Operation PAPUA NEW GUINEA ASSIST : Image Galleries
29 November 2007
Black Hawks provide vital aid
The Black Hawk helicopters of B Squadron 5th Aviation Regiment, led civilian helicopters out of the village of Popondetta to deliver desperately needed aid to remote villages effected by the floods that struck Oro province in Papua New Guinea (PNG) after Cyclone Guba.
Using their exceptional heavy-lift capability, the Black Hawk pilots hauled thousands of pounds of rice, water and medical aid to the remote communities of Korisata, Kikinonda and Magure, cut off by road and too inaccessible for Royal Australian Air Force Caribous.
Members of the Papua New Guinea Defence Force flew on the Black Hawks to help distribute aid as part of the PNG-led relief effort and were joined by officers of the PNG Police Force and villagers who formed human chains to move the precious cargo from the helicopters landing sites.
Off Gona Beach, the Royal Australian Navy landing Craft Heavy HMAS Wewak, offloaded thousands of tons of rice and other aid to the villages in Oro Province.
Operation PNG Assist, is the Australian Defence Force’s (ADF) mission to provide substantial disaster relief assistance to Papua New Guinea, as they help villages destroyed by flooding in the wake of Cyclone Guba.
Working with AusAID and other agencies, The ADF has established the most effective response and has sent over a small support and command element. Joint Task Force (JTF) 636, under the command of Group Captain Tim Innes, will coordinate ADF support in close consultation with Papua New Guinea’s Government.
20071128adf8262658_064 Pictured: Captain Hayden Jervis and Lieutenant Bryce England |
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| 20071128adf8262658_097 Australian Army Aviation Loadmaster Aircrewman, Trooper Brett Richards from B Squadron, 5th Aviation Regiment, throws bags of rice out of his Black Hawk helicopter, with Corporal Michael Pascoe for the villagers of Korisata in Papua New Guinea during Operation PNG Assist. (Date taken: 28 November 2007) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20071128adf8262658_163 Australian Army Aviation Loadmaster Aircrewman, Corporal Bradley Shelton passes a bundle of rice bags to a Papua New Guinean soldier to help out local villagers after floods destroyed crops at Korisata in Oro Province in Papua New Guinea during Operation PNG Assist. (Date taken: 28 November 2007) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20071128adf8262658_183 Corporal Michael Pascoe helps unload aid and medical stores from a Australian Army Aviation Black Hawk Helicopter with Papua New Guinean locals at Popondetta during Operation PNG Assist. (Date taken: 28 November 2007) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20071128adf8262658_355 Warrant Officer Class 2 Anthony Johnson, helps move boxes along a human chain to a Black Hawk helicopter at Girua Airfield with help from a PNG Defence Force Sergeant, Trooper Renae Johnson from B Squadron 5th Aviation Regiment and locals from the nearby village of Inonda, during Operation PNG Assist. (Date taken: 28 November 2007) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20071128adf8262658_507 Australian Army Aviation Loadmaster Aircrewman, Trooper Brett Richards of B Squadron, 5th Aviation Regiment, watches as Popondetta locals help load rice on to a Black Hawk helicopter for needy villagers in the surrounding Oro Province in Papua New Guinea during Operation PNG Assist. (Date taken: 28 November 2007) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20071128adf8262658_569 Villagers from Korisata watch an Australian Army Black Hawk Helicopter from B Squadron, 5th Aviation Regiment, come into land to drop off more food and aid assistance to the local villages during Operation PNG Assist. (Date taken: 28 November 2007) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20071128adf8262658_683 A Papua New Guinean Police officer gives the thumbs up to Australians who have just dropped food and medical aid in the village he’s helping during Operation PNG Assist. (Date taken: 28 November 2007) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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