ARMY PICTURES

The various images contained here are all taken from one of those 'throw-away' cameras that you buy from the chemist or woolies.  I take these cameras on most of my battalion exercises, I wouldn't dare take a 'normal' camera as they would be carried in my pack/webbing and would be trashed within 24 hours out field!

EXERCISE BETHUNE 99

Thats me on the left with my mate Adrian.  We are using a M60 SFMG (Sustained Fire Machine Gun)  on a range at Majura, near Canberra.

OPERATION: HOLDFAST

Operation Holdfast was the Army's effort in helping the victims of the massive hailstorm and rains that hit Sydney in April and May 1999.   Fulltime and part-time diggers such as myself from 5th Task Force were tasked over approximately a fortnight to provide aid to the civilian population.  My battalion provided the majority of the part-time (Reserve) soldiers for the Operation.  With 72 hours notice we were able to provide a full platoon ready for deployment, no small task considering we all work or go to uni in our other job!

Mick (from Batemans Bay N.S.W) and myself on someones slippery roof minus harness and ropes.  Not as easy as it looks!  Watching us are a pair of 3RAR diggers, obviously happy in not being up there with us :)  Just who is watching that ladder boys?! :)

A closeup of action at that home in Rosebery.  You wouldn't believe how hard it was for Mick and myself to stay on that slippery tarpaulin!

On the roof of someone's place with "Ando" and "Benny".

ENEMY PARTY FOR SCHOOL OF INFANTRY 96

I was attached to 10 IRC (Independant Rifle Company) to do play the part of enemy forces (Musoria) back in 1996 for the School of Infantry at Singleton N.S.W.  I am wearing Australian 'desert' camouflage, a direct copy of the USMC "Coffee and Cream" camouflage.  The structure below me is a bunker built to supervise demolitions on the range.  That was our accomodation out bush :)

Here I am clearing my F89 Minimi after surprising a lesson of new Infantry IET (Initial Employment Training) soldiers in Singleton.  I was asked by the lecturer approximately 30mins before the lecture to camouflage myself under that tree to the left of me (where the lump is basically) and wait for a class to arrive.   After the class had sat down and the lecture begun, I was to fire 30 rounds of blank ammunition ('in the general direction' of the class only metres away), when he said the phrase "surprise is a force multiplier".  You shoulda seen 'em, a few of them got up and ran - while others grabbed the bloke next to them.  It sure got the undivided attention of the new boys!  :)

EXERCISE SHOALHAVEN SHIELD 99

Self portrait using a soggy throwaway camera.  The lads in the background are some of the boys from my section.  Benny (with the Minimi) and Tim are the blokes in the middle.  I think they were watching some poor digger almost go 'arse over tit' into the cold Shoalhaven River (South Coast N.S.W).    P.S. Notice the look of concentration on my face!  lol

The boys happy after we were told that the LZ wasn't going to be as hot as Dog Green Beach on "Saving Pte Ryan". 

From left: "Windy", "Ocky" and "Kempy".  Windy and Kempy are two of our diggers from Queanbeyan - top blokes.

P.S. Notice our Support Company coxswain armed with the new secret army paddle.

Considering that the pics were taken from a $6 dollar throwaway camera from Woolies I'm happy with the snaps they put out.  The last two are grainy coz the bugger was soaked, I'm glad those ones came out - we had a merry old time on the cold, rainy and windy bloody Shoalhaven those two days. .  not!

This page will be linked to my Koori Diggers research page in the *very* near future. . .