What a load of utter horse%^&t that crikey stuff is. Some people are so blinded by their hatred of Howard and Bush that they will believe almost anything if it could possibly put either in a bad light.
Clearly the conspiracy theorists out there have absolutely zero idea about anything to do with military operations - either ground or air - as the ignorance displayed in some of the above is quite breathtaking. The people pontificating quite obviously have no experience of either C-130 operations or close personal protection tactics. Since I've been involved extensively with both, here are some facts:
One: There was quite clearly smoke in the cabin during the flight. The vision shows it. Plenty of journos attest to it. The crew properly decided to make an immediate return for landing.
Two: The prop brake in the Herc clicks in at something like 30-ish % RPM (from memory). If the props are still spinning in the TV vision, then the aircraft has been shut down within around 60 seconds or so.
Three - and more important. Once the ramp and door were opened (presumably just after landing) the smoke in the cabin would have cleared. By the time the aircraft parked, the smoke wasn't the problem.
The emergency at that point was no longer aircraft related. It was that the Prime Minister of Australia had just made an unplanned arrival at a relatively insecure airfield in what is basically bandit country. OPSEC had been broken by his presence there half an hour previously. He's now sitting in the middle of the tarmac in a lame duck aircraft. All it takes is one crazy with an RPG and a mobile phone to realise that he's back and the aircraft is broken, and there's trouble.
So, the SAS close protection team no doubt did what all professional CPP teams would do. You establish contact with whatever assets you have on the ground. That may take some time - although given the still-moving props, not much in this case. They secure an area - and once that's done, you move the principal there - as fast as you can and with heavy force around him / her. That's what was happening when the PM was moved - you can see the CPP operatives with their hand in the small of his back pushing him along.
Who cares whether Joe Blow cameraman (or anyone else) got off before the PM or not? It is of absolutely no relevance whatsoever - he isn't a target, the Prime Minister is.
Any suggestion that the SAS were sitting around inside the aircraft doing their hair while the PM's office organised a photo op (with multiple takes, no less) is not only insulting to their professionalism, it is so naive as to be ridiculous. Some people need to get a grip.
There, I feel better now. Rant over.
SW