Offshore & Specialist Ships Australia
Topical Issues
“THE END OF AN ERA”: LAST VOYAGE "Aurora Australia"
MEDIA RELEASE
1700 22 March 2020
For immediate release
“THE END OF AN ERA”: LAST VOYAGE TO THE ANTARCTIC
Australia’s most famous ice-breaker will make her final voyage to Antarctica this week. After 30 years of service to Australia, the Aurora Australis will sail for last time on a mission to the southern-most outpost.
”The Aurora Australis has been a remarkable staple of yearly missions to supply Australia’s crucial research stations in Antarctica,” says Ross Brewer, head of the Offshore Ships Australia, “It is truly the end of an era.”
The Aurora Australis isn’t merely an ice-breaker and supply ship. In 2013 she performed a critical role in the rescue of the crew of Russian ice-breaker the Akademik Shokalskiy, a research vessel that became stranded in Antarctic ice. She also survived an engine fire in 1999 and a grounding in 2016.
“You can’t overstate the contribution that ships like this and their crews make when operating in such treacherous parts of the globe. A 30 year history of service deserves recognition”, Mr Brewer says.
Heavily equipped, the Aurora Australis has several scientific laboratories on board and can carry 116 passengers as well as up to four helicopters.
Mr Brewer says the stories of the Australis and her crew are numerous and know no bounds, “Countless successful missions in this part of the world can only add up to a success story” he says.
She is replaced by the Nuyina at a reported cost of around $500M. The Nuyina will carry up to 160 passengers and crew.
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Media contact: Ross Brewer, Chair Offshore Specialist Ships Australia Ltd (OSSA)
Ph: 0411 141 011
Email: ross.brewer@ossa.org.au