HMAS Hobart (I) Australian Light Cruiser

HMAS Hobart (I)

HMAS Hobart was a modified Leander-class light cruiser which served in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) during World War II. Originally constructed for the Royal Navy as HMS Apollo, the ship entered service in 1936, and was sold to Australia two years later. During the war, Hobart was involved in the evacuation of British Somaliland in 1940, fought at the Battle of the Coral Sea and supported the amphibious landings at Guadalcanal and Tulagi in 1942. She was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine in 1943, then returned to service in 1945 and supported the landings at Tarakan, Wewak, Brunei, and Balikpapan. Hobart was placed in reserve in 1947, but plans to modernise her and return her to service as an aircraft carrier escort, training ship, or guided missile ship were not followed through. The cruiser was sold for scrapping in 1962.

General characteristics (as completed)
Class and type	Modified Leander-class light cruiser
Displacement	7,003 long tons (7,115 t) (standard)
Length	562 ft 4 in (171.4 m) (o/a)530 ft (161.5 m) (p/p)
Beam	56 ft 8 in (17.3 m)
Draught	19 ft 5 in (5.9 m)
Installed power	4 × Admiralty 3-drum boilers 72,000 shp (54,000 kW)
Propulsion	4 shafts; 4 × geared steam turbines
Speed	32.5 kn (60.2 km/h; 37.4 mph)
Range	7,000 nmi (13,000 km; 8,100 mi) at 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph)
Complement	646 (35 officers, 611 ratings) standard
Armament	4 × twin BL 6 in (152 mm) guns 4 × single QF 4 in (102 mm) guns 3 × quadruple 0.5 in (12.7 mm) AA machineguns 2 × quadruple 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes
Armour	Waterline belt: 3 in (76 mm) Magazine: 2–3.5 in (51–89 mm) Deck: 1 in (25 mm) Gun turrets: 1 in (25 mm)
Aircraft carried	1 Supermarine Walrus
Aviation facilities	1 catapult