FALCONER UNLEASHED

Our Falconer commitment

Australia’s 2000-strong commitment to Operation Falconer includes:

NAVY:
HMAS Darwin, HMAS Anzac, Sea Hawk Helicopter, HMAS Kanimbla, Sea King Helicopters, Clearance Diving Team

ARMY:
One SASR Squadron, 4RAR(Cdo) Quick Response Force, Incident Response Regiment, 5 Avn Regt CH-47D Helicopter (Chinooks), 16 AD Regt RBS 70 Surface-to-Air Weapon System, 10 FSB 30/35 Water Tpt Sqn LCM8s,

AIR FORCE:
C-130H Hercules, C-130J Hercules, F/A -18 Hornets, P-3 Orions, Air Force Combat Support Personnel, Air Forward Command Element.

From the Minister for Defence

Messages to sailors

MEMBERS of the ADF and the public can show their support to deployed personnel through a message service set up by Defence. People can send fax or e-mail messages, which will then be collated and sent in hard copy form to personnel serving away from home. The free call fax number is 1800 643 938 and the e-mail address is: messagestothetroops@defence.gov.au Further details about the initiative can be found on the Defence website at www.defence.gov.au

The mission you have been given is important to the peace and security of Australia.

You are contributing to disarming Saddam Hussein, a brutal dictator, of his weapons of mass destruction.

You are helping enforce the many United Nations Security Council Resolutions that have demanded that he disarm.

For twelve years the international community has sought to persuade Saddam Hussein to disarm peacefully.

Unfortunately he has not taken this opportunity and left no option but the use of force.

You should know that the Australian people are proud of you and profoundly grateful that you are prepared to risk your lives to contribute to their safety.

At this time we are also thinking of your families. We realise that this is a difficult and stressful time for those waiting at home. We will do our best to support them during your deployment.

On behalf of the Government and the Australian community I wish you a successful mission and an early and safe return.

Robert Hill
Leader of the Government in the Senate
Minister for Defence

From the Chief of Navy

With the commitment of Australian Forces to military operations in the Middle East, our thoughts are with the Navy men and women deployed afloat and ashore in the Persian Gulf and with their Army and Air Force colleagues who serve alongside them.

In the past few months, Navy ships and personnel in The Gulf have maintained our enviable reputation for hard work, professionalism and dedication and they have shown that they are well prepared for the challenges that may lie in the days ahead.

Australia, the Navy, their loved ones and friends, are all very proud of what they have achieved and we look on with enormous admiration as they get on with the tasks that now confront them.

I know that those of you who serve in our many support organizations in Australia understand your critical role in sustaining our forces in The Gulf and meeting the needs of their families at home.

As you have done so often and so well before, your commitment to providing a service second-to-none will be essential to the success of this operation.

To those of you who are deployed in the Middle East, I offer my very best wishes for success on behalf of all of us in the Navy. Godspeed.

Chris Ritchie
VADM RAN
Chief of Navy

From the Chief of the Defence Force

ORDER OF THE DAY
TO ALL MEMBERS OF THE AUSTRALIAN DEFENCE FORCE — OPERATIONS AGAINST IRAQ

Men and women of the Australian Defence Force

Yesterday I received instructions from the Australian Government to commit Australian forces to military operations against Iraq as part of an international coalition of military forces. These operations are to enforce the repeated demands by the United Nations Security Council that Iraq fully declare and dismantle its program of weapons of mass destruction.

I have given the necessary orders to our forces in the Middle East. Our men and women have prepared diligently and are ready to do what is asked of them. They will do their duty with courage, wisdom and determination.

A danger to the international community will be removed. A tyrant will be deprived of his weapons of mass destruction. New hope will be given to the people of Iraq.

To those of us who watch events in the Middle East: as we work in our barracks, bases and ships or in East Timor, Bougainville and those many other parts of the globe where we serve, we pause to reflect on our pride and confidence in our fellow service men and women who stand in harm’s way.

To the men and women who embark on operations against Iraq, our thoughts and prayers are with you for your safety and your speedy return to your homes, your families and your loved ones. We will do our best to comfort and support them in every way while you do your duty.

You will serve Australia with honour and distinction. Good luck to you all.

P J Cosgrove
General
Chief of the Defence Force
19 March 2003

IRAQ AT A GLANCE

A leading seaman stands watch looking for fast moving craft and suspicious vessels.

IRAQ: the people

Population: 24,001,816 (July 2002)

Life expectancy at birth: 67.38 years

Fertility rate: 4.63 children/woman (2002)

Ethnic groups: Arab 75-80 per cent; Kurdish 15-20 per cent; Turkoman, Assyrian or other 5 per cent

Religions: Muslim 97 per cent (Shi’a 60-65 per cent, Sunni 32-37 per cent); Christian or other 3 per cent

IRAQ’S two largest ethnic groups are Arabs and Kurds.

ALMOST 75 per cent of Iraq’s population live on the plain stretching southeast from Baghdad and Basrah to the Persian Gulf.
Source: The CIA World Factbook 2002

IRAQ: geography

AREA: 437,072 sq km

LAND BOUNDARIES: 3650km. Iraq is bordered by Kuwait, Iran, Turkey, Syria, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.

COASTLINE: 58km

HIGHEST POINT: Haji Ibrahim 3600m

MOUNTAINS in the northeast are part of the alpine system that runs eastward from the Balkans into southern Turkey, northern Iraq, Iran and Afghanistan, terminating in the Himalayas.

THE country slopes from mountains over 3000m above sea level along the border with Iran and Turkey to the remnants of sea-level, reedy marshes in the southeast. Much of the land is desert or wasteland.

AVERAGE temperatures range from 48 degrees celcius in July to below freezing in January. Rainfall occurs from December to April and averages between 10 and 18 centimetres annually.

IRAQ: economy

Currency: Iraqi dinar Inflation rate: 60 per cent (2001 est)

GDP growth rate: -5.7 per cent (2001 est)

Exports: crude oil ($US15.8 billion, 2001 est)

Imports: food, medicine, manufactures ($US11 billion, 2001 est)

Debt: $US62.2 billion (2001 est)

IRAQ: armed forces

ARMY: 350,000 troops (17 divisions, 6 Republican Guard divisions). Equipment: 2600 battle tanks, 1800 armored personnel carriers: 1900 towed artillery, 200 self-propelled artillery, 200 multiple rocket launchers, 164 helicopters

NAVY: Total personnel: 2000. Equipment: Six patrol and coastal combat vessels, three minelayers/minesweepers

AIR FORCE: Total personnel: 20,000. Equipment: 180 air-defence fighters, 130 ground-attack fighters, six bombers, 3000 anti-aircraft guns, 850 surface-to-air missile launchers.

PARAMILITARY: Total personnel: 45,000. AT LEAST half the army is at 70 per cent of authorised strength, with some units dependent on conscripts. MOST Iraqi divisions (except those of the Republican Guard) are at 50 per cent combat effectiveness, with half of all army equipment lacking spare parts.

REPUBLICAN Guards divisions average at least 80 per cent of an authorised strength of 8000-10,000.

SERVICABILITY of fixed-wing aircraft is about 55 per cent, with condition of helicopters “poor”. Senior pilots have 90-120 flying hours, while junior pilots have as little as 20 hours of flight time.

Source: The International Institute for Strategic Studies

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