|
Australia Day at home and abroad
By
Graham Davis
-
CDRE Cam Darby, the Australian
Defence commander in Iraq, and his team held an Australia Day
function at their Baghdad headquarters, invited Coalition representatives,
cooked legs of lamb, sang songs and raised $800 for a local kindergarten
the Australians are supporting.
-
CMDR Nick Bramwell led his
ship’s company from HMAS Tobruk in a Freedom of Entry parade
to the city of Lake Macquarie. The Sydney detachment of the RAN
Band accompanied officers and sailors.
-
LCDR Steve Thompson took his
Darwin-based patrol boat HMAS Wollongong home to Wollongong after
an absence of five years. The ship’s company marched from
the local church to the Belmore Basin to join in a Blessing of
the Fleet activity.
-
CMDR Stuart Mayer and his
ship’s company in HMAS Canberra, visiting Sydney, took their
warship from Fleet Base East out into mid-harbour to act as the
flagship for the Sydney Harbour events.
-
LCDR Paul Hannigan RN, took
Shark 07, a Sea King from 817 Squadron to Sydney where the aircraft
flew up and down the harbour with a huge Australian flag suspended
from its cargo hook. During the early afternoon he returned twice
to winch sailors in a simulated search and rescue operation. The
Cruiser Wharf at Garden Island held a 21-gun salute as the Governor
of NSW Professor Marie Bashir moved past in the square rigger
Bounty.
-
CMDR Niel Wark, the commanding
officer of HMAS Cairns and a Navy colour party attended a flag
raising at the Cairns City Council ceremony.
-
CMDR George Sydney, the newly
appointed Senior Naval Officer to Tasmania, attended citizenship
awards and a flag raising ceremony organised by the Clarence City
Council in Hobart.
-
CMDR Anne Atkinson, the SNO
for South Australia attended a Government house breakfast, a flag
raising ceremony in Torrens Parade, the SA Premier’s Australia
Day cake cutting and the Lord Mayor’s luncheon.
-
Officers and sailors from
Naval Headquarters Queensland joined personnel from other services
to form a 100-person Royal Guard for the Governor’s flag
raising on the South Bank in Brisbane.
-
RAN personnel based in Victoria
made up a tri-service guard for the ceremonial flag raising in
Melbourne. They were joined by the Melbourne detachment of the
RAN Band.
-
Darwin Naval Base provided
16 people for a tri-service guard that paraded at the Marrara
Indoor Stadium for an Australia Day ceremony.
|
