Image Gallery 2009
24 April 2009
Combat Team Tusk on patrol during OP Shak Haliwel
Combat Team Tusk is the name given to the Force Protection Combat Team from the 1st Mentoring and Reconstruction Task Force. The team is a Combined Arms Organisation and has soldiers and Officers drawn from Infantry, Cavalry, Artillery and other support Corps.
During the weeks prior to Anzac Day, the Combat Team deployed to the Kakarak region of Uruzgan, to support Afghan National Army elements and their Australian mentors as they moved into the troubled region to further expand the significant security gains made during the Task Forces’ deployment.
The soldiers from Combat Team Tusk conducted aggressive patrols, looking for the insurgents, their Improvised Explosive Devices and weapons caches. Their aim was to disrupt the enemy and remove their capability to threaten both Coalition forces and the local national Afghan people. The Operation was a resounding success, culminating in a decisive battle, which saw the Australians and their allies inflict serious casualties on the insurgents and destroy significant quantities of their weapons and explosives.
| 20090407adf8185016_0002 As soldiers from Combat Team Tusk step off, Private James Usher scans his arcs as he moves out during a patrol as part of Operation Shak Hawel in Uruzgan Province, southern Afghanistan. (Date taken: 07 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090407adf8185016_0011 Private Mathew Cristea (front) takes cover with his F89 Minimi machine gun during a patrol as part of Operation Shak Haliwel. Covering the left flank is Private Scott Osborne (rear). Both soldiers are members of Combat Team Tusk from the 1st Mentoring and Reconstruction Task Force. (Date taken: 07 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090407adf8185016_0012 Lieutenant Bradley Freeman (rear right) a Platoon Commander with Combat Team Tusk, refers to his map and radios instructions as his soldiers go firm to support other members of his platoon, as they advance during Operation Shak Haliwel in the Kakarak region of Uruzgan Province. (Date taken: 07 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090407adf8185016_0014 Lieutenant Bradley Freeman (rear right) a Platoon Commander with Combat Team Tusk, refers to his map and radios instructions as his soldiers go firm to support other members of his platoon, as they advance during Operation Shak Haliwel in the Kakarak region of Uruzgan Province. (Date taken: 07 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090407adf8185016_0020 Sapper Joshua Colbourne scans forward with his F88 Austeyr as he and his Explosive Detection Dog, Harry take part in Operation Shak Haliwel in southern Afghanistan. (Date taken: 07 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090407adf8185016_0022 Explosive Detection Dog Harry and his handler Sapper Joshua Colbourne patrol during Operation Shak Haliwel in southern Afghanistan. The Explosive Detection Dogs are invaluable due to their ability to detect insurgent Improvised Explosive Devices and weapons caches. (Date taken: 07 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090407adf8185016_0027 Corporal Brayn Carr moves down an Afghan track as he and his fellow Combat Team Tusk soldiers patrol the area during Operation Shak Haliwel in the Kakarak region of southern Afghanistan. (Date taken: 07 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090407adf8185016_0034 Private Thomas Benini (left) mans his MAG 58 machine gun with support from Private Kent Taylor (right), as their platoon moves forward during a patrol in Uruzgan Province, Afghanistan. The soldiers are members of the 1st Mentoring and Reconstruction Task Force’s Combat Team Tusk. (Date taken: 07 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090407adf8185016_0039 A young Afghan, tending his family wheat fields, looks on as Australian soldiers move through his village in the Kakarak region of Uruzgan Province. The soldiers are patrolling the area as part of Operation Shak Haliwel. (Date taken: 07 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090408adf8185016_0007 Major Joshua Jardine, Officer Commanding Combat Team Tusk, discusses operations with his junior leaders during missions in the Kakarak region of Uruzgan Province. Combat Team Tusk is the Force Protection Combat Team of the 1st Mentoring and Reconstruction Task Force. (Date taken: 08 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090408adf8185016_0012 An Australian Light Armoured Vehicle moves into position as soldiers from the 1st Mentoring and Reconstruction Task Force’s Combat Team Tusk and the Operational Mentoring and Liaison Team prepare to head out on patrol during Operation Shak Haliwel, conducted during the first part of April 2009. (Date taken: 08 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090408adf8185016_0013 Private Kent Taylor of Combat Team Tusk prepares to step off during a patrol as part of Operation Shak Haliwel. Private Taylor and his fellow soldiers have swapped their “desert cams” for the standard green Australian uniform, as the lush valleys of the region blossom as the summer takes hold. (Date taken: 08 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090408adf8185016_0031 1st Mentoring and Reconstruction Task Force Engineer, Corporal Brayn Carr moves in front of a combined Australian and Afghan patrol during Operation Shak Haliwel in southern Afghanistan. (Date taken: 08 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090408adf8185016_0040 Australian and Afghan soldiers set a cordon around a quala of interest as they prepare to search the compound for insurgent weapon and explosive cashes on the outskirts of a village in Uruzgan Province, Afghanistan. (Date taken: 08 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090408adf8185016_0058 Inside a Quala. Australian and Afghan soldiers search a local building for weapon and explosive cashes as part of Operation Shak Haliwel. The searches are planned and implemented to remove insurgent caches from the area which have a significant impact on the safety and security, for both the soldiers and the local Afghan population. (Date taken: 08 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090408adf8185016_0066 Australian and Afghan soldiers search a mud brick compound, known as a quala, during Operation Shak Haliwel in the Kakarak region of Uruzgan Province. Insurgents use these compounds to hide weapons and explosives that they can recover for later use against security forces and local nationals. (Date taken: 08 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090408adf8185016_0074 An Australian soldier inspects a bag of AK47 rounds uncovered by the search team as they scanned the area with their metal detectors. Searches such as these target compounds which are suspected to be utilised by insurgents to stockpile weaponry for later use. (Date taken: 08 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090408adf8185016_0106 Corporal Vaa Pusateri Iuta Patau provides over watch, as his fellow soldiers from Combat Team Tusk return from a mission during Operation Shak Haliwel in southern Afghanistan. (Date taken: 08 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090409adf8185016_0077 Sergeant Jeffrey Fraser uses the optics of his F89 Austeyr rifle to scan forward of the Combat Team Tusk position, as they patrol through the lush green zone of southern Afghanistan’s river valleys during Operation Shak Haliwel. (Date taken: 09 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090409adf8185016_0082 Lance Corporal Robert Rowley (front) moves through a sea of wheat as he leads his section on its patrol route during operations in the Kakarak region of Uruzgan Province, Afghanistan. (Date taken: 09 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090409adf8185016_0125 An elderly Afghan farmer watches on, as Australian soldiers move through his wheat field in Uruzgan Province, Afghanistan. (Date taken: 09 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090409adf8185016_0150 With MAG58 machine gun in hand and Private Kent Taylor (rear) in support, Private Thomas Benini (right) patrols through a village in Uruzgan Province, Afghanistan as part of Operation Shak Haliwel. (Date taken: 09 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090409adf8185016_0172 1st Mentoring and Reconstruction Task Force, Lance Corporal Robert Rowley (right) a section commander with Combat Team Tusk scans his arcs as he leads his section during a patrol in the Kakarak region of southern Afghanistan. (Date taken: 09 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090410adf8185016_0013 Corporal Vaa Pusateri Iuta Patau (rear) takes a knee behind his Platoon Commander, Lieutenant Bradley Freeman (left) as he updates his commander during a patrol in support of Operation Shak Haliwel in Uruzgan Province. (Date taken: 10 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090410adf8185016_0040 Lance Corporal James Bezemer scans the surrounding area with the optical sight of his F88 Austeyr as soldiers from Combat Team Tusk patrol through the complex green zone terrain in the troubled Kakarak region of Uruzgan Province as part of Operation Shak Haliwel. (Date taken: 10 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090410adf8185016_0061 Sergeant Jeffrey Fraser takes a sight picture during a patrol in the Kakarak region of Uruzgan Province. With specialized sights, the soldiers can use their F88 Austeyr rifles to scan the area for any threats. (Date taken: 10 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090412adf8185016_0011 With a Dutch AH64 Apache helicopter high overhead, Australian soldiers from the 1st Mentoring and Reconstruction Task Force’s Combat Team Tusk, go to ground, presenting the smallest possible target for insurgents during a mission as part of Operation Shak Haliwel in southern Afghanistan. (Date taken: 12 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090412adf8185016_0035 Private Adam Warland scans the perimeter as he provides an outer security cordon for Australian Engineers searching a quala for any signs of insurgent weapons or explosives during a mission as part of Operation Shak Haliwel in southern Afghanistan. (Date taken: 12 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090412adf8185016_0053 During a lull in the contact, Lieutenant Bradley Freeman (centre) briefs his section commanders on their next course of action as they and other elements of Combat Team Tusk engage insurgents in the Kakarak region during Operation Shak Haliwel. (Date taken: 12 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090412adf8185016_0062 Private Kent Taylor (rear centre) scans over the wall looking for the location of insurgents who fired shots at the platoon’s location as soldiers from India 11 take cover during a running battle with insurgents in the Kakarak region of Uruzgan Province, Afghanistan. (Date taken: 12 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090413adf8185016_0010 Soldiers from the 1st Mentoring and Reconstruction Task Force’s Combat Team Tusk, step off on a patrol during the closing days of Operation Shak Haliwel in the Kakarak region of Uruzgan Province. (Date taken: 13 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090413adf8185016_0011 Private Jared Olaussen scans his arcs as he moves through a village in the Kakarak region of southern Afghanistan. Private Olaussen is a member of the Force Protection Combat Team from the 1st Mentoring and Reconstruction Task Force. (Date taken: 13 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090413adf8185016_0032 Private Nathan Gibbs carrying a MAG58 machine gun patrols through a rural village in the Kakarak region of Uruzgan Province during Operation Shak Haliwel. (Date taken: 13 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090414adf8185016_0012 Lance Corporal Robert Rowley (left) scans the open ground for threats as soldiers from Combat Team Tusk negotiate a swollen aqueduct along their patrol route during Operation Shak Haliwel in Uruzgan Province, Afghanistan. (Date taken: 14 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090414adf8185016_0015 Platoon signaler Private Jesse Cass (right) scans the open ground for threats as Lieutenant Bradley Freeman (left) radios his higher command during a patrol in the Kakarak region of Uruzgan Province, Afghanistan. (Date taken: 14 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090414adf8185016_0020 1st Mentoring and Reconstruction Task Force, Lieutenant Bradley Freeman (left) checks his coordinates as platoon signaler Private Jesse Cass (right) scans the open ground for threats during a patrol in the Kakarak region of Uruzgan Province, Afghanistan. (Date taken: 14 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090414adf8185016_0034 Private Jesse Cass (right) indicates suspicious movement to their front, to his Platoon Commander, Lieutenant Bradley Freeman (left), as they conduct a patrol during the closing days of Operation Shak Haliwel. (Date taken: 14 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090414adf8185016_0056 Private Jared Olaussen scans the surrounding countryside as he and fellow 1st Mentoring and Reconstruction Task Force soldiers participate in Operation Shak Haliwel in Uruzgan Province, Afghanistan. (Date taken: 14 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090414adf8185016_0080 A well earned break for the soldiers of Combat Team Tusk, during a patrol in the Kakarak region of Uruzgan Province, southern Afghanistan. (Date taken: 14 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090414adf8185016_0095 Soldiers from the 1st Mentoring and Reconstruction Task Force pause during a patrol in southern Afghanistan. The pause gives the soldiers a chance to regroup and to receive further instructions from their Platoon Commander. The soldiers were on their seventh solid day of operations. (Date taken: 14 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090414adf8185016_0101 Private Scott Osborne moves through a wheat field in the lush green zone during a patrol of the Kakarak region of southern Afghanistan. (Date taken: 14 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090414adf8185016_0107 Private Michael Callaghan carrying his F89 Minimi machine gun moves through the lush vegetation that has blossomed during a patrol of the Kakarak region of southern Afghanistan. (Date taken: 14 March 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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