HMAS ''Cerberus'' is a
Royal Australian Navy
The Royal Australian Navy (RAN) is the principal naval force of the Australian Defence Force (ADF). The professional head of the RAN is Chief of Navy (CN) Vice Admiral Mark Hammond AM, RAN. CN is also jointly responsible to the Minister of ...
(RAN)
base that serves as the primary training establishment for RAN personnel. The base is located adjacent to
Crib Point on the
Mornington Peninsula
The Mornington Peninsula is a peninsula located south of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is surrounded by Port Phillip to the west, Western Port to the east and Bass Strait to the south, and is connected to the mainland in the north. Ge ...
, south of the
Melbourne City Centre
The Melbourne central business district (also known colloquially as simply "The City" or "The CBD") is the city centre and main urban area of the city of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, centred on the Hoddle Grid, the oldest part of the city l ...
,
Victoria, Australia. The base is also an official bounded locality of the
Shire of Mornington Peninsula and is the only naval base to have a specific listing in the
Australian census. HMAS ''Cerberus'' recorded a population of 1,124 at the .
[ A section of the base centred around the Parade Ground was added to the ]Australian Commonwealth Heritage List
The Commonwealth Heritage List is a heritage register established in 2003, which lists places under the control of the Australian government, on land or in waters directly owned by the Crown (in Australia, the Crown in right of the Commonwealth ...
on 22 June 2004, known as the HMAS Cerberus Central Area Group.
History
The site for the ''Cerberus'' naval base on Hanns Inlet, between Sandy Point and Stony Point on Western Port Bay was purchased in 1911. The base was opened in September 1920 and became known as Flinders Naval Depot in 1921. The Post Office opened on 2 December 1912 as Flinders Naval Base, was renamed Flinders Naval Depot in 1925 and HMAS ''Cerberus'', Westernport in 1963.