A welcome return

CAF Air Marshal Angus Houston congratulates Flight Lieutenant Jayson Livingstone after presenting him with a CAF Commendation for his efforts in the Middle East. Photo by LAC Ben Dempster

ABOUT 200 C-130 Hercules aircrew and support personnel, and a small group of Army air dispatch specialists were officially welcomed home from the Middle East in a ceremony at RAAF Base Richmond on July 4.

CAF Air Marshal Angus Houston and Minister Assisting the Minister for Defence Danna Vale were on hand to recognise the pivotal role the C-130 air and support crews played during Operations Bastille and Falconer.

The ceremony highlighted the outstanding efforts of Air Force’s Air Lift Group and Expeditionary Combat Support Group and Army’s No. 176 Air Dispatch Squadron.

“The C-130 tasks involved critical re-supply missions and the movement of coalition equipment and personnel to forward bases inside Iraq,” Mrs Vale said. “The air and ground crews worked extremely hard day and night, in often harsh and difficult conditions, to get the job done.”

By the end of June, the C-130 Hercules had flown more than 200 missions across the Middle East, carrying more than 5 million pounds of coalition cargo and more than 3000 passengers. Two Hercules aircraft and a group of support personnel continue to operate in the MEAO.

 

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