Aussie ships leave a big

By CMDR Mike Noonan

HMAS Newcastle conducts a gunnery exercise using her 76mm gun. She was firing on the decommissioned target ship USS Harry W. Hill during RIMPAC 2004.

Photo: ABPH Brenton Freind

Parramatta in the firing column.

HMAS Parramatta (CMDR Mike Noonan) proved its firepower during a live-fire gunnery exercise against the decommissioned Spruence Class destroyer Harry W.

Hill during RIMPAC 2004. The conditions were almost perfect for surface gunnery and the target was positioned well within the maximum range of Parramatta’s main armament.

The 3,400 tonne Anzac Class frigate was the 10th ship in the firing column, with HMAS Newcastle positioned astern.

At 0801, Parramatta opened fire with Mount 51, and by 0817, the target was well on its way to its final resting place some 3000 metres beneath the waves.

At the time Parramatta commenced firing her 5-inch gun, the target had sustained extensive damage to its mast and superstructure.

However, few of the previous firing ships had inflicted any serious damage at, or below the waterline.

As a result, the target was still floating. In all, Parramatta fired 28 point detonating high explosive rounds, 24 of which were seen to strike the target at, or slightly below the waterline.

Two other rounds were seen to hit the target’s superstructure.

The grouping of the rounds that struck at the waterline was extremely tight and clearly precipitated the target’s bow first sinking.

After the 28th round, the foc’sle of the target had sunk beneath the waterline and the ship began sinking.

At this point, the commanding officer gave the order to “cease fire” in order to allow Newcastle (CAPT Trevor Jones) the opportunity to fire at the target before it became fully submerged.

Newcastle fired 80 rounds from her 76 mm gun at a blistering rate of fire and was able to achieve a number of hits against the target’s mast and superstructure before it slipped silently beneath the waves.

Needless to say, the remaining six ships in the firing column did not have anything to shoot at. This was indeed an impressive display of gunnery firepower, not just from Parramatta, but from all ships.

The 30- year-old Chilean ship CS Lynch delivered a very accurately placed salvo of 4.5-inch shells, proving that effective gunnery is a combination of gun calibre, system performance and good training.

Parramatta is very lucky and extremely proud to have all three of these.

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