View source for Perth-class destroyer

{{Short description|Destroyer class of the Royal Australian Navy}}
{{for|the World War II-era light cruisers sometimes referred to as the ''Perth'' class|Leander-class cruiser (1931)#Modified Leander group}}
{{Use Australian English|date=April 2018}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2018}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=[[File:DDG-38.jpg|300px|HMAS ''Perth'' at sea in 1980]]
|Ship caption=HMAS ''Perth'' at sea in 1980
}}
{{Infobox ship class overview
|Name=''Perth'' class
|Builders=[[Defoe Shipbuilding Company]], [[Bay City, Michigan]]
|Operators={{navy|Australia}}
|Class before={{sclass|Daring|destroyer (1949)|4}}
|Class after={{sclass|Hobart|destroyer|4}}
|Subclasses={{sclass|Charles F. Adams|destroyer|4}} (parent)
|Cost=
|Built range=
|In commission range=1965–2001
|Total ships completed=3
|Total ships active=
|Total ships preserved=3 (as [[dive wreck]]s)
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Ship type=[[Guided missile destroyer]]
|Ship displacement=*3,370 tons standard
*4,500 tons full load (at launch)
*4,618 tons full load (in 1998)
|Ship length=*{{convert|440.8|ft|abbr=on}} at [[waterline length|waterline]]
*{{convert|437|ft|abbr=on}} [[length overall]]
|Ship beam={{convert|47.1|ft|abbr=on}}
|Ship draught={{convert|20.1|ft|abbr=on}}
|Ship propulsion=*4 × Foster Wheeler D-type boilers
*2 × General Electric double reduction steam turbines
*{{convert|70,000|shp|abbr=on}}
*2 shafts
|Ship speed={{convert|35|kn|lk=in}}
|Ship range=*{{convert|6,000|nmi|lk=in}} at {{convert|15|kn}}
*{{convert|2000|nmi}} at {{convert|30|kn}}
|Ship endurance=
|Ship complement=*21 officers, 312 sailors (at launch)
*25 officers, 285 sailors (in 1998)
|Ship sensors=*Hughes SPS-52C air search radar
*Norden [[AN/SPS-40|SPS-40C]] air search radar
*Norden [[AN/SPS-67|SPS-67V]] surface search radar
*2 × Raytheon [[AN/SPG-51|SPG-51G]] fire control radars (Mark 13 launcher)
*Western Electric SPG-53F fire control radar (5-inch guns)
*Sangamo SQS-23KL hull-mounted sonar
|Ship EW=*2 × [[SRBOC]] Mark 36 units
*[[Nulka]] decoy launcher
*AN/SLQ-25 towed decoy
|Ship armament=*1 × [[Mark 13 missile launcher]] (initially firing [[RIM-24 Tartar|Tartar]], replaced in mid-late 1970s by [[RIM-66 Standard|Standard]], fitted [[for but not with]] [[Harpoon (missile)|Harpoon]])
*2 × [[5"/54 caliber Mark 42 gun|5-inch/54 caliber Mark 42 guns]] (two single turrets)
*2 × [[Ikara (missile)|Ikara]] anti-submarine missile launchers (removed 1990–91)
*2 × [[Mark 32 Surface Vessel Torpedo Tube]] sets ([[Mark 46 torpedo]]es)
*2 × [[Vulcan Phalanx]] CIWS (fitted 1990–91, not permanently carried
|Ship armour=
|Ship notes=
}}
|}
The '''''Perth''-class destroyers''' were three modified {{sclass|Charles F. Adams|destroyer|0}} [[guided missile destroyer]]s operated by the [[Royal Australian Navy]] (RAN). Ordered from [[Defoe Shipbuilding Company]] during 1962 and 1963, HMA Ships {{HMAS|Perth|D 38|2}}, {{HMAS|Hobart|D 39|2}}, and {{HMAS|Brisbane|D 41|2}} were the first guided missile armed warships, and the first naval ships of United States design, to enter service with the RAN. All three ships operated during the [[Vietnam War]], while ''Brisbane'' also participated in the [[Gulf War]]. The class was decommissioned between 1999 and 2001, with all three vessels later sunk as [[dive wreck]]s.

==Design and construction==
{{see also|Charles F. Adams-class destroyer}}
During the late 1950s, the RAN announced a requirement for guided missile-armed warships; along with plans to install guided missiles aboard currently active escort vessels, plans were made to acquire two purpose-built [[destroyer]]s.<ref name=Cooper190>Cooper, in Stevens, ''The Royal Australian Navy'', p. 190</ref> Although traditionally, Australian warships were based on British designs, the RAN chose to study the [[United States Navy]]'s (USN) {{sclass|Charles F. Adams|destroyer|4}} along with the [[Royal Navy]]'s {{sclass2|County|destroyer|4}}.<ref name=Cooper190/> The American design was favoured because the [[RIM-24 Tartar|Tartar]] missile carried was seen as the missile body the USN would standardize on for future [[Anti-aircraft warfare|anti-aircraft]] (AA) missile development while the British [[Sea Slug missile|Sea Slug]] was an interim and dated system. There were risks in operating American-designed vessels for a navy using predominately British-designed ships, however the County-class DDG used much unproven technology and was rather too large to fit a medium navy and the RAN proposed fitting the Tartar to County-class vessels.  However, another RAN proposal – to redesign the County class's standard [[combined steam and gas]] propulsion system as a purely steam-powered system – was knocked back by the British.<ref>Cooper, in Stevens, ''The Royal Australian Navy'', pp. 190–1</ref> The US destroyer was a more proven design which often an essential need for the RAN to have a powerful AA and GP character with the planned phase out of {{HMAS|Melbourne}} as a strike carrier in 1963.<ref> P. Jones. Buying the DDG in Goldrick, Jones and Frame. Reflections on the RAN , p329 and Jones and Frame. Seapower 2000 Paper RAN AA missile evolution</ref>

In 1960, the decision was made to instead acquire ''Charles F. Adams''-class ships, and on 6 January 1962, two destroyers of a slightly modified design were ordered from [[Defoe Shipbuilding Company]] of [[Bay City, Michigan]].<ref name=Gillett66>Gillett, ''Australian and New Zealand Warships since 1946'', p. 66</ref><ref name=Blackman13/> Plans to refit Tartar missiles to the {{sclass2|Battle|destroyer|5}} and {{sclass|Daring|destroyer|4||1949}}es were later cancelled because of cost, and on 22 January 1963, a third destroyer was ordered from Defoe.<ref name=Gillett66/><ref name=Cooper192>Cooper, in Stevens, ''The Royal Australian Navy'', p. 192</ref> The Australian ships were referred to as the ''Perth'' class after [[lead ship]] {{HMAS|Perth|D 38|6}}; the other two destroyers were HMA Ships {{HMAS|Hobart|D 39|2}} and {{HMAS|Brisbane|D 41|2}}.<ref name=Gillett66/> Thought was given to acquiring a fourth ship of the class, but this did not go ahead.<ref name=Cooper192/>

At launch, the destroyers had a standard displacement of 3,370 tons, and a full load displacement of 4,500 tons, although by 1998, various modifications and modernisations had increased the ship's full load displacement to 4,618 tons.<ref name=Blackman13>Blackman (ed.), ''Jane's Fighting Ships 1968–69'', p. 13</ref><ref name=Sharpe24>Sharpe (ed.), ''Jane's Fighting Ships 1998–99'', p. 24</ref> Each ship was {{convert|440.8|ft}} long at the [[waterline length|waterline]], {{convert|437|ft}} long [[length overall|overall]], had a beam of {{convert|47.1|ft}}, and a draught of {{convert|20.1|ft}}.<ref name=Sharpe24/><ref name=Blackman13/> The propulsion system consisted of four Foster Wheeler D-type boilers connected to two General Electric double reduction steam turbines; these provided {{convert|70000|shp}} to the two propeller shafts, allowing them to reach speeds of {{convert|35|kn|lk=in}}.<ref name=Blackman13/> Maximum range was {{convert|6,000|nmi|lk=in}} at {{convert|15|kn}}, or {{convert|2000|nmi}} at {{convert|30|kn}}.<ref name=Sharpe24/> The standard ship's company at launch consisted of 21 officers and 312 sailors.<ref name=Blackman13/>

Construction of lead ship ''Perth'' commenced when she was laid down on 21 September 1962.<ref name=Blackman13/> ''Perth'' was launched on 26 September 1963, completed on 22 May 1965, and commissioned into the RAN on 17 July 1965.<ref name=Blackman13/> ''Hobart'' was laid down a month after ''Perth'' on 26 October 1962, with launching on 9 January 1964, and completion on 18 December 1965, two days after she was commissioned into the RAN.<ref name=Blackman13/> Work on ''Brisbane'' did not start until 15 February 1965, with the destroyer launched on 5 May 1966, commissioned on 16 December 1967, but not completed until 24 January 1968.<ref name=Blackman13/><ref name=Sharpe24/> Construction and acquisition of the ''Perth'' class included many firsts for the RAN: they were the first ships to be armed with guided missiles, the first to be designed and built in the United States, and the first to be launched sideways instead of stern-first.<ref name=Gillett66/> During construction, the ships were respectively identified with the United States Navy [[hull number]]s DDG-25, DDG-26, and DDG-27.<ref>Sea Power Centre-Australia, ''AWD, Hobart, MFU or DDGH – What's in a name?''</ref>

===Armament and sensors===
As a guided-missile destroyer, the primary armament of the ''Perth''-class ships at launch was of a [[Mark 13 missile launcher|Mark 13]] missile launcher for [[RIM-24 Tartar|Tartar]] anti-aircraft missiles.<ref name=Blackman13/> This was supplemented by two [[5"/54 caliber Mark 42 gun|5-inch/54 calibre Mark 42 guns]] in two single turrets, two [[Ikara (missile)|Ikara]] anti-submarine missile systems (although the actual launchers were not installed until the late 1960s), and two [[Mark 32 Surface Vessel Torpedo Tube|Mark 32]] triple-tube torpedo sets for [[Mark 46 torpedo]]es.<ref name=Sharpe24/><ref name=Gillett66/> The main differences between the ''Perth'' class and the parent design related to the weapons systems: a large deckhouse was added between the two funnels to house the two Ikara launchers and their magazines, and the Mark 13 single-arm launcher was fitted instead of the [[Mark 11 missile launcher|Mark 11]] twin-arm launcher.<ref name=Gillett66/>

During the ships' careers, the Tartar missiles were replaced by the [[RIM-66 Standard|Standard]] missile, and the launchers were updated to fire the [[Harpoon (missile)|Harpoon]] missile, although Harpoon missiles were not carried by the ''Perth''s, and the modification was intended as a "[[for but not with]]" fitting.<ref name=Sharpe24/> During 1990 and 1991, the three ships were modified to carry two [[Vulcan Phalanx]] [[close-in weapons systems]]; Phalanx units were stored in a common pool, and were only fitted to the ships as required.<ref name=Sharpe24/> Around the same time as the Phalanx installation, the Ikara launchers and magazines were removed.<ref name=Sharpe24/> As a result, the magazine spaces were converted into accommodation and recreation areas, and the ship's company was reduced from 332 to 310, although the number of officers had increased by this point from 21 to 25.<ref name=Sharpe24/>

In 1998, near the end of the ships' careers, the radar suite consisted of a Hughes SPS-52C air search radar, a Norden SPS-40C air search radar, a Norden SPS-67V surface search radar, two Raytheon SPG-51G fire control radars for the Mark 13 launcher, and a Western Electric SPG-53F fire control radar for the 5-inch guns.<ref name=Sharpe24/> A Sangamo SQS-23KL hull-mounted sonar was fitted in the bow.<ref name=Sharpe24/> Countermeasures included two [[SRBOC]] Mark 36 units, a [[Nulka]] decoy launcher, and an AN/SLQ-25 towed decoy.<ref name=Sharpe24/>

==Operational history==
Between 1967 and 1971, all three destroyers were rotated through deployments to the Vietnam War: ''Perth'' and ''Hobart'' deployed three times, while ''Brisbane'' only undertook two tours.<ref name=Gillett66/> During these deployments, the destroyers were integrated into the [[United States Seventh Fleet]].<ref name=Gillett66/> The three ships operated primarily in the [[naval gunfire support]] role, but also performed screening escort for the American aircraft carriers, and were involved in the [[Market Time]] and [[Operation Sea Dragon (Vietnam War)|Sea Dragon]] operations, both of which aimed to prevent North Vietnamese troop and supply movements by sea.<ref name=OxCom127>Dennis et al., ''The Oxford Companion to Australian Military History'', p. 127</ref><ref>Frame, ''No Pleasure Cruise'', pp. 232–3</ref> During these deployments, ''Perth'' was damaged by North Vietnamese shells in October 1967, and ''Hobart'' was [[friendly fire|accidentally attacked]] by United States Air Force aircraft in June 1968.<ref name=OxCom127/>

In 1971, all three ships were marked for modernisation, primarily involving updates to the missile and gunnery systems, along with the installation of the Naval Combat Data System (a derivative of the United States Navy's [[Naval Tactical Data System]] modified for the ''Perth''s).<ref name=Gillett66/><ref name=Jones219>Jones, in Stevens, ''The Royal Australian Navy'', p. 219</ref> ''Hobart'' was refitted in San Francisco during 1972, but instead of following through on plans to update all three ships in American shipyards, the RAN decided to upgrade the other two destroyers at Garden Island instead to give the dockyard experience in refitting the destroyers.<ref name=Gillett66/><ref name=Jones219/>

From 1974 to the start of 1975, ''Hobart'' underwent a second modernisation, this time involving the fitting of a new combat system, updates to the radar suite, and modification of the Mark 13 launcher to fire Standard missiles.<ref name=Gillett66/> The same upgrades were made to the other two ships at Garden Island between 1977 and 1979.<ref name=Gillett66/>

During the early-to-mid 1980s, the destroyers, along with {{sclass|Adelaide|frigate}}s, were regularly deployed to the Indian Ocean.<ref name=Jones229>Jones, in Stevens, ''The Royal Australian Navy'', p. 229</ref> Maintaining a constant naval presence in the Indian Ocean was a response to the [[Soviet invasion of Afghanistan]], along with the growing presence of Soviet warships.<ref name=Jones229/>

[[File:HMAS Hobart (D39).jpg|thumb|left|''Hobart'' underway in 1992]]
The ships were modernised a third time between 1987 and 1991.<ref name=Sharpe24/> During this upgrade, the radar and gun systems were updated, and the Mark 13 launcher was modified to fire Harpoon missiles.<ref name=Sharpe24/>

''Brisbane'' served as part of the [[Operation Damask|RAN commitment]] to the [[Gulf War]] during 1990 and 1991.<ref name=OxCom127/>

[[File:HMAS Perth (D38) and HMAS Brisbane (D41).jpg|thumb|''Perth'' and ''Brisbane'' in 1995]]
In late 1993, {{USS|Goldsborough|DDG-20|6}}, a former ''Charles F. Adams''-class destroyer, was acquired by the RAN for use as a [[parts hulk]] to support the three ''Perth''-class vessels.<ref name=FinalDip>{{cite web |url=http://www.ussgoldsborough.com/dnn/History/FinalDisposition/tabid/192/Default.aspx |title=Final Disposition |date=2008 |publisher=USS Goldsborough (DDG 20) Association |access-date=26 August 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110723152027/http://www.ussgoldsborough.com/dnn/History/FinalDisposition/tabid/192/Default.aspx |archive-date=23 July 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> After arriving in Sydney in 1994, a four-man team was assigned to identify and remove equipment from the ship.<ref name=FinalDip/> These were primarily used to maintain the three destroyers, although some components were fitted to the ''Adelaide''-class guided missile frigates, or installed at training facilities.<ref name=FinalDip/> While being stripped, the team painted the number 40 on ''Goldsborough''{{'}}s bow, filling the gap in the [[pennant number]] sequence of the ''Perth''s.<ref name=FinalDip/> By August 1994, the ship had been stripped of usable equipment, and the hulk was sold to an Indian company for [[ship breaking]].<ref name=FinalDip/>

==Decommissioning and replacement==
All three ships were decommissioned between 1999 and 2001.<ref name=Jones272>Jones, in Stevens, ''The Royal Australian Navy'', p. 272</ref> Following their withdrawal from service, they were all sunk as [[dive wreck]]s in Australian waters: ''Perth'' off [[Albany, Western Australia]], ''Hobart'' off [[Yankalilla, South Australia]], and ''Brisbane'' off [[Mooloolaba, Queensland]].<ref name=OxCom127/><ref name=FinalDip/> Before being scuttled, ''Brisbane''{{'}}s bridge and forward 5-inch gun were removed from the destroyer; these were installed at the [[Australian War Memorial]] in 2007 as part of the "Conflicts 1945 to Today" gallery.<ref name=OxCom127/>

[[File:HMAS Brisbane AWM Nov 08.JPG|thumb|left|The bridge and forward gun turret of ''Brisbane'' on display at the Australian War Memorial]]
There was no direct replacement of the ''Perth'' class following their withdrawal from service, with the area air defence role instead taken by the ''Adelaide''-class guided missile frigates (which at the time, only had the capability to defend themselves, not other ships).<ref name=Jones272.3>Jones, in Stevens, ''The Royal Australian Navy'', pp. 272–3</ref><ref>Oldham (ed.), ''100 Years of the Royal Australian Navy'', p. 104</ref> Four of the six ''Adelaide'' class, were upgraded as a makeshift gap-filler, while the two oldest ''Adelaide''s were decommissioned to offset the cost.<ref name=Jones272.3/><ref>Oldham (ed.), ''100 Years of the Royal Australian Navy'', pp. 104–5</ref> Fleet anti-air defence remained at a reduced capability until the entry into service of the three {{sclass|Hobart|destroyer|0}} air warfare destroyers.<ref>Oldham (ed.), ''100 Years of the Royal Australian Navy'', p. 105</ref> {{HMAS|Hobart|DDG 39|6}} was commissioned on 23 September 2017.
{{-}}

==Ships==
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:left;"
!Name<ref name=Blackman13/>
!Pennant<ref name=Blackman13/>
!Builder<ref name=Blackman13/>
!Laid down<ref name=Blackman13/>
!Launched<ref name=Blackman13/>
!Completed<ref name=Blackman13/>
!Commissioned<ref name=Sharpe24/>
!Decommissioned
!Fate<ref name=OxCom127/><ref name=FinalDip/>
|-
|{{HMAS|Perth|D 38|2}}
|D 38
|rowspan=3|[[Defoe Shipbuilding Company]], [[Bay City, Michigan]]
|21 September 1962
|28 September 1963
|22 May 1965
|17 July 1965
|15 October 1999
|Sunk as dive wreck off the coast of [[Albany, Western Australia]]
|-
|{{HMAS|Hobart|D 39|2}}
|D 39
|26 October 1962
|9 January 1964
|18 December 1965
|18 December 1965
|12 May 2000
|Sunk as dive wreck off the coast of [[Yankalilla, South Australia]]
|-
|{{HMAS|Brisbane|D 41|2}}
|D 41
|15 February 1965
|5 May 1966
|24 January 1968
|16 December 1967
|19 October 2001
|Sunk as dive wreck off the coast of [[Mooloolaba, Queensland]]
|}

==Citations==
{{reflist|2}}

==References==
;Books
*{{cite book |editor=Blackman, Raymond |title=Jane's Fighting Ships 1968–69 |edition=71st |year=1968 |publisher=Jane's Publishing Company |location=London |oclc=123786869}}
*{{cite book |last=Dennis |first=Peter |author2=Grey, Jeffrey |author-link2=Jeffrey Grey |author3=Morris, Ewan |author4= Prior, Robin  |title=The Oxford Companion to Australian Military History |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=South Melbourne, VIC |date=2008 |edition=2nd |isbn=978-0-19-551784-2 |oclc=271822831}}
*{{cite book |last=Frame |first=Tom |author-link=Tom Frame (bishop) |title=No Pleasure Cruise: the story of the Royal Australian Navy |year=2004 |publisher=Allen & Unwin |location=Crows Nest, NSW |isbn=1-74114-233-4 |oclc=55980812}}
*{{cite book |last=Gillett |first=Ross |title=Australian and New Zealand Warships since 1946 |year=1988 |publisher=Child & Associates |location=Brookvale, NSW |isbn=0-86777-219-0 |oclc=23470364}}
*{{cite book |chapter=The Fleet |title=100 Years of the Royal Australian Navy |editor=Oldham, Charles |publisher=Faircount Media Group |location=Bondi Junction, NSW |date=2011 |url=http://www.nxtbook.com/faircount/RoyalAustralianNavy/RAN100/index.php |access-date=20 June 2011 |oclc=741711418 |archive-date=26 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121026110311/http://www.nxtbook.com/faircount/RoyalAustralianNavy/RAN100/index.php |url-status=dead }}
*{{cite book |title=Jane's Fighting Ships 1998–99 |editor=Sharpe, Richard |publisher=Jane's Information Group |location=Coulsdon, Surrey |date=1998 |edition=101st |isbn=0-7106-1795-X |oclc=39372676}}
*{{cite book |editor=Stevens, David |title=The Royal Australian Navy |series=The Australian Centenary History of Defence |volume=III |year=2001 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=South Melbourne, VIC |isbn=0-19-555542-2 |oclc=50418095}}
**{{cite book |last=Cooper |first=Alastair |title=The Royal Australian Navy |chapter=The Era of Forward Defence}}
**{{cite book |last=Jones |first=Peter |title=The Royal Australian Navy |chapter=Towards Self Reliance"; "A Period of Change and Uncertainty}}

;Journal articles
*{{cite journal |last=Andrew |first=Gordon |date=September 2010 |title=AWD, Hobart, MFU or DDGH – What's in a name? |journal=Semaphore |publisher=Sea Power Centre-Australia |volume=2010 |issue=7 |url=http://www.navy.gov.au/Publication:Semaphore_-_Issue_7%2C_September_2010 |access-date=6 December 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110312181540/http://www.navy.gov.au/Publication:Semaphore_-_Issue_7,_September_2010 |archive-date=12 March 2011 }}

==Further reading==
*{{cite book |last1=Shackleton |first1=David |title=The Impact of the Charles F. Adams Class Guided Missile Destroyers on the Royal Australian Navy |date=2019 |publisher=Sea Power Centre - Australia |location=Canberra |isbn=978-0-646-80600-6 |url=https://www.navy.gov.au/media-room/publications/sea-power-series-impact-charles-f-adams-class-guided-missile-destroyers}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Perth class destroyers}}
{{Perth class destroyer}}
{{Charles F. Adams class destroyer}}
[[Category:Destroyer classes]]
[[Category:Perth-class destroyers| ]]
[[Category:Vietnam War destroyers of Australia| ]]