Operation Pacific Assist
Operation Pacific Assist was the Australian Defence Force (ADF) component of a joint effort between the ADF and Emergency Management Australia (EMA). Their mission was to provide an Emergency Services Task Force in the wake of the of the earthquake in Japan and the subsequent devastating tsunami.
NSW Police, Fire and Ambulance services; ACT fire fighters; and, search and rescue dog handlers from Queensland came together to create the Task Force.
The ADF provided strategic air lift of the Task Force to Yokota Airbase, Japan by Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) C‑17A Globemaster. The Task Force arrived in the early hours of Monday 14 March.
The C-17A Globemaster remained in Japan for two weeks and undertook 23 sorties providing intra-country airlift of vital stores and equipment assisting in the humanitarian effort, including food and bottled water.
During its deployment, the C-17A and its crew moved more than a million pounds (450 tonnes) of cargo, including 41 vehicles, as well as 135 passengers.
Two additional C-17A Globemasters undertook a mission from Australia to Japan carrying a remotely operated water cannon system to assist with containment operations at the Fukushima Number One nuclear power plant.
The C-17A aircrew from the RAAF’s No. 36 Squadron based in Queensland are well-trained to operate in a whole range of environments, but the conditions they experienced in Japan were challenging. They faced snow and ice - something that they don’t see every day in their normal duties - and they had to deal with limited infrastructure and limited services such as air traffic control.
The Minister for Defence, Stephen Smith, congratulated the RAAF ground and flight crews and other ADF personnel who were involved in Operation Pacific Assist. He said their efforts have been noticed by our Japanese and US partners, and Australians should be justifiably proud that the contribution has helped relieve the suffering of a large number of people.
The ADF’s operation ceased on 25 March 2011.