AUSTRALIAN jet fighters have completed their first operational mission into Syria, returning safely without releasing any weapons.
Two RAAF F/A-18A Hornets “searched for points of interest for enemy activity in eastern Syria” during the mission overnight, The Australian Air Task Group said in a statement on Saturday.
The Hornets were supported by a KC-30A air-to-air refuelling aircraft and an E-7A Airborne Early Warning and Control aircraft, reporting to the coalition’s air operations centre throughout the mission.
“Daesh controls a large amount of territory in eastern Syria that serves as a source of recruitment and oil revenues, and as a base from which it continues to launch attacks into Iraq,” ATG Commander, Air Commodore Stu Bellingham said.
He said the Hornets were prepared for short notice, high priority tasking, including surveillance and weapons release. No weapons were released during the mission, which was completed without incident.
It was the first air mission into Syria since the Abbott government’s decision this week to extend RAAF combat operations beyond Iraq
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