Australian and Indonesian military colleges on short-term exchange

Indonesian Army officer cadets integrated into Royal Military College-Duntroon (RMC-D) platoons in late October during the annual short-term cadet exchange between both military academies.

CAPTION: Cadets from the Royal Military College-Duntroon and Indonesian Army exercise patrol tactics at Puckapunyal military training area. Story by Corporal Veronica O’Hara. Photo by Major Michael Kiting.

The cadets from Indonesia’s officer academy, Akademi Militer (Akmil), participated in the second part of the foreign academy exchange program between both armies.

The aim of the exchange is to expose cadets to different training and culture, while building enduring relationships at the junior level.

Accompanying them as the inaugural Australian Army instructor to the Indonesian academy, Major Michael Kiting said the activity gave the Duntroon cadets opportunities to see the quality of their neighbouring country’s military.

“Training together proved both nations shared similar tactics, demonstrated in the ability for the Akmil cadets to effectively integrate into an RMC platoon with minimal preparation training,” Major Kiting said.

In the field, RMC cadets readily explained to their counterparts what was occurring during the missions, such as how to patrol, fire and move, and what the platoon commander was conducting, according to RMC-D Staff Cadet Alexander Adams.

“They easily adapted to how we train and fight, even with language barriers when explaining and teaching tactical actions,” Staff Cadet Adams said.

The exchange occurred while the RMC-D cadets were conducting their platoon commander field assessments over a month-long battle block training period at Puckapunyal.

CAPTION: Cadets conduct a quick attack during training. Photo by Major Michael Kiting.

The exchange between the two academies has been going for more than 50 years.

At Akmil, in a small museum honouring former cadet and Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, there are photos of him participating in the program as a cadet during the early 1970s.

The program aims to create links between officer networks who may work together again during future activities.

“It provides a familiar face for future training, and someone to reach out to when our careers inevitably cross again,” Staff Cadet Adams said.

The Akmil cadets were selected on merit and English language ability.

In September, nine RMC cadets and two instructors visited Akmil in phase one of the program.

Separately, two Indonesian Army cadets are attending RMC for the first time in history and will graduate next June.

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