HMAS Sirius (O 266) (formerly MT Delos) is a commercial tanker purchased by the Royal Australian Navy

Royal Australian Navy

The Royal Australian Navy is the naval branch of the Australian Defence Force. Following the Federation of Australia in 1901, the ships and resources of the separate colonial navies were integrated into a national force: the Commonwealth Naval Forces...

 and converted into a fleet replenishment vessel to replace . Launched in South Korea on 2004, and converted in Western Australia, Sirius was commissioned in 2006; three years before a purpose-built vessel would have, and at half the cost. The tanker is expected to remain in service until 2021.

Construction and acquisition

Delos was built at Hyundai Mipo Dockyard

Hyundai Heavy Industries

Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. is the world's largest shipbuilding company, headquartered in Ulsan, South Korea. The company is a subsidiary of Hyundai Heavy Industries Group...

 in South Korea

South Korea

The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...

. She was launched on 12 April 2004, and was purchased by the Australian Government on 16 June 2004, following completion. Delos was converted to her new role at Fremantle

Henderson, Western Australia

Henderson is a suburb of Perth, Western Australia, located within the City of Cockburn.-History:The suburb of Henderson comprises land resumed by the Commonwealth Government in 1915 for defence purposes. A large naval base was planned by Admiral Sir Reginald Henderson, and the was area sometimes...

 by Tenix Defence

Tenix Defence

Tenix Defence was Australia's largest defence contractor with core capabilities in Aerospace, Land, Marine and Electronic Systems applications. BAE Systems announced its intention to acquire the company from Tenix in January 2008 and the acquisition was completed in June 2008 for A$775 million...

, and was commissioned into the RAN on 16 September 2006. Sirius is expected to remain in service for approximately 15 years.

Originally, the RAN planned to have a ship specially constructed for the role. The decision to instead purchase an under-construction civilian tanker and modify her for military service allowed Sirius to enter service three years before originally planned, at a saving of half the acquisition project's cost.

While HMAS Sirius is the first ship of this name to serve as part of the RAN, she is named in honour of , the flagship

Flagship

A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...

 of the First Fleet

First Fleet

The First Fleet is the name given to the eleven ships which sailed from Great Britain on 13 May 1787 with about 1,487 people, including 778 convicts , to establish the first European colony in Australia, in the region which Captain Cook had named New South Wales. The fleet was led by Captain ...

 of British convicts sent to Australia in 1788. HMS Sirius was wrecked off Norfolk Island

Norfolk Island

Norfolk Island is a small island in the Pacific Ocean located between Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia. The island is part of the Commonwealth of Australia, but it enjoys a large degree of self-governance...

 on 14 April 1790.

Operational history

In October 2006, Sirius successfully undertook her first Replenishment at Sea; transferring fuel and water supplies to . The ship completed working up and passed her first Unit Readiness Evaluation on 12 December 2006. RAN reports show that although HMAS Sirius has the ability to have helicopters land on her deck, Sirius has yet to pass the stability test that allow a helicopter to land on its deck.

In June 2007, she participated in Exercise Talisman Sabre 2007

Exercise Talisman Sabre

Exercise Talisman Saber is a biennial joint Australia-United States military exercise...

.

On the morning of 13 March 2009, Sirius was one of seventeen warships involved in a ceremonial fleet entry and fleet review in Sydney Harbour, the largest collection of RAN ships since the Australian Bicentenary

Australian Bicentenary

The bicentenary of Australia was celebrated in 1970 on the 200th anniversary of Captain James Cook landing and claiming the land, and again in 1988 to celebrate 200 years of permanent European settlement.-1970:...

in 1988. Sirius did not participate in the fleet entry, but was anchored in the harbour for the review.

Sirius was forced to turn back en-route to the RIMPAC 2010 exercise in Hawaii due to problems with her engine room and did not participate in the exercise as a result.