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27 Feb 2017	Exercise OCEAN EXPLORER Fleet Concentration Period Sports Day
26 Feb 2017	Cook's heroic sacrifice saved many While Australians paused to commemorate the Bombing of Darwin recently, there was a particular Australian Navy sailor whose actions on 19 February 1942 were keenly remembered. Leading Seaman Cook Francis Emms heroically fought back during the attack on Darwin Harbour on board HMAS Kara Kara. Firing his machine gun from the ship’s weather deck, he was wounded by the incoming fire from the Japanese Zero Fighter aircraft. More.....
24 Feb 2017	Austal completes design review for Pacific Patrol Boat Replacement (PPB-R) Project Australian shipbuilder Austal announced on Friday that the detailed design review (DDR) for the A$306 million PPB-R project has been completed on time and in accordance with the contracted schedule. The completion of the DDR marks the end of the design phase and the start of the production phase of the nineteen steel vessel program, awarded to Austal in May 2016. More.....
24 Feb 2017	Another WWII bomb found in Portsmouth Royal Navy bomb disposal experts have been called in on Wednesday morning to deal with another unexploded Second World War device found in the entrance to Portsmouth Harbour. The German SC250 bomb was found in the early hours of February 22 in the excavator head of a barge dredging the harbour. This type of Second World War German SC250 bomb weighs 500lb and contains 290lb of high explosives, the Royal Navy said. More.....
24 Feb 2017	Training to fight – Navies exercise off the WA coast More than 17 ships and aircraft are descending on the Western Australian coast for one of the largest maritime warfare exercises held by the Royal Australian Navy. The inaugural Exercise Ocean Explorer will include international participants, adding the opportunity to practice war fighting with language, customs and technology differences. More.....
23 Feb 2017	NVN's February Newsletter - download..... NOTE from Webmaster: If you are a member and haven't been notified that your monthly newsletter is available to download, the email address you supplied on joining is incorrect or out of date. To correct this, contact the webmaster at: and he will copy and amend your address.
21 Feb 2017	Houthi “suicide boats” used in Saudi frigate attack were ‘drones’, US Navy Admiral says The “suicide boats” used by Yemen’s Houthi fighters during the recent attack on Royal Saudi Navy frigate Al-Madinah were actually unmanned boats, a U.S. Navy Vice Admiral told Defense News in a recent interview. More.....
21 Feb 2017	New headphones music to the ears Bluetooth headsets could soon be introduced onto the bridges of Australian frigates thanks to the enterprise and innovation of two young engineers onboard HMAS Newcastle. Weapons Electrical Engineer Officers Lieutenants Jeffery Mandryk and Addison Clune, researched and developed a pair after concerns were raised over the safety of the cabled models. More.....
20 Feb 2017	Melbourne celebrates 25 years of service HMAS Melbourne has celebrated 25 years since she entered service with the Royal Australian Navy, proving her motto, 'She gathers strength as she goes'. The guided missile frigate has steamed more than 1.5 million kilometres - about 37 times the earth’s circumference - and clocked up almost 62,000 hours underway, since commissioning on 15 February 1992 at Station Pier, Melbourne. More.....
19 Feb 2017	US Navy carrier strike group starts South China Sea patrol U.S Navy’s aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson and the attached carrier strike group entered the South China Sea and started patrols in the disputed region, the U.S. Navy announced on February. The start of “routine operations” comes a week after Beijing warned the U.S. not to challenge China’s sovereignty in the South China Sea. What is more, according to media reports, China is considering maritime law changes that could possibly require foreign ships to obtain China’s permission to enter its waters. Additionally, submarines would likely have to surface while transiting Chinese waters. More.....
17 Feb 2017	Royal Navy detonates bomb found in Portsmouth Harbour Dredging works in Portsmouth Harbour have once again unearthed a wartime bomb that was detonated by Royal Navy’s bomb disposal experts on Friday morning. The British-made Armstrong Whitworth munition was found at 2am in the excavator head of a barge dredging the harbour. More.....
17 Feb 2017	RAN Sea Power Conference 2017, 3 - 5 October 2017 The 10th Royal Australian Navy Sea Power Conference is held as part of the biennial Pacific Maritime Congress and Exposition. Pacific 2017 involves three interrelated events: the Sea Power Conference 2017, hosted by the RAN and organised by the Sea Power Centre - Australia the International Maritime Conference 2017, hosted by The Royal Institute of Naval Architects, the Institute of Marine Engineering Science and Technology, and Engineers Australia the Pacific International Maritime Exposition 2017, conducted by Industry Defence and Security Australia Limited. More.....
17 Feb 2017	Semaphore 1: 2017 Commemorating 1942, The Royal Australian Navy's Darkest Year by John Perryman During 2017 the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) will pause to commemorate a number of important 75th anniversaries as it focuses on what was, arguably, the RAN’s darkest year - 1942. For Australia’s population at that time, 1942 began with a growing sense of trepidation as war spread to the Asia-Pacific following Japan’s attack on the US Navy fleet in Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941. The war that had begun in Europe in September 1939 had become a truly global conflict. More.....
15 Feb 2017	Australian, US Navy divers meet up for mine counter-measure training Divers from the navies of U.S. and Australia met in Perth, Western Australia, for a round of mine counter measure drills recently. The United States Navy explosive ordnance disposal Mobile Unit Five flew from Guam to Perth to join Australian Clearance Diving Team Four and Australian Mine Warfare Team 16. The training took place in the pristine surrounds off Garden Island. More.....
14 Feb 2017	Austal launches second Cape-class patrol boat for Australian Navy Australian shipbuilder Austal launched the tenth Cape-class patrol boat for the Royal Australian Navy at its Henderson, Western Australia, shipyard on February 14. Future Australian Defence Vessel (ADV) Cape Inscription is the the second of two follow-on Cape-class boats that will be operated by the Royal Australian Navy. The first boat, 'Cape Fourcroy', was rolled out in December last year and is scheduled for delivery to the navy in April 2017. More.....
14 Feb 2017	US Navy WWII cruiser wreck off Indonesia still intact, survey reveals The wreck of the U.S. Navy’s World War II cruiser USS Houston (CA 30) lying in Indonesian waters appears to be intact, an analysis of data from a multi-beam sonar survey has revealed. In December 2016, the Australian National Maritime Museum (ANMM) and the National Research Centre of Archaeology Indonesia/Pusat Penelitian Arkeologi Nasional (ARKENAS) conducted a remote-sensing survey of the wreck sites of Royal Australian navy light cruiser HMAS Perth (D29) and Houston. More.....
14 Feb 2017	USS George H.W. Bush starts ISIS strikes from the Med U.S. Navy’s carrier strike group centered around aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush has started air strikes against ISIL from the Eastern Mediterranean Sea. The strikes, which started on February 13, are in support of the U.S. operation Inherent Resolve (OIR) aimed at fighting the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. More.....
13 Feb 2017	Navy develops tactical unmanned aircraft capability The next phase of introducing an unmanned aircraft system capability to the Royal Australian Navy has progressed. Contracts have been signed with Austrian company, Schiebel Aircraft GmbH, to deliver Navy Minor Project 1942. The maritime rotary wing unmanned aircraft system is being acquired to support trials and evaluation activities for at least the next three years. The contract comprises two S100 Camcopter air-vehicles with mission control systems, as well as engineering, logistics and operational support. More..... Unmanned naval aviation—bigger is better
11 Feb 2017	Naval Historical Society of Australia (Victorian Chapter) President's February Musings are now available to download.....
10 Feb 2017	Sailors compete for international victory Six sailors are among the 77 Australian wounded, injured, and ill athletes competing for the Invictus Games Team in 2017. The group converged on the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra recently to vie for a spot in the team, where a 53-member training squad was named after the week-long camp. This squad will be further reduced to a final team of 43 athletes during the next series of training camps. Invictus Games 2017 will be held in Toronto, Canada, in September, supported by the Returned and Services League and Australian Defence Force. More.....
09 Feb 2017	New Zealand Navy studying ‘liquid Himalayas’ The New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) has launched a moored wave buoy which will help study gigantic Southern Ocean waves described as “liquid Himalayas”. Offshore patrol vessel HMNZS Otago launched the wave buoy about 10 kilometres south of remote Campbell Island, the furthest south such a device has ever been launched. The buoy is part of a collaborative project between the Defence Technology Agency (DTA) and MetOcean Solutions. More.....
08 Feb 2017	European researchers complete naval corrosion protection study European researchers, enterprises and academic organizations have completed a long-running study on ways to protect navy ships from corrosion. Dubbed the Corrosion Control for Navy Ships, the European Defence Agency (EDA) led project ran from 2013-2016 and resulted in a number of potential solutions and scientific publications on the corrosion problem. More.....
08 Feb 2017	100-year-old patrol boat has Australian Navy service history A patrol boat that was already 30 years old when it was acquired for war service is still going strong – 104 years after its construction. Former HMAS Riawe was built in 1912 by well-known Tasmanian shipwright EA ‘Ned’ Jack, at his boatyard on the Tamar River near Launceston, as a workboat for wealthy grazier Captain James Holyman. The wooden carvel-construction hull was planked in Huon pine, and the boat was powered by a Rugby Red Seal 16 horsepower petrol motor. Riawe displaces nine tonnes and is 11 metres long. More.....
06 Feb 2017	The Royal Australian Navy Veterans Band Concert From around Australia, the Men and Women of the Royal Australian Navy Veterans Band will gather in Melbourne in March 2017, for the 45th Anniversary of the release of the iconic album "Blue Water Men" released by EMI in 1972 to critical acclaim. Blue Water Men featured well known Arrangers and Composers of the time and projected the Navy Band repertoire to a contemporary style not heard from a Concert Band before. The album also featured Jazz great, Don Burrows who performed on many of the tracks and help create a unique sound that was "Blue Water Men". Concert and booking details.....
05 Feb 2017	Arctic Star awarded 75 years on to Navy veteran During a ceremony at HMAS Cerberus late last year, retired LCDR Ken Brown was awarded the Arctic Star for his service north of the Arctic Circle during the Second World War. LCDR Brown was serving in HMAS Nestor as part of an escort for British Battlecruiser, HMS Hood, in its search for German Battleship Bismarck. Nestor was the only Royal Australian Navy vessel in the hunt for Bismarck. During one of Nestor’s scheduled refuelling runs separate from the escort, Hood was engaged by Bismarck and sunk with only three survivors. More.....
04 Feb 2017	HMAS Sydney III Model c.Korean War CDRE Jim Dickson, AM, MBE, RAN (Ret'd) inspects the magnificent new model of the HMAS Sydney III as it was in Korea, complete with squadrons of Sea Fury and Fairey Firefly aircraft. It took world renowned scratch model maker Max Montague 14 months to complete. Max is regarded as one of the top 10 scratch model makers in the world. He served on the carrier in 1956 during his National Service. Jim served time on the Sydney as a Midshipman and posted off one month prior to Max joining the ship. Larger photos can be viewed in our Photo Gallery.....
04 Feb 2017	HMAS Yarra II National Memorial - "75th Anniversary of the sinking of the HMAS Yarra II 4.3.1942 - 4.3.2017" Dear Friends and supporters, As you will see, this year’s memorial will not only be signified by it being the 75th year but will also have some extra very special events coordinated into the programme. Firstly, part of our service will include the interrment of the ashes of our dear founder and benefactor Mr. Angus Walsh OAM, at the foot of the flagpole - A very fitting tribute to a wonderful, generous, hard working man who is sadly missed. More..... Note: HMAS Yarra will be in Melbourne over that weekend.
04 Feb 2017	2017 Domestic and Overseas Commemorations Minister for Veterans’ Affairs Dan Tehan said 2017 would feature a number of significant military commemorations to recognise the service and sacrifice of the men and women who have fought to defend our country. Registration to attend overseas commemorations is now open and passes are provided at no cost. Details on how to register are available on DVA’s website at www.dva.gov.au. Passes are not required to attend domestic commemorations. More.....
03 Feb 2017	World-leading research to improve PTSD treatment for veterans Minister for Veterans’ Affairs and Defence Personnel Dan Tehan today officially launched the trial of a new intensive treatment program for current and former Australian Defence Force (ADF) members who have post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Mr Tehan said the research was part of the Government’s drive to improve the mental health of current and former ADF personnel. He said the Rapid Exposure Supporting Trauma Recovery (RESTORE) trial was a world-leading research program that would assess whether delivering treatment over an intensive two-week period would provide better mental health outcomes. More.....
03 Feb 2017	Senate Inquiry into Suicide by veterans and ex-service personnel Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) Secretary Simon Lewis PSM today reminded members of the veteran and Defence communities that support is available for anyone who may be disturbed by the Senate Inquiry into Suicide by veterans and ex-service personnel public hearings. "DVA can pay for treatment for five mental health conditions – post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, and alcohol and substance misuse – for anyone who has served at least one day in the full-time Australian Defence Force (ADF)," Mr Lewis said. More.....
03 Feb 2017	Airborne survey operations comes to Tasmanian coast The Laser Airborne Depth Sounder (LADS) flight will deploy to Tasmania to survey coastal waters from King Island to Launceston. Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Commander Mark Matthews, said the survey will provide improved data that will be used to update the existing nautical charts used by all civilian and military vessels. “The Royal Australian Navy is responsible for charting about 12 per cent of the world’s surface,” Lieutenant Commander Matthews said. “The Navy is currently recharting parts of the Bass Strait, with HMAS Leeuwin undertaking survey operations at sea and now LADS mapping the coastline and water off northern Tasmania. More.....
02 Feb 2017	Entire UK submarine fleet to be based in Scotland All eleven Royal Navy submarines will be based at HMNB Clyde in Scotland from 2020, UK defense secretary Michael Fallon has announced. In addition to this, the UK is also investing near £4 million in the building of a single UK hub for Royal Navy’s submarine service at HMNB Clyde. More.....
02 Feb 2017	Thales lands Australian Armidale class patrol boat service deal Thales Australia has been awarded a contract for in service support of Royal Australian Navy’s Armidale-class patrol boats. The contract is potentially worth over AU$55 million per annum and will start on July 1, 2017. The five-year contract contains possible rolling-wave term extensions out to at least 2025, when the vessels will be phased out of service. More.....
02 Feb 2017	Ultra Electronics to work on early warning tech for Australia Ultra Electronics Avalon Systems will receive $1.7 million of Australian government funding to develop and demonstrate new ship-defence technologies, Australian minister for defence industry Christopher Pyne announced on Thursday. Minister Pyne said this innovation project would develop techniques to provide naval ships with early warning of incoming low flying air threats, such as anti-ship missiles. More.....
01 Feb 2017	Historic England shares never before seen photos of German WWI submarines February 1, 1917 saw Germany restart its unrestricted submarine warfare which targeted all ships trading with Britain. Historic England marked the centenary of the declaration by sharing never before seen images of German submarines, wrecked on the Cornish coast in Falmouth, UK. The submarines had been surrendered by Germany after the war ended in 1918 and were on their way to be sunk as gunnery targets. But stripped of their engines, submarines were difficult to tow and occasionally sank or wrecked on Britain’s beaches, as in the case of the Falmouth U-boats. More.....
01 Feb 2017	Four-nation drill Unified Trident starts in Persian Gulf Royal Navy, Royal Australian Navy, French Marine Nationale and U.S. Navy ships started the multilateral exercise Unified Trident on January 31. The drill will take place in the international waters of the Persian Gulf and incorporate all forms of maritime operations. The exercise will be led by Commander Task Force (CTF) 50, Commodore Andrew Burns OBE Royal Navy. More.....
31 Jan 2017	Defence Chief launches ‘Navy and the Nation’ Despite the oft sung words in the national anthem, Australians live often detached from the reality that “…our home is girt by sea”. In Canberra on 30 January, senior Defence leaders gathered at the Australian War Memorial to help launch a book that highlights Australia’s reliance on sea trade and a formidable Navy to protect sea lanes and prosperity. In the presence of His Excellency, General the Honourable Sir Peter Cosgrove AK, MC (Ret’d), Governor General of Australia, Dr Brendan Nelson, Director of the Australian War Memorial, quoted the opening of the national anthem as he spoke at the launch of “Navy and the Nation” written by the Chief of Navy, Vice Admiral Tim Barrett. More.....
30 Jan 2017	Mission to Seafarers Art Prize The Exhibition of works will be open from the 6th of October to the 27th of October 2017. Many fine works will be on display and for sale. Further information will be available soon.
29 Jan 2017	Darwin’s submarine - 75 years on Outside Darwin’s harbour, a Japanese submarine still lies with her 80-man crew on board. Sunk 75 years ago this month, on 20 January 1942, she is part of the lesser known history of the assaults on northern Australia. The aircraft carriers of the famous February 1942 strike were not the first attack on Australia. They were the second strike – the first attempt to close down the northern port was made a month earlier with a submarine squadron. More.....
29 Jan 2017	35 years of mental health support for veterans Minister for Veterans’ Affairs Dan Tehan today paid tribute to everyone who had contributed to the Veterans and Veterans Families Counselling Service, which celebrates its 35th birthday today. The Veterans and Veterans Families Counselling Service (VVCS), known originally as the Vietnam Veterans’ Counselling Service, provides free mental health counselling and support to those who have served our nation. More.....
27 Jan 2017	Indonesian Navy receives first SIGMA 10514 guided missile frigate The Indonesian Navy has received its first SIGMA 10514 guided missile frigate built by PT PAL. The state-owned shipbuilder delivered the frigate on January 23 at its shipyard in Surabaya, after the vessel completed sea trials in September 2016. Named KRI Raden Eddy Martadinata, the vessel is the first of two Perusak Kawal Rudal-class guided-missile frigates constructed modularly in the Netherlands and Indonesia in collaboration with Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding (DSNS). More.....
26 Jan 2017	USS Enterprise to be decommissioned in February U.S. Navy’s first nuclear-powered powered aircraft-carrier USS Enterprise is set to be commissioned early February, over four years after her inactivation in December 2012. The navy announced on Wednesday that Enterprise would be decommissioned on February 3 in a ceremony closed to the closed. The ceremony will be posted to Facebook later, the navy added. USS Enterprise will be farewelled 56 years after first entering service. More.....
26 Jan 2017	US Navy might replace Kevlar with eel slime U.S. Navy scientists are looking into the possibility of developing a ballistic protection material that would be similar to Kevlar, with the only difference being the fact that the new material would be produced from eel slime. According to the navy, scientists and engineers at Naval Surface Warfare Center have successfully recreated a natural material used for marine wildlife defense to assist military personnel. More.....
26 Jan 2017	Italian FREMM frigate arrives in Western Australia Italian Navy’s FREMM frigate ITS Carabiniere arrived in Western Australia on Wednesday with Italian defense industry representatives aboard. Carabiniere docked in Fremantle where Fincantieri representatives will meet with Australian naval shipbuilding companies and the local supply chain, who are vying for a share of a multi-billion dollar defence program. More.....
26 Jan 2017	Norway deals with dangerous WWII submarine wreck off Fedje A Word War II-era submarine wreck near the island of Fedje, Norway, has been irking the Norwegian Coastal Administration (NCA) ever since the Royal Norwegian Navy discovered the submarine in March 2003. On 9 February 1945, as World War II raged, German submarine U-864 embarked on a journey to ally Japan. It carried 67 tonnes of liquid mercury in steel barrels for the munitions industry, but it never reached its destination. More.....
26 Jan 2017	Grants support veterans and their communities Veterans and their families in towns and cities around Australia will benefit from more than $500,000 in grants to ex-service organisations for community projects. Minister for Veterans’ Affairs Dan Tehan today announced the latest round of 33 grants under the Veteran and Community Grants program. "This round of grants will fund a diverse range of projects and equipment, including the upgrade of facilities to improve venue accessibility, computer equipment and social outings," Mr Tehan said. More.....

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Request for Committal of Ashes to the Sea. Download form.....

Current Repatriation Benefits for Gold Card Veterans -
As of 01 January 2018
This is a list of products that are available on a Doctor's prescription for Gold Card Repatriation Patients. Download the list.....

DVA Mobile Apps

The new Operation Life mobile application is designed to help those at risk deal with suicidal thoughts and is recommended to be used with the support of a clinician.

The High Res (High Resilience) app helps you manage stress, build resilience and optimise performance on the go.

The PTSD Coach Australia app can help you learn about and manage symptoms that commonly occur after trauma.

ON TRACK with the Right Mix mobile app from the Department of Veterans Affairs helps you to keep track of the number and types of drinks you consume; the amount of money it's costing you and lets you know about the impact the alcohol has on your wellbeing and fitness levels.

Guide to the assessment of rates of veterans’ pensions
Guide to the assessment of rates of veterans’ pensions (GARP) is used to assess the extent of incapacity from war caused or defence caused injury or disease for the purposes of determining the rate of pension. Download.....

Planning ahead kit
Overview: Planning Ahead is a publication designed to help veterans and their families prepare for bereavement. There is also a checklist that can be used to record the contact details of important people, businesses and organisations that may need to be notified in case of your death. Download.....

DVA Concessions Fact Sheets
Factsheet CON01 - Concessions in NSW
Factsheet CON02 - Concessions in Vic
Factsheet CON03 - Concessions in QLD
Factsheet CON04 - Concessions in SA
Factsheet CON05 - Concessions in WA
Factsheet CON06 - Concessions in Tas
Factsheet CON07 - Concessions in NT
Factsheet CON08 - Concessions in ACT

War Service

Check your ship's eligibility for war service.....

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