9th August 1990, Garden Island, Sydney.

As usual, the polition was late. All hands were mustered in their place of duty or mess decks.I was sitting in 3K mess deck with a couple of oppos waiting for the message from the prime minister, drinking a cup of coffee and watching the mandatory Saturday morning porn on the television. Something about a blonde and a dog. I wasn't taking too much notice of it as I was nursing a mighty hangover. In fact, I was trying to remember just how I got back on board the night before.

The piping system anounced for all hands to listen to the captain relay the PM's message.

"Gentlemen, I have received a priority signal from Defence Headquarters just this morning," the captain went on.

"We have been ordered to set sail at 1400 hours this afternoon and head directly to Pearl Harbour in Hawaii." There was an audible cheer in the mess. "This will not be a holiday gentlemen."

"As you all may have heard by now; Saddam Hussein, of Iraq, has invaded Kuwait in the Middle East. We have been ordered to be in Pearl Harbour by the 18th of this month for the purpose of fitting the Phalanx anti-air gatling gun to the ship. We will be in pearl Harbour for 48 hours only. At that time, there will be no liberty. We must be mission capable by 21st of August. Liberty for today has been cancelled. That is all."

Well fuck me. I thought. I was really looking forward to this week long break in Sydney. what with mum here and all, it could have been a good run.

There was a run for the comms room from just about every sailor with someone to call or arrangements to cancel. The XO banned al calls from the ship and everybody was left in the lurch. e were told that our families would be informed of our pending departure by Naval HQ in Wellington.

So there it was, the message we had all been waiting for. We're going to war. Did I really join the navy to go to war?