FTA By Chris Meehan, 21 Construction Squadron RAE (Ex-Grunt)
After finishing the Kapooka chapel, 21 Construction was tasked to build the Port Wakefield test facility. All trades were involved. It so happened that in one of the brick walls the letters ‘FTA’ appeared but they could only be seen from straight on. It was a few metres high as well, so all us brickies thought it was as funny as fuck until someone from 21 Construction Regiment, Chocos, said something to a NCO, and up the chain it went. The member was charged but didn’t care as he was getting out anyway. 21 Const Sqn moved to Brisbane a year or so later. Well, the area Sergeants’ Mess needed brickwork done, so when we got there, the mess president told us that no FTA was to be built into the brickwork. The funny thing was that the mess president, I think that’s what you called him, was an ex-grunt, (Johnny Redaz – not sure of the spelling), who was 21 Const Sqn SSM and also a bricklayer. Go figure, hey!
