Mar. 2-4, 1945: carrier HMS ILLUSTRIOUS in the Captain Cook dock, Sydney - prob. Steve Given, RAN.

6237. With water pumped from the new dock, we get a look at the 23,000-28,661 tons [full load] carrier's undersides.

 

Here's a partial listing of warships that entered the Capotain Cook Dock between March 1945 and March 1995, and the number of times:

 

Battleships: HMS ANSON [2] HMS DUKE OF YORK [2] HMS KING GEORGE V [I]

 

Carriers: HMAS MELBOURNE [27]; HMAS SYDNEY [24] HMAS VENGEANCE [5]

HMS FORMIDABLE [I]; HMS GLORY [2] HMS ILLUSTRIOUS [I] ; HMS IMPLACABLE [2] ; HMS INDEFATIGABLE [I]; HMS INDOMITABLE [I]; HMS VENERABLE [I]; HMS VENGEANCE [I]; HMS VICTORIOUS [I].

 

Cruisers: HMAS AUSTRALIA [17]; HMAS HOBART [14]; HMAS SHROPSHIRE [7].

 

Missile destroyers: HMAS BRISBANE [14]; HMAS HOBART [14] HMAS PERTH [15]

 

Destroyers: HMAS ANZAC [11]; HMAS ARUNTA [18]; HMAS BATAAN [13]; HMAS DUCHESS [8];

HMAS QUADRANT [14]; HMAS QUALITY [9]; HMAS QUEENBOROUGH [23]; HMAS QUIBERON [25]; HMAS QUICKMATCH [7]; HMAS TOBRUK [21]; HMAS VAMPIRE [23]; HMAS VENDETTA [10]; HMAS VOYAGER [9]; HMAS WARRAMUNGA [21] HMS CARYSFORT [1].

 

Frigates: HMAS BARCOO [32] - record; HMAS GASCOYNE [20]; HMAS MURCHISON [15] ;

HMAS HAWKESBURY [11]; HMAS SHOALHAVEN [13]; HMAS CULGOA [12] HMAS CONDAMINE [13] ; HMAS MACQUARIE [5]; PNS SIND [1]; HMAS DIAMANTINA [3]; HMAS LACHLAN [1].

 

Destroyer escorts: HMAS PARRAMATTA [14]; HMAS STUART [8]; HMAS YARRA [12]; HMAS TORRENS [7] ; HMAS SWAN [6] HMAS DERWENT [5].

 

There are scores of dockings among submarines and ships of other types, as well as about 40 commercial vessels, including FAIRSTAR [2] and GOTHIC [1]. Overall, apart from the two years the BPF was based in Sydney, foreign usage of the Australian dockyard appears to have been very light. The ship names and figures here are from the CXook Dock's 50th anniversary booklet.

 

Photo: based on the book credit in the following entry, we think this photo can also probably be attributed to Steve Given, RAN.

Done