HMAS Albany (ACPB 86), named for the city of Albany, Western Australia, is an Armidale-class patrol boat of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).
Design and construction
The Armidale class patrol boats are long, with a beam of , a draught of , and a standard displacement of 270 tons.Saunders (ed.), IHS Jane's Fighting Ships 2012–2013, p. 33 The semi-displacement vee hull is fabricated from aluminium alloy, and each vessel is built to a combination of Det Norske Veritas standards for high-speed light craft and RAN requirements.Kerr, Plain sailing The Armidales can travel at a maximum speed of , and are driven by two propeller shafts, each connected to an MTU 16V M70 diesel. The ships have a range of at , allowing them to patrol the waters around the distant territories of Australia, and are designed for standard patrols of 21 days, with a maximum endurance of 42 days.
The main armament of the Armidale class is a Rafael Typhoon stabilised gun mount fitted with an M242 Bushmaster autocannon. Two machine guns are also carried.Heron & Powell, in Australian Maritime Issues 2006, p. 132 Boarding operations are performed by two , waterjet propelled rigid-hulled inflatable boats (RHIBs). Each RHIB is stored in a dedicated cradle and davit, and is capable of operating independently from the patrol boat as it carries its own communications, navigation, and safety equipment.Heron & Powell, in Australian Maritime Issues 2006, p. 131
Each patrol boat has a standard ship's company of 21 personnel, with a maximum of 29.Wertheim (ed.), The Naval Institute Guide to Combat Fleets of the World, p. 22 The Armidales do not have a permanently assigned ship's company; instead, they are assigned to divisions at a ratio of two vessels to three companies, which rotate through the vessels and allow the Armidales to spend more time at sea, without compromising sailors' rest time or training requirements.Kerr, Patrol boats shake down fuel faults A 20-berth auxiliary accommodation compartment was included in the design for the transportation of soldiers, illegal fishermen, or unauthorised arrivals; in the latter two cases, the compartment could be secured from the outside.McKenna, Gas risk remains for navy boats However, a malfunction in the sewerage treatment facilities aboard in August 2006 pumped hydrogen sulphide and carbon monoxide into the compartment, non-fatally poisoning four sailors working inside, after which use of the compartment for accommodation was banned across the class.
Albany was constructed by Austal at their shipyard in Henderson, Western Australia. She was commissioned into the RAN in her namesake city on 15 July 2006.
Operational history Albany was assigned to Attack Division, was based in Darwin, and conducted border protection and fisheries patrols as part of the Royal Australian Navy’s patrol boat force. She was decommissioned on 4 December 2025 at HMAS Coonawarrahttps://www.defence.gov.au/news-events/releases/2025-12-04/last-armidale-class-patrol-boats-farewelled-after-20-years-service
Citations
References Books
The chapter is available separately as Semaphore, Issue 4, 2006 in PDF and HTML formats.
Journal and news articles
External links Royal Australian Navy webpage for HMAS Albany