AWARE THREE 2008 News Round Up
31 December 2008
AWARE THREE – 2008 NEWS ROUND UP
For AWARE THREE, 2008 was certainly a busy year following the crew’s inauguration into naval service as the twenty first and final Armidale Class Patrol Boat (ACPB) Crew in December 2007. The year started with embarking in HMAS Maryborough to conduct an intensive period of harbour and sea training. This culminated with the crew being certified as ‘Mission Ready’ on 14 March 2008 demonstrating the maturing of the Royal Australian Navy’s new patrol boat capability.
No sooner had the last member of assessing staff from the Sea Training Group departed did the crew deployed on operations in Australia’s northern waters. An early boarding and subsequent apprehension of a large foreign trawler illegally operating within the Australia’s Exclusive Economic Zone was fine reward for the hard work and preparation invested by the crew in achieving their mission readiness.
Mid year the crew embarked in HMAS Glenelg and deployed to the North West Shelf for six weeks to conducted security operations in support of the many offshore oil and gas installations across the region. During the course of this deployment the crew visited Broome and Dampier and a variety of smaller outlying islands far off the beaten tourist trail.
In the third quarter of the year the crew were fortunate enough to deploy across the Tasman Sea for six weeks to New Caledonia and New Zealand,the first such deployment by an ACPB. As well as providing a break from border security operations it provided an excellent opportunity to enhance broader protection capabilities with regional navies. It also allowed the crew to participate in community engagement activities as they made their way up the East Coast of mainland Australia including attendance at Navy Open Day in Sydney and two Naval Cadet Sea Ride events. One of these sea rides happened to be in the Commanding Officer’s home town on the Central Coast of NSW and the second in Gladstone. Of note Aware Three were recently affiliated with Gladtsone in a reshuffle of Naval Cadet affiliations. The deployment program facilitated a sea ride opportunity which would otherwise have been difficult given the geographical separation between Darwin and Gladstone.
Following a period of post deployment leave, Aware Three embarked in HMAS Glenelg in November 2008 and spent the period from November 2008 to late January 2009, including Christmas and New Year, conducting border protection patrols in the northern waters of Australia.
The year of 2009 promises to be as busy and interesting as 2008 with a change of command taking place on 15 June – LCDR Jeff Davison hands over the Aware Three reins to LCDR Paul Johanson. This handover will be followed by a period of weapons training and Mission Readiness Evaluation. The majority of the 2009 programme sees the crew engaged in border protection duties.
Press releases from Aware Three in 2008.
DEFENCE MEDIA RELEASE
Thursday, 28 August 2008
HMAS MARYBOROUGH HEADS ACROSS THE TASMAN
In a first for the Royal Australian Navy, HMAS Maryborough will depart Darwin Naval Base for Auckland today, the first time an Armidale Class Patrol Boat has visited New Zealand. The five week deployment is a milestone for the current crew, Aware Three, who are undertaking their first overseas deployment since forming up in October 2007.
While in New Zealand, Maryborough will participate in Exercise MARU, a multi-national, multi agency exercise under the Proliferation Security Initiative, aimed at preventing the shipment of Weapons of Mass Destruction. Maryborough will join military and government agencies in MARU from France, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, the UK and USA.
“The ship’s company is looking forward to the landmark deployment and having the opportunity to show off our state-of-the-art patrol boat and capability to our New Zealand neighbours and the wider regional and extra regional audience,” said Commanding Officer of Aware Three, LCDR Jeff Davison, RAN.
In addition to New Zealand, Maryborough will make port visits to Noumea in New Caledonia, where she will conduct bilateral maritime exercises with French naval forces.
Maryborough was built by Austal Ships in Western Australia and was commissioned into the RAN on 8 December 2007.
The 57 metre ACPB’s primary employment is border protection operations. The ACPBs are state of the art in design and technology, underpinning a formidable patrol, surveillance and response capability for the RAN.
Maryborough is operated under a multi-crewing initiative, where divisions of crews man the ACPBs on a rotational basis. Multi-crewing provides personnel with program stability and allows the crew to plan leave, personal development and achieve quality family time.
DEFENCE MEDIA RELEASE
Monday, 29 September 2008
LOCAL MASTER AND COMMANDER SAILS IN WITH THE REAL SEA PATROL
Point Clare resident and Royal Australian Naval Officer, LCDR Jeff Davison, will today take the opportunity to bring one of the Navy’s newest state of the art patrol boats, HMAS Maryborough, into Broken Bay. Maryborough will embark Naval Cadets from Hawkesbury for a much anticipated trip to sea to sample life as portrayed in the popular television series ‘Sea Patrol’.
Currently based in Darwin, LCDR Davison has been commuting every nine weeks to rejoin his family for short leave periods since taking up Command in July 2007. Primarily engaged in border protection duties along the ‘Top End’ of Australia, LCDR Davison never believed that he would get the chance to show off his patrol boat in his own backyard, but a recent deployment across the Tasman Sea to New Zealand to participate in a regional security exercise has allowed him to do just that. As an added bonus his thirteen year old son Callum, a pupil at Green Point Christian College, is a member of Australian Naval Cadet Unit Hawkesbury, based at Point Clare on Brisbane Water. The ability to take his son and fellow Cadets to sea in one of the Navy’s newest ships was too good an opportunity to miss.
Due to the Brisbane Water area being too confined to allow the fifty seven metre long Maryborough to navigate safely, the ship will collect the Cadets from Ettalong using its two fast boats and then proceed to show the cadets the ‘Real Sea Patrol’ over the course of the afternoon in the Broken Bay area.
Maryborough is currently undertaking a five week deployment, and recently returned from New Zealand. This was the first time an Armidale Class Patrol Boat had visited New Zealand - a milestone for Navy. Prior to New Zealand, Maryborough visited New Caledonia and took part in Navy Open Day in Sydney upon her return. Following her visit to Broken Bay, Maryborough will visit Gladstone, the Whitsunday Islands and Cairns before returning to Darwin.
Maryborough was built by Austal Ships in Western Australia and was commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy on 8 December 2007. The ACPB’s primary employment is border protection operations. The ACPBs are state of the art in design and technology, underpinning a formidable patrol, surveillance and response capability for the RAN.
Maryborough is operated under a multi-crewing initiative, where divisions of crews man the ACPBs on a rotational basis. Multi-crewing provides personnel with a stable program and allows the crew to plan leave, personal development and achieve regular quality family time.
LCDR Davison hands over the Command reigns to his successor in June 2009 when he expects to return to a staff appointment in Fleet Headquarters in Sydney and be able to spend more time with his family and finish his home renovations.
DEFENCE MEDIA RELEASE
Wednesday, 1 October 2008
LOCAL NAVAL CADETS SAMPLE THE REAL SEA PATROL
HMAS Maryborough, one of the Royal Australian Navy’s newest state of the art Armidale Class Patrol Boats (ACPB) will pull into Gladstone for a flying visit today as it nears the end of a landmark deployment across the Tasman Sea.
Maryborough was recently twinned with Australian Naval Cadet Unit Gladstone and will take the opportunity to embark cadets for a much anticipated trip to sea to sample life as portrayed in the popular television series ‘Sea Patrol’.
Based in Darwin and primarily engaged in border protection duties along the ‘Top End’ the ship’s Commanding Officer, LCDR Jeff Davison, never believed that he would get the chance to embark Gladstone and show off his patrol boat in their own backyard, but a recent deployment across the Tasman Sea as the first ACPB to visit New Zealand, allowed him to do just that.
LCDR Davison knows the importance of actively engaging with Naval Cadets and exposing them to the real Navy. His son is a member of Hawkesbury, based at Point Clare along Brisbane Water, and the ship managed to embark his son and fellow cadets for an afternoon at sea after leaving Sydney on 29 September.
Embarking in Maryborough for an afternoon of briefings, tours and demonstrations the cadets from Gladstone will experience a ‘Real Sea Patrol’ before the ship heads north in the closing stages of its five week voyage. In addition to visiting New Zealand, Maryborough conducted exercises with French Naval Units after a visit to New Caledonia and will visit the Whitsunday Islands and Cairns before returning to Darwin.
Maryborough was built by Austal Ships in Western Australia and was commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy on 8 December 2007. The 57 metre ACPB’s primary employment is border protection operations. The ACPBs are state of the art in design and technology, underpinning a formidable patrol, surveillance and response capability for the RAN.
Maryborough is operated under a multi-crewing initiative, where divisions of crews man the ACPBs on a rotational basis. Multi-crewing provides personnel with a stable program and allows the crew to plan leave, personal development and achieve regular quality family time.
DEFENCE MEDIA RELEASE
Sunday, 12 October 2008
HMAS MARYBOROUGH RETURNS FROM ACROSS THE TASMAN
The Royal Australia Navy Patrol Boat HMAS Maryborough returned to her home port of Darwin today, following a landmark deployment to New Zealand. Crewed by Aware Three, Maryborough undertook a five week deployment, the first by an RAN Armidale Class Patrol Boat to New Zealand.
During the deployment, the ship’s company visited the overseas ports of Noumea in New Caledonia and Auckland and Nelson in New Zealand, engaging with and strengthening ties with Australia’s regional neighbours.
The primary reason for the deployment was to participate in Exercise MARU, a multi-national, multi agency exercise under the Proliferation Security Initiative, aimed at preventing the shipment of Weapons of Mass Destruction.
“The ship’s company thoroughly enjoyed the milestone deployment and the opportunity to show off our state-of-the-art patrol boat and capability to our New Zealand neighbours and the wider regional and extra regional audience,” said Commanding Officer of Aware Three, LCDR Jeff Davison, RAN.
Maryborough also made port visits to Noumea in New Caledonia, Sydney and Cairns, and conducted two sea ride periods.
“What is particularly pleasing is that we were able to balance our engagement with our international audience whilst also engaging with our home audience through Navy Open Day in Sydney, and two Naval Cadet Sea Ride Events as we transited North from Sydney”, said LCDR Davison.
