‘Extreme challenge for the pilots': What it feels like to fly a B-2 Spirit bomber jet
'The B-2 is very similar to most of the aircraft that we operate,' Mr Weatherington told Sky News host Sharri Markson.
'Long duration … can be an extreme challenge for the pilots, very fatiguing.
'It's an extreme effort, but they handle it very well, skilfully and professionally.'
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Perth Now
a day ago
- Perth Now
Trash talk: Finding waste a new life
In a world contending with mounting environmental, social and economic challenges, everyday West Aussies are embracing practical ways to reduce their waste. While these individual actions might seem simple and small, collectively we're making meaningful change. Australians are getting creative, finding new ways to make sure it is no longer the end of the road for some items which often, and sadly, find their way into landfill. From textiles to gadgets, here are five inspiring ways common waste products are being transformed, repaired and reused, proving that one person's trash truly is another's treasure. Perhaps you just toss your empty drink can in the recycling bin and never think of it again, but that's just the next step in this container's circular journey. Aluminium is one of the most recyclable materials on the planet and, when processed correctly, can be reborn as car parts, new cans or construction materials. You can even experience the benefits of recycling first-hand by dropping eligible 10c bottles and containers back to your nearest Containers for Change refund point. Whilst you're there, don't forget your lids. Perth-based recycling facility CLAW Environmental is helping keep the circular economy spinning, transforming plastic bottle caps into durable new products like piping and garden furniture. It's a clear reminder that small acts, like separating lids from bottles, can add up to big change. With new devices released faster than ever, (iPhone 15, 16 and counting), older electronics often end up forgotten in drawers, or worse, in the bin. But e-waste is no longer destined for the dump. Initiatives like Sam's Spares (@samsspares) and the Wanneroo Men's Shed are refurbishing discarded electronics, giving gadgets a second chance at life. Whether it's repairing laptops for local schools or restoring retro radios, their work not only keeps valuable resources out of landfill but supports community learning and connection too. Thanks to the rising popularity of buying second-hand, turning old furniture into something new is a big and growing movement. From charity stores to local tip shops, West Aussies are embracing the beauty of pre-loved and vintage pieces – you might even stumble across your dream B&B Italia sofa for a quarter of the price on Facebook Marketplace. DIY doers like Kate Hollingsworth (@house_of_hollingsworth) are also using this movement to showcase how we can use our creativity to turn someone's trash into another's treasure. Fast fashion is out, conscious clothing is in! Repairing garments, shopping second-hand or participating in local clothes swaps helps reduce textile waste. Pre-loved fashion is the most ethical, cost effective and sustainable way to dress, with the opportunity to create your own unique style. Industry professionals are also taking note. For the 2025 Sustainable Fashion Festival, the Busselton Jetty was transformed into a stunning 3.6-kilometre catwalk, showcasing eco-friendly and ethically sourced designs from over 50 international and Australian designers. Apps like Depop and markets like Second Life Markets (@secondlifemarkets) have made it easier than ever to refresh your wardrobe without supporting harmful manufacturing practices. So, think twice before hitting checkout on that cheap and nasty online shopping cart. Organic waste manages to make up a hefty chunk of the household waste we throw away. Think veggie peelings, lawn clippings, fallen leaves, branches, the forgotten fruit at the bottom of the school bag, even the plate scrapings from a Sunday roast dinner. However, you might have noticed some changes on a street near you. Along with the red-lid general waste and yellow-lid recycling bins, many households now have access to the kerbside lime-green-lid FOGO bin for food organics and garden organics. It's a closed-loop system that mimics nature: waste in, growth out. By simply separating your food scraps and garden trimmings from general rubbish (no, it doesn't all go to landfill for those conspiracy theorists out there), households can significantly reduce their landfill contribution and support healthy soil systems. Don't have FOGO at your home, or want to make compost of your own? There are many home compost systems that allow you to earth-cycle in your own backyard. With just a bit of waste sorting at home, we can do better than the bin. It's easy to find a better place for unwanted items and make landfill the last resort. Western Australians are getting their waste sorted. If you want to learn more, visit the WasteSorted website where you'll find a bunch of useful information, including how you can join the other West Aussie GREAT Sorts making a difference.
Sky News AU
2 days ago
- Sky News AU
Fire truck exposé reveals astonishing crisis across Victoria as firies struggle with 'borderline catastrophic' capability
Two firefighters have come forward to expose the 'borderline catastrophic' state of the service after an astonishing fire truck crisis was uncovered in Victoria by a secret documentary filmed inside the state's fire stations. The documentary, called Breaking Point, exposes how firefighters are forced to cope with aging vehicles and a scarcity of fire trucks which could lead to a loss of life in the future. Firefighters in the documentary have claimed fire trucks have broken down on highways, large ladders have malfunctioned and the equipment on the trucks has broken 'every day'. 'There's going to be loss of life one day. It's not a matter if something tragic is going to happen, it's when,' one firefighter said. Speaking to Sky News to discuss the revelations, Fire Rescue Victoria fire fighter Matt Morgan said it was a 'matter of time' before someone perished due to an issue with the trucks. Mr Morgan told Sky News host Steve Price there was a risk fire truck equipment would break down in the middle of an emergency situation. Price told viewers half of Fire Rescue Victoria's 200-strong fleet of fire trucks were past their 15-year use-by and there had been 500 breakdowns in the past year. There is also the risk no truck could be available when one was needed. 'We saw it happen at Derrimut last year at the chemical fire there,' Mr Morgan said. 'The usual aerial appliance that we wanted from Sunshine has been missing in action for months and so we had to wait for one to come from Richmond another 25 minutes further away. ' (It's) a matter of time before we'll be going to someone's funeral purely because what's happened to the truck. Absolutely guarantee it.' Asked why the union had not exerted more influence on the state government to fix the issue, Mr Morgan said because 'all politicians are the same'. Acting station officer Kat Dunnell said it was a 'major issue' which was prevalent 'right across the state', but did not want to lay the blame. 'It's about how do we get this fixed and it's going to take quite a bit of funding and quite some time to get this fixed because you can't just go out… and buy them off the shelf, they need to be ordered,' she said. The pair of firefighters said it was 'an easy decision' to come forward, and insisted they were supposed to 'leave the job in a better condition' than when they found it. 'We've been raising it internally for quite some time and now is the time to, you know, we just keep getting told we're a world-leading fire service. We're not. We're borderline catastrophic,' Ms Dunnell said. 'When injury can occur as a result of not having a truck or not having working truck and being sent into a fire to perform a rescue. To me, that just shows a huge lack of respect for our profession, that we're not given the equipment that we need to perform our role.' Mr Morgan said Victorians were not getting the service 'they pay for', but insisted his teams would 'always go the extra mile'. 'Victoria's firefighters aren't going to give up and they're not going to fail to respond. We're going to always go that extra mile for the folks,' he said.
The Advertiser
04-08-2025
- The Advertiser
A friendship preserved: unopened WWII beer honours soldiers' pact
A humble bottle of beer now stands in the nation's war memorial, more than 80 years after it was bought as a promise of enduring friendship. Aussie WWII soldiers, Stan Lewis and Fred Hume, were shipping off with the 2/30th Infantry Battalion in early 1941 when they bought a longneck beer, pledging to share it after returning from the war. The bottle of Tooth's Draught Ale, one of Australia's oldest unopened beers, was bought from the Wingham Hotel on NSW's Mid North Coast by the young soldiers. They entrusted Stan's mother, Rubie Lewis, to look after the bottle while they were deployed, Australian War Memorial Director Matt Anderson said. "But sadly, [Stan] didn't make it back," the memorial director said. The duo was captured with around 130,000 Allied troops, including 15,000 Australians, after the surrender of Singapore to the Japanese. Both soldiers were imprisoned at Changi and Mr Lewis was sent to work on the Thai-Burma railway that claimed the lives of around 13,000 prisoners of war and more than 100,000 civilians. READ MORE: Historical weapons donated to RSL after raid on underworld figure's house Mr Lewis did not survive his imprisonment and died from disease in horrendous conditions at the age of 23 on August 25, 1943. He was buried at Kanchanaburi War Cemetery in Thailand. Two years later, in August 1945, Mr Hume was released as a prisoner of war and returned to Australia. He lived for another forty years, until 1986, when he died aged of 65. The Tooth's Draught Ale stayed in the Lewis family for decades as a tribute to the pair's friendship. It was passed down from Stan's mother to his sister and then his niece before it found a place in the Australian War Memorial. "We are grateful it has now been donated to the Australian War Memorial so we can share their story forged in mateship, with future generations," Assistant Curator Andrew Muir said. A humble bottle of beer now stands in the nation's war memorial, more than 80 years after it was bought as a promise of enduring friendship. Aussie WWII soldiers, Stan Lewis and Fred Hume, were shipping off with the 2/30th Infantry Battalion in early 1941 when they bought a longneck beer, pledging to share it after returning from the war. The bottle of Tooth's Draught Ale, one of Australia's oldest unopened beers, was bought from the Wingham Hotel on NSW's Mid North Coast by the young soldiers. They entrusted Stan's mother, Rubie Lewis, to look after the bottle while they were deployed, Australian War Memorial Director Matt Anderson said. "But sadly, [Stan] didn't make it back," the memorial director said. The duo was captured with around 130,000 Allied troops, including 15,000 Australians, after the surrender of Singapore to the Japanese. Both soldiers were imprisoned at Changi and Mr Lewis was sent to work on the Thai-Burma railway that claimed the lives of around 13,000 prisoners of war and more than 100,000 civilians. READ MORE: Historical weapons donated to RSL after raid on underworld figure's house Mr Lewis did not survive his imprisonment and died from disease in horrendous conditions at the age of 23 on August 25, 1943. He was buried at Kanchanaburi War Cemetery in Thailand. Two years later, in August 1945, Mr Hume was released as a prisoner of war and returned to Australia. He lived for another forty years, until 1986, when he died aged of 65. The Tooth's Draught Ale stayed in the Lewis family for decades as a tribute to the pair's friendship. It was passed down from Stan's mother to his sister and then his niece before it found a place in the Australian War Memorial. "We are grateful it has now been donated to the Australian War Memorial so we can share their story forged in mateship, with future generations," Assistant Curator Andrew Muir said. A humble bottle of beer now stands in the nation's war memorial, more than 80 years after it was bought as a promise of enduring friendship. Aussie WWII soldiers, Stan Lewis and Fred Hume, were shipping off with the 2/30th Infantry Battalion in early 1941 when they bought a longneck beer, pledging to share it after returning from the war. The bottle of Tooth's Draught Ale, one of Australia's oldest unopened beers, was bought from the Wingham Hotel on NSW's Mid North Coast by the young soldiers. They entrusted Stan's mother, Rubie Lewis, to look after the bottle while they were deployed, Australian War Memorial Director Matt Anderson said. "But sadly, [Stan] didn't make it back," the memorial director said. The duo was captured with around 130,000 Allied troops, including 15,000 Australians, after the surrender of Singapore to the Japanese. Both soldiers were imprisoned at Changi and Mr Lewis was sent to work on the Thai-Burma railway that claimed the lives of around 13,000 prisoners of war and more than 100,000 civilians. READ MORE: Historical weapons donated to RSL after raid on underworld figure's house Mr Lewis did not survive his imprisonment and died from disease in horrendous conditions at the age of 23 on August 25, 1943. He was buried at Kanchanaburi War Cemetery in Thailand. Two years later, in August 1945, Mr Hume was released as a prisoner of war and returned to Australia. He lived for another forty years, until 1986, when he died aged of 65. The Tooth's Draught Ale stayed in the Lewis family for decades as a tribute to the pair's friendship. It was passed down from Stan's mother to his sister and then his niece before it found a place in the Australian War Memorial. "We are grateful it has now been donated to the Australian War Memorial so we can share their story forged in mateship, with future generations," Assistant Curator Andrew Muir said. A humble bottle of beer now stands in the nation's war memorial, more than 80 years after it was bought as a promise of enduring friendship. Aussie WWII soldiers, Stan Lewis and Fred Hume, were shipping off with the 2/30th Infantry Battalion in early 1941 when they bought a longneck beer, pledging to share it after returning from the war. The bottle of Tooth's Draught Ale, one of Australia's oldest unopened beers, was bought from the Wingham Hotel on NSW's Mid North Coast by the young soldiers. They entrusted Stan's mother, Rubie Lewis, to look after the bottle while they were deployed, Australian War Memorial Director Matt Anderson said. "But sadly, [Stan] didn't make it back," the memorial director said. The duo was captured with around 130,000 Allied troops, including 15,000 Australians, after the surrender of Singapore to the Japanese. Both soldiers were imprisoned at Changi and Mr Lewis was sent to work on the Thai-Burma railway that claimed the lives of around 13,000 prisoners of war and more than 100,000 civilians. READ MORE: Historical weapons donated to RSL after raid on underworld figure's house Mr Lewis did not survive his imprisonment and died from disease in horrendous conditions at the age of 23 on August 25, 1943. He was buried at Kanchanaburi War Cemetery in Thailand. Two years later, in August 1945, Mr Hume was released as a prisoner of war and returned to Australia. He lived for another forty years, until 1986, when he died aged of 65. The Tooth's Draught Ale stayed in the Lewis family for decades as a tribute to the pair's friendship. It was passed down from Stan's mother to his sister and then his niece before it found a place in the Australian War Memorial. "We are grateful it has now been donated to the Australian War Memorial so we can share their story forged in mateship, with future generations," Assistant Curator Andrew Muir said.
