Thursday 30 November 2006

Black Hawk crash victim was pilot, The Australian 30 November 2006 Additional Reporting

Black Hawk crash victim was pilot

THE Department of Defence today confirmed the pilot killed in yesterday's Black Hawk crash off Fiji was 35-year-old Captain Mark Bingley.
Captain Bingley, 35, a member of the 171st Squadron based in Townsville, died in the accident yesterday afternoon as the helicopter was trying to land on HMAS Kanimbla. He is survived by his wife and a son.
Captain Bingley had served on deployments to Timor, Cambodia and the Solomon Islands. His body will be returned to Australia tomorrow night, along with seven survivors.

The search is continuing for an SAS officer still missing in the waters off Fiji after yesterday's crash.

The Chief of the Defence Force, Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston, says Captain Bingley was experienced and highly competent.

Air Chief Marshal Houston says there is no reason to believe mechanical failure caused the accident but he is not sure if the helicopter can be recovered.

"We are assessing the feasibility of recovering the wreckage, I mean it's very deep water and obviously that sort of recovery would be challenging so we're working through that and we're getting expertise from around Australia to determine whether we can do it or not," he said.

Originally from Launceston in Tasmania, Captain Bingley joined the army in 1990.
Defence Minister Brendan Nelson said Captain Bingley had served with distinction. "All Australians should feel very proud of his courage and commitment," he said.
"Our sympathies go to all of Captain Bingley's family, in particular his wife and son."
Australian Defence Force chief Angus Houston also offered his condolences to Captain Bingley's family and friends.
"He was an extremely competent and highly regarded member of Army's aviation community," he said.
"Captain Bingley will be remembered as a dedicated pilot who had an infectious energy and a great sense of humour.
"He was a valued team member who will be sorely missed by his comrades, the Army and the Australian Defence Force."
Meanwhile, seven of the injured Australian soldiers are on their way home today following the incident.

Of the nine personnel rescued from the water, eight were injured, including the pilot who later died. The other injuries were described as not too serious.
The air chief marshal said last night the dead soldier could not be revived aboard the Kanimbla because "he was in the water too long".
"I can confirm that all members on board the aircraft at the time of the accident had all completed helicopter underwater escape training and were wearing flotation devices,"  he said today.
The cause of the accident was not yet known but was being investigated, he said.
"All I know is the accident happened as the aircraft was coming to land on the deck. Something happened, it landed hard on the deck and ... went over the side," he said.
The helicopter sank rapidly in waters believed to be up to three kilometres deep and is unlikely to ever be recovered.
The Kanimbla and Newcastle, along with HMAS Success, have been in the waters off Fiji in recent weeks on standby to evacuate Australians in the event of political turmoil on the island erupting into a military coup.
Defence Minister Brendan Nelson praised the job being done by the men and women of the ADF.
"It is certainly worth remembering why they were there in the south-west Pacific. They are there to help and support Australians ... should there be turmoil in Fiji," Dr Nelson said.
The accident happened as the Fijian military were preparing for a show of force last night, with troops in full battle gear locking down parts of the city for three hours.
The exercise, which involved securing certain parts of the city and firing illumination rounds into the sea, was meant to act as preparation for the possible intervention of foreign forces.
The 10 soldiers on the aircraft - four air crew from Fifth Aviation regiment near Townsville and six SAS troopers - were on a training exercise as part of an ADF contingent on standby close to Fiji amid fears of an imminent coup in the Pacific nation.
Australia last night began a voluntary evacuation of high commission staff and their families from Suva as renegade military leader Commodore Frank Bainimarama returned to Fiji after peace talks with Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase in New Zealand. The Fijian military, led by Commodore Bainimarama, who has threatened to "clean up" the Government, last night launched a barrage of artillery illumination flares into the sea near the entrance to Suva harbour.
Mr Qarase, who was awaiting a briefing on the Black Hawk incident, said it had come at "absolutely" the wrong time, given the crisis in Fiji.
The accident happened south of the Fijian Island of Kadavu. The Kanimbla and two other Royal Australian Navy vessels are on standby in international waters to rescue Australian nationals during the threat of a coup.
The HMAS Newcastle last night joined the search for the missing SAS trooper.
More Australian service personnel have lost their lives in helicopter crashes over the past decade than from any other cause. In April last year, nine died when a Sea King helicopter, also operating from the Kanimbla, crashed on the Indonesian Island of Nias while assisting in the aftermath of an earthquake.
In June 1996, 18 servicemen lost their lives when two Black Hawks collided during a training exercise at night near Townsville in Queensland. The dead included 15 members of the elite Special Air Service regiment.
Black Hawks operate with a crew of four and can carry up to 10 soldiers. The helicopter began Australian military service in 1988 and has a solid reputation as the workhorse transport helicopter of the army.
Defence Minister Nelson said the Black Hawk was a good helicopter despite its history. "The Black Hawk helicopter is a well tried, tested and true aircraft platform. It's served not only our country but a number of countries extremely well," he said.
Dr Nelson paid tribute to the dead soldier, saying the thoughts of the nation were with the bereaved family.
"We cannot express enough the pride we have in these men and women who wear our uniform. They do a very important job."
HMAS Kanimbla was launched in 1970 by the US navy and was purchased by Australia with its sister ship HMAS Manoora in 1994. It carries a crew of 180 sailors and can transport 400 troops plus vehicles, landing craft and up to four Black Hawk or three Sea King helicopters.
The 1996 Black Hawk disaster was was one of the Australian military's darkest days. A subsequent investigation into the collision found a "litany of mistakes", including poor maintenance. The two crashed helicopters were among six flying in formation at the time.
An interim inquiry held in the days following the crash could not determine the cause.
Later investigations suggested the special goggles used by the pilots were inadequate and left the wearers effectively blind. Communication between the helicopters flying in formation was also criticised.
Additional reporting: AAP, John Stapleton

Exercise's Litany of Errors Led to Tragedy The Australian 30 November 2006

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/exercises-litany-of-errors-led-to-tragedy/story-e6frg6nf-1111112608462

Exercise's 'litany of errors' led to tragedy

EIGHTEEN soldiers died and 10 others were injured 10 years ago when two Black Hawk helicopters collided during a live-fire counter-terrorism exercise near Townsville.
Fifteen soldiers of the Special Air Service Regiment based in Perth and three army aviators died on the night of June 12, 1996, when the Black Hawks, flying in close formation at night in a group of six, veered into each other, crashed and burned. They had been involved in a mock rescue of hostages.
After extended hearings a military board of inquiry found there had been a "litany of errors" in the command, planning and execution of the exercise.
The inquiry heard there had not only been poor training, but the pilots were equipped with night vision goggles that left them virtually blind. The inquiry also found inadequate communication between the helicopters and insufficient numbers of fire extinguishers on board.
Charges against three officers involved were later dropped after outrage within the army.
In the two years of inquiries that followed, the military justice system came in for harsh criticism, as did a defence force unprepared for combat.
The Black Hawk, which carries a crew of four and up to 10 soldiers, is the principal transport helicopter of the Australian Army. It entered service in 1988 with the army acquiring a total of 39. The last aircraft was delivered in 1991 and concerns have been regularly raised about the ageing nature of the fleet.
Lieutenant Andrew Allport, flying in another helicopter, said he saw one of the helicopters turn towards the other, which were only about one rotor blade apart, and watched as its rotor blades hacked off the tail rotor and sliced into the fuselage of the second helicopter.
The fiery spray from the ruptured fuselage set alight the first helicopter, which hit the ground upside down and then exploded. The second helicopter spiralled to the ground at a slower rate.
As the nation's worst military disaster since a collision between HMAS Melbourne and HMAS Voyager in 1964 claimed 82 lives, the Black Hawk disaster had a profound impact on the country and its defence forces.
Flags fluttered at half mast at defence sites around the nation.
HMAS Kanimbla, from which the latest disaster occurred, was involved in the Sea King helicopter disaster on Nias Island in Indonesia in April last year, when nine people were killed.
The landing ship has been in operation since 1970 and was acquired by Australian Defence Forces in 1994 from the US Navy.

Wednesday 29 November 2006

Kernot backs Gillard as the next ALP leader, The Australian, 29 November, 2006.

Kernot backs Gillard as the next ALP leader: [3 All-round Metro Edition]

Stapleton, JohnThe Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 29 Nov 2006: 6.
FORMER Australian Democrats leader and Labor convert Cheryl Kernot last night backed Julia Gillard as heir apparent for leadership of the Labor Party, declaring that Kim Beazley could not win the next election.
Long a supporter of increasing the number of women in politics, Ms Kernot said she could see absolutely no reason why Mr [Kevin Rudd] was being talked about as the next Labor leader ahead of Ms Gillard, the Opposition health spokeswoman.

Full Text

Tuesday 28 November 2006

Detainees in disturbance, The Australian, 28 November, 2006.

Detainees in disturbance: [3 All-round Metro Edition]

Stapleton, JohnThe Australian; Canberra, A.C.T. [Canberra, A.C.T] 28 Nov 2006: 3.
Show highlighting
One security officer received minor injuries. One asylum-seeker was taken to hospital after feeling faint and another suffered minor injuries to his arm.

Monday 27 November 2006

Concerns at P-plate driver toll, The Australian, 27 November, 2006.

Concerns at P-plate driver toll: [1 All-round Country Edition]

Stapleton, JohnThe Australian; Canberra, A.C.T. [Canberra, A.C.T] 27 Nov 2006: 5.
THE debate in NSW over the safety of young drivers has intensified after three P-plate drivers were caught under the influence of alcohol in Maitland, northwest of Newcastle, early yesterday.

Full Text

Sunday 26 November 2006

3801, The Australian, 26 November 2006

26 NOVEMBER 2006
John Stapleton
NOSTALGIA, excitement, frustration and bitterness, they were all part of the mix as the historic 3801 steam train left Central Station yesterday.
It was the locomotive's last trip under its present ownership structure, with the NSW state government refusing all entreaties to leave the train with the team of volunteers who have been running it successfully for the past 20 years.
The 3801 is regarded as the best working example of a steam locomotive in Australia. An engineering triumph in its day, the 3801, built by Clyde Engineering in Western Sydney, came into operation in 1943. After ceasing operation in the 1960s it was left as a rusting heap at the NSW Rail Transport Museum at Thirlmere south of Sydney until the 1980s, when it was restored and then leased to volunteer heritage company 3801 Ltd. That lease expired yesterday and the train will now return to the Museum.
The more than 100 enthusiasts who formed 3801 wanted the past arrangements to continue. But the NSW government has been determined to resume control and to rehouse it. The historical Redfern rail sheds where it was housed have been earmarked for high rise development.
Recently retired chairman of 3801, former dean of Engineering at Sydney University John Glastonbury, said the 3801 was the ultimate steam passenger locomotive in Australia, of the same significance to Australians as the ``Flying Scotsman'' was to the English. He said there was great sadness at the train's last ride. ``It is plain crazy,'' he said. ``This operation has been eminently successful, and the government are about destroying it. They want to replace us with a committee. We had an iconic piece of heritage being successfully run by a volunteer community group, and now we have a bureaucracy. It is a travesty.''
Yesterday's train manager Allan Phillpot, 67, said hundreds upon hundreds of hours of volunteer work had gone into the 3801. ``We are very disappointed, the drivers, the guards, everyone who has been involved,'' he said.
Opposition Transport spokeswoman Gladys Berejiklian pledged to save the 3801 as a ``piece of living history'' if they won government and called for an extension of the train's lease at least until the March state elections. She said every effort should be made to ensure the train continued to operate and did not end up sitting idle in a museum.
``The volunteers and steam enthusisasts who make up 3801 Limited should be allowed to continue their good work.''
NSW Transport Minister John Watkins said the 3801 had a secure future under the new arrangements, although it may not be able to run as often. ``It belongs to the people of NSW,'' he said. ``The Iemma Government will do everything in its power to ensure the many men, women and children who so love the 3801 will see it out on our tracks for generations to come.''
Chief Executive of NSW RailCorp Vince Graham said the train would be driven to Maitland this week to be assessed by experts as part of their commitment to ensure the train continued to run.

Saturday 25 November 2006

Inside trade appeal fails, Weekend Australian, 25 November, 2006.

Inside trade appeal fails: [1 All-round Country Edition]

Stapleton, JohnWeekend Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 25 Nov 2006: 5.
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THE decade-long legal battle by former Macquarie Bank high-flyer Simon Hannes to clear his name ended yesterday when he lost his second appeal in theNSW Supreme Court.

Friday 24 November 2006

Braille on bottles grape news for blind, The Australian, 24 November, 2006.

Braille on bottles grape news for blind: [1 All-round Country Edition]

Stapleton, JohnThe Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 24 Nov 2006: 10.
Show highlighting
Mr [NICK Gleeson], 45, has been blind since the age of seven, after an accident when he ran into a supermarket door. Among his achievements has been climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, but until now, selecting the right wine for the right occasion has been beyond him. "Every time, when we have a bottle of wine, I have to rely on asking somebody else," he said. "It is lovely to be able to pick up a bottle and know it is a chardonnay.