They’re best mates and they’re brothers in arms.

Lieutenants George Capelas and Alastair Wyatt have served together on every ship they’ve posted to since they commissioned in 2019.

They were in the same New Entry Officer Course, then posted to HMA Ships Supply, Huon, Adelaide and Leeuwin together.

Now on board HMAS Yarra, they’re deploying together on Operation Render Safe, an ADF-led multinational mission to remove World War II-era explosive remnants of war from Pacific countries.

“I had no idea that George was going to be on here when I got this posting,” Lieutenant Wyatt said.

“When I found out, it felt like things had come full circle.”

Lieutenant Capelas said it was “a privilege to serve with a good mate”.

Lieutenant Wyatt is the ship’s diving officer. Lieutenant Capelas is the Yarra operations officer. 

Their jobs couldn’t be more different. One is responsible for planning the ship’s complex schedule of activities, the other leads a team of highly skilled clearance divers.

'We’ve done our initial training and postings together, gone away and completed our specialisation courses separately and ended up back on the same ship together.'

During Operation Render Safe, the two will work together to help identify explosive remnants of war resting on the seabed of Tuvalu’s Nanumea Lagoon.

The two mates come from opposite sides of the country.

Lieutenant Capelas grew up in Karratha, working as a theatre-stage technician at the Crown Theatre Perth and then Defence Force Recruiting.  

Lieutenant Wyatt grew up in Noosa and started his career in 2017 as a submariner. He commissioned soon after to explore education opportunities.

“We’ve done our initial training and postings together, gone away and completed our specialisation courses separately and ended up back on the same ship together,” Lieutenant Wyatt said.

“We will see what the future holds.”

Under Operation Render Safe, HMA Ships Yarra and Diamantina will undertake a technical reconnaissance survey of Nanumea Lagoon to identify the location and extent of explosive remnants of war.

The operation builds on the partial survey of Nanumea Lagoon conducted by the Australian Defence Force, the New Zealand Defence Force and the United States Marine Corps in 2022.