20/10/2026
HERE’S THE 48TH IN THE SERIES, CADET UNITS AND THE SHIPS THEY ARE NAMED AFTER – TS PIONEER, WHICH IS LOCATED IN MACKAY, QUEENSLAND, AND IS NAMED AFTER HMAS PIONEER, WHICH WAS A PELORUS CLASS, LIGHT CRUISER, BUILT FOR THE RN AND WAS COMMISSIONED ON JULY 10TH 1900.
FOLLOWING A PERIOD IN HOME WATERS PIONEER, PROCEEDED ON NOVEMBER 15TH 1900 TO THE MEDITERRANEAN STATION WHERE IT RELIEVED THE CRUISER HMS FEARLESS. IT SERVED FOR 4 YEARS IN MEDITERRANEAN WATERS, RETURNING TO CHATHAM ON 20 DECEMBER 20TH 1904 WHERE IT WAS PLACED IN RESERVE.
IT RECOMMISSIONED ON SEPTEMBER 5TH 1905 FOR SERVICE ON THE AUSTRALIA STATION AS ONE OF THE ‘DRILL SHIPS’ PROVIDED FOR UNDER THE NAVAL AGREEMENT (1903) CONCLUDED BETWEEN THE AUSTRALIAN COMMONWEALTH AND THE IMPERIAL GOVERNMENT PIONEER RELIEVED HM SHIPS MILDURA, PSYCHE AND PYRAMUS AT THE SAME TIME, REPLACING HM SHIPS KATOOMBA AND PHOEBE.
THE AUSTRALIAN SQUADRON COMMANDED BY SIR ARTHUR D FANSHAWE KCB, THEN COMPRISED HMS POWERFUL (FLAGSHIP, 14 200 TONNES), THE SECOND CLASS CRUISERS HMS CAMRIAN (4360 TONNES) AND HMS ENCOUNTER (5880 TONNES) AND 2 OTHER PELORUS CLASS CRUISERS, HMS PEGAUS AND HMS PROMETHEUS.
PIONEER CONTINUED IN SERVICE AS A UNIT OF THE ROYAL NAVY ON THE AUSTRALIA STATION UNTIL NOVEMBER 29TH 1912 WHEN IT PAID OFF AT SYDNEY FOR TRANSFER TO THE ROYAL AUSTRALIAN NAVY AS A GIFT FROM THE ADMIRALTY. THE COMMONWEALTH NAVAL BOARD ASSUMED CONTROL OF ITS ON MARCH 1ST 1913 AND ON THE SAME DAY IT COMMISSIONED IN THE ROYAL AUSTRALIAN NAVY AS HMAS PIONEER WITH A NUCLEUS CREW, AS TENDER TO HMAS PENGUIN.
IN JULY 1913 REFITTING BEGAN AT GARDEN ISLAND, WORK WHICH WAS NOT COMPLETED UNTIL THE CLOSE OF THE YEAR. ON 1 JANUARY 1914 IT COMMISSIONED AS AN INDEPENDENT COMMAND FOR SERVICE AS A SEAGOING TRAINING SHIP FOR THE NAVAL RESERVE, OPERATING UNDER THE ORDERS OF THE DIRECTOR OF NAVAL RESERVES. THE MONTHS PRECEDING THE OUTBREAK OF THE FIRST WORLD WAR WERE SPENT IN EASTERN AND SOUTHERN AUSTRALIAN WATERS, CRUISING FROM ITS BASE AT SYDNEY TO MELBOURNE, ADELAIDE AND HOBART.
WHEN WAR WITH GERMANY WAS DECLARED ON AUGUST 4TH 1914, PIONEER WAS AT PORT PHILLIP BAY, MELBOURNE. THE FOLLOWING DAY IT SAILED FOR FREMANTLE TO OPERATE ON PATROL ON THE WESTERN AUSTRALIAN COAST. OPERATIONS BEGAN ON AUGUST 16TH, AND ON THAT DAY, SOME 8 MILES WEST OF ROTTNEST ISLAND, PIONEER CAPTURED THE GERMAN STEAMER NEUMUNSTER (4424 TONNES) AND TOOK HER INTO FREMANTLE. ON AUGUST 26TH IT CAPTURED A SECOND SHIP, THE 4994 TONNE NORDDEUTCHER-LLOYD VESSEL THURINGEN, ALSO OFF ROTTNEST ISLAND. NEUMUNSTER WAS TAKEN OVER BY THE COMMONWEALTH GOVERNMENT AS A PRIZE OF WAR AND RENAMED COOEE. THURINGEN WAS RENAMED MOORA AND HANDED OVER TO THE INDIAN GOVERNMENT FOR SERVICE AS A TROOPSHIP.
FOLLOWING HER TIME SPEENT IN THE WW I WAR, ON AUGUST 22ND 1916, PIONEER SAILED FROM ZANZIBAR FLYING HER PAYING OFF PENNANT. SHE REACHED COLOMBO ON SEPTEMBER 5TH, BATAVIA ON SEPTEMBER 21ST, DARWIN ON OCTOBER 4TH AND SYDNEY ON OCTOBER 22ND. SHE PAID OFF AT SYDNEY ON NOVEMBER 7TH 1916, BRINGING ITS SEAGOING CAREER TO A CLOSE.
AFTER THAT SHE WAS USED AS AN ACCOMMODATION SHIP AT GARDEN ISLAND UNTIL 1922. IN MAY 1923 IT WAS HANDED OVER TO COCKATOO DOCKYARD BY THE DISPOSALS BOARD. IN 1924 IT PASSED TO THE CONTROL OF COMMONWEALTH SHIPPING BOARD AND DURING THE SAME YEAR THE WORK OF STRIPPING ITS DOWN TO A BARE HULL WAS BEGUN. PIONEER’S HULL WAS BOUGHT BY H P STACEY OF SYDNEY AS SCRAP. THE BARE HULL WAS SCUTTLED OFF SYDNEY ON FEBRUARY 18TH 1931.
FOR MORE INFORMATION COVERING HMAS PIONEER, PLEASE REFER TO THE SEA POWER WEBSITE, FROM WHERE THIS INFORMATION WAS OBTAINED.
