Visitors to the Cataract Gorge were treated to a rare sight on Saturday afternoon.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Among the peacocks, barbecues and tourists sat a 13-tonne Australian Light Armoured Vehicle (ASLAV) in the foreground of the First Basin.
Accompanied by six military personnel, the armoured vehicle is doing a tour of Northern Tasmania in the lead-up to Agfest next week.
Tasmanian senior military recruiting officer Captain Breece Gevaux said the ASLAV’s presence around Launceston on Saturday was met with great enthusiasm.
“We’re just showing modern military hardware around Tassie and it’s an opportunity for the communities to see what we’ve got and how we operate in the regular army,” he said.
“It gives us a chance to show people some of the capabilities that we have and some of the opportunities to join the defence force and have a career either with an armoured vehicle or a mechanic or 200 other roles, so it’s really exciting.”
The tour started at the Harvest Market on Saturday morning, before heading to the gorge and finishing at UTAS Stadium.
Sergeant Mark Robinson was one of the men accompanying the $2.2 million vehicle on its Launceston journey.
Sergeant Robinson, a Devonport native, has driven similar models in East Timor and Iraq as a crew commander.
“It’s a very accurate weapon system, so it’s [range] is out to 2000 metres and it has a couple natures of ammunition depending on what sort of target you want to hit,” he said.
“It’s a very good and capable vehicle.”
It is not the most comfortable place to be sitting while roaming Middle Eastern deserts, despite the its immense firepower.
“It gets up to 55 degree temperatures inside the vehicle during summer,” Sergeant Robinson said.
With youth unemployment so high in Tassie it’s a good chance to find a career path either full-time or in the Army Reserve
- Captain Breece Gevaux
Of the 75,0000 applications for the Australian Defence Force ever year, about 7000 are accepted, according to Captain Gevaux.
He said Tasmania was well-represented in the figures considering the state’s small size.
“Tasmania has been a really good training ground [for the Australian Defence Force],” he said.
“It’s really fertile in terms of people joining the army, navy and air force.
“With youth unemployment so high in Tassie it’s a good chance to find a career path either full-time or in the Army Reserve.”
Stefan Boscia
Stefan came to The Examiner after working as a copywriter at a digital media firm in Melbourne and interning at The Conversation. He is enthusiastic about reporting on business, local government and environmental issues. When he is not chained to his work desk, Stefan enjoys getting brunch, reading Saul Bellow novels and watching Carlton games.
Stefan came to The Examiner after working as a copywriter at a digital media firm in Melbourne and interning at The Conversation. He is enthusiastic about reporting on business, local government and environmental issues. When he is not chained to his work desk, Stefan enjoys getting brunch, reading Saul Bellow novels and watching Carlton games.
