ANZAC Day 2021

Our JPC ANZAC Day Ceremony will be held on Wednesday, 21 April and begins at 2.3pm. Invitations for ADF families are on the Qkr! app and RSVPs are due now. I look forward to seeing our ADF families at JPC for our ceremony. Feel free to contact me for more information.

Don’t forget to book your tickets for the ANZAC Day Dawn Service and National Ceremony at the Australian War Memorial on Sunday 25 April. Tickets are now available on their website.

Air Force 100 Defence Flypast Excursion

Our RAAF students joined up with RAAF students from HSP on Wednesday and witnessed the spectacular fly past to celebrate the Air Force 2021 commemorations. It was an exciting once in a lifetime experience, where every platform of RAAF aircraft was represented in the show. Please see below for our students’ recounts of the day.

Wishing everyone a peaceful and happy Easter. I hope you are with your family and for those who are absent due MWDU or deployment, we hope you are safe. See you all next term.

As always, if you have any concern with your child/ren, please contact me. Vicki.walsh@cg.catholic.edu.au

Vicki Walsh
Defence School Mentor

RAAF Birthday Excursion 

Wednesday the 31st of March marked the centenary of the Royal Australian Air Force. The birthday celebrations included a parade at Government House and a flypast which featured a range of RAAF aircraft from the Spitfire, which came into service in 1942, through to the latest addition to the fleet; the F-35A Lightning II. I was lucky enough to be one of 50 students from JPC and Holy Spirit who got to view this spectacular flypast from a great vantage point near the National Library.

It was great to see the Super Hornets included in the flypast, which I remember coming into service in 2010 when my family was posted to Amberley. However, the crowd favourite seemed to be the Roulettes flying the PC-21, it was pretty amazing to see these aircraft flying so fast and close together in formation whilst performing acrobatics.

On the way back to school the bus was still buzzing with excitement as the great weather and spectacular show really made for a fantastic experience. The event was amazing and I appreciate all the work Vicki Walsh put into organising the excursion and providing us all with the opportunity to view the flypast.

Natasja Shearman, Year 11

Yesterday we went to the RAAF 100th birthday excursion. We left around 9:20 and we were stuck in traffic around 9:30 when we saw multiple news helicopters flying past. We missed the first helicopter of the ceremonial flyover but we had found a large patch of grass by the time the first planes came overhead. Each time, a rumble could be heard, slowly getting louder and louder as the planes went overhead. One of the highlights for me was the Hercules C-130J because of the fact there were 4 flying in close formation. This made for quite a sight and we were positioned right below the flight path for both the ceremonial and regular flyover. 

Would it really be a flyover without the Roulettes? They finished the event off in style, flying in formation while doing multiple loop-de-loops and various other acrobatic tricks such as all flying down close to the ground then splitting off on their own paths at the last second. They also did multiple flyovers where some of them were upside down and still in tight formation and spitting artificial smoke. 

When we got back to the bus, there was a buzz of everyone talking about their favourite part and after a quick photo in-front of old Parliament House, we got on the bus and went back to school in time for period 4. 

Hamish Ellison, Year 8

I know I speak for many when I say the temporary loss of hearing was a good tradeoff for seeing (and hearing) some of the "biggest and baddest" planes, helicopters and jets the Australian Air Force has to offer. Visiting the flyover today commemorating 100 years since the RAAF was established, was certainly an unforgettable experience. From watching a C-130 Hercules and a trio of Blackhawk Helicopters to seeing a Spitfire last used in WW2, there was something for every aviation enthusiast. Being there to witness the immense skill of the pilots flying the aircraft and feeling the ground tremble as a formation of aircraft flew above was very powerful. Seeing the jets heading towards you in formation, with that foreboding low growl followed by the explosive roar once they were overhead certainly gave a rush of adrenaline, and really put into perspective just how powerful they are. Watching the aerial stunts performed by the Roulettes was certainly one of the highlights of the whole flyover. I remember moments, when I looked up and briefly saw the pilot, merely a dot compared to the plane they were flying, and I felt proud that the pilot was a fellow Australian who had committed their life to protect our skies and in doing so, every one of us. The whole flyover was very entertaining, seeing over 60 aircraft from various periods in time used in many different conflicts since 1921. However, it is important everyone of us reflect upon and remember the many lives lost by brave Australians who flew those exact types of aircraft in their final moments of service to their country.

Tom Dixon, Year 12