Australian Army ship Crusader (AV 2767)
Crusader in December 1945
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| History | |
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 Australia
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| Operator: |
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| Builder: | Melbourne Harbour Trust, Williamstown Dockyard |
| Launched: | 8 August 1945 |
| Commissioned: | Late 1945 |
| Decommissioned: | 1947 |
| Out of service: | 1984 |
| Renamed: |
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| Fate: | Sunk as a dive wreck in 1986 |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 1,500 long tons (1,500 t) |
| Length: | 200 ft (61.0 m) |
| Beam: | 50 ft (15.2 m) |
| Draft: | 12 ft (3.7 m) |
| Ramps: | Six vehicle loading ramps |
| Propulsion: | Six Ruston & Hornsby engines and six propellers |
| Speed: | 9 knots (17 km/h) |
| Endurance: | 30 days |
| Capacity: | 1,500 long tons (1,500 t) of cargo in three holds and 40 vehicles as deck cargo |
| Complement: | 31 |
| Armament: | Fitted for self-defence guns at the bow and stern |
| Notes: | Characteristics are for the ship's Army service and are from and |
Crusader (AV2767) was an Australian Army amphibious operations support ship of World War II. She was launched shortly before the war ended and entered service in late 1945. From 1945 to 1947 she was mainly used to return Australian Army equipment from the islands off New Guinea. She was also loaned to the Australian Shipping Board in early 1947 and transported earth moving equipment and timber between Melbourne and Tasmania. However, the Army did not need a ship with Crusader's capabilities after the war, and she was sold in 1947 to the Queensland Cement and Lime Company which operated her as a coral barge on the Brisbane River until the mid-1980s. The ship was scuttled in 1986 and subsequently became a popular dive wreck.
During late 1944 and early 1945 the Australian Army suffered from a shortage of shipping, leading to delays in moving heavy equipment and small watercraft from Australia to operational areas in the South West Pacific. While several British and United States vessels were eventually made available in mid-1945, the Australian Army's chief engineer, Major General Clive Steele, chose to design and build a heavy lift ship for the Army. Steele personally designed the ship, which was intended to support amphibious operations and transport supplies. He deliberately underestimated the project's cost in order to gain approval for the ship's design and construction.
The ship's design incorporated a number of unusual features. Crusader had a shallow draft to allow her to operate close to the shore, as well as four rudders and six engines driving six propellers to give her a high degree of manoeuvrability. While the ship required engines capable of generating a total of 2,000 horsepower (1,500 kW), the largest engines which were available in Australia at the time each generated only 220 horsepower (160 kW) horsepower. Only six of these engines could be fitted into the ship, and she was considered under powered during her Army service. Her hold could carry 1,500 long tons (1,500 t) of stores and an additional 40 vehicles could be embarked on her deck. The ship also had six 30-long-ton (30 t) cranes to move heavy equipment, as well as six bridge-like structures which were used to embark and disembark vehicles. This equipment allowed her to discharge cargo at the rate of 90 long tons (91 t) at any one time.Crusader had a 'box-like' appearance, and her design did not impress naval engineers.
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