HMAS Burnie

HMAS Burnie (J198/B238/A112), named for the port city of Burnie, Tasmania, was one of 60 Bathurst class corvettes constructed during World War II and one of 20 built for the Admiralty but manned by personnel of and commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

Entering RAN service in April 1941, Burnie saw action during World War II, and was decommissioned on 5 July 1946. The corvette was sold to the Royal Netherlands Navy (RNN) five days later, was renamed HNLMS Ceram, and remained in service until 1958.

Construction
Burnie was laid down by Mort's Dock and Engineering Company in Balmain, New South Wales on 4 June 1940. The corvette was launched on 25 October 1940 by Lady King, wife of the Mort's Dock Chairman of Directors, and was commissioned into the RAN on 15 April 1941.

RAN service
Burnie was initially assigned to the 20th Minesweeping Flotilla, which she joined on 10 May 1941. The ship was then temporarily based at Fremantle, Western Australia as a patrol ship and convoy escort, then was sent to Sydney. In June, Burnie and sister ship Goulburn were assigned to the Royal Navy's China Force, and sailed to Singapore via the east coast of Australia, arriving on 12 July.

Burnie was present in South East Asia when Japan attacked Pearl Harbor and invaded Malaya. The corvette was flagship of the China Force, and was involved in a series of actions delaying the Japanese advance through Malaya and the Netherlands East Indies, including demolition work, troop and civilian evacuation, and anti-aircraft engagements, both individually and in concert with other Allied ships. During this time, she was involved in the evacuation of Sumatra in mid-February 1942, and rescued survivors from the Dutch vessel Broero on 28 February. This continued until September 1942, when Burnie was assigned to the British Eastern Fleet for anti-submarine patrol and convoy escort duties in the Indian Ocean.

Burnie remained with the Eastern Fleet until December 1944, when she and the other Admiralty-controlled Australian corvettes were ordered to Sydney, formed up as a Minesweeping Flotilla, and attached to the British Pacific Fleet. The corvette was primarily used as a patrol ship and convoy escort in the waters of New Guinea, the Admiralty Islands, and the Philippines.

After World War II ended in August 1945, Burnie was ordered to Hong Kong, where she was involved in mine clearance operations. By November, she had returned to Australian waters, and during December 1945 and January 1946 was involved in several public relations activities, including a visit to her namesake town and a cruise for children in Port Phillip Bay. The corvette's wartime service was recognised with three battle honours: "Pacific 1942-45", "Indian Ocean 1942-44", and "Okinawa 1945".

RNN service
Following the end of World War II, all of the Admiralty-operated Bathurst class corvettes were earmarked for disposal. Burnie, along with sister ships Ipswich and Toowoomba, were slated for transfer to the Royal Netherlands Navy (RNN). The three corvettes departed Brisbane on 4 June 1946, arriving in Ceylon a month and a day later. The three ships were paid off from RAN service and commissioned into the RNN; Burnie being renamed HNLMS Ceram

Ceram remained in service with the RNN until 1958, when she was removed from the active service list.