Army - The Soldiers' Newspaper

HARD AND FAST
Restructure gets go-ahead

Focused: The Hardened and Networked Army Plan will provide greater flexibility for the Army and new equipment for troops, such as this A3 weapon and Kevlar helmet demonstated by Pte Beau Davidson. Photo by Bill Cunneen

Leaping ahead: More Bushmasters will increase the infantry’s mobility under the HNA initiative.

By Cpl Damian Shovell

THE Army is set to increase by 1485 regular personnel and gain a second mechanised battalion based in Adelaide following Government approval for the implementation of the Hardened and Networked Army (HNA) strategy.

The endorsement follows three years of planning methods to increase Army’s options to meet future challenges, which by 2015 will provide Army with more options for the types of force packages it can provide to a joint ADF task group.

The conversion of 3RAR to a mechanised infantry battalion modelled on 5/7RAR in a new mechanised battalion in Adelaide is the most obvious indicator of changes that will increase the size and sustainability of our deployable forces and transform the Army from single capabilities to an “Army of twos”.

An Army of twos will allow the Army to always have the same capability in reserve that it has on deployment.

Critical to this objective is a host of new protective vehicles and equipment which will be more interoperable with joint and coalition forces through networking and will be more capable of working as combined arms battlegroups.

CA Lt-Gen Peter Leahy said the need for these changes was driven by a number of factors. He cited the changed threat environment, including “the increasing lethality and availability of weapons” and that Army “must be prepared to face a far more lethal adversary with the will and the capability to fight conventional forces”.

HNA changes will affect unit structures, even down to the composition of an infantry section. They will generate greater organisational depth, involve the redistribution of vehicles and produce a “greater focus on combined arms battlegroups rather than infantry battalion groups”.

This shift will increase the survivability of a deployed land force, which under HNA will achieve the Defence 2000 White Paper’s requirement to be able to sustain a brigade-sized force on extended operations, with at least battalion for deployment elsewhere.

The Network Centric Warfare vision for the Army will ensure all elements of a deployed land force can rapidly exchange information with joint assets, with coalition allies and with other agencies. This will enhance combat power by providing greater situational awareness, faster and more informed planning and decision making and improved detection and acquisition of targets.

Additionally, an important aspect of HNA is to continue the enhancement of the Army Reserve, which is already under way with the establishment of Reserve Response Forces and changes to Army Reserve call-out legislation.

Under HNA, the reserve model has refocused the “raise, train and sustain” functions of Army Reserve HQ, formations and units. Reserve formations will no longer have express or implied tasks and will be provided with clear tasks expressed at unit level, allowing for clear local purpose and relevance, which translates to about 2800 High Readiness Reserves directly related to Army’s combat capability and enhanced readiness.

Full details about the HNA plan are available www.defence.gov.au/army/HNA/default2.htm or intranet.defence.gov.au/armyweb/sites/HNA

AT A GLANCE

HNA’s main focus

Methods of sustaining a deployed battlegroup will also be undertaken, including:

Once HNA changes have been implemented (post 2015), Army will focus on further expansion under the CA’s Objective Force in which deployed forces will be: