HMAS Hobart (DDG 39), named after the city of Hobart, Tasmania, is the lead ship of the Hobart-class air warfare destroyers used by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). The ship, based on the Álvaro de Bazán-class frigate designed by Navantia, was built at ASC's shipyard in Osborne, South Australia from modules fabricated by ASC, BAE Systems Australia in Victoria, and Forgacs Marine & Defence in New South Wales. Hobart was ordered in 2007, but errors and delays in construction caused extensive schedule slippage. Despite commissioning initially planned for December 2014, the ship was not laid down until September 2012, and launched in May 2015. The Department of Defence accepted delivery of HMAS Hobart on 16 June 2017. The ship was commissioned on 23 September 2017.
Construction The ship was assembled from 31 pre-fabricated modules ('blocks'): 12 for the hull, nine for the forward superstructure, and 10 for the aft superstructure.Grevatt, AWD Alliance admits destroyer contract hit by construction 'difficultiesGrevatt, NQEA loses block-building deal for Australian destroyers Modules were fabricated by ASC in South Australia, BAE Systems Australia in Victoria, and Forgacs Marine & Defence in New South Wales, with final assembly of the ship at ASC's shipyard in Osborne, South Australia.Pengelley, Aussie rulesKerr, Australia seeks to extend AWD options Delays and project slippage resulted in the redistribution of block construction across the three shipbuilders, and the bow hull block was constructed by Navantia.Stewart, Overdue and over budgetRoyal Australian Navy, Changes to Air Warfare Destroyer Construction Program
In October 2010, the central keel block for Hobart was found to be distorted and incompatible with other hull sections.Stewart, $8bn navy flagship founders after construction bungle Incorrect drawings from designer Navantia and first-of-kind manufacturing errors by manufacturer BAE were blamed, and the delay in reworking the block set construction back at least six months.Stewart, BAE shipyard to blame for destroyer delays: Defence Other major issues during construction included the need to replace 25% of the destroyer's internal pipework due to faulty manufacture, and the initial rejection of the ship's mainmast block because of defects in the cabling and combat system equipment.McPhedran, Navy warships project heading for cost blowoutGreene, Companies building multi-billion-dollar warships feared defects would damage their reputations, leaked documents show
Hobarts keel was laid down on 6 September 2012. The ship was launched on 27 May 2015, with 76% of construction complete.Australian News Sea Breezes August 2015 page 14Starick, First look aboard Adelaide-built air warfare destroyer, the HobartRadio Australia, Air Warfare Destroyer project: HMAS Hobart launched, SA Premier calls on Government to trust workers with next generation submarines Construction of Hobart and her sister ships saw numerous delays: a planned December 2014 commissioning for Hobart was pushed back in September 2012 to March 2016, then again in May 2015 to delivery in June 2017.Cullen, Work on $8bn destroyer fleet delayedSheridan, Warships cost blows out to $9bn As of October 2015, construction of Hobart was estimated to be 30 months behind schedule and $870 million over budget.Naval-technology.com, HMAS Hobart construction costs overrun by $870m, says AWD Alliance Sea trials were completed in September 2016. Hobart was handed over to the Navy in June 2017, and was commissioned on 23 September 2017 with the designation Guided missile destroyer 'DDG' and assigned the pennant number '39'.http://www.australiandefence.com.au/news/first-destroyer-hobart-handed-over-to-navy First destroyer Hobart handed over to Navy
Operational service Hobart conducted a five-month deployment to the United States during late 2018 which was undertaken to test her combat systems. During the deployment the ship completed a range of intensive trials, and fired multiple missiles.
Hobart commenced her first operational deployment in late September 2019. During this deployment she served as the flagship for a RAN task group in Northern and South-East Asia. Hobart was one of the Australian ships which participated in the RIMPAC 2020 exercise in mid-2020. This was undertaken as part of a broader deployment by the ships to South-East Asia and the Pacific.
Hobart visited her namesake city for the 183rd Royal Hobart Regatta in February 2018, which was the first time in 18 years a vessel bearing its name had done so. She returned again for the next regatta in 2022. On 9 March 2024 Hobarts crew marched in a Freedom of Entry parade through the Hobart central business district.
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