Watson brothers lead RESOLUTE tasks
22 February 2012 By LEUT Peter Croce
CMDR Nick Watson has waited his entire lifetime to order his elder brother CMDR Tim Watson around and it took an Operation RESOLUTE patrol to make that dream a reality.
The Navy officers from Lismore in Northern New South Wales linked up in northern Australian waters for a fortnight in early February on Operation RESOLUTE – the Australian Defence Force’s contribution to protect Australia’s natural resources and maritime approaches.
Commander Nick Watson, the operations officer at Headquarters Joint Task Force 639 in Darwin said it was “simply part of the job” as he found himself directing his older brother around northern Australian waters as Commander Tim Watson commanded the Navy amphibious ship HMAS Tobruk.
“We have both been in the Navy for a long time but we have never been able to serve in the same place, let alone the same operation, for that entire time – in fact most of the time we have been at opposite ends of the country,” Commander Nick Watson said.
“It’s something I’ll never forget and to top it off he and his crew did an outstanding job during their task with Operation RESOLUTE.
“As brothers we have always got along, however this is the only time I can recall where my brother has actually done what I have asked him to do.
“I am sure mum and dad got a real kick out of hearing about us working in the same place, at the same time on the same operation.”
For Commander Tim Watson, commanding his own vessel on operations at sea was more than enough to sooth the sibling rivalry.
“It’s not often you get to work side-by-side with your brother on a military operation and though he may have got a kick out of ordering me around on this occasion, I know deep down he was jealous to be stuck in the office,” CMDR Tim Watson said.
“It was actually my graduation ceremony at HMAS Creswell that inspired him to join the Navy and I feel very privileged that we have been able to finally link up on an operation together.
“It was a fantastic experience for myself and my crew to be a part of Border Protection operations especially considering it was the height of the cyclone season.”
The Watson brothers have a strong family connection to the Australian Defence Force with elder brother Mark Watson serving as an instructor on Kiowas for the Australian Army and younger brother Glenn was an Army Reserve officer. Their father Don Watson was a national serviceman in the Royal Australian Air Force.
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