Design and Construction
Swan was one of six River-class torpedo boat destroyers built for the RAN. The destroyer had a displacement of 750 tons, was 250 feet 9 inches (76.43 m) long overall and 245 feet (75 m) long between perpendiculars, had a beam of 24 feet 4 inches (7.42 m), and a maximum draught of 8 feet 10 inches (2.69 m). Propulsion machinery consisted of three Yarrow boilers feeding Parsons turbines, which suppled 10,000 shaft horsepower (7,500 kW) to the ship's three propeller shafts. Although designed to reach 26 knots (48 km/h; 30 mph), Swan was capable of reaching a maximun speed half a knot greater. Maximum range was 2,690 nautical miles (4,980 km; 3,100 mi) at 11.5 knots (21.3 km/h; 13.2 mph). The ship's company consisted of 4 officers and 67 sailors.
The destroyer's main armament consisted of a BL 4-inch Mark VIII gun, supplemented by three QF 12 pounder 12 cwt guns. This was supplemented by three single 18-inch torpedo tubes and three .303-inch machine guns. Later in the ship's career, two depth charge throwers and four depth charge chutes were installed.
Swan was laid down by the Cockatoo Docks and Engineering Company at Sydney in New South Wales on 22 January 1913. She was launched on launched on 11 December 1915 by the wife of Sir William Rooke Creswell, the First Naval Member of the Australian Commonwealth Naval Board. The destroyer was commissioned into the RAN on 16 August 1916, six days before construction work concluded. The ship's name comes from the Swan River in Western Australia.
Read more about this topic: HMAS Swan (D61)
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