Volume 49, No. 12, July 13, 2006
Handshake shapes the task ahead

SHE’S YOURS: CDRE Peter Lockwood accepts the handover of command of TF 158 from US Marine Corps Brigadier- General Carl B. Jensen.

Photo: ABPH Bradley Darvill.

By Barry Rollings

CDRE Peter Lockwood and his Australian staff of 21 have been given a ringing endorsement from their United States counterparts as they take command of Coalition Naval elements in the Northern Persian Gulf.

The handover from Brigadier-General Carl B. Jensen, of the US Marine Corps, took place recently on the forecastle of the USS McFaul.

Task Force 158, as it is known, is responsible for protecting Iraqi sovereign waters and the country’s oil terminals in the northern gulf, as well as maritime security operations in northern waters.

TF 158 is made up of Coalition ships including Australia’s Anzac Class frigate, HMAS Ballarat.

CDRE Lockwood is the second Australian naval officer to command TF 158.
“I know you are going to do well out here ... with 158 and you will be able to continue to build upon the good works here that have been established well before my tenure,” Brigadier-General Jensen said.

“This is clearly an important job for us,” CDRE Lockwood said in reply. “We are absolutely delighted to be here. You have set us up and prepared us well for this activity.”

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