DEFENCE MEDIA RELEASE
Issued by Ministerial Support and Public Affairs, Department of Defence, Canberra, ACT
Phone: 02 6127 1999, Fax: 02 6265 1545
MSPA 245/10
Wednesday, 23 June 2010
HMAS Bundaberg to visit Southport and host Open Day
The Royal Australian Navy announced today that HMAS Bundaberg will be conducting a
port visit to Southport Queensland, from 25 to 29 June 2010.
As part of this visit, HMAS Bundaberg will be hosting an Open Day for the residents of
Surfers Paradise on Sunday 27 June 2010.
According to the Commanding Officer of ARDENT FOUR Lieutenant Commander Brett
Westcott RAN, which is embarked on HMAS Bundaberg, this will give local residents a great
opportunity to explore this Armidale Class Patrol Boat.
“ARDENT FOUR is very proud to be given the opportunity to serve in HMAS Bundaberg so
we welcome the chance to open this Patrol Boat to the Surfers Paradise community,” said
Lieutenant Commander Westcott.
HMAS Bundaberg will be open to the public from 10:00am to 2:00pm Sunday 27 June at the
Southport Yacht Club. Crew members from ARDENT FOUR will be on hand to explain
seamanship and discuss life in the Navy.
“The Armidale Class Patrol Boats have a great range of capabilities, enabling us to spend
long periods of time at sea patrolling for illegal fishing vessels or unauthorised boat arrivals. I
hope that by visiting HMAS Bundaberg, locals will have a better understanding of our role
within the Australian Navy,” Lieutenant Commander Westcott said.
Members of ARDENT FOUR recently received commendations for their role in helping
rescue, treat and evacuate those injured from the explosion onboard Suspected Irregular Entry
Vessel (SIEV) 36 on 16 April, 2009. This included a Chief of the Defence Force
Commendation to Lieutenant Commander Brett Westcott.
“It will be great to visit Southport and we are especially looking forward to the Open Day
which I hope will strengthen the bonds between the Royal Australian Navy and the Surfers
Paradise residents,” said Lieutenant Commander Brett Westcott.
Media note: A list of names of all recipients and images of recipients in Cairns along with
Media contact:
Mr Bernard O’Connor, HMAS Cairns, 0419 019 980
Mr Paul Lineham, Defence Public Affairs SQ, mobile 0408 972 329
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