Our People in QLD
Jacqueline Kenyon - Riverhills local navigates her way to Timor with the Navy
It was the second time in Dili, Timor-Leste (East Timor) for Riverhills local Jacqueline Kenyon, but two days in the city in August as part of a resupply visit on board New Zealand ship HMNZS Canterbury was the first time Jacqui had been able to disembark.
“I came here last year with HMAS Perth, but we were patrolling the harbour and did not get to go alongside.” she said.
Jacqui is a Lieutenant serving as a Seaman Officer on board the Canterbury as part of an exchange program, and she has spent most of her time with the ship at sea this year.
“I am an Officer Watch on Board, and work mainly on navigation, making sure we get from point A to point B safely,” she said.
“Overall, the way we do things is very similar in Australia,” she said.
Jacqui has been in the Navy for eight years, and she has one brother in the Army and one in the Airforce.
“We compare notes a lot about how different things are,” she laughs.
She’ll return to Australia at the end of the year, where she’s looking forward to working in Sydney at HMAS Watson before a move to Cairns.
HMNZS Canterbury was in Dili to help resupply New Zealand and Australian Defence Force elements serving in Timor-Leste with Operation Astute.
The ship is on her way to an Indonesian Fleet Review in Bitung Harbour, where she will participate in a sail past with 30 other warships from 15 countries.
Operation Astute is part of the Australian Government's response to a request from the Government of Timor-Leste to assist in bringing stability, security and confidence to the East Timorese to allow them to resolve their differences democratically and peacefully.