Sister ship HMVS Lonsdale
History
Colony of Victoria
NameHMVS Nepean
OperatorVictorian Naval Forces
BuilderJohn I. Thornycroft & Company, Chiswick
Australia
NameHMAS Nepean
Acquired1901
Out of service1912
FateSunk on mud flats at Swan Island in 1912 after being stripped of machinery and equipment.[1]
General characteristics
TypeSecond-class torpedo boat
Tonnage12.5 tons
Length67 ft (20 m)
Draught3.25 ft (0.99 m)
Speed17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph) (max)
Armament

HMVS Nepean was a second-class torpedo boat constructed for the Victorian Naval Forces and later operated by the Commonwealth Naval Forces and the Royal Australian Navy. She was sunk on mud flats on Swan Island in Port Phillip Bay in 1912 after being stripped of equipment and machinery.[1]

Design and construction

Nepean was one of several torpedo boats ordered by the government of Victoria in 1882 to protect the colony from a possible Russian or French attack, and was built by John I. Thornycroft & Company, Chiswick.[2][3]

Nepean was 67 feet (20 m) long, with a draught of 3.25 feet (0.99 m), and a displacement of 12.5 tons.[4] She was designed with a low freeboard, to minimise her profile.[3] The boat had a maximum speed of 17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph), which she would use to close rapidly with enemy vessels before attacking.[4][3]

Operational history

Fate

She was sunk on mud flats on Swan Island in Port Phillip Bay in 1912 after being stripped of equipment and machinery.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Sinking Torpedo Boats". The Argus (Melbourne, Victoria), Thursday 20 June 1912 p.10. 20 June 1912. Retrieved 30 March 2011.
  2. Cahill, Denis. "H.M.V.S. Lonsdale 1882 - 1914".
  3. 1 2 3 "Queenscliff Maritime Museum - Special Historic Items". Archived from the original on 7 March 2012. Retrieved 29 March 2011.
  4. 1 2 HMVS Lonsdale & HMVS Nepean


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