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Secdet set for deployment
By Cpl Andrew Hetherington
Edition 1173, August 23, 2007 |
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| Mission ready: LCpl Joshua Woo, 6RAR, and LCpl Phillip Bull, 3CSR, man a vehicle checkpoint during Secdet 12’s MRE at Enoggera Barracks. |
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Cpl Brendan Peters and Cpl David Chown, both 2/14 LHR (QMI), check and pack towing air hose couplings into an ASLAV.
Photos by Cpl Andrew Hetherington |
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SOLDIERS of Secdet 12 have moved a step closer to deploying to Iraq by participating in an intensive mission rehearsal exercise (MRE) at Enoggera Barracks.
The soldiers operated out of a simulated Secdet Baghdad HQ at 2/14 LHR (QMI) barracks from July 28-August 3.
OC Secdet 12 Maj Mark Neich, from D Coy, 6RAR, said the 110-strong force comprised personnel from 6RAR, 2/14 LHR (QMI), 7CSSB, 3CSR and 1 MP Bn.
“We also had the eight reserves for the deployment participating with us on the MRE,” he said.
CTC ran the MRE and provided Secdet 12 with guidance and recommendations on how to conduct the operation. The MRE covered simulated operations in both the green and red zones of Baghdad, which included armed escort tasks, security of the Australian embassy and other facilities to primarily support the Australian diplomatic mission.
“The key things the soldiers picked up were the team work and understanding of the operational environment that they will be working in over in Baghdad,” Maj Neich said. “The MRE is the best training environment we could ever have to prepare us for an operation. It tests all facets of the combat team.”
LCpl Joshua Woo, 6RAR, said he and his mates enjoyed the MRE.
“The exercise had real role players, they had gone to a lot of expense to run it and it was conducted in real time. It was a good experience,” LCpl Woo said.
“A high point was combining with all the other callsigns and working on good team cohesion. The most important thing I learnt was how the other callsigns operate, either watchdog elements, snipers, cav and sigs. We all have a vital role to play in this big operation and knowing how everyone else operates makes each of our jobs so much easier.”
He also enjoyed working with the ASLAVs of 2/14 LHR (QMI) and getting to know the newer members of his unit.
“We have a lot of new blokes in the unit … some of them haven’t been in for a year yet and are performing above what you would expect,” he said.
The challenges he faced on the MRE mainly related to the unit’s procedures. “We had the mechanics down and it was all up to the fine tuning. It had to be tweaked so it was perfect or close to being perfect.”
Maj Neich said the most important aspect that came out of the training was that the soldiers were tested at the highest level before deploying.
“They have been trained in a stressful environment and they will have the confidence to then do the job in the same sort of high tempo and stressful environment in Iraq on a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week operation,” he said.
He said after the MRE post-activity report had been reviewed, any additional training would be completed before the actual deployment.
“After the MRE we will see if there is anything we need to modify or remediate and then we will conduct a planned live-fire exercise prior to deploying,” he said.
“The soldiers are very professional and enthusiastic about deploying to Iraq and getting on with the job.” |
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