Operation DAMASK I & II

Total estimated at 1,000 service personnel. RAN Task Group intially consisted of HMAS Adelaide, Darwin and Success (Damask I). On 3 December 1990, HMAS Adelaide and Darwin were replaced by HMAS Sydney and Brisbane (Damask II). Success was subsequently replaced by HMAS Westralia. Also deployed were an 8 man Air Defence Detachment from 16 AD Regt, a RAN Logistic Support Element established at Muscat in Oman (13 strong), and a Liaison Officer attached to the senior US commander afloat in the area . By the end of December 1990, MIF 1 had conducted 6,945 interceptions of merchant vessels, including 487 boardings to check for illicit cargo, and 35 ships had been diverted to non-Iraqi ports. The Australian Task Group conducted a significant share of these operations with 1,627 interrogations, 11 interceptions, 8 boardings and 2 diversions. HMAS Success departed the AO on 23 January 1991.