AMERICA CALLS FIELD
LEADING ROLES
NORTH Queensland’s most senior Australian Defence Force officer has been officially farewelled at Lavarack Barracks after handing over command of Townsville’s 3rd Brigade.
Commander 3rd Brigade Major General Chris Field yesterday formally completed his two- year posting and handed control over to incoming Brigadier Scott Winter.
It was an emotional farewell for Maj- Gen Field and his wife Sarah Kendall, who are packing up their official home at Jezzine Barracks to move to MacDill air force Base in Tampa, Florida.
There, Maj- Gen Field will begin next month as the next United States Central Command’s deputy director of operations.
“The highlight of any posting to Townsville is the wonderful community we have here in this garrison city,” MajGen Field said. “It is a tough environment to leave.
“This is a wonderful posting and ( Sarah and I) think it’s the best place to serve in Australia.
Maj- Gen Field said he would not lose touch with Townsville soldiers in his new role and he expected more than 1600 Australian troops to deploy to the Middle East in the next year.
“It is a great opportunity for us as coalition partners with the United States to contribute to that great endeavour and I look forward to the challenges,” he said.
Maj- Gen Field will also still be part of the Townsville Enterprise mentoring program.
Incoming 3rd Brigade Commander Brig Winter said this was his first posting in Townsville but one he felt was always on the cards.
“When I told my mother ( about the posting) she dug out an old postcard that I sent her as an officer cadet in 1991 when I’d been spending some time in Townsville and I’d fell in love with the place and found a place I wanted to soldier for the rest of my career,” he said. “The irony is it’s just taken me 26 years to get here.” Brig Winter said he hoped to use his new position to inspire the younger ranks as he oversees the remainder of 3rd Brigade “ready” period. “To get an opportunity like this at this stage of my career, I couldn’t be more over the moon,” he said. “I have a real passion for our young people. We have an incredible amount of experience with our young people but they need the opportunity to shine and do me out of a job in coming years. “I might be coming and there is a sense of change in the air and we also look at moving into the festive season but the reality is that the work never stops.” SINCE 1988, Brigadier Chris Field has undertaken four postings over 10 years from Townsville: > Lieutenant, commanding a rifle platoon in Malaysia with 2nd/ 4th Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment in 1988. > Major, operations officer in East Timor with 2nd Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment in 1999- 2000. > Lieutenant Colonel, commanding officer in Solomon Islands of 1st Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment and Coalition Joint Task Force 635 in 2004- 2005. > Brigadier, commander of 3rd Brigade and Joint Task Force 661 during and after Cyclone Debbie and later as State Recovery Coordinator in 2017. As Commander 3rd Brigade, Brigadier Field served as: > Director of Ronald McDonald House North Queensland. > Member of the Regional Managers’ Coordination Network, Townsville. > Founding member of the Townsville District Community Policing Board.