[6] Additionally, during the construction of the Fremantle class, Townsville was the designated buddy ship for vessels completing sea trials and initial working up.

[8] The ship, which had been detained in Trinity Inlet after being caught illegally fishing in Australian waters, took the opportunity to escape while most military and law-enforcement personnel were on leave for the Christmas holiday.

[8] During 1982, Townsville was one of several Fremantles used to depict the fictional HMAS Defiance for filming of the second season of the ABC television series Patrol Boat.

[citation needed] In late May 1987, Townsville was deployed to Fiji as part of Operation Morris Dance, as relief for one of the patrol boats sent following the initial coup d'état earlier that month.

[11] The vessel began sinking while the boarding and inspection was underway, with the personnel of Townsville rescuing 45 men, 17 women, and 17 children, and transporting them to Darwin.

[21] The vessel is fully operational (minus weaponry), and the museum intended to keep Townsville in a sailable condition, with maintenance undertaken by volunteers.

[7][22][23] In addition to being opened for public display, the Townsville Maritime Museum has also been contacted by cadet groups and emergency response organisations wanting to use the vessel for training.

[7] While waiting for approval to construct the dry dock adjacent to the museum site, Townsville was berthed at the Curtain Bros. wharf in Ross Creek.

[22] As of January 2012, construction of the dry dock was scheduled to begin in mid-2012, pending council approval of building plans and the securing of additional funding.

[20] There are concerns over the condition of Townsville's hull, both from marine growth and from the lack of recent care resulting in the patrol boat resting on the rocky bottom at low tide.