Penney and some of his staff returned by air on 9 October. He was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire on 23 October 1952 for his role in Operation Hurricane. Torlesse was supposed to accompany him, but in view of the degree of radioactive contamination, he felt he could not leave his command. He sent Captain D. P. Willan, the skipper of "Narvik" in his stead. The Royal Navy ships departed the Monte Bello Islands on 31 October. Most of the scientific staff were dropped off at Fremantle, and returned to Britain on RAF Transport Command aircraft. The rest returned on "Campania", which arrived in the United Kingdom on 15 December. "Hawkesbury" continued to patrol the area until 15 January 1953.