The Flagship

Each Australia Day Regatta has had a Flagship, the first being the barque Pyramus aboard which Captain Livesay entertained members of the organising committee to a long lunch as the competitors and spectators enjoyed watching the yachts compete in a good sailing breeze and bright sunshine.

In the early days of the Regatta merchant ships, originally sail and then steam, and luxury passenger liners were the Flagships, among them the liner Mongolia which was later torpedoed during World War I.  During both World Wars the Regatta maintained its continuity, but with smaller fleets and a Sydney ferry as the Flagship one year.

Naval involvement goes back to the earliest regattas when sailors competed in whalers and other craft, while in the 1970s through to the 1990s there was a fleet of RAN yachts and dinghies competing.
The bark Endeavour, the replica of Captain Cook’s famous ship, was the Flagship for the 159th Regatta in 1995 and for the 160th Regatta the Flagship was the state-of-the-art warship HMAS Sydney.

Since 1988, the Royal Australia Navy has provided a Flagship for most Australia Day Regattas, except when the fleet was away on operational duties. 

Screen Shot 2021-07-01 at 11.49.10 am.png

HMAS Yarra

N

Screen Shot 2021-07-01 at 11.52.53 am.png

HMAS Gascoyne

The Flagship of the Australia Day Regatta, 26 January 2018 – HMAS Gascoyne

HMAS Gascoyne is the fourth of the RAN Huon Class minehunters which were built in Newcastle, NSW and was commissioned on 2 June 2001

HMAS Diamantina

The Flagship of the Australia Day Regatta in 2021 and 2022 was the HMAS Diamantina.

HMAS Diamantina (II) is the fifth of six Huon Class Minehunter Coastal vessels delivered to the RAN between 1998 and 2002, and represents the latest in Mine Countermeasures (MCM) technology. Diamantina is able to undertake extended MCM operations in widely dispersed and environmentally diverse threat areas within Australia and regional waters.

T

HMAS Sydney

HMAS Sydney was the Flagship for the 187th Australia Day Regatta held in 2023.

HMAS Sydney (V) is the last of the three ships of the Hobart Class guided missile destroyers. Her sister ships are HMAS Hobart (III) and HMAS Brisbane (III). HMAS Sydney is based on the Navantia-designed F100 frigate and is equipped with the Aegis Combat System.

Her principal role is the provision of air defence to RAN task groups engaged in maintaining maritime security. Sydney is also capable of supporting land forces and protecting important infrastructure in coastal areas.