HMAS LAUNCESTON

The Commanding Officer of patrol boat HMAS LAUNCESTON, LCDR Mark Burling, arranged for a helicopter evacuation for a woman in late stages of pregnancy he found among 47 suspected illegal immigrants on Ashmore Reef.

Lloyds Aviation and the Royal Flying Doctor Service combined to take the woman and her husband first to Troughton Island and then on to Derby in northern WA.

A Coastwatch aircraft first spotted the boat carrying the 47 suspects illegals and six Indonesia n crewmembers five miles off the reef.

LAUNCESTON, then checking on foreign fishing boats 120 miles away, was directed to check the craft at Ashmore.

Upon arrival LCDR Burling and his ship's company found the 20 metre long craft aground on West Islet.

They saw the boat was unseaworthy and its engines not operating.

LCDR Burling and his team erected tarpaulins to shelter the people, all believed from the Middle East.

Sister patrol boat HMAS TOWNSVILLE under the command of LCDR Phil Spedding was directed from Darwin where she was the operational response vessel to Ashmore to help LAUNCESTON bring back the people to waiting authorities.

Before leaving DNB she took aboard a doctor and an additional life raft.