White ensign for landing craft : HMAS Tobruk (II)

White boat ensign with a sewn Union Jack in the upper left canton and appliqued dark blue stars, representing the Southern Cross and Federation star. The ensign has a reinforced hoist to a width of 60mm and a reinforced section 60mm by 90mm on the bottom edge adjacent to the hoist. Printed in black ink on the hoist is, 'FLAG WHITE [illegible] NYLON/WORSTED' and 'AGCF 1981' and '2 [illegible]'. Hand-written in ink is '9502'.

White boat ensign flown by a landing craft from HMAS Tobruk during Operation Restore Hope, Somalia, 1993. UNOSOM II (United Nations Operation in Somalia) was the second phase of the United Nations intervention in Somalia. It ran from March 1993 until March 1995. UNOSOM II carried on from the US-controlled (but UN sanctioned) UNITAF, which had in turn taken over from the ineffectual UNOSOM I mission. All three of these interventions were aimed at creating a secure enough environment for humanitarian operations to be carried out in the increasingly lawless and famine-struck country. The RAN played an important part in the UNOSOM deployment, transporting the battalion group equipment, vehicles, and some troops, to Somalia on board the training ship HMAS Jervis Bay and the heavy landing ship HMAS Tobruk. Tobruk subsequently remained in the area in support, providing logistic support to the Australians and UNITAF, and conducted surveillance off the Somali coast. Its helicopter was used in ship-to-shore transport of personnel. Tobruk was also used by the land forces for rest and recreation