Major General Alan Bishop Stretton, (30 September 1922 – 26 October 2012) was a senior Australian Army officer. He came to public prominence through his work in charge of cleanup efforts at Darwin in the aftermath of Cyclone Tracy on Christmas Day 1974. As head of the National Disasters Organisation he managed the evacuation of 35,000 people in six days, including loading a jumbo jet with 673 passengers, mostly children, then a record for the most people aloft in the one aircraft.
Early years Stretton was born on 30 September 1922 in Melbourne, Victoria.STRETTON, Alan Bishop, Who's Who in Australasia and the Far East, Melrose Press, 1989, p.531 He was educated at Caulfield Grammar School"His Hobby— Alan Stretton with his fantail pigeons at the exhibition of hobbies held at the Caulfield Grammar School yesterday", The Argus, Tuesday, 9 December 1930, p.5. and Scotch College, Melbourne. After graduating from the Royal Military College, Duntroon, he began his military career serving with the 2/9th Battalion during the Second World War.Wallace Crouch (31 December 1974) Darwin's Dictator for a week, The Sydney Morning Herald, p.4Dickens 2005, p. x.
Football In 1946 and 1947 Stretton played 16 games of Australian rules football in the Victorian Football League with St Kilda, after arriving at the club from Duntroon.Gossip from League Clubs, The Argus (Melbourne), 10 May 1946, p.15.Alan Stretton, who will play at centre half-back for St Kilda, gained valuable experience at Royal Military College at Duntroon. He is 6ft lin and weighs 14st 10lb.
Military career Stretton served in the army from 1940 to 1978. In the Second World War he served as a platoon commander in the 2/9th Battalion.
In the Korean War he served in the 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment from 1954 to 1955. He was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire on 13 December 1955. In Malaya he served as the commanding officer of the 2nd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (1961–63). On 12 June 1965 he was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire. He served three tours during the Vietnam War, in 1962, 1966 and 1967. He was Director of administrative planning at headquarters (1966–69), and from 1969 to 1970 was chief of staff of the Australian forces. On 8 January 1971 he was advanced to Commander of the Order of the British Empire for his service in Vietnam. In 1970 the South Vietnamese government awarded him the Distinguished Service Order and in 1973 the US awarded him the Bronze Star Medal.
During his time in Malaya and Vietnam, without attending a lecture, he studied by correspondence from the jungle and graduated with a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Queensland in 1966. He was admitted as a barrister in the New South Wales and High Courts in 1969.
Stretton was promoted to brigadier in 1971 and from 1972 to 1974 was deputy director (military) of the Joint Intelligence Organisation and member of the National Intelligence Committee.
Cyclone Tracy and post-military Stretton was jointly named the 1975 Australian of the Year, with Sir John Cornforth.
He wrote The Furious Days: The Relief of Darwin (1976) and Soldier in the Storm (1978), retiring from public life in 1978. He practiced law in Canberra into his 70s.
In 1999, in only his second visit to the city of Darwin since Cyclone Tracy, he presented his insignia as Officer of the Order of Australia, and his award as Australian of the Year, to the people of Darwin.
In 2003 he publicly criticised the Australian Government's policy of involvement with the 2003 Invasion of Iraq, in an open letter in which he stated: "The alleged connection between Saddam Hussein and al-Qa'ida is ludicrous."
He died on 26 October 2012 at Batemans Bay Hospital in New South Wales, aged 90.John Thistleton (29 October 2012) Vale Major-General Alan Stretton, The Canberra Times
List of honours Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) 9 June 1975It's an Honour – Officer of the Order of Australia – 9 June 1975Citation: AO (MILITARY DIVISION) QB 1975. CBE 1971. OBE QB 1965. MBE 1955 Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) 8 January 1971It's an Honour – Commander of the Order of the British Empire – 8 January 1971Citation: ARMY – Staff Corps – Vietnam. Officer of the order of the British Empire (OBE) 12 June 1965It's an Honour – Officer of the Order of the British Empire – 12 June 1965Citation: ARMY – Staff Corps – Postwar Honours List Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) 13 December 1955It's an Honour – Member of the Order of the British Empire – 13 December 1955Citation: ARMY – Infantry – Distinguished service in Korea Pacific Star Gwendolene E. Pratt (1987) Portrait of Alan B. Stretton AO OBE LLB, National Portrait Gallery, Canberra. War Medal 1939–1945 Australia Service Medal 1939–45 United Nations Korea Medal Vietnam Medal Centenary Medal 1 January 2001It's an Honour – Centenary Medal – 1 January 2001Citation: For service to the community including restoration of Darwin post-Cyclone Tracy Defence Force Service Medal with four clasps For 35–39 years service National Medal with 2 Rosettes For a total of 35 years serviceIt's an Honour – National Medal – 14 July 1977Citation: The National Medal is awarded for diligent long service to the community in hazardous circumstances, including in times of emergency and national disaster, in direct protection of life and property.It's an Honour – National Medal, 1st Clasp – 14 July 1977Citation: The National Medal is awarded for diligent long service to the community in hazardous circumstances, including in times of emergency and national disaster, in direct protection of life and property.It's an Honour – National Medal, 2nd Clasp – 27 January 1978Citation: The National Medal is awarded for diligent long service to the community in hazardous circumstances, including in times of emergency and national disaster, in direct protection of life and property. Australian Defence Medal 2006 Vietnam Campaign Medal (South Vietnam)
See also List of Caulfield Grammar School people
Notes
References
External links
Alan Stretton, at The VFA Project.