1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:04,800 Speaker 1: Well we know that patrol ships HMAS SPAE and also 2 00:00:05,480 --> 00:00:09,280 Speaker 1: the Tamar. Well they've today become their deployment to the 3 00:00:09,320 --> 00:00:13,400 Speaker 1: Indo Pacific region to bolster Britain's presence in our region. 4 00:00:14,040 --> 00:00:16,640 Speaker 1: And the two warships have sailed on a mission which 5 00:00:16,680 --> 00:00:19,400 Speaker 1: is going to see them deployed across a vast area 6 00:00:19,760 --> 00:00:22,560 Speaker 1: from the eastern shores of Africa to the west coast 7 00:00:22,640 --> 00:00:25,840 Speaker 1: of the USA for the next five years. Now, one 8 00:00:25,880 --> 00:00:29,160 Speaker 1: of those ships is set to regularly use Darwin A's 9 00:00:29,200 --> 00:00:33,199 Speaker 1: home as a home port to resupply and also for 10 00:00:33,320 --> 00:00:39,000 Speaker 1: crew support and respite. And the commanding officer of HMS SPAEE, 11 00:00:39,159 --> 00:00:43,480 Speaker 1: Lieutenant Commander Matt Milliard, joins me on the line right now. 12 00:00:43,520 --> 00:00:47,800 Speaker 1: Good morning to you, Matt. He good, yeah, very well, 13 00:00:47,840 --> 00:00:50,559 Speaker 1: Thank you so much for your time. Now tell us 14 00:00:50,680 --> 00:00:52,360 Speaker 1: where did you begin this journey? 15 00:00:54,360 --> 00:00:57,960 Speaker 2: I joined Majors Tamar actually in We left the UK 16 00:00:58,080 --> 00:01:01,720 Speaker 2: in September twenty one. Today is our two year anniversary 17 00:01:01,760 --> 00:01:05,720 Speaker 2: of deploying. Wow, it's been an exciting two years, I 18 00:01:05,800 --> 00:01:06,440 Speaker 2: bet it has. 19 00:01:06,480 --> 00:01:08,520 Speaker 3: Where have you been over those two. 20 00:01:08,360 --> 00:01:13,640 Speaker 2: Years, Well, sort of everywhere between while the UK, coming 21 00:01:13,680 --> 00:01:17,959 Speaker 2: across the Atlantic through the Panama and then from Hawaii 22 00:01:18,240 --> 00:01:20,720 Speaker 2: all the way north to Japan, south to New Zealand 23 00:01:20,800 --> 00:01:23,960 Speaker 2: and all the way west to India and everywhere in between. 24 00:01:24,000 --> 00:01:27,560 Speaker 2: About twenty twenty different countries and thirty eight different ports. 25 00:01:27,600 --> 00:01:29,080 Speaker 2: So yeah, it's been busy. 26 00:01:29,319 --> 00:01:30,920 Speaker 3: And what is the mission all about? 27 00:01:32,959 --> 00:01:38,080 Speaker 2: So we were deployed to start to reinvigorate the sort 28 00:01:38,080 --> 00:01:42,600 Speaker 2: of permanent presence in the Indo Pacific. Some of it 29 00:01:42,640 --> 00:01:44,960 Speaker 2: had to do with sort of post Brexit, but also 30 00:01:45,200 --> 00:01:48,120 Speaker 2: the Pacific is the fastest growing economy in the world 31 00:01:48,200 --> 00:01:53,080 Speaker 2: and the UK hasn't really been here in a military 32 00:01:53,120 --> 00:01:56,480 Speaker 2: sense since we left Hong Kong in nineteen ninety seven. 33 00:01:56,600 --> 00:02:01,480 Speaker 2: So it's just to sort of reinvigorate that, reassure and 34 00:02:01,520 --> 00:02:04,440 Speaker 2: rebuild relationships with a lot of partners who we haven't 35 00:02:04,560 --> 00:02:08,919 Speaker 2: really been involved with for a long time now, Matt. 36 00:02:09,400 --> 00:02:11,520 Speaker 1: So many of us would not even be able to 37 00:02:11,600 --> 00:02:14,560 Speaker 1: imagine what it would be like to be on you know, 38 00:02:14,639 --> 00:02:16,640 Speaker 1: to be on a ship for that period of time 39 00:02:16,680 --> 00:02:19,040 Speaker 1: and to be away from your family for that period 40 00:02:19,120 --> 00:02:22,800 Speaker 1: of time. It must be very exciting, but also, you know, 41 00:02:23,480 --> 00:02:24,600 Speaker 1: quite a difficult thing. 42 00:02:26,680 --> 00:02:29,400 Speaker 2: It is. I've got a wife and two young children 43 00:02:29,560 --> 00:02:33,680 Speaker 2: and I haven't been on board out here the entire 44 00:02:33,720 --> 00:02:36,880 Speaker 2: two years. We work on a rotation, so I do 45 00:02:36,960 --> 00:02:39,240 Speaker 2: about thirteen weeks on and then I fly home and 46 00:02:39,280 --> 00:02:42,560 Speaker 2: have five weeks off. So we manage the sort of 47 00:02:42,600 --> 00:02:45,320 Speaker 2: sustainability of the ships like that. So it's still a 48 00:02:45,320 --> 00:02:48,079 Speaker 2: long time. It's about seventy five percent of a year away. 49 00:02:49,000 --> 00:02:52,200 Speaker 2: But we do that for about eighteen months to three years, 50 00:02:52,200 --> 00:02:55,679 Speaker 2: depending on who you are. And I've been on board 51 00:02:55,680 --> 00:02:58,160 Speaker 2: for two years, so I've got about eight months left 52 00:02:58,160 --> 00:03:00,760 Speaker 2: and then I get moved on to different ship. But 53 00:03:01,880 --> 00:03:05,239 Speaker 2: the excitement of the deployment certainly makes up for the 54 00:03:05,600 --> 00:03:06,240 Speaker 2: hardship of it. 55 00:03:06,560 --> 00:03:06,800 Speaker 3: Yeah. 56 00:03:07,360 --> 00:03:10,320 Speaker 1: Now tell me how big is the ship and how 57 00:03:10,320 --> 00:03:12,160 Speaker 1: many people are on there at any one time. 58 00:03:13,639 --> 00:03:16,920 Speaker 2: So we're about ninety meters long, which is I mean 59 00:03:17,360 --> 00:03:19,760 Speaker 2: for a pleasure ship, would be a sort of super 60 00:03:19,840 --> 00:03:22,640 Speaker 2: yot size. But there's about forty five US on board, 61 00:03:23,000 --> 00:03:26,280 Speaker 2: but the crew is about sixty odd. Normally it's about 62 00:03:26,280 --> 00:03:29,200 Speaker 2: sixty on board, and then in total about ninety because 63 00:03:29,280 --> 00:03:31,200 Speaker 2: we've got about twenty five at home at any one 64 00:03:31,320 --> 00:03:32,320 Speaker 2: time who are on their leave. 65 00:03:33,160 --> 00:03:35,840 Speaker 1: Now I understand that you're going to call Darwin home 66 00:03:35,920 --> 00:03:37,800 Speaker 1: at different periods of time as well. 67 00:03:37,840 --> 00:03:40,000 Speaker 3: How often are you going to be in Darwin? 68 00:03:41,480 --> 00:03:46,240 Speaker 2: Well, so we're the term is permanently four deployed rather 69 00:03:46,280 --> 00:03:48,200 Speaker 2: than based anywhere, so we don't actually have a home 70 00:03:48,560 --> 00:03:51,880 Speaker 2: a home port, although Darwin's certainly a home from home, 71 00:03:51,920 --> 00:03:55,240 Speaker 2: and we've between the two ships By and Tamar, we've 72 00:03:55,240 --> 00:03:58,240 Speaker 2: been in and out about about ten or fifteen times, 73 00:03:59,000 --> 00:04:01,640 Speaker 2: and over the next five to ten years we'll probably 74 00:04:01,720 --> 00:04:04,840 Speaker 2: be doing that a lot more because Darwin's so well placed. 75 00:04:05,720 --> 00:04:07,880 Speaker 2: With all our other visits to the Solomons or P 76 00:04:07,960 --> 00:04:09,720 Speaker 2: and G or team or less, they where we were 77 00:04:09,760 --> 00:04:12,520 Speaker 2: a couple of weeks ago, So it's ideally placed and 78 00:04:12,800 --> 00:04:14,600 Speaker 2: we know we can get a lot of support here 79 00:04:14,600 --> 00:04:18,440 Speaker 2: from the Royal Australian Navy and the sailors just enjoy Darwin. 80 00:04:18,520 --> 00:04:21,000 Speaker 2: It's a great place to relax and wind down a bit. 81 00:04:21,320 --> 00:04:23,919 Speaker 1: Yeah, what is it like when you do arrive somewhere 82 00:04:23,960 --> 00:04:26,200 Speaker 1: like Darwin and you're able to get off the ship 83 00:04:26,240 --> 00:04:28,479 Speaker 1: and sort of be part of the community for. 84 00:04:28,480 --> 00:04:29,119 Speaker 3: A little while. 85 00:04:30,520 --> 00:04:34,080 Speaker 2: It's fantastic And say with the most to say that, No, 86 00:04:34,240 --> 00:04:37,159 Speaker 2: Darwin pretty well now they've worked out where the hotspots 87 00:04:37,200 --> 00:04:41,040 Speaker 2: are and they don't have to relearn it every time. 88 00:04:41,080 --> 00:04:43,279 Speaker 2: It's what they have to do in all the new ports. Yeah, 89 00:04:43,640 --> 00:04:46,200 Speaker 2: and obviously Australia. Australia is that home from home, but 90 00:04:47,160 --> 00:04:49,400 Speaker 2: we don't really get anywhere else in the Pacific. 91 00:04:50,600 --> 00:04:52,919 Speaker 1: Do you get much time here I suppose though to 92 00:04:53,080 --> 00:04:56,040 Speaker 1: sort of you know, to well, I guess you wouldn't. 93 00:04:56,080 --> 00:04:57,760 Speaker 3: You're not here for a huge period of time. 94 00:04:57,800 --> 00:05:00,080 Speaker 1: But do you get much time to get out there 95 00:05:00,120 --> 00:05:02,839 Speaker 1: and playport or kind of be part. 96 00:05:02,680 --> 00:05:03,400 Speaker 3: Of the community. 97 00:05:04,920 --> 00:05:08,080 Speaker 2: Yeah, certainly, And we normally whenever we come in we'll 98 00:05:08,080 --> 00:05:11,279 Speaker 2: have a couple of days off and let the sailors 99 00:05:11,320 --> 00:05:13,040 Speaker 2: go out and they go and explore. And they've been 100 00:05:13,080 --> 00:05:15,440 Speaker 2: down to the National Parks and gone over to see 101 00:05:15,480 --> 00:05:18,880 Speaker 2: the jumping crocodiles and all the other the sort of 102 00:05:18,920 --> 00:05:22,440 Speaker 2: tourist attractions available in the Northern Territory, and they love 103 00:05:22,520 --> 00:05:25,600 Speaker 2: doing that sort of stuff there. They've pretty well traveled 104 00:05:25,640 --> 00:05:28,600 Speaker 2: and they enjoyed getting off the ship and going experiences 105 00:05:28,640 --> 00:05:31,680 Speaker 2: all everything available no matter where we are all. 106 00:05:31,760 --> 00:05:35,080 Speaker 1: Lieutenant Commander Matt Milliard, we really appreciate your having a 107 00:05:35,160 --> 00:05:37,320 Speaker 1: chat to us this morning and you know, giving us 108 00:05:37,320 --> 00:05:40,520 Speaker 1: a little bit of a better understanding of what it's 109 00:05:40,680 --> 00:05:42,160 Speaker 1: like to be on one of those. 110 00:05:41,960 --> 00:05:44,280 Speaker 3: Ships, not at all. 111 00:05:44,279 --> 00:05:45,920 Speaker 2: It's been a pleasure to speak to you lovely. 112 00:05:45,960 --> 00:05:47,599 Speaker 3: Thanks so much for your time this morning.