Vol 58

Page 14

1913 -

Portugal and the Netherlands agreed on the division of the island of Timor with Kupang in the west under Dutch control and Dili in the east under Portuguese control.

1945 -

Indonesia declared independence from the Dutch and so Kupang in West Timor was now under Indonesian control.

1974 -

The new Portuguese government in Lisbon declared self-determination of its colonies. The political parties of Timorese Democratic Union (UDT), Association of Timorese Social Democrats (ASDT, known as Fretilin) and Timorese Popular Democratic association (APODETI) formed within East Timor to represent the various views of the population.

June 1974 -

Indonesia assures its supports for Timorese independence.

Sept 1974 -

Australian PM (Gough Whitlam) secretly meets with President Suharto, giving conditional support for the integration of East Timor into Indonesia.

Jan 1975 -

UDT and Fretilin form a coalition.

May 1975 -

UDT unexpectedly breaks its coalition with Fretilin.

Aug 1975 -

Under pressure from Jakarta UDT launches a coup in Dili. The Portuguese governor and a small contingency of Portuguese troops move to the nearby Atauro Island (18 nm north of Dili).

Sept 1975 -

Fretilin, with the support of East Timorese members of the Portuguese army resist the coup and after three weeks of civil conflict, and some 1500 deaths, gain control of the territory. Fretilin respects Portuguese authority and wants negotiations to continue under the UN where it was listed as a non-self-governing territory.

Oct 1975 -

Indonesian troops dressed as UDT begins to move land forces into East Timor from the west. Five newsmen (Australian, New Zealand and British) are killed by Indonesian troops in Balibo.

Nov 1975 -

In the presence of UDT and APODETI leaders, the Indonesian Foreign Minister signs a Declaration integrating East Timor into Indonesia.

Dec 1975 -

Indonesia invades East Timor with land, sea and airborne forces. UN Security Council calls for Indonesia to immediately withdraw its forces from East Timor.

Unit:

No 38 Squadron, RAAF Base Richmond, NSW

Aircraft:

Caribou A4-140

Crew:

Pilot - Flying Officer Kierman (Kim) French

Pilot - Pilot Officer Gordon Browne

Load Master - Corporal Bill Crouch

Officials:

Passengers we transported on several sorties that played a part included:

28 Aug 1975.

As the task was unscheduled, the flight crew where quickly drawn from those not already assigned flying tasks and who could be ready for a swift departure from RAAF Richmond. We were to conduct an undisclosed operation with the Red Cross out of Darwin with tasking to be briefed on our arrival. We were told not to tell our families of the task or to disclose the location of our operation.

After preparation and flight planning etc we departed Richmond around midday on a 4:20 hr flight to Charleville, western Queensland where we stayed overnight.

29 Aug 1975.

We departed Charleville early for Darwin with a refuel stop in Mt Isa. At the mind-blowing cruise airspeed of 145 KTAS it took 9:20 hrs and we arrived into Darwin in the late afternoon.

We checked into our accommodation and were then briefed on our impending task by the Base Intelligence Officer, Sqn Ldr Harding. The operational elements had been classified with no press to be involved and details were not to be disclosed outside of those with a need to know. We were to fly under the flag of the International Red Cross; the body designated to co-ordinate the transiting of governing responsibility from Portugal to the peoples of East Timor; the United Nations was not involved at this stage. To maintain neutrality while flying under the Red Cross flag the crew were to be unarmed.

Out task was to carry communications equipment, Red Cross medical supplies, Portuguese government personnel, representatives of UDT and Fretilin and Red Cross negotiators from Darwin and Dili to Atauro Island where the Timorese Portuguese governor would be co-ordinating the negotiations for the transit of East Timor to independence. We were also told to provide surveillance reports back to Darwin of the situation especially on the road between Dili and Baucau. 

After completing the briefing we made initial planning arrangements and during dinner we were approached by an NCO who had been directed to modify the paint scheme for the aircraft. The green monotone paint of the hull would be retained but the RAAF roundels were to be replaced with a Red Cross symbol. He asked how we wanted the symbol aligned and even though we thought this an odd request we said as would be as normally orientated, ie vertical axis. 

30 Aug 1975.

Next morning we prepared the flight plan, meet with Sqn Ldr Harding and then proceeded to the aircraft. We took on a full fuel load (4800 lbs) to ensure we had return fuel because the availability of suitable stocks of 100/130 Avgas fuel in Dili or Baucau could not be confirmed. We also collected rations for the day and as a contingency included additional tinned/packaged supplies in case we couldn’t return to Darwin that evening.

Weather wise we were fortunate as the wet season was a couple of months away and consequently the weather for the trip was planned to be fine with light winds, the standard dry season smoke haze generated by farmers burning the savannah grassland.

The task for the first day of Red Cross support operations was a return flight Darwin-Dili-Atauro-Darwin with a planned total flight time of 6:00 hours. The aim was to carry equipment, Red Cross supplies and official passengers to Atauro where a Portuguese manned camp had been established in a coconut plantation of the SE coast of the island. The camp was guarded by the Portuguese Army contingent assigned to the Regional Governor.

It came as a surprise when we arrived at the aircraft for our departure from Darwin to find the Red Cross was aligned with the sloping empennage structural frames and represented more of a multiplication symbol instead of the normal upright cross - what could we say!

We departed for our initial destination Dili, 390 nm NW of Darwin and this would take about 2:45 flight time. Due to the uncertainty in Timor we maintained hourly scheduled contact with the RAAF using the discrete HF network.

The Dili airfield had an air traffic control tower and terminal facilities. The runway was orientated parallel and slightly inland of the coast and consisted of a hard crushed coral surface. What we did not know at that time was that there had been a mini war going on and the town and airfield were under the control of Fretilin troops. Judging by the range of uniforms, the troops appeared to be a mix of regular troops and militia; they were all armed to the teeth and looked very mean. The air traffic personnel where nowhere to be seen and the tower, passenger terminal facilities and nearby government building around the airport showed signs of significant small arms damage and ransacking. Several of our passengers stayed in Dili while we took on others in preparation for the next sector.

The next stage of the flight was from Dili to Atauro Island where the negotiations between the warring parties and the Portuguese were to take place. Atauro was about 18 nm north-east and 8 min flight time and fortunately fighting had not reached this part of the island. The strip was on the SE side of the island and consisted of crushed coral or limestone close to the shore and inside the edge of a coconut plantation. 

The airfield we had decided to use as an alternate for flight operations in the Timor area was Baucau, a long concrete runway with modern facilities and a control tower. It was located under the control of the UDT faction, 52 nm east of Dili and several miles inland on the northern coast. At that time the skirmishes between the Fretilin and UDT fighters was occurring in the hills behind Dili and to the west of Baucau.  

Although we had been apprehensive as to what we would encounter, the day was uneventful and we arrived back in Darwin; minus the majority of the passengers; at last light having completed 6.0 hours of flying.

31 Aug 1975.

My logbook has not entries for the day so I can only presume we had been placed on Standby in Darwin while the negotiations took place in Atauro Island.

01 Sept 1975.

Our task was now to provide passenger and operational support to the Red Cross by flying personnel between Darwin and Dili. 

At Dili the Fretilin troops were again very much on edge; consequently we stayed close to the aircraft while our passengers went into the hospital.

After unloading medical supplies and the Red Cross team had returned from an inspection of the town and hospital, we departed for Darwin and flew a total of 5.5 hours for the day.

02 Sept 1975.

As with the previous day, our task continued to be the provision of passenger and operational support to the Red Cross by flying personnel and medical supplies between Darwin, Dili and Baucau and providing surveillance reports back to Darwin. There were reports that the progress of the transition negotiations was not proceeding well and the Fretilin were steadily advancing both east along the coastal road and the west towards the West Timor border.

The sector from Darwin to Dili was uneventful but in Dili there was a heightened level of tension. The next leg was Dili to Baucau and it was our first chance to land at Baucau airfield.  With its’ long concrete runway and tower (relatively new tower construction but without major communications or lighting installed or ATC personnel on site) we were impressed with the facilities when comparing to the rather dilapidated buildings at the Dili airport. The airfield approach from the coast presented a clear flight path however the range of hills to the south with Mt Macebien in the distance indicated rising ground that had to be considered when taking off towards the south.

On arrival we were surprise to get a landing clearance from the tower by a person with an Australian accent. After landing we were met by the person in the tower and it turned out he was a Timorese UDT soldier who had previously been a military policeman and had trained in Sydney. He subsequently became our unofficial translator and contact in Baucau. The Red Cross passengers departed for an inspection of the town and its facilities and meetings with other Red Cross personnel stationed in the town. A small section of UDT soldiers were at the airfield under the command of the policeman. Although very nervous, they were friendly and we were able to have a limited conversation with them while we waited for our passengers to return.

We found the policeman to be level headed and relatively in control considering the situation with reports of the Fretilin forces rapid advance from the west along the coastal road from the Dili. He expressed concern with the potential destruction of the town, small hospital and convent/orphanage and reports of possible Fretilin atrocities that had been committed in other towns between Dili and Baucau.

After the Red Cross team returned we were told our task now included evacuating Catholic Nuns and children from the orphanage and some women. We had to leave two nuns behind who were visiting outlying villages at the time of the evacuation. We departed for Darwin with 30 refugees and with a heightened sense of the military situation that was unfolding. On arrival we had flown 6.8 hours and a debriefing was completed covering the days’ events and possible implications for the ongoing flying. 

03 Sept 1975.

The crew were placed on Standby in Darwin and the aircraft had some routine maintenance carried out on it while the negotiations continued in Atauro Island to try and obtain a truce from the fighting so that the transition could occur without further military confrontation.

04 Sept 1975.

We continued the task with the providing passenger and operational support to the Red Cross by flying personnel and medical supplies between Darwin, Dili and Baucau but were instructed by the OC Darwin Base to only evacuate the two Nuns and any remaining Red Cross personnel. There was an increased apprehension as to what we could expect as no new intelligence information had been released by Canberra for us to assess what the latest situation was in Timor or the progress of the negotiations.

The weather was still fine and the flight sectors between Darwin, Dili to Baucau were uneventful. On arrival in Baucau the situation was very tense and unexpected. As we shutdown we saw an array of weapons lying in a neat row on the apron and both an Australian and a White Surrender flag flying from atop the control tower. In addition to the section of UDT militia, there was a group of civilians; including women and children; clustered around several trucks at the base of the tower. We reported the situation via RAAF HF and requested that we be monitored for a scheduled “ops-normal” call no later than 30 minutes time while we assessed the situation. 

To add to the tension, the UDT policeman told us that the Fretilin forces were reported to be only 5 miles west of the airfield. When we enquired what had occurred to lead up to the imminent surrender we were told that a possible surrender arrangement had been negotiations between Mr Michael Darby (Australian Society for Intercountry Aid-Timor), the UDT leaders in Baucau and the Fretilin leaders. It had reported that it had been agreed that if the UDT surrendered their weapons then the Fretilin would respect the surrender and the local population would be safe.  

(Author Comment - This surrender arrangement and the major players could not be verified.)

We decided to enter the ATC tower with the policeman to get a better view of the surrounding area (which in retrospect probably wasn’t a wise decision because could have made us targets for any sniper). Entering the tower we found the stair well leading up to the observation area packed with boxes of explosives. We immediately decided on the safer course of action was to stay on the ground close to the aircraft. The policeman approached us and requested we seek urgent approval to fly out women and children further east so that at least they were safe from the imminent battle.  

(Author Comment – probably to a landing area at Fuiloro, a town about 30 nm east of Baucau)

The policeman suggested that further evacuation flights would be needed to evacuate the other civilian especially the children and women remaining in the orphanage.

I think it would have been about 4 PM and following this evacuation request we reported the situation to Darwin on the RAAF HF network. We were told our request for further direction was being forwarded to Canberra and we were to standby for a response but it could take some time. Without any external electrical power source and with the high power draw by the HF; we decided that we should conserve our battery and call back after an agreed time to ensure we could get an engine started.

After a period of time (I reckon it was about 30-40 minutes) we established HF contact with the RAAF and were told that there had been difficulty in finding the military or government persons who could make the decision and at that time we did not have authorisation to evacuate the civilians and were to only do as instructed and evacuate the Nuns and Red Cross personnel.

Reluctantly we went to the policeman to advise him that the Canberra authorisation for additional evacuation had not been provided. On telling his soldiers this response, soldiers in the ranks panicked and one soldier with his family in the crowd walked over to the row of weapons on the ground, retrieved a pistol and grenade, pointing it at us and demanded we load the aircraft with the women, children and other civilians and take them to Darwin. 

(Author Comment - talk about an adrenalin rush.) 

The situation was now obviously very unstable and with minimal safe options to defuse it, we decided that the safest course of action was doing as he requested.

We had the Nuns and Red Cross people get on board the aircraft and then with the policeman and Bill directing we loaded the women and children and then various males; (some with briefcases firmly in hand) to fill all the seats and aisle of the cabin. With Bill’s war experience in Vietnam he was very calm and said to the policeman that we would evacuate the people providing no guns or other weapons (including the grenade) were brought on-board. This was agreed and various small handguns were thrown onto the tarmac as the men boarded.

About an hour passed as we loaded the aircraft to capacity and the soldier was calmed down, consequently we missed a scheduled RAAF ops-normal call (this caused a high degree of anxiety back in Darwin). The total number of evacuees was 42 (19 males, 13 women and 10 children), two nuns and two official and the three crew we had a total of 49 persons on board. We had all the cabin seat belt positions loaded with an adult and then loaded the children in a position on the seat between each adult to be restrained by the adults; not a desirable arrangement but better than a cargo strap that couldn’t be unlatched in the event of an emergency. The remaining adults were seated on the floor in the aisle.

The Timorese people were only slight in stature but the aircraft weight was estimated to be in the order of 32,000 lbs meaning we were about 3,500 lbs above maximum weight for both the takeoff and landing.

Knowing climb performance would be non-existent if we had an engine failure after takeoff in the hot conditions and heavy weight, the wind was blowing from the south and we had to take off towards the rising ground. Luckily the runway was smooth and long and we were airborne with plenty of distance remaining.

The climb was very slow and we finally established a cruise at about 5000 feet altitude and settled down in a Long Range cruise for the 350 nm trip back to Darwin. Speed wasn’t essential because with the long heavy climb and an estimated flight time of 2.7 hours to Darwin we estimated we should arrive in Darwin with only about 600 lbs (1 hour) remaining in the tanks.

During the climb we contacted RAAF HF. With a certain degree of irony when considering the frustration and continuing delays we had in getting approval for an evacuation, we had the satisfaction in advising “the evacuation situation in Baucau has been resolved because we have been hijacked at gunpoint”. We then proceeded to provided our operational situation, arrival time, passenger numbers and condition, etc and requested that we be meet on arrival (guess that was a given). 

It was very hot (no cold air conditioning in the Caribou) and with the cabin packed with people, the internal air temperature was stifling. Bill distributed the water and food from the contingency rations we had carried. Water was rationed and the children given first priority. Overall, the passengers were now subdued and presented no problems as they knew they were going to Darwin and were safe from the Fretilin. As for us, the adrenalin rush took a while to subside.

It was dark when we finally arrived overhead Darwin with one hour of fuel remaining we requested landing approval but were told to remain in the circuit to allow the local and federal police and government officials from various agencies to complete the arrival arrangements. We stayed in the circuit and annoyed the patrons at the local drive-in theatre as we flew downwind over them on each of 3-4 circuits. We asked Tower each time when we could land as we were getting low on fuel. The soldier now became agitated again so Bill gave him a cigarette and he seemed to calm down a bit.

Finally when the low level fuel warning light illuminated at 400 lbs, the crew’s unanimous decision was that we would land regardless and advise ATC we had low fuel warning and would be landing. This of course was approved and we were told to land and roll through to the remote Bomb Replenishment Area (BRA) on the eastern end of the runway. The BRA was lit up with flood lights, police and buses to transport the refugees. With the cabin full of people we stayed in the cockpit while Bill co-ordinated with the police to have all the refugees unloaded. They were subsequently unloaded from the aircraft tail ramp and put onto buses; we didn’t see them again.

As for the crew, we took A4-140 back to our normal park spot on the RAAF tarmac, shutdown, secured the aircraft for the night, avoided the press and were greeted by the OC Base Darwin with a carton of beer that was well appreciated – what a day.

5-7 Sept 1975.

There was no flying for the next couple of days as we were being debriefed and interviewed by legal people in order to determine the legal situation regarding the unauthorised takeover of the aircraft and crew by an armed person and whether it constituted a highjack. This was to determine what charges were to be laid against the soldier who had initiated the hijack and who; together with the policeman; had been on board for the flight.

10-11 Sept 1975

Following our week of “excitement and drama” we were replaced by a new crew flying A4-199. The replacement aircrafts’ distinctive white paint scheme and Red Cross markings were presented in the newspapers as the aircraft providing Red Cross support. The crew, or A4-140 and its green paint scheme with off-set red cross, were never officially photographed nor was there any further news presented apart from a small twenty word post in the next “RAAF News”.  

The crew of A4-140 returned to Richmond via Alice Springs and Dubbo.

Post Script.

We heard that both the UDT policeman and the soldier who had carried out the highjack had been cleared of highjack charges because no weapons had been on the aircraft when it was airborne. The policeman in the control tower who had been our unofficial contact in Baucau had subsequently chartered a civil light twin and returned to Baucau only to be killed several weeks later in the east of the country. 

(Author Comment - An unverified report we heard later said that the Fretilin forces had attacked Baucau and major atrocities had been inflicted on the town and orphanage. Reading of the reference documents indicates that this may not have been the Fretilin but possibly involved the Indonesian forces that invaded from West Timor in October 1975.)

The details of the actual highjack was never released to the public but sadly, research (Ref A and B) seems to indicate that the government had ceased evacuation processing and it was never intended that we would assist in further evacuation of the refugees from Baucau.

Of passing interest, A4-199 had a white paint scheme because it had returned to Australia in July 1975 following a 6 month rotation in Kashmir providing support for the UN Peacekeeping operating on the demilitarised zone between Pakistan and India. This conflict is still unresolved today.