F/A-18 FIGHTER AIRCRAFT TRAINING OVER SYDNEY HARBOUR

The Australian Defence Force (ADF) will act in support of the NSW Police Force and other government agencies as part of the overall security arrangements for the APEC 07 Leaders’ meetings.

The ADF will be conducting training in and around Sydney during 29 August 2007 as part of a comprehensive program to practice its response to security-related incidents within Australia during the APEC Leaders’ Week in September 2007.

During the training, an Australian F/A-18 Hornet aircraft will fly along Sydney Harbour conducting one low level/low speed familiarisation flight of the area. The overall training activity in the harbour area will take approximately five minutes.

The training has been designed to have as little impact on residents and workers as possible but limited noise for a short period of time may be noticeable. The ADF regrets any inconvenience this important training may cause.

The training has been planned to coincide with the ceremony for the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the ADF and the NSW Police Force which reinforces a longstanding relationship between these organisations. This agreement provides for robust command and control arrangements in support of APEC security tasks.

Specific dates and venues are:

Date:   Wednesday, 29 August 2007

Time: Between 12:25pm and 12:35pm.

Place: The aircraft will approach from the eastern side of the Sydney Harbour Bridge turning above Goat Island and heading back in the original direction.

Flight details:  The Hornet will fly at no lower than 1,000 feet at approximately 250 knots. Flight path pre-arranged with civilian Air Traffic Control to de-conflict with any civilian air traffic.

Media Note. The ADF, Attorney-General’s Department and the NSW Police Force will be hosting a Joint Media event for the signing of the MOU at Wharf 3 at the end of Towns Place (off Hickson Rd), Sydney. Accredited media will gain access to the activities. Media are requested to be in location no later than 11:50am on Wednesday, 29 August 2007.  

Media Contacts

Squadron Leader Ivan Benitez-Aguirre               OP DELUGE Public Affairs          0418 269 686

Raveena Carroll-Kenney                                   Defence Public Affairs – NSW      0405 310 176

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