Captaining Australia's latest warship is both an energising and sobering experience but Commander Josh Wilson is ready to take the destroyer wherever it's needed.
The second of Australia's three new air warfare destroyers has been officially handed over to the federal government at a ceremony in Adelaide, marking another significant milestone in the $9 billion defence project.
The Brisbane will now head to Sydney, where it will be commissioned later this year after final sea trials under Commander Wilson's control.
He leads a crew of about 200 who can deploy the navy's most lethal asset in waters across the globe, bringing to defence a military capability that is "light years" ahead of what has come before.
"To be given the opportunity to put together a team and bring a ship like this into the navy is probably the culmination of my career," he told reporters on Friday.
"It's a very sobering thing, but they don't give it to you on your first day in the navy and you're very well supported and you're very well mentored.
"Myself and my team have probably had the best preparation we could to take on this incredible responsibility and incredible challenge."
Like its sister ships the HMAS Hobart and the Sydney, the Brisbane is 146 metres long and has a range of about 5000 nautical miles, or about 9000 kilometres.
It is powered by a combination of gas and diesel turbines driving twin propellers and has a top speed of more than 28 knots.
The destroyers are armed with harpoon missile systems and have missile decoy technology.
They are also fitted with a flight deck and hangar for one helicopter.
The Hobart was launched in Adelaide in 2015 and commissioned in September last year.
The final ship, the Sydney, was launched earlier this year and should be in service by 2020.
The destroyer program was plagued with problems in its early years, with delays and cost blowouts, but was recently removed from the defence department's projects-of-concern list.
Defence Industry Minister Christopher Pyne said the Brisbane was a "magnificent ship"
"I don't think it is an exaggeration to say this is the most sophisticated product ever produced in Australia," he said.
"And it's been produced here by Australian workers, using Australian steel in an Australian shipyard."
