HMNZS ''Aroha'' was one of eight steel New Zealand-built ships built and commissioned by the

Royal New Zealand Navy The Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN; ) is the maritime arm of the New Zealand Defence Force. The fleet currently consists of eight ships. The Navy had its origins in the Naval Defence Act 1913, and the subsequent acquisition of the cruiser , whi ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. She was the first steel Castle-class trawler launched for the Royal New Zealand Navy.

Background

The vessel was ordered after the New Zealand government, facing a requirement for more

minesweeper A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping. History The earliest known usage of ...

s to operate in home waters, chose the design because it was simple enough to be built with the country's limited ship construction facilities at the time.

Operational history

''Aroha'' was the first of nine steel minesweepers constructed for the

and was commissioned on 17 November 1943. the others being '' Awatere'', ''

Hautapu Hautapu is a township in the Waipa District and Waikato region of New Zealand's North Island, located just north of Cambridge, New Zealand, Cambridge across State Highway 1 (New Zealand), State Highway 1. The area was identified as the Hautapu ...

'', '' Maimai'', '' Pahau'', , ''

Waima Waima is a suburb of West Auckland, New Zealand. It is under the local governance of the Auckland Council. The majority of the modest population is clustered around the comparatively prominent Waima superette, situated just off the main art ...

'', , and ''

Waikato The Waikato () is a region of the upper North Island of New Zealand. It covers the Waikato District, Waipā District, Matamata-Piako District, South Waikato District and Hamilton City, as well as Hauraki, Coromandel Peninsula, the nort ...

'' (never commissioned). She served with the 97th Auxiliary Minesweeping Group, located at

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

. ''Aroha'' ran aground twice during her career, first on 28 August 1943 off North Head and then three days later near the entrance to

Whangārei Harbour Whangārei Harbour is a large harbour on the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand. The harbour stretches from Whangārei City, and the termination of the Hātea River, south east around the Onerahi peninsula and out to the Pacific Ocea ...

, damaging her rudder and stern post. Repairs took two months. In October 1944, ''Aroha'' towed the badly damaged from

Fiji Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...

to Auckland after she suffered damage to her rudder, propeller, and hull.Waters, p. 275 In 1945, ''Aroha'' was offered on loan to the British Pacific Fleet, along with ''Waipu'', ''Arabis'', ''Kiwi'', and ''Tui''. Only ''Aroha'' was required, and she sailed from

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, serving there for six weeks. After the six weeks ended, she sailed to Auckland to be paid off. In 1946, along with ''Waiho'' and ''Waima'', ''Aroha'' was sold to Red Funnel Trawlers, and began fishing the same year. She was laid up in 1958 and sold for scrap in 1963.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aroha 1942 ships World War II minesweepers of New Zealand Castle-class trawlers of the Royal New Zealand Navy