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HMAS OVENS EXTERNAL VOLUNTEERS TOUR DRAFT 5 – 30 June 2020PURPOSEHMAS Ovens is one of the WA Museums most valued collection objects and a must see attraction for the WA Maritime Museum.This external tour of HMAS Ovens was created for the following purposes:When the submarine is closed due to a deep clean, routine maintenance or other reasons such as the recent COVID-19 pandemic.When a visitor is unable to participate in a regular on-board Ovens tour. For example, they may have a physical disability or fear of enclosed spaces.To be delivered by our Submarine Guides who can longer deliver an on-board Ovens tour, but can still deliver a ground based tour such as this. The Museum values its guides and see this as a way for these Guides to stay involved.To act as Phase 1 of training for new Submarine Guides. New Guides who successfully complete delivery of external tours will progress to Phase 2 – the delivery of on-board tours. This change in training reflects that over the coming years the proportion of non-submariners delivering the on-board tours will increase. This external tour acts as a starting point baseline from which the new Guide will increase their knowledge base. AUDIENCEThis tour is suitable for a general audience with no or little experience with submarines. It does not delve deeply into the technical aspects of the submarine. However, it does use the appropriate submarine jargon to give the tour authenticity.At the beginning of your tour assess the level of interest in your group.If they are all ex-submariners in your tour group feel free to get as technical as you like!COSTThis tour is currently free after Museum admission has been paid.TOUR LENGTHThe suggested tour length is 45 minutes. This includes travel out to the submarine and return back up to the Naval Defence Gallery.To keep the flow of the tour and to ensure your tour finishes on time request that visitors hold off on questions, especially lengthy technical ones, until the end of the tour when you will offer to stay by the Ovens observation window. Refer to the FAQ at the end of this tour for some quick answers to common questions.OVENS SUBMARINER VERSUS NON-SUBMARINERThis tour was written as if delivered by a guide who was not a former Submariner of HMAS Ovens.Ovens Submariners have the opportunity to personalise the tour if they wish with their own anecdotes when appropriate.They can also change the pronouns to personalise the tour for example:Just past the Radio Shack is the hatch that leads to the Spud Locker where they (we) kept their (our) fresh and frozen food.IMAGE BOOKAccompanying this tour is an Ovens Image Book. As the name implies it contains images of locations and equipment inside HMAS Ovens.These books are kept at the Maritime Museum Admissions desk.It is recommended that a book is shared between a small social group of people.Remember to collect the books at the end of the tour and return them to the Admissions Counter.They should also be wiped over with disinfectant wipes.As well as showing an image from inside Ovens it also shows where it is located on a schematic as can be seen below. ANY QUESTIONS?If you have any questions about this tour have a chat to the Fremantle Volunteer Coordination Team.LOCATION 1 - VQ foyer Time allotment - 5 minutesSubject – Tour introductionVolunteer to introduce themselves as tour guide and give a few sentences about their background and why they volunteer guiding the submarine tours. E.g., are they an ex submariner, merchant seaman or simply interested in maritime history.“Has anyone been inside a submarine before?”Unfortunately we can’t go inside our submarine today.Instead we are going to give you an inside tour of Ovens from the outside.To help we have compiled some images in this book. <Hand out some image books to share and then open to a random page>I’ll explain how we use it when we get outside.We’ll spend about 30 minutes outside then we will come back inside and I’ll take you upstairs to our defence gallery, so all up the tour should take about 45 minutes.If you have any questions that aren’t answered during the tour it would be great if you could leave them until the end when I’d be more than happy to stick around and answer them.I just need to remind everyone to stay together in a socially distanced group!<Make a weather comment if needed – e.g. hats if sunny, jacket if cold/wet etc.>Let’s head outside.Location Two - Marker A on the railing.Time Allotment – 4-5 minutesSubject - Introduction to HMAS Ovens and a few tech basics.I would like to introduce you to HMAS Ovens.Ovens was built by Scotts shipbuilding in Greenock, Scotland. Her keel was laid in Greenock in 1967; she was commissioned in 1969 and decommissioned in 1995. So Ovens is over 50 years old and can be considered a “Cold War” era submarine.Ovens was one of six Oberon Class submarines operated by the Royal Australian Navy. If you look at the fin, the white letter O you can see with the red boomerang vertically imposed through it was the official insignia of the Oberon squadron and was called the “Oberang”.You can also see the Ovens crest up here on the fin <point to crest>You can see the crest in more detail on the cover of the image book and also in Image 1.This is also a good spot for me to explain how to use the image book and introduce a few nautical direction terms. You can see three different schematics of the submarine. The first gives a general layout looking along this length of the submarine. The second is a plan look from the top but cut along the main flat which runs through the middle of the submarine and what we walk along inside.The third is as topside plan and is what you can see externally.Who can tell me which end of Ovens is the front and which is the back?<get answers>And in nautical terms what do we call the front and the back?<get answers>That’s right this end, which is the front is called the “bow” and the back end where the propellers are is called the “stern”.Now if we all turn towards the stern we are facing “aft” and now if we turn around 180 degrees we are now facing “forward”. While we are still facing forward can anyone tell me which side of the submarine we are on?<get answers>Yes it is the left side, but the left side facing forward is also known as “port” and the right side is known as “starboard”. We don’t use left or right on board because who’s left or right are you referring too!So I’ll be using these terms throughout the tour, so if you forget which direction I am talking about you can look at the schematic on image one.Now let’s all turn around again, just like in image 1, and let’s look aft towards the fin and find the Ovens crest again. What can you see flying above the crest?<get answers>That’s right! It’s a “Jolly Roger” flag… but I’ll tell you why submariners’ can fly it when we get upstairs to the Naval Defence Gallery! Below the crest and above the external door into the fin is a bell… like the Jolly Roger I am going to tell you why the Ovens bell is special when we are upstairs.So it’s up to you keep me to time and ask at the end about the Jolly Roger!But now it’s time to give you some technical info about Ovens. She is a conventional diesel electric submarine, not a nuclear submarine.Ovens is about 90 metres long and just over 8 metres in diameter and weighing just over 2,000 tonnes. To put that in perspective for you that’s about 4,000 elephants, 11 blue whales or 170 buses… so we can all agree it is heavy!Submarines need to survive immense pressure the deeper beneath the ocean surface they go. To protect the crew and equipment submarines they are contained inside a hull that is waterproof, very strong and resistant to immense water pressure. What you see in front of you is the streamlined shape of the submarine formed by the ballast tanks attached to the hull. When on the surface the ballast tanks are full of air. This provides positive buoyancy and allows the submarine to remain afloat. The ballast tanks then fill with water which allows the submarine to submerge and begin to dive.It is actually is a bit more complex than that and there are several systems on the submarine that are used to control the submarines buoyancy and subsequent depth and the ultimate return to the surface.Over here you can see the fore-planes (point to them) along with the after-planes which help to maintain depth. And if you look over here <point> you can see where the water empties through a number of free flood holes on the bottom of the ballast tanks.On the top of the submarine is a deck that can be walked on called the “casing”. Now looking back at the bow… would anyone like to guess what might be under the dome?It holds the sonar array which is equipment that is used for listening for sounds generated by a target ship or even another submarine. And I’ll show you where they operate the sonar from shortly.Now it’s time to get inside!LOCATION 3 - Marker B on the railingTIME ALLOCATION – 3-4 minutesSUBJECT – Weapons and Escape CompartmentOn our normal tours of Ovens we enter the submarine underneath that white canopy <point> which contains the forward weapons loading hatch.You can see a picture of this hatch on Image 2 behind XX who is giving a tour. From the name of the hatch you might have guessed the compartment we have just entered.That’s right it is the Forward Weapons Section. It’s the Forward Weapons Section because…<get answer>That’s right it’s at the forward or front end of the submarine!If you turn to Image 3 you can see a torpedo called an MK23 loaded into one of the tubes. There are 6 tubes in total. The torpedos are stored on racks on either side of the compartment, ready to be loaded into the tubes. There are 16 racks along with the 6 torpedo tubes, but the maximum number of torpedos ever on board was not 22 but 21. This was to keep one tube empty just in case one had to be moved.The torpedo tubes are over 6 metres long and can fire torpedos, mines and harpoon missiles.Image 4 is of the bow of the now scrapped HMAS Oxley, the first of the 6 Oberon class submarines. This shows how a MK23 torpedo exits the submarine bow caps.I’ll point out the Oxley bow when we return to the Museum, but you can see the bow shutters on Ovens over here <point to the bow shutters> which have the bow caps behind them.This area is also one of two escape compartments on board. There are enough escape suits in each escape compartment for the entire crew plus 5%. The first method of escape in case of emergency is to wait to be rescued by the Submarine rescue vessel. If that’s not possible the “one man escape method” is used. If you turn back to Image 3 you can see an orange suit. This is called the “submarine escape immersion suit” and there is one for each submariner on board. He will put on the suit and climb this ladder into the tube with stripes on it called the “escape tower”.The submariner plugs into an air supply puts air into a part of the suit around the upper back and front called a "stole" which gives the escaping submariner positive buoyancy to get to the surface as well as breathing air.The submariner is sealed inside the tube by closing the bottom hatch and the escape tower is flooded. An upper hatch in the tower automatically opens when the pressure inside the tower is equal to the pressure outside. The submariner leaves for the surface in a bubble of air, breathing normally all the way up using the air inside his suit.The upper hatch closes, the tower is drained and the process is repeated for every submariner on board.Now let’s assume we haven’t had a need to escape… but we need a nap so let’s find out where the submariners slept.To get to that area we need to go through a watertight bulkhead door which you can see on Image 5 and it is located right about there. <point to location where the bulkhead door is>LOCATION 4 – Marker C on the railingTIME ALLOCATION – 3-4 minutesSUBJECT – Accommodation areaThe forward accommodation area extends from the hatchway to just before the fin where the commissioned officers mess known as the “wardroom” is located.The forward accommodation space is home to eighteen junior submariners. They all got their own bunk and this is where they ate, slept, played cards, watched movies and, back in the 60s & 70s, could even smoke!You can see some of the bunks in Image 6. They had sleeping bags instead of sheets and if you were over 6 foot tall you would have to sleep with your legs curled up in the foetal position!In this area there was also a mess for senior submariners and some juniors also slept in the passage way leading up to the “Galley” which is the navy term for kitchen.You can see into the galley in Image 7. Here two cooks cooked up to four meals per day, seven days a week, for the entire crew of 64. And it didn’t all come from cans! A lot of it was fresh.On Sunday, dinner was always a roast. That’s how submariners knew it was Sunday.Opposite the galley is the garbage ejector that you can see in Image 8. Biodegradable rubbish is filled into this calico bag we called a “gash”. The gash is weighed down with crushed cans so it can sink. Five bags are then loaded into the ejector and they are shot out of the side of the boat like a torpedo. The garbage ejected out of the hole located just over there <point to gash ejector hole>After the galley we would climb through another bulkhead door to get to a compartment known as “the Coxwains grot”. This was the accommodation for the Chief Engineer, Chief Electrician and the Coxswains.Does anyone know who the Coxswain is on a submarine? <get answers>He was the most senior non-officer rating on board. Although the Captain had overall command the Coxswain ran the submarine.After the Coxswains Grot is the Officers Mess called the Wardroom where the Officers sleep, eat and where operational meetings are held. It is important to note here that underneath the entire length of the accommodation area is the number 1 and number 2 batteries. You can also see this marked in green on the schematic for the garbage ejector.But before we leave the accommodation area is there anything that I’ve missed?That’s right the toilets and showers! They weren’t located in the accommodation area but at aft end of the fin! The submariners would have to walk through the control room to get to them! The submariners called the toilet “traps”. To prove they had one on board there it is on image 11. Because submariners didn’t shower very often we didn’t bother taking a picture of that! Now let’s move on to the control room.LOCATION 5 – Marker DTIME ALLOCATION – 4-5 minutesSUBJECT – Control RoomWe are now going to have a chat about the control room which is the nerve centre of the submarine. This is where the submarine was navigated and steered from, where the weapons were discharged and the periscopes monitored. It fits pretty much underneath the length of the fin.The fin houses the seven masts. Image 10 shows the masts on the fin of HMAS Otway which is buried in the NSW town Holbrook which is a 3 hour drive inland west of Canberra. So now just imagine these masts are inside the fin of Ovens. A and C are the attack and search periscopes which we will talk about in more detail shortly. Mast B is the masthead steaming light which is hand raised by the bridge lookout when the submarine surfaces.Mast D is the radar mast and then E is the “Electronic Support Measure” mast which is used to detect other radars from ships and air craft. G which is the very long extendable mast is used for communications. Mast F is the Snort Induction mast (i.e. snorkel) and mast H is the Snort Exhaust mast. The snort induction mast and the snort exhaust mast operate the same way as when you are snorkelling under the surface of the water and this allows the submarine to run its diesel engines to charge the batteries without having to surface.Of course we need to remember that not all masts are up at the same time like this!Now back inside the control room is Image 11 and it is looking aft towards the attack periscope and the search periscope. As the name suggests the attack periscope is used by the Captain during an attack. It is only 10cm in diameter so very hard to spot on the surface.The periscope you may be more familiar with and seen on TV and in the movies is the search periscope. It can rotate 360 degrees, is binocular and even has a camera. I am now going to show some, but not all, of the equipment found in the control room. We’ll start at the forward end with Image 12. This is the submarine fire control system. This system allows the operator to fire and control all the weapons from firing to hitting the target.On the starboard side of this unit is a range of equipment you can see in Image 13. The top left picture is the Submarines main attack (called attacker) and safety sonar used to detect contacts and ensure it is safe for the submarine to return to periscope depth/surface. It is one of 3 major sonars on the submarine and is continually manned when the submarine is dived. Next is the “Contact Evaluation Plot” which allows an operator to plot information from all sensors in a time versus bearing format.Alongside the plotter is the “chart table” which you can see below. From left to right above the chart table you see the Speed log, a radiation monitor and the Satellite Navigator which was fitted into Australian submarines from the late 1970s, but when Ovens was first commissioned the navigation was done by the old fashioned methods such as dead reckoning. They also used to use visual fixing, radar fixing as well as using a sextant for star and sun sights. At the very end is the echo sounder used for depth soundings. Over on the port side is the “OMC” or “One Man Control” which you can see in Image 14. Whoever is seated here steers the submarine and also controls its depth. You can’t see it in this image but there is a silver box which is the autopilot who the Ovens submariners called “George”.After the Officer of the Watch (OOW) panel, diving panel and blowing panel we then enter a passageway with compartments that eventually leads to the toilets that I mentioned earlier.The first compartment is the Captain’s cabin which can be seen in image 15. The Captain in all naval ships by way of his status has a personal cabin. The Captain’s cabin is located here in the submarine so as he has quick access to the Control Room and the Watch-Keeping team. It has a small degree of comfort, that again being consistent with his status.Image 16 you can see the next compartment which is called the “Radio Shack”. Here communications were sent/received to the outside world. These communications were often highly secretive and only radio operators and officers were allowed into this space.The Radio Shack had a combination locked and blast proof door. Can anyone tell my why?<get answers – to keep it even more secure>In this passageway there are also two hatches in the deck with ladders. The hatch you see in Image 17 leads to the “Auxiliary Machinery Space”. This houses a range of machinery including the gyro, the hydraulic pumps, refrigeration and air-conditioning units, an LP blower and also the vegetable locker. The second hatch leads to the fridge and freezer where they kept their fresh and frozen food. The freezer holds enough frozen food to feed a submarine crew for 70 days.Now it’s time to stretch our legs and head aft through another water tight bulkhead door!*** On a regular tour you would have been about 50 minutes into your tour at this point – but in this tour it should only be no more than 20 minutes! ***LOCATION 6 – Marker E on the railingTIME ALLOCATION – 2-3 minutesSUBJECT – Engine Room and Motor RoomThe bulkhead door we have just gone through is directly under the aft side of the fin.Image 18 shows us the view through this bulkhead door into the engine room.Here you will find two diesel engines designed to provide Electrical Power for the submarine and charge the submarines batteries. They didn’t turn the propellers like a surface ship. While you take a look at Image 19 I’ll rattle off some specs… The engines you see are an Admiralty Standard Range in a V formation, with mechanically supercharged 16 cylinders generating up to 1,840 Horse Power (1,280kW). When these powerful engines are running this compartment became very hot and extremely noisy – just like a jumbo jet engine taking off at Perth airport. But luckily they would only have to run the engines 1 to 2 hours every 24 hours to completely charge the batteries.On image 19 I’d like to point out this big barometer here <point to it>. There is also one located in the control room. The face of each barometer is divided into three colours. The largest section is green, then a smaller yellow section and finally a red section. The barometer is monitored by the engine room chief of the watch when the submarine is snorting and the aim is to keep the barometer in the green. But, when the seas are rough and waves are high this can cause the snort induction mast float head to slam shut as soon as a wave covers it. When this happens, the diesel engines cannot suck the air they require from the outside, therefore they suck it from the inside of the submarine causing a vacuum inside the submarine and the barometer heads into the yellow. The chief will inform the control room "snorting in the yellow" - of course they should know that since they also have a barometer.What they don’t want to do is head into the red. They can correct that, either by raising the induction mast higher (if not already fully raised) or by trying to bring the submarine to a shallower depth, keeping in mind that at all times you are trying to stay undetected. Should the barometer go in the red, the engine room chief will automatically tell the control room "Stop snorting, stop snorting, stop snorting" and at the same time do an emergency shutdown of the diesel engines, going through the process of shutting all associated hull valves while the control room will do the same.With Image 20 you can see green valves on the Mainline 6 valve chest where in conjunction with the ballast pump all seawater is either pumped or flood to/from internal tanks and bilges and a XXX which are both located here in the engine room.What I want to point out using these two images are the different coloured and shaped valves. The different colour indicates what they control and the shape is so they can be identified in the dark. Would anyone like to take a guess on what these two valves control?<Answer: The larger green valves of the ballast pump control sea water and the XXX valves for XXXXX.>We then move into the quieter motor room. The motors are driven by electricity from the battery and they’re the things that actually turn the propellers. Image 21 is a shot of some of the control panels for controlling the main motors, the generators and the batteries. While at sea these panels were manned 24 hours a day seven days a week. LOCATION 7 – Marker F on the railing.TIME ALLOCATION – 2-3 minutesSUBJECT – Aft Accommodation and PropellerAfter heading aft through the final watertight bulkhead door you would enter the accommodation area for the electricians and engineers and what used to be the aft torpedo section. In 1995, the Ovens became a training submarine for the new Collins class submarines and the bunks were taken out and fitted with desks. You can see this in image 22. The removal of the torpedo tubes was a blow to the submariners as this is where they stored their beer! To the left you can see another type of escape suit.On our regular tour we would then exit Ovens via the aft weapons loading hatch which you can see in Image 23 and located where you can see the white canopy <point>.Something you can’t see inside the boat, but you can on this tour is the propellers. You’ll notice the propellers are a unique shape and made of material to quieten them when turning. All propellers sing and vibrate, but these are designed to be as quiet as possible.I’ll also like to point out the aft hydro-planes which are used to change the depth of the submarine and the rudder for steering.Finally, if you look at the nice, round shape of the stern section, it is affectionately known as “The Ducks’ Bottom”, which is the polite way of saying it.Shortly I will take you upstairs so you can get a birds eye view of the submarine, so if you have any Ovens questions if you can save them for upstairs! LOCATION 8 – Marker G on the railing.TIME ALLOCATION – 2-3 minutesSUBJECT – Fremantle in World War TwoBefore we head upstairs does anyone know the important role the Slipway you see in front of us played during World War Two?Considered a part of Australia’s National Coastal Defence systems, in 1942 the Slipways became the site of considerable military activity during the war. Responding to Japanese aggression in the Pacific and South-East Asia, Fremantle became an urgent defence priority and the preferred port for the US Asiatic Fleet (having evacuated the Javanese bases) and in so doing, became the largest submarine base in the Southern Hemisphere. Between 1942 and 1945, Fremantle played host to 170 Allied submarines. On average, once every three days an American, British or Dutch submarine left Fremantle on patrol into the south-west Pacific and the eastern part of the Indian Ocean; a total of 416 war patrols. Some 1,000 men lost their lives on patrols out of Fremantle. Image 24 is of HMS Adamant a British submarine depot ship in Fremantle Harbour with 5 submarines berthed alongside.From 1945 to 1987, the slipways serviced a variety of ships and watercraft, notably slipping for the State Shipping Service. Maintenance support was also provided to the Oberon class, cold-war era, submarines throughout the 1960’s. HMAS Ovens was gifted to the Western Australian Museum by the Commonwealth Government in 1995. In February 1998, the submarine was slipped onto this historic slipway to undergo conservation work and formally opened to the public in December 1999.LOCATION 9 – HMAS AE2 MemorialTIME ALLOCATION – 2 minutesSUBJECT – HMAS AE2One last thing to show you before we head back inside is this small memorial that commemorates the Royal Australian Navy submarine,?AE2?which left Fremantle to travel to the conflict in the Mediterranean Sea during World War One.AE2 performed daring deeds during the Gallipoli campaign becoming the first vessel in over 300 years to breach the defences of the Dardanelle’s before being lost in action with all crew being captured.In 1998, the resting place of AE2 was identified in the Sea of Marmora and now acts as memorial and the AE2 is often referred to as the “Silent ANZAC”.You can learn more about the AE2 and see a replica of its fin when we head upstairs to the Naval Defence Gallery.So if you’re ready let’s make our way back inside!As you take your tour group back inside:Feel free to take some questions about OvensPoint out the Oxley bow and that they can see how the MK23 wire guided torpedo exits the submarine bow caps.Point out the Allied Submarine MemorialCollect the image books back as you go in and return them to the front desk. Keep one to take upstairs with you just in case you need to refer to it. *** Allow about 5 minutes to get up to the Naval Defence Gallery. ****** If you have a Fremantle site Access Card you can enter through the side door which will cut a few minutes of walking! ***LOCATION 10 – Ovens Observation WindowTIME ALLOCATION – 2-3 minutesSUBJECT – Naval Defence Gallery<Take your group via the stairs in the Fishing Gallery as this will bring us to the location where we want to start>Welcome to the Naval Defence Gallery. In this gallery you can find out more about the important role of naval defence in protecting Australia's interests and the strategic importance of Fremantle as a marine base.Right in front of you is the replica conning tower of AE2 which we spoke about earlier and you can find out more about its mission.Now if you look outside the window you can get a birds-eye view of Ovens. If you look out past Ovens you can see Garden Island where HMAS Stirling is located. Stirling is home port of the formidable Collins class submarine fleet and highlights the strategic importance that this area continues to play in Australia’s defences.Remember the Jolly Roger from the beginning of the tour? You can see it better from here! Does anyone know why a submarine flies the Jolly Roger?Answer:This is a submarine tradition that stems back to World War 1 when a British Admiral called submariners a “bunch of pirates.” One submarine captain quite liked the association and returned home with the Jolly Roger flying from the flagpole. The tradition was then set in place that if a submarine returned from patrol and had sunk an enemy vessel, it was entitled to fly the Jolly Roger. Whether or not the Ovens is truly entitled to fly the flag is debatable; Ovens did sink a ship with a submarine harpoon missile during a training exercise. The ship was sunk deliberately by Ovens as it was going to be sunk anyway, so it is debatable whether or not this constitutes a successful patrol.If you are interested on my left is an interactive display screen where you can find out more about life on board Ovens.We can return here for a closer look if you have further questions.LOCATION 11 – Ovens Memorabilia ShowcaseTIME ALLOCATION – 2-3 minutesSUBJECT – Oberon Crests and the Ovens BellIf you follow me I would now like to show you the display containing Ovens memorabilia. Up top you can see the crests of all the Oberon class submarines that made up the First Australian Submarine Squadron.The top crest is of HMAS Platypus which is not a submarine but the home base for the Oberon fleet and was located in Sydney.From left to right we have Oxley, Otway, Onslow, Ovens, Orion and Otama. Notice they all begin with the letter O! Here is the original bell that hung above the fin door. Inside the Ovens bell you see the names of children from 43 crew members who were baptised on board. The bell was used to hold the water so it was a very special baptismal font.So with this now concludes our tour.I will now leave you to explore the rest of the Museum or I am also more than happy to meet you back at the window to answer any more questions you may have about Ovens.HMAS OVENS QUESTIONS AND ANSWERSBelow is a range of commonly asked questions and simple one line responses.Please see page 27 about the Save the Sub campaign and the restoration work to be carried out.What class of submarine is HMAS Ovens? Oberon Class often referred to as an Australian O or Oxley Class after the first built. Who was the Ovens named after? John Ovens, an Irish / Australian explorer (1788-1825). What is meant by Diesel/Electric? Diesel engines charging batteries which provide power to run main propulsion motors and all other electrical power systems, the diesels are not directly connected to propeller shafts. How many batteries power the Boat? 2, number 1 battery is under the forward accommodation space, and # 2 is under the Wardroom. How many cells are there per battery? 224. What is the weight of 1 cell? Approx. ? ton, they are lead plate batteries with sulphuric acid as the electrolyte. When was the Ovens built? The keel was laid in 1967, and was first commissioned in 1969. Where was the Ovens built? Scott’s Shipbuilding in Greenock, Scotland. When was the Ovens decommissioned? 1995, and was used as a training ship at HMAS Stirling and gifted to the Maritime Museum in 1999. How many submarines of the same class as the Ovens did Australia have? 6 in total, the first four arrived between 1967 & 1970, the last two in 1978. What is Active and Passive sonar? Active Sonar – Transmits / Receive with Transducers, the “Pinging” sound in the movies. Passive Sonar – Listen with Hydrophones. Why does a submarine mainly use only passive sonar? So it will not be heard “Pinging” and remain undetected. What is a submarines main role in peacetime (other than as a deterrent)? Information gathering & training of the Navy & Air Force in Anti-Submarine Warfare. In wartime what is a submarines main threat? All forms of sonar especially from Helicopters with dunking sonar, maritime surveillance Planes dropping sonar boys, and enemy submarines. What is a MK8 torpedo? A ‘Straight Runner’ short range, point and shoot torpedo, powered by a 4 cylinder radial diesel. What is an Mk8’s maximum range and speed? 6,400 metres at 41 knots, or 4,500 metres at 45.5 knots. What is a MK48 torpedo? Long range, deep running, high speed, wire guided weapon, powered by an internal combustion engine using “Otto” fuel, containing its own oxygenating agent. What is a MK48’s maximum range and speed? While still “Classified”, it is reported to be over 40,000 metres and 55 knots. Why do torpedoes have 2 propellers? Contra-rotating propellers increases power, & stops torpedo uncontrollable spinning. What guided missile was fired from HMAS Ovens, being the first Oberon Submarine to do so? The UGM 84 Submarine Launched Encapsulated Harpoon Missile. How does an acoustic mine work? Sound of ships propellers (cavitation), as it passes overhead, causes it to detonate. What is the length and displacement of the Boat? 89.9m long X 8.7m diameter, surfaced 2,100 tons approx., dived 2,400 tons approx. What is the estimated range of the boat starting with full fuel tanks? The fuel tanks hold 300,000 litres of diesel which gives 9,000 nautical miles / 18,000 km. How does a submarine dive and surface? Vents open and the ballast tanks fill with water the boat becomes negatively buoyant Vents closed, HP air is blown into ballast tanks expelling the water, positive buoyant How many ballast tanks does the Ovens have? 7 What and where is ‘Q’ tank? Quick flood dive assistance tank holding 4 tons of water, and is in the Forends directly below forward weapons loading hatch. Which ballast tanks are used for fuel oil? Number 3 and 5 ballast tanks. How do the forward and aft hydroplanes work? By Hydraulic (Telemotor) pressure or Air in an emergency, by angling of the hydroplanes the boat will go deeper or shallower. What is the purpose of the casing? Streamlining and reducing noise from water turbulence from all the fittings and gear stored under the casing i.e. winches, bollards, ropes etc. also a safe platform on which to walk. What is the purpose of the fin? To house and streamline the masts and provide an elevated platform, bridge, for the officer of the watch and lookouts when on the surface. What is engraved inside the ships bell? Names of crew members children who were baptized on board the Submarine.What is the significance of the Jolly Roger? Adopted by WW1 Submariners, having been likened to Pirates by an RN Admiral, so as to display a successful patrol where enemy shipping has been sunk by the sub. What is the ring around the top of the forward escape hatch for? To allow the rescue submersible “Remora” to dock with the submarine, electromagnetic clamp. When is the false deck in the forward weapons section normally raised? When escaping from the Boat, and to provide extra storage for extended patrols. How many torpedo’s can be carried by the Ovens? Can carry a “War Load” of 22, 6 in Tubes & 16 in Racks, but 1 Rack not used – 21. What is the sequence of events required to fire a torpedo? Weapon is loaded, the tube flooded, the outer door & bowcap opened, HP air pushes torpedo out, starting its propulsion motor, HP air vented inboard as torpedo exits, plus equivalent weight of water, approx. 1.5 tons. What are the compensating tanks used for? To hold water that has replaced the torpedo just fired, to keep the same weight & trim What are the sequence of events required to reload a torpedo tube? Close outer door and bowcap, drain tube, open and ream tube telltale test cock vent, crack rear door onto Thetis Clip, if clear open rear door and reload torpedo. What is the “Thetis Clip”? A safety swing bolt with eye nut preventing the rear door from fully opening, when the rear door locking ring is released, in case the tube is still flooded. What is the underwater telephone used for? Communicating with other vessels, especially for escape purposes. How many ways of escape are there? 3 – Single Person – Compartment (Rush Escape) – Submersible escapes. How does the one man escape method work? Get into Escape Suit, climb into Tower, plug into air supply, drop in lower lid, flood tower and when pressure equalizes upper lid opens and float to surface breathing out all the way. What are BIBS? Built In Breathing System used for providing air for escape purposes. What is an oxygen generator? Burns a chemical candle to generate oxygen as required. What is a CO2 scrubber? Filters air through soda lime canisters to trap the CO2. What is the SSE - Submerged Signal Ejector used for? Fires various coloured Pyrotechnics to the surface to provide visual communications with ships and aircrafts. What do the different colours of the valves throughout the boat signify? Their colours and shapes signify what is in the pipes that they are connected to. How many bunks in the junior sailors mess? 5 for info there are 3 bunks in passageway opposite senior sailors mess and two outside the Coxswains Grott.How many bunks in the senior sailors mess? 13, 10 inside the Mess and 3 in the passage, plus 3 in the Coxwain’s Grott.What is the Boats normal complement? Between 63 and 65. How long are the bunks? 6 foot – 1.82 metres. How often are battery readings taken while at sea? Once a watch when in 2 hour watches, or hourly if required. How many cooks are carried? Two. How many meals per day are served? 3 Main meals plus 10 o’clockers - 10PM Supper. How often is garbage ejected? Twice a day as required, normally after sunset and prior to sunrise. Where is the Coxswains Store, and what is it used for? Below the Galley – the Cooks dry goods plus Wardroom Wine & Spirit locker. When fully stocked how many days can the boat stay at sea without replenishing? Approximately 70 days of food held. Where is the sick Bay? The Coxswains Cabin. Who acts as medic on board? The Coxswain assisted by the XO and Cooks. What is the wardroom? Officers Mess (living quarters). What happens in the sonar room? Sonar operators (UC’s) listen for the noise made by passing shipping on 3 Sonar sets. What is Fire Control? This controls the torpedo until locked on to target. How does the OMC One Man Control work? By hydraulic servos put rise and dive on the planes and port and starboard on the rudder. What is the Command Display Console (CDC)? Plotter used for tracking a target ship, giving a graphical view of contacts. What is meant by “Trim”? Pumping & flooding water into tanks to keep the boat horizontal and neutrally buoyant What happens at the Main Panel? Open and closing of Vents and Kingston Valves, flood and blow tanks. How many masts are there, and what are the names of these masts from forward to aft? 7 masts, Attack – Search (Periscopes) – Radar – ESM – Snort Induction – WT – Snort Exhaust. Which mast is the only telescopic mast? WT (Radio Communications) Mast. What is the main difference between the two periscopes? Attack periscope small / thin monocular and rotated by hand – the Search periscope larger, binocular and is rotated by a powered roundabout. What is meant by the term “Snorting”? Running the Diesels submerged by sucking air through a snorkel. Where is the AMS, Auxiliary Machinery Space? The Auxiliary Machinery Space is directly below Control Room, WT, heads & showers. Where is the cold room and refrigeration? Below the Senior Rates Shower, directly opposite the AMS access ladder. How many toilets and showers on board? 4 Heads – 1 for Officers, 3 for other ranks, 3 showers – 1 for Officers, Senior and Junior Rates. Where is the snake pit? Below main deck forward end of the engine room, access ladder below control panel. What is the purpose of the separators in the engine room? Forward separator separates Diesel from seawater, aft separates Lube Oil from carbon. What is the purpose of the HP air compressor? Produces HP air for storage in 5 Bottle Groups at 4,000PSI. How is fresh water replenished? Mostly from ashore, but also by the distillers in the snake pit.Where is the bear pit? Below main deck aft end of the engine room, access ladder aft of port generator. What is the size in HP of the two diesel engines? 1,840 HP or 1,280 KW. How many cylinders does each engine have? 16 in V formation (ASR1VMS16). What do the diesel engines sit on? Resilient Mounts (manufactured by Rolls Royce). What cools the generators? Air, which is cooled by Fresh Water. What drives the Main Motors? DC Main Power Electricity drawn from the Batteries, 4 speed ranges drawing 110V, 220V, 440V and 880V power. What does each wall in the electrical control (Motor Room cubicle) room signify? Main Motor operational control, Generator operational control, The Batteries control. Who occupies the bunks in the aft accommodation space? Engineering trades assistants “Stokers” and Electricians “Greenies”. Why is there now so much room in the aft ends? 6 after bunks have been removed as well as the Aft Torpedo Tubes. Can the Rudder and Aft Hydroplanes be operated from the aft end? Yes, in “local Control” with main Telemotor (Hydraulic) pressure, or by Hand Pump. What is the thickness of the pressure hull? 1.3/8 inch or 30 mm What strengthens the pressure hull? Inverted “T” shaped steel Ribs, coated with cork to deaden sound, set 30 inches apart. What are the “Strong Backs” used for? To reinforce Torpedo Loading Hatch where it is cut into hull and through ribs. What caused the indentation from coins into solid steel strong back blocks? Compression, at depth, of hull against strong-backs with coins wedged between. At atmospheric pressure what is the PSI on the human body? 14.696 PSI At 300 feet what is the outside pressure in PSI? 150 PSI approx. (129.93 psi head of water + atmosphere) use 1 psi for every 2 ft of depth What is the Operational / Maximum safe diving depth of Ovens? The Safe Operational Depth of Oberon Class Submarines was 600 feet or 100 fathoms, approx. 200 metres, however the builder of the Australian O Boats, Scott’s Shipbuilding, show on their engineering notes a Maximum Safe Depth of 1,000 foot. How did Ovens become part of the WA Maritime Museum?The Submarine Ovens, having been decommissioned in 1995, was used by the RAN as a training vessel berthed alongside HMAS Stirling on Garden Island, and in late 1999 was “gifted” by the Australian Government to the WA Maritime Museum and pulled up onto the slipway and opened to the Public in December of 1999. The new Museum was completed and opened to the Public in 2002 and the operation of the Volunteer Guides was incorporated into the new Museum and support facilities in A Shed.SAVE OUR SUB CAMPAIGNOver the past 25 years, wear and tear has taken its toll on?Ovens. She is located in a harsh marine environment where strong winds, salty spray and bright sunlight have conspired to badly damage her paintwork and cause corrosion to the metal below.She desperately needs paint removed, corrosion treatment and a new coat of paint. This process will involve ensuring that there is no contamination of the river or ocean during the process.Work of this scale, and involving the quite reasonable environmental safeguards, is not cheap!The works will include:Full encapsulation and containment scaffoldingStripping of existing paintwork and waste removalRestoration of the hull, including surface preparationRepainting of the submarine surfaceHow can visitors help?The Save Our Sub campaign is an initiative of the Foundation for WA Museum.Brochures are available from the Maritime Museum Admissions desk. They can also pledge support by visiting the Foundation website at:?.au/ovensAssistance can be provided in several ways, you could:Provide a personal donationProvide a corporate donation or through sponsorshipMake a bequest to the ongoing maintenance of the submarineHelp to promote the campaign through your networksProvide in-kind support as a supplier or contractor ................
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