Brisbane Prepares To Welcome Home Aussie Heroes.

Nicholas Bolton   -    November 19, 2010 - 4:11PM   Brisbane Times

About 1500 army personnel will have an emotional homecoming in Brisbane tomorrow as the city welcomes the 7th Brigade home from active duty. Police expect large crowds to line the route through the city centre and have urged people to plan their journey and allow sufficient time for travel. The officers and soldiers, recently returned from eight-month deployments will be joined by the remainder of the 2500-strong Enoggera-based brigade.
At the same time, the 2nd/14th Light Horse Regiment (Queensland Mounted Infantry), one of the brigade's eight units, will conduct a mounted drive past in their array of armoured vehicles to celebrate their 150th anniversary.
Captain Alastair McPherson of the 7th Brigade said the parade was important for a number of reasons.
“It's significant tomorrow because it's the welcome home of troops from Afghanistan, [East] Timor and Iraq, so basically you had the Brigade supporting all three major operations that the [Australian Defence Force] were involved in,“ Captain McPherson said. “Secondly, it's also a parade that's about celebrating the 150th birthday of the 2nd/14th Light Horse Regiment (Queensland Mounted Infantry). “It's not very often that we get to march through the streets of Brisbane for special events, and for us to be able to thank the people of Brisbane is pretty important for us.” The Light Horse Regiment, one of Australian Army's oldest units, will march behind six horses as a mark of respect for the six Australian soldiers killed in Afghanistan during the deployment. Led by the Australian Army Band, the march will step off from the South Bank Cultural Forecourt, across Victoria Bridge, along. Adelaide Street - Creek Street - and conclude at  157 Ann Street.The parade will begin at 10am, with a civic reception to follow at 10.45am.