By Pte John Wellfare

AFTER two years in planning, the field phase of Ex Crocodile 03 will begin in September and test the ability of Australian and US forces to work together as part of a task force in a large-scale military campaign.

Preparations for the exercise has seen Shoalwater Bay Training Area transformed into the fictitious island of Legais, where the Combined Australian and US Task Force will deploy in response to a developing crisis.

SO1 Land Plans at the ADF Warfare Centre, Lt-Col Andrew Plant said the exercise aim hadn’t changed since planning started two years ago.

“The aim is to practice and evaluate a combined Australian and US task force in the planning and conduct of operations,” he said.

“The majority of the insertion activity will occur in early September, it will be preceded by some advance force operations involving special forces, SASR and commandos.”

Lt-Col Plant said the field phase of the exercise would be broken down into five stages from the preparation through the running of the exercise to the extraction.

“The first part will be the preparation, which will involve the transit of maritime task groups to Townsville.

“Then the shaking phase, which is prepare the battle space for entry operations.

“The next major phase is the entry operations – conducting amphibious insertions and the conduct of the airborne insertions.

“Then is the decisive engagement phase – the conduct of decisive manoeuvre and practicing forces’ objectives, the final part of [which] will be the conduct of the live firing exercise.

“At the end, obviously there’s the transition extraction of forces and the exercise winds down.”

Ex Crocodile 03 will be the second and final Crocodile exercise, Lt-Col Plant said, with joint Australia – US exercises continuing under a different name from now on.

“In 2005 we’ll be conducting an exercise called Talisman Sabre, it should again be a bi-lateral exercise and we’re actually in the planning process for Talisman Sabre now.”

Who’ll be there

Australian forces
Army
LHQ Direct Command Elements including:
5 Avn Regt 1 Int Bn
7 Sig Regt 111 AD Bty
1 MP Bn

1 Bde including:
1 Armd Regt
2 Cav Regt
5/7 RAR 1 CER
1 CSR 1 CSSB
3 Bde including:
3/4 Cav Regt 1 RAR
3 RAR 4 Fd Regt
3 CER 3 CSR
3 CSSB

Special forces Including:
SASR 4RAR (Cdo)

US Forces:
USMC
3 Bn, 3 Marines
Including:
Inf Bn Recon Pl
LAV Pl Arty Bty
AA Pl Cbt Eng Pl
6 x AH1 6 x CH46
Aircraft Spt element

Land forces of the Combined Task Force will be supported by the RAAF and elements of the RAN and US Navy.

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