Posted by Mike Hughes, Author at CONTACT magazine

A Melbourne University Regiment part-time soldier detonates an M18A1 Claymore under the supervision of an instructor during the Land Combat Module conducted at Puckapunyal Military Training Area. Story by Captain Rohan Hurst and Captain Andrew Lee. Photos by Captain Rohan Hurst.

New training module bolsters reserve capability

23/08/202423/08/2024 Posted by Mike Hughes 1960 Views 0 Comments 8th Brigade, Army Reserve, Claymore mine, Puckapunyal

8th Brigade’s Melbourne University Regiment has been training Australia’s newest part-time soldiers through the new Land Combat Module (LCM) this

A LARC-V launches into the surf as part of littoral training at Rainbow Beach, Queensland. Story and photos by Captain Joanne Leca.

Australian Army News

When the surf gets rough, specialists get going

23/08/2024 Posted by Mike Hughes 1909 Views 0 Comments 10th Force Support Battalion, Exercise Surfing Penguin, F470 Zodiac, LARC-V

Soldiers from the 10th Force Support Battalion (10FSB) conducted advanced watercraft training with the lighter, amphibious, resupply, cargo, 5-tonne (LARC-V)

Australian military personnel gather for a dawn service at the Trincomalee Commonwealth War Cemetery in Sri Lanka. Story by Lieutenant Jonathan Wills. Photos by Leading Seaman David Cox.

History Lest We Forget News Royal Australian Navy Videos

Indo-Pacific partners share history of sacrifice

23/08/202423/08/2024 Posted by Mike Hughes 2384 Views 0 Comments Indo-Pacific Endeavour, Sri Lankan Defence Force, WWII

In the dim first light of day, a contingent of ADF personnel gathered for a dawn service on August 17

An Army soldier from Battle Group Heeler conducts a clearance of the Urban Operational Training Facility at Shoalwater Bay Training Area during Exercise Diamond Run 2024. Story by Major Martin Hadley. Photos by Corporal Johnny Huang.

Australian Army

Readiness shines brightly on Ex Diamond Run

21/08/2024 Posted by Mike Hughes 1563 Views 0 Comments 17th Sustainment Brigade, 6th Battalion Royal Australian Regiment, 7th Brigade, Exercise Diamond Run, New Zealand Army, Shoalwater Bay Training Area

More than 1500 personnel converged on Rockhampton and the expansive Shoalwater Bay Training Area in Queensland from August 10-20 for

Australian Army fuel specialists from the 1st Combat Service Support Battalion work alongside petroleum operators from UK's Commando Logistics Regiment to refuel Battle Group Tiger vehicles at Timber Creek, NT, during Exercise Predator's Run. Story by Captain Annie Richardson. Photos by Corporal Madhur Chitnis.

Australian Army News

Logistics teams fuel the fight

21/08/2024 Posted by Mike Hughes 1947 Views 0 Comments 1st Combat Service Support Battalion, Exercise Predator’s Run, UK Armed Forces

Private Charlie Wright, of the United Kingdom’s Royal Marine Commandos Logistic Regiment, and Lance Corporal Adrian Cluning, of the 1st

Commander Indo-Pacific Endeavour Commodore Michael Harris and Sri Lanka Navy officers after the Indo-Pacific Endeavour 2024 workshop. Story by Lieutenant Jonathan Wills. Photos by Petty Officer Bradley Darvill.

News Overseas Royal Australian Navy

Aussies lead law-of-the-sea workshop in Sri Lanka

21/08/202429/08/2024 Posted by Mike Hughes 2060 Views 0 Comments Indo-Pacific Endeavour, Sri Lankan Defence Force

Australia’s flagship regional engagement activity – Indo-Pacific Endeavour (IPE) – began with a law of the sea workshop involving the

Retired Caribou aviators and 35 Squadron Association members with a restored de Havilland DHC-4 Caribou at the RAAF Amberley Aviation Heritage Centre. Story by Flight Lieutenant Rob Hodgson. Photos by Sergeant Peter Borys.

History News Royal Australian Air Force Veterans

Wallaby Airlines remembered

21/08/2024 Posted by Mike Hughes 2305 Views 2 Comments C-27J Spartan, No. 35 Squadron, RAAF Amberley Aviation Heritage Centre, Wallaby Airlines

On a cold, wet morning at RAAF Base Amberley, 35 Squadron Association members gathered to commemorate a significant event for

Madeleine King MP hands over Sergeant John Brislin’s WW2 medals to his son, Bruce Brislin, outside her office in Rockingham, WA. Story by Lieutenant Commander John . Photos Supplied.

ADF People History Lest We Forget

WW2 medals lost but not forgotten

21/08/2024 Posted by Mike Hughes 1145 Views 0 Comments WWII

“We will remember them” is more than a phrase. CAPTION: Madeleine King MP hands over Sergeant John Brislin’s WW2 medals to

Chief Petty Officer Karen Lewis performs her role as a Navy Business Analyst. Story by Flight Lieutenant Marina Power. Photo by Leading Aircraftwoman Paris Rigney.

ADF People Australian Army

Sailor excels in newfound passion

21/08/2024 Posted by Mike Hughes 1063 Views 0 Comments Army Data Hub

For a passionate data buff, Army Data Hub is the place to be. CAPTION: Chief Petty Officer Karen Lewis performs her

Australian Army and Republic of Korea soldiers on a familiarisation training course for the K9 self-propelled howitzer and the K10 armoured ammunition resupply vehicle in South Korea. Story by Corporal Luke Bellman.

Australian Army News

Gunners come to grips with new howitzer

21/08/2024 Posted by Mike Hughes 4633 Views 0 Comments 4th Regiment Royal Australian Artillery, K10 Armoured Resupply Vehicle, K9 Self Propelled Howitzer, M777 Howitzer

When Lance Bombadier Lachlan Kirk fired a K9 self-propelled howitzer for the first time, he realised the shock didn’t compare

Warrant Officer Class One Benjamin Spain is a ground crew mission support standards officer within Army Aviation Command. Story by Flight Lieutenant Marina Power.

ADF People Australian Army

Ground crew career takes off

21/08/2024 Posted by Mike Hughes 1114 Views 0 Comments AH-64E Apache, Aviation Command, UH-60M Black Hawk

It’s a busy time to be in Army aviation for ground crew mission support (GCMS), with the introduction of UH-60M

The Australian War Memorial's V2 rocket on a Meillerwagen launching trailer inside the memorial's storage hub in Mitchell, ACT. Story and photo by Corporal Jacob Joseph.

History News Royal Australian Air Force

Exciting piece of history on display

16/08/2024 Posted by Mike Hughes 1813 Views 0 Comments AWM, WWII

For the first time, the Australian War Memorial (AWM) will display a Nazi missile alongside a Lancaster bomber sent to

Army soldiers from Rifle Company Butterworth rotation 144 receive an historical briefing prior to conducting the Sandakan Death March in Sandakan, Malaysia. Story by Lieutenant Chloe Reay. Photos by Corporal Nakia Chapman.

Australian Army History Lest We Forget News

Diggers retrace Sandakan Death March to pay tribute

16/08/2024 Posted by Mike Hughes 1558 Views 0 Comments Malaya and Borneo, Rifle Company Butterworth, WWII

In 1942, under Japanese occupation, Australian prisoners of war were sent to Sandakan in Borneo, Malaysia, to build an airstrip.

Privates Bianca Nankervis and Nelson Fox from Rifle Company Butterworth rotation 144 visit the Kundasang War Memorial in Ranau, Malaysia. Story and photos by Lieutenant Chloe Reay.

Australian Army History Lest We Forget News

Paying tribute to fallen family members

16/08/202424/08/2024 Posted by Mike Hughes 1530 Views 0 Comments 5th Battalion Royal Australian Regiment, Malaya and Borneo, Rifle Company Butterworth, WWII

As part of their three-month deployment to Malaysia, soldiers from Rifle Company Butterworth (RCB) rotation 144 were given the opportunity

Navy sailors from HMAS Perth, Chief Petty Officer Glen Nipperess, left, and Lieutenant Commander Gemma Casserly, return a recovered craft to its owner, Army soldier Warrant Officer Class Two Carl Stanley, centre right, at HMAS Coonawarra. Story and photo by Corporal Michael Rogers.

ADF People

Navy recovers soldier’s sunken boat

16/08/202417/08/2024 Posted by Mike Hughes 1682 Views 0 Comments HMAS Coonawarra, HMAS Perth

Three months after he lost his boat, which had drifted about 1600km, an Australian soldier has been reunited with it,

Defence Science and Technology Group's MIST sensor, used for chemical detection on the battlefield. Story by Emma Thompson.

ADF News Science & Technology Sovereign industry

Defence capability put to new use

16/08/2024 Posted by Mike Hughes 1128 Views 0 Comments CBRN, DSTG

A thumb-sized device made by Defence for chemical detection has found a new purpose. CAPTION: Defence Science and Technology Group’s MIST

A 3D-printed training aid, created at the MakerSpace at Latchford Barracks, helps instructors teach how to perform a cricothyrotomy – which involves cutting through the cricothyroid membrane and inserting a valve to make an alternate airway in the neck. Story and photo by Warrant Officer Class 2 Max Bree.

Australian Army Health and Wellbeing News Science & Technology

3D printers breathe life into medical training

16/08/2024 Posted by Mike Hughes 1470 Views 0 Comments 3d Printer, ADF School of Health, CBRN, MakerSpace

When damaged or blocked airways stop a patient breathing, medics can cut through the cricothyroid membrane and insert a valve

Personnel at the Army Logistics Training Centre use the MakerSpace workshop on Latchford Barracks. Story and photos by Warrant Officer Class 2 Max Bree.

Australian Army Health and Wellbeing News Science & Technology

Intuitive 3D printers improve cognitive learning

16/08/2024 Posted by Mike Hughes 1442 Views 0 Comments 3d Printer, MakerSpace, RAEME

Creating a T-800 Terminator skull with glowing red eyes to hold your beret might not seem like the most ‘military’

Commander Australian Fleet Rear Admiral Chris Smith speaks to a member of HMAS Melville's ceremonial guard during the ship’s decommissioning ceremony at Trinity Wharf in Cairns. Story by Lieutenant Commander Anthony Martin. Photos by Petty Officer Leo Baumgartner.

News Royal Australian Navy

HMAS Melville decommissioned

16/08/202417/08/2024 Posted by Mike Hughes 1360 Views 0 Comments Cairns QLD, decommissioning, HMAS Melville

After 24 years of diligent service to the Navy, HMAS Melville has been decommissioned in Cairns. CAPTION: Commander Australian Fleet Rear

Royal Navy's dental surgeon Lieutenant Grace Smalley, left, and dental nurse Able Rate Jamie Shand, both from 40 Commando, perform a dental examination on an Australian Army soldier during Exercise Predator's Run at the Bradshaw Field Training Area. Story and photo by Sergeant Matthew Bickerton.

ADF People Australian Army Health and Wellbeing

Keeping digger’s bite to stay in the fight

16/08/2024 Posted by Mike Hughes 1215 Views 0 Comments Exercise Predator’s Run, Royal Navy

Gum pain or toothache can impact your ability to fight, reducing focus and resolve. CAPTION: Royal Navy’s dental surgeon Lieutenant Grace