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By HARRY CLARKE
Defence Minister Richard Marles and Australian Defence Force chief Angus Campbell have provided an update on the search and rescue operation in the Whitsundays following the MRH 90 helicopter crash on Friday night.
Below is some of what they said:
SEARCH OPERATION
Defence Minister Richard Marles:
Since the accident of the MRH 90 helicopter on Friday night the activities that have been occurring in the Whitsundays have now revealled significant wreckage from the helicopter.
What this evidences is that this was a catastrophic incident and with every passing hour it is now clear that any hope of finding Captain Lyon, Lieutenant Nugent, Warrant Officer Laycock and Corporal Naggs alive has been lost.
The nature of the activities which are being undertaking in the Whitsundays have transferred from being ones of search and rescue to an activity of recovery.
The families of the four aircrew were notified of this this morning.
I do want to assure them and assure the nation that the determined recovery effort involving hundreds of Defence Force personal will continue.
We are all obviously left wondering, naturally, what happened.
Foremost in our minds in this moment must be the families of these four men and their teammates.
With them in mind, idle speculation is obviously harmful, but there will be a formal investigation and we will come to understand exactly what happened and learn the lessons from it.
(L) Highly respected Troop Commander Captain Danniel Lyon of the 6th Aviation Regiment is among the four Australian aviators involved in a catastrophic MRH-90 chopper crash on July 28. (R) Aircrewman Corporal Alexander Naggs of the 6th Aviation Regiment who was a former rifleman of the 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, was well regarded amongst peers.
Defence exercises are serious, they carry risk and as such they are dangerous, but they are so important.
These exercises have played a critical part in providing for the collective security and peace of the region in which we live.
The loss of these four men is as significant and meaningful as the loss of anyone who has worn our national’s uniform.
If it is as we imagine it to be, they died on Friday night making a difference.
Defence is a huge enterprise and on another level it is a small community. People work very closely together and know each other. In my immediate defence family there are people who knew some of the aircrew, and I know how acutely they are feeling in this moment and there will be people across the Defence Force who are feeling it with them. Right now we are thinking very much about all of them.
The people who are in most pain in this moment are the families of these four men. They have lost loved ones, persons most cherished, and they face the prospect ahead of a life with an unfillable hole.
To them we are so deeply sorry and we are so deeply grateful, and they have every right to feel an intense sense of pride.
I want them to know that they stand in the warm embrace of the entire nation.
Australian Defence Force chief, General Angus Campbell:
My thoughts and prayers go out to the families and to the friends and to the regiments.
I’d ask all Australians to pause for a moment and think about that service offered and the loss suffered and to support and care for these families and for our ADF personnel throughout the country.
Their service matters and what they do together matters for Australia.
(L) Lieutenant Max Nugent of the 6th Aviation Regiment who was one of two pilots onboard the MRH-90 involved in the catastrophic crash. (R) Father of three and highly respected senior special operations aircrewman Joseph Laycock of the 6th Aviation Regiment who is among those missing.
The recovery effort is ongoing and it’s got the full backing of the entire multinational effort that is present in Exercise Talisman Sabre.
We deeply appreciate the assistance being offered, especially by the United States and by Canada, as well as by the civil agencies and the Queensland Police Service.
This effort will continue and we will be bringing our mates home to their families and to their regiments.
It’s not easy being in the ADF today or being associated with anyone who is connected in some way to this loss.
Please take care of yourself and take care of others and support our families.
It’s (the search area) in an area of the waters around the Whitsunday islands where there are quite strong currents and tidal movements, and with waters that move below the depths of a standard diving option.
This means that we have had to use SONAR equipment to identify pieces of the wreckage, but we’ll also have to use divers and some specialist divers to support.
It is also subject to the standard nature of the weather at the time and the visibly in the water. It’s not an easy operation.
MRH 90 HELICOPTER FLEET
Defence Minister Richard Marles:
These helicopter were certified to fly.
There will be a full investigation and we will come to understand exactly what has happened here and what lessons we need to learn from this.
In the meantime our fleet of MRH 90s have been grounded and they won’t fly again until we understand what has happened and we have acted accordingly.
Obviously it does impact capability.
I wouldn’t want to raise expectation around having the Blackhawks in service sooner. We are in the process of transitioning to Blackhawks, pretty well, as of now.
It is a question of having all of the airframes coming to Australia but also a question of making sure that all of the appropriate training and credentialing is done for those who operate the Blackhawks so that that can be done in a safe way.
That is to be done with all of the thoroughness that you would expect.
The MRH90s were due to come out of service at the end of next year.
We will move through the process of putting the Blackhawks into service as quickly as we can but as throughly as we need to and we will not be flying MRH90s until we know what has happened.
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Australian Defence Force chief, General Angus Campbell:
I’m not going to speak on issues related to what ultimately may be part of an air accident investigation.
There is going to be an investigation as there always would be, and it will be utterly thorough and consider all factors.
We must not speculate and we must not in any way influence or distort the presumptions of that investigation.
It will have complete and full authority to review what has happened, identify the causes of this accident and make recommendations to ensure that it doesn’t happen again.
NOTICE: Australian Defence Force support services
1. Defence All-hours support line – The All-hours Support Line (ASL) is a confidential telephone service for ADF members and their families that is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week by calling 1800 628 036.
2. Defence Member and Family Helpline – Operates 24-7, if you need support, help, or advice at any time, call 1800 624 608. The Defence Member and Family Helpline is staffed by qualified human services professionals including social workers and psychologists.
3. A network of dedicated mental health professionals at health centres located at major Defence bases is available to provide or facilitate support for ADF members both on-base and off-base. For out-of-hours or away-from-base assistance, members can call 1800 IMSICK (1800 467 425) to locate the nearest support. More information is available via the Mental Health Portal at: https://www1.defence.gov.au/adf-members-families/health-well-being/services-support-fighting-fit/mental-health-online
4. Open Arms – Veterans & Families Counselling (formerly VVCS) provides free and confidential counselling and support for current and former serving ADF members and their families. They can be reached 24 hours a day, seven days a week on 1800 011 046 or visit the Open Arms website for more information.
5. Open Arms also has Safe Zone Support which can be accessed at: https://www.openarms.gov.au/safe-zone-support.
6. The Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) provides immediate help and treatment for any mental health condition, whether it relates to service or not. If you or someone you know is finding it hard to cope with life, call Open Arms on 1800 011 046 or DVA on 1800 838 372. Further information can be accessed on the DVA website.
A full list of welfare support services is available at: https://www.defence.gov.au/about/reviews-inquiries/afghanistan-inquiry/welfare-support