The Top Ender Magazine June July 2020 Edition

Tri-Services Magazine Inc June | July 2020

A magazine created by Defence families for Defence families

Land, Sea, Air

18 Signaller Reflects on Advances in Technology

31 Deployment and Slouch Hats

32 Total Control!

Support

9 DCO Job Search Preparation for ADF Members

Considering Transition or just Career Planning!

28 DVA Support – Uncertain Times

30 Doctor’s Notes – Men’s Health Week

Features and Regulars

20 Exploring the Darwin Region

50 Ararat and Maitland Rendezvous for Seamanship

Training

52 Defence Extends World First 3D Printing Trial

Find the

right ft

for

your family

At Goodstart we know that one size doesn’t fit all

families. Our not-for-profit early learning centres

offer play-based learning programs tailored to each

child’s stage of development from six weeks of age

to school-aged children.

We’ve introduced flexible nine, 10 and 12 hour

sessions to make the most of the Child Care

Subsidy, making quality early learning more

accessible and affordable than ever.

With 11 locations across the greater Darwin

region, there’s a Goodstart centre near you.

• Early learning & childcare

• Preschool

1800 222 543

goodstart nt

STRONG IN FAITH, EDUCATION AND TRADITION

St John’s Catholic College is a safe,

connected, learning community

for local, boarding and international

students. We strive for excellence

and ensure the holistic development

of each student through a balanced

approach to faith, academic, sporting

and cultural activities.

AT ST JOHN’S CATHOLIC COLLEGE

• WE BELIEVE IN our students and

respect each student’s learning

style and their right to learn.

• WE BELIEVE IN providing creative,

innovative and challenging learning

experiences.

• WE BELIEVE IN working in

partnership with parents, guardians

and caregivers to achieve the very

best outcomes for each student.

• WE BELIEVE IN providing spiritual

and faith experiences that enhance

each student’s understanding and

commitment to the Catholic faith.

• WE BELIEVE IN preparing our

students for an active role in the

wider global community.

OUR PROGRAM

• Delivered by qualified and

experienced teachers.

• Small class sizes with a focus on

teaching and learning and pastoral

care and wellbeing.

• Our Middle Years curriculum aims

to inspire a love of learning.

• Year 7 students are able to choose

their own electives.

• The senior curriculum builds on

providing multiple learning

pathways to ensure our students

are engaged learners.

• Pathways into Australian

Universities.

A CO-EDUCATIONAL

DAY AND BOARDING

COLLEGE YEARS 7 – 12

08 8982 2222

admin.stjohns@nt.catholic.edu.au

www.stjohnsnt.catholic.edu.au

Salonika Street | The Gardens | LMB 13 |

Darwin NT 0801

cricos no: 00466k

Committee

Executive

Chairperson Nicole Coble

Vice-Chairperson Leanne Butler

Treasurer Stacie Bodnar

Secretary Kylie Kurtz

– 2020 –

The Top Ender Magazine,

25 Years of Supporting

Defence Families

General Members

Janine Frost, Deb Muir, Gesima Olney,

Yasmine Precious

Staff

Editor Emma Short

Art Director Deirdré Bartie

Administration Officer Denna Menz

GENERAL ENQUIRIES

Phone: (08) 8947 2657

Email: thetopender@aapt.net.au

Postal Address:

PO BOX 35874 Winnellie NT 0821

Address:

(Rear of) Building 6, ‘Sahara Room’, Melville

Road, Defence Establishment Berrimah

DISCLAIMER

The Top Ender Tri-Services Magazine Incorporated welcomes

manuscripts, photographs or other material for publication;

however, we do not accept responsibility for loss. Please

ensure your copy fits to a specified dimensions and is

received by the editor on the Copy Deadline for the month.

Copy can be accepted on disk or via email. All artwork

produced remains the property of The Top Ender and cannot

be reproduced without permission of the Editor. Editorial

Disclaimer: Any opinions expressed in this publication are

not necessarily those of the Editorial Staff or of the Defence

Community Organisation or Department of Defence. All

articles in this magazine are printed on the understanding

that they are the original work of the authors and not

necessarily those of the Editorial Staff or Designer. Editorial

Staff reserve the right to reject, edit or rearrange any item

submitted. They are not responsible for the accuracy of

items submitted but will make every reasonable effort to

verify information. The Trade Practices Act provides severe

penalties for false and misleading advertising. Because it is

not possible for this magazine's staff to check the accuracy

of advertising claims, the responsibility for accuracy lies with

the person or companies submitting material for publication

in their advertisements. The Top Ender Tri-Services Magazine

Incorporated is a non-profit organisation, partially funded

by the Family Support Funding Program administered by

the Defence Community Organisation. Over 4,000 copies

are produced bi-monthly and distributed free to defence

families, members and units in Darwin and Palmerston.

Revenue raised from advertising helps directly to pay for

printing and production costs as well as improvements to the

facilities used by volunteers.

Printed by

86 Cavenagh Street, Darwin, NT, 0800

P (08) 8982 4000 |www.colemanprint.com.au

June/July 2020 1

Quiton, Hannah and Roxy are proud to

be able to deliver animal-assisted services

to the community. Therapy dogs are used

in the the Human Services professions,

such as social work, psychology and

counselling.These calm and friendly dogs

can put a smile on anybody's face.

Contents

2 CONTENTS

4 BIG KEV IS BACK!

31 DEPLOYMENT AND

SLOUCH HATS

5 FROM THE EDITOR

14 PINE CREEK'S

HISTORICAL HEART

17 OPEN ARMS

24 DCO TINDAL

Absence from Home Bears

get busy at

Anzac Day Bake-off

32 TOTAL CONTROL!

6 GOOD DOG

Animal Assisted

Interventions

25 ROBERTSON

BARRACKS FAMILY

GROUP

34 STILL ON GUARD 82

YEARS ON

The 6” Guns at East Point

8 DEFENCE

COMMUNITY

ORGANISATION

Defence expands Partner

Employment Program to

support Families during

COVID-19

9 DEFENCE

COMMUNITY

ORGANISATION

Job Search Preparation for

ADF Members Considering

Transition or just

Career Planning!

12 MESSAGE

FROM DEFENCE

COMMUNITY

ORGANISATION IN

THE NT

Here to Support You!

18 SIGNALLER REFLECTS

ON ADVANCES

IN TECHNOLOGY

20 EXPLORING THE

DARWIN REGION

22 BROADSPECTRUM

DIY NAME TAGS AND

NAME PLATE’ QR

CODE

23 NETWORK TINDAL

A new way of meeting

26 LARRAKEYAH

NEIGHBOURHOOD

HOUSE

27 DFA

From your Delegate

28 DEPARTMENT OF

VETERAN AFFAIRS

Uncertain Times

29 DVA

The Importance of Social

Connectedness

30 DOCTOR'S NOTES

Men’s Health Week

36 MOTORCYCLE ZEN

37 KNOW THE TERRITORY

Watch Out! Two Insects

38 LAUNCESTON LEAVES

DRY DOCK

39 KOOKABURRA KIDS

Volunteer with us!

40 HOW MANY SEASONS

IN A YEAR?

Four Seasons? Think again!

43 HELGA’S PET RESORT

13 POEM

Heaven-Haven

44 CADETS

Anzac@Home 2020

13 FROM THE PADRE’S

PEN

2 The Top Ender | Tri-Services Magazine Incorporated

Dates for submissions

If you wish to submit an article, please contact The Top Ender Tri-Services

Magazine at thetopender@aapt.net.au.

The deadlines for submissions are:

25 June | 25 August | 27 October

Committee Meeting Dates

Due to COVID-19, meetings may be held virtually, or be limited in numbers.

If you wish to attend, please confirm with The Top Ender Tri-Services Magazine

first – (08) 8947 2657.

24 June | 29 July | 26 August | 23 September | 28 October | 25 November

Be on the Mailing List

If you would like to receive this magazine on a

regular basis, please contact us so we can put

you on the mailing list.

We produce six issues a year that are delivered to DHA

houses throughout the Top End. If you live in private rental

accommodation, or a new DHA house, or an area not yet

reached, then ask us to put you on the mailing list. Email

us at thetopender@aapt.net.au.

Likewise, if you don’t yet live in the Top End, but have

come across the magazine and you’d like to know more,

please let us know.

45 POEM

The Swing

47 ... AND FOR THE

TODDLERS

Plant a Pawpaw

Learn to Swim Voucher

Program

48 HIDDEN GEM –

COOMALIE

50 ARARAT AND

MAITLAND

RENDEZVOUS

FOR SEAMANSHIP

TRAINING

52 DEFENCE EXTENDS

WORLD FIRST

3D PRINTING TRIAL

53 FROM THE VET

Covid-19 and your pets

54 QF1 & QF2

Non-stop Darwin to

London Heathrow

55 ANZAC DAY 2020

56 CRAIG'S FISHING

57 WHAT’S THE TIDE

DOIN’

57 TEEN SCENE

NT Sports Vouchers

58 COLOURING

COMPETITION

61 BEYOND BLUE

61 ADF CHAPLINS IN

THE NT

62 HANDY DIRECTORY

Mother’s Day Competition

The winners of the Mother’s Day competition for the

April/May issue were:

1st

2nd

3rd

Chantelle, aged 14 from Muirhead

Ethan, aged 9 from Coconut Grove

Myles aged 11 from Larrakeyah

Congratulations to the three of them and thank you to

all of you who entered!

Please note

The previous 2020 dates for the

ADF Motorcycle Safety

Training Program –

RideSAFE,

have been changed from

Wednesday, 8 July to Tuesday, 4 August

due a conflict with the V8 Supercars. Please check

that the event is still running before you book.

Stuffing Days

Stuffing Day is a chance for you to meet and get

to know other Defence spouses, and make new

friends. Come along to the Sahara Room in Defence

Establishment Berrimah and join us in morning tea.

Refreshments are supplied – as are the tools of the

trade, plastic mailing bags, address labels and heat

sealers. Help distribute this great magazine far and

wide! Children are welcome.

2020: 30 July | 24 September | 26 November

June/July 2020 3

Feature

Big Kev is Back!

The towering fibreglass Brachiosaurus (not

a Brontosaurus) known as Big Kev used to

‘live’ to the west of the Stuart Highway next

to Finlay’s Restaurant, about 20km south of

Darwin. He was built in 2007 and cost in

the region of $10,000, and his owner Tom

bought him in the Philippines and brought

him to Darwin in pieces. Passers-by were

rewarded by seeing large lumps of dinosaur

anatomy being glued together whenever

they whizzed by on the nearby Highway

at 100kmph. Eventually, he towered up

over the nearby Finlay’s restaurant against

the backdrop of a huge mahogany tree,

gazing southwards for a good view of all the

tourists arriving. And there he stayed. After

the initial wonderment, the local residents,

myself included got used to him. He became

a landmark, and he ended up with the

moniker of Big Kev.

Early in 2019, the site was bought by Bunnings and after

twelve years of looking down on all of us, and in the

middle of the year, to our alarm Big Kev was demolished

limb by limb. It looked quite painful. For those of you

wondering, he’s hollow and made of fibreglass.

And now he’s back! I drove up the road a couple of weekends

ago, and there he was back in action, a familiar graceful

neck and head above the buildings gazing down at us again.

And now he’s back! I drove up the Highway a couple of weekends

ago, and there he was back in action, the familiar graceful

neck and head above the buildings gazing down at us again.

During the following week, I went to investigate and when

the landscaping is finished, he’ll be amongst heaps of

red rock, vegetation and with a large pond at his feet.

Back in 1903, the US palaeontologist Elmer S Riggs

named the fossil that he found in the Grand River Canyon,

Colorado, Brachiosaurus (arm lizard – due its front legs being

longer than the back). Brachiosaurus apparently roamed across

the Jurassic landscape of the USA, 155 million years ago, eating

vast quantities of vegetation, tons and tons of the stuff. Initially

thought to have lived in swamps to support their great weight.

This opinion has since been revised as the animals would have

sunk in the mud due to their weight, and their light bones made

such support unnecessary.

Scientists have discussed the animal’s blood pressure –

could its 2-tonne heart really have pumped blood to the top

of its head? Did it have a string of accessory hearts? Or did

the bones, muscles and airs-sacs in its neck act together as a

pump to push the blood up to its head?

Talking of heads, Brachiosaurus had a very, very small brain

– smaller than a tennis ball. Could it really have communicated

with its back legs? Was there a secondary brain to act as a

‘booster station’ near its hips to help? Or was the swelling in

its spinal cord misinterpreted?

Is Big Kev a scale model? Brachiosaurus grew up to

about 21–25m long and standing 12m high, and Big

Kev is apparently in the region of 18m – so he’s not

quite fully grown. Finally, the estimated weight of a

live Brachiosaurus is between 30 and 80 tonnes,

the figure varying considerably depending on the

assumptions made for the calculation.

These discussions have kept palaeontologists

happy for over 140 years, so it’s not too late to

join the debate – there are plenty of years left

in it yet!

Anyway, welcome back Big Kev and

thank you Bunnings for our landmark.

A big thank you also to Mick, who

saw me trying to take a photo

through the fence, and

reversed up his ute so

I could hop onto the

tray for a better

view!


Regular

From the Editor

Welcome to the June/July issue,

and what a difficult one it was to

put together. There’s only one item of

news up for discussion these days, and

that’s COVID-19. Every level of society

and socio-economic group, in every

country, has been affected in one way

or another. Many people have been in

isolation or quarantine and have lost

jobs, even in places like the Northern

Territory where there has been no

community transmission. Countries all

over the world have been in lockdown,

and social media and video-conferencing

software have come to the fore.

This issue includes articles by Defence

Community Organisation, Department

of Veteran Affairs and Defence Families

of Australia that all mention support,

help and ways of coping in the Territory

at the moment. I won’t use the term

post-Covid, it might be premature,

although we have been very fortunate

so far. Help is available though, if you

need it, and it’s just a phone call away.

A couple of our regular articles don’t

appear in this issue – one is What’s On.

In the June/July issue, there are usually

well over two pages of exciting events

happening throughout the Northern

Territory. This year, who knows? Some

events have been cancelled, others

rescheduled, while others are ‘sitting on

the fence’ while their organisers wait to

see what happens next. In other words

– you are going to have to check the various

websites and Facebook pages to find

out the latest information, which seems

to change daily.

Another regular item – Diary Dates

usually on page 1 – has likewise been

removed. The list of dates was sparse

to say the least, so we replaced it with

a photograph of the previous fourteen

issues produced by the current team, as

we celebrate the 25th year of continuous

publication of The Top-Ender Tri-services

Magazine.

This year saw one of the most extraordinary

Anzac Days commemorations ever

with most people being required to stay

at home where candles were lit on driveways,

cadets saluted to the sound of the

Last Post floating through the suburbs,

and buglers and trumpeters offered their

services to their local communities. The

last Anzac Day with no public parades,

and commemorative services at which

social distancing was required was in

1919 during the Spanish Flu pandemic.

The last Anzac Day commemoration that

I could find out about that was cancelled

completely was in Darwin as Cyclone

Monica swung across from Junction Bay,

west of Maningrida to Darwin between

24 and 25 April 2006. Thank you to Carol

Atkinson for reminding me of this as we

sat several metres apart over drinks one

evening. Read about some of the commemorations

on page 55 onwards, with

photographs from Tindal, Darwin City and

the suburbs. Some of the bugles played

had been handed down through families,

one was from 1915. Thank you to

all contributors of photographs, and the

Defence School Mentors for notes and

photographs of how different Top End

schools commemorated the event.

A couple of readers recently told me that

this magazine covers a very wide range

of topics, and that they enjoyed reading it

very much. If you would like to contribute

an article, please send it in. If you have

ideas for an article, please send them in.

We’d love to hear from you – your comments

and your ideas. One of our readers

(Is she the oldest? She’s ninety-four.) was

interested to read Riding the Rails North

in the February/March issue, as finally

she had an explanation of why she saw

military trucks on trains travelling through

the Adelaide Hills during World War II,

over seventy-five years ago!

So, enjoy the lessening of the restrictions,

enjoy the drier weather, and head

off on your travels to Explore the Darwin

Region (page 20) – but check what’s

open before you drive!

Emma Short

Editor

The Top Ender

thetopender@aapt.net.au.

June/July 2020 5

Feature

Good Dog

Animal Assisted Interventions

Therapy Dog Services (Good

Dog AAI) is a local business

that focuses on promoting healthy

relationships and overall wellbeing

through the implementation of

animal-assisted services. Front and

centre of Good Dog AAI are two lovable Labrador Retrievers

– Roxy a trained therapy dog, and Quinton a therapy dog

in-training. Their human, Hannah, owns and operates

Good Dog AAI, but Roxy and Quinton know ‘mum’ Hannah

better, as their driver! Roxy and Quinton are the stars of this

veteran-owned business. Hannah, is a former member of

the Royal Australian Air Force, and their ‘dad’ Michael, is

a former member of the Australian Army. Good Dog AAI

was born out of the experience of Hannah’s own medical

discharge from the Air Force and long and challenging transition

back into civvy life. After discharge, Hannah completed

her postgraduate studies in mental health, community

Hannah completed her

postgraduate studies in

mental health, community

development and social work.

development and social

work. Working with animals

in a meaningful partnership

is how Hannah practises her

social work.

Delivering animal-assisted

services is incredibly rich and diverse in experiences. Roxy’s certification

at therapy dog school (Melbourne), Quinton’s on-the-job

training, and Hannah’s social work skills combine to provide a

well-rounded, evidence-informed service that can be applied

in many areas of everyday life. Areas such as education, classrooms,

universities; health, in clinical settings and therapeutic

settings; community settings, nursing homes, libraries, health

promotion; and even corporate settings, can all benefit from

meeting the dogs. Many environments in which Roxy, Quinton

and Hannah have worked in the past:

» school visits promoting personal wellbeing and safety, and

even dog safety


» with students dealing with preand

post-exam stress

» loss and grief (particularly after

the Darwin shooting and at the

NTGov COVID-19 Ops Centre)

» literacy programs

» psycho-social programs

» promoting wellbeing events such as R U OK Day, World

Suicide Prevention Day, Mental Health Week

» promoting and supporting our military and veteran community

such as the DCOs Welcome to the Top End events,

and being invited to take part in Decompression Training for

returning ADF personnel at Robertson Barracks.

The benefits of therapy dogs in many of these settings share

the common thread of allowing people to engage authentically

and participate by interacting with Roxy and Quinton. People

of all ages and backgrounds are able to build relationships

with Roxy and Quinton, as they are seen, felt and heard by

the dogs who therefore provide genuine, unconditional and

non-judgemental support whilst under the supervision of qualified

social worker. Fostering and facilitating this kind of authentic

relationship alone, therefore, helps create positive and intended

outcomes. The following are real life examples of Roxy, Quinton

and Hannah’s work within our community:

» supporting young readers with low literacy through the

community literacy program ‘Tales to Tails’, so the children

Quinton, Hannah and Roxy are

proud to be able to help deliver

animal-assisted services in and

amongst our community

improve and build their

confidence in reading

aloud

»helping high school and

university students

unwind and relax without

the help of other

substances, especially during stressful times

» creating tactile connections for older people living with

dementia, or older people living in aged care

» promoting a ‘safe space’ for those living with a mental illness

to speak out loud, be heard, and to engage with others

around them

» encouraging veterans, first responders and military personnel

to decompress after highly stressful events like deployment,

counselling, or a triggering scenario.

Therapy dogs within the human services professions – such

as social work, psychology, counselling, occupational therapy

– is still an emerging sector here in Australia, let alone in the

Northern Territory. Quinton, Hannah and Roxy are proud to be

able to help deliver animal assisted-services in and amongst

our community.

Hannah Taiño-Spick

Good Dogs AAI

June/July 2020 7

Support | DCO

Defence Community Organisation

Partner Employment Program Supporting

Families during COVID-19

With a range of COVID-19 restrictions such as physical

distancing and non-essential travel measures, many

Defence families already managing postings and absence

of ADF members due to service, have been affected. In

response, Defence Community Organisation (DCO) is delivering

services in new ways to support ADF families online.

Mr Paul Way, Director General Defence Community

Organisation, said “There is support information and resources

available to families, accessible through a wide range of online

and traditional communication channels.

“We’re providing regular updates to support ADF families on

the Defence Community Organisation website and through

webinars. Families can also receive DCO updates from local

area office e-newsletters, the ForceNet Families group and

on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.”

With a difficult employment market and increased numbers

of people competing for the available jobs, one of the recent

changes Defence has made to support families during the

COVID-19 heath crisis is to the popular Partner Employment

Assistance Program. Eligibility for the program has been changed

to allow more ADF partners to have access to funding for initiatives

to support their employability at any time after they

have relocated on posting (there was a two-year timeframe

previously), or when their member transitions from the ADF

for medical reasons.

The Program provides up to $1,500 to allow access to a

range of employment-related initiatives such development of

a professional resumé, identification of transferrable skills, jobsearch

techniques and development of an online employment

profile. Partners can also access funding for mandatory fees for

professional re-registration required under legislation.

Families can also

receive DCO updates

from local area office

e-newsletters, the

ForceNet Families

group and on

Facebook, Twitter and

Instagram

their local community or just need someone to talk to. Our

Helpline staff are available everyday 24/7 to help,” he said.

Find out more about the program and other support to

ADF members and their families on the Defence Community

Organisation website www.defence.gov.au/dco or by contacting

the 24/7 Defence Family Helpline on 1800 624 608.

Rachel Bowman

Communication Adviser | DCO

“Previously, partners could only access PEAP funding if they

had relocated with their member to a new location in the

last two years,” said Mr Way.

“These changes open up the eligibility, allowing partners of

ADF members to apply for funding at any time during the

posting cycle, regardless of how long they have been in

location. This will help many families with partners who may

be out of work due to COVID-19.

“I encourage all ADF partners, parents and family members

to give the Defence Family Helpline a call on 1800 624

608 if they are looking for information or connection with

´ Eligibility criteria for Defence’s Partner

Employment Assistance Program (PEAP) has

been changed to support more ADF families

during the COVID-19 health crisis. Photo by

kadmy (iStock.com).



Job Search Preparation for ADF Members

Considering Transition or just

Career Planning!

Want to learn more about how to manage

your career, sell your skills and experience

and build your resumé to capture your

military skills? An online version of the

Defence’s Job Search Preparation workshop

is now available.

The virtual workshop is delivered via a webinar in four modules that run

for 2 hours each and are scheduled at various times for your convenience

from home or a portable device.

Talk to a Defence Community Organisation ADF Transition coach

whether you have already registered or if you just want more information,

by emailing adf.transition@defence.gov.au.

For more information on ADF Transition support for members

and their families, go to Your Transition www.defence.gov.au/DCO/

Transition/YourTransition/Default.asp

For information on Job Search Preparation visit www.defence.gov.au/DCO/

Transition/YourTransition/JSP.asp

Jot Kahlon

Family Liaison Officer Darwin


DCO NT

Calender of Events

DCO Tindal

1 July – NAIDOC Week craft activity

DCO Darwin

1 July – NAIDOC Week dough sculptures

8 July – Kite making and flying

Darwin & Tindal

4 June – Virtual Coffee Conversations

5 June – Flat Eaton

15 June – Cooking competition/Recipe sharing

29 June – Story writing

15 July – 5-item craft challenge

29 July – Virtual Coffee Conversations

Jot Kahlon

Family Liaison Officer Darwin


(08) 8935 7925

June/July 2020 9

Are you prepared for civilian life?

If you’re thinking about your career beyond the ADF, now

is the time to plan.

Skilled transition coaches are available to assist you through local

ADF Transition Centres in each area and online. They can help you

understand your skills and interests, and support you and your

family with a range of services and programs to help you achieve

your post-transition goals.

Coaches are available before and during your transition, as well as

up to two years after you leave the ADF. Connect with a coach

today.

Want more information?

Visit www.defence.gov.au/dco/transition, call 1800 624 608

or email adf.transition@defence.gov.au

Good news for Defence partners looking for work

With COVID-19 affecting the employment market, the

eligibility conditions of PEAP have been expanded.

There is currently no requirement for a partner to have relocated

with a member on posting or to have joined the member in the

posting location in the last two years.

“I recently tried to return to work after time off to look after my baby. Due to

COVID-19, the market has become even more competitive and there are

no jobs available in my field. With PEAP extended to all partners, I have

access to support and practical assistance to help me to recognise my

transferable skills and assist in my job search.” Char-lee, Air Force partner.

Want more information?

Visit www.defence.gov.au/dco, call 1800 624 608

or email partner.employment@defence.gov.au

DCO 034-2020

DCO 035-2020

034-2020 ADV Transition for Top Ender.indd 1 12/05/2020 12:02:50 035-2020 PM

ADV PEAP for Top Ender.indd 1 12/05/2020 2:33:41 PM

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June/July 2020 11

Support | DCO

Message from Defence Community

Organisation in the NT

Here to

Support

You!

It will be a very unusual start to the

Dry as we reflect on the changes

that have resulted from the COVID-

19 pandemic and how we now live,

socialise and connect. At the time of

writing we are fortunate compared to

Defence members and families in the

other states and territories as we are

going to experience beautiful weather

and can continue to walk, run, cycle

and indulge in our new-found hobbies

or the new normal, be it baking, bookclub

or yoga by Zoom, virtual coffees,

short-lived, home-school hacks, fridge

or pantry staple challenge, and the

home gym, just to mention a few. The

managed-access to certain National

Parks and recreation areas under the

Northern Territory Government revised

COVID-19 restrictions www.coronavirus.

nt.gov.au/steps-to-restart has been eagerly

awaited.

Thank you to our Family Funding

Support Programs Community Groups

– Network Tindal, Robertson Barracks

Family Group, Larrakeyah Neighbourhood

House, Playgroup NT with Defence

Dandelions, Kookaburra Kids and

Australian Military Wives Choir – for

quickly adapting and delivering a range

of great activities and keeping people

connected. Thank you also for the collaboration

as we start to develop additional

activities and push some of our IT skills

and accesses to new levels.

Although you might not have seen us

out and about, we are here and ready

to help. DCO continues to provide information,

support and referral services to

support the ADF community in managing

and responding to the coronavirus

(COVID-19) global pandemic. Obtain

access to dedicated information and

support through the DCO webpage www.

defence.gov.au/dco/coronavirus.asp.

You can also contact us through the

Defence Family Helpline on 1800 624

608. The Defence Family Helpline is your

first point of call for support, information

and connection with your community,

including your local DCO team. The

Helpline is available 24/7 and is staffed

by qualified human services professionals

including social workers and psychologists.

Di Elson

Area Manager, and the Defence Community

Organisation Team in the NT


POEM

Heaven-Haven

By Gerard Manly Hopkins

I have desired to go

Where springs not fail,

To fields where flies no sharp and sided hail,

And a few lilies blow.

And I have asked to be

Where no storms come,

Where the green swell is in the havens dumb,

And out of the swing of the sea.

Gerard Manly Hopkins was born in Essex, UK in1844.

Regarded as one of the greatest of the Victorian-era poets,

he experimented with scansion, new words, new ways

of using old words and rhythmic effects – rejuvenating

romantic poetry in the process. Heaven-Haven was first

published in 1918.

Photo by Paolo Durandetto from Pexels

From the

Padre’s Pen

Well the start to this year has been

very unusual to say the least.

There has been a lot going on with the

situation changing constantly. There

has been a wide range of changes to

training across the services and we

have had to be very adaptive. Many

Army units went to online training programs

in order to keep soldiers training

while complying with safe distancing.

Churches and Chapels have been

closed and there were limitations on

Anzac Day services. I know this caused

concern and hardship with many left

saying “It’s just not the same”. Well I

feel we did the best we could possibly

do under the circumstances. I was

fortunate enough to be out visiting my

soldiers at RAAF Tindal supporting OP

COVID19 Assist, on Anzac Day with my

CO and RSM, where we woke early

to watch the War Memorial service in

small groups and then I made coffee

and gunfire breakfast for those not on

duty.

Yes, it wasn’t the same, but it was a

pleasure to be able to support those who

couldn’t be with their families. There was

also a service conducted at the Duntroon

Chapel that was live streamed with a

message from the new Bishop of the

Defence Force, Bishop Grant Dibden.

The link provided will take you to the

Facebook page where the video can

still be watched. The Duntroon Chapel

continues to live stream weekly Sunday

services and has been a great source of

comfort and strength to many Defence

members during this time. Many local

churches have also commenced online

services providing inspiration and encouragement.

During these times of isolation,

connection is more important than ever

before. Please reach out to people whom

you know, especially current or ex-serving

members. Now is the time that we really

need to be there for each other. Make

a phone call or have a virtual coffee or

drink. Loneliness is becoming a bigger

and bigger issue, and that was before the

isolation started! Let’s make sure that no

one is left to fight alone and that we reach

out as much as we can in expectation of

when we can all get together again. Every

Blessing.

Chaplain James Hall

Anglican Chaplain

8th 12th Regiment Royal Australian Artillery

Link for Duntroon Anzac Service

www.facebook.com/duntroonchapel/

videos/3197139276986093/

June/July 2020 13

Out & About

Pine Creek's Historical Heart

The town of Pine Creek lies 90km

north of Katherine and 200kms

south of Darwin on land belonging

to the Wagiman and Jawoyn Bolmo,

Matjba and Wurrkbarbar groups.

Their claim to the land as the

Traditional Owners was eventually

recognised in early 2019, after a 20-

year battle in the courts.

There is plenty to see, but check before you go whether

the various sights are open.

www.nlc.org.au/media-publications/native-title-over-pine-creek-finallyrecognised

What is there to see in the

town and in the area?

To begin with, the Stuart Highway that used to run through

the town has been straightened out (at least twenty years ago)

so passers-by now need to make the effort to go and visit.

Refreshments are usually available in town, and on a few trips

I have seen a wheelbarrow of second-hand books for sale a

short distance from the historical Ah Toy’s Bakery.

I spent several hours there at the end of January with a

friend, and instead of just the usual visit to the mine lookout

over the lake, we walked around, looked at the water gardens

and then the old railway yards, and Miners Park. There were the

actual locomotives to look at, the railway yards, railway housing,

classified trees – a pair of plump baobabs that go back to gold

rush days, and the mass of lilies flowering in the water gardens.

It’s well worth the stop. Also around town you will see lumps


of rusting ironware left over from the

mine or the railway; some have labels,

some don’t, but their size and number

indicate just how busy the town was in

its heyday, or perhaps heydays, as the

population was subject to the whims

of the mining industry and of course

was affected by World War II.

John MacDouall Stuart noted

in 1862 when looking at a way through for the Overland

Telegraph that the area looked promising for finding gold, and

HF Litchfield subsequently found gold on the Finniss River in

1865. Goyder’s team surveying the route for the Telegraph

found gold at Tumbling Waters and then the working teams

on the Telegraph found alluvial gold in Yam Creek about 50km

away in 1870.

After a slow start, the gold rush began to pick up steam

with the discovery of a major reef in 1872, the Priscilla. Another

reef, the Eleanor, had two very productive

mines – the Eleanor and

Kohinoor. Eventually, C & E Millar

of Melbourne was contracted to

build a railway from Darwin to Pine

Creek – 200km – for the sum of

£959,300. It arrived in town in

1888, and was kept busy carrying

miners who had come from the southern states of Australia

and China, inland with their supplies.

Conditions were tough,

disease and malnutrition

contributed their fair share of

deaths, and many a dream

ended in fever

Conditions were tough, disease and malnutrition contributed

their fair share of deaths, and many a dream ended in fever. At

the peak of the mining boom the town's population included

over 2,000 Chinese, many of whom supplied the miners with

the necessities – vegetables, bread and equipment.

continued on pages 16,17,19

June/July 2020 15

continued from page 15 | Pine Creek

There was even a small Chinese temple, at nearby Brocks

Creek, with a pair of stone lions standing guard that originally

came from China. The temple, alas, was thoroughly vandalised

by Australian servicemen during WWII, but the lions were

subsequently rescued and moved to the Chung Wah Chinese

temple on Wood Street, where you can see them today – one

on each side of the doorway.

At the same time, the area was beginning to open up to

more settlers – pastoralists – who by trial and error realised

that sheep didn’t thrive, and that horses and cattle were more

suitable. In short, Pine Creek boomed.

In short, Pine Creek

boomed

By 1915, the available

gold had been extracted

– 75,000 ounces (2,126

kg) – and the miners dispersed,

although those

who remained were employed to mine for tin and wolfram.

Then WWII broke out, and again, the population swelled as the

railway was used to ferry supplies to the various distribution

depots – Strauss, Adelaide River, Pine Creek, Katherine and

Larrimah (the southern end of the line). During one week in

1944, 247 trains passed through!

The lull and decline that followed the war continued until

the 1950s when yet again mining companies moved in – this

time extracting uranium and iron ore. Eventually, in the 1970s

these operations declined, leaving behind a huge hole, and the

North Australia Railway was finally closed in 1976.

In 1985, Pine Creek Goldfields Ltd started up operations in

the Enterprise pit developed from the Enterprise Shaft that had

been worked in the early 20th Century. Another pit, the Czarina

opened in 1992 and continued for a year before closing. The

Enterprise Pit remained operational until 1995, by which time


764,000 ounces (21,659kg) of gold had been extracted. When the mine

finally closed the pit was flooded with water from the Pine Creek itself.

This, then, is a potted history of the area. Gold mines still exist in the region

although one closed a couple of years ago for economic reasons.

Heading south on the Stuart Highway, pass the turn-off for Pine Creek,

travel another 1.8km and on the left there is a fingerpost indicating the cemetery,

along a dirt road. The road

Many of the headstones

in Pine Creek Cemetery

are notable

crosses the railway line and curves

around to the north.

Many of the headstones in

Pine Creek Cemetery are notable

– several artistically engraved by

hand. Bill Jacobsen’s shows a steam locomotive, Stan Hollis was obviously a

blacksmith, and another memorable one, for V McCullough, reads ‘Here lies

“SHORTY” rattling along, 40,000 blowflies can’t be wrong’. I was informed

by Carol of the Katherine Museum that this was engraved by his friend Earl,

who himself lies not far away, and on whose plaque is written, ‘Just when I

had it all figured out, this goes and happens’.

One beautiful marble headstone for Frank Frith was made by Frederick

Arnold in Sydney – the logistics of ordering such a stone must, by modern

standards, have been a very protracted affair.

The cemetery is also home to some enormous cathedral termite mounds

– the biggest I have ever seen.

Back at the main road, turn left and then after about 500m or so, turn

right into Pine Creek, along Main Terrace. As you arrive in town, on the right

are the water gardens – well maintained lawns, a series of ponds filled with

water lilies (in the right season) and birds enjoying the cool and the water. The

gardens (long and narrow as they were developed along the ‘corridor’ of the

old railway, were developed in 1993 after the windmill had been brought in

1991 from Wauchope, over 900 km away and south of Tennant Creek. The

cutting had been gradually filling up with rubbish and weeds, but with vision

The Group Program Schedule for

all states is also available on the Open

Arms Website at www.openarms.gov.

au/get-support/group-treatment-programs-and-educational-workshops

Expressions of Interest for the Group

Programs can be submitted on the

Open Arms Website or directly via email

to openarms.centralwest@dva.gov.au.

Alternatively interested parties can call

Open Arms direct on 1800 011 046.

Stepping Out

A 2-day program for ADF members and

their partners who are about to, or who

have recently, separated from the military.

Katherine

Thursday 30–31 July | 8:30am–4:00pm

Relaxation and Stress

Management

A 2-day program that will provide you

with practical techniques in mindfulness

to reduce the stress in your everyday life

Darwin

Thursday 18–19 June | 8:30am–12:00pm

continued on page 19 | Pine Creek

June/July 2020 17

Regular

Signaller Reflects on Advances

in Technology

Photo by Private Jack Lovett

´ Copyright © Commonwealth of Australia, Department of Defence

One of Darwin’s 1st Combat Signal

Regiment’s youngest signallers

has learnt a lot about how the military

has adapted to technological changes,

between World War I and now.

Signaller Catherine Welsh, from

Warwick, Queensland, was born in 2000

and finds it hard to contemplate what life

was like in the military for those in her

trade before the digital age.

Since joining the Army and the Royal

Australian Corps of Signals (RA Sigs),

Signaller Welsh has become accustomed

to being the youngest

in the group. The

Communication Systems

Operator (computer

technician) often finds

herself in conversations

with the older members

of the unit as they reminisce

about the ‘good old

days’ and the technology

they used to use.

“Dial-up” came up in conversation the

other day – I’d never heard of it before,”

Signaller Welsh said.

“It has always been as simple as turning

the computer on and opening a web

browser without a thought of having

to do anything else. Basic computer

fault-finding was already a strength of

mine after watching my parents struggle

with emails”.

Today, computer systems operators

like Signaller Welsh deploy on operations

across the globe connecting soldiers

to their family and friends in Australia

through email and social media. This

access to instant communication has

vastly improved soldier welfare and is

perhaps one of the most differentiating

characteristics of

modern warfare.

“Dial-up” came up

in conversation

the other day – I’d

never heard of it

before,” Signaller

Welsh said.

Looking at her

khaki slouch hat,

which bears the

badge of the Royal

Australian Corps of

Signallers that features

Mercury, the

messenger of the

gods, Signaller Welsh acknowledged

that before dial-up and the Internet,

communications worked very differently.

“Communications technology evolved

quickly: the ANZACs started with heavy

and bulky radio sets with limited communication

between the battalions. By

the end of World War II, signallers were

using lighter and much more advanced

equipment that could be taken into the

battle space on a soldier’s back. The

ANZACs faced many challenges, especially

mobility. Our modern Army has

become so much more mobile with the

vehicle capabilities and lighter, more compact

equipment.” She thinks about those

soldiers who had to carry radio stacks on

their backs and who had to trouble-shoot

with equipment while trying to avoid

death, and that this makes her appreciate

what the Army has evolved into and how

lucky everyone is to have the equipment

and capability we have today.

The capable computer tech may have

never seen an old-fashioned telegraph or

fax machine, but she’s learnt about many

new things that exist outside life behind

a digital screen since joining the Army.

At the same time, she’s developed a

greater appreciation for the era she was

raised in, especially during the COVID-19

crisis facing the global community.

Signaller Catherine Welsh

Lieutenant Sally Shanahan


continued from page 17 | Pine Creek

and effort, and water supplied from the Enterprise Pit, a couple

of kilometres away, the change was dramatic.

The marker for Mile 236 on the original route of the railway

is a few metres to the south-west towards Parsons Terrace.

Walking across the width of the Gardens, you will see the

old Repeater Station for the Telegraph that was built in the UK

and shipped out to Australia in 1889, and is apparently the

oldest prefabricated iron building in Australia. Originally set up

as the Mining Warden’s Office in Burrundie, it was moved to

its present site in 1913 whereupon it went through a series

of incarnations starting as a pharmacy, becoming a clinic for

Dr Clyde Fenton (who flew himself around the Territory and

who once landed his aeroplane in Katherine main street), then

becoming a ‘home for half-caste’ children, before being taken

over for military operations during WWII. It then became a Post

Office and finally a repeater station, and is now a museum

and library.

You will see a decent-sized corrugated iron building on Main

street – this is Ah Toy’s bakery that started off life in Mount

Diamond (another mining area not too far away) as a butcher’s

shop owned by Jimmy Ah You. In 1915, Jimmy dismantled it,

moved himself and it to Pine Creek, rebuilt it with local timber

and made his baker’s ovens (still there today) from mortar

made from termite mounds. He and his son Jimmy Ah Toy

baked bread on the premises until WWII, whereupon it was

requisitioned to supply the troops. After the war, bread was

trucked in from Darwin, so the bakery didn’t re-open. It remains

today in Main Terrace, as a reminder to passers-by of the hard

life of days gone by and the wonders of modern kitchens and

air conditioning!

Also on Main Terrace you should see a sign to the Mine

lookout; follow the road up a steep hill for a great view into the

water-filled Enterprise pit that now contains 6,800 megalitres

and which took 14 months to fill.

Back on Main Terrace again, head north-west along the edge

of the railway corridor until you see Miner’s Park signposted.

Turn right, and ahead and to the right you have the railway

sheds, tracks and museum, and to the left is the site of the

Stationmaster’s house, and which now houses a collection of

iron artifacts associated with mining. Up the slope and almost

directly ahead are a couple of baobabs that are on the register

of significant trees. The building you see is an ‘Employee’s

Residence 2nd Class’ dating from 1889. Originally consisting

of three rooms, in 1914 the wide verandas were screened in

with woven bamboo and palm matting.

For such a small place, it has a very

rich history and there is a lot to do,

so get out of your car, walk around

and have a look.

To watch an interview with Jimmy Ah Toy who also ran

the Toy Shop, visit this URL.

www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2015-11-04/pine-creek-store-eddie-ah-toyserving-nt-80-years/6900306

Further information:

www.weekendnotes.com/pine-creek-places-to-go/

www.southaustralianhistory.com.au/pinecreek.htm

www.visitkatherine.com.au/surrounding-regions/pine-creek-hayes-creek

June/July 2020 19

Out & About

Exploring the Darwin Region

Some of the places

and activities

mentioned in this

article may be closed

due to COVID-19

restrictions. Please

verify what is open

and closed before

venturing out. If they

are closed take this

time to reflect on

what they offer so that

you can get out and

support them once

they reopen.

Continuing in the same vein as the

last two articles that explored local

activities in Darwin, let’s have a look

at what you can experience in close

proximity to Darwin. In particular, we

look at Berry Springs, Humpty Doo,

Howard Springs and Channel Island,

all of these areas being considered as

part of the Darwin region.

Territory

Wildlife Park

With 10 km of footpaths augmented

with a hop-on hop-off bus service it provides

a wonderful outdoor experience. You

can walk or bring a pushbike or scooter

to enjoy the network of paths. What’s on

offer? A nocturnal house provides insight

into those elusive Australian animals that

only venture out after dark, a must-see on

anyone’s list. Visit the woodland walk to

see wallabies. The billabong offers freshwater

fish, turtles, birds and crocodiles.

The monsoon forest has interactive stations

for education and a huge aviary filled

with local birds. The aquarium complex is

another exquisite exposition highlighting

local fish species and a large salt-water

crocodile. Oolloo Sandbar has local river

species on display. You can then wander

past a rocky ridge with dingos, buffalo and

emus. The park also offers interactive talks

using local animals during feeding to show

of their skills. A cafeteria with refreshments

and light meals is available.

Berry Springs

Nature Park

Fed by a large underground spring the

crystal-clear water drops over a half-meter

high shelf to feed a series of deep pools

connected by narrow channels. The water

from the spring is warm but still cool

enough to enjoy in a tropical climate. The

clear water and long channels between

deep pools provide a great opportunity to

get up close to the fish that inhabit the fresh

waters of the NT. Bring along a swimming

mask to make the most of this underwater

world. Once you have had a swim relax on

the lawn under large shady trees. Gas and

wood BBQ facilities are available so make

yourself comfortable in the shade and have

a picnic or BBQ. After lunch take the short

monsoon forest walk and finish off the day

with one last swim before heading home.

A small kiosk provides drinks and takeaway

meals.

Barramundi

Adventures

Territory Wildlife Park

Never caught a fish before? Then

you absolutely must try this. This is an

ideal outing for the family from novice

to experienced fisherman. With a series

of artificial ponds filled with hundreds

of Barra the odds of your landing a fish

are huge. Experience the thrill of hooking

and fighting this iconic fish. All fishing gear

and advice on how to catch and release

these fish is provided. They also have a

bar, dining facilities and BBQ. This provides

a great way to introduce the family

and guests to the barramundi experience.

Booking is essential.


Regulars

Territory Wildlife Park

Tumbling Waters

Tumbling Waters

Holliday Park

Truly a hidden gem on Darwin’s

doorstep. This little park provides cabin

accommodation as well as powered and

unpowered camping sites. It is a great

spot to start the camping season, to get

out and relax, test all the equipment to

make sure its working and if you have

forgotten anything, a five-minute drive into

Berry Springs should get you sorted. They

provide a great outdoor cinema experience

five nights a week in the Dry (for

free). Experience the stars and the great

outdoors while watching a movie. Other

activities in the park include a freshwater

croc sanctuary open all day with feeding

5pm on Saturday. On Sunday mornings

a ranger from the Territory Wildlife Park

provides a close-up encounter with local

wildlife. In addition, a mini market with arts

and crafts stalls are open. This all takes

place near the licensed restaurant café

and garden bar that is open for breakfast

and dinner. As if this was not enough, a

5 km walking trail provides access to the

Blackmore River and billabong and an

ideal opportunity to hook a Barramundi.

Crazy Acres Mango

Farm and Café

Located just off Cox Peninsula road

this mango farm offers light meals with

a mango twist. The highlight of any visit

is the homemade mango ice cream. You

simply have to pull over for an ice cream

or smoothie if you are in the vicinity. While

there, buy some lovely preserved mango

products to try at home.

Berry Springs Tavern

Conveniently located on Cox

Peninsula Road this tavern provides good

value, hearty, pub-style food. This is just

the place to stop over for a meal after a

long day’s fishing or exploring.

Shane Bartie

Explore the NT

Berry Springs Nature Park

Berry Springs Nature Park

June/July 2020 21

Broadspectrum ‘DIY Name

Tags and Name Plate’ QR Code

As part of a continuing Efficiency Implementation Program (EIP) system

that Broadspectrum has implemented since taking over the National

Clothing Stores Contract, we have introduced a ‘DIY Nametag &/or Name

Plate’ order QR Code.

This gives any member (Tri-Service (Regular or Reserve)) the opportunity

to place an order for nametags &/or name plates that they wish to purchase.

Note: This is not to be used for Initial Free Issue (IFI) requests, as paperwork

is required for this type of transaction and needs to be completed

within a Defence Clothing Store.

This has been designed with ease in mind. Simply scan the QR Code, tap

open link and follow the prompts. Select the store to which you’d like your item

delivered, your Service, what type you want (e.g. cloth or AMCU) and quantity.

Most fields have drop down menus for you to chose from.

Note: Currently, the Army Name Plate is not available to purchase

through this system but should be soon.

You then need to enter your details (PMKeys, forename and surname and

email address). Please ensure your email address is correct, as this will be the

method by which you are contacted to notify you that your order is ready in

the Clothing Store for payment and collection.

Note: Defence email addresses should always be used.

Click the Submit button to review the details you have input; there is a Go

Back option at this stage if you’ve made a mistake.

Before clicking the final Submit, there is a note regarding your acknowledgement

that the order is correct and that you agree to pay for the items on collection.

This EIP initiative is designed to reduce the

members’ need to travel to a Defence Clothing

Store, especially where distance, access and

timeframes can be an issue.


Regular

Network Tindal

Monday

9–11am Tindal Playgroup

Wednesday

10–12 noon Bubs and Bumps

Service members and families

face change and challenges

throughout their service career

5:15–6:15pm 180 Degree Fitness

Thursday

10–12 noon Tindal Treehouse

Saturday Fortnightly

12 noon–11pm Tindal Gamers

Monday Fortnightly

7pm Creative Craft

Third Monday of the Month

7pm Tindal Book Club Tindal Teens and

Tindal Tweens

Dates and times TBA

A New Way of Meeting!

This year we were aiming holding many more events;

however, due to COVID-19 we have had to adapt to new

ways of living. At Network Tindal we decided to become

an online virtual group whilst we were prevented from

doing things in person.

We currently offer coffee chats, playgroups, book club and

dress-up days, although we are looking for more input onto

what we can do to support our community.

Every fortnight we release new activity packs for children and

adults that are themed. For example, we circulated an Anzac

pack and had children design a poppy wreath and upload a

photograph of it to our Facebook page. These packs seem to

be a great incentive for engagement and some fun.

We also delivered over 520 candles to Defence members

within our community for the Anzac Day driveway service.

This year has been hard, its been weird and its been a eyeopener,

but I hope that once this is over we can still continue

to use some of these things we have learnt and used over the

last few months to come up with more interesting events and

activities for our community!

Until next time.

Yoshi Marshall

Coordinator for Network Tindal

New contact information:

Email: networktindal@gmail.com

Ph: 0458 677 807

More events will be posted on our

private Facebook page – Network

Tindal Buddies and circulated via

the BIC.

June/July 2020 23

Support | DCO


Tindal

Absence from Home Bears

get busy at Tindal

The DCO NT’s Absence from Home

Bears have been very busy over

the last few weeks. In early April

Archie, Katherine and Eaton Tindal

from RAAF Base Tindal were busy

writing pen pal letters to help Eaton

stay in contact with his friends and

extended family during a COVID-19

quarantine period. He has had so

much fun sharing his letters and

family news and is still writing.

Archie also was busy helping the DCO Tindal Family

Liaison Officer Debbie make and decorate a kite for

an upcoming kite-making and flying activity at RAAF Base

Tindal..

On the lead up to the Anzac Day weekend, the DCO Darwin

staff held an Anzac Biscuit bake-off as a team building exercise.

As you can see, the bears enjoyed this activity as much

as the staff.

Archie & Katherine Tindal were then joined by the Navy

and Army Absence from Home Bears to commemorate Anzac

Day and took part in the #standatdawn service in Tindal. Many

Defence members and families commemorated #standatdawn

for Anzac Day in both Darwin and Tindal.

Debbie Marshall

Family Liaison Officer | DCO NT-Tindal

The DCO NT Area Office had an

Anzac Day bake-off and were

pleased to have their Absence from

Home Bears join in the picnic fun.

Di Ellson

Area Manager

Defence Community Organisation NT


Regular

Robertson Barracks

Family Group

It’s hard to believe we are still in the first half of the year.

Australia has seen bushfires, floods and a virus that has

closed our borders. In the Northern Territory we are luckier

than most and although

it has been such a hard time

for everyone, as a Community

Group we have tried to lessen

the strain of being isolated, by

ensuring we still have a presence, albeit online, with which

our families can connect.

Our Robertson Barracks Family Group Coordinator, Kass,

has been extremely busy during this time. Virtual groups

on Facebook have been set

up to help our community

through this. Fitness for Robbo

is still going ahead courtesy

of Christine, our Chairperson,

who posts a work-out every Monday morning. Playgroup and

Kids Club have moved online. In our virtual Playgroup and

Kids Club, RBFG families have been showcasing the results of

RBFG craft packages, and have

been enthusiastic about sharing

different craft ideas, information

on things to do, and have been

keeping connected with other

RBFG families.

With the assistance of our Committee Members, Kass has

produced over a hundred craft bags that have been distributed

to members of our Playgroup and Kids Club. The first round

of bags, distributed just before Easter, included a number of

Easter crafts, colouring-in competitions, pom-pom making,

Easter bonnet creating and the kids were even able to paste

together their own slouch hat. Our Kids Club members were

lucky to receive their very own loom band kit! These were a

hit before the centre closed down, and the kids have enjoyed

making loom bands for themselves and their family.

Adjacent Lone Pine Chapel, Robertson Barracks

email: robertsonbarracksfamilygroup@gmail.com | Contact: 0490 151 944

The second round of bags contained some wonderful Anzac

craft which consisted of a stained glass window light decoration

and paper wreaths. The children have worked amazingly well

Christine, our Chairperson, who posts

a work-out every Monday morning.

at cutting, gluing and putting

them together. The popular

Bluey made an appearance

in the bags as well providing

kids the opportunity to put together their own Bluey map. I

wonder where Bluey’s adventures will take them!

Our Kids Club members were lucky to

receive their very own loom band kit!

Care packages were supplied to

service members heading into

isolation

Earlier in the year, families of deployed members participated

in a ‘Packing Day', where

families boxed up goodies

and polaroid pictures to send

to deployed members. Care

packages were also made for

families of deployed members, and most recently, courtesy

of Defence Health and RBFG Volunteer Faith, care packages

were supplied to service members heading into isolation after

returning to Australia.

Although we are unable

to meet up as a group for a

coffee, cake and chat or just

to relieve any tension and

anxiety we may have, we hope it’s reassuring for you to know

that our Coordinator and Committee are still working to ensure

that our community is still active, and that there is ‘family’ around

just in case you need it.

Remember “We are all in this together”!

Angela Gordon

Robertson Barracks Family Group

What’s on Each Week at the RBFG

centre

Mondays

8:45am

9.45am

Fit for Robbo group workout

Coffee & Cake

Every second Tuesday

3.30pm – 5.30pm

Fridays

8.30am – 12pm

Kids Club

0–5s Playgroup

June/July 2020 25

Regular

Larrakeyah

Neighbourhood House

Email: larrakeyahhouse@hotmail.com

Mobile: 0447 586 591

The last three months have been filled with many challenges

for all Australians, our families, your families, our

neighbours, and everyone around us, but one thing for sure

is that in time things will get better!

As most of you will know we were forced to close our doors

physically on 24 March, which meant no more Bumps and

Bubs, Playgroup, Kids Club, Yoga or Coffee Mornings, Ladies

dinners and Coffee out and about. But, when one door closes

it usually means another will open and we are excited that ours

has been the creation of our Virtual Village LNH group!

By going virtual we feel we have been able to keep connected

with our families, giving them an opportunity to stay in

touch with their community and we hope that we have created

an avenue to allow all our budding friendships to continue to

grow!

We have been extremely busy putting together various programs,

activities, packs, and initiatives to keep our community

engaged and active over the past few months!

Here are some of the activities we have put together for

our families.

» Daily yoga or workout

» Daily kids exercise activity

» Learn to draw Mickey Mouse and Elsa tutorial

» Easter Packs for our Playgroup and Kids club members x50

» Easter colouring in pages x100

» Sidewalk Chalk packs for the Larrakeyah Neighbourhood

x120

» Easter Bunny cupcake topper tutorial and kits x50

» Molly’s cooking lesson tutorial

» Twisted Pots make your own Kokedama tutorial and kits x25

» Anzac Day craft packs x50

» Paint and Sip at home for adults and kids tutorial

» Playdough and Origami craft packs x50

» Mother Day packs (joint initiative with Robertson Barracks

Family Group, Dandelions Playgroup NT, Billeroy Veterans

& Families Community Centre and Defence Health

» Mother’s Day Craft packs for the kids x50

» Special Mother’s Day cards for our Bumps and Bubs group

» Macramé craft kits x30

» Weekly takeaway dinner – support a local restaurant as a

community

» Facebook Messenger group for Bumps and Bubs and

Playgroup.

All these amazing activities would not have been possible

without all the support and help from so many members of

our committee and our community, it has been amazing to see

everyone get involved, thank you for all the help and support!

We hope that by the time you are reading this, our centre

is open again and that we are back to our usual activities but if

that’s not the case and you have not joined our Virtual Village

LNH group on Facebook please join us.

Please check our Facebook group Larrakeyah Neighbourhood

House Community Group for details on

our regular activities.

We also wanted to take this

opportunity to let you know that if

you need any support of any kind,

we are always here for you, so please

reach out.

Charné Saunders

Co-ordinator | Larrakeyah Neighbourhood House


From your Delegate

Support | DFA

Did you know that you have a

NT & Kimberly Delegate who can

advocate for you at a local level?

My name is Jessica Hanison and I would like to take

this opportunity to introduce myself as the newly

appointed National Delegate for Defence Families of

Australia (DFA) Northern Territory and Kimberley. I have

been a Defence spouse since 2009 and my family has

recently posted to the region so we are familiar with the

challenges of relocation, housing, schools and employment

when moving to the NT.

I'm proud to be the new DFA delegate for the NT region.

Defence Families of Australia (DFA) is a government appointed

advisory body representing the views of Australian Defence

Force Families. Our role is to directly inform the Minister for

Defence Personnel and the Chief of the Defence Force on

issues affecting Defence

families. Our goal is to

ensure quality of life for

all Defence families by

providing a recognised

forum for their views,

by reporting, making

recommendations and

influencing policy that

directly affects families.

In turn, this enhances

the capability of the

Australian Defence Force.

Our goal is to

ensure quality

of life for all

Defence families

by providing a

recognised forum

for their views

The National Convenor based in Canberra, and regional

National Delegates are formally appointed by the Minister

for Defence Personnel. DFA advocates on issues which are

brought to our attention by families, serving ADF members,

Commanding Officers and Defence stakeholders. Through the

DFA network, we are able to discuss issues concerning families

at both regional and national levels, to seek clarification and

resolution. DFA believes that supported families are supportive

families.

DFA’s aim is to improve the quality of life for Defence families

by providing a recognised forum for their views and by reporting,

making recommendations and influencing policy that directly

affects families.

Contact DFA if you have been unsuccessful in resolving a

concern through either your local relevant channels or national

channels.

Keep up to date by following the DFA Northern Territory

Facebook page.

Webinars

available online

After we ran a small webinar on

ADF Partner Employment, we thought

we would organise some more,

especially as we had also received

feedback from partners who wanted

to know more about Defence life. We

therefore ran three webinars – one

for each service – during March 2020

The First Five Years as an ADF Partner.

The webinars looked at the first

five years as an ADF partner, as well

as suppling more information about

how COVID-19 and ADF operations

was affecting families.

To watch these recording please

visit the DFA website: https://dfa.org.au/

webinars-2/

Jessica Hanison

National Delegate – Northern Territory

and Kimberley

Get in touch

Mobile: 0418 807 548

Email: nt@dfa.org.au

Facebook: www.facebook.com/

DefenceFamiliesofAustralia

June/July 2020 27

Support | DVA

Department of Veteran Affairs

Uncertain Times

This year we have all been faced with challenges and

uncertainty, but the Department of Veterans Affairs

remains focused on continuing to support the veteran

community. We understand that during this difficult time

we may all be faced with anxious moments. Like many of

us, we are now faced with changing the way we interact

with one another due to the COVID-19 virus. It is key that

we are all looking after ourselves and those around us. If

anxiety becomes overwhelming, it can lead to feelings of

hopelessness and depression. Thankfully, there are actions

we can all take to strengthen personal wellbeing and assist

others.

Remember these are not new skills for veterans and their

families. Service members and families face change and challenges

throughout their service career. This is about refocusing

and using coping strategies to face a new challenge.

There are strategies we can all use to strengthen our resilience

and maintain our mental health.

Get the facts

Ensure you obtain your information from reliable sources

such as the Department of Health website. Balance your exposure

to media with other activities. Constant exposure to stories

about the virus feeds anxiety and feelings of lack of control. It

is important to stay informed but in a balanced way.

Stay connected

The need to practise social distancing or social isolation

does not mean we cannot strengthen our connections with

our support network. Set up a regular time to connect virtually

with family and friends. You may want to write a letter, email

or share photos. Connect with your local ESO and see if they

are providing any support to veterans online or over the phone.

Establishing a phone tree with your community may be a great

solution to stay connected. If you are feeling anxious and need

to talk, call the 24/7 Open Arms support line on 1800 011 046.

There will always be someone to talk to.

Meaningful goals

Set goals to achieve something meaningful each day. It

is all right to take part in activities you enjoy, as long as they

comply with Government restrictions. You could try calling or

FaceTiming a friend to provide emotional support. Work on the

things you don’t normally have time for – sort photos, read a

book or learn something new.

Keep moving

Exercise is a quick and effective way to distract yourself

from negative thoughts and to manage emotions like anxiety

or depression. Go for a walk, run or join a virtual yoga class. Be

prepared and make a plan.

Relaxation

Calming your emotions through relaxation activities enables

you to think more clearly and work through challenges. The

Open Arms website has a number of relaxation tools, including

controlled breathing, grounding and muscle relaxation.

Practise kindness and

gratitude

Take the time to thank people who are keeping our essential

services operating, including in our supermarkets, our health

staff, and our ex-service community, which is continuing to work

to support our veterans and their families. Share resources and

support your community as much as you can. Take time to read

the stories of people assisting each other, promoting hope or

assisting others to cope.

Seek support

If you are struggling to use these strategies it can help to

talk to someone. You can contact Open Arms 24/7 on 1800

011 064. Open Arms provides services for current and former

serving ADF members and their families. These services include

counselling, workshops, community and peer support and suicide

intervention.


The importance of Social Connectedness

The importance of social connectedness is often underappreciated

or undervalued. Some of us take for granted all

the little interactions we have with our community, such as

meeting people at the gym, the local café,

workplace, playgroup, or simply catching

up with friends. It is these moments

that nourish our sense of belonging to a

community. Good health isn’t just about

physical activity and eating healthily, but

are also the biological and mental effects

of loneliness and social isolation that

demonstrate that social connection is just

as important as other health benefits.

Investing in social relationships and how we interact with the

world around us can have positive effects on health – fostering

psychological well-being and improved health habits, leading

to both short and long term benefits.

Respect and love

yourself

Social wellness needs to start with yourself

and your own self-respect and love.

With this self-love comes an increase in

positive mood and self-confidence, and

you are more likely to engage with your

community.

Building healthy relationships

and managing conflict

Most people learn social skills as a child through building

and maintaining relationships. Effective communication

and empathy are key ways to improve your relationships

with others. Improvement in these areas can take place at

It is these

moments that

nourish our sense

of belonging to a

community

listening to others

without judgment

or blame, and

practising empathy

any age. Try sharing your feelings honestly, listening to others

without judgment or blame, and practising empathy. Disagree

with others respectfully; conflicts should not turn into personal

attacks. Avoid angry outbursts, any kind of violent

behaviour and being overly critical. Treat

others with the respect you would like to be

treated with in return. Compromise and try to

come to agreements that work for everyone.

Be creative

With social distancing rules in place and

many of our favourite community spaces

closed, and we can find ourselves struggling to connect to

others. Organisations and families are utilising technology to

continue connecting to one another, and is a great way to

ensure you are communicating with your loved ones. If you or

a loved one need some assistance in developing digital skills

and confidence, the Be Connected website (beconnected.esafety.

gov.au) may be of assistance. Keep the art of

letter writing alive by sending letters, photos

and kids’ artwork to family and friends. Or even

try to speak to your neighbour from over a

fence or across a balcony.

At a time where we cannot be physically

close to one another, being socially and

emotionally connected is more important than ever before.

Remember you are not alone in this; we are all in it together. Be

kind to one another, reach out to friends, family and co-workers.

Showing kindness within your community not only helps others

but also increases your sense of purpose and improves your

own well-being.

Jacqueline Cleghorn

Community Support Adviser

Department of Veterans Affairs

DVA support

The Department of Veterans’ Affairs launched a new website

in March 2020, taking into account feedback from clients

to ensure user friendliness. The new site provides information

that is simple to find and easy to understand. Our focus was

to ensure that all our veteran community can quickly find the

information they need and work out what to do next, such as

how to make a claim or gain access to services and support.

If you require any assistance you can contact us on 1800 555

254, through DVA website, or by requesting a call back through

MyService.

DVA visits all NT bases regularly, meeting with

ADF members to provide information on available

services and benefits. To make an appointment to

discuss your personal circumstances, email darwinvan@dva.gov.au,

phone 1800 555 254 or visit the

DVA office at 14 Winnellie Rd, Winnellie.

Meghan Bailey

Deputy Commissioner NT | Department of Veteran Affairs

June/July 2020 29

Regular

Doctor's Notes

Men’s Health Week

Men’s Health Week is coming up soon from

15–21 June 2020 and it’s time to raise awareness

about some of the issues facing men’s health in

Australia.

Despite only accounting for 49% of the population, Australian men account for

53% of the total burden of disease. Males have a life expectancy of 4 years

less than women and are more likely to die prematurely. And, for those men

who live to an old age, the last 11 years are more likely to be in poor health. At

younger ages, men are more likely to die in motor vehicle accidents, and they

account for 80% of all spinal cord injuries and 94% of all workplace deaths.

In their 2018 report, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare found 3 out

of 4 men were overweight or obese, only 1 in 2 are sufficiently physically active,

and fewer than 1 in 300 ate the recommended amount of fruit and vegetables. And

although rates are continuing to go down, still 1 in 6 men smoke daily and more

than a quarter of men drink at risky levels.

One of this year’s Men’s Health Week themes is addressing mental health. Over

10% of men will experience depression and 25% will experience anxiety at some

point in their lives. These contribute to high male suicide rates with 6 out of 8

suicides that occur on average every day in Australia are men. Rates of depression

and anxiety are even higher in the ADF for men aged 18–37 years compared to

the general community, and ADF members transitioning out of military service are

at particularly high risk of mental health disorders, with 46% meeting the diagnostic

criteria for a mental disorder in the first 12 months after leaving the ADF, and more

at risk of severe disorders.

Men’s Health Week falls just before this middle of the year. It’s a time to raise

awareness about the state of men’s health in Australia, but also a time for all of us to

reflect on where we’re up to with our fitness and health goals we set at the start of

the year — are you exercising and eating well? Have you lost weight? Have you quit

smoking? Are you drinking less? Did you manage to create a better work-life balance

so far this year? These are the changes that can be made now that will increase the

chance of living a long and healthy life, rather than one burdened by disease or one

that comes to an end too soon.

While the reasons behind medical and mental health issues are complex, your

lifestyle directly influences how healthy you are. Regular physical activity, a well-balanced

diet, maintaining a healthy body weight, limiting alcohol consumption and

giving up smoking, all reduce the risk of poor health today and in the future. If you

haven’t taken control of your mental and physical health this year, it’s not too late.

Set yourself the goal of finishing the year in a happier and healthier state than you

did last year. The dry season is the perfect time to work on those health and fitness

goals, and improve your mental health and work-life balance.

One of this year’s

Men’s Health

Week themes is

addressing mental

health

To find out more about Men’s Health

Week and to get ideas for possible events

you can organise at work or in the community,

please see the Men’s Health

Week website https://www.menshealthweek.org.au/.

Dr Andrew Flint

Medical Office | Royal Australian Navy


Deployment and Slouch Hats

Feature

Sergeant Tracey Knighton from Western Australia has

made friends all over the world throughout her 24 years

of service as a logistician in the Army.

In spite of a significant language barrier, the unlikeliest of

friendships struck up during a game of charades while on

Operation Slipper in Afghanistan in 2005. Sergeant Knighton

had deployed to Afghanistan with the first rotation of Special

Air Service Regiment post 9/11 to set up the base for the

coalition. Sergeant Knighton said, “I befriended a local Afghan

man through the international language of

charades. I never learnt his name; however,

through the game I did learn he was married

with a son and had another baby on the

way. We even exchanged Christmas presents.

I gave him soap and chocolate and he gave

me a sparkly green hair tie, which I still have”.

When Sergeant Knighton deployed again

to Afghanistan in 2012, she was fortunate to

see her friend again. “When I went back the

second time, the base was huge, but the best part was I saw

my Afghan friend,” she said, “We hugged and he told me his

baby was born healthy and was now at school.”

Seeing the progress made towards building a more secure

and democratic Afghanistan since her first deployment was

extremely satisfying for Sergeant Knighton.

The experienced logistician first joined the Army in 1996,

keen to make a difference, which she has had ample opportunity

to do. She explained that she wanted a job where she

could help people and be able to do an array of different things.

In addition to Afghanistan, Sergeant Knighton has also

deployed in support of the International Force East Timor

peace-keeping operation in 2001 and to the Solomon Islands

She sees the

slouch hat as

the link between

our veterans and

current serving

members

in 2007. Her experiences have made her proud to wear the

slouch hat and to continue the tradition of service that her

family knows well.

Sergeant Knighton’s grandfather, Private Robert Baker, was

a WWII veteran who served in the 2nd/31st Australian Infantry

Battalion. Her great-uncle Ray served in Vietnam, her father was

a national serviceman and her stepfather deployed numerous

times to the Pacific region with the Royal Australian Navy.

She sees the slouch hat as the link

between our veterans and current serving

members as well as a symbol of what it

means to be an Australian soldier. “You know

when you see the slouch hat that you are

looking at a soldier who will always lend a

helping hand,” Sergeant Knighton said. She

sees this every day in the Darwin community

where she is currently posted.

In the run-up to Anzac Day, Sergeant

Knighton believed it was important to tell the stories of those

in uniform today so that people understand that the Army is a

reflection of the community.

“As community needs and

expectations change so too does the

Army who represents it,” she said.

Sergeant Knighton is currently posted to 1st Brigade’s 5th

Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, as the Signals Platoon

Quartermaster.

Captain Rebecca Griffith

June/July 2020 31

Feature

Total Control!

couple of years’ ago during our

A first visit to No. 13 Squadron at

RAAF Base Darwin, the Art Director of

this magazine and I were extended a

very special invitation to take a tour of

aircraft flying from

one place to another

are passed like

batons

the Air Traffic Control Tower at Darwin

Airport one day. In January this year,

we gratefully accepted this exclusive

invite – and on 6 March there we were

at the front door, myself, Deirdré Bartie

(Art Director) and Owen Short who

has supplied articles and photographs

over the past couple of years. We were

met at the door by Squadron Leader

Ross Mitchell who then spent the next

two hours showing us around and

answering our endless questions.

But first, where is the control tower?

With Darwin being so flat, the Tower can

You have to know

every landmark,

and work on the

simulators, then sit for

more exams

be seen rising above the tree line easily

as you approach the Darwin Airport.

There are a few buildings clustered

around its base, then there is the main

shaft containing the lift and stairs, and

finally the circular, diverging glass-walled

control cab on top. You really can’t miss it.

The building works nearby are the start of

a new Control Tower which will be 55m

tall, once completed.

As a bit of background, Darwin Airport

provides services for both civilian and military

aircraft with the Terminal approached

from Henry Wrigley Drive. It is also used

by the RAAF Base on the other side of the

runway that is accessible from the Stuart

Highway. Looking out of the lounge of

the domestic terminal you can see the

blast walls, hangars and buildings of RAAF

Base Darwin in the distance.

The overall Air Traffic Control portion

of the airport comes under the control of

the RAAF, and in the event of cyclones

and other natural disasters, it is the Senior

Australian Defence Force Officer of the

Base who decides when the airport

closes or opens, and who is responsible

for maintaining safety. After Cyclone

Marcus towards the end of March 2018,

the airport was open and functioning

That pause is caused

by the plane stopping

at a yellow line (like a

car at traffic lights)

within 6 hours – an impressive feat.

First, the personnel: around seventy

people, consisting of both controllers and

the technical workforce, are needed to

keep the Tower open 24 hours a day,

365 days a year, and most of them are

RAAF personnel along with two Australian


Public Service personnel. Their purpose

is to ensure the safe take-off and landing

of any aircraft from the airfield, while

keeping an eye on those that are flying

overhead on their way to somewhere

else. Australia controls 11% of the world’s

skies, and aircraft flying from one place to

another are passed like batons from one

controller in one area to another controller

in the next.

To become an Air Traffic Controller,

you need to join the RAAF as an Officer,

whereupon you are sent to RAAF Base

East Sale in Eastern Victoria to complete

the initial Air Traffic Control Course. Here

you learn more about the theory of

flight, air navigation, meteorology, and

separation principles (or how far apart

aircraft need to be both horizontally

and vertically). After approximately 9

months of completing both theory and

practical examinations and subsequently

graduating from the School of Air Traffic

Control, graduates are then posted to

one of eleven Air Traffic Control Flights

to commence on-the-job training, which

may just be the Darwin Air Traffic Control

Tower. Once in your posting location

there are three to four weeks of ground

In no time at all, we

had a plane taking

off in a monsoonal

trough at night, with

the rain pouring and

running down the

windows.

school during which time you study the

Darwin area. You have to know every

landmark, and work on the simulators,

then sit for more exams. Then comes

months of training on the job with an

‘umbilical cord’, which means that you

and your Training Officer are wired up to

the same instruments and the umbilical

cord virtually acts as your ‘training wheels’,

allowing you to control aircraft and handle

situations all whilst under the watchful

eye of your experienced Training Officer.

Once you have reached the required

level of proficiency and are confidently

continued on page 41, 42

June/July 2020 33

Feature

Still on Guard

82 Years On

The 6” Guns at East Point

In 2020, the East Point reserve on the outskirts of Darwin

city and the shore of the Arafura Sea is a delightful, peaceful

and quiet wildlife reserve and popular recreational area

for locals and tourists alike. However, 88 years ago things

were very different at the ‘Point’, the difference being that it

wasn’t peaceful or quiet as preparations were being made

for a war that would hit Australia’s shores in February 1942.

The story of East Point and the guns

commences well before 1942. In

1910, Field Marshal Viscount Horatio

Kitchener, later of ‘Your Country

Needs You’ posters fame from

World War I, visited Darwin for one

day. His mission was to advise the

Australian (and British) governments

on what defences Darwin needed

and where those defences should

be positioned. Kitchener’s report

that was tabled at the Imperial

Conference in London in 1911,

stated that Darwin was of significant

strategic and commercial importance

and as such it should be defended.

His recommendation was the

installation of ‘two batteries, each of

6-inch Mark VII guns, one at eastern

point and the other on the western

point of the entrance’ of Darwin

Harbour.

22 survey pegs were driven into

the ground at both East Point and

Dudley Point

With the outbreak of WWI (1914–18), Kitchener’s report

was shelved, and Kitchener himself became a fatality of the war

when he was lost at sea when his ship hit a mine and sank in the

North Sea. In 1919, a report by British naval strategist Viscount

Jellicoe proposed Darwin as one of three large naval bases in

the Asia–Pacific region. The original plan was rejected but in

1923 it was revised to establish Darwin as a naval refuelling

depot. In 1924, work commenced on constructing fuel oil tanks

(the RAN had moved from coal to fuel oil) at Stokes Hill and a

battery of coastal guns to protect the town and fuelling depot

and stores. Obviously, someone forgot about the importance

of aircraft and the danger of aerial attack!

After much political debate and procrastination, 22 survey

pegs were driven into the ground at both East Point and Dudley

Point. Pegs 1 and 2 identified the sites of the two 6” guns

destined for East Point. Drawings for the gun emplacements

were prepared in August 1932 by the Victorian Department

of Works, and construction of the gun foundations and their

semi-circular, sub-surface magazines began later that year. The

pouring of 122 cubic metres of concrete was completed by

mid-January 1933 by members of the Australian Army’s Darwin

Detachment along with contractors and prison labour, and the

first mounting was installed later that same year.

Work continued throughout 1933 and 1934 on the completion

of the two gun emplacements, culminating in both guns

being test fired on 22 May. The first of the East Point guns was

manufactured in 1911 and had seen service aboard HMAS

Melbourne from her commissioning and gun trials in 1912.

By 1938, all of the 6” gun emplacements at East and Dudley

Points were completed and in May that year all guns were test

fired. All were condemned and replacements urgently sought


´ Gun emplacements possible at East Point, Charles Micet Collection. Photo courtesy of

Library & Archives NT.

as the clouds of war moved ever

closer to Australia and the world.

Fortunately, replacements

guns were available and were

rushed to Darwin to be installed,

although the same problems were experienced in transporting

the guns from Stokes Hill wharf to the Points across the boggy

road (more a track) through the rainforest that covered much

of the peninsula. The replacement guns were Type BL 6” Mark

XI manufactured in Great Britain in 1914 and had seen service

on HMAS Brisbane from 1916 until she was decommissioned

in England in 1935. The replacement

guns were test fired at East

Point on 15 June 1938.

The guns remained on their

mountings throughout the war

years but never fired a shot in

anger. The Japanese only attacked

East Point on one occasion as

there was nothing there to attack;

i.e. the 9.2” gun emplacements had not yet been completed

and the 6” guns were no threat to the aircraft.

Post-war, the Commonwealth practically abandoned East

Point, although a Company the Royal Australian Artillery was

retained on-site to service, maintain and fire the 9.2” guns.

Later, the 121 Anti-Aircraft Battery took station at East Point,

but their weapon-of-war was the 40mm Bofors gun. By the

mid-1960s the whole of the peninsula had fallen into disrepair

with wholesale vandalism, fires and termites all taking a toll on

buildings and military equipment in the area.

In 1967, the Royal Australian Artillery Association NT was

formed, and that same year was given a lease over a block by

the Commonwealth government on which to establish a military

museum. The block included

the original WWII Command

Post, observation tower and

the 9.2” gun emplacement

No. 2. The members of the

Association moved quickly to collect the remaining military

pieces in and around Darwin and to move them into the new

museum site. Such pieces included the two 6” guns that were

installed in 1938.

The guns remained on their

mountings throughout the war years

but never fired a shot in anger.

The two guns are still on guard, albeit it a silent and friendly

guard, today with their barrels pointed toward the horizon

over the Arafura Sea, within

The two guns are still on guard,

albeit it a silent and friendly guard,

today with their barrels pointed

toward the horizon over the Arafura

Sea

Darwin Council.

the grounds of the Darwin

Military Museum. The original

sub-surface magazines

still remain in situ with one

of them being exposed, but

secured by fences, several

years ago by the City of

Who knows, one day one of the 6” guns at the Museum

might find its way back to its original 1938 mounting?

Norman Cramp

Director, Darwin Military Museum

Further reading

Peter Dermoudy and Penny Cook, EAST POINT. A History

of the Military Precinct, East Point, Darwin,

Two of the original 6” guns installed at East Point. Now

on display at the Darwin Military Museum.

https://territorystories.nt.gov.au/jspui/handle/10070/66522

June/July 2020 35

Regular

Motorcycle Zen

If you haven’t guessed yet, I am a bit of

a fan of training to support personal

growth related to motorcycles. The

equation is fairly simple, more skills

mean less panic, less panic means

more fun, and more fun means a

healthier lifestyle. Fun is after all, what

motorcycles are all about, but I am

also a devotee of knowing more, and

being comfortable with, doing more.

The ‘more’ for me is doing my own

maintenance and being responsible

for the upkeep of my ride. This is not

something that everyone chooses to

do, but whilst we bunker down to ride

out the current pandemic, I have noted

that the Internet and social media sites

are alive and buzzing with posts from

confined motorcyclists.

These riders are either being forced or

are undertaking to self-isolate voluntarily,

which has fortuitously allowed them to

see the positives and reconnect with their

rides. Many have taken this idle time to

commence working on their motorcycles,

or are learning more about motorcycling.

Some have shared their quite complex

plans with their friends, through electronic

media. It is obvious to me that

those endowed with the mechanical

prowess and cash to hand, have seized

this opportunity to put arrested plans into

action. I have been watching some of the

discussions back and forth between clubs

and members of social groups. From

my fly-on-the-wall observations, I have

noted that we have a lot of motorcycle

enthusiasts in this country and many of

these deliberations provide sound advice,

helping people to avoid the pitfalls often

found in large projects.

Some discussions are

also a bit lighter in

nature and are more

readable than the

instructions on how

to complete a full nutand-bolt

restoration

of a cherished bike.

The COVID-19

confinement has

brought about

some creative,

social distancing

relationships, which

I feel will benefit us

‘Post-COVID 19’. I also

suspect that there

is something much

deeper and personal

in these quests, and

for those without

mechanical abilities,

this is the ideal time

to learn more about

your machine. It is an

opportunity to dust off

and read that Owner’s

Manual.

I know it is very un-manlike to read

instructions, it’s in our DNA, but fans of

Lego®, Ikea or Meccano® will understand

this concept and realise that they often fall

foul of not reading these ‘destructions’.

The same applies to purchase of a motorcycle.

Your mind is often focussed on the

more important task of riding. I know, it’s

an exciting feeling when you finally get to


Regular

purchase a motorcycle. I’ve been there,

possibly over twenty-eight times and it

doesn’t get any less exciting. I can remember,

that the last thing on my mind was

to sacrifice, good riding time and spend

it instead, reading a motorcycle service

manual or owner’s manual. They’re not

exactly descriptively written novels, possibly

written by the same people who write

cookbooks. However, maybe, just maybe,

it’s the right time to go and sit down with

your machine. Find a well-lit and comfortable

space, with a nice breeze and work

on some Motorcycle Zen. Motorcycle Zen,

is my ultimate motorcycle mindfulness;

it’s about the ‘here and now’; it’s the

ultimate state of mechanical presence

and engagement, to a point where, previously,

I have been able to ‘turn down

the volume on’ other family members.

I turn up the bass instead and focus

intently on wrestling an oil-soaked part

off a machine. In a simple way, you could

call this act, of personal achievement, a

hobby.

Hobbies are as you know, great

stress relievers. They build confidence

and self-esteem through challenge

and success. They allow you to reduce

the negative stress, by blocking out

distractions and allow you to focus on

the physical activities, which ultimately,

enrich your personal wellbeing. The task

can become more and more complex

as your instinct to thrive, becomes more

consuming. Or it can be kept a relatively

sane level and be as simple as, becoming

more knowledgeable about the inner

workings of your bike’s fuse box, suspension

or maintenance needs.

A word of caution: mechanical tinkering

can become addictive. I suspect this

is so because we don’t have mammoths

or sabre-tooth tigers roaming outside our

caves anymore. A good physical encounter

with a mammoth in the morning, was

all a primitive caveman needed, to get his

heart racing and his mind focused.

The first hobbies as such, were forced

by necessity as Mister Caveman soon

realised he had to construct offensive

weapons to survive, as Lego®, Ikea and

Meccano® were still some time off.

Ride safe.

Grom

Know the Territory

Watch Out!

Two Insects

Thank you to the Department of Health for supplying the calendars

of the Salt Marsh Mosquitoes and Biting Midge.

For more information on either of these pests, visit the Department

of Health’s website:

https://digitallibrary.health.nt.gov.au/prodjspui/bitstream/10137/1409/3/Saltmarsh%20

Mosquito%20Pest%20Calendar%202019.pdf

https://digitallibrary.health.nt.gov.au/prodjspui/bitstream/10137/1408/3/Biting%20

Midge%20Pest%20Calendar%202019.pdf

Biting Midges

Salt Marsh Mosquito

June/July 2020 37

Feature

‘Launceston’

Leaves Dry Dock

HMAS Launceston’s crew watched

on closely in early February as the

Armidale Class Patrol Boat was

lowered back into the water in the

synchro lift at HMAS Coonawarra,

having spent more than two months

in the dry dock conducting planned

maintenance in Darwin.

Launceston entered the dock at the start of December

for her 30-month scheduled maintenance period, which

included a multitude of activities including routine maintenance

tasks and platform upgrades.

The crew regained material control of the ship from Thales

contractors and then set about the comprehensive task of

restoring the ship and conducting Seaworthiness Materiel

Assessments – a process designed to check thoroughly that

systems on board are in good working order.

´ The crew of HMAS Launceston commences the undocking process to return the ship to

the water after scheduled maintenance.

Leading Seaman Anthony Miller, one of the Marine

Technicians on board, commended the teamwork involved in

the evolution.

“It was a challenging time for the Engineering Department,

but it was great to see the crew band together and get everything

done in time for the undocking,” he said.

Alongside the crew during the undocking was newly

appointed Commanding Officer of Launceston Lieutenant

Commander Nicholas Graney, who had assumed command a

few weeks previously.

A proud Tasmanian, Lieutenant Commander Graney said he

was thrilled to see Launceston back in the water.

“The efforts of the crew in getting the ship ready for the

undocking has set a great first impression,” he said.

Lieutenant Commander Graney added that he joined his

crew in looking forward to the busy period ahead, with intense

training and assessments to take place before deploying on

operations in the following months.

Midshipman Alexandra Westlake

RAN


Regular

Kookaburra Kids

Volunteer with us!

What a crazy few months we

have all had! But rest assured,

although we have been missing our

camps and activity days, Australian

Kookaburra Kids have been working

hard behind the scenes to make sure

that when we get to catch up again,

things are bigger and better than ever!

Australian Kookaburra kids Foundation

support our young people aged between

8 and 18 here in the NT who are living

in a current or ex-serving family affected

by mental illness. We provide age-appropriate

psycho-education to empower our

young people to become the best they

can be in a fun, safe and social settings.

To do that

we need our

Volunteers! We

need you!

Being a volunteer with Kookaburra

Kids involves nothing but fun! As a part

of the awesome team here in the NT,

you will join us on camps twice a year

as well as an evening activity every other

month. Through the experience of being

a volunteer not only will you be playing

your part in giving back to the Defence

community, but you will be making a

change to the lives of our next generation,

by providing support where it is

needed the most.

All volunteers will meet, engage

with, and be supported by the Head of

Volunteering in Sydney and me – the

local NT Community engagement team

member. We are here to provide support,

training and the all-important, yellow

shirt before your first activity day and or

camp. As a not-for-profit organisation,

without you, Australian Kookaburra Kids

Foundation would not be able achieve

what we do in supporting our youth.

For more information or just to have

a chat please send an email through to

steph.hritter@kookaburrakids.org.au or

head to our website www.kookaburrakids.

org.au/.

Stay safe and see you all soon!

Stephanie Hilser-Ritter

NT Community Engagement Coordinator

Australian Kookaburra Kids Foundations

´ Our volunteers are at the heart of everything we do.

Meet Sebastian, a dedicated teacher during the week

and a passionate volunteer on weekends. He became

a big fan of Kookaburra Kids when he was a university

student. As a volunteer of our Northern Territory team

for 1 year and 8 months, it's safe to say that he has

completed the thirty volunteer hours he was required

to do as part of his teaching course. Once he visited

his first camp, Sebastian knew he would be back.

“Volunteering has encouraged me to try new things

outside my comfort zone like rock climbing and rope

bridges while also getting to hang out with cool kids

and volunteers. I have made new friends and had new

experiences that I never would have if I wasn’t a volunteer”

Just a few reasons why he's stuck around!

Thanks to Sebastian and all of our other Volunteers

June/July 2020 39

Feature

How Many Seasons in a Year?

Two distinct climatic zones occur in

the Northern Territory – the semiarid

areas of Central Australia, and

the tropical Top End.

In Central Australia temperatures can dip below freezing

overnight during June and July, while daytime temperatures

during summer can be a searing 40°C or more.

Camping in June and July, even in somewhere as far north

as Kakadu, might require a hot, sustaining breakfast!

The seasons spring, summer, autumn and winter do not

exist in the Top End. Instead, from a Eurocentric perspective

there is:

The Wet (October to May) and the Dry (May to October),

with the Build Up (October to November) and the Build Down

(April to May) or Run-off (if you fish!). The Wet proper is characterised

by widespread rainfall and monsoons lasting for a

few days at a time.

watch your children’s

sticky fingerprints on

your walls or wooden

furniture come alive!

Temperatures can be

quite low, 26°C but the

humidity can be over

90% – mould grows

on undisturbed items

around the house, so

look out for your Sam

Brown over the Christmas holidays, or watch your children’s

sticky fingerprints on your walls or wooden furniture come alive!

The Build Down which usually arrives by March, when

the rain has lessened and become more sporadic. Temperatures

remain high, although the humidity starts to drop. If the pavers

or concrete on your driveway start to feel cool to your feet, then

the Dry is just around the corner.

The Dry can arrive overnight! The wind changes, the skies

are a beautiful deep blue, and there are constant breezes. Once

again, temperatures may drop to about 26°C during the day

and with the humidity also low, you might find small children,

who the previous week were wearing almost nothing, turn blue

with cold. Overnight temperatures can drop

to a ‘bitter’ 13°C in the rural areas south of

Darwin, even cooler in Katherine – so be

ready with those blankets! Low-lying areas

may experience a thin layer of mist, and there

is plenty of dew to be seen on lawns and

golf courses.

The Build Up can be unpleasant,

with mounting temperatures and humidity,


as rainfall is patchy and provides little or no relief, especially if

The Wet doesn’t arrive until after Christmas. There are, however,

some wonderful thunderstorms with phenomenal displays of

lightning (a great place to view storms is from the end of the

Wharf while eating dinner). Don’t be surprised if any small

children in your household rip their clothes off and run outside

to experience the rain.

Don’t be surprised

if any small children

in your household

rip their clothes off

and run outside to

experience the rain.

Aboriginal peoples, however, recognise

between three and thirteen seasons

depending on their language group and

the seasonal and ecological events taking

place. Whilst you might not be in a position

to observe exactly when freshwater

crocodiles start laying their eggs, you

will definitely see the Yellow Andjedj

(Cochlospermum fraseri) in flower (it’s a

continued from page 33

controlling aircraft without the assistance

of your Training Officer, you then are

ready to get rid of the training wheels and

control by yourself. This isn’t the end of

the examinations though, you will still be

I can safely say that

the three of us were

incredibly impressed

by the level of

training (and all those

examinations)

required to be assessed in both practical

and theoretical examinations periodically

throughout your controlling duties

to ensure that you are maintaining the

required level of competency required

for the job. Upon arrival in a new location

all controllers will need to become

familiar with all local procedures for that

aerodrome.

What happens if you are posted from

Darwin to Perth, or vice versa? You have

to go through the whole process again.

More ground school, more exams, and

back to the umbilical cord.

And here is the vital point about

upstairs and downstairs – being qualified

to work upstairs in the Tower cabin

doesn’t mean that you are automatically

qualified to work downstairs in the

Approach environment. Likewise, if you

work downstairs, you can’t go upstairs

without the appropriate qualifications. If

you are qualified to work upstairs and

downstairs, then you have sat for an

unbelievable number of exams, and you

know an amazing amount of information!

Around a third of the workforce

consists of Communications Electronic

Technicians, or highly qualified members

who are thoroughly trained on fixing and

maintaining equipment to include the

Air Traffic Control Radar, navigational

and communications systems. The technicians

are an extremely important part

of the team, because without them the

equipment that the controllers use would

not always work. Living in the Top End

provides complexities with electronic

equipment due to the harsh weather and

the environment. The technicians also go

through around 12 months of training at

HMAS Cerberus before learning more on

the job, in location in Darwin.

it’s very comforting

to know that every

eventuality is covered

and that everyone

has rehearsed it.

We duly admired the downstairs radar

controlling environment, half the room

was working, and the other half was

equipped with simulators. In the upstairs

Tower cabin, the Surface Movement

Control (SMC), manages aeroplanes and

helicopters, the trucks, vans, emergency

vehicles, lawnmowers – everyone who

needs to move about on the airfield on

all areas up to the active runways. The

active runway is under the control of the

Tower Controller who is responsible for

continued on page 42

spindly tree of up to about 5m in height that bears bright yellow

flowers at the tips of its branches before the leaves appear).

Flowering signifies Wurrkeng, the fourth of the six seasons recognised

by the traditional owners of Ngurrungurrudjba (Yellow

Water) region in Kakadu National Park. Similarly, when you

notice that every palm tree or bush in your garden is adorned

with a dragonfly, you will know that Banggerreng, the first of

the six seasons recognised by the Gun-djeihmi (the traditional

owners of the region of the South Alligator River around Cooinda

in Kakadu) has arrived.

Larrakia seasons

Balnba (Wet season).

Dalay (monsoon season).

Mayilema (speargrass, Magpie Goose egg and knock ‘em

down season).

Damibila (Barramundi and bush fruit time).

Dinidjanggama (heavy dew time).

Gurrulwa (big wind time).

Dalirrgang (build-up).

For further information on this fascinating subject, check

out the CSIRO website. It also covers Ngan’gi, MalakMalak and

Matngala, Tiwi, Kunwinjku peoples as well as some from WA.

Thank you to the websites which supplied the information

for this article.

www.experiencethewild.com.au/?p=Birding-Info-Weather-Seasons www.

csiro.au/en/Research/Environment/Land-management/Indigenous/

Indigenous-calendars

June/July 2020 41


the safe, expeditious and efficient flow of

aircraft either departing or landing on the

active runways and aircraft within close

proximity to the airfield.

When you are in an aeroplane heading

off on your holidays, and you leave

the terminal and taxi to the runway, there

is usually a pause of a couple of minutes

before the plane turns onto the runway.

That pause is caused by the plane stopping

at a yellow line (like a car at traffic

lights) and the pilot is handed over from

the SMC to the Tower Controller. There

may be an additional waiting period if

another aircraft is landing or departing on

the same runway, effectively the aircraft

is waiting for its turn to use the runway.

Once the plane is clear of all other air

traffic, the captain is given permission to

move onto the runway, and off you all go.

Once airborne, the pilot is then instructed

to switch frequencies again, now to be

under the control of the radar controller

operating in the downstairs environment.

The aircraft will be safely moved through

the sky whilst being kept safely apart from

all the other aircraft also in the sky. Once

the aircraft is well and truly on track to

their destination, it is then instructed to

switch frequencies again to the next section

of Air Traffic Controllers – a process

that continues until that aircraft arrives

safe and sound at its destination.

To celebrate my birthday this year, my

children and a friend gave me a flying

lesson, and we passed the Control Tower

in a little red and white Cessna, we waited

at the yellow line (Holding Point), until it

was our turn to utilise the runway. All very

neat I thought, and then we ended up on

the main runway taking off into the wind

towards Larrakeyah.

When landing, the reverse takes place,

as the plane is handed over from radar

to the Control Tower, it lands and taxis,

then get handed over to SMC again, who

is responsible for making sure the plane

parks in the correct area.

Back to my flying lesson: we took

off and the pilot asked where I’d like to

go. I rather fancied flying past a friend’s

house in Larrakeyah, so the pilot asked for

clearance to fly past HMAS Coonawarra

and Larrakeyah at a thousand feet, so off

we went. After that, he asked for clearance

to fly to Elizabeth River bridge, so

we headed over the harbour to south

of Palmerston. Then there was more

permission to travel up over Palmerston

(so we could circle and pose over my

house) then off to Lee Point, then back

to the airport. In other words, wherever

you go you have to check first. The controlled

airspace surrounding the airfield

means that you can’t just fly wherever

you want on a whim, instead you require

a clearance from Air Traffic Control allowing

the controllers to issue the aircraft

with instructions to ensure the safety of

all aircraft, at all times.

Back to our trip around the Tower!

From downstairs, after meeting everyone

and finding out what they were all

doing, we went up in the lift to the base

of the control tower cab, and then onto

the viewing platform. The wind was blustery,

the skies were full of big, billowy

wet season clouds, and the views were

stupendous. Back inside there was a flight

of stairs up into the main room where

the controllers were waiting for a plane

to arrive, one controller had the umbilical

cord as he was still getting used to

Darwin, and another had a pair of binoculars

ready to spot the plane as it arrived.

In addition to the personnel guiding

the aircraft there is the Supervisor who

maintains overall situational awareness

of their controlling environment. The

Supervisor handle all phone calls, ensures

all team members are working effectively

and is the coordination authority

if emergency situations arise. I was also

told that everyone is ‘in this together’, in

other words everyone is watching each

other’s backs all the time.

I asked about the film Sully, with

Tom Hanks playing the part of Chesley

Sullenberger III who landed an Airbus

A320 on the Hudson River on 15 January

2009. Apparently, the makers got the Air

Traffic controlling parts correct.

Back downstairs, the simulator was

fired up, and the photographer of our

group was allowed to ‘have a go’. The

room looked just like the cab upstairs,

with the same instrumentation and consoles.

The view out of the simulated

windows is the same, and the weather

conditions can be adjusted to suit the

training. In no time at all, we had a plane

taking off in a monsoonal trough at night,

with the rain pouring and running down

the windows. As was pointed out – a

controller new to Darwin might work for

six months or more without seeing a drop

of rain, so it is essential that they know

how to work with rain and are prepared

for it when it happens.

After two hours, and an overload of

information, I can safely say that the three

of us were incredibly impressed by the

level of training (and all those examinations)

and although I don’t particularly

wish to take off at night in a monsoonal

trough, it’s very comforting to know that

every eventuality is covered and that

everyone has rehearsed it.

A huge thank you to Squadron Leader

Ross Mitchell for organising our visit and

showing us around. Thank you also to

everyone who took the time to chat to us,

and point items of interest out to us, and

to Squadron Leader Gerard Bonaventura

who demonstrated the simulator.

For more information about becoming

an Air Traffic Controller see the Defence

Jobs website at https://www.defencejobs.gov.

au/jobs/air-force/air-traffic-controller


Helga’s Pet Resort

Advertorial

When you arrive at Helga’s you’ll be

our special guest, cat, dog, rabbit or

bird, we help you relax, feel safe,

content and well cared for.

Your personal, air-conditioned, walk-in cat or rabbit room

will have safe hiding and climbing spots with a great

outdoor annexe where you can lie and watch the world

go by.

If you’re a sociable little dog, you’ll love it here. You’ll have

your own safe indoor pen for sleeping and a fun air-conditioned

indoor/outdoor play yard to explore and play with other little

dogs like yourself during the day.

If you’re a big dog or not very sociable, then the courtyard

kennels are perfect for you. There is access to 24-hour a.c.;

the music and nightlights in the bedroom, the shell pool and

daybed in your insulated outdoor run will make this a relaxing

holiday. Every morning you’ll get to explore and sniff or run

around in one of our huge play yards.

Your meals will be carefully selected to suit most of you

for quality nutrition. There is a variety of food for cats with a

delicate or fussy palate, while for dogs, the fresh buffalo and

rice and veggies with a ‘premium grain duck and turkey’ biscuit

is a favourite. Of course, you can bring your own if you are on

a special diet.

Special options include transport, extra play times, updates to

Mum and Dad, and grooming. Check us out at www.helgaspetresort.

com.au!

Wilf Lahring

Helga’s Pet Resort

June/July 2020 43

Feature

Cadets Anzac@Home 2020


Anzac@Home 2020

801SQN RAAF

Darwin

Anzac Day 2020 was different. Maybe

because this was my first Anzac Day in

Australian Air Force Cadets. Or maybe we

all were stuck in our homes. But there

was something that I felt was the same.

That was honour. We could show honour

by marching down a street or by remembering

and keeping a thought in our heart

about how young brave men fought for

us. Lest we Forget.

CDT M Saadat

On Anzac Day this year my family and

many of our neighbours gathered at the

ends of their driveways, or in their front

yards, in reverence for those who served

to protect our country and our way of

life. I felt so proud that this simple act for

community connected us all and made

us proud to be Australian.

CDT M Reisis

803SQN RAAF

Tindal

Our family did the Anzac Day

Driveway Dawn Service with the ABC

service on the car radio for the playing

of The Last Post. It was a very personal

and different way to commemorate

our past and present service men

and women. It was also pleasing to

see others in our street also showing

their respect this way. I knew five WWII

veterans really well and none of them

ever spoke of glory, it was always duty

and Honour to their fallen or wounded

mates. We all have to remember it is

our politicians of the time who send

our service men and women so we

should always support our returned

service men and women even if we

disagree with why or where they have

been sent (it is not their choice). Lest

We Forget.

Mr A Highet

POEM

The Swing

By Robert Louis Stevenson

How do you like to go up in a

swing,

Up in the air so blue?

Oh, I do think it the pleasantest

thing

Ever a child can do!

Up in the air and over the wall,

Till I can see so wide,

River and trees and cattle and all

Over the countryside—

Till I look down on the garden

green,

Down on the roof so brown—

Up in the air I go flying again,

Up in the air and down!

802SQN

Palmerston

I lit two candles in remembrance. One

candle for my great-grandfather, who

fought at Gallipoli and the other candle

for my great-uncle who died fighting in

WWII in the battle at Buna-Gona, PNG.

To be silent and remember the sacrifice

of our Australian soldiers fighting in so

many wars was very special.

CCPL M Blake

Anzac Day was memorable because I

got to stand alongside my dad and sister

in uniform and remember those who

have served. I particularly thought of my

grandfather who was a WWII veteran and

my great-great-uncle whose grave we visited

in Villers-Bretonneux in December.

Lest We Forget.

CCPL T Guerin

804SQN Alice

Springs

My first Anzac Day as an Air Force

Cadet was memorable because of how

different it was. One of the biggest differences

in this year's Anzac Day [was

the way] we gathered in our driveways

to pay our respects to the ANZACs. In

the street, candles lit the driveways.

Australia came together while apart.

Australia remembered those who

were lost, and Australia gave thanks to

those who fought for our country, our

people and our way of life. While this

year was celebrated differently to those

in the past Australia still showed those

qualities that our ANZACs were known

for, mateship, courage and many more.

That is why I will remember this Anzac

Day because of the differences that

brought us together while apart.

CDT K McGrath

Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson was born

in Edinburgh in 1850, into a family of wellknown

lighthouse engineers.

As a boy, he was sickly and spent many

hours in bed, reading and imagining. He

started his studies at Edinburgh University,

engineering, before realising that literature

was his forte. He then studied law, and was

admitted to the Scottish bar, before taking

off to travel around Europe. After travelling

to the USA, he married and then returned

to Britain where he wrote Treasure Island

in 1884.

He eventually moved to Upolu, in Samoa.

He is buried on Mt Vaea overlooking the

sea.

June/July 2020 45

Did you know?

• The Top Ender is 25 years old this year.

• The Committee members are all volunteers

(we would love you to apply)

• You can contribute ... send your stories to

the Editor

• We have 8 colour pages on the inside

• We write an average of 7,000 words for

each issue

To advertise with us, please

contact our Administration

Officer:

Denna Menz

Phone: (08) 8947 2657

Email: thetopender@aapt.net.au

Peter

Cavanagh

PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS AND TAX AGENTS

Over 40 years local knowledge &

experience in the tax industry

PALMERSTON

Shop 8 Palmerston Shopping Centre

email: palmerston@petercavanagh.com.au

CASUARINA

Unit 3 / 289 Trower Road, Casuarina

email: casuarina@petercavanagh.com.au

• Most refunds back in 14 days

• Electronic lodgements of

all Tax Returns

• Late lodgements available

8932 4522

Fax 8932 4292

8945 7455

Fax 8927 5521

“Continuing to support Defence staff by providing an honest

professional service in a language that can be understood”

MARK WINN formerly at

RAAF BASE SERVICE STATION

PHONE: 8981 4630

FAX: 8941 2124 PO Box 39872 WINNELLIE 0821


... and for the Toddlers

Male

Female

Plant a Pawpaw

symbol of tropical climates, and hankered for by those

A who have moved back to cold climes, the pawpaw (or

papaya) is one of the easiest ‘trees’ to grow, and my children

certainly enjoyed watching them grow and fruit. As

tenants in DHA accommodation, very little can be done to

your garden as it has to be returned to its original condition

before you post out, but pawpaws can be planted and then

cut down very easily when you move, as they don’t form

proper woody trees.

So, head off to the markets (if they are up and running

again) or perhaps get one from a road-side stall, eat it with a

bit of lime juice and then save the seeds – shiny, black and

juicy – and plant them within a couple of days in a suitable

place in the garden.

They like lots of food (compost and manure are great) and

plenty of water – but they hate sitting with ‘wet feet’ so plant

them in a well-drained area. They look nice close to the stairs

of your house so you can smell their perfume and admire their

handsome leaves.

After a few days, the first leaves will appear, then all you have

to do is water them regularly and watch them grow.

Now here’s the rub – unless you are lucky with your pawpaw

and it’s hermaphroditic – you can easily end up, as we did, with

seventeen males and one female plant so we were swamped

with perfume but had very little to eat … It is very easy fortunately

to tell which trees are male and which female (see

the photos), so it’s the work of a moment to cull a few of the

surplus from your plantation!

Pick them when they start to turn orange and ripen them

in the house, otherwise you’ll be fighting off the cockatoos.

Learn to Swim Voucher

Program

If your child is not yet at school (under 5 years of age), then

you can apply to the Learn to Swim Voucher Program, for two

$100-vouchers per year, one in January and one in July, and

applications for July are now open. Before you can apply for

the vouchers, you must register your child with the Royal Life

Saving Society’s water safety awareness program.

Vouchers expire, so ensure that you sign your child up in

good time – lots of families have a pool, so reduce the risk of

accidents and obtain lessons.

For more information, call 1800 817 860, or email

sport.voucher@nt.gov.au.

1. Register for the water safety awareness program at: www.royallifesaving.com.au/programs/State-and-territory-activities/

nt-water-safety-awareness-program

2. Obtain your vouchers at: https://grantstracker.nt.gov.au/ and

click on Registered Activity Providers to the left, and then

$100 Learn to Swim Voucher 2019/2020 (green bar)

3. Find a registered provider – listed in the Grants Tracker

4. Contact the provider and book lessons.

June/July 2020 47

Regular

Hidden Gem – Coomalie

Most of us have made the journey

to Katherine or even just Adelaide

River. On the way we will have passed

airstrips along the Stuart Highway and

noticed larger signs, commemorating

the various units which were stationed

there during World War II. One small,

white sign, which is easily missed, lies

to the left of the Highway, about 1km

past the Coomalie RV camping and

parking area, close to Coomalie Creek.

Admiral Isoruka

Yamamoto’s strategic

and tactical expertise

was invaluable

This sign marks the adjacent camp

site (on private property) of a small,

secret and important combined services

group who operated there from 1942 to

1945. Their contribution to shortening the

second WWII in the Pacific is not widely

known, but their efforts brought about

the demise of Japan’s most senior and

talented military leader of WWII. Admiral

Isoruka Yamamoto’s strategic and tactical

expertise was invaluable to the Japanese

invasion effort, and his death gave Allied

Forces a tremendous advantage, not least

in terms of morale.

code which enabled

complex Japanese

characters to be

transmitted in Morselike

groups

The Coomalie Unit, Section 51 of

the Australian Special Wireless Group

AIF, was a specialist group of Australian

wireless operators, backed by members

of the Central Bureau of the Joint Services

Intelligence Organisation, mainly from

USA. The group also included Japanese

language experts, crypto and communications

code experts, and the purpose

of this tight-knit and secret group was

to monitor Japanese Army, Navy and Air

force radio traffic, de-code its signals;

and to pass back the vital information

regarding enemy movements and activity.

From the hills surrounding Coomalie,

the group kept a 24-hour listening

watch on Japanese radio transmissions.

The group’s speciality was their ability

to read the Japanese messages in what

was known as Kana or Wabun. This was

a code which enabled complex Japanese

characters to be transmitted in Morse-like

groups, but in a way that was unintelligible

to other listeners. This ability and

expertise was rare and the value of the

operator’s skills was immense.

Section 51’s equipment comprised

high power commercial radio receivers,

but some of the directional aerials were

simply horizontal palm tree trunks wound

round with telephone wire. However, it all

worked! There were twelve Army operators

on watch at any one time, each

having two receivers, enabling an operator

to monitor both sides of Japanese

radio operators ‘conversation’ messages.

In all, Section 51 numbered some

200 members, living mostly in tents with

one or two Sidney Williams huts as mess

halls. The operators worked a system of

a system of 12-hour

shifts, giving 100%

coverage of the enemy

radio traffic

12-hour shifts, giving 100% coverage of

the enemy radio traffic.

Without going too deeply into the history

of WWII, one should remember that

Admiral Yamamotu was the key figure in

Japan’s military advance in South East

Asia. He was Commander in Chief of

the Combined Fleet and was the mastermind

in charge of the surprise attack


² The wreck of the Mitsubishi G4M1 Model

11 bomber which was shot down over

Bougainville in April, 1943, killing Imperial

Japanese Navy Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto.

By Unknown author – Agawa, Hiroyuki, The

Reluctant Admiral, Kodansha International, Tokyo,

1979, p. 204., Public Domain.

³ The sign, now in Batchelor near the airfield,

commemorating the activities of 51 Australian

Special Wireless Group AIF.

on Pearl Harbour in 1941 and in a local

sphere, responsible for initiating the

bombing of Darwin in 1942. Yamamotu

was a professional, dedicated naval officer

and a brilliant tactician and military

planner. In 1943 he was based at Rabaul

the wreckage of

his Betty Bomber

remains today

at Panguna on

Bougainville

(now Papua New Guinea) from where

he directed the advance of all Japanese

military and naval activity in the South

Pacific area.

In April 1943, Section 51 wireless

operators at the Coomalie listening station

intercepted Japanese signals which,

when decoded, gave a detailed itinerary

of Admiral Yamamotu’s forthcoming visit

from Rabaul to Balalae in the Shortlands

group, the military front line at the time.

The information was passed in secret to

General Blamey and the Central Bureau.

Secret plans were rapidly devised to intercept

and destroy the Admiral’s air convoy

and its accompanying fighter planes, on

their route from Rabaul to Balalae. The

task of intercepting Yamamotu’s air group

was in the greatest secrecy assigned to

US Army Air Force P38 Lightning aircraft

of 347th Fighter Group based at Kukum

in the Solomon Islands.

On 18 April 1943 the aerial ambush

took place, exactly on the route described

in the decoded signal intercepted at

Coomalie. Yamamoto’s aircraft and a

majority of the protective fighter screen

were shot down by the US aircraft. The

Admiral was killed and the wreckage

of his Betty Bomber remains today at

Panguna on Bougainville. His body was

recovered and cremated, his ashes

returned later to Japan.

Apart from this activity, Section 51

assisted in warning Darwin of impending

air raids by monitoring the air traffic

from Koepang where the Japanese

bombers massed on days preceding

raids, having relocated from Kendari in

Borneo in readiness. This highly classified

information enabled the RAAF to bomb

Koepang whilst the massed bombers

were on the ground. In one such raid

on 28 February 1943, twelve Japanese

bombers were destroyed on the ground

and nine damaged, thus decreasing the

ability to continue the bombing of Darwin

considerably.

How the Coomalie Group was able

to produce such a speedy de-code of

the Japanese message has always, to

date, been security classified. However

declassified documents recently discovered

in the US National Archives, may

answer the question: the Japanese military

changed codes at regular intervals

to avoid decryption by the Allies, but the

documents recently found indicate that

the new code for 14 April 1943 had not

reached the Balalae base. Consequently

the operators had to use the old code,

which should have been destroyed. This

turned out to be a gift to the cryptographers

of Coomalie and Central Bureau,

as they already had to the key to that

code which had been in use since 3

January 1943. Thus, that small chink in

the armour of coding and cryptography

virtually signed Admiral Yamamoto’s

death warrant.

When you pass by, and find time

to read that small Coomalie sign, you

may reflect on how such a small mistake,

noted and analysed by the experts

in their tents all those years ago, could

have such a major effect on the eventual

outcome of WWII.

Lt Col MA Bowman (Ret’d)

https://www.google.com/search?q=yamamoto+pl

ane+crash+site&rlz=1C1GIWA_enAU843AU843&s

ource=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiu4

Y2VpI3pAhUGwzgGHQS0ATQQ_AUoAXoECA8QA

w&biw=1280&bih=580#imgrc=25z3XH3x0j-CDM

June/July 2020 49

Feature

‘Ararat’ and ‘Maitland’ Rendezvous for

Seamanship Training

The Commanding Officers who made Royal Australian Navy history

as the first married couple to command patrol boats at the same

time, have found a unique opportunity to rendezvous and test their

crews’ seamanship skills.

Lieutenant Commander Khan Beaumont,

Commanding Officer HMAS Ararat, and

Lieutenant Commander Julia Griffin,

Commanding Officer HMAS Maitland,

knew when they both posted to seagoing

commands that their time together would

be few and far between.

However recently, following HMAS Maitland’s

successful patrol at Ashmore Island and HMAS

Ararat’s logistics visit in Port Melville, both conducted

as part of Operation RESOLUTE, the two

Commanding Officers identified that their patrol

boats would be in passage together west of the

Tiwi Islands (north of Darwin).

According to Lieutenant Commander Griffin this

provided an optimal training opportunity for the two

crews, as well as a chance to work closely and build

on their camaraderie.

“The day was an excellent opportunity for the

two ships to display their skills and operate closely

together,” Lieutenant Commander Griffin said,

adding that Lieutenant Commander Beaumont’s

time in command was also drawing to end, so the


encounter provided both

of them with a unique and

memorable opportunity to

work together.

The opportunity involved

a six-hour period of in-company steaming with Ararat and Maitland conducting

Officer of the Watch manoeuvres and screenplay station for Phase

III Maritime Warfare Officer training.

Tow Approaches and a Towing Exercise (TOWEX) were also conducted,

with Ararat taking Maitland under tow.

Seaman Boatswain’s Mate Samuel Allen said the successive serials

gave both ships first-hand experience of operating in close proximity to

another Royal Australian Navy unit and allowed the ships’ companies to

conduct a TOWEX with another patrol boat.

this provided an optimal training

opportunity for the two crews, as well

as a chance to work closely and build

on their camaraderie

“The evolution was a

good way to put into practice

the seamanship training

and procedures Maitland

have been training for and

conduct a TOWEX, which is

core to our jobs as boatswains,” Seaman Allen said.

Operation RESOLUTE is the Australian Defence

Force’s contribution to the Whole-of-Government

effort to protect Australia’s borders and offshore

maritime interests. It is the only ADF operation that

currently defends the Australia homeland and its

assets.

Leutenant Matthew Newman

RAN

June/July 2020 51

Media Release

Defence Extends World First

3D Printing Trial

This will reduce

the requirement

for our soldiers to

deploy with bulky

repair parts

Image by Lutz Peter from Pixabay

Cutting edge 3D printing technology developed in Darwin and

used by the Royal Australian Navy will now be used by the

Australian Army.

The partnership between Defence, Melbourne company SPEE3D and Charles Darwin University (CDU)

will deliver a 12-month trial of the new metal 3D printing technology for the Australian Army’s 1st

Combat Service Support Battalion.

Minister for Defence Industry, the Hon Melissa Price MP, said that the Government’s $1.5 million investment

in the 3D printing technology will fast-track Army’s supply chain and increase capability.

“The partnership with CDU and SPEE3D demonstrates Defence’s continued commitment to embracing

advanced technologies that will speed up our processes,” Minister Price said, “This will reduce the requirement

for our soldiers to deploy with bulky repair parts, redefining how logistics are deployed on the future battlefield.”

“It’s a great example of how Australian industry is at the forefront of global innovation, and providing unique

solutions to filling capability gaps.”

CDU and the Army are also working to develop an educational program covering the fundamentals of

design, 3D modelling and printing through to testing and certification.


Regular

From the Vet

Covid-19 and your pets

Luckily for us Territorians, we have had very few cases

of Novel Coronavirus-19 compared with other states in

Australia, but we must still remain vigilant until the pandemic

is controlled. Many pet owners may be wondering

how this virus may affect their pets and what they can do

with them during this time, so I have highlighted a few

important facts 1 regarding the virus, your pet and living in

social isolation in the Northern Territory.

» There is currently no evidence that you can get Covid-

19 from your pets. Whilst there have been a few reports

of cats and dogs being found positive internationally, no

reported cases in domestic animals or wildlife have been

detected in Australia. And further to this, positive reports

overseas have only occurred in animals which have been in

close contact with an infected owner. The main risk of Covid-

19 spread continues to be human-to-human transmission.

» You and your pet should practise social distancing.

This means keeping them within your family unit. By all

means take them with you on your daily walk, but avoid

close contact with other people and their pets. Make sure

your boundary fences are secure. In public places, keep your

dog on a short leash. It is possible your pet could carry the

virus on their coat but only if they have been exposed to

someone with the disease. Therefore, it is best to prevent

strangers from patting your dog and if you are concerned

use a dog shampoo to give your pet a bath.

» Practice good hygiene. Wash your hands before and after

handling your pet, their food and their food and water bowls.

This is not Coronavirus specific! There are other diseases that

pet owners can catch from their animals.

» If you become sick with Covid-19 and are self-isolating.

If you become infected, avoid close contact with your

pet, like kissing, cuddling and having them sleep on your bed;

wash your hands after all contact with your pet. If possible,

get someone else in your household to care for your pet

whilst you are unwell. If you need to be hospitalised, have

a plan in place for someone else or a boarding facility to

look after your animal.

» Vet clinics remain open for your pet’s health needs.

Be mindful that many clinics are operating slightly differently

to comply with social distancing practices. In general, pets

will usually be taken into the clinic by one of the veterinary

staff and the vet will then perform the consultation by telephone

with the owner. This is to protect their staff and the

general public to ensure clinics can remain open during this

time. Give them a call or visit their website or social media

page to find out your clinic’s Covid-19 protocol.

» If your pet becomes sick and you are self-isolating

or in quarantine. In the event that your pet falls sick while

you are unavailable, arrange for a friend or family member

not in contact with you to take your pet to the veterinary

clinic. If this is not possible, call your clinic and they will be

able to work out a solution to ensure your pet receives the

best possible care. Do not bring the pet to the clinic yourself

or you will be putting the clinic staff and other members of

the public at risk of infection.

Despite all the restrictions in place, this is a great opportunity

to spend more time with your ‘furbaby’. Take them for a walk

or set up an agility course for them in the house or backyard!

Don’t forgot to teach them a cool trick to show off to your

mates when we can all see each other in person again!

Dr Kate Daymond

Litchfield Vet Hospital

1

The information in this article has been

adapted from the Australian Veterinary

Association (AVA) Covid-19 Working Group

client fact sheet. For more information go to

https://www.vetvoice.com.au/articles/advice-to-pet-owners-during-covid-

19-from-the-australian-veterinary-association

June/July 2020 53

Feature

QF1 & QF2

Yet again, the best spot for viewing aeroplanes in Darwin

(apart from the Aircraft Control Tower) saw a bit of

action in the second half of March, as for several days,

Qantas Airbus A380s (flights QF1 and QF2) passed through

on their way to and from London. The reason? As is usual

these days, the cause can be laid at the feet of the ongoing

pandemic – Singapore had closed its doors, so the A380s

took to flying from Sydney to Darwin then on to London

Heathrow as people scrambled madly around the globe

trying to get where they wanted or needed to be before

all borders closed.

At the thought of this momentous occasion I got myself

to Amy Johnson just before 11pm one night

and there I stayed for 40 minutes waiting for

QF1 that was due to take off (it wasn’t even

visible). I then hoped to see it arrive. I then

gave up. As it happened, that flight had been

delayed and didn’t arrive until 3am or so!

Due to a fortuitous conversation over lunch

at work the following day while trying to keep

my eyes open, I ended up a member of a private

Facebook page, and was able to find out

about the arrival of QF2 the following morning.

To backtrack a bit, the first A380 I saw was being put through

its paces at Farnborough Airshow in 2006, and it looked huge.

When seen on static display amongst thousands of people

and large buildings and hangars, with its tailplane soaring into

the air, it looked even bigger (‘huger’ would be a better word

to use), but seeing it land in Darwin though was a chance to

appreciate just how colossal it was.

It is 73m long with a wingspan of 80m (a Boeing 747 is not

quite 60m) and it can carry over 800 passengers, and the top

of its tail is 24m (a 747 is about 20m) above the ground. So,

with an 80m wingspan, an aeroplane landing on a 60m wide

runway obviously doesn’t quite fit as the tips

of its wings are over the grass.

people scrambled

madly around the

globe trying to get

where they wanted

or needed to be

before all borders

closed

Accordingly, on Saturday, 28 March, I

headed off to Amy Johnson Avenue again

(along with a few other cars), and was ready

and waiting for QF2 by 1am the following

day – it was due at 1.02am, it was the

weekend and I was prepared to wait … and

wait. Nearly 30 minutes late, a bright (need

I say huge?) headlight appeared in the sky

approaching from the Bagot Road end. At this

point I discovered that my camera was totally

hopeless, so I gave up and enjoyed the view with my binoculars.

All I can say is, it was well worth the effort, the mosquitoes

were quite friendly, and you need a really good camera for

photographs at night.

Thank you to Alexander McRae of Northern Territory Aircraft

Spotters Facebook group for his useful information, and to

Sid Mitchell for the photographs.


Feature

Anzac Day 2020

In 1919, the Sydney

Anzac Day parade

was cancelled due

to the Spanish ’Flu

epidemic although

a commemorative

service was held on

the Domain, and

those attending had to

wear facemasks and

stand a metre apart.

Sound familiar? The

only other time the

commemoration was

cancelled as far as I

could find out, was in

2006 when Cyclone

Monica put in an

appearance, resulting

in Darwin’s ceremony

being cancelled.

At dawn in Lyons

The response from the community in Lyons when

Kathryn Lee asked if they’d like her to play the Last Post

at dawn on Anzac Day was overwhelming. She played

her great-grandfather’s bugle, her husband is in 1CSSB,

and her father served for 35 years, so Anzac Day is

extremely important to her.

At dawn in RAAF

Base Tindal

´ Away from Home Bears

² Warrant Officer at dawn

This year Anzac Day Dawn Services

were cancelled or took place with

minimal personnel. We had a look at

how various people and organisations

commemorated this event.

Thank you to all who

provided information and

photographs.

´ Leading Cadet Zoe Reed (AAFC)

² won the Chief Minister’s Award and was due to travel to

Hellfire Pass and Kanchanaburi in Thailand in the week

leading up to Anzac Day. Instead, she stayed at home but

was up bright and early anyway. Photos by Matt Reed


June/July 2020 55

Regular

Craig's

Fishing

Craig is away for this issue,

so watch out for August/September when

he will be back. In the meantime,

take your rods and tackle and

head off to your favourite spot.

present this voucher at

Craig’s Fishing Warehouse

to receive 25% off all lures instore!

CRAIG'S FISHING WAREHOUSE – Shop 2 | 1 Berrimah Road | Truck City | Berrimah

Phone: 8947 4867 Email: sales@craigsfishingwarehouse.com.au


What’s the tide doin’

Teen

TIMES LAT 12° AND 28ʼ HEIGHTS S OF LONG HIGH AND 130° LOW 51ʼ WATERS E | TIME ZONE – 0930

2020

Scene

Times and Heights

JUNE

of High and Low Waters

JULY

Time Zone –0930

JUNE

JULY

AUGUST

m

Time

m

Time

m

Time

m

Time

m

Time

m

Time

m

STRALIA,

NORTH NORTH

COAST COAST

– DARWIN – DARWIN

2020

4.67

3.23

5.40

3.38

4.90

3.35

5.46

2.98

5.33

3.24

5.66

2.58

5.78

3.03

5.89

2.20

6.20

2.81

6.10

1.84

6.57

2.63

6.29

1.51

6.87

2.51

6.44

1.24

7.07

2.44

6.54

1.07

7.18

2.44

6.56

1.02

7.18

2.50

6.49

1.09

7.08

2.63

6.33

1.29

6.90

2.83

6.08

1.58

6.65

3.08

5.76

1.95

6.35

3.29

5.39

2.35

6.07

3.35

5.13

1

0119 5.21

0730 2.89

MO

1354 5.90

2046 2.61

2

0248 5.64

0853 2.88

TU

1459 6.07

2147 2.01

3

0359 6.19

1002 2.73

WE

1553 6.30

2239 1.42

4

0459 6.73

1058 2.57

TH

1638 6.53

2325 0.93

5

0554 7.17

1146 2.43

FR

1719 6.70

6

0009 0.59

0643 7.45

SA

1230 2.36

1758 6.78

7

0051 0.45

0728 7.54

SU

1311 2.36

1838 6.75

8

0132 0.51

0809 7.46

MO

1352 2.44

1918 6.60

9

0213 0.76

0848 7.24

TU

1434 2.60

1958 6.33

10

0253 1.15

0926 6.93

WE

1519 2.80

2041 5.98

11

0333 1.64

1003 6.56

TH

1610 3.02

2129 5.57

12

0414 2.16

1041 6.18

FR

1710 3.19

2229 5.18

13

0500 2.66

1122 5.83

SA

1817 3.25

2346 4.91

14

0555 3.07

1210 5.53

SU

1925 3.16

15

0114 4.87

0700 3.36

MO

1310 5.33

2030 2.93

16

0240 5.09

0813 3.47

TU

1419 5.29

2126 2.62

17

0347 5.46

0925 3.42

WE

1520 5.39

2212 2.26

18

0439 5.88

1025 3.25

TH

1606 5.57

2252 1.89

19

0522 6.27

1111 3.05

FR

1644 5.78

2330 1.55

20

0602 6.61

1148 2.87

SA

1718 5.99

21

0006 1.27

0640 6.88

SU

1222 2.71

1753 6.17

22

0043 1.06

0717 7.05

MO

1256 2.59

1827 6.31

23

0118 0.95

0754 7.14

TU

1331 2.52

1903 6.37

24

0155 0.95

0830 7.13

WE

1410 2.50

1942 6.34

25

0233 1.08

0907 7.04

TH

1453 2.54

2025 6.22

26

0314 1.32

0945 6.87

FR

1543 2.60

2115 6.00

27

0357 1.68

1025 6.63

SA

1640 2.65

2215 5.75

28

0447 2.13

1110 6.36

SU

1744 2.63

2328 5.54

29

0543 2.59

1200 6.07

MO

1853 2.48

30

0050 5.48

0652 2.99

TU

1259 5.84

2004 2.21

2.69

0325 5.73

5.90

0918 3.67

3.10

FR

1447 5.22

2154 1.78

The Bureau of Meteorology gives no warranty of any kind whether express, implied, statutory or

wealth otherwise of Australia in respect to 2019, the availability, Bureau accuracy, of currency, Meteorology completeness, quality or reliability of the

information or that the information will be fit for any particular purpose or will not infringe any third party

is s Lowest Astronomical Tide

Intellectual Property rights. The Bureau's liability for any loss, damage, cost or expense resulting from use

of, or reliance on, the information is entirely excluded. Tidal predictions for Northern Territory Ports are

supplied New by Moon the National Tidal Centre of the First Bureau of Quarter Meteorology, copyright reserved.

Full Moon

1

0216 5.64

0812 3.22

WE

1406 5.73

2112 1.85

2

0338 6.00

0931 3.23

TH

1511 5.78

2211 1.46

3

0447 6.43

1037 3.09

FR

1607 5.92

2305 1.13

4

0545 6.82

1134 2.88

SA

1656 6.10

2353 0.89

5

0635 7.10

1221 2.68

SU

1741 6.26

6

0037 0.77

0720 7.24

MO

1305 2.52

1825 6.35

7

0119 0.79

0759 7.25

TU

1347 2.42

1908 6.36

8

0158 0.94

0835 7.15

WE

1428 2.40

1951 6.27

9

0236 1.21

0908 6.96

TH

1509 2.45

2033 6.09

10

0311 1.57

0938 6.70

FR

1550 2.55

2117 5.85

11

0343 1.99

1006 6.41

SA

1631 2.66

2204 5.57

12

0416 2.44

1035 6.08

SU

1716 2.76

2256 5.29

13

0456 2.89

1106 5.74

MO

1807 2.82

2357 5.07

14

0550 3.31

1145 5.40

TU

1904 2.79

15

0111 4.99

0658 3.62

WE

1240 5.11

2009 2.67

16

0244 5.15

0817 3.74

TH

1358 4.96

2114 2.42

17

0402 5.53

0938 3.64

FR

1517 5.06

2212 2.09

18

0456 5.97

1042 3.40

SA

1611 5.32

2301 1.73

19

0541 6.38

1128 3.12

SU

1654 5.64

2346 1.38

20

0623 6.75

1208 2.84

MO

1735 5.96

21

0028 1.08

0704 7.05

TU

1246 2.57

1815 6.26

22

0107 0.87

0743 7.25

WE

1325 2.33

1856 6.49

23

0146 0.78

0820 7.35

TH

1407 2.12

1939 6.61

24

0223 0.85

0854 7.34

FR

1451 1.97

2027 6.61

25

0302 1.10

0928 7.20

SA

1536 1.89

2117 6.47

26

0341 1.52

1001 6.95

SU

1625 1.88

2211 6.23

27

0423 2.07

1036 6.59

MO

1716 1.93

2312 5.93

28

0511 2.68

1114 6.15

TU

1814 2.01

29

0021 5.65

0612 3.26

WE

1202 5.70

1922 2.06

30

0147 5.53

0739 3.64

TH

1313 5.32

2040 1.99

31

© Copyright Commonwealth of Australia 2016 represented by the Bureau of Meteorology

Moon Symbols New Moon First Quarter Full Moon Last Quarter

Tides provided with permission of NT Government, Department of Transport

https://nt.gov.au/marine/for-all-harbour-and-boat-users/check-the-tides/tidal-information-nt-ports

1

0442 6.14

1044 3.40

SA

1600 5.40

2256 1.52

2

0541 6.56

1145 3.02

SU

1655 5.70

2348 1.28

3

0628 6.89

1231 2.67

MO

1743 6.00

4

0032 1.11

0709 7.10

TU

1309 2.39

1826 6.24

5

0111 1.04

0744 7.19

WE

1343 2.18

1907 6.40

6

0145 1.09

0815 7.17

TH

1416 2.06

1946 6.45

7

0216 1.26

0841 7.05

FR

1447 2.02

2023 6.40

8

0243 1.54

0903 6.87

SA

1518 2.04

2059 6.25

9

0307 1.90

0924 6.62

SU

1549 2.12

2136 6.02

10

0331 2.31

0944 6.32

MO

1623 2.24

2216 5.74

11

0400 2.78

1006 5.94

TU

1703 2.41

2303 5.44

12

0442 3.26

1031 5.52

WE

1751 2.58

13

0002 5.18

0549 3.71

TH

1106 5.09

1852 2.69

14

0121 5.06

0718 3.99

FR

1217 4.70

2013 2.66

15

0319 5.29

0902 3.94

SA

1433 4.64

2136 2.39

16

0431 5.77

1029 3.61

SU

1552 5.00

2240 1.97

17

0520 6.28

1120 3.20

MO

1642 5.49

2331 1.52

18

0605 6.75

1201 2.76

TU

1727 6.00

19

0015 1.10

0645 7.17

WE

1240 2.31

1811 6.48

20

0056 0.81

0723 7.48

TH

1319 1.87

1855 6.85

21

0133 0.69

0758 7.64

FR

1358 1.50

1940 7.09

22

0209 0.78

0829 7.63

SA

1438 1.23

2026 7.14

23

0244 1.09

0858 7.47

SU

1518 1.11

2112 7.00

24

0319 1.60

0926 7.15

MO

1600 1.18

2200 6.68

0357 2.24

25

0954 6.68

NT TU Sports 1645 Vouchers

1.43

29

2252 6.23

0321 5.55

0949 3.82

SA

1458 4.81

2148 2.25

Regular

T 0438 2.94

wo $100 26

1025 Sports 6.10Vouchers are available per year for every

WE

1736 1.80

enrolled and home-schooled child, urban and remote,

2354 5.75

in the Northern 0538 3.60 Territory, from pre-school to Year 12. The

27

1106 5.46

first one, issued TH

1842 2.18

at the start of first semester is valid until

31 May 2019. These vouchers can be put towards sport-

0120 5.42

ing, recreation 28

0725 and 4.00cultural activities at over 300 providers.

FR

1229 4.87

Check your 2014 local 2.38 clubs’ websites or give them a call to find

out if they are registered providers.

Parents or carers of children in urban areas can apply for

vouchers online each semester, in January and again in July.

0441 6.00

For children 30

1110 in remote 3.29 areas, the rules are somewhat different

SU

1617 5.21

as the Regional 2256 councils 1.95 and the Department of Tourism, Sport

and Culture 0532 6.44

31

work together with activity providers to schedule

1154 2.79

activities, MO so 1710 contact 5.681800 817 860, or email sport.voucher@

2345 1.65

nt.gov.au for more information.

If your child is not yet of school age, then you can apply

for Learn to Swim vouchers (see And for the Toddlers, p.47)

Last Quarter

1. nt.gov.au/leisure/sport/sport-and-swim-vouchers/sport-voucher-schemeurban/get-sport-vouchers-for-your-child

2. Click on Apply online which will take you through to the Grants

Tracker website and then follow the instructions.

June/July 2020 57

NAME: ....................................................................................

AGE: ....................................................................................................

ADDRESS ...............................................................................................

Croc Cove Colouring Competition

..............................................................................................................................

POST CODE:...............................................................................................

EMAIL: .......................................................................................................

PHONE: .....................................................................................

Entries close on Monday, 6 July 2020.

Send a good quality image of your artwork to

thetopender@aapt.net.au or post it to PO Box 35874,

Winnellie, NT 0821. Winners will be notified by

post/phone and announced in

The Top Ender.

Congratulations

go to Tilly, aged

7, from Tindal, for

winning the colouring

in competition in the

April/May issue.

Congratulations!


continued from page 55

Anzac Day 2020

³ Members of Tarnished Brass played

in the Darwin CBD in front of the RSL

Darwin, which was gutted by fire in

mid-2018. They performed Abide With

Me (Eventide), Oh God Our Help, In

Ages Past, they read The Ode, and

then Bruce Cartwright performed the

Last Post and Reveille – on a circa

1915 bugle that has been handed

down through Carol Atkinson’s family.

Musicians were Bruce Cartwright

(trumpet and bugle), Geoff Peach

(flugel horn), Carol Atkinson

(euphonium) and Oliver Locos (bass

trombone). – Photographs were

given to us from Lou Petit and Kerrie

Gaden..

³ At O'Loughlin Catholic College, a

wreath was the memorial plaque and

the Minute’s Silence with the Last Post

and Reveille was observed. Pictured

are Katherine Peel, Principal Rhett

Bowden, Deputy principle Stephen

Versteegh, Head of Year 12 Miranda

Colquhoun and our team leaders Tara

Innes and Casey Jong.

Katherine Peel

Defence School Mentor

² The special Anzac Day display at Larrakeyah Primary

School called Our Special ANZACs was to students’ families’

military history and service. Students were very

proud to say’ “this is my great-aunt”, or “grandfather”

or “parent”.

² Kaylin Mohrwinkel and Molly Peel helped set up a special

ANZACs’ display.

´ Keenan Menz proud to have his father on display.

Jodie Murdoch



June/July 2020 59

continued from page 59 | Anzac Day 2020

Anzac Day 2020

Anzac Day looked a little different at St Mary’s Catholic

Primary School this year. Unable to recite our Liturgy lead

by the Defence students, they opted for a short, reverent

service over the loudspeaker. All classes listened to The Last

Post, observed the Minute’s Silence, and watched while

the senior Defence students raised the Australian flag to

full mast.

³ Defence Students and the DSM with our display at the

front of the school.

³ Senior Defence Students waiting to raise the Australian

flag.

Justine Mitchell


³ A low key service was held in Alawa Primary School,

but students connected and understood the spirit

behind Anzac Day. Three Defence students from the

5/6 class.

Katie Wedel


± Our Chair, Nicole commemorated Anzac Day with her family along with thousands of Australians, with a candle lit in their front yard.


Due to alterations in telephone numbers and recent postings,

the updated contact list for Chaplains is given below.

ADF Chaplains in the NT

Phone (08) 7922 5600

Email admin.pcs@ntschools.net

50 Waler Road, Marlow Lagoon NT 0830

www.kingdomkidselc.nt.edu.au

Thrive in Christian Education.

Navy On-call: 0409 662 823

Shaun Foster HMAS Coonawarra Australian

Christian Churches 8935 5388 | 0400 514 375

Kelvin Harris Fleet North/ HMAS Coonawarra

Anglican

8935 5183 | 0457 712 743

Army On-call: 0427 713 963

James Hall 8/12 Anglican

8925 2457 | 0429 345 167

Piotr Kowalczyk Regional Support, Roman

Catholic 8925 2662 | 0409 778 462

Chris Lindsay 1 CER Presbyterian

8925 6414 | 0418 428 337

Celebrating over 30 years of quality Christian Education in Palmerston.

www.pcs.nt.edu.au admin.pcs@ntschools.net

Coronavirus Mental

Wellbeing

Support Service

NEED SUPPORT?

TALK TO A COUNSELLOR

Call 1800 512 348

Beyond Blue provides:

» An online community forum

» Information, advice and strategies

» Helpful resources

» A website that’s kept to date

» A place to connect with the community

» Online forums for discussions.

Beyond Blue provides information for men, women, the old,

the young, LGBTI, multicultural, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander

people, as well as providing information on pregnancy and early

childhood.

Website https://coronavirus.beyondblue.org.au/

Suicide and crisis support

Call 000 if you are a threat to others, or yourself, or if

there is an emergency.

Call Lifeline 13 11 14 for support.

Garth Mayger 1 CSSB Roman Catholic

8925 9005 | 0419 869 187

Phil Riley HQ1 BDE Roman Catholic

8925 2018 | 0407 283 050

Ricky Su 5 RAR Baptist

8925 2754 | 0408 684 783

Airforce On-call Darwin:

0477 308 064

Airforce On-call Tindal:

0427 890 054

Mitch Herps RAAF Tindal Anglican

8973 6032 | 0438 493 232

Andrew Knox RAAF Tindal Anglican

8973 6033 | 0457 803 372

Nathan Runham RAAF Darwin Presbyterian

8923 5015 | 0419 694 178

Angela Stanfield RAAF Darwin Anglican

8923 5016 | 0417 953 396

All three services provide a 24/7 on-call number for emergencies.

Each unit / Ship / Base has its own chaplain who can assist. If

your chaplain is not available, please contact the on-call number

for your Service. Denominational or faith-specific ministry can be

arranged as required.

June/July 2020 61

Regular

Handy Directory

The Top Ender

Office........................................................................................................8947 2657

Advertising................................................................... thetopender@aapt.net.au

Website.......................................................... www.thetopendermagazine.org.au

Editor..................................................................................................0447 324 984

Emergencies and Useful Contacts

Emergency Services........................................................................................... 000

Police Assistance Line................................................................................ 131 444

Crime Stoppers NT........................................................................... 1800 333 000

Night Patrol.........................................................................................1800 101 645

Defence Switchboard....................................................................... 1300 333 362

All Hours Support Line..................................................................... 1800 626 036

1800 IMSICK...................................................................................... 1800 467 425

Health Direct .................................................................................... 1800 022 222

Poisons Information Line............................................................................131 126

Lifeline........................................................................................................... 131 114

Royal Darwin Hospital.......................................................................... 8922 8888

Darwin Private Hospital.........................................................................8920 6011

Palmerston Regional Hospital...............................................................7979 9200

Defence Family Helpline.................................................................. 1800 624 608

Family Violence and Counselling................................................... 1800 737 732

Defence Housing Australia........................................................................ 139 342

Snake Catcher....................................................................................1800 453 210

Tropical Cyclone Information NT.....................................................1300 659 211

SES Emergency Helpline............................................................................ 132 500

Secure NT........................................................................ www.securent.nt.gov.au

Power and Water.............................................................................. 1800 245 090

Defence Bases and Establishments

Defence Establishment Berrimah

Front Gate.......................................................................................... 8935 4269

Mess Manager........................................................8935 4422 / 0437 795 258

Larrakeyah Barracks

Front Gate.......................................................................................... 8935 5598

Officers’ Mess.....................................................................................8935 5570

ORs’ Mess............................................................................................8935 5591

Sergeants’ Mess................................................................................. 8935 5580

RAAF Base Darwin

Airmen‘s Mess.................................................................................... 8923 5517

Front Gate.......................................................................................... 8923 5549

Officers Mess..................................................................................... 8923 5482

Sergeants’ Mess................................................................................. 8923 5505

RAAF Base Tindal

Airmen‘s Mess....................................................................................8973 6240

Front Gate...........................................................................................8973 6228

Sergeants’ Mess..................................................................................8973 6385

Robertson Barracks

Front Gate...........................................................................................8925 3700

Officers’ Mess.................................................................................... 8925 3548

ORs’ Mess............................................................................................ 8925 2514

Sergeants’ Mess..................................................................................8925 6702

Defence Community Houses

Larrakeyah Neighbourhood House............................................... 0447 586 591

Email.............................................................. larrakeyahhouse@hotmail.com

Network Tindal................................................................................... 0412 619 277

Email.......................................................................networktindal@gmail.com

Website......................................................................... www.networktindal.net

Robertson Barracks Family Group..................................................0490 151 944

Email..........................................robertsonbarracksfamilygroup@gmail.com

On-base Services

Canteens

AAFCANS

Cafe Central, Robertson Barracks.......................................... 8925 2542

Darwin Canteen, RAAF Darwin...............................................8981 2508

Shout VC Canteen, Robertson Barracks.................................8925 6720

Tindal Cafe, Convenience & Fuel Station...............................8973 6201

Navy Canteens

National Operations Manager...................... 8935 5144 / 0477 477 147

Outpipes, Larrakeyah...............................................................8935 5144

Military Banks

Australian Military Bank

Larrakeyah Barracks.................................................................8981 2245

Robertson Barracks.................................................................. 8995 7800

Defence Bank

Robertson Barracks.................................................................. 8936 6400

RAAF Darwin..............................................................................7923 2500

Tindal..........................................................................................8965 1600

Hairdressers

Larrakeyah Barracks......................................................................... 8935 5596

RAAF Darwin – Julie-Anne.....................................8923 5153 / 0402 235 731

Robertson Barracks – Hair Dooz..................................................... 8925 3300

Robertson Barracks – South End Barber Shop..............................8925 6723

Uniform and Equipment

Regional Clothing Store, Robertson Barracks..................................................

Retail (Purchases)..................................................................... 8925 8828

CIP (Exchanges)........................................................................ 8925 8823

Tailor...........................................................................................8925 8831

Email................................................jlun.clothingstore@defence.gov.au

Tim’s Medal Mounting.................................................................0448 129 531

Email............................................................. timsmedals@bigpond.com

Bulletproof NT....................................................................................8947 0935

Email............................................................info@bulletproof-nt.com.au

Defence Support Services

National ADF Family Health Program............................................ 02 6266 3547

Email...........................................................adf.familyhealth@defence.gov.au

Website.................................................................... www.adffamilyhealth.com

Defence Community Organisation (DCO)

Website......................................................................www.defence.gov.au/dco

Darwin Office..................................................................................... 8935 7900

Email.........................................................DCO.darwin@defence.gov.au

Tindal/Katherine Office..................................................................... 8973 6186


Email........................................................... DCO.tindal@defence.gov.au

Defence Families of Australia (DFA)

National Convenor........................................................................1800 100 509

Email...................................................................... convenor@dfa.org.au

National Delegate NT and Kimberly – Denisa Cochran Spadova

Mobile....................................................................................0418 807 548

Email................................................................................... nt@dfa.org.au

Chaplains

Army On-call......................................................................................0427 713 963

Navy On-call......................................................................................0409 662 823

RAAF Darwin On-call....................................................................... 0477 308 064

RAAF Tindal On-call.........................................................................0427 890 054

Veterans and Defence Community

Support

Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA).......................................... 1800 555 254

Website..................................................................................... www.dva.gov.au

Defence Service Home Loans..................................................... 1800 722 000

Provider Enquiries........................................................................ 1800 550 457

Open Arms (24hrs)...........................................................................1800 011 046

Website..........................................................................www.openarms.gov.au

Legacy Northern Territory.................................................................... 8948 0830

Email.................................................................................legacy@legacynt.org

Website.......................................................................... www.legacy.com.au/nt

Red Shield Defence Services – Salvation Army

Gerald Mitchell............................................................................. 0400 642 881

Email..........................................gerald.mitchell@salvationarmy.org.au

Mairi Mitchell................................................................................ 0400 642 881

Email............................................mairi.mitchell@salvationarmy.org.au

Returned Services League (RSL)

Darwin North .....................................................................................8945 0701

Katherine (via Secretary)............................................................ 0407 130 095

Nhulunbuy......................................................................................... 8987 0600

Palmerston.................................................................................... 0488 001 862

Tennant Creek .............................................................................. 0499 564 031

Veterans Australia (NT)

Email.............................................................. sec@veteransaustraliant.org.au

Advocacy Assistance.............................smatdp@veteransaustraliant.org.au

Kookaburra Kids............................................................................... 1300 566 525

NT Community Engagement Coordinator .............................. 0427 755 398

Email.....................................................steph.hritter@kookaburrakids.org.au

Website.................................................................www.kookaburrakids.org.au

Useful Defence Contacts

Comsuper

ADF Cover......................................................................................1300 001 977

ADF Super..................................................................................... 1300 203 439

DFRDB............................................................................................1300 001 677

Military Super (MSBS)................................................................. 1300 006 727

Defence Housing Australia (DHA)............................................................ 133 342

Website.....................................................................................www.dha.gov.au

Defence Relocations and Housing Manager NT.......................... 0458 241 867

Email......................................................................... drhm.nt@defence.gov.au

Toll Transitions.................................................................................... 1800 819 167

Defence Tax Management Office (CTMO).................................... 1800 806 053

Email.................................................taxation.management@defence.gov.au

Health

Hearing Australia........................................................................................ 134 432

Down Syndrome Association NT......................................................... 8985 6222

Email......................................................... admin@downsyndroment.com.au

Website ..........................................................www.downsyndroment.com.au

Epilepsy Centre – Epilepsy Association of SA & NT......................1300 850 081

Email............................................................enquiries@epilepsycentre.org.au

Website.................................................................. www.epilepsycentre.org.au

Community Care Centres

Alice Springs Community Health Centre.........................................8951 6711

Casuarina Community Care Centre................................................8922 7301

Katherine Community Health Centre..............................................8973 8570

Karama Child and Family Health Clinic..........................................8922 7301

Nhulunbuy Community Health Centre.......................................... 8987 0435

Nylander Child Health Clinic............................................................8922 7301

Palmerston Community Care Centre............................................. 8999 3344

Tennant Creek Community Health Care.........................................8962 4218

Northern Territory Department of Health (DOH)............................. 8999 2400

Website............................................................................ www.health.nt.gov.au

Top End Mental Health Service............................................................ 8999 4988

Wellness Centre ......................................................................................8946 7176

Email......................................................... cdu.psychology.clinic@cdu.edu.au

Website........................................................www.cdu.edu.au/wellness-centre

Helplines

Lifeline (24hr).......................................................................................... 131 114

Kids Helpline (24hr).....................................................................1800 551 800

Parent Helpline – Karitane (24hr)............................................. 1300 227 464

Parentline.......................................................................................1300 301 300

Pregnancy and Birth Services

Helplines

Pregnancy, Birth and Baby Helpline......................................... 1800 882 436

Birthline Pregnancy Support ......................................................1300 655 156

Breastfeeding Helpline................................................................ 1800 686 268

Childbirth Education Association Darwin........................................... 8948 3043

Email............................................................................ info@ceadarwin.asn.au

Website ........................................................................ www.ceadarwin.asn.au

Darwin Homebirth Group.................................................................... 8922 5522

Email................................................................................dhbginfo@gmail.com

Website...............................................darwinhomebirthgroup.wordress.com

Family Planning NT................................................................................8948 0144

Website................................................................................ www.fpwnt.com.au

Australian Breastfeeding Association ........................................... 1800 686 268

Health and Care Support

Cancer Council NT

Alice Springs...................................................................................... 8953 5920

Darwin.................................................................................................8944 1800

Katherine.............................................................................................8971 2022

Website............................................................................www.nt.cancer.org.au

Carers Australia NT............................................................................... 8944 4888

Website............................................................................. www.carersnt.asn.au

Defence Special Needs Support Group (DSNSG)

Website..................................................................................www.dsnsg.org.au

National Coordinator....................................................................1800 037 674

Email....................................................... national.coordinator@dsnsg.org.au

Darwin Coordinator......................................................darwin@dsnsg.org.au

Katherine/Tindal Coordinator.................................katherine@dsnsg.org.au

Bereaved Parent Support NT|SIDS and Kids NT ...............................8948 5311

24-hour Emergency Support Line..............................................0448 849 234

June/July 2020 63

Email.....................................................................................info@bpsnt.org.au

Cradle Support Group.................................................................0438 272 353

Website................................................................................. www.cradle.org.au

Sports and Activities

Australian Air Force Cadets 8 Wing

AAFC 801 Squadron – Winnellie...................................................... 8923 5713

AAFC 802 Squadron – Driver......................................................0473 816 694

AAFC 803 Squadron – Tindal.....................................................0427 397 495

AAFC 804 Squadron – Alice Springs.............................................. 8953 4484

Australian Army Cadets .................................................. 8935 5174 / 8935 5488

Email................................................................. aachq-nt@armycadets.gov.au

Australian Navy Cadets ...........................................................................................

Training Ship Darwin..................................... TSDarwin@navycadets.gov.au

Training Ship Melville Bay, Nhulunbuy.TSMelvilleBay@navycadets.gov.au

Girl Guides NT.........................................................................................8981 3628

Email......................................................................... girlguidesnt@iinet.net.au

Website...........................................................................www.girlguides.org.au

Playgroups Association NT (PANT)......................................................8945 7775

Website.....................................................................www.playgroupnt.com.au

Email...................................................................admin@playgroupnt.com.au

RAAF Darwin Fishing Club – Sgt Tracy Sylvester.............................. 8924 2045

RAAF Darwin Golf Club...................................................................0459 746 306

Email............................................................................. raafgolf16@Gmail.com

Swimming

Masters Swimming............................................................................. 8981 5919

Alice AUSSI...........................................thecullenanes@ozemail.com.au

Darwin Stingers..................................................... stingers@iinet.net.au

Palmerston Sharks..............................info@palmerstonsharks.com.au

Goldfishbowl Swim School...............................................................8931 1000

Email.......................................................................gfish2@bigpond.com

NT Swim School.................................................................................8948 1000

Email............................................................info@ntswimschool.com.au

Website.........................................................www.ntswimschool.com.au

Palmerston & Rural Swimming Club

Head Coach Daniel Gerlach.......................................................0400 299 622

Email.....................................................info@palmerstonsharks.com.au

Swim Dynamics Swim School.....................................................0421 631 624

Email............................................................... info@swimdynamics.com

Website.............................................................www.swimdynamics.com

Scouts NT................................................................................................ 8948 0994

Email.................................................................... admin@nthq.scouts.com.au

Website...........................................................................www.nt.scouts.com.au

Surf Life Saving NT................................................................................ 8985 6588

Email.........................................................................surf@lifesavingnt.com.au

Website...................................................................... www.lifesavingnt.com.au

Local Government and Regional Councils

Alice Springs Town Council.................................................................. 8950 0500

Barkly Regional Council........................................................................ 8962 0000

Belyuen Community Government Council.........................................8978 5061

Central Desert Regional Council .................................................... 1300 360 605

City of Darwin........................................................................................ 8930 0300

City of Palmerston................................................................................. 8935 9922

Coomalie Community Government Council .....................................8976 0058

East Arnhem Regional Council ........................................................... 8986 8986

Katherine Town Council.........................................................................8972 5500

Litchfield Council .................................................................................. 8983 0600

MacDonnell Regional Council ............................................................. 8958 9600

Nhulunbuy Corporation....................................................................... 8939 2200

Roper Gulf Regional Councils ..............................................................8972 9000

Tiwi Regional Council ............................................................................8970 9500

Victoria Daly Regional Council .............................................................8972 0777

Wagait Shire Council ............................................................................. 8978 5185

West Arnhem Regional Council ...........................................................8979 9444

West Daly Regional Council .................................................................8901 3920

Government

Department of Human Services .............................................................. 132 468

Centrelink

Carers............................................................................................... 132 717

Families........................................................................................... 136 150

Medicare

General Enquiries...........................................................................132 011

Complaints and Feedback...........................................................1800 132 468

myGov Helpdesk.................................................................................... 132 307

Motor Vehicle Registry NT............................................................... 1300 654 628

Website................................................................................ www.mvr.nt.gov.au

Road Report .......................................................................................1800 246 199

Website....................................................................www.roadreport.nt.gov.au

Bureau of Meteorology.....................................................................1800 659 214

Website ...................................................................................www.bom.gov.au

Animal Services and Animal Care

Pounds and Animal Shelters

Alice Springs Animal Shelter......................................8950 0500 / 8953 4430

Darwin.................................................................................................8947 2099

Katherine.............................................................................................8972 5500

Palmerston..........................................................................................8935 9977

Injured Wildlife

Wildcare Alice Springs.................................................................. 0419 221 128

Wildcare Darwin......................................................8988 6121 / 0408 885 341

Darwin Wildlife Sanctuary.......................................................... 0473 992 581

Katherine Wildlife Rescue Services.............................................0412 955 336

RSPCA (Darwin)......................................................................................8984 3795

While the information contained in the Handy Directory is considered

by the employees and committee of the Top Ender Tri-Services

Magazine Inc to be true and correct at the date of publication,

changes in circumstances after the time of publication may render

the information inaccurate. The information may change without

notice, and the Top Ender Tri-Services Magazine and those working

on its behalf, cannot be held in any way liable for the accuracy of any

information printed and stored, or in any way interpreted and used,

by the reader.


Need your help ...

Committee Members

Playing an important role for Defence families

and personnel across the length and breadth of

the Northern Territory; The Top Ender values the

diversity, knowledge and ranging perspectives

offered by our committee.

If you would like to play a role in the magazine

or to receive more information on joining the

committee, send us an email or come along to

the next meeting. New members are always

welcome.

thetopender@aapt.net.au

Luke Gosling OAM MP

Federal Member for Solomon

Standing Standing up for up Defence for Defence members,

members, families and families veterans and

Assisting ADF members and their families

with local issues

Working to ensure the $5 million Federal

commitment for a Veterans' Wellbeing

Centre in Darwin is delivered as quickly

as possible

Supporting local ex-service organisations

I was proud to serve 13 years in the ADF

SERVING ADVOCATING SUPPORTING DEFENDING

Electorate Office: 3/266 Trower Road, Casuarina NT 0810 | t (08) 8928 0180 DARWIN | e luke.gosling.mp@aph.gov.au

luke.j.gosling

WWW.LUKEGOSLING.COM.AU

@lukejgosling

Authorised by Luke Gosling OAM MP, 3/266 Trower Road Casuarina 0810

BOOK

A TOUR

Contact us

to take a

look inside

today

08 7970 0150

At little Flyers Childcare,

we aim to inspire exciting

play opportunities

Located conveniently near Darwin Airport on Osgood Drive,

Little Flyers Childcare Darwin offers a premium long day care

program. We embrace the image of the child as a competent,

confident, creative and active learners, and our energetic team

of educators are committed to offering an outstanding

program of learning.

Email: director@littleflyersdarwin.com.au

Address: 10 Osgood Drive - Eaton

Hours: 6:30 am to 6:30pm

Website: www.littleflyersdarwin.com.au

The Top Ender Magazine June July 2020 Edition

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