December - RAAMC Assn. Home Page

highlight of my 12 month tenure has been to oversee the
incremental shift from security to local capacity develop -
ment. Our mission is to assist the Solomon Islands
government in maintaining security, law and justice,
economic governance and improving the machinery of
government.”
Trooper Sam Woods, from the 10th Light Horse Regiment
in Karrakatta, WA, said he joined the Army Reserves when
he finished school and to have taken this opportunity to
deploy has been great as he will always remember his time
in the Solomon Islands. He found the people very friendly
and always with a smile and a wave.
Operation Annode is the name for the Regional
Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands (RAMSI).
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(ix) NEW GIRL’S SCHOOL in MALALAI OPENED in TARIN
KOT
In a joint effort, partnered by the Uruzgan government
and PRT-U, the 21 classroom school was built mainly by
Afghan contractors using local labour and with direction
from ADF engineers.
The Provincial Reconstruction Team-Uruzgan is led by the
Dept of Foreign Affairs and AusAID.
The classroom has 3 laboratories. It has facilities for up to
700 Primary and Secondary students and took 15 months
to complete at a cost of US$1.6 million.
Several ISAF partners provided furniture, book shelves,
laboratory benches and sports equipment.
Air Commodore John Oddie, The Acting Commander of
ISAF in Afghanistan, said… ”supporting the Afghan
Government’s efforts to improve literacy was a major
objective of the Australian Government’s mission in
Afghanistan. For the first time, hundreds of girls in Tarin
Kot will have access to quality education, which will
open up a new world of opportunity. There is less than
1% of Afghan women in Uruzgan who are able to read
and write. It is essential for the future of this country that
we help provide vital services like education for
children”.
Air Commodore Oddie is hopeful that the benefits to the
girls, their local community and their country at large, will
be felt for generations to come.
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(x) OPERATION SLIPPER—RAN Ships exchange Deploy -
ment duty.
HMAS Toowoomba ‘Handed Over’ maritime security
duties in the Middle East to HMAS Parramatta, in late
October, after a 6 month deployment.
This is HMAS Toowoomba second deployment and
travelled more than 35,000 nautical miles.
The CO, Commander Andrew Quinn, commended his ship’s
company for a job well done. The Middle East Area of
Operation is a very demanding and volatile environment
and his crew rose to every challenge in a professional and
committed fashion and maintained Australia’s highly
respected position as a Coalition Partner.
Commander Quinn also acknowledged the huge support
from family and friends back home. This produces a
wonderful morale throughout the ship’s company.
Their duties included counter-terrorist activities, multiple
boarding and helping numerous vessels requiring medical
or engineering assistance.
In between operational commitments the ship’s company
raised more than $2,000 for “Beyond Blue” and more than
$3,000 for the “Toowoomba’s Flexi School” with a 24 hour
marathon and a fete—held on the ship’ birthday, the 6th
October.
190 personnel from HMAS Toowoomba enjoyed a
“WELCOME HOME” at their Fleet Base West in
Rockingham WA, on the 7th November.
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(xi) NEW HOUSING for 3,000 ADF Personnel.
The Government announced Phase 2, which is a (approx.)
$6 Billion contract for NEW permanent live-in accom -
modation units, for single ADF personnel, around
Australia.
3,000 new self-contained apartments will be built at 14
Defence Bases in places like Elizabeth, Nowra, Pucka pun -
yal, Rockingham, Townsville and Wodonga.
The “Public Private Partnership” arrangement will be with
“Plenary Living” who will be responsible for the finance,
design, construction, operation and main tenance of
these accommodation services at the 14 Bases for the 33
year contract term.
Construction costs are estimated at approximately $1
Billion and provision for services over the following 30
years to be approximately $3 Billion.
(Phase 1 has successfully delivered, in 2008, 1,300 units
at RAAF Amberley, Enoggera Barracks and Holsworthy.)
(xii) AUSTRALIAN MENTORING PROGRAM in AFGHANISTAN.
MTF-3 is Australia’s largest unit in Afghanistan and is
continuing to build on the achievements of its pre deces -
sors. It has been here since June this year and will complete
its “Duty Tour” about March 2012.
The CO, LTCOL Chris Smith said that since the ADF com -
menced its Mentoring mission, the 4th Brigade of the
Afghan National Army has shown promising develop -
ment.
The 4th Brigade has demonstrated an increased ability to
take control of local security and a marked improvement to
plan, lead, execute and sustain operations.
Since MTF-3 has been in Afghanistan, they and the ANA
have discovered 95 insurgent caches containing explo -
sives, IED components and weapons.
They have found and removed 45 IED’s, been involved in
40 small arms fire engagements and detained a suspected
insurgent who was allegedly responsible for the facilitation
of IED’s.
Tragically, MTF-3 suffered the loss of one of their members
when PTE Matthew Lambert was killed when an IED
detonated (on the 22nd August).
LTCOL Smith said… ”Even though the fighting will
continue through the coming harsh Afghan winter, our
team is fully focused and believes in the mission and how
important our actions are here. We have experienced
some sad times but also enjoyed many successes.
We have disrupted the insurgents and seen our Afghan
partners continue to grow in confidence and capability
and ‘on track’ for them to take complete charge of their
own security in Uruzgan by 2014”.
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(xiii) Exercise “OLGETA WARRIOR” starts in PNG
This ‘Exercise’ started in 2009 and is a bilateral exercise
between the ADF and the PNG Defence Force.
Approximately 300 ADF personnel travelled to PNG in early
October and took part in infantry, logistics, engineering
and aviation training.
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(xiv) JOINT MISSION in PNG to render SAFE, WW 2
Ammunition.
OPERATION “RENDER SAFE 2011” will take place between
18 October and 4th November in Rabaul, PNG and will
involve the identification, assessment and rendering safe of
unexploded ordnance such as torpedoes, bombs, grenades
and projectiles. These items have been found domestic
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