HMAS Goulburn HMAS " Goulburn " ( J167 / B243 / A117 ) , named for the city of Goulburn , New South Wales , was one of 60 " Bathurst " class corvettes constructed during World War II , and one of 36 initially manned and commissioned solely by the Royal Australian Navy ( RAN ) . Construction . " Goulburn " was laid down by the Cockatoo Island Dockyard in Sydney , New South Wales on 10 July 1940 . She was launched on 16 November 1940 by the wife of Rear Admiral John Gregory Crace , the commander of the Australian Squadron , and was commissioned on 28 February 1941 . At 743 tons standard displacement , " Goulburn " exceeded the designed standard displacement of the " Bathurst " class ships by 93 tons . Operational history . After entering active service , " Goulburn " was assigned to minesweeping duties along the east and south - east coasts of Australia , and was one of several ships attempting to locate mines deployed by the German auxiliary cruiser " Pinguin " and the auxiliary minelayer " Passat " . Although operating in this role from 23 April to 31 May 1941 , the corvette located only a single mine . On 16 June , " Goulburn " and sister ship " Burnie " were assigned to the China Station and sailed to Singapore . The corvettes operated as convoy escorts , minesweepers , and anti - submarine patrol ships until January 1942 . " Goulburn " was then deployed to Batavia and used as a minesweeper and convoy escort throughout the Sunda Islands . On 27 February , the corvette passed the ABDA cruiser force shortly before the beginning of the Battle of the Java Sea . Although removed from the main battle area , " Goulburn " was attacked by three waves of three Japanese dive bombers , but was undamaged . On 29 February , " Goulburn " departed for Australia , arriving in Fremantle on 9 March with only seven tons of fuel remaining . The corvette was assigned to convoy escort runs along the Queensland coast until the end of 1943 , then entered a three - month refit . After refitting , " Goulburn " was deployed to New Guinea waters as an escort and patrol vessel . During June 1944 , the corvette supported landings at Dugumu Bay and Sogari Island . On 25 September , native scouts and a US Army Intelligence officer were embarked to be transported to the Malpia Islands . The native scouts were landed on 27 September to assess Japanese troop strength throughout the island group . After the scouts failed to rendezvous with the ship two days later , and following a failed search attempt by six sailors and the US officer , it was assumed that the scouts had been captured . This was confirmed when American PT boats attempted to land troops on the island a few days later , meeting heavy Japanese resistance . Before leaving the area , " Goulburn " shelled a village on Pegun Island believed to hold Japanese troops . At the start of October , the corvette was tasked with retrieving another native scout group . After several failed attempts to locate the scouts , they were retrieved from Mois Aoeri Island . While returning to the ship , the shore party was able to capture three Japanese soldiers attempting to escape in a canoe . After observing numerous Japanese personnel on shore , and receiving conformation that several hundred Japanese were based on the island , " Goulburn " opened fire on the main camp . After these operations , the corvette returned to convoy escort duties until December 1944 , then returned to Australia . Goulburn spent the first part of 1945 operating in Australian waters , before returning to New Guinea in May . She spent a month on escort and minesweeping duties , before sailing to Darwin and escorting a floating dry dock to Milne Bay . The corvette remained in New Guinea waters until the end of the war on 15 August . On 30 August , " Goulburn " and two sister ships escorted a convoy to Hong Kong , arriving on 21 September . The corvette was involved in minesweeping operations throughout Chinese waters , before returning to Sydney in December 1945 . The ship received two battle honour s for her wartime service : " Pacific 1942 - 44 " and " New Guinea 1942 - 44 " . Decommissioning and fate . " Goulburn " was paid off on 27 September 1946 . She was sold to Pacific Enterprise Incorporated on 13 October 1947 , and after several re - sales , ended up in the possession of the Ta Hing Company of Hong Kong in December 1950 . However , a Commonwealth Statuatory Order prevented the ship from leaving Australian waters , and she was sold again to John Manners & Co of Sydney in 1953 . The corvette was broken up for scrapping at Iron Cove in 1953 .