Navy People: From hairdresser to Australian warship
9 November 2010
Only a few years ago Tiffany Grace was at high school at MacKillop Catholic College. Now the former hairdresser is on an Australian warship (HMAS Warramunga) in the South China Sea sending morse-code messages to a Chinese Navy frigate.
Tiffany is now in the final stages of a four-month deployment that has taken her to Hawaii, and then to South Korea to commemorate the Incheon landings that turned the tide in the Korean War.
Now she’s in Chinese waters for live fire exercises with their Navy. It’s the first time any western warship has been asked to do such a thing.
The use of flashing signal lamps, seen in many World War II films, might look old school but it is still used to transmit encoded messages when other ships are in sight. It also keeps radio silence. That’s why it is still taught to Navy communicators today.
“It’s been a long deployment — but lots of highlights such as RIMPAC and visiting China,” Tiffany said.
“I wanted to travel and have a career and the Navy seemed perfect for both. Where will it take me next?”
Note: HMAS Warramunga is now home.
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