HMAS

Kiara

The Motor Yacht (MY) Penelope was built by Halvorsen and Sons Pty Ltd at Neutral Bay in 1938 for Rupert S Harden of Harden and Johnston Ltd, a motor vehicle importer. At the time Penelope was considered one of the fastest yachts in the state and consistently finished in the top three in regattas held during 1939.

Penelope was requisitioned for naval service on 21 February 1941 for service as a boom defence vessel in Darwin. She was refitted for naval service at the Halvorsens shipyard and purchased by the Navy for the sum of £2031-15-8. She was commissioned into the RAN in Sydney as a tender to the RAN’s naval establishment in Darwin, HMAS Melville, on 26 May 1941 under the command of Lieutenant Hugh Brown, RANVR, and armed with a .303 Vickers machine gun. As there was already a ship named HMS Penelope commissioned in the Royal Navy the name HMAS Kiara was selected to avoid confusion with the British light cruiser.

Following a brief work up period in the vicinity of Broken Bay, Kiara had been due to depart Sydney for Darwin on 28 June in company with HMAS Southern Cross, designated to serve as an examination vessel in Darwin; however, a defect with Kiara’s propeller delayed their departure by 24 hours. It was a precursor to a problematic voyage north. The two vessels departed Sydney on the morning of 29 June but ongoing engineering defects saw Kiara spend much of the voyage under tow by Southern Cross before undergoing repairs in Brisbane and Townsville, where she was slipped in order to examine her propeller shaft, and later Cairns. The two vessels eventually arrived in Darwin on 2 August 1941.

Kiara initially participated in survey operations in the northern approaches to Bynoe Harbour and, on 21 October 1941, struck a submerged rock while conducting survey duties and was holed. With repairs completed she then commenced duties as a boom defence vessel in December, a task she performed for the remainder of her commission as well as undertaking occasional search and rescue duties.

Kiara was in Darwin Harbour on 19 February 1942 when 188 Japanese aircraft launched the first two of 64 air raids against the city and the surrounding area. Eight ships were sunk, one beached and subsequently lost, and many of the 45 ships in the harbour were damaged, along with extensive damage to the city and the nearby RAAF aerodrome. Over the course of those first two attacks, 243 people were killed and a further 400 wounded.

Kiara, along with the other boom defence vessels, steamed around the harbour trying to provide assistance to stricken crews. Eventually Kiara’s engine broke down and she anchored near the wharf. As a large patch of burning oil was seen drifting towards her, the lugger HMAS Yampi Lass towed her to safety.

Kiara continued to serve in Darwin until she decommissioned on 27 September 1944. She was sold the following year.

HMAS Kiara served as a tender to the RAN’s naval establishment in Darwin, HMAS Melville and was present in Darwin Harbour on 19 February 1942 when 188 Japanese aircraft launched the first two of 64 air raids against the city and the surrounding area.