Australian Army
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The Australian Army is Australia's military land force. It is part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of the Army (CA), who is responsible to the Chief of the Defence Force (CDF).
Australian soldiers have been involved in a number of minor and major conflicts throughout its history, but only in World War II did Australian territory come under direct attack.
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[edit] Mission
[edit] History
- See main article: History of the Australian Army
The history of the Australian Army can be divided into two periods:
- 1901-47, when limits were set on the size of the Regular Army, the vast majority of peacetime soldiers were in the Reserve Army units of the Australian Citizens Military Force (also known as the CMF or Militia), and Australian Imperial Forces were formed to serve overseas, and
- post-1947, when a standing peacetime infantry force was formed and the CMF (known as the Army Reserve after 1980) began to decline in importance.
The army has been involved in many peacekeeping operations, usually under the auspices of the United Nations. The largest one began in 1999 in East Timor. Other notable operations include peacekeeping on Bougainville and in the Solomon Islands, which are still ongoing to this day. Humanitarian relief after 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake in Aceh Province, Indonesia, Operation Sumatra Assist, ended on 24 March 2005.
[edit] Current deployments
The Australian Army currently has significant forces deployed on four major operations [2]:
- Operation Catalyst - Australia's commitment to the Coalition forces in Iraq. The army's contribution includes:
- Overwatch Battle Group (West); this is a battlegroup consisting of a headquarters, infantry company, armoured squadron and training team, with a total of 450 personnel. This has two tasks:
- Provide support to local Iraqi security forces
- Assist in the training of local Iraqi Army units so that they are able to take over the internal and external defence of their country
- Australian Army Training Team; this encompasses 55 personnel providing logistic training to the new Iraqi Army.
- Embassy security detachment; this provides security protection and escort for staff at the Australian Embassy in Baghdad, and consists of 100 personnel.
- Overwatch Battle Group (West); this is a battlegroup consisting of a headquarters, infantry company, armoured squadron and training team, with a total of 450 personnel. This has two tasks:
- Operation Slipper - Australia's commitment to the War on Terror. The army contribution is primarily concentrated in Afghanistan:
- Reconstruction Task Force; attached to the Dutch led Provincial Reconstruction Team in Oruzgan Province, this consists of 200 personnel from 1st Combat Engineer Regiment, 45 from the 6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, and a company(plus) from the 5th/7th Battalion, Royal Australia Regiment.
- Operation Astute - Australia's commitment to Timor-Leste. This constitutes the largest overseas deployment of Australian forces, with around 925 troops deployed. These are primarily formed into a single battlegroup:
- ANZAC Battle Group; this is an infantry heavy battle group supported by engineers, armoured vehicles and combat support elements. Integrated into its structure is a company from the Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment.
- Operation Anode - Australia's commitment to the Regional Assistance Mission Solomon Islands. The contribution numbers approximately 140 personnel, primarily consisting of a company from 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, plus support elements. Also under Australian command is a company from 2/1st Battalion, Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment.
- In addition to these, small numbers of personnel are deployed on various peacekeeping operations around the world, including the Multinational Force and Observers and to the United Nations.
- Operation Mazurka - Australia's commitment to Multinational Force and Observers (MFO). This is by far the longest running operation Australia has been involved with. From 1982-1986, the RAAF provided rotory wing aviation support. Since 1994 the Australian Army has maintained a presence within the organisation. Currently 25 personnel rotate twice a year, being employed in key HQ, operations and logicistics positions.
[edit] Current organisation
- Further information: Structure of the Australian Army
The Australian Army is currently organised around two Division headquarters. The Deployable Joint Force Headquarters/1st Division has responsibility for the majority of the regular army, while 2nd Division is the main home defence formation, containing Army Reserve units. Recent expansion plans will see the Australian Army expand by 2008, resulting in a primary force that is organised around eight battalions of the Royal Australian Regiment - three of these are to be standard light infantry, two mechanised, and two are to be motorised. The final battalion is a specialised commando unit which is part of Special Operations Command. The Royal Australian Armoured Corps presently has four regular regiments, one of main battle tanks and two light cavalry (formation reconnaissance). The fourth consists of a single squadron and is used on the armoured personnel carrier/light armoured role. These forces, together with the associated combat support (artillery, engineers, signals) and combat service support (logistics, maintenance etc) are based around two deployable brigades, 1 Brigade, which is primarily a mechanised formation, and 3 Brigade, which is a light, air deployable formation. 7 Brigade is an integrated Regular/Reserve formation that would primarily be used in conjunction with DJFHQ were it ever to be deployed overseas.
[edit] 'Hardened and Networked Army'
On 15 December 2005, then Australian Minister for Defence, Senator Robert Hill announced that the Australian Army would be restructured and redeveloped. The policy of creating a 'Hardened and Networked' Army will see a major reorganisation of both the regular Army and Army Reserve. The overriding rationale for this is to bring about "A reduction in singular capabilities that can not be rotated, hence an 'Army of twos'".[1] This will involve the army being organised so that it can deploy a number of battlegroups, consisting of infantry, armour, artillery etc in the correct proportions relevant to each type of mission. For this, nine separate army units are being structured to act as battlegroup headquarters:
- 1st, 2nd, and 6th Bn, Royal Australian Regiment are standard light infantry battalions, with 5/7 Bn as a mechanized battalion. The 3rd Bn is classed as a light infantry unit in the parachute role, though it is scheduled to convert to a pure light infantry battalion by 2011.
- 1st Armoured Regiment
- 2nd Cavalry Regiment
- 2nd/14th Light Horse Regiment (Queensland Mounted Infantry)
- 1st Aviation Regiment
Initially, it was planned for the 3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment to be relocated from Sydney to Adelaide, converting from its current parachute role into a mechanised unit. This new 'battle group' would have taken on a similar role to 5/7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment which is the major mechanised battalion. However, in 2006, it was announced that this decision would be rescinded, with the 3rd Battalion instead re-roling to regular light infantry. Adelaide, which was originally slated to receive 3RAR will now receive a new Battalion, which will be formed through the de-amalgamation of the 5th/7th Battalion - the 5th Battalion will remain in Darwin with the 7th Battalion moving to Adelaide. A further new battalion, through the reforming 8th/9th Battalion, will be formed in South East Queensland in the motorised role. By the end of this process in approximately 2015, 1 Brigade will be the army's major mechanised formation. The armoured units of the Army Reserve in 2nd Division will be restructured, with four becoming pure light cavalry and the fifth being utilised in the armoured lift role.
[edit] Personnel
During the 2005-06 financial year the Army had an average strength of 25,241 permanent Personnel and 15,579 reservists.[2]
[edit] Rank and insigina
The ranks of the Australian Army are based on the ranks of the British Army, and carry mostly the same actual insignia. For officers the ranks are identical except for the shoulder title "Australia". The Non-Commissioned Officer insignia are the same up until Warrant Officer ranks, where they are stylised for Australia (e.g. using the Australian, rather than the British coat of arms).
[edit] Current recruiting Issues
On 24 August 2006 the Prime Minister announced a requirement for an extra 2600 soldiers for the Australian Army. Recent remarks of low morale in the Army, a high desire to leave the armed forces for civilian careers amongst serving soldiers, low unemployment figures for school-leavers and university graduates, as well as general opposition for Australian soldiers serving in Iraq have resulting in the Army falling short of its recruiting expectations. This new campaign, which will call for the construction of two new battalions ready for overseas deployment by 2010, will reportedly cost $10 billion AUD. The first of these new battalions, to be operational by 2008, will be formed by the de-amalgamation of 5/7 RAR into the reformed 5th Battalion and 7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment.
PM John Howard cited causes for this requirement as the threat of unstable, possibly terrorist harboring states in Australia’s immediate region:
| “ | I mean look at what happened in East Timor. Look at what happened in the Solomon Islands. Think back a few years to Fiji. Think of Vanuatu. Think of the inherently unstable situation in Papua New Guinea. | ” |
Along with this announcement, many claim that a need for more and better equipment is required, possibly meaning an increase in the numbers of M113 APCs, Bushmaster IMV and M1A1 Abrams tanks being ordered. The plan also may result in an overall reduction in the fitness, medical and age restrictions placed on applicants, in order to ‘Modernize’ the restrictions and also assist in boosting numbers. However, these moves have come against opposition within Veteran’s Organisations. Opposition from the Papua New Guinean Prime Minister, Sir Michael Somare came on 25 August 2006, saying an expansion of the Australian Army would actually be in response to its forces already deployed in the Middle East, and not for the possibility of threat from its Pacific neighbors.
On 15 October 2006 the Defence minister Brendan Nelson announced that the Army will be implementing a new 'try before you buy' recruitment system, reducing the Initial Minimum Period of Service (IMPS) from four years to one year for enlisted soldiers. Aimed at school leavers, this system is designed to reduce the impact of joining the army for recruits entering the work force, making the option of military service more attractive.
[edit] Equipment
- Further information: Weaponry of the Australian Army
| Small arms | Rifles: the F88 Austeyr is the Australian Army's standard rifle. The M4 carbine is used by special forces. Support weapon: FN Minimi. Hand guns: Browning High powered or Beretta pistols. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Main Battle Tanks | 90 Leopard AS1 (59 M1A1 Abrams being delivered to replace Leopard 1) |
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| Infantry fighting vehicles | 257 ASLAV | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Armoured Personnel Carriers | 700 M113 (350 being upgraded to M113AS3/4 standard, balance to be mothballed and used to support upgrade program) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Infantry Mobility Vehicles | +400 Bushmaster IMV (being delivered) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Land Rovers | 5000 FFRs 5000 GS | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Artillery | 112 L118/L119 105mm Hamel Guns, 120 M2A2 105mm Howitzer, 36 RBS-70 ground to air missiles, and 36 M198 155mm Howitzer[3] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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[edit] Army bases
The Army's operational headquarters, Land Command, is located at Victoria Barracks in Sydney. The Australian Army's three regular brigades are based at Robertson Barracks near Darwin, Lavarack Barracks in Townsville, Queensland and Gallipoli Barracks in Brisbane, Queensland. The Deployable Joint Force Headquarters is also located at Gallipoli Barracks. Other important Army bases include the Army Aviation Centre near Oakey, Queensland, Holsworthy Barracks near Sydney, Woodside Barracks near Adelaide, South Australia and Campbell Barracks in Perth. Dozens of Army Reserve depots are located across Australia.
[edit] Notes
- ^ Hardened and Networked Army
- ^ Australian Department of Defence (2006) Defence Annual Report 2005-06. Page 218.
- ^ [1].
- ^ "World Military Aircraft Inventory", Aerospace Source Book 2007, Aviation Week & Space Technology, January 15, 2007.
[edit] References
- Website: http://www.army.gov.au
[edit] See also
- Australian Defence Force ranks and insignia
- Conscription in Australia
- Fort Queenscliff
- Australian military slang
| Australian Defence Force |
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 Australian Army  Royal Australian Navy  Royal Australian Air Force |
