The stories shaping future support

LACW Dana Jones was inspired to join Defence by her father’s stories of helping people in Rwanda. During the 2026 United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), she had the opportunity to do the same by supporting Vietnamese peacekeepers deploying to South Sudan.

“He saw a lot of women and children lose their families and that they all would run to them for help,” LACW Jones said.

“Hearing [his] stories of the medical help he jumped in and helped with, and keeping them safe made me want to help keep people safe.”

The September deployment continued Australia’s support to Vietnam’s UN peacekeeping rotations, transporting Vietnamese personnel and equipment to South Sudan.

The 13SQN air terminal operator worked in air movements, preparing Vietnamese personnel and cargo for transport on an Australian C-17.

Her role included checking cargo, weighing and netting pallets, completing manifests and ensuring dangerous goods were correctly prepared.

“We normally are the ones that build the cargo, so we'll always check boxes and bags to see what's in it,” LACW Jones said.

She said working with another nation required additional checks because its packing procedures differed from Australia’s.

“Because of our rules, we need to make sure that it abides by our manual,” LACW Jones said.

The team encountered dangerous goods including lithium batteries, as well as drugs such as morphine, which required additional checks before the flight.

LACW Jones is also a qualified load planner, responsible for planning where passengers, pallets and cargo are positioned on the aircraft.

“The purpose of it is to make sure that it flies correctly, balances correctly and nothing is a risk,” she said.

Once all cargo was weighed, she calculated where each load needed to be positioned to keep the C-17 balanced.

The load plan was checked four times, including by a load supervisor, independent load inspector and loadmasters, before it was approved.

“It is extremely important if it is wrong, the cargo doesn't fly,” LACW Jones said.

Having previously worked in the Philippines and Papua New Guinea, she said this trip was different because she was helping deploy personnel to Juba for a year.

“It’s what I joined up for,” LACW Jones said.

She said her father was proud of the career he helped inspire.

“When he dropped me off at the airport, he had tears in his eyes, but he didn't really want me to see it,” she said.

Humanitarian work was something LACW Jones wanted to do when she joined.

“I pictured myself doing humanitarian aid and being able to help people fly around the world. I want to do more,” she said.