Black Knight to shine again

Volume 49, No. 12, July 13, 2006

IN A NUTSHELL

> HMAS Rankin, known as the Black Knight, is one of six submarines from eight navies to participate in RIMPAC 06. > HMA Ships Stuart and Manoora and Australian Clearance Diving Team One are also involved in the exercise.

By Michael Brooke

The Black Knight has returned to the waters off Hawaii to confront and defeat some of the most advanced warships in the world.

HMAS Rankin (CMDR Gary Lawton) is one of six submarines and 35 warships from eight countries that are participating in RIMPAC 06.

XO LCDR Byron Williamson told Navy News that despite featuring in the six-part documentary Submariners, “Rankin is well prepared to spring a few surprises”.

“Despite the tell-all documentary, it’s business as usual for Rankin and we are extremely confident of repeating our success at RIMPAC 06,” he said.

LCDR Williamson said Rankin’s biggest hurdle to success might be that her reputation has proceeded her to RIMPAC 06 and that many coalition warships will be on the look-out for her.

Rankin’s impressive performance in RIMPAC 04 and other deployments that year saw her make RAN history as the first Collins Class submarine to be awarded the Gloucester Cup for Excellence in 2005.

Maritime Commander Australia, RADM Davyd Thomas, said during RIMPAC Rankin would operate with and against two other conventional, and three nuclear-powered submarines, where the Black Knight would again “demonstrate her capabilities as the finest diesel electric submarine in the world”.

“Rankin has got a full program; they’ll be doing work on the Pacific missile range facility as well as operating with coalition forces so this is a really great way of improving our operational effectiveness and demonstrating the capability of the Collins class submarine,” he said.

“It’s a really great way of demonstrating with this submarine our effectiveness within a coalition, so I’m really proud to have these forces in RIMPAC.”