Redback One Challenge Coin

1 SQN’s Redback logo was selected as the ‘Operational Call Sign’ for the first push into AFG in 2001. This was aligned to the facts that the Redback spider is unique and prominent in Western Australia.

The Redback spider (Latrodectus Hasselti) is a highly venomous, yet generally timid creature known for its powerful neurotoxic venom and, in the case of the female, a decisive, "search-and-destroy" predatory nature. Simply ‘built for discreet operations’.

The best capability driver of this amazing creature that links to SASR is ‘Decisiveness (Behaviour and Bite)’

• Defensive Nature: They are not naturally aggressive to humans and rarely leave their webs, usually biting only when touched, pressed against skin, or when their nest is disturbed. The similarity to SASR is that we are not naturally aggressive to humans until we leave our FOB and react when pressed against or our nest is disturbed.
• High-Pain Impact: While fatalities are extremely rare due to the 1956 antivenom, a bite causes intense, radiating pain, nausea, sweating, and muscular weakness, often requiring medical treatment. The commonality is there’s no antivenom to lead, most encounters lead to intense radiating pain, nausea, sweating and muscular weakness (at times just through a visual encounter) and in many instances requiring medical attention.
• Adaptable Predator: They are highly efficient at exploiting human environments, often found in sheds, under furniture, or in dry, sheltered areas around homes. Linkages here are highly efficient at exploiting hostile environments, often found in places you wouldn’t expect, or in wet, cold, hot or dry environments.

The initial logo was cut out from a ‘Redback' work boot box and that required the image to be cut out in a diamond shape.  

The green colour was taken from the Units ‘Colour Patch’ and the diamond from the initial 1 SQN logo.

In 2003, 1 SQN made slight adjustments to the centre colour and created plaques for those members leaving the SQN.

The Gallantry Unit Citation was placed to the top RHS of the plaque, but the Federation Star was left out so that ‘all members of the SQN’ could be presented the plaque.

On a side note, there was also a round SQN patch created that could be worn on flight suits whilst on Team.

This Challenge Coin has been produced to reflect on the first deployment into Afghanistan, as a part of the Global War on Terror – OPERATION SLIPPER.