meko’ class) used modular construction methods, allowing parallel fabrication of ship sections in a number of covered facilities, minimising weather effects and resulting in an overall reduction in building times. Given the complexity of the task the program was well executed, with Anzac being laid down in November 1993 and commissioned in less than three years, in May 1996. Follow-on ships were delivered in record time at the rate of about one per year, with the last of the ship class, HMAS Perth, commissioning in August 2006.

Machinery and Armaments

These multi-role ships are fitted with combined diesel or gas turbine propulsion (CODOG) with gas turbines generally being used for high speeds and diesel engines for normal cruising. Propulsion is via two controllable pitched propellers. They have an effective weapon system of a single 127 mm (5 inch) gun, two quad Harpoon missile launchers, vertical launch system for Sea-Sparrow anti-air missiles and lightweight ASW torpedos. A Seahawk helicopter is also carried to enhance anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare capabilities. The ships have a conventional hull form but are easily recognised with their outwardly raked funnels.

Operations

In October 1997 Anzac, in company with the tanker HMAS Westralia, was deployed on Southern Ocean patrol of Australia’s Exclusive Economic Zone in search of Foreign Fishing Vessels (FFVs) illegally taking fishing stock. Using boarding parties inserted by Seahawk, two FFVs were apprehended and then escorted back to the mainland.

In September 1999 Anzac was deployed to East Timor in support of the Australian- led International Force for East Timor (INTERFET) peacekeeping taskforce. Anzac was first deployed to the Middle East in early 2002 as a unit of Operation Relex, providing border protection and maritime intercept operations as part of the United Nations sanctions against Iraq. Following a refit at the Tenix shipyard at Henderson, WA and the subsequent work-up, Anzac was again deployed to the Persian Gulf in 2003 as part of Operation Falconer. In March 2003 Anzac, in company with Royal Naval frigates, began naval gunfire in direct support of the British-led Royal Marine Commando assault on Iraqi troops in the Al Faw Peninsula of southern Iraq. This was the first time in over 30 years that a ship of the RAN had fired in anger.

After the engagement the following message was received from 40 Commando: ‘The Al Faw vegetation belt has been successfully cleared of all enemy and the airport and other key military installations are now secure with no enemy resistance. Success was largely due to aggressive use of indirect fire assets and the swift and lethal response of respective units. Your bombardment and destruction of key military installations had a huge impact on the ground and shattered the enemy’s will to fight.’

Anzac departed Albany, WA on 11 March 2005 retracing the historic 1914 route of the World War I convoy of Australian and New Zealand forces to Gallipoli. She was in company with warships of Britain, France and Turkey marking the 90th anniversary of the landings. A photograph of Anzac taken on this occasion provides a stunning backdrop to the dawn service ceremony. The ship then proceeded to England as part of an International Fleet Review marking the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar.

In 2007 Anzac commenced her third deployment to the Persian Gulf where she was involved in sixty five boarding and security patrols over a period of six months. Anzac carries a fast 7.2 metre Rigid-Hulled Inflatable Boat (RHIB) which provides invaluable support in encounters with, and boarding of, suspicious vessels. In keeping with the ‘Spirit of Anzac’ the RHIB is known as Lone Pine, which is also the name given to the ship’s canteen.

In March 2009 Anzac was one of seventeen warships involved in a ceremonial fleet entry and fleet review in Sydney Harbour. This was the largest number of RAN ships to be gathered together since the Australian Bicentenary in 1988.

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