Gladstone guards our waters

HMAS Gladstone towing two Type III FFVs back to Thursday Island.

The Cairns based patrol boat HMAS Gladstone (LCDR Chris Smith) was kept busy during a recent six-week patrol off Cape York.

With Thursday Island (TI) as her adopted home base, she conducted patrols of the Torres Strait region. This region is one of Australia’s most important waterways, representing the shortest route to the east coast of Australia from Asia.

The patrol saw Gladstone involved in a rescue of a local fisherman, a change of command and a number of fisheries boardings, including the apprehension of three Indonesian Type III fishing vessels.

During one of the many visits to TI, a number of the ship’s company were involved in towing a small local craft back to the island after it had run out of fuel just south of TI. The rescue proved timely, as the area is prone to large tidal races.

LCDR Smith assumed command from LCDR Peter Ashen on July 2, with a farewell BBQ at the Joint Defence Facility prior to the official handover.

Shortly thereafter, a report of Foreign Fishing Vessels (FFVs) in Australia’s fishing zone, was received from Coastwatch, and Gladstone was on the hunt. She located and boarded two Type III fishing vessels. The first boarding was at sunset, the second three hours later.

The vessels had only just been handed over to Queensland Fisheries officers on TI, when Coastwatch sighted a third vessel. This third Type III was sighted and boarded early the next morning.

With three vessels and 20 Indonesian crew members to look after, the limited facilities on TI were stretched.

Whilst on patrol, Gladstone made weekly log visits to TI, with her ship’s company making the most of their time on the island. Lawn bowls, fishing and jogging all proved popular, and several crew members were lucky enough to fly with Horn Island-based Coastwatch.

With a busy and successful six weeks under her belt, it is with anticipation the crew awaits their next patrol, guarding Australia’s waters.

.