Reviewed by Felix Bustelo
April 2026

The Fremantle-class patrol boats were coastal patrol vessels operated by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) from 1979 to 2007. They were larger, more powerful, and more capable than the preceding Attack-class boats. As a result, the two primary patrol boat bases required infrastructure upgrades to support them. Originally 30 vessels were planned, but only fifteen were actually ordered and constructed. There was an unexercised option for five more. The design of the Fremantle-class called for boats with improved seakeeping and newer equipment and weapons than those fitted to the Attack-class.

The Fremantle-class was designed by British shipbuilder Brooke Marine. The lead boat, HMAS Fremantle, was constructed at the Brooke Marine yard in Lowestoft, England. She was launched on February 15, 1979 and commissioned on March 17, 1980. The other 14 boats were constructed by NQEA in Cairns, Australia. The boats measured 41.9 m (137 ft 6 in) long, with a beam of 7.7 m (25 ft 3 in) and draught of 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in). They displaced 220 tons and were armed with one Bofors 40mm/60 gun and two 12.7mm machine guns. An 81mm mortar was fitted aft.

In 2001, the Fremantle-class boats were slated for retirement with decommissioning beginning in 2004. Starting in May 2005, they were replaced by the Armidale-class patrol boats. The last two Fremantle-class boats were decommissioned in May 2007. Two boats are being preserved as museum ships in the towns they were named after. HMAS Townsville was gifted to the Townsville Maritime Historical Society and HMAS Gladstone was gifted to the Gladstone Maritime Museum.

Fremantle-class boats also appeared in two drama television series based on the RAN. The fictional HMAS Defiance was featured in the second season of the television series Patrol Boat. The fictional HMAS Hammersley is the setting for the first season of drama series Sea Patrol.

The Black Cat Fremantle-Class Patrol Boat

Black Cat Models Fremantle-Class Patrol Boat The Black Cat Models Fremantle-Class Patrol Boat is comprised of a 3D printed hull, superstructure and smaller parts, photoetch railings, pre-cut lengths of brass wire and a decal sheet. The contents come in a sturdy flip-top box, with the hull inside bubble-wrap and the superstructure in a zip-lock bag. The rafts with the smaller 3D printed parts come inside a clear plastic clamshell case attached with two-sided tape and the PE, decals and brass wire inside a zip-lock sleeve. The smaller 3D printed parts come of print rafts with thin attachment points. All of the contents are encased within bubble-wrap to further protect them. An assembly instruction booklet completes the box contents.

Bar A contains mooring bitts, fairleads, anchor winch, various hatches and vents, life raft canisters, propellers, cradles for the Zodiac raft, cable reels, loud speakers and other small parts.

Bar B contains base for the 40mm Bofors, the 12.7mm guns, 81mm mortar, anchors, some additional vents, cradle for the boat, searchlights, an array of some kind fitted to the top of the mast among other parts.

Bar C contains the boat, Zodiac raft, the boat handling crane, a boom, and some small lockers.

Bar D contains the mast, radar, 40mm Bofors gun, a ramp, some type of antenna and some other parts.

A single small photoetch fret is provided with all the railings, rails for the life raft canisters and a canopy for the open upper bridge. The PE has the part numbers etched into the fret.

A small decal sheet is included which provides hull numbers markings in two sizes, draft markings in white (they are hard to see but trust me they are there) as well as nameplates for all 15 commissioned RAN boats. As a bonus, a nameplate is provided for the fictional HMAS Hammersley, but for some reason not HMAS Defiance. Fans of the tv show Patrol Boat will be disappointed. You will need to trim each decal as they are not printed individually.

The assembly instructions are comprised of 12 pages. The cover page has the box label image and a brief history of the class. Pages 2 has images of the photoetch, decals and the hull and superstructure, as well the key to the brass parts and color key for the parts and glossary for the instructions, Page 3-5 have images of the 3D printed parts rafts with part numbers. Pages 6-10 has the assembly diagrams in different perspectives which are very clear and nicely done. The last two pages have painting guides, however for color references are provided.

Overall, this is a very nice kit which will build into a very detailed model of a Fremantle-class patrol boat of your choosing. There are a lot of little parts, so I would recommend the kit for more experienced modelers or someone looking to improve their skills. This kit is available directly from Black Cat Models or one of the retailers that sell their products. My thanks to Black Cat Models for the review sample.