Cairns Naval Base
HMAS Cairns
1971-
Portsmith, Cairns, Queensland
-16.935667, 145.779167
HMAS Cairns, Cook Street, Portsmith, Cairns, Cairns Regional, Queensland, Australia
Nearby Locations
| Km | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Cairns Base Hospital |
YCBH | 2.9 | 338° |
| Cairns International Airport | YBCS | 6.1 | 335° |
 Aviation and Military Museum - The Beck Collection |
39.0 | 250° | |
| Mareeba | YMBA | 41.1 | 249° |
| Atherton Aerodrome | YATN | 45.7 | 218° |
| Atherton District Memorial Hospital |
YXAT | 48.3 | 221° |
Originally opened in Jan 1971 at what is now the northern end of the current base, HMAS Cairns was commissioned on 1 Feb 1974 as a Patrol Boat base with Hydrographic Survey facilities. Expansion to the south, on the site of a WWII repair yard began in 1979 and completed with a re-commissioning in May 1982. Extensive work took place between 2008 and 2009 as part of a modernisation programme.