HAVOC-06: A Combat Controller on Operations

Description

I received a target indication from one of the rear team members and observed movement coming from the left of the area of engagement. I then saw them, two enemy fighters moving to a new position. I must have let rip about twenty rounds and not one of the rounds hit them. I had missed completely! "You shit shot," swearing at myself under my breath. My teeth were clenched and I was pissed off at my own incapability with a rifle, however, I realised I had a primarily role to play and that was as the Platoon JTAC. Havoc-06 is the call sign of former Australian Combat Controller, Troy Knight. As a Royal Australian Air Force Airfield Defence Guard, Troy had not found the military adventure he sought; combat operations. His thirst for overseas deployment saw him privately contract his services in Iraq and South East Asia, but when he got whiff that the Australian Defence Force was raising a new defence capability, he couldn't help but want to be part of it. The new Defence capability, termed the 'Special Tactics Project,' would see Troy undertaking the gruelling Commando Selection course and passing, making him one of Australia's first Combat Controllers attached to the Australian Army 2nd Commando Regiment. As a member of the Special Forces unit, Troy's lifelong dream of taking part in combat operations would come to fruition, but the reality of his dream would also play havoc on his life. Havoc-06 is the untold story of the Australian Combat Controller, but it is also Troy's personal story and one that will resonate with so many.

Troy's mates know him as 'Norm' or 'TK'. Born in 1977 to a single mother, Troy grew up as what he describes as a 'typical Queensland boy' enjoying surfing, playing rugby league and generally looking for mischief. It was Troy's boundary pushing and risk taking that fuelled his thirst for adventure and made him walk into the Townsville Defence Force Recruiting office in 1999, just after the East Timor crisis had kicked off. Deflated at being told that Army Recruit training was bottlenecked for eight months, Troy was stopped by an Air Force Sergeant who asked if he knew about the RAAF Airfield Defence Guards. It was this sliding door moment, that would see Troy subsequently travel to Afghanistan, Iraq and beyond and become one of Australia's first Combat Controllers attached to the Australian Special Forces. Co-authored by Australian Author, Brooke Strahan. Brooke is a veteran, author, blogger and farmer with a large U.S. following.