THE LONG STORY . . .

"DOG FIGHT IN THE PACIFIC"

THE HISTORY OF THE CONFLICT

Central Pacific Special Air Services (CPSAS) is the Trading name of Islander Enterprises Pty Ltd which was created in Australia especially at the request of the Australian Government for the purpose of providing contracted Aerial Surveillance across the Pacific.

Historically the first Civilian Aerial Surveillance was conducted by Samoa Air operating from the Samoa Islands during 2012 and 2013 which was strongly supported by the local Australian Navy Maritime Surveillance Advisors (MSA) which led to a Memorandum of Understanding with Samoa Air to provide ongoing Surveillance across several other countries. This was due to start on 1st July 2014.

Just weeks before the operation was to commence the International Policy Division in Canberra (IPDIV) told the MSA that due to Legal restrictions where contracts longer than one year would need to go to open tender and that they could only contract with an Australian Entity and then crafted a Letter of Intent based on annual Performance which was accepted on that basis by CPSAS and the MSA.

THE CONTRACT PERFORMANCE

The Contract finally commenced on the 8th August 2014 with the countries of Samoa, Tuvalu, Cook Islands, Marshall Islands and Kiribati listed as EEZ (Exclusive Economic Zones) to be patrolled but in early 2015 Vanuatu and Solomon Islands were added. No such Civil Aviation Aerial Surveillance had ever been attempted before and the Contract was designed to incorporate the unknowns such as fuel and many other logistics so that the Australian Governments many commitments to various Treaties (The Niue Treaty) could be properly met in the future using Contracted Surveillance services.

Throughout the period of the contract CPSAS flew in support of the Australian Patrol Boats and in close contact with the Forum Fisheries staff in each of the Countries and provided ongoing information to the individual Countries FFA staff whilst being listed and flying in Naval Exercises as an Australian Asset. No other civilian entity had been given this privilege.

It will be alleged that the Contract was always subject to Performance and always intended for extension only limited by the Legal constraint where each contract would run for one year at a time leading ultimately to the 2018 White Paper which was then expected to further expand Aerial Surveillance. CPSAS of course saw this as an opportunity to be an experienced contender for that Contract.

With confidence that Performance would be indeed achieved CPSAS then entered into funding arrangements with local Banks who also accepted the Letter of Intent and the explanation provided by IPDIV and provided the necessary backing.

During the course of the first years performance the work area was expanded to included two more of the Largest EEZ in the Pacific (Solomon Islands and Vanuatu) plus CPSAS was tasked into the largest QUAD exercise in the Pacific (OPBE15). That Assignment was for CPSAS to proceed to the PIPA (Phoenix Islands Protected Area) for Patrol and these significant increases of area were clear indices that CPSAS was meeting all of the performance challenges despite concerns about the lack of interest shown by IPDIV. IPDIV also resisted and rejected any proposition to extend the level of funding.

THE CONTRACT EXTINCTION

In conjunction with the MSA Navy Officer who was also concerned about IPDIV failures to properly follow the Contract provisions, CPSAS went to lengths to give IPDIV information which would provide them with a number of options for the future which were based on a simple cost per area summation for each years plan. These offerings appeared to be ignored or not at all understood by IPDIV.

On the 5th of August 2015 and one day before the contract should have gone into extension IPDIV emailed CPSAS saying that they were not extending the contract and citing "significant increase in cost" and then falsely referring to the contract as a "Trial" which it clearly was not. Later on the correspondences from more Senior members of the Department of Defence also falsely referred to the contract as being a "Pilot Programme" and a "Trial" none of which terms appear in the contract documents or as a condition of conduct.

THE CONSEQUENCES

Subsequently there was no Contracted Aerial Surveillance performed across these Countries from August of 2015 until an American Company named TSC was contracted on 17th December 2017. No one can assess the damage and loss of legitimate catch which would have resulted from the termination of surveillance and this would have been quickly noted by those offenders and the losses are reported as being in the order of Billions of Dollars a year due to illegal fishing.

The TSC Contract itself was for more than $68,000,000 Australian Dollars allegedly providing 1400 hours of patrol per year for 6 years using 2 aircraft and not nominating a Base. That works out at over $8100 Australian Dollars per hour. The award of the Contract was a contentious issue where IPDIV was accused of not properly considering Australian respondents and that IPDIV had also failed to properly vet the applicant who as it turns out does not possess the appropriate Certification known as an Air Operating Certificate.

CPSAS however had made an offer on 13th June 2015 to IPDIV citing an option for 4 Aircraft operating from 3 Bases in the Pacific for 1950 hours at $1672 per hour using extended FLIR pod Aircraft and a further 650 hours of higher value equipment (believed superior to that of TSC) for $4615 per hour. That would have provided a total of 2600 hours of surveillance at less than half the cost being ultimately paid to TSC some 3 years later. IPDIV rejected these offers.

CPSAS will contend that the Bureaucrats at IPDIV were simply out of their League and incompetent and ignorant of the issues which are present in the Pacific when it comes to Aerial Surveillance.

Their reasons for selecting TSC remain unknown.

The final straw for CPSAS was that IPDIV refused to pay outstanding Invoices which were approved by the MSA who held the title during the contract of being the "Commonwealth Representative" and was authorised to make those approvals and CPSAS will contend that the action taken by IPDIV was in breach of the contract and in other ways in breach of Law.

THE LEGAL FIGHT

Islander Enterprises Pty Ltd trading as CPSAS has undertaken much legal action which after 7 years of Legal wrangling is now at the point of having a Trial date set which is expected to be around November 2022.

Court ordered Mediation was unsuccessful.

Samoa Air and CPSAS were of course decimated and practically all Assets were lost. Staff were laid off immediately as there was no money in the bank and the outstanding Invoices were being denied payment.

We were told many times that you can never win a fight with the Government. They have all the money (ours) to spend on their defence in court and their intention is to drain the contestant until the plaintiff runs out of resolve and money. We noted that the Commonwealth (the Defendant) is supposed to act as a "model litigant".

I took the view that this dog fight has to be won.

As an ex serving RAAF member I have been both saddened and angry that we the people can be treated this way by those who are supposed to be working for us. They are public servants being paid from the Public Purse.

I view their attitude as being nothing but dismissive and arrogant.

This fight is a long way from being over. With your help we can beat them and bring some order and accountancy to the system.

Now that the Election is over we are also imploring Senators to support a Senate Enquiry into IPDIV and to their handling of both our contract and the TSC Contract with the intent of naming and shaming the Bureaucrats who are responsible for these failures. IPDIV has certain obligations to the Government which recent events would say confirms their dereliction of duty and incompetence. Failures which have cost the Country Millions of Dollars and which we would contend have contributed to the lack of awareness in the Pacific and in turn badly affected our relationship with our Pacific neighbours.

THE FIGHTING FUND

As the CEO of both CPSAS and Samoa Air I ask you to please help us bring them to account.

We are told that to take us from here to Trial will incur further cost of around $350,000 AUD which money we don't have. Personal input this far exceeds $180,000 not counting the losses to both Companies. We literally have nothing left but the will to proceed.

In 2016 a well accredited Forensic Accounting Firm (Sentinel Forensic and Consulting) was employed to do an investigation into the situation faced by CPSAS and to determine the amount of losses and their report was completed on 28th April 2017 and has been submitted as evidence in the Case. Their summary is pivotal in determining the quantum of costs and losses due to the way in which CPSAS was treated.

On the 5th of August 2020 the Case (CIV-20-002117) was filed against the Department of Defence (later the Commonwealth of Australia) in the Supreme Court of South Australia seeking a judgment of $2,948,454.88.

The Legal Firm representing CPSAS is O'Loughlins Lawyers of Adelaide, South Australia.

DOCUMENTS FOR REFERENCE

For any donor wishing to review the documentation we would offer at least the following items:

1. IEPL(CPSAS) Statement of Claim CIV-20-002117 dated 5th August 2020

2. Commonwealth of Australia Statement of Defence CIV-20-002114 dated 1st December 2020

3. The Contract for Service ASDEFCON (Services) - Air Surveillance Samoa dated 7th August 2014

4. Forensic Accounting Report dated 28th April 2017

ACCOUNTABILITY

Accountants overseeing the operation of the Funding Account:
Broad Pollock and Company
Box 1497
Fortitude Valley
Queensland 4006

ACCOUNT NAME: SAMOA AIR TRANSFER ACCOUNT
BSB: 034-234
ACCOUNT NUMBER 357331
SWIFT: WPACAU2S

BLESS YOU ALL