Rear Admiral Nicholas David Hunter Hammond
Nicholas David Hunter Hammond was born in Market Bosworth, United Kingdom, on 13 January 1945 and migrated to Australia with his family in 1949. He was educated at St Bede’s College in Melbourne, Victoria before entering the RAN College (HMAS Creswell), in January 1960. Upon graduation in 1963 he was awarded the prize for physics and the New Zealand Naval Board prize for navigation. He then undertook further training at sea in HMA Ships Anzac and Melbourne (and the following year was awarded the inaugural RAN College Memorial Sword for best results in Stage 2 training in the fleet).
In 1964, Hammond proceeded to the United Kingdom for training at the Royal Naval Engineering College (RNEC) at Manadon. He was promoted to Sub Lieutenant in September 1964 and Lieutenant in July 1967. He graduated from RNEC in 1968 with a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering Degree and specialised as a weapons electrical engineering officer.
In January 1969 he joined the destroyer HMAS Vendetta as the Weapons Electrical Engineer Officer. He saw active service in Vendetta, in Vietnamese waters, between September 1969 and April 1970 when the destroyer was attached to the US Navy for duties on the ‘gunline’ providing naval gunfire support to coalition forces ashore.
Lieutenant Hammond joined the Directorate of Fleet Maintenance at Navy Office in Canberra, in late 1970, and worked in the Maintenance Research and Policy Section until late 1973. He then served as the Weapons Electrical Engineer Officer in the destroyer escort HMAS Derwent during 1974-75. Following promotion to Lieutenant Commander in July 1975 he attended the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT), in 1976, where he completed a Graduate Diploma in Computing and then worked at the Naval Dockyard at Williamstown, Victoria.
In late 1977, Lieutenant Commander Hammond returned to the Directorate of Fleet Maintenance where he was employed in the Under Water Systems Section. He was promoted to Commander in June 1979 and was the Weapons Electrical Engineer Officer in the guided missile destroyer HMAS Hobart in 1980-81. In 1982 he attended the Naval Post Graduate School in Monterey, California and completed his thesis on Requirements analysis and specification methodologies for embedded computer systems.
Upon return to Australia in 1983, Commander Hammond was posted to the Guided Missile Destroyer Upgrade Directorate in Navy Office. He was promoted to Captain in December 1984. During 1986-88 Captain Hammond served in the Anzac Frigate Project Directorate at Navy Office.
Hammond was promoted to Commodore in December 1988 and then attended the Canadian National Defence College at Ontario in 1989. Upon return to Australia he was the Director of the Anzac Frigate Project during 1990-92. Commodore Hammond was promoted to Rear Admiral on 14 December 1992 and became the Assistant Chief of Naval Staff - Materiel. He was appointed as an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in the Australia Day Honours List 1993 ‘For distinguished service and exceptional performance of duty in the RAN, with the Naval Materiel Division and particularly as Anzac Ship Project Director’.
Rear Admiral Hammond retired from the RAN in January 1995 and became the First Assistant Secretary Defence Materiel in the Department of Defence for the period 1995-96. After retiring from the Department of Defence he became the Managing Director of Celsius-Tech Australia and then worked for Saab Systems until retiring in February 2003. Rear Admiral Hammond died in Adelaide, South Australia after a lengthy illness on 12 October 2003.
