THE HON. WARREN SNOWDON MP
Minister for Defence Science and Personnel
Friday, 23 January 2009
011/2009
FORCE SUPPORT UNIT OFF TO THE MIDDLE EAST
The Minister for Defence Science and Personnel, the Hon. Warren Snowdon
MP, today joined with local families to farewell members of the Force Support
Unit bound for the Middle East.
The Force Support Unit, known as FSU-1, is a logistic unit deployed to the
Middle East to service all Australian Middle East military operations, including
Afghanistan. This is a rotation to replace the currently deployed FSU.
The Minister has recently returned from the Middle East, where he visited
troops and said he had no doubt FSU-1 would do Australia equally proud in
their contribution overseas.
“I’m very pleased to have had the opportunity today to say farewell to the
young men and women of the Force Support Unit, who are about to serve in
the Middle East,” Mr Snowdon said.
“Modern operations are all about sustainment and making sure our people
have the right equipment at the right time and in the right quantities; and that
is what this Unit will do.
“Without them, the operations would quickly grind to a halt.
“I know that they are all highly trained professionals who take great pride in
their work and that they are eager to get on with the job of supporting their
fellow Australians serving on operations,” Mr Snowdon said.
The Force Support Unit is based around the 1st Combat Services Support
Battalion (1 CSSB) from Robertson Barracks in Darwin, but also includes
personnel from the Navy, Army and Air Force, drawn from across Australia.
The unit commander is Lieutenant Colonel Ed Smeaton.
The group has spent the past month in intensive training at Robertson
Barracks, preparing for the conditions and possible scenarios that await them.
More than 1200 troops have been deployed from Darwin on operations over
the last six months.
Media contacts:
Luke Toy (Warren Snowdon):
02 6277 7620 or 0409 076 576
Defence Media Liaison:
02 6265 3343 or 0408 498 664
NEWS 
