HMAS Leeuwin (A 245)

HMAS "Leeuwin" (HS 01/A 245) is the lead ship of the "Leeuwin"-class of hydrographic survey vessels operated by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).
Design and construction.
"Leeuwin" has a displacement of 2,170 tons at full load. She is long, with a beam of , and a draught of . Main propulsion machinery consists of four GEC Alsthom 6RK 215 diesel generators, which supply two Alsthom electric motors, each driving a propeller shaft. A Schottel bow thruster is fitted for additional manoeuvrability. Maximum speed is , with a range of at .
The sensor suite consists of a STN Atlas 9600 APRA I-band navigational radar, a C-Tech CMAS 36/39 hull-mounted sonar, an Atlas Fansweep-20 multibeam echo sounder, an Atlas Hydrographic Deso single-beam echo sounder, and a Klein 2000 towed sonar. The sonars and echo sounders allow the vessels to chart waters up to deep. There are three sets of davits fitted to carry "Fantome"-class survey boats. The ship is fitted with a helicopter deck for an AS 350B Squirrel helicopter (detached from 723 Squadron), although there are no long-term hosting facilities. She is armed with two single 12.7 mm machine guns. The ship's company consists of 10 officers and 46 sailors, plus up to 5 trainees. The "Leeuwin" class were the first RAN ships to use a multi-crewing concept, with three complements used to operate the two vessels.
"Leeuwin" was ordered from NQEA Australia on 2 April 1996, and built at the company's shipyard in Cairns. She was laid down on 9 May 1997 and launched on 23 June 1998. "Leeuwin" and sister ship "Melville" underwent a joint commissioning ceremony on 27 May 2000. "Leeuwin" initially carried the pennant number "HS 01", but this was changed to "A 245" in 2004. She is named after Cape Leeuwin, the south-west-most point of the Australian continent.
Operational history.
In late 2001, "Leeuwin" began to operate in support of border protection operations in addition to her normal hydrographic duties. In January 2002, "Leeuwin" was repainted from white to grey.
In October 2013, "Leeuwin" participated in the International Fleet Review 2013 in Sydney. The fleet was reviewed by Governor-General Quentin Bryce on 5 October from "Leeuwin"s helicopter deck, with Bryce accompanied by Prince Harry.
"Leeuwin" sailed to Fiji in July 2015 for a seabed-mapping operation around Rotuma Island. This was the first RAN deployment to the region in eight years, since the deterioration of ties between the nations after the 2006 Fijian coup d'état.