australian commando assn inc.€¦ · australian commando assn inc. registered by australia post ~...

AUSTRALIAN COMMANDO ASSN INC.Registered by Australia Post ~ Publication No PP100016240

Edition 10 ~ June 2017

SGT Peter CafeSGT 2 CDO REGT.

commndr cover no 10_Layout 1 20/07/2017 9:40 pm

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COMMANDO NEWS ~ Edition 10 I June 2017 1

REGISTERED BY AUSTRALIA POST PUBLICATION No PP100016240

AUSTRALIAN COMMANDO ASSOCIATION INC.

NATIONAL OFFICE BEARERS

LIFE PATRON: Gen Sir Phillip Bennett AC KBE DSO

PATRON: MajGen Tim McOwan AO DSC CSM

PRESIDENT: MajGen Mike Clifford AM CSC

VICE PRESIDENT: Col Brett Chaloner

SECRETARY: Maj Steve Pilmore OAM RFD (Ret’d)

TREASURER: Maj Bruce O’Connor OAM (Ret’d)

ACA VICTORIAPRESIDENT: Doug Knight

ACA VICTORIASECRETARY: Glenn MacDonald

ACA NSWPRESIDENT: Barry Grant

ACA NSW Ted Hartley - 0408 647 237SECRETARY: [email protected]

ACA QLDPRESIDENT: Nick Hill

ACA QLDSECRETARY: Tony Mills

ACA WAPRESIDENT: Alan Joyce - 0447 433 934

ACA WA Paul Shearer - 0400 522 059SECRETARY: [email protected]

PUBLIC OFFICER: Brian Liddy

EDITORS: Barry GrantBarbara Pittaway

The Australian Commando Association’s membership consists ofServicemen who have served with Independent Companies, CommandoSquadrons, "M" and "Z" Special units and Special Forces during and sincethe Second World War.

DISCLAIMER: Opinions expressed within this publication are those of theauthors, and are not necessarily those of the Editor, Publisher, CommitteeMembers or Members of our Association. We welcome any input as longas it is not offensive or abusive but if any member has a problem with aprinted article we would like to be informed in order that the author may becontacted. We do encourage your opinion.

Official Publishers:

Statewide Publishing P/LABN 65 116 985 187

PO BOX 682, SURFERS PARADISE QLD 4217PHONE: 0432 042 060

EMAIL: [email protected]

Printed by Ligare Pty Ltd138 Bonds Road, Riverwood NSW 2210

CONTENTS

AUSTRALIAN COMMANDO ASSN INC.Registered by Australia Post ~ Publication No PP100016240

Edition 10 ~ June 2017

SGT Peter CafeSGT 2 CDO REGT.

NSW President & Editor’s Report .....................3

News from National Vice President ..................5

From the Prolific Pen of Harry Bell....................7

NSW Welfare Officer’s Report ........................11

Vale ..................................................................13

NSW Events Calendar .....................................17

WO Ray Simpson VC DCM .............................21

John Kinsela, OAM..........................................25

The Australian SAS - The Untold History........27

MV Krait Progress Report ...............................31

Always Dive Truk Lagoon................................36HALO Parachuting in Australia

The Early Days ...........................................39

Aust Cdo Assn NSW “Q” Store......................49

Aust Cdo Assn TAS .........................................54

Aust Cdo Assn VIC..........................................55

Aust Cdo Assn QLD ........................................57

Aust Cdo Assn WA..........................................58

Membership Application/Renewal..................59

Deadline for next edition:TUESDAY, 29TH AUGUST 2017

All news on members and interesting articles accepted.(Subject to editors’ approval.)

Barry G

Front Cover: Sergeant Peter Cafe, 2nd Commando Regiment

died in service 6th February 2017.

RIP.

Commando News Autumn 17_Layout 1 20/07/2017 10:17 pm Page 1

2 COMMANDO NEWS ~ Edition 10 I June 2017


1941 - 1946

1955 -

-55 19

Australian Commando AssociationNSW Inc.

http://1commando1.blogspot.com.auPO Box 1313, Sutherland, NSW 1499

COMMANDO FOR LIFE

President: Barry Grant Secretary: Ted Hartley Treasurer: Ivan Kelly

[email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

0414 914 615 0408 647 237 0417 042 886

This edition is running late for many reasons and Iapologise for my tardiness.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

The year started off badly for the Commando familywith the death of SGT. Peter Cafe, an excellent soldiermuch admired by his mates.

Our thoughts go out to his wife Gwen and fourchildren.

See article in this Newsletter. Ed

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

The relationship between veterans and Departmentof Veterans Affairs has quite often been of an adversarialnature.

The main complaint is the clerks in DVA don’t under -stand the nature of the veteran’s service.

However, the good news is that there appears to bea change in the system.

Robyn Collins, the General Manager from Defence-Care, said recently that if veterans are having issues withtheir claims, they should immediately contact her or herstaff at Anzac House in Sydney.

However, the injury or issue, needs to be Defencerelated, not one of arthritis for example, caused by “oldage”.

Most issues are now accepted without having toprove the injury by medical documents.

Many Defence related injuries in the past were neverreported to the respective RAP’s or medical staff, andthat does cause some delays in the processing of claims.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Earlier this year I was asked to conduct the RSLFuneral service for a Timorese veteran who was enlistedinto the Australian Defence Force during WW2.

Alexander da Silva Tilman escaped from East Timorduring the Japanese Invasion in 1942 to Darwin where itwas discovered he had been piloting vessels and knewthe southernmost coastline of his country.

He made several trips, some of them under fire,between Darwin and the coast of Timor.

Interesting, the service was conducted by GeraldKeneally of Keneally’s funerals. His father “Paddy” was

with the 2nd/2nd Inde -pendent Company untilextracted in late 1943.

The entire service,apart from my smallpart, was conducted inPortuguese.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

The Queen’s birth -day list acknow ledgedthe work and service ofJohn Kinsela, now OAM.

John was the first Aboriginal man to representAustralia in the Olympic Games.

He competed as a wrestler in Mexico in 1968 andagain 1972 at Munich.

Former Vietnam vet and Aboriginal elder has been amentor to many of the Aboriginal youth in his area.

He was also a Corporal with the 1st CommandoCompany after his service in Vietnam.

Congratulations John, well deserved.

★ ★ ★ ★

We had a visit from team members from theAustralian War Memorial in Canberra last week.

They were borrowing selected items from ourcollection for a featured display of Australian SpecialForces past and present.

This display will run from October this year for 12months, should be worth a trip to the Nation’s capitaljust to see it.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

The annual Reserve Forces Day will be held onSunday, 2nd July this year and marches will take placeacross Australia.

Barry Grant

NSW President & Editor’s Report

Australian CommandoAssociation (NSW) Inc




COMMANDO COMRADESHIPAbout 6 weeks ago, I was contacted by Andrew

Condon, former CEO of Legacy NSW. His NorthernNSW rep indicated there was a ‘former’ member of the2nd Commando Regiment with a wife and two youngdaughters doing it hard in her area. Specifically, hisdaily struggle with physical and other injuries made ithard to keep his yard clean, clear and safe for hischildren. Legacy were keen to help, however theCommando would not accept assistance. Throughsome concerted effort, the Legacy rep concluded theonly way the Commando would accept assistance wasif his brethren were engaged. I put word out to JackThurgar and Nick Hill as our two closest reps in termsof proximity and in Nick’s case, service period. Throughthem, the call went out to all Commandos within200km. Many responded covering the spectrum ofage, unit service and history. In addition, Doug Baird,father of CPL Cameron Baird VC, MG also volunteered.On a near perfect Commando Training Day (it wascold and pissing rain), a Section Strength Elementdescended on the objective. The job was bigger thanfirst anticipated. However, through predictablecourage and determination, a day of toil cracked theback of the problem and the yard was transformed.Legacy provided food and funding for the project andall the Commandos provided the muscle. One email Isaw read:

“It was an honour to be able to help out last Friday.As a member of the Commandos Association it is partand parcel of our aims to assist former and servingmembers in whatever small way we can. I found itpersonally beneficial to talk to the former members of2nd Commando to see how they are adjusting tocivilian life, and they seem to be coping well. Theirwork ethics are first class and got stuck into any taskthey were asked to undertake. I felt humbled in theirpresence. Lyn (Legacy) does a sterling job and is notafraid to her hands dirty also. Sorry that most of mywork was indoors whilst all you guys were out in therain, knew there was a reason I chose to be anelectrician. Look forward to the next working party andthe company of some great people.”

Gentlemen, that for me captures the essence ofwhat we are about, what we have always been about,and what we should continue to strive to achieve forour people… that is ‘Commando for Life’ in action. Icommend Jack, Nick and all our Members who wereinvolved for coming to the aid of one of our own.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

LEADERSHIPOn Thursday 29 Jun 17, Major General Jeffrey

Sengelman DSC, AM, CSC will hand over the mantle ofSpecial Operations Commander – Australia to Major

General Findlay AM. MAJGEN Findlay served in SASRas a Troop Commander, commanded the 3rd Battalion,the Royal Australian Regiment, the 7th CombatBrigade and most recently has commanded theCombined Joint Special Operations Task Force in Iraq.He will be a formidable Commander and a worthysuccessor to MAJGEN Sengelman. He will also attendthe Rimau Ceremony in Brisbane. MAJGEN Sengelmanhas quietly and humbly worked to fundamentallychange the way in which the Special OperationsCommunity looks after its people and their Families.This will become more apparent in the coming weeksand months as we share emerging material andinitiatives that he has been championing. As a snapshot, the SO Community will enjoy unique support andassistance from DVA, a pilot transition support programwill be established to ensure all our people are set upfor success. An employment placement program isabout to be launched and a range of other educationand support initiatives are being prepared. On hisfourth last day in Command, MAJGEN Sengelmansummoned reps from the Trusts and the Associations ofthe SAS and the Commando communities to meet withhim, MAJGEN Findlay and DVA to discuss theseinitiatives and a system that is more integrated. This isa first in my lifetime and reinforces that we must seizethe opportunity to consolidate the ACA as a keypartner and player in the community. Predictably,MAJGEN Sengelman intends to (and will no doubtsuccessfully) disappear in to the shadows, eschewingfanfare and recognition. If you happen upon him, makesure you say a simple ‘Thanks’.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

AUSTRALIAN WAR MEMORIALThere are a number of SO related activities coming

up at the AWM around Sep/Oct. I think the first will bethe launch of Chris Masters’ book on Special Opera -tions in Afghanistan. He has told the story of all 20SOTG rotations and from what I have seen, has donean incredible job of it… again. He remains a faithfulvoice for our community. On 19 Oct 17, there is a bookon the life and service of Cam Baird will be launched atthe AWM. Once we have details, we will pass themalong. Also in October, Dr Brendan Nelson will open atemporary exhibition at the AWM that records thehistory of Australian Special Operations from WWII to2014 utilising over 320 artefacts. It is intended thatthere will be a chance for a private viewing bymembers of the Special Operations Community andtheir Families. There may also be other opportunitiesassociated with its. More to follow.

Apologies for the wordy email. However, I hopethere is something in there for everyone.

C4LBC

News from our National Vice President


From the Prolific Pen of Harry Bell


Dear Editors,The immediate topic is Anzac Day and from the

point of view of 2/6 Cavalry (Commando) Regt. Assn(NSW), it went well, though sadly: sadly, because it wasthe occasion of the last Anzac Day to be comme mo -rated by the Association; as well as for reasons that Ishall address shortly.

As many of you know, at an Extraordinary GeneralMeeting last year, the NSW Branch of the aboveAssociation resolved to wind up as from 30.6.2017,with appropriate distribution of its accumulated funds.Many of its members will, of course, join the VictorianBranch which, through the foresight of the late John(“Shorty”) Corbett (2/10) merged with the 2nd CavalryRegiment, thus ensuring a long life. In NSW, we sur -viving members of the Regiment, shrunk to about fourFinancial Members of the Association, decided to letour Branch wither on the vine, rather than see our -selves like Tom Hungerford’s “Old blokes propped upin the transport:

That’s us in a few years! Medals and ribbons,Hair brushed, bums wiped, shoes shined, our teeth in.Wheeled out once a year for the Anzac Day shindig And then carted home!’”I think that it was the right decision, but am

heartened by the determination of our next genera -tion, who have vowed to keep on ‘unofficially’organising a march and a lunch for as long as there are39/45 vets willing and able to take part.

That last is the key to the part that “went well”, andhere’s to the Whiteleys, Martins, Fagans, Hogarth/Quicks, the Buckler/Smiths, Mackays, Ellice-Flints,Davises and other members of our 6 Div Cav “family”– not to mention people like the Waquetaiwiras whoare moved only by friendship, not kinship.

Then there was the weather: the rain held off till wewere safely indoors, the temperature and the tempoduring the march were all that one could ask. I didn’tstay in Martin Place for the ceremony at the Com -mando Memorial, for the remnants of 2/6 Regimentmarched with 6 Div and I was afraid of missing the start.I need not have been; the lag time was less than it usedto be but still substantial and Barry Grant tells me thatthere were some 39/45 Commandos who marchedwith Corps Troops, just ahead of us. I didn’t see them,so can’t write about them.

2/6 Regiment had a core component of three. RhysFagan carried the Australian flag in the lead, right atthe head of 6 Div (the Div HQ hasn’t marched foryears); the banner was carried and steadied by a teamof Mackays and Ellice-Flints (who made up a table for12 at lunch) – I am sure to have omitted somebody andif so I humbly apologise. Then there were the stretcher-bearers - I mean chair-pushers – not to mention theirburdens. Graham Dolton again made the trip fromPerth, with son Ross, daughter-in-law Wendy plus

grandson and friend. Reg Davis came infrom Riverwood with nephew John andsons Jeffrey and Richard, while yourcorrespondent’s grandson, Max cameup from Melbourne to push the Old Blokealong. So there we were, the three of us, two sigsand a rifle-bomber, all from 2/9! And we all 3 rose fromour chairs and marched for a couple of blocks so wecould give the “Eyes Left” while on our feet as wepassed the saluting base.

Lunch at the Grace Hotel (in the old Grace Building,once the home of Repat, War Service Home Loans etc)was a gastronomic treat with appetisers in the form ofReg Davis’ traditional “Toast to the Regiment” (Regwas so carried away that he nearly forgot to proposethe toast after his tremendous build-up) and RalphMartin’s recitations. We missed the usual dozenWickhams and, of course, the Workmans – Ted (2/10)wasn’t up to it this year.

As usual, it fell to me to read the names of thosewho had perished since last Anzac Day. It has been ourpractice to read only the names of former members of2/7, 2/9 and 2/10 Squadrons but our Committee hassometimes included the names of members of othersquadrons or of units other than Commando Squad -rons. This year the list was:

Conrad Bell (2/7) VX107898Kenneth Walter Buckler (2/10) NX191513Ben Davies (2/7) NX84208William Hutchings (2/1 Tank Attack Regt VX67864Albert Potter (2/9) VX147458Haldane (“Gidgee”) Holman (2/6) NX83183Bryan Thomas Bowyer (2/9) VX123982G. Andrew McGowan, (2/4) NX129507J.H. Fawkes (Z Special) QX 23040Lawler, E.R. (2/10) NX112025Duncan Donald Dennis (2/5) VX77738J.D. Smith (M Special) NX1110674William Boyack (2 Cav. Regt)

Most of the above were, almost “by definition” intheir nineties but there are exceptions. Bill Hutchingswas aged 100 years and six months. His regiment wasassociated with 2/6 Regt in that they provided FaridaForce with artillery support at Dove Bay. LieutenantLawler was, I believe, the last surviving officer of 2/9and 2/10 Commando Squadrons – if you know of anyothers, PLEASE advise me. 2/6 Regiment is luckyenough to have Ted Byrne M.C., ex 2/7 Sqn, still verymuch alive and living in the hinterland of Byron Bay.

The remaining exception to the “over 90” rule isSgt Boyack, a serving soldier and a member of the 2/6av. (Cdo) Regiment Association.

As usual, the pages of Reveille reveal someadditions to our casualty list – I mean our real CasualtyList, not the League office-bearers who have taken a



few hits recently. The March/April issue gives us thename of a Sig from 2/9: VALE NX164 073, A.R.Blandford. Neither Reg Davis nor Graham Dolton (both2/9 Sigs) can remember him and his name does notappear in the Nominal Roll in the Unit History, but as Ihave pointed out a number of times, this provesnothing. We mourn him whether he is listed or not.

VALE VX64838, J.H. REID (2/4). Commando; Tidal

River to Tarakan tells me that he was a Private in APlatoon, 4 Independent Coy, moving in on 2.11942and out on 5.4.43, shortly before 2.4 was designated aspart of 7 Div. Cav. He had been in East Timor where,amongst other ops he had taken part in a successfulambush at Talo.

VALE NX 49836, R.F. L’Estrange (2/7). The twoL’Estrange brother from Condobolin were householdnames in 2/6 Regiment. The younger brother, Bruce,was a corporal with a military Medal – after the war, hewas selected (along with David Hammond, (2/10) and amere 99 others, to travel to England with the victoryContingent – and he was universally known as“Slugger”. His actual given name was, so Ted Byrnetells me, used generally when addressing either ofthem. Both were 2/7 men, through and through,serving in the same campaigns and sharing the samehardships. Ted has fond memories of both – as indeedof all his old mates. He recalls an occasion when thebrothers warned him that they were coming down fromCondo to the Big Smoke, and Ted named a rendezvousat a particular spot on Manly Beach. The Condo Boyswere to signal their arrival by chanting theirwarcry: “CHIMBU WAHGI” (actually thenames of two very warlike New Guinea clans).On hearing this challenge, the ambush partyrushed out of hiding: Ted Byrne, MC, Fred(“Whiskers”) Evans, Greg Mackenzie, KeithWake ling and Len (“Fatty”) Osborne – all, inTed’s opinion (and he should know) first classfighting men. And all, of course, from 2/7.What happened next, I forboreto ask. Ah, memories. If only wehad more of our mates to sharethem with.

While I was typing this, myphone went: it was Eric Geldard(RAAF & 2/9) from Miles in SWQueensland. Eric was puzzledbecause DVA had written tohim, offering him, at very shortnotice, a berth on a com me -morative mission to celebratethe anniversary of the Milne Baybattle. Eric was going to ringthem to advise (sadly) that hedidn’t think he was eligible, nothaving served in that theatre.

Eric led the Anzac Day marchin Miles this year, though he

reluctantly rode in a jeep that a local vet. had lovinglyrestored He also mentioned that he occasionally seesVX52718, Vince Collett of Goondi windi, 6 Div Cav.Vince has passed his century (another Sig, of course:Killen, Davis, Dolton…) but when last seen was stillgoing strong. Eric thinks that he had transferred outbefore our regiment transformed to 2/6 Cav (Co) Regt.

Another bloke who’s getting on a bit is Roly Good(2/3) – 97 years old and he’s not even a Sig! Roly wasan RAP Corporal and a member of his squadron’sAussie Rules team, well remembered for rendering aidunder fire. He still lives independently in his own unit atTraralgon (Vic) but sadly, lost Joan, his wife of 30 years,when she passed away two days after Anzac Day. Joanwas Roly’s second wife, whom he married after his firstwife died but her acceptance by the family is bespokenby Ian Good, son of the first marriage. In the course ofhis eulogy he recited this little Haiku: “Wicked Step -mother, Social Justice Activist, Best friend of Roly.”Roly has remained active in the Commando Assn (Vic)but old friends to share his sorrow are few and farbetween. Is there anybody else from 2/3 still out there?

I found a number of references to Roly, includingphotographs, in Ron Garland’s excellent book, Nothing

is forever. If only it had an index!Well, that’s it for now. I’ll send this to Barry and to

Bob, with another instalment due in mid-September.Keep on your feet!

Harry Bell (2/9)



"Information is being gathered on the 2/7thIndependent Company / Commando Squadron with aview to publishing a belated unit history.

As the only WW2 Commando unit, never to havehad its history published, 2/7th Veterans, family andfriends are encouraged to contribute any diaries,letters, photos or other items of interest which mayhelp tell the story of the men who served with its ranks.

The primary researcher, Mr Nick Bracken, is acurrent serving ADF member who has already

commenced the task of gathering historical materialfrom the National Archives, Australian War Memorialand the Commando History & Research Centre atHolsworthy.

Phone: (02) 8782 2850, Mobile: 0431 400 287 orEmail: [email protected].

All offers of assistance are greatly appreciated andarrangements can be made to make copies of fragileand treasured items in location if necessary."

2/7TH REQUEST FOR ASSISTANCE

We are Proud to support the Australian armed services

Especially during the 2017 ADF SNOWSPORTS CHAMPIONSHIPS

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APPLIED SUICIDE INTERVENTION SKILLSTRAINING Course

Barry Grant (0414 914 615), Ivan Kelly (0417 042886), Kevin Mahony (0425 279 111) and I, plus 3members from 1 Cdo Coy, recently completed thiscourse, at Kings Cross, run by the Veterans &Veterans’ Families Counselling Service through DVA(ph: 1800 011 0460).

INTRODUCTORY PASTORAL CARERS’ COURSE:I recently completed this multi-faith course run by

the Chaplains’ Department of Manly Hospital. I havehad a lot of experience talking with the bereavedand those suffering grief. I did these 2 courses toassist me with my welfare work.

DISCLAIMER:I must stress though, that we are not counsellors,

nor do we have any professional qualifications inthese areas. However, if we don’t have the answers,we can refer you to other counselling and helplineservices in your area.

WELFARE OFFICER’S REGIONAL CO-ORDINATORS:

Members, we need your help to inform us ofcom mandos, young and old, who you think mayrequire our assistance.

Keep "Striking Swiftly" - perhaps not as swiftly aswe used to - ay!!

CheersBrian Dunbar

NSW Welfare OfficerE: [email protected]

PH: (02) 9452 2589

NSW WELFARE OFFICER’S REPORT

New NavyDepartment of the Navy is now

assigning females to quarters in aseparate private "OFF LIMITS" areaon all aircraft carriers.

Addressing all boat personnel atPearl, CINCPAC advised, "femalesleeping quarters will be "out-of-bounds" for all males. Anyone caught

breaking this rule will be fined $50 the first time."He continued, "Anyone caught breaking this

rule the second time will be fined $150.Being caught a third time will cost you a fine of

$500. Are there any questions?"At this point, a Marine Gunnery Sergeant from

the security detail assigned to the ship stood up inthe crowd and inquired,

"Sir, how much for a seasonpass?"

God bless the USMC!



Born: 10 October 1921.Native of Dili, East Timor and formally residing

currently at Cabramatta NSW.He was 95 years old. He suffered a stroke in

December 1985 when he was, then, aged 64 whichresulted from horrendous psychological and physicaltorture such as unrelenting beatings, electric shocks,barbaric and inhumane abuses under the hands of theIndonesian military during the occupation. Alexandreda Silva Tilman was incarcerated and imprisoned fourtimes between 1976 until 1985.

Alexandre da Silva Tilman contributed in twohistorical theatres of war; WWII and Indonesia’sinvasion and consequent occupation of East Timor.Quite possibly he may be one of the last living EastTimorese combatants and veterans of WWII.

During WWII, he was an unofficially recruited civilianwho was issued with an Australian military uniform bythe Australian forces to navigate the maritime passagesfrom Timor to Australia as well as carry out intelligenceoperative work (with Groper Party Z Special Unit of the2/2nd AIF Commando Company). Their operationrequired that they cross backwards and forwards, inthree separate perilous missions across an oceancontrolled by fierce Japanese forces. One time whileattending to some mechanical incident during one oftheir naval operations in high seas he lost his left indexfinger.

During the Indonesian occupation, Alexandre daSilva Tilman sent intelligence back to the guerrillas inTimor’s interior; as well as much needed supplies andmedicines. Throughout this time of his activities as wellas during his regular days he remained suspected bythe Indonesian forces and their spies, was underconstant surveillance, finally was denounced, accused,detained and tortured with electric shocks, sustaining

contusions throughout his entire body, was kickedconstantly with steel capped boots, beaten countlesstimes until his ribs were fractured and he eventuallybecame psychologically affected. He was placed in anisolated cell at the Comarca Prison in Balide, Dili,without contact with his family and limited interactionwith other people. The cell had a hole which couldn’teven be called a latrine; it had minimal lighting; givenminimal water, minimal food; and ventilation that wasrestricted.

Alexandre da Silva Tilman was captured andimprisoned at a local shop building called Sang Tai Hoin Colmera, Dili on 25 February 1976 until 10 June1978. Two days later (12 June 1978) he was againapprehended and reimprisoned at Comarca Prison inBalide, Dili until 17 August 1979. Again, he wascaptured and imprisoned at Comarca Prison in Balide,Dili on 10 June 1980 until 24 December 1982. Finally,he was recaptured and imprisoned at Comarca Prisonin Balide, Dili on 27 November 1982 until 5 December1982. Every time, after release from prison, he wasrequired to personally appear before Indonesianmilitary authorities on a regular basis - this continuedfor three to four years (requiring a minimum appear -ance before the Indonesians at least three times a weekor at the Indonesians’ convenience, whether day ornight or whenever they chose to torment him).

As a result of the torture endured, Alexandre daSilva Tilman's health deteriorated. He had difficulties inwalking; suffered hypertension; respiratory problems;sleeping difficulties; became more introverted; had avery short temperament (no patience), suspicious, littleappetite, in the end he suffered a stroke that eventuallyended his life .

His funeral was held at Liverpool. President BarryGrant conducted the RSL Funeral service.

VALE ALEXANDRE DA SILVA TILMAN

VALECAPT Don ASTILL 2nd/8th Independent Company

LT Phil JOHNSON 1 Commando Company

Alexandre da Silva TILMAN East Timorese/Australian soldier/ Master mariner

Joan GOOD Wife of Roly Good, 2/3 Ind Coy.

William James CAPLE 2/7th Independent Company

Claude David BROWN 2nd/7th Independent Coy

COL James WOOD 1 Commando Coy 1958 –

David HUMBLEY 1 Company 72 - 74

William James Caple



It is with great sadness that weinform you all that we have lost anotherCommando.

SGT Peter John Cafe 2nd Commando Regiment Died In Service 06 February 2017Sydney, New South Wales

Pete joined the army in 1987 andwas posted to 3 RAR where he spenthis early years. He discharged in 1995and re-enlisted in 2000 and was thenposted to C Cdo Coy, 4 Cdo. After completing his Cdoreinforcement cycle he was posted to D Coy for theirdeployment to East Timor in 2001.

In 2002 Pete was one of the founding members ofTAG-E and spent many years as the MOE &Demolitions master with in the unit. He dischargedagain in late 2005 and began contracting in Iraq andAfghanistan. He re-enlisted in 2010 and was posted toCdo Trg Wing, SFTC and then to D Cdo Coy, 2 CdoRegt in 2012 where he deployed to Afghanistan in mid-2012 and Iraq in 2016.

Peters honours and awards includethe AASM with Cambodia, East Timor& ICAT clasps, Afghan Campaignmedal, ASM with Cambodia & CT/SRClasps, OSM - Middle East, DFLSMwith 2 Clasps, ADM, UNTAC &UNTAET Medals and NATO medalwith ISAF Clasp, the Infantry CombatBadge, Returned from Active ServiceBadge and the Operational ServiceBadge.

Pete leaves behind his wife Gwenand his four children, Ashleigh, Thom,

Emily & Lachlan Pete’s funeral was held at the Holsworthy Barracks

Chapel @ 1000 Tuesday 14 Feb 2017. Commando 4 Life

VALE

NSW Association luncheon held at Carnarvon Golf Club

Photo credit Greg Tyerman



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The old and bold at Reserve Forces Day Sydney

AUSTRALIAN COMMANDO ASSOCIATION (NSW) INC

EVENTS CALENDAR FOR 2017

OCTOBER 14th (Saturday) ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING To be held at;"SIMPSON VC" BBQ AREARANDWICK BARRACKS1030 hours - Subject to security approvalMore information to follow.

NOVEMBER 11th (Saturday) REMEMBRANCE DAY AT DARLING HARBOURSERVICE HELD AT THE “KRAIT” Service starts 1030 hours

NOVEMBER 26th (Sunday) ASSOCIATION XMAS DINNERCARNARVON GOLF CLUBFamilies always welcome1200 hours for 1230 hours

Please direct your enquiries to our Secretary, Ted Hartley Mobile: 0408 647 237 or Email: [email protected]


Army Championships: 13 – 20 Aug 17 at Perisher, NSWADF Championships: 20 – 25 Aug 17 at Perisher, NSW

Skiers compete in Slalom, Giant Slalom and SkiercrossSnowboarders compete in Parallel Giant Slalom, Boardercross and Slopestyle

Applicants must attend the Army Championships for a chance to be selectedfor the Army Team to compete at the ADF Championships.

Members should seek approval to attend from their Chain of Command now!

For more information / application forms search ‘AAASA’ on the DRN.


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NSW Members attending Long Tan memorial serviceVietnam Veterans, Fred Death, John Kinsela (now OAM), Ken Moore,and Peter Pool represented the

NSW Association at the invitation of the NSW Premier.



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I met Ray Simpson VC DCMtwice though the circumstancescould not have been moredifferent.

As a onetime soldier thereare days you do not forget.

Though I never actuallyspoke to "Simmo" the daysremain, especially the last one.

The first time was 1969having joined 1 CommandoCompany, a Reserve unit in themiddle of 1968. I was sitting inan upstairs classroom at ourMiddle Head Barracks.

The occasion, a lesson forour platoon on the "M79"grenade launcher.

The instructor was the thenSGT Barry Hopkins, "Hoppy" orthe "Frog". Captain Hopkins died a few years ago aftersome 40 years of service to the Army Reserve andCommandos. A friend and mentor to all, Barry was abig man in every way.

At his funeral we were all handed by Tina, hispartner of many years, an emerald styled broach in theshape of a small frog.

Back to the lesson, someone had paused at thedoorway behind us. Barry invited him in, "Fuckinggood weapon!" Simpson had a way with the Aussielanguage.

I barely noticed, we all sat silently and listened.Barry encouraged "Simmo" to tell us something aboutits use, experience with the M79.

As I recall many years later, his story went some -thing like this.

"Simmo" was taking a break from the war in anupstairs room of a small hotel. His only companion aSpecial Forces pack with a bit of personal gearincluding extra clips for his only weapon, a Colt 45handgun. He was awakened in darkness by the soundof explosions and gunfire.

The TET offensive had begun.With the 45 and a few clips he went down onto the

street to investigate. He found an upturned "Jeep"and from it retrieved a M79 and a quantity of shells. Hemust have returned to his hotel to get organised. Withno effective communication he simply did his ownthing.

"Simmo" hit the streets, he had his 45 in his waistband and pockets full of spare magazines.

In his hands he carried the M79, and as "Simmo"would have said, a "fucking pillowcase full of fuckingbombs that were the rounds for the M79.

He had roamed and patrolledthe streets and alleyways.

Every time he came on one ofthe groups of bad guys infiltratingthe area, he put a few bombs intothem and moved on.

With daylight approaching andbombs running out he returned tohis hotel to catch up on somesleep.

That was the input we hopedfor in our lesson.

He grunted a goodbye andgood luck with a knowing grin.

He was smaller than I hadimagined, older, leaner with alined face. He looked more to melike a stockman after a lifetime onthe land, rather the soldier he trulywas.

The second time I met Ray Simpson VC DCM some18 months later was different. After seven months andone week in a full leg plaster, I was desperately tryingto get fit to join SASR.

It would have been December 1970, living on myown, unable to work, two marvellous Warrant Officers,Gary Holmes and John Sheehan, having cheated thebooks, put me on Commando Courses which I couldn'tpossibly do in plaster with my broken leg, but they gotme paid.

I remember to this day what they did for me. Sadlythey're now both gone before their time.

I guess it was a Small Raids Course, I limped into thekitchen/dining area to scrounge a lunchtime feed. Attimes other units used our facilities to run their owncourses.

I noticed three young officers finishing their lunch.At these times the unit would employ, as I con -

sidered them, "down and out winos" from Darlinghurstas kitchen hands.

In the Army and Ambulance Services years later, Ilearned not to judge others so quickly.

They did the "Dixie bashing", clear the tables, mopthe floors, all the menial tasks for a small remuneration,a good feed, hot shower and a clean bunk.

As I sat down, a table away from the young ReserveOfficers I glanced towards the kitchen area.

There scrubbing away at the kitchen trough was RaySimpson. I was confused, what was he doing here?

I chose to pretend not to recognise him. There wasno reason he would remember me from a classroomthe year before, I realised then he would have left theArmy for the last time since the previous year.

(Continued on page 23)

Warrant Officer Ray Simpson VC DCMRecollections of "Simmo" by Bill Merchant



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I thought I had lost my chance for the SAS with myleg, but I hadn't.

Simpsons time in the Army had gone, it could neverreturn, so why was he here "dixie bashing"?

It would have been channelled through his greatmate WO Gary Holmes. Take from it what you will, tome it became a memory of not only a great warrior, butof the man he truly was.

There would be an ironical end to this meeting.Simpson had walked out from the kitchen area to cleantables including that of the young officers.

The officer at the end of the table looked up atSimpson, saying "Would you clean this up now!" Orwords to that effect, I don't recall the details, I do recallthe knowing smirk to his mates that went with it.

I shook my head at this petulant display by a futureleader of men.

Leaning back in my chair I waited, this ought to begood, no way I was going to miss it.

Simpson gave no acknowledgement that he hadheard anything but simply carried on with his duties.

Wiped the tables down, picked up the dishes andwalked back to the kitchen.

The officers didn't know what to do, say somethingagain, let it go or what.

As I stood up to leave, Simpson had gone to thestore room behind the kitchen. I stopped and turned totheir table saying "Do you know who were talking tothere?" They glared up at me, WO Ray Simpson,Victoria Cross and Distinguished Conduct Medals.

I drew the words out, he's retired now. A moment ofdisbelief then realisation. The one on the end, thecolour drained from his face.

His mates appeared to physically lean away fromhim. I watched them for a few more seconds thenturned to walk away.

Simpson was standing over the kitchen sink, I wasnot aware of how much he had heard.

He inclined his head slightly towards me, lookingdown he commenced to wash the dishes again.

Perhaps washing youthful arrogance away with thefood scraps from their plates.

Not by what he said, but by what he hadn't.I walked out, Simpson had never spoken during this

incident.I left that dining room and was never to see Ray

Simpson VC DCM again.Bill Merchant

1 CDO 1968 - 1971SASR 1971 - 1980

WO Ray Simpson VC DCM… (Continued from page 21)

1ST COMMANDO REGIMENTSOLDIER AWARDED OAMWarrant Officer Class One “R” Medal of the Order of Australia

For meritorious performance of duty in makinglong-term contributions to the operational andtraining capability of the 1st CommandoRegiment.

“Warrant Officer “R” has made an exceptionaland enduring contribution to the operationalcapability of the 1st Commando Regiment andother major units.

His consistent personal contribution, selfsacrifice and commitment have made him anenduring example to which all Commandos canaspire.

His contribution has been marked by hisextremely professional demeanour and his un com -promising quest for excellence in his individualand supervisory skills.”

Australian Army The Queen's Birthday 2017 Honours List 12 Jun 2017 The citation simply does not convey the

outstanding contribution this soldier has given tothe Regiment over the past 35 years.

He has been an inspiration to all who servedwith him and those that still serve with him.

Legend !Reg Davis, 2nd/6th Cavalry Commando Squadron

enjoying Anzac Day in Sydney". (Photo by Greg Tyerman)



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On the wrestling mat, inthe jungles of Vietnam andin his own mind, JohnKinsela has fought morethan his fair share of battles.

Earlier in his life, hisservice was recognised withmedals and badges. Now hehas received another award:The Medal of the Order ofAustralia.

Mr Kinsela, 67, said hewas grateful to receive sucha “big honour”.

“It’s all them years thatyou put into a sport, and it’sgood to know you’re gettingsomething back,” he said.

Mr Kinsela’s lifelongpassion for wrestling startedat Redfern PCYC, or PoliceBoys’ Club as it was thenknown, when he was a teenager. He was just 19 whenhe became the first Aboriginal man to representAustralia at the Olympics for wrestling, at Mexico in1968.

The following year he was conscripted to fight inthe Vietnam War, where he served for two years as agunner.

The painful memories of the war returned to MrKinsela all too soon, when he wrestled again forAustralia at the 1972 Munich Olympics. He remembersbeing in the courtyard of the Olympic Village when thefirst shots rang out at the start of the deadly Israelihostage situation.

“All of the sudden you could hear the AK-47s goingoff, and being in Vietnam the year before I thought,‘no, not here’,” Mr Kinsela said. “I just put it down asloud firecrackers, not thinking anything like that hadhappened at the Olympics.

“At the end, there was 11 people killed. Some ofthem were wrestlers and one of them was the wrestling

manager. It kind of hit homebecause it could’ve beenus."

Mr Kinsela became acourier and moved to Black -town with his wife Yvonne,where they raised their threechildren. He also served inthe Army Reserve Com -mando Unit for seven years,r e a c h i n g t h e r a n k o fCorporal and being namedCommando of the Year in1981.

Kinsela at Mount DruittPCYC, which he has lifted tobe one of the top wrestlingclubs in the State with thehelp of Stephan Jaeggi, hisformer protege and nowfellow coach.

His service to wrestlingincludes volunteer work at PCYCs including Burwood,Bankstown, Hornsby, Black town and now Mount Druitt.He has trained Olympic wrestlers, and fought his ownbattles away from the spotlight.

Mr Kinsela speaks frankly about overcoming post-traumatic stress disorder and losing his brother, afellow Vietnam veteran, to alcoholism.

Many of the men he served alongside have beenlost to suicide or cancer, which Mr Kinsela partiallyattributes to the effects of Agent Orange.

“From 2001 to 2003 was the worst part of my life,because things weren’t going well,” he said. “I wasdrinking, smoking, all these things. I didn’t have anyself-esteem.”

He said he owes his triumphs in life to goodmentors. Through wrestling and his work withIndigenous justice, he has now become a mentor toothers.

Courtesy of the Blacktown Sun

JOHN KINSELA OAM

John with Sigmund Jablonski OAM, also Vietnam veteranand ex Commando.



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Having been involved with this unique historyproject since its inception when I was in the SAS in1996, it was a pleasure to attend the launch of the11-part documentary at Government House in Can -berra in 2016. It is the only TV history ever supportedby the Australian SAS using rare, archival andamateur vision and also with photo galleries andmany interviews to support the main story. Majorcredit goes to Major General Mike Hindmarsh forchampioning Bruce Horsfield’s persistent project andensuring its fruition twenty years later. While apersonal history of the men that have served, thedocumentary sets the context and background witha focus on the origins of SAS, its ongoing selectionprocess and its metamorphism from the uglyduckling of the SAS Company in 1957 and the SASRegiment in 1964, through to the ‘Force of Choice’within the modern-day Australian Defence Force.The narrative portrays the hard-won triumphsthrough war and peace by an accumulative total ofjust over 2,000 political and strategic soldiers withtheir success based largely upon their selection asindividuals and the constant renewal of the SASthrough the relentless pursuit of ex-cellence in theRegiment’s ethos of ‘train/prepare hard, operateeasy’.

The ‘Confrontation’ border war in Borneo in1965was fought by long duration patrols in inhospitableterrain. Shooting and navigation skills were asimportant as hearts and minds patrols during thecovert ‘Claret’ operations. The SAS was mocked forits secrecy by the rest of the Army but such was theprice to pay for providing plausible denial forelectronic warfare activities. From Borneo the SASfound themselves con-tiguously deployed into PhuocTuy Province for the counter insurgency war in SouthVietnam largely to ‘watch the back’ of the AustralianTask Force. Recognizing the jungle afforded aguerrilla sanctuary, the SAS used guerrilla tactics tomake the jungle unsafe for the Viet Cong so well tothe point that the enemy placed a bounty on SASsoldiers, dead or alive. Modifying and having choicein weaponry and equipment was a distinguishingfeature of the SAS operations. Among many aspects,the documen-tary covers the perennial problem inthe delay between SAS reporting of the enemy andthe follow-up by the Task Force. The war was thestart of the helicopter dependency that exists to thisday with patrol insertions by helicopters at tree toplevel being described as the wildest ride in the world.

The SAS would ‘pray to 9 Squadron RAAF, beforetheir thoughts turned to God’. After the Tet Offen -sive in early 1968 the SAS faced a much more difficultand confident enemy, and there was a US-drivenfocus on the very high SAS kill ratio largely becauseof their highly successful but often hair raising directaction patrols. The documentary high lights theintense strain, fear and contained terror of constantpatrolling. None the less, the SAS operators felthamstrung in not being given the opportunity tobring their true strategic value to the battlefield; somuch so that they described it as ‘harnessing thewinner of a Melbourne Cup to a plough’. Fordecades, the Australian public would not learn whathad been achieved by their SAS.

Post-Vietnam, the peace time doldrums and afocus on the defence of Australia challenged the veryexistence of the SAS. The huge expanse of northernAustralia’s terrain and coastline was seen as vulner -able and the SAS compromised their strategicemploy ment by patrolling as a surveillance screenuntil they could pass this role off to Regional ForceSurveillance Units. A major positive of this time wasto be the comprehensive development of the desert-based vehicle mounted tactics and equip-ment andthe long-range strategy which would prove devas -tatingly effective in Mid-dle East combat operationstwo decades later. A significant change thenoccurred when the SAS spearheaded a counterterrorist force in ‘Aid to the Civil Power’ which led tothe separation of the black counter–terrorism andgreen war roles. This was a period of incrediblechange in the early 1980s as SAS sustained thecounter-terrorist force at almost immediate readinesswhile searching for a new strategic purpose. Thedocu mentary is studded with human interest storiesabout developments in parachuting, climbing, sur -vival, vehicle mounted and water operations. Thislong pe-riod of peace and lack of operationalmissions was assuaged by overseas training, standbyoperations in Fiji and Vanuatu and some nicheoperations and force augmen-tation roles in Bougain -ville, Somalia, Rwanda, Cambodia and the SolomonIslands. Ultimately through the preparation for theSydney Olympics and an injection of tech-nology, thegreen and black roles evolved into a singularcapability and it became more obvious that usingstrategic troops as only a fire brigade simply did notmake sense. Still, the SAS struggled to renew itself

by Professor Bruce Horsfield,University of Southern Queensland, 2016

Reviewed by Jim Truscott with Rick Moor, Steve Patersonand Robert Kilsby

COMMANDO NEWS ~ Edition 10 I June 2017 27(Continued on page 29)



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and cut free from two decades without major combatoperations by anticipating new paradigms, com -mencing foreign lan-guage training and progress inoffensive information warfare. However, it was alsostymied by the lack of developed strategic forceprojection and heavily punctuated by the Blackhawkhelicopter disaster. Close to home, the documentaryrecords the mag-nificence of SAS wives but also thehell of injuries and the ‘SAS injury checklist’. The SASwere in effect punished by being put back underArmy control and saved only by the major deploy -ment to Kuwait in the phoney Gulf War in which SASserved as a political instrument. In the subsequentTampa refugee crisis, the SAS were also directlycommanded by the Prime Minister.

It was its key participation in the InternationalForce in East Timor that led the SAS to beinglabelled by General Cosgrove as the ‘unit of choice’.Effectively the SAS were the Commander’s success -ful eyes, ears and voice. The operation reinforcedthe value of SAS when used appropriately, andespecially when vectored onto target by high levelinformation and intelligence. SAS leveraged theirguerrilla warfare skills to work with the Falintil groupand to also mount high tempo interdiction opera -tions utilizing their developed intimate relationshipwith the Army’s Blackhawk helicopters. This classicraiding marked the start of two decades of combatoperations, but did nothing to significantly reducethe ongoing distrust by the regular infantry whoaccused the SAS of stealing their battlefield.

The 9/11 event in the USA was a huge catalyst,the SAS being committed within one month to theUS global ‘war on terror’ into the Helmund Valley inSouth West Af-ghanistan to dislocate Al Qaeda andthe Taliban. SAS chose to operate separately fromother coalition Special Forces in order to enterAfghanistan and through multiple hearts and mindspatrols they achieved a disproportionate effect. TheUS Force Commanders were impressed with SASreporting and vehicle mounted capability and theRegiment’s reputation grew quickly. The SAS thenrelocated to Kandahar just af-ter it fell and operatedall over Afghanistan where they experienced theirfirst battle death in over three decades. In one ofmany significant operations, the SAS operators soonlocated the enemy stronghold in the Shah-i-KotValley leading to their key par-ticipation in OperationAnaconda. Initially, they were used to confirm theenemy strength and disposition. However, they soonwalked into a Taliban and Al Qaeda ‘hornet’s nest’.The true battle then started with SAS patrolsperforming a blocking and interdiction role and also

working with the Northern Alliance coalition forcethat was to assault the heavily fortified villages. Afterthe initial assault was blunted, the operation in theShah-i-Kot Valley was delayed for many days. In -credibly, one patrol spent the entire battle directingthe air war over a very complicated battle space, andso contributed significantly to the destruction of theinsurgents. Accordingly, the SAS won internationalrecognition, and in the words of US Marine GeneralJames ‘Mad Dog’ Mattis, the US would “storm hellwith the SAS”. At that point, the US shifted theirfocus and the SAS joined the punitive invasion of Iraqin 2003 to penetrate deep into Iraq’s western deserton the strategic missions to prevent scud missilesfrom be-ing launched, along with creating a psycho -logical presence well beyond their num-bers. In 2005,the SAS returned to Uruzgan Province in Afghanistanand for the next ten years conducted a significantnumber of highly effective surgical strike operationsagainst the Taliban and their leadership cadres.During this period, the SAS earned the accolade ofthe ‘bearded devils’, as well as two Victoria Crosses.

This documentary is a history of a remarkablegroup of men who continue to run amok. Thereasons for it becoming a ‘force of choice’ may notalways be obvious to the viewer. In major part, theSAS reason for success is their operators who canwork alone, enabling a higher tolerance of risk and aconstant focus on pushing beyond skilled com -petence. At the operational level, there is intensivemarketing in peace to Australia’s political centre ofgravity and an equal focus when committed in war toworking the fight to get into theatre and winmeaning ful tasking. Operations themselves arecharac terized by intensive planning, inherent secrecy,asymmetric thinking and speed of action to getinside an enemy’s decision cycle. In a word, surprise.Surprise comes from being able to do what otherfriendly forces cannot do and surprise also comesfrom being unexpected from the enemy’sperspective.

Apart from its historical significance, the docu -mentary serves as a high quality, com-prehensiverecord of the SAS Regiment’s history and will furtherilluminate its significant deterrent effect. History hasproven that in some ways the greatest political use ofthe SAS is the perceived intention to use them andnot the actual application of force itself. The docu -mentary is akin to describing a strategic weapondelivering a multi-mission payload with global strikecapability. The documentary in its entirety should bemandatory viewing for every aspiring filibuster,commando, operative, secret agent, and generals,admirals and marshals alike. Australian governmentsand politicians can only benefit from daring to watchand giving due diligence to enhance and maintain theincredible SAS high standard of selection, training,and operations.•


(Cont’d from page 27)



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• Krait was slipped on 14th December 2016. Over theChristmas period the hull planking (ie underwater &topsides) was stripped bare of paintwork for accessfor the Fleet Hull Surveyor to undertake a full surveyassessment of the hull’s condition.

• Whilst the underwater area hull structure wasgenerally in sound condition, the topside planking(ie planking from weather deck to the waterline) wasfound to be wasted & worn, requiring additionalrenewal of planking in addition to work outlined inthe Slipping & Repair Specification.

• As the refit progressed, when some of the defectiveplanking was removed additional work was requiredon the exposed futtocks (frames) which had rottedaway internally (ie approx. 6 No futtocks). Thesesections of the futtocks were renewed to theoriginal specification.

• As of today, the majority of the hull planking &framing has been repaired (a total of approximately85 linear metres of additional planking to that listedin the original Slipping & Repair Specification,approx. 10 linear metres). Recaulking & puttying upof the plank seams is almost completed. Newbreast hooks have been fitted at the stem area.

• The next stage is for the replacement of the maindeck & bulwarks throughout IAW the Slipping &Repair Specification. It is envisaged that there maybe additional repairs required to the deck beamsetc. on removal of the deck planking

• Apart from the timber repairs, additional repairwork has been discovered on the removal of thesteel rudder shaft & the propeller tail shaft.

• Extensive research as to the layout of MV Kraitduring the Jaywick Raid in 1943 was undertaken bythe ANMM resulting in a comprehensive GeneralArrangement produced by Mr David Payne, the

Senior Curator of the Museum. Consequently a1943 Configuration Specification was producedwhich included: -A. The fitting of four bulkheads B Fitting out the Radio Room in No.3 Hold C. Fitting out the additional fuel stowage

compartment in No. 4 Hold D. Fitting out the Galley at the aft end of the main

deck.• At present there appears to be a shortage of funds

to complete this 1943 Configuration, however, it ishoped the fitting of the bulkheads be done whenthe main deck planking is being renewed at thepresent slipping period, with the remainingconfiguration work being undertaken alongsidewhen funds become available. (See attachedGeneral Arrangement drawing)

• This refit is being carried out at Michael BartleyShipwrights at Woolwich Marina, Sydney. Theyoung shipwrights & apprentices are gainingconsider able experience & knowledge of traditionalship & boatbuilding practice & are producing a highskill level of workmanship.

• It must be stressed this refit is to restore & maintainthe structural & watertight integrity of this historicvessel.

• The 6LW Gardner diesel engine which was installedin Cairns prior to the Jaywick raid has been fullyrestored by the ANMM Fleet Staff Volunteer marineengineers & is in fine working order

• In conclusion, It must be remembered we have an83 year old historic vessel which requires a fair dealof restoration work in order for her to survive eitherin or out of the water for many years to come, forthe benefit for all to appreciate the significance ofher wartime exploits & those who served in her .

Warwick ThomsonFleet Hull Surveyor (Krait)

ANMM4th July 2017

MV Krait 2017 Refit

Progress Report (July 2017)

MV Krait - General Arrangement – 1943 Configuration Drawn. Mr David Payne – Senior Curator ANMM Apprentice Shipwright caulking hull planking seams (July 2017)



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Chief of Army recognised by the US for exemplaryservice.

Lieutenant General Angus Campbell, AO, DSC, wasrecently honoured by the United States for exemplaryservice with the award of the Legion of Merit -Commander.

The United States awards the Legion of Merit forexceptionally meritorious conduct in the performanceof outstanding services and achievements to membersof the seven uniformed services and also to militaryand political figures of foreign governments.

The Commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps,

General Robert B. Neller, veteran of OperationsRestore Hope (Somalia) and Just Cause (Nicuragua),bestowed the honour upon LTGEN Campbell in aceremony in Washington DC.

The Legion of Merit is awarded in four variousclasses: Chief Commander (to heads of state);Commander (service chiefs or similar); Officer (star rankto colonel (E)); and Legionnaire (all others). The Legionof Merit - Commander, as awarded to Chief of Army, isthe second of only two US ‘neck order’ medals, that isto say they are worn around the neck.

Congratulations to Lieutenant General Campbell.



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Ola Sever ”Ocker” Stevenson OAMWar Veteran, Military Trainer, BuilderBorn March 24 1939 BrisbaneDied April 25 2016 Brisbane

Ola Stevenson grew up in Mount Isa and completedan apprenticeship as a carpenter with Mount Isa Mines.He Joined the Army in 1961 and served 30 years, risingfrom a Private to Warrant Officer Class One.

He initially joined 3RAR before seeking selection tonascent Special Air Service. He passed the unit’srigorous selection and moved his family to Perth.

His first operational service came in 1965 during theconfrontation with Indonesia.

In 1968 he went to Vietnam, serving a year as aPatrol Commander with SAS. Most of his time wasspent in a world of quiet professionalism and stealthyreconnaissance, but occasionally it was explosivelyviolent as many of his patrols were “recce-ambushes”.

Returning home for a short break he returned toVietnam in 1970 with the AATTV. He initially servedwith the American Green Berets, commanding aplatoon of Montagnard Hill tribesman, while thesecond half of his tour was spent as an instructor at thelong Range Reconnaissance Patrol Wing of the VanKiep National Training Centre.

On his return to Australia Ola was posted to Sydneyto join 1 Commando Company. Over the next fouryears he instructed on boating, roping and rappelling,climbing, raid and submarine familiarisation courses.

Many of the skills developed by AustralianCommandos were pioneered during this time and Olawas at the forefront.

In 1975 he moved to the Parachute Training Schooland was eventually appointed RSM of the school.

He was a consummate instructor, teacher andmentor, possessing rare gifts of being able to impartknowledge and build confidence in his students.

In 1984 ha was made a member of the Order ofAustralia for his services to Parachuting and SpecialAction Forces training.

Ola left the Regular Army in 1985, finishing hisservice as RSM of Queensland University Regiment,although, for the following 15 years he continued toreturn to PTS as a reservist.

During his 35-year military parachuting career hemade 2720 descents from the Philippines to Vietnamand Saudi Arabia. In all he completed more than 4000jumps.

When he left the regular army Ola returned tocarpentry. He was known around Brisbane as an “oldschool” tradesman, doing things the traditional wayand people appreciated his craftsmanship. He only putdown his tools aged 74.

In his later years he remained intellectually andphysically active, reading voraciously and walking his

beloved dogs. He died at his home on Anzac Day2016, survived by three sons and three grand -daughters.

WO2 Ola (Ocker) S. Stevenson OAM, RAINF, SAS,AATTV. Ocker served in South Vietnam as a WO2 withAATTV from 27 Aug 1969 to Sep 69 attended 5thSFGA Combat Orientation Course Nha Trang, Sep-Dec69, platoon commander, 2 MSF, Sub 5th SFGA, Pleiku,Jan-Apr 70, LRRP Wing Van Kiep Training Centre, May-Aug 70, Phuoc Tuy, National Training Centre. Ockeralso served in South Vietnam with 3 SAS Sqn 14 Feb 67to 2 Mar 67, 1 SAS Sqn 3 Mar 67 to 27 Feb 68.

In addition to unit citations awarded to AATTV,Ocker was also awarded the US Silver Star and the USBronze Star for Service.

Soldier at forefront of SAS Training



Chuuk Lagoon, also known as Truk Lagoon, is asheltered body of water in the central Pacific about1,800 kilometres north-east of New Guinea. It islocated mid-ocean at 7 degrees north latitude and ispart of Chuuk State within the Federated States ofMicronesia. The atoll consists of a protective reef, 225kilometres around, enclosing a natural harbour 79 by50 kilometres with an area of 2,130 square kilometres.It has a land area of 93.07 square kilometres with amaximal height of 443 metres and it has a populationof 36,158 people. Weno city on Weno Island functionsas the atoll's capital and also as the state capital and isthe largest city in the Federated States of Micronesiawith its 12,000 people. (Google)

In 1914 Imperial Japan acquired control of theIslands of Truk which, with its large Truk Lagoonstrategically provided Japan with an excellent naturalharbor that could accommodate the largest ships ofthe Imperial Japanese Navy.

Concentrated fortifications were built throughoutthe islands that encircled Truk Lagoon with facilitiesincluding five airstrips, seaplane bases, a torpedo boatstation, submarine repair shops, a radar station allprotecting the vital military base from attack by air orsea.

In the latter part of the Second World War“Operation Hailstone”, the code name for the assaulton Truk Lagoon, caught the Imperial Japanese Fleetwith devastating effect on February 17th & 18th 1944.

The American armada included 5 Fleet Carriers and4 Light Carriers supported by a fleet of sevenbattleships, numerous cruisers, destroyers, submarines,a variety of support ships, and more than 500 aircraft.

Japanese losses resulting from the U.S Navy attacktotalled over 250 aircraft and 45 ships with many otherImperial Japanese Fleet ships damaged. Among theships sunk were cruisers, destroyers, sub-chasers,tankers, and cargo carrying supply ships.

Our diving expedition was organised and co -ordinated by highly experienced ‘Allways Dive’specialists Geoff & Vanessa Skinner and included in theparty were Ken, Shelly, Janet, Robyn, Gillian & Peter,Gail & myself who all meet at Brisbane Airport Saturday11th February. The flight to Truk from Brisbane took usto Port Moresby where we enjoyed a stopover at BlueLagoon prior to boarding the Odyssey at 5pm Sunday.There we were joined by an American couple Judy andSherwood plus two young women from the UK, Rosieand Sharon making fourteen in all.

Our number included three doctors, Vanessa (ADive Specialist), Robyn and Sherwood plus a nurse,Shelly.

Our dive boat ‘Odyssey’ was a live aboard 132 foottwin screw all steel boat powered by two 330horsepower Detroit Diesel engines specially fitted outfor diving. It was last refitted in 2008 with 7 twin cabinsand has the ability to provide both Compressed Airand Nitrox, which all divers used on all dives as Nitrox

ALWAYS DIVE TRUK LAGOON



has an advantage over Compressed Air with moreallowable bottom time and less time spent on ascentdecompressing.

Cabins are comfortable and self-contained. Thealarm goes off each morning with a start-up of theengines at 6am followed by breakfast at 6.30am and abriefing on the first dive of the day. All divers are in thewater by 7.30am and most days consisted of four divesper day, including a twilight or night dive. On the lastday there were three dives because the first was adeeper dive of approximately two hundred feet on theSan Francisco Maru,

This ship was called the million dollar ship becausein 1944 it was carrying over one million dollars’ worthof cargo (still on board) consisting of sea mines,detonators and fuses, artillery pieces and shells,torpedos, tanks, Zero aircraft and huge amounts ofammunition. We were advised that the addition of‘Maru’ after the ships name means a Merchant Ship ofthe Japanese Imperial Navy.

The last day’s dive was inside both forward hatcheswith a bottom time 15mins, where we experienced onlymoderate growth, good visibility and relatively clearwater (full sun zero wind and no cloud cover). Twodecompression stops were made on ascent at 60 footand 20 foot of approximately 40minutes in total usinga single 80 cubic foot aluminium tank which provided ahealthy safety margin.

Other dives on this trip included Heian Maru,Yamagiri Maru, Destroyer Fumitzuki, Shinkoku Maru,Hoki Maru, Pizion Reef (a shark dive), Rio De JanieroMaru, Nippo Maru, Fujikawa Maru, Kensho Maru andSankisan Maru, and a Japanese Mitsubishi G4M BettyBomber.

Admiral Yamamoto, the mastermind of the attackon Pearl Harbour had had his headquarters aboard theYamato whilst anchored in Truk Lagoon which, with itssister ship Musashi, were the largest battleships ever

built by any navy. He was killed on April 18th 1943when the Betty Bomber he was flying in was shotdown.

The wrecks of the 45 ships destroyed are scatteredall over Truk and in the vicinity and the conditions ofthese wrecks range from upright and almost fully intact,to blasted in half or alternatively blown to bits andscattered across the bottom.

The crew of our dive boat ‘Odyssey’ consisted ofCaptain Lenny an American, Dive master Dar alsoAmerican with the remaining crew including anengineer, cook and assistant, five other crew includinga night watchman, all locals. All of the crew were diverswho have a day of cleaning and maintenance everySunday before changing to a new crew for thefollowing week. All are hard working with a cheerydisposition, the boat is spotless in all areas andmaintenance is of a high standard. Food is very goodand varied although it would be easy to over eat if youwere that way inclined. The bar opened each day afterthe last dive however with exception of Saturday (whenwe gave it a nudge), all drinking was of a very mode -rate nature and all drinks were included in the deal. TheOdyssey ticks all the boxes and is a credit to CaptainLenny (also the owner) and the crew.

All in all I would recommend Allways Dive- Geoffand Vanessa Skinner and the team including Prukeshfor a very well organised and seamless diving trip.

The location, Truk in Micronesia, would be very hardto beat as an idyllic location with perfect weatherconditions. Getting to it is easy from Australia nowthere is a direct flight from Port Moresby whereaspreviously flights were through Guam.

All other attendees made for a friendly andcohesive group with plenty of laughs during the day.The only downside was that it ended too soon. This isa must to go again trip!

Bruce Parker

UNKNOWN DEPOSITS NSWThe following deposits were made to the NSW

Association’s accounts recently.As there was NO NAME on these deposits we

are unable to assign the amounts to a members’account.

The bottom 2 appear to be for “Q” Storepurchases, however, once again, we don’t knowfrom whom.

Please advise our Treasurer Ivan Kelly if theseapply to you.

[email protected]

7-Jan-16 CAPE CU LJC Subs $30.0022-Sep-16 ADC 2016 Mbrship Fee $30.0015-Mar-17 DFS Ref 60842 $49.2219-Apr-17 DFS Ref 60842 $49.22



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I thought we should share this account of early High Altitude parachuting with you.

Most readers would not have known that this type of activity in Australia was virtually unknown until some

unsung heroes from an Army Reserve Special Forces Unit took the “big step” (literally).

HALO PARACHUTING IN AUSTRALIA “THE EARLY DAYS”Nostalgia from Bruce Horsfield

I read with interest and nostalgia an item in a Strike

Swiftly sometime ago, on Brian Murphy’s high altitudelow opening (HALO) free fall parachuting record back inthe 60’s. Brian’s achievement caught my imagination atthe time and I thought that your readers might like tohear about some other early HALO endeavours by amember of 1 Commando Company. In setting down myown HALO experiences as I recall them, warts-and-all, Ioften shudder at some of the vivid images that comesharply into focus in my memory, stern reminders of theproblems and dangers we were up against and thelimitations of our approach. Certainly, we were reallyestablishing civilian HALO parachuting in Australia andthere were critical times when our ignorance caught upwith us. But we were lucky, we were young and some -what brash, and we had some successes. And now, ofcourse, with the wisdom of hindsight and middle age,we’d probably not take as many risks as we did in ourthree attempts on HALO altitude records.

“High altitude” is an imprecise term but my memoryhas it that “HALO” jumping is free falling from over20,000 feet - that height above which the free fallparachutist is required both to use the inboard aircraftoxygen supply and to carry a separate portable oxygensupply in free fall.

* * * * * * * Early 1958, at age 17, I was the sole volunteer in D

Company, University of NSW Regiment - the scruffy,university student conscript CMF unit that was theNewcastle part of UNSWR. I had never heard of 1Commando Company but after a chance meeting atHolsworthy with the unassuming and very professionalBrian Murphy I was delighted in September ‘58 to passthe medical for 1 Commando Company, transfer from DCompany and get my black beret. On the Taronga Zoobus to Georges Heights on the first Tuesday paradenight I met Corporal Mike Wells. Later Mike showed mesome photos of the free falling that he, Brian Murphy,Barry Evers, Red Harrison and others were pioneering(and, painfully, without canopy deployment sleeves!) atCamden, south west of Sydney. This really looked likeabsolute lunacy to me at the time, and I mentally

dismissed parachuting as unnecessarily dangerous anddefinitely to be avoided. Worse, during my Green Berettraining I was dismayed to learn that the Para course wasthe only compulsory course in the unit. I seriouslythought that I would quietly resign from 1 CommandoCompany. But as many of us who have been through theunit have no doubt found, with its effective training andgreat esprit de corps, I gradually started to warm to theidea of parachuting. I had always been air minded andloved heights and would have enlisted as a pilot in theFleet Air Arm in 1957 had my father allowed me. Theolder hands in 1 Cdo wearing their Para wings cer tainlyseemed no worse for the experience (read: if they canget their wings then so can I!)

So, in April 1960 I grasped the nettle and did my firstfrightening static line jump from 1200 feet with SydneySkydivers at Camden using a 28-foot British X-type ex-Army static line parachute. The jump platform was alumbering but adequate De Havilland Dragon twin-engine biplane. By the time I did the Para course atRAAF Williamtown in November 1960 I had alreadycompleted eight static line jumps and two “jump andpulls” i.e. with ripcord deployment from 2,500 feet.Barry Clissold had also started jumping at about thattime and we were the only “experienced” jumpers onour Para course, smugly watching 20 others fearful andutterly miserable first jumpers on the first long, longsortie until we started to catch the jitters from themanyway. Gradually I got hooked on free falling andbought my own ex-USAF main parachute and reserve,so that a few of us could go up country on weekendsand make a plane load to get higher altitude jumps.

At Camden in 1960 a free fall of 5-10 seconds wasregarded as pretty sophisticated stuff. While we werevery keen, none of us demonstrated much skill in orknowledge about free falling. The near blind led theblind. True skill in free fall - and high altitude air spaceso close to Sydney - were both very scarce. Sadly, wewere restricted at Camden to 3,500 feet above terrainby Air Traffic Control at Mascot. Of course, skydivers cannever get enough altitude and non-bivouac week endswould often see a few of us in Goulburn or Bathurst for



higher altitudes. By 1962 we were profi cient atstabilising and turning in longer free falls of 7,000–8,000feet above terrain. We knew little of HALO jumping (Idon’t think the term had been invented) and we werestill a bit timid about altitudes above 10,000- 12,000feet. HALO jumps from the troposphere (alti tudes up to37,000 feet) and the stratosphere (above 37,000 feet)were remote, fantasies to ponder over a beer. No onethat we knew had experienced free falls from either ofthose levels. Anyway, what would be the requirementsfor oxygen? We understood that in-board oxygen wasrequired above 10,000 feet AMSL by the thenDepartment of Civil Aviation and there were stories thata personal oxygen supply in free fall was alsocompulsory above 20,000 feet AMSL. But where couldthe small personal bottles and oxygen masks to carry infree fall be obtained? Who had that sort of gear?Moreover, suitable aircraft that could make it to higheraltitudes were expensive and hard to find. But all thiswas more in the realm of pub talk, for at this time wewere mostly preoccupied with mastering stability andlinking up with each other in free fall, and trying to steerour canopies to land dead centre on the DZ marker.

But because of our love of free falling the mystiqueof high altitude parachuting – prolonging the free fallpart of the jump - persisted with many of us. Were therereal dangers in a long free fall, we wondered? Could youlose control, and go into an accelerating flat spin thatwould cause blackout, as we read had happened in theUSA? That is, my generation of jumpers in the early ‘60’sthought mainly of the free fall part of the jump, and notbeing skiers or climbers asked few if any questionsabout the environment of the troposphere. Not havingever been seriously exposed to the frigidity of highaltitude, we had no sense of the hazards of hypo - thermia, exposure, sub-zero temperatures, frost bite,frozen altimeters, and the decline in mental per -formance, judgement and gross and fine motor skillsresulting from hypoxia. (We didn’t of course know thatwe would soon get first hand experience of these thingsthe hard way!) To us HALO was all just a fantasy fuelledby a frustrating mixture of timidity, ignorance, curiosityand a desire for adventure. Obviously, by this stage I’dcome a long way since my dread of the basic Paracourse. One detail we weren’t worried about thoughwas the chance of missing the drop zone on a HALOsortie. Just getting to the ground in one piece would donicely. Anyway, the spotting on our sorties was oftenlousy in the early 60’s and we all knew what it was like tolug our gear a long way back to the strip after a poorspot!

But skydivers elsewhere, free of the altituderestrictions of Camden, pushed ahead. Suddenly,drama tically, higher leaps started happening around us.Laurie Trotter, an early ‘civvie’ skydiver, set an Australianaltitude record with a 60 second delay from 12,000 feet.At Camden our parochial little group of skydivers weregrudgingly impressed. Then, to our surprise and delight,Brian Murphy made a successful attempt on Trotter’sAustralian high altitude free fall record using a Cessna

210. Brian’s free fall from 17,000 feet - astonishing at thetime - broke not only Trotter’s 12,000 feet Australianrecord but also our own psychological and physicalresistance to the HALO environment above 12,000 feet.Then a NZ skydiving team using a supercharged AeroCommander 680F attained a remarkable 27,000 feet - awondrous, absolutely mind-blowing excursion into theupper troposphere even by today’s standards. And, forwhat it was worth, it was a Southern Hemisphere highaltitude free fall record. They exited at 27,000 feet andpulled ripcords at 2,000 feet. To most of us at Camdenthat sort of operation and altitude seemed out of ourleague. I remember wondering at the time just how sucha jump could be possible.

However, times and people change and in 1965 Idecided to give it a go. We - Robin Godwin, a civviemate, and I - would attack the Kiwi’s Southern Hemi -sphere HALO record of 27,000 feet. Brian Murphyunselfishly lent us each a portable oxygen cylinder (DeHavilland Vampire jet fighter ejection seat cylinders,each with a 7 minute constant flow supply), which wasrequired for jumping above 20,000 feet AMSL by theAustralian Parachute Federation. Brian had acquiredthese little bottles for his own HALO record attempts(deferred indefinitely following a knee injury whileparachuting). We were lucky to get cost - free an AeroCommander 680F, in a sponsorship deal with the thenAvis Rent-a-Plane. The Avis pilot, Captain Peter Ahrens,assured us that the 680F could beat the Kiwi’s 27,000feet. At this stage I had done 147 jumps, mostly freefalls, the highest being a 45 second delayed openingfrom 9,500 feet without oxygen equipment.

Our plan was to free fall from the Aero Commander’sabsolute ceiling – we had no idea what this would be -to 2000 feet, open parachutes, and land in LakeIllawarra where boats of the Kanahooka Motor BoatClub would retrieve us. Along with us on the sortie as“drifter” (a term used to refer to a device for gaugingthe wind strength and direction after take off but also tojustify a free jump) was my younger brother - anotherRobin, aged 18 - who was doing his 45th jump. (Soonafter, in January 1966 during the Vietnam War, Robin“celebrated” being conscripted by doing 40 jumps inone day onto Aero Pelican strip, Newcastle. Rob hasvery good legs!) As our drifter, Robin was to free-fallfrom about 16,000 feet to 2000 feet and land in the lake,exiting the aircraft as it climbed to whatever altitude thepilot could attain. The Aero Commander had its own in-board passenger oxygen console for our use on theclimb and we would carry the little 7-minute ejectionseat oxygen cylinders tied to our reserve chute bungies.These would be connected to our $5 Army DisposalStore WWII “12 O’clock High” oxygen masks – oldish,but in mint condition, like the candy striped USAFmilitary surplus parachutes that we used. We wouldchange over from the aircraft oxygen console to ourportable cylinders on the dropping run, just prior to exit.The air space clearance to all altitudes from Air TrafficControl Mascot was for Sunday 14 February 1965 fromfirst light to 0700 hours. Piece of cake!



We spent an uncomfortable night before the drop onthe floor at the Albion Park Aero Club. Next morning,mindful of Brian Murphy’s report of the deep cold hehad experienced on his own record jump, we ate ahearty meal of steak and eggs thinking it would keepour bodies warm on the sortie. It was a meal we wereshortly to regret having eaten. Then, to make it easier toget from our aircraft seats to the rear doorway for exit,we reversed the Aero Commander’s seats on their floormountings so that all of us, except the pilot, CaptainPeter Ahrens, faced the rear door, which we removed forour exit under the port wing. This also meant that all ofus - pilot included - had our backs to the 680F’s oxygenconsole, into which we were all plugged. Several dayspreviously we had sought to familiarise ourselves withthe aircraft oxygen console and low-pressure con -necting lines and fittings but unfortunately - andominously - we couldn’t organise it with Avis staff. So, aswe geared up next to the aircraft for our SouthernHemisphere HALO Record bid, we were full of steak andeggs, rash optimism and the confidence of youth. Notonly were we totally unfamiliar with the vital oxygensystem on the Aero Commander but we had alsoingeniously managed to arrange the seats so that allfour of us, pilot included, were sitting with our backs tothe all - important oxygen console. Moreover, neither ofus had used Brian’s Vampire ejection seat bottles before,even in a rehearsal, since once the lanyard was yankedthe flow could not be turned off, requiring a time-consuming service by Hawker de Havilland at Banks -town. Youthful impatience resisted such extravagantwaste of time!

However, the morning was clear and calm and so wegeared up in parachutes, life jackets, oxygen cylinders,balaclavas, gloves and ski masks and heaved ourselveson board the Aero Commander. The aircraft’s take-offgave us our first discomforting surprise, for to us thespeed and rate of climb of the supercharged Aero Com -mander were simply incredible, and to me as jump -master/dispatcher quite disorienting. Accustomed tounder powered Austers, the old De Havilland Dragonand the odd struggling Cessna, where there was ampletime in the slow climb to altitude to think about thejump ahead, we were riding in a rocket by comparison.This resulted in less time to adjust mentally to the newenvironment of high altitude – a feeling of being“rushed” and of not being in complete control of oursortie.

As we climbed steeply over Lake Illawarra, what hadbegun as clear sunny sky suddenly started to clag rightin underneath us. A sea drift of thick, opaque cloudbegan rapidly to obscure the ground and lake. In notime we were at 18,000 feet and I dispatched brotherRobin, who enjoyed a very long free fall to the lakethrough the last, fast-disappearing small hole remainingin the cloud cover. Pulling at 2,000 feet, he laterreported a very pleasant and satisfying free fall. As the680F shot on up into the troposphere the completecloud cover settled in well below us - but how far below,we could not tell merely by looking down at it. We had

no DZ controller with ground to air radio and even ifwe’d had ground control there was little they could havedone to guide an aircraft that they could barely hear andcouldn’t see. In fact, by 19,000 feet we had absolutelyno specific idea of where we were, and I couldn’t do myusual visual spotting for the exit point because therewere no landmarks visible. A moody dawn sky above thecloud added to the sense of strangeness and uneasinessof it all and we had no plan of action for finding a lostDZ. Navigation for the dropping run and exit pointtherefore devolved entirely on the radio navigation skillsof our pilot, Peter Ahrens, who seemed to have caughtthe spirit of our record attempt. No one, including thepilot, thought of calling it off because of the total cloudcover. It had taken much organisation, time and effort toget this far, and we were determined not to abort thesortie if we could avoid it.

Then as we approached 25,000 feet I started to dozeoff to sleep, rationalising to myself that the previous fewdays jump preparations and the rough night’s sleep hadbeen a little fatiguing and that a cat nap before thedropping run would surely do me the world of good. Ofcourse, as a new chum I had no idea that I was driftinginto the cosy seductiveness and fatuous serenity ofhypoxia. This disaster struck very quietly. Unnoticed byus, behind our backs all three oxygen lines - pilot’sincluded - had simply dropped out of the oxygenconsole to the floor under their own meagre weightbecause of slack bayonet fittings. We did not know wewere breathing only the thin inadequate atmosphere.So, there we were, hurtling upwards, dead to the worldin a deep hypoxic slumber. In his sleep Robin vomitedup his steak and eggs into his oxygen mask and all overhis reserve ‘chute, clothing, his seat and the carpetedaircraft floor.

Suddenly I woke up, nauseous and very groggy.Where the hell was I? What was going on? As I struggledto gain some awareness I realised that the aircraft was ina steep dive. Fortunately for us all, Peter Ahrens, anexperienced pilot, had detected early the symptoms ofhypoxia in himself and was descending as quickly as hecould to a safe altitude. I was light-headed, sick andweary, but felt even worse when I realised that ourprecious record attempt was RS. But then Robin wokeup and I thought fast. (The inflated arrogance, mindlessurgency and insatiable appetite of youth!) I reassuredthe pilot confidently that we were ok to jump, but at firstPeter didn’t want to know. Although I felt dreadful, I wasinsistent, making me speak briskly and moving pur -posefully to show him how wonderfully recovered andnormal I really was. It was a shameless con. I shudder tothink of how we must have looked and sounded. ButPeter, sizing us up, finally agreed to give it another go,and called up Air Traffic Control Mascot for an extensionof time. I refitted our oxygen leads and held them intheir sockets, and the pilot pulled the aircraft’s noseback up. We managed to get to 25,200 feet before ourextra time ran out. Peter then signalled us to jump. Wechanged over from the aircraft bottle to our 7-minute



supply portable bottles and crawled into the opendoorway.

Poking my head through the doorway I looked downon a vast white floor of thick cloud thousands of feetbelow us. Where, under all that cloud, was our LakeIllawarra drop zone? Far to what was probably the westof us a mountain peak nosing up through the cloud maypossibly have been near Burragorang, but as far as myaddled judgement was concerned it could have beenany feature at all. Peter was working overtime crankingthe RDF handle above his head trying to fix our positionwithin a triangle formed by three terrestrial non-directional radio navigation beacons (NDB’s). He keptnodding vigorously to us that we could jump, butlooking down on to the complete cloud cover Ihesitated in the doorway. I wondered sluggishly if fixingone’s position by triangulating NDB’s was accurateenough for us, as only one NDB could be lined up at atime, and with the great speed of the Aero Commanderit seemed that a large margin of error was likely. It didn’toccur to either of us or to the pilot to abort the sortiebut because there is only a thin strip of land betweenLake Illawarra and the ocean I was afraid that we mighteven be out over the Tasman Sea. If we jumped perhapsno one would see us and we might be lost out to sea.Peter continued to put the Aero Commander into a fast,steeply banking orbit - clearly, he thought that we wereover the drop zone. I wasn’t as confident as he – I hadbeen on sorties where the pilot had insisted on doingthe spotting and it was always very inaccurate. It alsocrossed my still sluggish mind that we didn’t knowwhether the base of the cloud cover was right down toground level or was at our parachute opening height of2,000 feet, or was higher, or lower. But finding the DZwas our absolute priority and accuracy now dependedentirely on the pilot’s navigational skills. As we banked ina continuing 360-degree circle I kept gesticulating tohim, “Where are we? Can we go?” But with our sevenminute portable bottles starting to run low, pinpointaccuracy became an academic question and despitefeeling very vulnerable and disoriented, our dwindlingoxygen supply forced the decision. I dived through theterrific slipstream of the port engine into the vast void ofspace and sky, Robin Godwin following immediately.

As I stabilised in free fall, the sun peeked over thehorizon of the cloud floor far below and my ambertinted ski goggles treated me to an enthralling,spectacular display of colour as the eastern sky and theentire terrain of cloud turned rich pink, orange andcrimson. Instinctively I did a 90-degree turn and facedthe rising sun. (At this stage I had been studying thetranscendental nature poetry of the Lake Poets such asWordsworth and Coleridge for my BA degree and, highon a blend of their pantheistic Naturfilosofie and thedrunkenness of hypoxia, I found this solitary splendourof crimson cloud at high altitude total, spiritual andcalming. In a crazy, irrational way my orientation to earthand sky inverted, as it were, so that the sky above meseemed solid and the ground below distant, ephemeraland unimportant. The Lake Poets would have

approved!) But this transcendental “high” was suddenlyinterrupted, for as I reached terminal velocity in free fallmy 12 O’clock High oxygen mask was blasted off myface and I was forced reluctantly out of my reverie andback to my immediate problems. Holding my oxygenmask firmly on my face with one hand while strugglingto maintain free fall stability with the other, I started towonder how much height I had left, since, still under theinfluence of the solar psychedelics and still not mentally100%, I hadn’t noticed whether my 10,000 feet altimeterhad wound past zero once or twice. So with the softsurface of the cloud cover below now starting to rush atme, I grappled with my frenzied oxygen mask and withthe problem of whether I was at 18,000 feet or 8,000feet. Dawn suddenly turned to dusk as I plunged intothe grey-white gloom of the cloud mass, but my mentalclock told me that my altimeter needle had in factwound past zero twice. I took a punt and pulled at whatI hoped was 2,500 feet, and not 12,500 feet, still in thecloud. As I floated down out of the cloud base I saw theground and could see that I was at 1,800 feet - notabove Lake Illawarra or the Tasman Sea, but above theland strip between the lake and the Tasman. RobinGodwin landed nearby. That was good enough. “A bigthanks to our able pilot, Peter Ahrens”. Spotting withNDB’s is a fine thing, and to be highly recommended!Who wanted water landing anyway?

On the ground I still felt sick from the hypoxia and abit dazed and weary from the whole experience, but Iwas glad to be in one piece. It turned out that RobinGodwin had waited until clearing the cloud beforepulling his ripcord and I must ask him one day how heknew that the cloud base wasn’t at ground level.Perhaps he was keeping close tabs on his altimeter as hefell. Afterwards we enjoyed a day or two of media hype,but we had had a taste of HALO and promptly startedplanning to better both our Australian record of 25,000feet and the Southern Hemisphere Record of 27,000feet of the New Zealand team. We were feeling quitepleased with ourselves, for our sortie could easily havebeen a disastrous and embarrassing failure (puristswould say that it was anyway!). True, if we hadn’tblacked out we could have possibly made 30,000 feet orbetter in the time available. But we had gained someinvaluable experience with oxygen and with operationalplanning. We hadn’t been cold at all at 25,000 feet or atany time on the flight, even with the door removed.Perhaps we were too hypoxic to notice, but I don’t thinkso. I thought at the time that perhaps we stayed warmbecause the aircraft climbed so quickly that we didn’thave time to lose much body heat. But we were soon todiscover the hard way that the time of year affectstemperatures “upstairs” a great deal.

Now, how were we going to beat the Kiwi’s 27,000feet record? Finding a suitable jump aircraft was no easymatter. The Avis Aero Commander was no longeravailable to us as Avis went out of the rent-a-planebusiness soon after (but not because of!) our jump. Aftera very long and frustrating search we managed to findanother sponsor when WD and HO Wills agreed to pay



for the Aero Commander 680F of King Ranch Australia.The pilot, John Laffin, assured us that his 680F had anabsolute ceiling of over 30,000 feet. So, on 12September 1965 the two Robins and I flew up to Cowrafor the record attempt - but without the steak and eggsbreakfast this time. To avoid the pleasures of hypoxia wedid good aircraft oxygen and equipment checks beforetaking off. At 22,000 feet, I despatched brother Rob(with 53 jumps still regarded as too inexperienced forthe higher altitude “men’s” stuff) and we continued toclimb towards the 680F’s maximum ceiling.

But before long the plummeting temperature in theaircraft became excruciating. The cold was absolutelyappalling. The frigid blast from the port propeller wasrammed in through the open doorway, icing into opacityour goggles and altimeters, reducing us to sluggish -ness, numbing our hands and fingers and giving ourclothing, faces and parachute rigs a heavy coating offrost. I had never experienced anything like this in myentire life. Pilot John was obviously suffering greatly tooand a more wretched trio I couldn’t imagine. Hypo -thermia was rapidly debilitating us. However, despitethe terrible wind chill factor and deep cold, we never -theless continued the climb. After all, that’s why we werethere!

But it wasn’t to be. At 27,000 feet - equal to theheight of the New Zealand altitude record - the oil in theport engine thickened from the cold and the pilot had tofeather its three bladed propellers. I can’t recall it clearlybut my logbook states that for some reason my mateRobin blacked out at about this stage and that he didn’tregain consciousness until a lower altitude was reached.On only one engine the Aero Commander droppedrapidly and by the time we changed over from aircraftoxygen to our portable cylinders and exited we weredown to 18,000 feet - ironically, an exit height lowerthan brother Robin’s 22,000 feet only a short whilebefore.

I shall never forget the frigid misery of the free fallthat followed. Already hypothermic, I found the cold infree fall unbearable, piercing my thick layers of clothing,gloves, balaclava and helmet. My skull chilled and I feltthat my brain was freezing - I might as well have beenfree falling stark naked. To try to avoid the awful cold Irolled onto my back into the “dead horse” position, sothat the main parachute pack might provide a shieldfrom the painfully cold blast of free fall. But to no avail.I was chilled to the marrow. I perhaps should haveopened my parachute high to end the pain, but notknowing the wind strengths and directions at allaltitudes and not knowing where I might drift off to, itreally wasn’t an option. Mercifully the opening height of2,000 feet finally arrived, and, my fingers being in -operable, I pulled the ripcord with my thumb.

What a forgettable sortie! With a glum sense ofanticlimax, we packed up and flew back to Sydney. Wehad not beaten the Kiwis’ Southern Hemisphere or evenour own Lake Illawarra Australian record. To be fair, wehad had no warning during the Lake Illawarra recordattempt of the perils and difficulties of extreme cold at

high altitude, and so had not really given it any seriousthought on this second attempt.

But we weren’t yet ready to call it a day, and despitethe awful obstacle of hypothermia we still wanted tobeat the Kiwis - if possible, without the problems ofoxygen and cold, which had detracted from our earlierefforts at Lake Illawarra and Cowra. WD and HO Willswere a bit put off by our Cowra failure but sportinglyrallied to meet the costs of a Fokker F27 Mark 1Friendship turbo prop airliner from the then East WestAirlines. An airliner, no less! Yes, thanks! We invitedKenny Bath, an instructor at Sydney Skydivers, to join usfor this third attempt on the Southern Hemisphere HighAltitude Record. We told Ken about our loss of 10,000feet of hard earned altitude at Cowra because of theslow changeover from aircraft to personal oxygen. Heturned up with male and female couplings for each ofus, which, he said, would enable us to do a quickerswitch over from the aircraft oxygen, supply to our littlepersonal bottles so that any loss of precious oxygen oraltitude would be negligible. I was so reassured by thiscunning display of engineering initiative that I didn’teven try out the couplings, but left Kenny to fit a pair toeach of our personal cylinder oxygen lines. It all seemedso simple.

East West Airlines shrewdly moved our third recordattempt to Grafton in northern NSW for two reasons: a)it was a sea level drop zone, providing “free” altitudecompared with higher inland drop zones such as Cowra,and b) there was turbine fuel for refuelling. The Fokker’sabsolute ceiling would be greater with a partial fuelload. Our inboard aircraft oxygen consisted initially ofthe pressurised interior of the Fokker, then medicaloxygen cylinders from CIG strapped to the seat next toeach of us for when the aircraft depressurised above20,000 feet. The spotting at high altitude was the job ofthe pilot, Captain Jim Swan, who would fly on a headingat whatever altitude he could attain straight down theGrafton runway and signal us when to jump. Knowingthat the oxygen changeover on the dropping run wasmore important than where we would land I had noproblem with this plan. (After the jump, we foundourselves only a forgivable kilometre from the strip.) Onthe dropping run we would therefore have ample timefor an unhurried changeover from aircraft to personaloxygen systems. On the climb, although depressurised,we would keep the Fokker’s sliding rear passenger doorclosed so that the cabin heaters could warm up theinterior. This proved to be very successful in keeping uswarm before and thus during the free fall. However, afterthe deep cold of the Cowra jump, I had readily acceptedBrian Murphy’s kind offer of his padded USAF aircrewquilted nylon inner suit for the jump (where did he getthat, I wondered). Again, because of the previous effectof deep cold on my fingers, I swapped my leathergloves for large leather motorcycle gauntlets, whichwere mitten-like, without individual fingers – my thumbwould have to pull the ripcord. Ken Bath and RobinGodwin had white cotton overalls on and warm clothingand balaclavas. In the quilted USAF suit I looked and felt



like something from outer space, especially as it was toobig for me. I had no opportunity to try the suit out in freefall before the big day – if I’d tried it out in free fall Iwouldn’t have worn it on the record bid. In view of ouroxygen problems on the previous HALO sorties thequestion of whether we should fit barostats (automaticparachute opening devices - “AOD’s”) to our reserve‘chutes came up, but most AOD’s were poorly regardedat the time as on several trials they had pulled theripcord D Ring of the reserve chute after the parachutisthad landed! So we didn’t take the idea of AOD’sseriously for HALO jumping.

To add to the sense of occasion, I invited 30skydivers at ten dollars a head to come along with us fora rare cheap leap from 10,000 feet from a FokkerFriendship, the money to go the Royal North ShoreHospital Paraplegic Unit. (There was some grumblingfrom the fraternity about both the money and myrestricting their altitude to only 10,000 feet, but I feltthat if we went higher for the 30 fun jumpers, therewouldn’t be enough time to fully oxygenate the three ofus between their exit altitude of 10,000 feet and ourproposed exit altitude at whatever the aeroplane couldattain. It was simply a matter of priorities.) Two weeksbefore the jump I asked my older brother David, whohad served as an IO in UNSWR, to fly with East WestAirlines to a recce of the Grafton drop zone on ourbehalf and bring back a good field sketch of theenvirons – terrain, trees, natural and built hazards etc.What could go wrong when everything was so wellplanned?

So, on a calm and sunny 24th of October 1965, weall flew from Sydney to Grafton, geared up and took off.I insisted on personally despatching each of the threesticks of ten skydivers on three runs at 11,000 feet. TheFokker’s sliding rear door and the handy airhostess’phone to the pilot made my jumpmaster’s job a dream.No NDB’s needed here! I was in form on the day and allthree sticks landed very near the white cross on theairfield. I enjoyed that very much (“First stick, stand up!”sort of thing). Then I closed the door, returned to myseat, went on to the CIG oxygen and the aircraft re-pressurised. After we passed through 20,000 feet wedepressurised and awaited the climb to the Fokker’sabsolute ceiling and the pilot’s signal - relayed to us byRon Walesby, the Manager of East West Airlines, whichwe were soon to commence the dropping run. After thehypothermia of Cowra the Fokker was cosy and warm,and the big medical oxygen cylinders with their clearlycalibrated flow meters roped to the seats next to usworked well. At 31,000 feet, with the Fokker’s rate ofclimb right down, Ron signalled to us that we were onthe dropping run - time for us to change over to our littlecylinders, get quickly down to the back door, slide itopen, and jump. Nothing to it. However, my motorcyclegauntlets did not permit a quick, nimble-fingeredoxygen changeover using Kenny Bath’s male and femalefittings. So, to conserve my seven-minute personalsupply I removed my gauntlets, activated my portable

bang-seat bottle, and disconnected my 12 O’clock Highmask from aircraft supply and plugged into the low-pressure line from Murphy’s portable bottle. As the malefitting snapped home, I felt an unexpected whoosh ofair in my oxygen mask. But I could not pause toinvestigate this oddity, because Ron was motioning tous to be on our way to the rear doorway. I put on mygauntlets, stood up, plodded down the aisle of theFokker to the back door and pulled it open. As I did so,I heard a loud sharp bang, like a double bunger,followed by another sharp bang. Puzzled, I waited at theopen doorway, but neither Ken nor Robin joined me.Then Kenny came down the aircraft to the doorway withthe shredded end of his portable bottle’s low-pressureline in his mouth. This was probably not what one hopesto see on a well-organised HALO jump. But, recognisingthere was nothing that could be done; I held my oxygenmask firmly to my face and stepped out of the door intospace, Kenny following. Robin Godwin did not join us atthe doorway before we jumped.

We worked out later what had gone wrong. Wehadn’t known that the male and female fittings Kennyhad obtained for us had a one-way non-return valve thatwouldn’t open until the fitting was actually snappedhome. Kenny had made no mention of the one-wayvalves – maybe he did not know about them either. Theportable bottles, once activated, had simply built uppressure behind the one-way valve until the linesexploded. With the whoosh into my mask I had escapedby only a few seconds a similar explosion, because, ofthe three of us, I was the only one who had happenedto remove his gloves to affect a quick oxygenchangeover. Kenny was lucky in that his line explodednear his mask and was still long enough to simply put inhis mouth. Robin Godwin was not so fortunate: his lineexploded near his personal bottle lashed to his reserveparachute and so it wasn’t long enough to reach hismouth unless he wanted to unhook his reserve ‘chuteand free fall with it under his arm! At 31,000 feet, withthe aircraft depressurised and his free fall personaloxygen supply unusable, Robin looked down the fulllength of the Fokker to see Kenny and myself departingthrough the open doorway. Deciding that it was toogood a picnic to miss, Robin got up, oxygen or nooxygen, charged down the aircraft and out into space.He reported no ill effects or hypoxia from this, and wethought it must be good value to be well oxygenated athigh altitude if you can manage it.

My own free fall of 29,000 feet was a mess. The 12O’clock High mask was again ripped away from my faceby the blast of the free fall. But my quilted nylon jumpsuit, while warm enough, had such a low coefficient offriction with the air that I found it virtually impossible tostabilise in free fall. I skidded and skated all over the skylike a beginner on a skating rink. Worse, the suit was fartoo big for me, and unimpeded by the three-pointparachute harness the inner suit billowed, concealingmy ripcord handle, which totally disappeared into thebillowing folds of the inner suit. I spent almost the entire



free fall alternatively looking for the bloody ripcord,wrestling the oxygen mask back onto my face andcarefully counting the needle of my 10,000 feetaltimeter three times past zero. Interestingly, although itwas still only spring and the pilot recorded an outside airtemperature of minus 67 degrees Fahrenheit at our exitheight of 31,000 feet, I had no sensation of coldwhatsoever on this sortie and neither did the others.Being warm in the Fokker on the climb had presumablydone the trick. I was also interested to learn from afriend who was a Professor of Physics at UNSW thatterminal velocity in free fall from that altitude in thethinner air was probably about 340kph (or, in myslippery nylon tent, probably 400kph!), and that theduration of the fall was over two minutes.

So, third time lucky. We had the title. The mediacame to the party, WD and HO Wills threw us a bigreception and presented us each with a nice trophy,suitably inscribed, and all the cigarettes we couldsmoke! Our jump had finally beaten the New Zealandersand our record stood for something like six or sevenyears at least, when I think a Victorian team achievedabout 32,000 feet using a Beechcraft King Air. We werelater somewhat galled to learn that at Grafton our pilotcould have possibly got the Fokker even higher. But asits rate of climb on the dropping run was only 40 feetper minute (very low indeed) it was not clear what extraaltitude could really have been achieved on that sortie,short of removing all the seats and stripping the aircraftof everything removable. Had I known in advance,though, I would have taken my spanner with me andassisted in stripping the Fokker.

There was a worthy outcome to our oxygenproblems: later the Australian Parachute Federationarranged for its members to accompany QANTAStrainee pilots in the high altitude simulator decom -pression tank at RAAF Richmond, which I did. Althoughit came after the event, the RAAF tank was a valuableexperience of medically controlled hypoxia that I couldheartily recommend to my fellow skydivers. The mainmessage about hypoxia was that you could feel normaland confident but at the same time have seriouslyimpaired judgement and cognition.

Although I subsequently tried hard to break ouraltitude record with a night free fall from 38,000 - 40,000feet, we couldn’t find an affordable, adequate aeroplaneand Grafton was in fact the last of our HALO jumps. Wehad learnt a lot about oxygen and its portability, aboutcombating extreme cold, about the psychology ofperforming arduous physical and mental tasks, and - thehard way - about sound planning and rehearsal,especially with new equipment. The dollar cost of theaircraft is probably still a major factor – if you can affordthe right aeroplane then you will be spared theproblems of hypothermia and hypoxia.

Now, I wonder what a 747 costs per hour…?For the record this is impossible due to the door

opening mechanism on a Boeing 747. Editor(Cpl) Bruce Horsfield

1 Commando Coy, 1958-1962



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The Positive Relationship betweenPhysical Activity and PTSD

Exercise has a positive clinicaleffect on depressive symptoms andmay be as effective as psychologicalor pharmaceutical therapies for someindividuals with PTSD. Rosebaum etal, 2014 suggests Physicalactivity/exercise is a highly effectivemethod in reducing symptoms ofdepression and for peopleexperiencing other mental healthdisorders.

Evidence demonstrates that anappropriate exercise intervention canachieve significant benefits tosymptoms, depression, anxiety andstress, changes in body shape andsedentary time associated withPTSD, and non-significant trends forsleep quality improvement accordingto Rosenbaum, 2013.

The associated symptoms and theimprovements may be related topsychosocial benefits of theintervention, rather than functionalcapacity, but there is also a strongempirical (observational) linkbetween improvements in functionalcapacity and psychological statusaccording to the author, 2016.

People with PTSD are four times aslikely to have type 2 diabetes(Lukaschek et al, 2013) and rates ofoverweight and obesity are as highas 92%. To add to these statistics,suffers of PTSD are shown to beless physically active due to anumber of factors including pain,dysfunctional and general lack ofdesire or both, according Boscarinoet al, 2004.

Adding some form of regularphysical activity can have asignificant effect on a sufferer ofPTSD. It’s important to note, the typeof activity doesn’t matter, whatmatters is that the person is movingand also having fun doing it. If youwould like to become physicallyactive again and help to combatsome of your PTSD relatedsymptoms then please consult yourGP and discuss your options forreferral to another health careprofessional (exercise physiologist orphysiotherapist) for help with yourother associated or co-morbidconditions ie lower back pain,arthritis and or obesity.


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Internet banking details (Overseas)

Account with institution/swift code – ANZBAU3MBSB: 012010 Account No. 777000675Beneficiary customer – Police BankDetails of payment – Account No. 41117, Australian Commando Association (NSW) Inc.Quote name and Subs/Qstore etc.

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Commando News Autumn 17_Layout 1 21/07/2017 7:42 am Page 50


Sitting by a camp fire watching the flames. Relaxing in cool fall night basking in the silenceNo worry to be seen nor problem to be tamedWondering why my mind remains defiant

I am in recovery you seeFrom things beyond my controlTherapy and drugs try to define meBut they are not my heart and soul

Somewhere within this messlies the real meSomeone with a future and driveNot the shell of the person you seeBut one who wants to survive

Despite all the help I have receivedI remain a veteran on the edgeBefore me lay two paths I perceive One to containment the other over the ledge

Failure and defeat are not an optionAfter all the pain of discovery I've been thoughCounselling, testing, interviews to exhaustionMultiple pains and anxieties to construe.

Tremors, anger, depression, suicidal thoughtsNumbness, phobias, anxiety, flashbacks as wellThe numerous nightmares I have foughtHave made my life a living hell

My sweetheart and friends say I am gettingbetterI learning to believe them to a point If anything I have learned to withhold myactions like a sweaterFor all my helpers work I am not one todisappoint

For every setback I have I fall to a higher planeMy healing is progressiveMy despair is never the sameMy failures are not regressive

I shudder in public places.Dislike load noises.Have a hard time remembering faces.But always keep my poise.

Multi tasking is not my gameResponsibility is not quite thereMy sense of achievement is not the same My accomplishments are sometimes fair

Instead of chasing the mighty dollarI strive to improve each dayMy realm of influence is a lot smaller So I accept what comes my way

I tackle the troubles I can handleAnd ignore the ones I can'tI won't dim another's candle Because we all have our own slant

I seek refuge with those who are close And leave booze and drugs behind I have no need to overdoseAs I use myself to unwind

My get up and goHas got up and wentWhenever I want to do something My energy is already spent

Exercise is good for depression So the doctors sayNot doing any is a transgressionSo I must get on my way

We have so many exercise machines Collecting dust and laundryWhy we bought themIs a quandary

The words "we are going to do better"Resound around the houseMy mind is in a fetterMy will's as weak as a mouse

If you measure my motivationI won't make the cut What I really need Is a swift kick in the butt

As hopeless as it seemsIt is really not that wayThere is healing in my dreamsI look forward to that day

POEM

I LOOK FORWARD TO THAT DAYby Wayne Federation



COMMANDO WIVES POEMBy Renee Boyd

I am a silent soldier, I am a Commando’s wife.I have no uniform, I wear no rank, yet I live a Commando life.

I may not do a “selection test”, but my challenges are real,My strength is tested time and again, along with character, resilience and zeal.

I may not carry an “Army” pack, but it’s a pack of a different name,It may hold children, groceries or rigours of life,I carry it, and block out the pain.

I may not be part of a Company, and I often must survive alone,But I hold my dear friends close at heart and their support is my backbone.

I may not have a “Mess” to dine in, or rations to swap with a mate,The demands that are put upon me mean some dinners are “zapped” on a plate!

I may not run an Exercise, or instruct on the “CQB”,But I multi task with the best of them, I administer a family.

I may not hold a position, that can be reduced to an acronym,For I have many hats to wear – more so, in the absence of “him”.

I may not have a “Chain of Command”, to issue a “call out” in the mid of nightBut alone I will waken many times, to comfort children or dry tears from a fright.

I may not have a career mapped out, with guidance from peers above,My career is bent, broken and compromised, sacrifices I make for my love.

I may never receive a payment, for the quiet soldiering that I do,My work often goes unnoticed, and is appreciated by just a few.

I may never fight an enemy, or return injured or scarred from war,But I mend ‘his’ heart, I ease ‘his’ mind, and the wounds I dress are raw.

I may never carry a weapon, but I will always protect my own,I won’t drop my shield or lose my ground, I defend my love, my family and home.

I may never have the comradeship, to spin “warries” of the past,But the bonds with friends – shared fears and tears, forge friendships that will last.

I may never receive a medal, or march on ANZAC Day,But I stand tall in the quiet knowledge, that I too, have a role to play.

I am a silent soldier, I am a Commando’s wife.No uniform nor rank – just pride in knowing.


1941 - 1946

1955 -

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Australian Commando AssociationTASMANIA Inc.

COMMANDO FOR LIFE

ACA TASMANIA Mike Turner reports that about 45 prospective

members attended this year’s Reserve Forces DayParade in Launceston.

Some attendees travelled from Hobart andBurnie as there was some confusion from the TCadvertise ments erroneously nominating Hobart asthis year’s venue.

Speakers from Canberra included LT COLAndrew Farquhar, the Tasmanian Minister advisingthe Premier Guy Barnett and SGT Nev Thomas ofthe Light Horse Historical Corps who gave a 15minute talk on the Beersheba Charge.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

I apologise for my tardy reply which is due to familyissues including PTSD.

Here in Tassie we have an issue that all the knownex CDO persons are either a member of 1 or 2Associations and while the thought is we should have aTasmanian ACA Association with only 14 eligiblemembers there is not as yet the fiscal adequacy tomake it happen.

Our approach to the State Govt for foundationassistance was knocked back so we are really trying tocommence from behind the 8 ball.

Nevertheless, we are still looking to move forwardwith a couple of additional avenues awaiting explo -ration.

Cheers, Mike Turner



1941 - 1946

1955 -

-55 19


Australian Commando AssociationVIC Inc.

www.austcdoassocvic.com65 Ashburn Grove, Ashburton VIC 3147

COMMANDO FOR LIFE

President: Doug Knight Secretary: Glenn MacDonald Treasurer: Chris James


0400 877 323 0414 311 093 0438 987 136

On Sunday 18 September 2016 Doug Knight, a memberof the Australian Commando Association (Victoria) visited theMuseum of the Foreign Legion located in Augbane, Franceto deliver home a relic from the famous battle fields of DienBien Phu in northern Vietnam.

In 2008 while participating in an Australian Governmentfunded project with the Vietnamese Government, Dougvisited the famous battleground of Dien Bien Phu for a weekto study the battleground and in particular the locationswhere paratroops and legionnaires fought.

He had a great interest in this battle as it involvedsignificant numbers of French Army and Foreign Legionparatroops and he had studied this battle several timesduring his officer training throughout his career. Also as astatic line, freefall and HAHO/HALO parachutist, within the1st Commando Regiment, he was very keen to visit thishistoric paratrooper battleground.

While visiting DienBien Phu in an area hebelieved to be theformer bastion namedAnne-Marie 2, whichwas the last fightingposition of former 1stBattalion of ForeignLegion Paratroops (1BEP) he recovered oneberet badge from theground in an o ldfighting pit and anotherwas given to him byloca l v i l l age r who

claimed to have found it several years after the battle whilstclearing his fields.

Both of these badges have been retained since in Doug’sextensive collection of French parachute badges.

The purpose of Doug's visit to the Foreign LegionMuseum was to deliver one of the para beret badges to thecurator of the Legion Museum, Captain Geraud Seznec as inDoug's words 'he was returning the badge to its’ rightfulhome'.

Captain Seznec was exceptionally pleased to receive thebadge on behalf of the Museum and assured Doug that itwould take pride of place in the display cabi net of the Indo -china War.

RETURN HOME OF AN INDOCHINA LEGION PARA RELIC

Doug presenting the badge to Captain Seznec.

The beret para badge recovered

from the battleground

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An anecdote from a 2/5th member who was servingin New Guinea early 1943

A strange way to go home in 1943There is no doubt about it; the Japanese were desperate

to hold the Buna/Sanananda/Gona area after their defeat onthe Kokoda track.

My platoon who were over 100 miles away, not very farfrom Lae, received information on the fighting in this areanightly from our platoon leader.

The night before the final battle ended, our Lieutenanttold us to prepare to leave the next morning. He told us thatwe would be walking from Wampit, our home for the last fivemonths, to the south coast of New Guinea through countryfrequented by head-hunters. We were told by native policeattached to us that as these local people had never seenwhite people, they were not sure how the locals wouldreceive us? Our lieutenant then went on to tell us to put allrifles and machine guns in a great hole the natives had dug;they were then covered with 2 foot of earth.

One of our guys asked what we would do when we gotto the coast, and was told that we needed to fell a large treeand make a canoe out of it, to travel between the smallislands to reach North Australia. Everyone seemed happywith that decision. The one thing he did not mention wasthat these islands were infested with crocodiles. Maybe hedid not know that then, but we all know it’s a fact today.

Next morning our Lieutenant flew into our hut to tell usthe Japs had retreated and were heading back to the MilneBay Area, so our walk-about never got to start. He alsorelated that our buried weapons had been stolen overnight.

The police boys got to work, and all weapons were returnedin four days perfectly cleaned.

No doubt there would have been plenty of excitement inPort Moresby with the Kokoda and Northern Beachesvictories, however one of the Chiefs there must haveremembered that the 2/5th Independent Company boyswere still watching the Japs on the other side of NewGuinea.

Our food supply was non-existent, we had lived off theland for three months, cigarettes were never heard of.

A big surprise happened the following week when up thevalley of the Wampit River flew a B25 bomber, at a height ofno more than 25 feet. The bomb bay doors came open anda large box was dropped out. The framework of timberexploded in pieces when it hit the ground and left a shiny tinbox lying there which contained pulverised dog biscuits,these were used for porridge as we had powdered milk. Twoboxes of bully beef landed in a swamp, so they were lost. Ibelieve the bomber would have been doing over 300 mphduring the drop as the pilot needed to get out of the Laearea as the Japs had plenty of Zeros there.

Glenn, the spelling might not be the best, but thathappens as you near 94 years old. Hope our readers get achuckle from my recollection.

Regards,Jim Milgate

2nd/5th Machine Gunner

ACA VICTORIA member Bob McDowellhas close ties with Fromelles and Pozieres

This year marks 100 yearssince the World War I battlesof Fromelles and Pozieres –two of the deadliest and mostgruesome in Austra l ia 'smilitary history.

ACA member RobertMcDowell, brother Ian andnephew Stephen, laid awreath at the Shrine inMelbourne on behalf ofFriends of the 15th Brigade atthe Cobbers Statue on 19thJuly.

Bob was DNA tested toconfirm the link with SgtAthol Halliday McDowell, oneof the 1100 who went overthe top at Fromelles and paidthe supreme sacrifice for hisactions.


1941 - 1946

1955 -

-55 19


Australian Commando AssociationQLD Inc.

www.acaq.org.auPO Box 185, Sherwood QLD 4075

COMMANDO FOR LIFE

President: Nick Hill Secretary: Tony Mills Treasurer: George Mialkowski


VALECAPTAIN DON ASTILL, OAM (Retd.)

2nd/8th Commando Squadron11th February 1921 – 26th February 2017

Captain Don Astill was bornon 11th February 1921 to hisparents Joseph and Amy. Hisfather served in France duringthe WW1 and suffered ill- healthpost war as a result of hisservice. His Uncle Keith servedin the navy on the destroyerHMAS Stuart, and his otherbrother Roy, too young, helpedto keep the home fires burningat home. All the boys and theirsons attended Yeronga StateSchool and Brisbane BoysCollege.

Don enlisted in the CitizensMilitary Forces in September1939, serving with the 105thHowitzer Battery, the 101st Anti-Tank Regt. and the 2nd/4th Anti-Tank Regt. as a Lieutenant. He was on pre-embarkationleave, destined for Singapore, but was very fortunateto have missed the suffering, indignity, and brutality ofimprisonment.

Together with a few friends, he was given theopportunity of volunteering for Special Forces and,after a short course at RMC Duntroon and a veryintense officers’ school, he was posted to WilsonsPromontory, Victoria to assist with the formation of the2nd/8th Commando Squadron. The unit was destinedto be attached to the U.K. Commando units in Europeand had even been issued with the “Pommy” battledress, when these plans were aborted because of theworsening situation in the Pacific. The unit was thenmoved to Mudgeeraba, Queensland and spent threemonth’s training in the Lamington and SpringbrookNational Park areas. The Squadron was destined toassist the guerrilla forces in Timor but serious floodingin Queensland delayed the move and resulted in 17months of active patrolling in the Northern Territory, as

far as the Kimberley’s andArnhem Land. Some of thisactivity was spent in the rescueof pilots who crashed-landedafter mechanical failure orenemy action. Don and his 7thSection Officer were selected toattend an officers School in theNorthern Territory and it was afeather in the cap for his mate tobe awarded first and Donsecond. The Squadron thenserved continuously in NewGuinea, New Britain andBougainville for a period ofthirteen months, engaged withambushing, raids and recon -naissance. It was a highlysuccessful period for the loss,sadly enough, of only two

officers and six other ranks, whereas the unit wascredited with 1,200 enemy casualties. During this time,they worked behind enemy lines, supplied byparachute and free drop, and their success was a directresult of the intense training in Australia. An account ofall this has been documented in his book –”Commando –White Diamond”, published in 1990.

At the cessation of hostilities Don returned tocivilian life with a wool company, serving for many yearsas their State accountant. Don has been an activelegatee since 1981, including eight years as Treasurerfor the Gold Coast Club. In 2011 Don was awarded aMedal of the Order of Australia, mainly as the result ofmany years working for the development of cricket inQueensland, co- founder of a kindergarten, his role inthe formation of the Australian Commando Association(Qld) in 1946 and service as President, Secretary andTreasurer and in 2014 actively supporting andorganising the amalgamation of Post- World 2commando veterans into the ACA Qld


1941 - 1946

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-55 19

We conducted our second meeting recently at theEastern Regional RSL, Bassendean. Our host feared adouble booking and sent us to the business lounge,outside! Humble beginnings but the woodfire ensuredthe con versation flowed and we are planning someactivities for the next couple of months.

We will be planning social trips to catch up withmembers that can’t make the journey to us, planning abushwalking trip and attendance at more formal eventslater in the year.

If you know of any ex Commando types residing inWA can you please suggest they call Paul Shearer on0400 522 059 or email at [email protected] toget onboard.

Australian Commando AssociationWA Inc.

www.austcdoassocwa.comPO Box 297, Bassendean WA 6934

COMMANDO FOR LIFE

President: Alan Joyce Secretary: Paul Shearer Treasurer: TBA

[email protected] [email protected]

0447 433 934 0400 522 059

AUSTRALIAN COMMANDO ASSOCIATION WESTERN AUSTRALIAWell the Western Australian Commando Association is up and running.

L to R: Anthony Lear 4RAR(Cdo), Ian Prothero 1CdoRegt, Whoopi Sanders 1Cdo Regt, Darren Freeman 1 Cdo Regt, AlanJoyce 2Cdo Regt, Paul Shearer 1CdoRegt and David Aiton 1CdoRegt. Our Super Chook Garry White (660 Troop) arrived later.

AUSTRALIAN COMMANDO ASSOCIATIONWESTERN AUSTRALIA INC. (A1021762P)

The SecretaryPO Box 297Bassendean WA 6934Telephone 0400 522 059Email: [email protected]

Financial Year 1st January to 31st DecemberAnnual Fee $45.00The annual fee is subject to review by committee

Banking:Australian Commando Association WesternAustralia Inc.Bendigo BankBSB 633000Account No.160082228Please indicate name with deposit

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AUSTRALIAN COMMANDO ASSOCIATION - INC. Incorporated A.C.T A04607, ABN 93 194 911 542

1941 - 1946

“COMMANDO FOR LIFE”

Membership is open to all serving and former members of Special Forces.

The Committee will also consider applications for affiliate membership from other

persons who identify with aims and objectives of the Association.

1955 -

MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION SURNAME RANK & GIVEN NAMES

DATE OF BIRTH REGIMENTAL NUMBER or PM KEYS

ADDRESS (For Correspondence) Post Code

CONTACT DETAILS

(Home)

( )

(Business)

( )

(Mobile)

( )

(E-mail) @

NEW MEMBERS TO COMPLETE THIS SECTION

UNIT DETAILS Served With

From ................. To .................

ENLISTMENT DATE DISCHARGED/CURRENT

Served With

From ................. To .................

Signature Verifying Unit: e.g Commando Unit

Served With

From ................. To .................

Signature Position/contact details e.g RXO

Date Signature of Applicant Signature of verifying officer

It is up to the individual to provide proof of their service and membership may be refused if the Committee are unable to verify this service vide Central Army Records Office (CARO) or other Government authorities.

By Signing this Application you agree to be bound by the Constitution of the Australian Commando Association Inc. of the State Branch that you have nominated to join. (See Reverse side).

Note: The State Associations of the Australian Commando Association Incorporated are autonomous entities and comply with respective State Incorporations Act and Regulations. The President and Secretary of the State Branches are members of the National Committee of the Australian Commando Association Inc.

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Australian Commando Association Inc.

State Incorporated Associations

You are invited to join the Australian Commando Association Inc. family; Members are encouraged to join with the State Association that is convenient to your circumstance. The State Associations details are as follows: Please tick the box of your choice.

Australian Commando Association New South Wales Inc. (INC1400078)

The Secretary PO Box 1313 Sutherland NSW 1499 Telephone (02) 9644 8794 0425 279 111 email: [email protected]

Financial Year 1st January to 31st December Annual Fee $30.00 + $25.00 Joining fee for new members The Annual fee is subject to review by committee.

Banking: Australian Commando Association (NSW) Inc. Police Bank BSB 815 000 Account No. 41117 Please state your name with Deposit.

Australian Commando Association Victoria Inc. (A00114983Z)

The Secretary 1/48 Karnak Road Ashburton, Vic 3147 Telephone (03) 9886 9825 Mobile 0414 311 093 email: [email protected]

Financial Year 1st January to 31st December Annual Fee $45.00 subject to review by committee.

Banking: Australian Commando Association Victoria Inc. Bendigo Bank BSB 633000 Account No. 155069099 Please state your name with Deposit

Australian Commando Association Queensland Inc. (IA40186)

The Secretary PO Box 185 Sherwood QLD 4075 Mobile 0419 136 772 email [email protected]

Financial Year 1st January to 31st December Annual Fee $45.00 The Annual fee is subject to review by committee.

Banking: Australian Commando Association Queensland Inc. Heritage Bank BSB 638070 Account No. 12906174 Please state your name with Deposit

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