AWD starts MELO on HMAS Hobart

The AWD Alliance has started Main Engine Light-Off (MELO) activities on Australia’s lead Hobart-class air warfare destroyer, HMAS Hobart (DDGH 39), as the team prepares for sea trials.

The MELO saw one of the main engines of the destroyer start up - a 5650kW Bravo V16 propulsion diesel engine that will drive the ship’s port-side propeller. Another Bravo engine drives the starboard propeller and will enter MELO in the next few weeks. The two propulsion diesel engines will propel the ship at low speeds, while two yet-to-be-commissioned gas turbines will power the vessel at higher speeds.

The main propulsion engines were made by Navantia in Spain. There are a further four diesel generator engines on-board for the ship’s electrical power that have been commissioned and are currently undergoing parallel testing.

Following the completion of MELO activities, the propulsion engines will be connected to the propellers and ‘dock trials’ will be conducted, in which the engines turn the propellers while the ship remains roped to the dock.

Mike Clements, platform test and activation manager, said: ‘MELO is a major milestone for any warship and the start of the MELO activities this week is a great achievement for everyone who has contributed to the ship to date.’