Operation Jaywick began in Cairns QLD where the Commando Team trained for months. After leaving Cairns, the Krait, a captured Japanese fishing boat, traveled across the Top of Australia. Up to Thursday Island —> Darwin —> Port Hedland —> Exmouth.
The Australian and British Commandos – Jaywick operatives – were;
Back Row: AB Mostyn Berryman, AB Frederick Walter Lota Marsh, AB Arthur Walter Jones,
AB Andrew William George Huston.
Centre Row: Cpl Andrew Anthony Crilly, LS Kevin Patrick Cain, LDGSTO James Patrick McDowell, L/TEL Horace Stewart Young, AB Walter Gordon Falls, Cpl Ronald George Morris.
Front Row: Lt Hubert Edward Carse, Lt Donald Montague Noel Davidson, Major Ivan Lyon,
Major H A Campbell [did not accompany the expedition], Lt Robert Charles Page
Source: Australian National Maritime Museum
Today, these same communities across the Top of Australia face a different invasion.
Not by enemy air forces, navies or armies, but by foreign oil & gas corporations extracting $billions while paying just 0.70% in taxes.
Why use Military Force when Corporations deploy cunning “fiscal stability agreements,” that surrender national sovereignty to private interests?
And just like the Z-Force Commandos in 1943, we need an audacious strategy to fight back.
The Route of Resistance – Then and Now
September 1943: The MV Krait’s journey tracked across Australia’s northern frontier:
● Cairns: Military overhaul and preparation.
● Thursday Island: Navigation through Torres Strait.
● Darwin: Logistical stop in the besieged city.
● Port Hedland: Passing the rugged WA coastline.
● Exmouth Gulf: Final staging base before the Singapore Raid.
September 2026: These same regions are ground zero for fiscal plunder:
● Northern Territory: INPEX pays 0.70% tax on billions in gas extraction.
● Western Australia: $800 million in taxpayer loans to private billionaire Perdaman.
● Both states: Debt ballooning, services crumbling, sovereignty eroding.
The enemy/adversary has changed. The battlefield is the same.
The Modern Invasion: Extraction Without Contribution
Northern Territory: The 0.70% Scandal — INPEX, operator of the $40 billion Ichthys LNG project, has an average tax revenue rate of just 0.70%.
That’s 70 cents in tax for every $100 in revenue.
Meanwhile:
● NT government debt per capita rising exponentially.
● Annual interest payments consuming budgets.
● Young people are leaving for better opportunities.
● Hospitals and schools underfunded.
In 1974, I was working at The Darwin Hospital when Cyclone Tracy destroyed 90% of the city. I stayed for 18 years to help rebuild.
Today, I’m watching a Cat 4 Fiscal Cyclone flatten the Territory — and it’s a deliberate, man-made, non-stop Storm.
Western Australia: The $800 Million Hand Out
The WA Labor government, partnering with Federal Labor, is planning to pour over $800 million in taxpayer money into Perdaman — a privately-owned corporate refinery, owned by billionaire Vikas Rambal.
This won’t be state-owned wealth generation like Norway’s model. It will be another tax-payer, subsidised hand out to private interests.
Taxpayer exposure:
● NAIF loans: $220 million
● Infrastructure loans: $255 million
● Export Finance Australia: $269 million
● WA Government direct funding: $50+ million
Ownership: 100% private – Rambal family.
Tax transparency: NONE – Perdaman doesn’t appear in ATO corporate tax data.
Historical red flag: Perdaman doesn’t appear in ATO corporate tax data - Why Not?
This is the UK’s failed privatization model, replaying in Western Australia.
The UK vs Norway Template: An £800 Billion Lesson in Failure
Let me show you exactly what Australia is repeating.
UK Model – Privatization:
● Gave away North Sea oil to private corporations.
● Collected $400 billion total – 1975-2025.
● Effective tax rate: $11/barrel.
● Result: £2.8 trillion national debt, £42,000 debt per citizen.
Norway Model – State Ownership:
● Kept 67% state ownership via Equinor.
● Collected $1.2 trillion total – 1971-2025)
● Effective tax rate: $29.80/barrel – 3x higher.
● Result: $2 trillion sovereign wealth fund, $385,000 bonus per citizen.
Source: osprey on overwatch - norway - the clever country….. etc.
Australia is following the UK’s Path to Penury, Poverty & Disaster.
The Legal Lethal Weapon – Force Majeure
But here’s where Operation Jaywick’s spirit lives on, spirit from young patriots like this;
“Mostyn Berryman was just 18 years old at the time. He had been a clerk in Adelaide before the war and was training at a naval depot outside Melbourne when he was told
that two British officers were looking for volunteers to go on a trip. “They told us it was going to be exciting – not dangerous – and that it wouldn’t be forever … so a friend and I said, ‘Oh well, we’ll give it a go and see how exciting it’s going to be,’ and it was exciting,” he said with a laugh.”
In early 2026, the US-Israeli conflict with Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz — the world’s most critical oil and gas shipping chokepoint.
Nations worldwide invoked “Force Majeure” — a legal clause that frees parties from contractual obligations when extraordinary events beyond their control prevent performance.
Critically, it wasn’t just nations directly affected by the conflict.
Singapore — the very city Jaywick targeted in 1943 — led the way.
As of late March 2026, these three nations – China, Singapore, and South Korea – accounted for roughly 57% of Australia’s total refined fuel imports.
By declaring Force Majeure, they successfully quarantined themselves from breach of contract obligations.
Professor Ilias Bantekas of Hamad bin Khalifa University explained:
“What we could never have foreseen is that the Strait of Hormuz could be closed to shipping altogether... on its own, this could be sufficient to constitute a Force Majeure event.”
Operation Jaywick II – The Lethal Legal Raid
If sovereign nations thousands of miles away can invoke Force Majeure to protect their economies, the Northern Territory and Western Australia can invoke the same legal protections doctrines to protect their citizens too.
The 2026 global geopolitical shock, combined with:
● The NT’s ballooning debt crisis.
● The WA $800 million private giveaway.
● INPEX’s 0.70% tax rate.
● The Perdaman tax transparency black hole.
All of these elements constitute a fundamental change of circumstances.
Two Legal Pathways:
1. The Doctrine of Frustration – Australian Common Law
Under Codelfa Construction Pty Ltd v State Rail Authority of NSW, a contract is “frustrated” when a supervening impossibility event makes contractual compliance “a thing radically different from that which was undertaken.”
The NT and WA can argue that the 2026 global macroeconomic environment makes the continuation of these tax-exempt status agreements radically different from what was originally agreed
2. Sovereign Necessity – International Law
The data proves hardship:
● INPEX reported $1.5 billion half-year profit in 2026.
● LNG spot prices spiked to $23.76/MMBtu – 121% increase in 7 months.
● NT and WA struggle to fund hospitals, schools, and infrastructure.
The Three Demands – A Call to Action
Operation Jaywick required courage, meticulous planning, teamwork and endurance for the 14 Z-Force operatives to succeed in this raid, on round trip of approximately 12,000 kilometres.
It remains to be seen if the NT and WA Parliamentarians act with the same courageous, patriotic actions displayed by the original Operation Jaywick I Commandos, in addressing this National Security Threat, given our current wretched fiscal situation.
1. Invoke Sovereign Hardship
The NT and WA governments must formally notify INPEX, Perdaman, and their joint venture partners that the 2026 fiscal and geopolitical crisis constitutes a fundamental change of circumstances.
Demand immediate renegotiation under the already established Legal Precedents of the Doctrine of Frustration and Sovereign Necessity.
2. Demand Royal Commissions
Establish Royal Commissions into oil & gas royalties & taxation examining:
● Total resources extracted from Beetaloo Basin, Ichthys LNG, and WA projects
● Total tax and royalty contributions from foreign corporations.
● Compensation risks under fiscal stability clauses.
● Legal pathways to restructure unfavorable contracts.
● The Perdaman tax history and any ATO data black-holes or potential disputes.
3. Legislate Transparency
Pass Resource Royalty & Rent Transparency Acts requiring:
● Public disclosure of all fiscal agreements.
● Public register of Force Majeure declarations.
● Minimum 51% state ownership of major resource projects.
● Revenue dedicated to sovereign wealth funds – like the Norway Success.
The Bottom Line – We Rebuilt Once, We Can Rebuild Again
In 1943, the MV Krait Commandos showed that small, determined forces could outmaneuver giants through unconventional strategy.
In 1974, Territorians and Australians rebuilt Darwin from catastrophic devastation through community spirit and political will.
Today, we face fiscal devastation — but the enemy isn’t cyclonic winds or enemy warships.
It is complex legal clauses buried in 500-page contracts, protecting “loss of profit” while hospitals and schools crumble.
But the legal landscape has shifted.
China, Singapore, and South Korea have successfully declared Force Majeure.
The legal precedent is established, successful and exists.
The geopolitical shock is real.
The hardship is undeniable.
Our weapons aren’t limpet mines and commandos.
They’re economists, data analysts, legal arguments, and political will.
From Cairns to Exmouth Gulf, the communities that defended Australia in 1943 must lead the fight for fiscal sovereignty in 2026.
Operation Jaywick II isn’t a military raid.
It’s a legal revolution and thanks to Force Majeure, we are now armed-to-the-teeth.
…….Immediate Action needs to start now.
Related Investigations:
● Part 1: The Beetaloo Trap: Cyclone Tracy Survivor Exposes NT Gas Tax Scandal
● Part 2: The Beetaloo Trap: How Force Majeure Can Save the NT
● Part 3: The WA $800 Million Giveaway: Perdaman and the UK’s £800 Billion Mistake
Dedication
This report would never have been possible without the selfless effort, dedication, determination and bravery of the Operation Jaywick I operatives, who put their lives in extreme danger, in the Defence of Australia.
The Z-Force Group also included specialist staff, experienced in leadership, training, demolition, insurgency, support and ancillary roles too.
~~ Lest we Forget ~~
References & Data Sources:
References & Data Sources
Michael West Media TaxData: INPEX Australia Pty Ltd – Average Tax Revenue Rate 0.70% (2014–2024)
Michael West Media: The Beetaloo Trap Part 1: “INPEX to frack more, pay less as NT debt balloons” (Published September 9, 2026)
Osprey on Overwatch: The Beetaloo Trap Part 2: “Force Majeure Can Save the NT from Fiscal Collapse” (Published September 12, 2026)
Professor Steve Keen (YouTube): “Top Economist Warns: You Have No Idea What’s Coming” – Video analysis on financial crashes, production failures, and systemic fragility (September 2026)
EnergyNow / Visual Capitalist: CHARTED: Oil Trade Through the Strait of Hormuz by Country (Published March 4, 2026)
Professor Ilias Bantekas: Force Majeure Legal Precedent – Expert legal briefing, Hamad bin Khalifa University
Doctrine of Frustration Precedent: Codelfa Construction Pty Ltd v State Rail Authority of NSW (1982) 149 CLR 337 – Australian Common Law authority on contractual frustration
ABC News: The NT’s debt is approaching $14b, the highest per capita in Australia – Breakdown of the 2025 Northern Territory Budget cycle
Parliamentary Budget Office: National Fiscal Outlook – State and federal government debt per capita tracking metrics
The Australia Institute: Gas in the Northern Territory – Analysis of NT resource export data and territory fiscal frameworks
Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility (NAIF): Perdaman Urea Project and supporting infrastructure – $220 million flagship federal loan commitment data profile
Export Finance Australia: Perdaman Project Portfolio – Financial records tracking the $269 million project credit lending facility
The West Australian: Vikas Rambal Tax Dispute: “Rambal, ATO end tax tussle” (Published April 22, 2014) – Legal resolution summary regarding corporate taxation structures
Norges Bank Investment Management: Norway Government Pension Fund Global – Sovereign wealth fund operational performance data (2026 asset totals)
UK Office for National Statistics (ONS):
North Sea oil revenue data historical ledger – Cumulative data aggregates tracking macro sector outputs (1975–2025)
Australian National Maritime Museum: Dark victory - Operation Jaywick: Singapore 1943 – Curated historical dossier on the Z Special Unit and the voyage of the MV Krait
Sea Power Centre – Australia: Operation Jaywick and the MV Krait – Strategic naval history archive and operational timeline records
Australian National Maritime Collection: MV Krait route documentation and crew registries – Logbooks from Cairns and Exmouth Gulf deployments (1943) [1]
~ observe - analyse - adapt - evolve - act - survive - thrive ~