Andrew and Lachlan Martin - Brothers Shoulder to Shoulder In Iraq

TWO Fairfield brothers have followed the same soldiering career all the way to Iraq.

Privates Andrew and Lachlan Martin are now serving together with the Australian Battle Group on security patrols in southern Iraq.

It is just another career parallel for the Fairfield infantrymen.

“My first day with my battalion was his first day at Kapooka,” Andrew said. Lachlan was soon posted to the same battalion and the brothers served in Timor-Leste at the same time.

When they returned to Australia the two completed a mortar course together, and then Lachlan’s company got deployment orders for Iraq. “Originally it was just going to be me going to Iraq as part of Alpha Company and he wasn’t going to come,” Lachlan said.

Things changed and Andrew found himself bound for the Middle East too. The brothers said they enjoyed having each other around. “We get along really well, we don’t fight,” Andrew said. “We had our fighting years there for a while.”

“Well… like brothers do!” Lachlan said. “We’d knuckle on all the time, play footy and stuff.”

Andrew said he never thought they would be in the same battalion together, let alone deployed together. “It brings a bit of normality to it as well, because you can relate to each other outside of Army.”

The siblings will soon return to Australia, when the Australian Battle Group is withdrawn from southern Iraq in the middle of the year.

But Iraqis will be reaping the benefits of the Australians’ stay long after the last Digger is back home. As well as supporting and training Iraqi security forces, the Battle Group is project managing many reconstruction projects. More than 20 Australian projects have been completed, with more under way.  These include water and irrigation projects, rural projects to enhance crop and animal production, health clinics, and power supply initiatives. Water purification is particularly important as water-borne diseases are a major killer especially of young children.