HMAS ''Penguin'' 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 located at Balmoral on the lower north shore of Sydney Harbour in the suburb of

Mosman Mosman is a suburb on the Lower North Shore region of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Mosman is located 8 kilometres north-east of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the local gov ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

. ''Penguin'' is one of the RAN's primary training establishments, with a responsibility for providing trained specialists for all areas of the navy. The current commander of ''Penguin'' is

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain ...

Bernadette Alexander, RAN.

History

''Penguin'' was initially established as the Balmoral Naval Depot and was also known as ''Penguin II'' in 1941 as a depot for the RAN's main naval base at Garden Island (on Sydney Harbour). In addition to accommodation for 700 personnel, as well as all the necessary administrative facilities, the Balmoral Naval Hospital was built on the site. ''Penguin II'' was commissioned in July 1942, and was renamed as simply HMAS ''Penguin'' in January 1943, when the Garden Island facility was renamed HMAS ''Kuttabul''. In addition to its role as a depot, ''Penguin'' served as a base for the motor launches responsible for patrolling Sydney Harbour. After the end of World War II, ''Penguin'' began its service as a training establishment. The RAN Seamanship School was located at ''Penguin'' from 1945 to 1974, while from 1951 to 1954 it was the Navy's National Service Recruit School. ''Penguin'' has also played host to the RAN Staff College and the Security and Naval Police Coxswains School. In addition, a number of operational units of the RAN have been based at ''Penguin'', including Clearance Diving Teams One and Two, and the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by Kingdom of England, English and Kingdom of Scotland, Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were foug ...

's Fourth Submarine Squadron.

Facilities and operational units

As part of the RAN Navy Systems Command, the ''Penguin'' site is home to several of the navy's major specialist training schools, including: *ADF Diving School (ADFDS) *RAN Hydrographic School *RAN Medical School In addition, ''Penguin'' was also home to the navy's principal medical facility, Balmoral Naval Hospital, which provided some of the trained personnel for the Primary Casualty Receiving Facilities

CRF CRF may refer to: Science and technology * Corticotropin-releasing factor family, a family of related neuropeptides in vertebrates ** Corticotropin-releasing hormone or corticotropin-releasing factor, a polypeptide hormone * Chromatographic respons ...

on the RAN's ''Kanimbla'' class vessels. Balmoral Naval Hospital closed 13 March 2008 for refurbishment. The Navy's hospital care will be provided through a contract with St Vincent's Hospital, located in

Darlinghurst Darlinghurst is an inner-city, eastern suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Darlinghurst is located immediately east of the Sydney central business district (CBD) and Hyde Park, within the local government area of the City of Syd ...

. As well as this, ''Penguin'' is the home of the Submarine and Underwater Medicine Unit (SUMU), the RAN Recompression Chamber Facility (RCCF), Maritime Operational Health Unit (MOHU), the ADF Centre for Mental Health and the Penguin Health Centre. In 2006, ''Penguin'' received as lodger units both Headquarters and 1st Commando Company (1Coy) of the 1st Commando Regiment.

Gallery

Image:HMAS Penguin Middle Head Road.jpg, The

Middle Head Middle or The Middle may refer to: * Centre (geometry), the point equally distant from the outer limits. Places * Middle (sheading), a subdivision of the Isle of Man * Middle Bay (disambiguation) * Middle Brook (disambiguation) * Middle Creek ( ...

Road approach to HMAS ''Penguin''. Image:HMAS Penguin building.jpg, The Gatehouse building of HMAS ''Penguin.'' Image:HMAS Penguin from Balmoral Beach.jpg, HMAS ''Penguin'' viewed across

Middle Harbour Middle Harbour (or ''Warrin ga''), a semi–mature tide dominated drowned valley estuary, is the northern arm of Port Jackson, an inlet of the Tasman Sea located north of Sydney central business district on the coast of New South Wales, Aust ...

from

Balmoral Beach Balmoral is an urban locality in the suburb of Mosman in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is in the local government area of the Municipality of Mosman and is part of the Lower North Shore. The locality is mostly known for its beach ...

References

External links

HMAS Penguin official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hmas Penguin (Naval Base)

Penguin Penguins ( order Sphenisciformes , family Spheniscidae ) are a group of aquatic flightless birds. They live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere: only one species, the Galápagos penguin, is found north of the Equator. Highly adapt ...

Military education and training in Australia Fleet Base East Military installations established in 1941 1941 establishments in Australia Mosman Council Buildings and structures in Sydney Military installations in New South Wales

History

Facilities and operational units

Gallery

See also

References

External links