HMAS Attack (P 90)

HMAS Attack (second from right) with three other Attack class patrol boats
History
Australia
Builder	Evans Deakin and Company
Launched	8 April 1967
Commissioned	17 November 1967
Decommissioned	21 February 1985
Motto	"Never Waver"
Fate	Sold to Indonesia
Badge
History
Indonesian Navy
Name	KRI Sikuda
Status	Unknown
General characteristics
Class and type	Attack class patrol boat
Displacement	100 tons standard 146 tons full load
Length	107.6 ft (32.8 m) length overall
Beam	20 ft (6.1 m)
Draught	6.4 ft (2.0 m) at standard load 7.3 ft (2.2 m) at full load
Propulsion	2x 16-cylinder Paxman YJCM diesel engines 3,460 shp (2,580 kW) 2 shafts
Speed	24 knots (44 km/h; 28 mph)
Range	1,200 nautical miles (2,200 km; 1,400 mi) at 13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph)
Complement	3 officers, 16 sailors
Armament	1 x Bofors 40 mm gun 2 x .50 calibre M2 Browning machine guns Small arms

HMAS Attack (P 90) was the lead ship of the Attack class patrol boats used by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

Design and construction

Main article: Attack class patrol boat

The Attack class was ordered in 1964 to operate in Australian waters as patrol boats (based on lessons learned through using the Ton class minesweepers on patrols of Borneo during the Indonesia-Malaysia Confrontation, and to replace a variety of old patrol, search-and-rescue, and general-purpose craft. Initially, nine were ordered for the RAN, with another five for Papua New Guinea's Australian-run coastal security force, although another six ships were ordered to bring the class to twenty vessels. The patrol boats had a displacement of 100 tons at standard load and 146 tons at full load, were 107.6 feet (32.8 m) in length overall, had a beam of 20 feet (6.1 m), and draughts of 6.4 feet (2.0 m) at standard load, and 7.3 feet (2.2 m) at full load. Propulsion machinery consisted of two 16-cylinder Paxman YJCM diesel engines, which supplied 3,460 shaft horsepower (2,580 kW) to the two propellers. The vessels could achieve a top speed of 24 knots (44 km/h; 28 mph), and had a range of 1,200 nautical miles (2,200 km; 1,400 mi) at 13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph). The ship's company consisted of three officers and sixteen sailors. Main armament was a bow-mounted Bofors 40 mm gun, supplemented by two .50 calibre M2 Browning machine guns and various small arms. The ships were designed with as many commercial components as possible: the Attacks were to operate in remote regions of Australia and New Guinea, and a town's hardware store would be more accessible than home base in a mechanical emergency.

Attack was built by Evans Deakin and Company at Brisbane, Queensland, launched on 8 April 1967 and commissioned on 17 November 1967. Although lead ship of the class, Attack was the second ship commissioned into the RAN, four days behind HMAS Aitape.

Operational history

Attack paid off on 21 February 1985, and was transferred to the Indonesian Navy on 24 May 1985 and renamed Sikuda.

References

• Blackman, Raymond, ed. (1968). Jane's Fighting Ships, 1968-69 (71st ed.). London: Jane's Publishing Company. OCLC 123786869.
• Gillett, Ross (1988). Australian and New Zealand Warships since 1946. Brookvale, NSW: Child & Associates. ISBN 0867772190. OCLC 23470364.
• "The patrol boat". Australian National Maritime Museum. Retrieved 30 June 2011.