With reference to the answers given at the supplementary estimates hearings of the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee on 1 November 2006 (Committee Hansard, p. 35) concerning the chartered Airbus aircraft:

(1)   What freight and/or personnel did the aircraft carry on each leg of the trip in which the body of Private Kovco was repatriated.

(2)   What was the total cost of that return flight.

(3)   Was that flight called a ‘high speed’ flight; if so, why.

(1)   The A330 Airbus aircraft that returned Private Kovco’s body was undertaking a scheduled sustainment run to the Middle East area of operations. On the return leg, in addition to the casket, the aircraft transported 15 passengers and 2,100kg of cargo between Kuwait and Darwin. Three passengers and 326 kg of cargo were offloaded in Darwin prior to the aircraft proceeding onto Sydney.

(2)   The round trip cost of the sustainment flight to and from the Middle East was $1,038,217.

(3)   The flight was ‘high speed’ in that it was flown at the most effective altitude and fuel burn on a direct route that did not require re-fuelling stops. The flight was also given VIP status by Sydney Air Traffic Control so that it arrived in Sydney at around 7.30 am, in order to link with the reception arrangements that had been planned for that morning.