C. F. FLINT

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CHARLES FRANCIS FLINT

1919 - 2012

Charles Flint was born on the 31st of August 1919. Though at this time, little is known about his early life before joining the army. He was raised in Hobart and enlisted into the Australian Army in Caulfield. He first enrolled into the Royal Military College Duntroon in 1935, where after completing a 4 year course graduated at the top of his class on the 12th of December 1939, being awarded the Kings Medal. He was soon made a Lieutenant in the Australian Staff Corps. 

From here, he joined Southern Command in January 1941and worked at the Headquarters in Melbourne, before he took up a posting as an instructor with the Engineer Training Battalion in August. As part of his new position, he received a promotion to the rank of Temporary Captain. He held this instructor post until August the following year, at which point he was made the Assistant Chief Instructor at Land HQ. Interestingly, less then a month later, Flint was made a temporary Major, whilst still a Lieutenant. It wasn’t until the end of October that he was officially made a Captain, though he retained the rank of Temporary Major until early August 1943 when he was promoted to that rank.

On the 5th of February 1953, Flint was given command of the British Commonwealth Engineer Regiment (Australian Component).  He moved to Japan where he worked from the units HQ in Kure. He was frequently in Korea and oversaw many of the regiment’s doings within the 1st Commonwealth Division. 21st of January 1954, Flint relinquished command of the regiment, and returned to Australia. Upon his return, he took up a position as the Chief Instructor at the School of Military Engineering in Holsworthy.

From the 17th of October 1957, Flint was made Chief Engineer of the Southern Command. He relocated to Melbourne where he oversaw all Army engineer detachments for the vast majority of Victoria, eastern South Australia and Tasmania. Whilst in this position, he was awarded the title of Officer of the Order of the British Empire in early 1962.

On the 19th of June 1964, Flint relinquished his post as Chief Engineer, Southern Command and assumed the post of Director of Weapons policy and programming, Directorate of Staff Duties at Army HQ. Whilst at HQ, he would also serve as the Director of Equipment Policy. He held this post until September 1965, when he went on the supernumerary list whilst attending the Administrative Staff Collage. Upon completion of the course, he returned and was made Deputy Quarter-Master General with a promotion to Temporary Brigadier. Once in Canberra, he became well acquainted with the top brass of the Australian Army and went on to serve in many of the Army’s political and social events. On one occasion he served as mess president for a major dinner function which was attended by several of the highest ranking military officers from across the Commonwealth.

He held this top post until the 18th of August 1972, where upon he was appointed as the Australian Army representative in London. This would be his final posting. In 1973, A company called Faulkner Engineering launched a lawsuit against the Commonwealth Government and Brigadier Flint. Faulkner claimed that in 1968 Flint had promised a bulk order of one of their inventions, the Trisal Clip, and never followed through. Subsequently the company went bankrupt, and blamed Flint for misconduct and of “negligent and fraudulent statements”. The trial was a very serious matter and in March 1973 it was recommended that Flint resign. Regardless, he retired from the army on the 19th of June 1973. The proceedings dragged on for years until on the 27th of April 1987, it came to trial. The trial lasted only 13 days, and it was on the second day that the plaintiff discontinued charges against Flint directly. At the end, Justice Allen rule in Favor of the Commonwealth, finding Faulkner’s claims against Flint to be entirely fabricated.

Charles Flint would pass away on the 31st of March 2012.

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