Patrol Boat, General (PB)
Patrol Boat service
The Royal Australian Navy currently operates the Armidale Class Patrol Boat and an additional two Cape Class Patrol Boats.
Australia's Armidale Class Patrol Boat fleet are named after Australian cities and towns with close links with Navy heritage. The Armidale Class were named to coincide with the 60th commemoration of the sinking of the original HMAS Armidale (I). The Armidale Class provide Navy an improved capability to intercept and apprehend vessels in a greater range of sea conditions than the earlier patrol boat classes; the Fremantle Class and the Attack Class.
Most importantly, Patrols Boats are a primary enabler of the Australian Defence Force contribution to Operation SOVEREIGN BORDERS, which is a whole of government effort to protect Australia's borders and offshore interests.
Our operations in association with Border Force, Australian Fisheries and Australian Federal Police protect against unauthorised entry, breaches of customs, immigration and drugs legislation, other illegal activity and in support of law enforcement, preserve the integrity of our national fish-stocks, our marine environment and other natural resources.
When protecting our borders, Patrol Boat crews are typically employed on a range of constabulary duties involving tracking, intercepting, stopping and boarding other vessels, and sometimes arresting their crews and seizing cargo.
Patrol boats are home ported either in HMAS Coonawarra, Darwin, Northern Territory or HMAS Cairns, Cairns, Queensland.
Life in Australia's tropical North has many advantages with easy access to Asia for leave, stunning National Parks, including Kakadu and Litchfield, just outside Darwin, a great outdoor lifestyle, camping, fishing, water sports and 4WD opportunities. There are also numerous cultural and artistic events, including festivals. Although in Darwin the cost of living is a little higher than elsewhere in Australia, this is compensated for by District Allowance. There are also travel allowances for RAN members and their dependants.
The region is monsoonal, and is characterised by two seasons - a wet season from late December until the end of April, and a dry season from May to December. Temperatures are warm all the year round, but the dry season is cooler at night and much less humid than the wet. The transition between the dry and the wet, between October and December, is a time of increasing humidity and rainfall, and is referred to as the build-up. The cyclone season runs from 1 November to 30 April each year.
Following is a list of patrol boats operated by the Royal Australian Navy.
