HMAS Duchess ( D154 ) HMAS " Duchess was a " Daring " - class destroyer that served in the Royal Navy as HMS " Duchess from 1952 to 1964 , and in the Royal Australian Navy ( RAN ) from 1964 to 1980 . Commissioned into the Royal Navy in 1952 , " Duchess " operated with the British Home Fleet and in the Mediterranean , was involved in the 1956 Suez Crisis , and served as part of the Far East Strategic Reserve . Following the " Melbourne " - " Voyager " collision , " Duchess " was loaned to the RAN in 1964 as a temporary replacement for HMAS " Voyager " . The destroyer was purchased by Australia in 1972 , converted into a training ship over the next two years , and continued to operate with the RAN until her paying off in 1977 , and her sale for scrap in 1980 . Construction . " Duchess " was laid down by John I . Thornycroft and Company of Woolston at Southampton on 8 July 1948 . She was launched on 9 April 1951 by Countess Edwina Mountbatten , and commissioned into the Royal Navy on 23 October 1952 . Operational history . Royal Navy . " Duchess " was initially assigned to the British Home Fleet in early 1953 . In June 1953 she took part in the Fleet Review to celebrate the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II . In September 1954 and July 1955 , the destroyer was deployed to the Mediterranean , and near the end of the year escorted the Royal Yacht " Britannia " during the final leg of Queen Elizabeth ' s and the Duke of Edinburgh ' s world tour . " Duchess " continued to operate in the Mediterranean until July 1955 , and was involved in the Suez Crisis in 1956 . Sometime between 1956 and 1964 , the destroyer operated with the Far East Strategic Reserve . Transfer . Following the loss of the " Daring " - class destroyer in a collision with the aircraft carrier on 10 February 1964 , both the United Kingdom and the United States of America offered to loan ships to the RAN as a replacement ; the Royal Navy offering " Duchess " while the United States Navy offered two " Fletcher " - class destroyers : US Ships and . " Duchess " was accepted on a four - year loan and modernised , while two modified " River " - class frigates ( and ) were constructed as permanent replacements . " Duchess " was acquired by the RAN on 8 May 1964 , and commissioned on the same day . Royal Australian Navy . During 1965 and 1966 , " Duchess " operated in Malaysian waters during the Indonesia - Malaysia Confrontation . This was later recognised with the battle honour " Malaysia 1965 – 66 " . Although she had been loaned to the RAN for only four years , " Duchess " remained in RAN service after this time , and was purchased outright by the Australian Government in 1972 . At the start of 1973 , " Duchess " underwent a refit that removed several of her weapons and installed a classroom , for future service as a training ship . Re - entering service in August 1974 , the ship performed her first training cruise in early 1975 , visiting ports in south - west Australia and New Zealand . Training cruises also occurred in late 1975 , 1976 , and 1977 . Decommissioning and fate . In September 1977 , " Duchess " was removed from service , and was paid off on 24 October 1977 . The ship was sold for breaking up as scrap on 7 May 1980 , and departed Sydney under tow for Taiwan on 9 July .