Navy People: Home from Pirate Patrol

20 October 2009

Hobart's Mark Butler, 31, is heading home after 6 months on anti-piracy patrol off the Horn of Africa. He and his 180 shipmates aboard HMAS Stuart will be coming ashore on Australian soil towards the end of April.

Mark, now an Able Seaman, plans to head back to Tasmania to spent time with his parents, Ashton and Jill Butler, before heading off on holidays to the UK and Europe.

His grandfather and uncle were in the Navy, so there was a family tradition to uphold when he put away his police uniform after seven years to join the Navy back in November 2007.

After completing his basic training at HMAS Cerberus near Melbourne, he was posted to the Defence Force School of Signals in 2008 to qualify in communications and information systems, his chosen specialisation.

“Aboard Stuart I am responsible for all communications – voice/data/visual from ship to shore, shore-to-ship and ship-to-ship, including the ships Local Area Network,” Mark said. “For me, the best part is working on the bridge doing tactical voice, flags and flashing light with other ships.”

“On deployment, I was directly involved with boarding parties and communicating with merchant vessels as well as suspect vessels,” he said.

Mark was already an old hand when it comes to the sea. He has been sailing all his life, and is a long-time member of the Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania and the Derwent Sailing Squadron.