Commander Luke Charles-Jones, the Executive Officer and second-in-command descends the gangway ...

Commander Luke Charles-Jones, the Executive Officer and second-in-command descends the gangway from HMAS ANZAC at a homecoming ceremony for HMAS ANZAC and HMAS Darwin at Victoria Quay, Fremantle, WA. HMAS ANZAC [III] left Australia for the Persian Gulf on 28 October 2002, under Operation Slipper, Australia’s contribution to the international fight against terrorism, to participate in the Multinational Interception Force enforcing UN sanctions against Iraq. The ship was then assigned to Operation Bastille, the build-up of Australian forces against Iraq, in January 2003, and then to Operation Falconer, Australia’s contribution to the war on Iraq, in March 2003. During this deployment, the ANZAC became the first Navy ship to fire her guns in combat since the Vietnam war.