Mark Furner (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My involvement in this year’s Australian Defence Force Parliamentary Program was undertaken with Operation Resolute in Darwin, commencing on Monday, 5 July and concluding on the Thursday. Operation Resolute is the ADF’s contribution to the whole-of-government effort to protect Australia’s borders and offshore maritime interests.

On the Monday we received a briefing at the NORCOM building, Larrakeyah Barracks. The briefing delivered an appreciation of the overall coordination of the Border Protection Command in Northern Australia. This is the only ADF operation that currently defends homeland Australia and its assets. The area of responsibility is huge. The Operation Resolute area of operations covers approximately 10 per cent of the world’s surface and includes Australia’s exclusive economic zone, which extends up to 200 nautical miles around the mainland, Christmas, Cocos, Keeling, Norfolk, Heard, Macquarie and Lord Howe islands.

The ADF assets protect Australia’s maritime domain from security threats including: irregular maritime arrivals; maritime terrorism; piracy, robbery and violence at sea; compromise to biosecurity; illegal activity in protected areas; illegal exploitation of natural resources, such as illegal fishing; marine pollution; and prohibited imports and exports.

At any one time, there may be up to 400 ADF personnel at sea, in the air and on the land, working to protect Australia’s borders and offshore maritime interests. They work alongside personnel from Customs and other agencies. ADF resources allocated to Operation Resolute comprise: Air Force AP3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft that provide aerial surveillance of Australia’s north-west and northern approaches; at least seven Navy Armidale class patrol boats operating daily throughout Australia’s northern offshore maritime areas; Australian Army regional force surveillance unit patrols, which conduct land based security operations; a transit security element of approximately 37 personnel from either Army or Air Force who embark in the ACPBs; and a standby Navy major fleet unit for northern waters response.

The following day was the first opportunity for many of us to experience an Armidale class patrol boat. Our boat for the day was the HMAS Broome, which was berthed at the Navy base HMAS Coonawarra in Darwin. Upon boarding, we were greeted by the very experienced and professional CO of HMAS Broome, Kylie, one of two female commanding officers of Operation Resolute. We left the base on a near perfect sea, heading due north. The Armidale class patrol boat is a truly amazing craft with many capabilities. The vessel weighs 305 tonnes, is 56.8 metres in length and is powered by two MTU V16 M70 diesel engines, giving the ship an operating speed of at least 25 knots. There are generally 21 crew, and onboard armament is one Rafeal Typhoon 25mm naval stabilised gun deck, along with two 12.7mm machine guns. The ACPB is able to maintain operations in sea state 5 conditions to 1,000 nautical miles offshore, it can be deployed for up to 42 days and it is also capable of surviving cyclonic conditions up to sea state 9.

Additional to the main vessel, the ACPB hosts two diesel jet-propelled 7.2m rigid-hull inflatable boats rapidly launched and recovered using the Vest davit system. During the training exercise out to sea we were able to see firsthand the capabilities of the crew in concert with the boarding vessels. Complementing the boarding capabilities, the Armidale has an onboard surveillance and communications suite that underpins its patrol and response capability. The system comprises twin radars, a radar warning system and an electro-optical detection system for short-range detection.

By the time we were a fair distance from Darwin Harbour, the training demonstration commenced with a makeshift illegal fishing boat, the Sapphire Bay, detected by the crew of the HMAS Broome. All procedural processes were followed in an expedient manner to give us an appreciation of what would occur from a basic contact to the highest level of boarding. This ranged from radio contact, the firing of birdshot from a shotgun, intense broadcasting of instructions along with high-pitched noise and firing the 12.7mm machine gun in front of the bow, followed by sending the two-crewed rigid hull inflatable boats to intercept the illegal fishing boat and launching imitation tear-gas canisters onto the boat and boarding.

Later that afternoon we were all provided an opportunity to witness the live firing of the 12.7mm machine gun. After this exercise we witnessed the live firing of the 25mm gun deck. After all this action we were ushered onto the rigid-hull inflatable boats to leave the HMAS Broome to be delivered to the Customs ACV Hervey Bay. Despite the Customs Bay class vessels being older than the Navy’s Armidale and having different capabilities, they are effective for their purpose. They are 38 metres in length, have two deck-mounted 7.62mm general purpose machine-guns, can accommodate up to 16 people for extended periods, can operate at a cruising speed of 20 knots for 1,000 nautical miles and can operate for 365 days with an annual total fleet target of 2,400 sea days. They are crewed by up to 10 marine unit officers, although the number of crew may vary depending on the operation or activity. Each patrol lasts between 22 and 30 days on a rotational roster. Close to sunset after heading back towards Darwin Harbour we were gathered into the two tenders, which are capable of carrying two crew and four passengers, and headed into shore.

The following day, Wednesday, was a journey to the aerial part of Operation Resolute based at RAAF Darwin. After a briefing of the operation of the day, we boarded the AP3C Orion to head over the area where Scott and Ashmore reefs are located. The Orion is a workhorse of the No. 92 Wing, equipped with multiple capabilities. It is fitted with a variety of sensors, including digital multimode radar, electronic support measures, infrared and visual electro-optics detectors, magnetic anomaly detector, identification friend or foe systems, and deployable acoustic detectors. The aircraft are relied upon to conduct long-range surveillance missions within Australia’s exclusive economic zone and provide early warning of maritime security threats. They provide approximately 2,000 hours of aerial surveillance to Operation Resolute per year.

During our flight over Scott and Ashmore reefs and the MOU area, we spotted many fishing boats and luxury craft. Most of them were conducting legal activities; however, out of those we detected one illegal fishing boat. It was appropriately photographed and reported for detainment.

On our final day, Thursday, we visited Cobham base and inspected the Custom’s Dash 8 surveillance aircraft. Despite being smaller in size, the Dash 8s have state of the art equipment on board, making detection much easier.

In closing, I extend my appreciation to Lieutenant Commander Grant Zilko and Deputy Commander Border Protection Command Mr Demetrio Veteri for their sterling job in ensuring all our needs were taken into account. In addition I extend my thanks to the friendly nature displayed by Flight Commander McDonald and the crew of the P3 and all of those aboard HMAS Broome. Furthermore, I want to recognise the professional commitment and competence displayed by all the Navy, RAAF and Customs personnel over the three operational days of the program. These men and women are a true inspiration—our nation’s finest.

I urge everyone, as we go to sleep in our warm beds tonight, to spare a thought for all our defence personnel and their families, whether they are facing the insurgents in extremely dangerous situations in Afghanistan, protecting our Australian borders in the Timor Sea or working at other posts throughout the globe. These men and women are the real heroes and salt of the earth.