SIX C-130J Hercules transport aircraft from Air Force’s No. 37 Squadron (37SQN) will fly over Canberra at 3pm tomorrow afternoon ahead of the Operation Slipper Welcome Home Parades across Australia on March 21.

Operation Slipper was Australia’s contribution to the war in Afghanistan.

The aircraft will be in a trail formation, with each aircraft separated by a distance of 600 metres, flying 75 metres above all ground obstacles. The formation will conduct a flight above Lake Burley Griffin and then above Russell Offices, passing from West to East on both occasions.

Wing Commander Darren Goldie, Commanding Officer of 37SQN, said the flight was part of routine tactical training in formation flying.

“We will conduct a number of Hercules formation flights over Sydney, Melbourne, and Canberra, recognising Australia’s military contribution to the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) mission in Afghanistan and the International Coalition against Terrorism (ICAT) mission across Afghanistan and the Middle East,” Wing Commander Goldie said.

“For many veterans of Operation SLIPPER, the C-130 holds special significance as being the aircraft that carried them into Afghanistan and sustained them during their deployment..”

“The Hercules was deployed to the Middle East from late 2001, and different models have operated continuously in the Middle East Region since February 2003.”

The flight on 11 March will be conducted to and from RAAF Base Richmond in Sydney’s northwest, and will see the crews conducting formation training over rural New South Wales, as well as an airdrop of cargo to a dropzone in Sydney’s northwest.

[Photo by CPL David Said, 28SQN AFID-RIC, © Commonwealth of Australia, Department of Defence]