Souvenir pennant : HMAS Katoomba

Dark blue felt pennant, with a lighter blue hoist and suspension tabs. Screen printed in yellow with the name 'H.M.A.S. KATOOMBA', and in colour with the badge of the ship, which shows the geographical feature of 'The Three Sisters' in the Blue Mountains.

The Royal Australian Navy Corvette HMAS Katoomba (J204) was commissioned at Sydney in December 1941, and joined 24 Minesweeping Flotilla at Darwin in early 1942. She was granted a share of the credit for the sinking of the Japanese submarine I-124 on 20 January, but was accidentally rammed on the 23rd by the American tanker 'Pecos', and had to be towed to Darwin for repairs. As a result of damage suffered in this collision, Katoomba was in dry dock when Japanese bombers attacked the port on 19 February, and narrowly escaped destruction. After repairs, she went on to spend most of the war in New Guinean waters, seeing action at Port Moresby, Milne Bay and Buna. She was at Timor in September 1945 for the Japanese surrender, and then worked in clearing minefields off the Eastern coast of Australia. Although paid-ff and placed in reserve in 1948, Katoomba was refitted and recommissioned in early 1952, seeing a further five years service before being sold for scrap in 1957.