By
PTE John Wellfare
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The
ASM with East Timor clasp has been awarded for service after
August 2003.
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LAC
Josh Irvine checks the aircraft.
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Photos
by LACW Sonja Canty
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Nos 10 and 11 Squadrons participated in Exercise
Tasmanex, alongside New Zealand and the UK.
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Scenarios ranged from hours to days.
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SHIPS
and aircraft from Australia, New Zealand and the UK have come
together to enhance all three parties’ maritime warfare skills.
Operating off the east coast of New Zealand’s North Island, two
RAAF AP-3Cs from Nos 10 and 11 Squadrons joined RAN and NZDF air
and sea assets to practise maritime patrol, anti-submarine warfare
and anti-surface warfare for Exercise Tasmanex.
An RAF Nimrod also took part. Australian Air Force Detachment
Commander for Ex Tasmanex Wing Commander Richard Larking said
the exercise had been scaled down somewhat from the original plan
for Exercise Joint Kiwi, but still gave all the forces involved
plenty of opportunity to practise their skills.
“Joint Kiwi 05 was reduced in size because of Australia’s and
New Zealand’s commitment to the tsunami relief in Northern Sumatra
and Exercise Tasmanex is what was left,” he said.
“Joint Kiwi was actually going to include some Army and amphibious
operations, but Tasmanex was now a joint maritime warfare exercise
including ships, aircraft, helicopters and a submarine. “The Air
Force units were pretty much the same.
There was a slightly reduced Navy component, but the Army side
disappeared.” While Ex Joint Kiwi had been based on a detailed
scenario, Ex Tasmanex was designed as a collection of smaller
serials, ranging from a few hours to about two days, testing different
elements of the deployed forces.
Commanders had been able to work through a coordination centre
to tailor the exercise scenarios to meet their individual training
requirements.
“A training program comes out, which allocates an aircraft, submarine,
ships and helicopters to each serial and whoever’s in charge of
that serial then provides an overall setting of what they’re trying
to achieve,” WGCDR Larking said.
“Some serials might be just one aircraft and one submarine, others
might involve maritime patrol aircraft, two or three frigates,
a submarine and a couple of helicopters.”
The air forces involved also took part in Exercise Fincastle,
an antisubmarine warfare competition.
Fincastle crown lost to UK Nimrod aircrew
