Brigadier doing us all proud

The most senior Australian Defence Force officer in Townsville will be heading to the US for a posting to the Pentagon.

In 2020, Commander of the 3rd Brigade Brigadier Scott Winter will serve as the chief of the Australian Defence Force’s liaison officer to the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff.

His role will include supporting Australia’s strategic interests and coalition planning as the ADF’S representative.

In his two-year posting to Townsville, Brig Winter saw his own men and women lose their homes, and families displaced because of an unprecedented flooding crisis. The people filling the makeshift evacuation centres at Lavarack Barracks included the children and partners of Townsville’s personnel, who were rescuing people from the rooftops of their homes, sandbagging houses and transporting people to safety.

Brig Winter commanded Joint Task Force 658 – North Queensland Flood Assist, which included a rotation of 2800 Defence personnel responding to the floods, during which he entrusted his junior leaders to take up key roles working with the civilian authorities in moving assets and people to prevent loss of life.

For their bravery and disregard for their own circumstances, Townsville’s troops were credited with stopping more people from dying during the floods.

It’s no secret, frequent postings around the country can be physically and mentally draining.

For the civilian partners of Defence personnel, this can mean interrupted employment, stunting their own career progression, resulting in less earnings and superannuation overtime.

On social media, Brig Winter has advocated Defence modernise its model to keep up with a changing society, including possible hubs with longer tenures and return postings from remote locations where employment opportunities are few.

He will continue to serve the nation like he has here in Townsville when he jets off to the US.