Full metal jacket failure
"Flak jackets issued to Australian defence personnel leaving for the Middle East yesterday did not have ceramic inserts to protect the body from bullets and shrapnel.
Three C-130 Hercules aircraft left Richmond RAAF Base, northwest of Sydney, carrying aircrew and support staff to the Middle East.
The personnel were asked to dress in full battle gear for a farewell ceremony conducted by Defence Minister Robert Hill.
But when their Kevlar flak jackets were handed out, they were found to be missing the crucial ceramic inserts.
Senator Hill was apparently unaware of the problem and no explanation was given for the mistake.
Families of the departing men and women said they had been asked to remove insignia or patches identifying them as Australian.
Australian SAS troops in Afghanistan also faced equipment shortages. According to the US military, they made extensive use of US equipment."
I have hastily organised a "Ceramic Inserts for our Boys off to Battle" fundraiser at the Town Hall. Ladies a plate ... even a chipped coffee mug or tea cup would do the trick.
Two possibly related items.
"President George Bush signed off on the upgrade of terrorist threat levels from yellow to orange."
"The alert comes a day before Australian Prime Minister John Howard arrives in the US."
Scare delays Qantas
"The discovery of "cartoon-like" drawings in a Qantas aircraft's toilet delayed an international flight for more than three hours at Singapore yesterday afternoon.
Qantas declined to give any details of the drawings, but a spokeswoman for the airline told The Sunday Age late yesterday that QF32 from Singapore to Sydney had been delayed at Changi airport after cleaners discovered some drawings in one of the Boeing 747's toilets.
"As a precaution, the aircraft was checked and that's what has resulted in the delay," the spokeswoman said. She described the incident as a "minor security issue". The flight, which had originated in London on Friday, had been scheduled to arrive in Sydney at 7.25pm. But the arrival time was revised to 11.20pm."
Ha! This gallbladder episode is what I suspected all along. A subtefuge. Along with his devious accomplice and sometime mistress Agatha the Al Qaeda Mata Hari, Hughes has been daubing pictures of mice and peas all over plane dunnies, scaring the bejesus out of innocent passengers what wear funny shoes and carry Swiss Army paper clips.
"The war on terror involves Saddam Hussein because of the nature of Saddam Hussein, the history of Saddam Hussein, and his willingness to terrorize himself." —George W. Bush, Grand Rapids, Mich., Jan. 29, 2003
