Detachment from 1FER Holsworthy, Feb - Sep 1974.

Exercise Kentia Palm. 

In preparation for the 50th anniversary of the completion of the civilian airstrip, constructed by Army with RAN support, we are seeking names of those RAE, RAEME, RASIGS, RASVY, RAAOC, AACC, and RAN (LCH Crews) who were there.

Sadly the Army Rolls have not survived and memories are fading - we have 20 names so far, but believe around 120 were involved, over the three rotations. The idea is to present the names to the Lord Howe Island Community in 2024 and also have a reunion, hopefully on Lord Howe Island.

Contacts:
Gary Barker 0409 446 475; gary.barker3@bigpond.com
Ron Byron 07 3294 0409; rc.byron@bigpond.com

Commander 7th Brigade

Brigadier Mick Say, DSC

On the completion of officer training at the Australian Defence Force Academy and the Royal Military College, Brigadier Say graduated into the Royal Australian Engineer Corps.

As a junior officer, Brigadier Say completed a number of Corps postings within the 1st Combat Engineer Regiment, School of Military Engineering and the then Land Warfare Development Centre.

His non-corps postings included the operations cell at Headquarters 1st Division and Headquarters 7th Brigade. Brigadier Say had the privilege of being the Commanding Officer of the 1st Combat Engineer Regiment in 2013-14.

Post unit command, Brigadier Say completed a number of postings to Army Headquarters within Career Management – Army and as the Military Assistant to the Chief of Army. He assumed his current appointment as Commander 7th Brigade in December 2021.

Brigadier Say has been fortunate to deploy twice while in command positions: in Afghanistan as Officer Commanding Engineers for Mentoring and Reconstruction Task Force One and in Iraq as Commander Task Group Taji VII.

He also deployed to Iraq as the SO3 Engineer Operations in the British Headquarters Multi-National Division South East. Brigadier Say holds a Bachelor of Science and Masters of Management (Leadership) from the University of New South Wales, a Graduate Diploma in Strategic Management and Leadership from the Chartered Management Institute and a Masters of Arts (Defence Studies) from King’s College London.

Brigadier Say is married to Wendy, an Army Educational Officer, and they have three sons.

Brigadier Say is Head of Corps for the Royal Australian Engineers. He is a passionate sportsman and still enjoys opportunities to play social cricket.

The build of the bridge and its dedication is on the 11th of November 2022, at Anzac Park. Toowong Qld.

More information will be sent out as soon as we have confirmed details of the dedication of the bridge in Amiens, France.  

Our memorial bridge to be built in Amiens France has been overtaken by the COVID-19 pandemic. Travel bans and restrictions have forced the postponement of the build and dedication of the bridge to 8 August 2021, when hopefully, this international calamity will be a thing of the past. More information on ceremonial and dedication arrangements will be passed on during the coming months.

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Our Patron - Brigadier John Carey CSC MSM

The Head of Corps of RAE, Brigadier John Carey CSC MSM has accepted the role of the Patron for 1 FD SQN GP RAE Association. BRIG Carey mentioned that he would scribe notes for a future HOC to fill the role of our Patron going forward. This means that when BRIG Carey moves on in his career, the incoming HOC will also be offered the role of being our Patron automatically.

Brigadier Carey is the Chief of Staff, Headquarters Joint Operations Command, a position he has held since May 2019. He is also the Head of Corps, Royal Australian Engineers.

Brigadier Carey as a Sapper officer has commanded at multiple levels. As a Lieutenant, he served as a combat engineer troop commander in the 2nd Combat Engineer Regiment and the School of Military Engineering. As a Captain, he commanded a specialist training wing at the School of Military Engineering. As a Major, he commanded the 16th Combat Engineer (Ready) Squadron, 3rd Combat Engineer Regiment in East Timor. As a Lieutenant Colonel, he commanded the 2nd Combat Engineer Regiment in support of the 7th Brigade during operations in Afghanistan, Pakistan, South-East Asia, Pacific and the Queensland Floods. As a Colonel and a Senior United Nations Military Observer, he commanded the Australian Contingent in South Sudan.

Brigadier Carey has served on operations in East Africa (South Sudan and Uganda ‘16); Afghanistan (‘10 and ‘11/12); Middle East (Israel and Jordan ‘98); East Timor (‘99/00 and ‘03); and in the South West Pacific (Bougainville ‘98). He has operational experience in complex environments including counterinsurgency, war fighting, humanitarian, peace keeping, stability and disaster relief missions.

His other appointments include service as an instructor at the School of Military Engineering in Sydney; and on exchange at the Royal School of Military Engineering in the United Kingdom; and the US Army Engineer School in the United States. He has also been a tactics instructor at both the School of Armour and the Royal Military College - Duntroon. His employment as a staff officer includes: Headquarters Joint Operations Command as the Director of Global Operations, responsible for military operations in Afghanistan, Iraq, Middle East, Africa, Ukraine and the Indian Ocean; and Army Headquarters in both the Directorate of Army Operations and the Directorate of Soldier Career Management - Army.

Brigadier Carey is a Fellow at the Centre for Defence and Strategic Studies and is a graduate of the Australian Defence Force Academy, Royal Military College - Duntroon, Australian Command and Staff College, University of New South Wales, Deakin University, The Cranlana Programme, ADF Commander Joint Task Force Course and the Combined Joint Force Land Component Commander Course at the U.S. Army War College. He holds postgraduate qualifications in management and international relations, and has completed training with the Australian Institute of Company Directors and Harvard Business School.

Brigadier Carey is married to Aly (1996) and has two children, Grace (19) and Jack (16). He has travelled extensively throughout the world, supports many charities and is a keen sportsman.