| OPERATION PLES DRAI PAPUA NEW GUINEA DROUGHT |
| THE PNG AND AUSTRALIAN DEFENCE FORCES WORKING TOGETHER FOR THE PEOPLE OF PNG DURING THE 1997 – 1998 DROUGHT |
| SAILORS JOIN DROUGHT RELIEF |
 |
| Air Force and Army personnel from the Australian and PNG Defence Forces were joined by their Navy counterparts, over the weekend, for drought relief operations in PNG. |
| Two Cairns-based ships, the HMAS Tarakan and HMAS Labuan came to Port Moresby to assist with the delivery of rice, oil and flour to ports throughout PNG. |
| Commander of the Australian Forces in PNG Lieutenant Colonel Norman Cognet said the two RAN (Royal Australian Navy) vessels were ideally suited to the job. |
| "The ships are both heavy landing craft and can carry up to 161 tonnes. Recently HMAS Labuan, which was complemented with about eight additional sailors from the PNGDF, was used to transport relief supplies into the Gulf Province where she delivered two months worth of aid," Lt Col Cognet said. |
| HMAS Labuan, anchored off the coast near the Gulf Province capital of Kerema, was able to deliver the supplies with the assistance of their own dinghies and local fishermen who brought their boats alongside to be loaded. |
| Shallow, uncharted waters around Kerema made it impossible for the ship to make a beach landing but together the Australians and PNG sailors were able to unload all of the supplies in less than eight hours. |
| "The delivery at Kerema goes to show just how versatile these ships are. They have very professional crew and in the short time that theyıve been operating with us theyıve really shown their worth," Lt Col Cognet said. |
| The ships are designated LCH which means Landing Craft Heavy. They are not always seen as the most glamorous ships in the RAN but are equipped with a practical open hull which, in Army terms, means they can carry up to three Leopard Main Battle Tanks. |
| They also have a giant ramp which can be lowered onto a beach or the open sea for easy debarkation of supplies and equipment. |
| The supplies delivered at Kerema were later taken to further, in land, locations by Army Black Hawk helicopters. |
|
| By: Captain Chip Henriss-Anderssen - November 25 ,1997 |
| Sailors Join Drought Relief Picture Gallery. |