In 1959, the Australian Army purchased four Landing Ship Medium (LSM) from the US Navy in Japan. These vessels were veterans of the Pacific Campaigns in World War II and the Korean War. They served extensively with 32 Small Ship Squadron in New Guinea and the South West Pacific and two of them served in Borneo during the confrontation with Indonesia in 1964. 32 Small Ship Squadron was disbanded in early 1972, after which the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) became responsible for all seagoing activities of the Defence Force.