USMC Amphibious Recon Platoon conduct rehearsals for a deep reconnaissance insertion as part of the Australian and American joint exercise at Shoalwater Bay on Excercise Crocodile 2003.Photo by LCPL Neil Ruskin, 1JPAU

Joint training mooted





By Pte John Wellfare
COMBINED Australian and US training establishments may be formed under a concept in the early stages of consideration, signalling a growing inclination toward interoperability between forces.

CDF Gen Peter Cosgrove and US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen Richard Myers said recently that the notion was only in the conceptual stages. Staff in ADF doctrine development fields believe interoperability between forces is crucial to operational effectiveness.

SO Land Doctrine at the ADF Warfare Centre Maj Paul Rosenzweig said few examples could be given of operations in which Australian forces deployed alone.

"Operations is where joint doctrine becomes important, because even though we say it's joint doctrine for the ADF, it's written with a view to operations with other nations," he said.

"Almost without fail, [ADF doctrine] is compatible with our allies because it's based on, drawn from and prepared with their doctrine."

Maj Rosenzweig said Australian/US interoperability had been the aim of both forces since WW2.

"While our armies had developed largely in isolation before WW2, suddenly in the Pacific campaign we were acting together.

"We had to know how each other worked and it's one thing to conduct combined operations and learn it on the run, but what we've done since WW2 is actually formalised that by a series of training, exchanges, exercises and that's proven itself on operations."

2IC Doctrine Wing at the Land Warfare Development Centre Maj Terry Lannan said interoperability didn't mean adopting all the equipment or methods of an ally.

"It doesn't mean that you subordinate yourself," he said.

"Obviously, with America, they're sort of the big boys on the block, but it doesn't mean that automatically we lay down and adopt their procedures.

"It's learning to operate within cultural differences, because in a lot of ways, the way each Army chooses to fight also reflects their society."

Maj Lannan said the current world situation made it important for the ADF to be able to work with forces from all over the world.

"At the end of the day, everyone is going to have their own specific national procedures ... but the overriding philosophy is that we always must be in a position where we [can] operate with our coalition partners.

"Probably the best example of that was East Timor, where we had - I don't know what the final count was - I know at one stage it was over 29 coalition partners from around the world."

The vast number of countries that engage in joint exercises with the ADF was indicative of the importance most militaries place on interoperability, and the standing the ADF held in the international defence community.

"What we're aiming to do with all these joint exercises is to promote understanding between the relevant forces, but more particularly, coming down to it is the ability to operate with one another at all levels," he said.

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