Bubblies clear Umm Qasr
In completely blacked-out underwater conditions, two divers conducted a tactile search to locate a sunken Iraqi minelayer with its deadly cargo...

An Aussie clearance diver, having attached an explosive charge to a sea mine moves away to begin the process of destroying it.

Members of the clearance diving team prepare to destroy unexploded ordnance on the ground.

A diver is lowered into the water to continue the search for sea mines.

By LCDR Craig Scott

“Australian Clearance Diving Team Three (AUSCDTTHREE) continues to be our tip of the spear and impresses all who visit through their courage and professionalism”, said the outgoing Commander of the Royal Australian Navy’s Operation Falconer Task Group, Captain Peter Jones.

CAPT Jones was speaking during his farewell message to the task group.

After deploying from Australia the divers were forced to wait out several tense days in the desert as Iraqi missiles criss-crossed the skies at the beginning of the war and the pressure waves of detonations rocked their camp.

On the highest alert for any threats, the divers donned their full individual protective equipment eleven times against potential chemical threats.

Finally the team was called forward to the Iraqi border on the morning of March 23.

The convoy that wound its way through the razor wire gates and bumped its way onto the desert track opened a unique chapter in Australian military history. For the first time, instead of their usual low profile inflatable rubber boat or sleek fast insertion craft Australian Navy Clearance Divers were driving across a desert to war.

Having culled their equipment to the bare minimum, the team of 25 crammed into four camouflaged Army Landrovers and three trailers for the 72 kilometre slog across a dirt road that had been carved out of the desert by British engineers into the southern-most Iraqi port of Umm Qasr.

Marines from the United States 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit at the port were still encountering intermittent sniper fire when the divers arrived. Despite this, and problems identifying a suitable accommodation site, the team settled into a large warehouse at the ocean end of the old port. It was a uniquely ‘coalition’ site as the divers shared the premises with the US Naval Special Clearance Team One and the Royal Navy’s Fleet Diving Unit Two.

For two members of the team, the move was a little reminiscent of the insertion of AUSCDTTHREE into Kuwait following the 1991 Gulf War. The two had been there over a decade before, only this time the war wasn’t over when the team went in.

With the pressure on to open Umm Qasr up to ships, particularly those bringing humanitarian aid, AUSCDTTHREE Divers were soon in the thick of clearance work inside and outside the port.

In completely blacked-out underwater conditions, two divers conducted a tactile search to locate a sunken Iraqi minelayer with her deadly load. It took many more dives in poor visibility and churning tidal currents before the precariously balanced mines were finally raised under lifting bags, towed to a safe area and destroyed with explosives.

Meanwhile, in the nearby town of Umm Qasr the United States Marines had been relieved in the town by their British counterparts from 42 Commando unit and the over-worked British Army Explosive Ordnance Detonation (EOD) personnel attached to the Commandos welcomed any assistance from the Aussies. AUSCDTTHREE provided EOD assistance to help clear and destroy dangerous unexploded ordnance that threatened the well being of locals and coalition forces alike.

With the recent addition of a further three support staff the team had grown to a total of 32, the largest Australian Clearance Diving Team to ever be deployed operationally.

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