Australian oiler completes maintenance, set for South East Asia deployment

Royal Australian Navy oiler HMAS Success is underway after an extended maintenance period alongside Fleet Base East which included a scheduled docking.

The 220 women and men of her ship’s company will be put through their paces by Sea Training Group over the next couple of weeks, to ensure that the ship’s company and ship are ready for her upcoming five-month deployment to South East Asia and Hawaii.

The auxiliary oil replenishment (AOR) tanker will be put to the test on damage control, seamanship, and mariner skills over the next couple of weeks.

As part of her assessment, Success will participate in exercise Ocean Explorer ensuring that all the naval units involved in the war games off the east coast of Australia are supplied with fuel, ammunition, food and stores whilst underway at sea.

“Keeping the fleet replenished at sea is a challenging and constant task. It demands a high level of professionalism and seamanship,” said Captain Simon Cannell, the Amphibious and Afloat Support Capability Managers Representative.

HMAS Success (AOR 304) is 18,000 tonne fully loaded and 157.2m in length. She was built at Cockatoo Island Dockyard, Sydney and commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy on 23 April 1986. Success is the largest ship entirely built in Australia for the Royal Australian Navy and the largest ever built in the port of Sydney.