Keeping The Flag Flying

Illawarra Mercury

Saturday October 25, 2008

HMAS Albatross has come a long way since it was just a handful of World War II dwellings. From the jungles of Vietnam to the sands of the Middle East, recruits from the Nowra base have served around the world and will gather tomorrow to celebrate its 60th anniversary. MARIO CHRISTODOULOU reports

WHEN Neil Ralph closes his eyes he sees glowing orange worms floating in a dark Vietnamese sky.

Night warfare in Vietnam was dangerous. Flying low, rungs skimming the jungle canopy, was risky enough. You didn't want to be broadcasting your position with bright helicopter spotlights.

Mr Ralph is a member of HMAS Albatross's old guard. The former chopper pilot was one of the first Australian pilots to serve in Vietnam, where he ferried American and Australian soldiers out of the jungle of the Mekong Delta.

The great war of his generation was fought in the humidity and mud. His counterparts at Albatross today will likely see combat in the dust of the Middle East.

Mr Ralph vividly recalls the night missions, being sent to pick up teams of soldiers in enemy territory. Because he was flying within the range of small arms fire, helicopter lights had to be turned off.

Instead, orange flares or "glow worms" attached to parachutes were dropped from planes, lighting up the darkness.

"You'd call up the glow worm aircraft and they'd drop these parachute flares," he remembered.

"They'd throw these things out, light up the area."

Mr Ralph doesn't spend much time in the cockpit these days. He is kept busy showing visitors around HMAS Albatross' Fleet Air Arm Museum.

The aviator has become an elder statesman of the Albatross base, where he watches new recruits work their way up through the ranks.

He remembers the base when he arrived from England in 1956. It looked like a small collection of World War II huts.

"I can remember thinking, 'They're pretty backward here'," he said.

Albatross had only been open for eight years. Kerosene flares were still used to light the runway and were frequently blown out by the draft from taxiing aircraft.

Radar was also primitive, with little warning of poor weather conditions.

"If we hit bad weather we either didn't fly or we got caught out and came back in."

Today the base is Australia's largest operational naval establishment and its only air station.

The base was ideally located to support British forces in 1944 because of its proximity to Jervis Bay, which was large enough to accommodate the entire British Pacific Fleet.

Since the early days the word "family" has been used to described the bonds between the serving men and women of both past and present eras.

These family bonds were put to the test on April 2, 2005, when a Sea King helicopter, one of HMAS Albatross' flagship aircraft, crashed while conducting humanitarian activities on the Indonesian island of Nias.

Squadron Leader Paul McCarthy, Lieutenant Matthew Davey, Lieutenant Jonathan King, Lieutenant Paul Kimlin, Lieutenant Matthew Goodall, Flight Lieutenant Lynne Rowbottom, Petty Officer Stephen Slattery, Sergeant Wendy Jones and Leading Seaman Scott Bennet perished in the crash.

Four of those killed came from Albatross.

Commander Rob Gagnon said the incident was devastating.

"Not only to the naval aviation family, not only to the squadron but to Australia as a whole. They were doing fantastic work in Nias," he said.

Commander Gagnon said the tragedy had changed the way the helicopters were maintained.

But he remains a fan of the Sea King, which he has piloted in a number of operations across the world.

"I've been flying for 31 years and it's the aircraft I spent most of my time on," he said.

"It's old but it's a great aeroplane."

Albatross commanding officer Captain Mark Sackley believes the Sea King may eventually be phased out of use, depending on the Federal Government's shifting military priorities.

Indeed, Albatross may have a very different look in the years ahead, with a redevelopment budget of about $80 million.

The modernisation will include new accommodation, new aircraft, increased collaboration with other branches of the military and, potentially, the courting of the private sector.

"So you will see a fresh face of Albatross ... there might also be some commercial interest in using the airfield," Capt Sackley said.

"The naval home of aviation is here."

At any given time, about 100 personnel from the base are deployed overseas, according to Capt Sackley.

"Whether that be on a ship, or other areas of operations, they are always away, so we have to care for their families back here," he said.

"The majority of those people are in the Middle East area of operations, on a ship or in the headquarters in Baghdad."

Capt Sackley will be watching tomorrow as planes and helicopters of all description take to the skies over the base as part of the annual Air Spectacular.

He will be surrounded by the men and women who for over 60 years have come to call Nowra home.

NAVAL GAZING

WHAT: HMAS Albatross Air Day Spectacular

WATCH OUT FOR: Mass flypast at 10am featuring two Agusta A109, six Squirrels, two Sea Kings, four Seahawks, Iroquois

WHERE: HMAS Albatross, 6km south of Nowra, about 1 hour from Wollongong

WHEN: Sunday, 9am-4.30pm

COST: Tickets are available on the day, at $20 adults, $5 under 18, free under 5.

MORE: www.airdayspectacular.com.au

© 2008 Illawarra Mercury

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