Naval base of the Royal Brunei Navy
Muara Naval Base (
Malay : Pangkalan Tentera Laut Muara ) is a
naval base which serves as the headquarters and main operating base for the
Royal Brunei Navy (RBN;
Malay : Tentera Laut Diraja Brunei , TLDB).
[1] It is located approximately 4
kilometres (2
miles ) from
Muara Town ,
Brunei-Muara District , in the
sultanate of
Brunei Darussalam .
[2]
[3] The naval base sits near the mouth of the
Brunei River , which flows into the
Brunei Bay .
[4]
History
During
World War II , then occupied
Muara was previously used by the
Japanese Navy as a naval base until the country was
liberated by the
Australian
9th Division .
[5] The Royal Brunei Navy's administration of First Sea Battalion was relocated to its current location in
1974 .
[6] The
United States Navy (USN) warship
USS Robert E. Peary (FF-1073) was berthed at the naval base in
1989 .
[7] Brunei ordered three
Nakhoda Ragam-class corvettes , and were planned to be based at the naval base in
1991 .
[8] Despite that, all three ships of the class were never
commissioned into the navy.
[9]
In
1997 , the base's upgrade project costed
B$ 140 million, in which it included the construction of a new 314
metres (1,030
feet ) long
quay ,
shiplift , and renovation of its existing facilities.
[2] The project was carried out in order to facilitate the three new
Darussalam -class offshore patrol vessels .
[10] Between
2007 and
2012 , ammunition and explosive storage bunkers were constructed not far from the base, at
Kampong Kapok .
[2]
[11]
Another B$44.6 million project was started in July
2011 , to provide new accommodation facilities for the base's personnel, workshops, technical buildings, and car parks.
[2]
[12] During
BRIDEX 2011 , the navy celebrated its 46th anniversary at the naval base,
[13] in which twenty-four
warships from ten countries were invited.
[2]
[13]
On 29 May
2013 , as part of a
state visit to Negara Brunei Darussalam,
President of Singapore
Tony Tan visited the Muara Naval Base.
[14] On 23 February
2014 , a 172 metres (564 feet) long
roll-on/roll-off (ro-ro)
car carrier Trans Future 2 collided with
KDB Berkat (18) and another
Ijtihad -class patrol boat while in port.
[15]
[16] Later in May,
Sultan
Hassanal Bolkiah landed his
Sikorsky S-70 at the naval base in which he visited the
KDB Afiat (20) and witnessed a
naval exercise .
[17] Later that year on 11 November, the 20th annual
Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) between the United States and Brunei began at the naval base.
[18]
[19]
On 12 November
2018 , the 24th annual CARAT began at the naval base, in which it involved several exercises in the
South China Sea with
USNS Fall River (T-EPF-4) .
[20] The 25th annual CARAT was once again held at the naval base on 31 October
2019 .
[21]
Units
Three naval
divisions are based in the naval base:
Operation Division
[22]
Administrative Division
[22]
Support Division
[22]
See also
References
^
"RB Navy organisation" . MinDef.gov.bn .
Royal Brunei Navy , Public Relations Unit,
Ministry of Defence Brunei Darussalam . 2015. Retrieved 5 January 2024 .
^
a
b
c
d
e
"Muara Naval Base – Muara Naval Base is the main headquarters of the Royal Brunei Navy, part of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces (RBAF). It is located in Pekan Muara" . Naval-Technology.com . Naval Technology, Verdict Media Limited. 26 January 2012. Retrieved 5 January 2024 .
^ Mohamed Deli bin Ahmad (1993).
Brunei-Muara District .
Department of Information , Prime Minister's Office. p. 18 – via Google Books. [
failed verification ]
^ Schwarz, Jürgen; Herrmann, Wilfried A.; Seller, Hanns-Frank (2002).
Maritime Strategies in Asia . White Lotus Press. p. 452.
ISBN
978-974-480-008-4 . Retrieved 5 January 2024 – via Google Books.
^ Saunders, Graham (5 November 2013).
A History of Brunei . Routledge. p. 123.
ISBN
978-1-136-87394-2 . Retrieved 5 January 2024 – via Google Books.
^
"Royal Brunei Navy history" . MinDef.gov.bn .
Bolkiah Garrison :
Royal Brunei Navy , Public Relations Unit,
Ministry of Defence Brunei Darussalam . 2015. Retrieved 5 January 2024 .
^
Brunei Darussalam newsletter . Department of Information, Prime Minister's Office. 1989. p. 20 – via Google Books.
^ Carpenter, William M.; Wiencek, David G., eds. (2005).
Asian Security Handbook: terrorism and the new security environment (3rd ed.). M.E. Sharpe. p. 64.
ISBN
978-0-7656-1552-7 . Retrieved 5 January 2024 – via Google Books.
^
"Ships Monthly - September 2007 news" . ShipsMonthly.com .
Ships Monthly , IPC Media Ltd. 10 August 2007. Archived from
the original on 21 December 2007. Retrieved 18 May 2022 .
^
"GHD Annual Review 2002 / 2003" (PDF) . GHD.com.au .
GHD Pty Ltd . p. 15. Archived from
the original (PDF) on 9 August 2008.
^
Brunei Darussalam long-term development plan . Government Print. Department, Prime Minister's Office, Brunei Darussalam. 2007. p. 208 – via Google Books.
^
"BND44mil facility buildings handed to RBN" . MinDef.gov.bn .
Muara :
Royal Brunei Air Force , Public Relations Unit,
Ministry of Defence Brunei Darussalam . 31 October 2013. Retrieved 5 January 2024 .
^
a
b
"Royal Brunei Navy celebrates 46th anniversary at International Defence Exhibition BRIDEX 2011" . ArmyRecognition.com . Army Recognition. 8 July 2011. Retrieved 5 January 2024 .
^
"Visit to Royal Brunei Navy headquarters at Muara Naval Base" . NAS.gov.sg . Ministry of Communications and Information Collection, courtesy of
National Archives of Singapore . Retrieved 5 January 2024 .
^ Hancock, Paul (23 February 2014).
"Trans Future 2 – car carrier vs navy" . ShipwreckLog.com . Shipwreck Log. Retrieved 5 January 2024 .
^
"Ro-Ro ship incident in the Muara Channel" . MTIC.gov.bn .
Ministry of Transport and Infocommunications . Retrieved 19 May 2022 . [
dead link ]
^ Waleed PD Mahdini (4 May 2012).
"Sultan witnesses culmination of Hikmat Bersatu IV" . Sultanate.com . Sultanate.
Borneo Bulletin . Retrieved 5 January 2024 .
^
"CARAT Brunei kicks off at Muara Naval Base in Brunei" . NavalToday.com .
Naval Today , Navingo. 11 November 2014. Retrieved 5 January 2024 .
^ Singh, Daljit, ed. (April 2015).
Southeast Asian Affairs 2015 .
Singapore :
Institute of Southeast Asian Studies .
ISBN
978-981-4620-75-8 . Retrieved 5 January 2024 – via Google Books.
^ Lt. Clyde Shavers (12 November 2018).
"CARAT exercise kicks off with US, Brunei Navy" . C7F.Navy.mil .
Muara , Brunei:
Commander, U.S. 7th Fleet . Retrieved 5 January 2024 .
^
"U.S., Royal Brunei Navy ships transit in formation during CARAT Brunei" . Pacom.mil .
Muara , Brunei:
U.S. Indo-Pacific Command . 31 October 2019. Retrieved 5 January 2024 .
^
a
b
c
Brunei Air Force handbook - strategic information and weapon systems .
Washington DC , USA: International Business Publications, USA / Lulu.com. p. 180.
ISBN
978-1-4330-0429-2 .
OCLC
946747582 – via Google Books. [
unreliable source ]
External links
Media related to
Muara Naval Base at Wikimedia Commons