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CONTACT magazine

Author: Posted by Mike Hughes

Australian Army soldier Private Annaliese Luckman, of 1st Battalion, the Royal Australian Regiment, conducts an urban clearance as part of Exercise Wantok Warrior in Lae, PNG. Story by Captain Tadek Markowski. Photos by Lance Corporal Jessica Gray.
Australian Army News Overseas 

Urban warfare realism on Wantok Warrior

07/11/202507/11/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 1124 Views 0 Comments 1st Battalion Royal Australian Regiment, 5th Aviation Regiment, Exercise Wantok Warrior, PNG, PNGDF

The sun isn’t yet up but Major Patrick Hoare, Officer Commanding Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, the Royal Australian Regiment (1RAR),

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A 37 Squadron C-130J Hercules taxis onto the RAAF Base Richmond apron after a flight that marked 170,000 cumulative flying hours in the C-130J for the squadron. Story by Flight Lieutenant Madeleine Magee. Photo by Leading Aircraftwoman Maddison Scott.
History News Royal Australian Air Force 

Hercules fleet clocks 170,000 flying hours

07/11/202507/11/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 602 Views 0 Comments C-130J Hercules, No. 37 Squadron, RAAF Richmond

In September 2025, 37 Squadron’s C-130J Hercules fleet surpassed 170,000 flying hours, marking a significant milestone in the squadron’s history

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Seaman Charis Zapata gives Australian Border Force dog Magic a well-deserved hug and pat after a morning of training. Story and photos by Sub-Lieutenant Michael Edwards.
News Royal Australian Navy 

Dogs find their sea legs

07/11/202507/11/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 568 Views 0 Comments Australian Border Force, HMAS Waterhen

Sniffing out contraband and well-deserved pats, the Australian Border Force (ABF) Detector Dog Program visited a Navy base to expose

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Defence family members at the Child of the ADF Medallion presentation, Hyde Park. Story by Lieutenant Marcus Middleton. Photos by Leading Seaman David Cox.
ADF People 

Resilient ADF children celebrated

04/11/202504/11/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 640 Views 0 Comments

For a life in the ADF, sometimes the battles hardest fought are by the families on the home front. CAPTION:

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From left, Lieutenant Colonel Mat Brooks, Warrant Officer Tim Duke, Captain Samuel Marsh and Captain Mark Gibbs, the Joint Explosive Ordnance Support team, during the Bravery Trust Dusk till Dawn challenge in Canberra. Story by Sergeant Matthew Bickerton. Photos by Sergeant Samuel Miller.
ADF People 

Bomb suit relay pushes limits for charity

04/11/202504/11/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 608 Views 0 Comments Joint Explosive Ordnance Support (JEOS)

Bomb suits help protect users from explosive blast and fragmentation effects. They’re hot, heavy and not something you’d typically wear

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Then-president of 30 Squadron Beaufighter Association, Bruce Robertson, during his 105th birthday celebration at Castle Hill RSL Club, NSW. Story by Corporal Jacob Joseph. Photos by Aircraftwoman Mikaela Fernlund.
ADF People History Lest We Forget 

A long life of loyal service

04/11/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 494 Views 0 Comments WWII

On October 14, Bruce Robertson, a 105-year-old Air Force World War 2 veteran – who was the first to detect

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Army School of Electrical and Mechanical Engineering members take part in a combat service support activity in the Albury Wodonga Military Area during the school’s biannual field training exercise. Story by Captain Krysten Clifton. Photos by Flight Sergeant Matthew Wright.
Australian Army News 

More realism a feature of new field exercise

31/10/202531/10/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 1437 Views 0 Comments Army School of Electrical and Mechanical Engineering (ASEME), Puckapunyal, School of Armour

Trainees from the Army School of Electrical and Mechanical Engineering (ASEME) embraced the first iteration of their transformed biannual field

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Australian Army soldiers from 1st Battalion, the Royal Australian Regiment, with their gold medals, awarded from Exercise Cambrian Patrol. Story by Corporal Michael Rogers. Photos by Lance Corporal Caitlyn Davill.
Australian Army News UK 

Australia’s best take on premier patrolling test

31/10/202531/10/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 983 Views 0 Comments 1st Battalion Royal Australian Regiment, Duke of Gloucester Cup, Exercise Cambrian Patrol, UK Armed Forces

Soldiers from 1st Battalian, the Royal Australian Regiment (1RAR), achieved gold at this year’s Exercise Cambrian Patrol, proving why they

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Cyber warfare specialist Leading Seaman Joel Kviz while deployed to Japan for Operation Argos, working from Kadena Air Base. Story by Corporal Luke Bellman and Lieutenant Emily Tinker. Photos by Corporal Luke Bellman.
ADF ADF People Cyber Japan News 

Deployed cyber specialists deliver mission assurance

31/10/202531/10/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 919 Views 0 Comments Cyber Command, cyber warfare, Japan, Operation Argos

Delivering ‘cyber assurance’ to Defence operations is a responsibility that requires cyber warfare specialists to work abroad, working in a

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Trooper Megan Creamer helps deliver donated goods during a community outreach activity in the Papua New Guinea Central Highlands village of Kosipe during Exercise Helicon Luk. Story and photos by Captain Tadek Markowski.
Australian Army News Overseas 

Goodwill gesture a hit in the highlands

29/10/202529/10/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 1255 Views 0 Comments 5th Aviation Regiment, CH-47F Chinook, Exercise Helicon Luk, PNG

Each year Army Aviation sends aircraft to Papua New Guinea (PNG) to qualify pilots and aircrew operators on flying in

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The 2026 Milano Cortina Paralympic Winter Games contenders, including three Navy members and veterans.
ADF People Health and Wellbeing 

From Invictus to the Paralympics

29/10/202529/10/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 726 Views 0 Comments Invictus Games, Service Dogs

Beneath the grandeur of Admiralty House and overlooking Sydney Harbour, three Navy members and veterans stood proudly before an audience

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Defence is implementing recommendation 23 of the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide. Story by Michael Hoare.
ADF People Australian Army News Royal Australian Air Force Royal Australian Navy 

Service convictions to be available for police checks

29/10/202529/10/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 1156 Views 2 Comments

From December, ADF personnel who have been convicted of a serious service offence since 2015 will have those details recorded

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HMAS Penguin's ship's company exercises freedom of entry through the City of Mosman, NSW. Story by Lieutenant Hinako Shiraishi. Photos by Leading Seaman David Cox.
News Royal Australian Navy 

Penguin march delights Mosman locals

28/10/202528/10/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 794 Views 0 Comments Freedom of Entry, HMAS Penguin, Navy Band

Living up to their motto of ‘Proud to Serve’, officers and sailors from HMAS Penguin marched through the streets of Mosman, NSW,

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Royal Australian Air Force Flying Officer Eric Morant and Leading Aircraftman Lachlan McAndrew exchange mission data from the P-8A during Operation Argos at Kadena Air Base, Japan. Story and photos by Corporal Luke Bellman.
Japan News Royal Australian Air Force 

Precision and partnership drive Argos success

28/10/202528/10/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 917 Views 0 Comments Japan, No. 11 Squadron, No. 87 Squadron, Operation Argos, P-8A Poseidon, united Nations Security Council

On Operation Argos, intelligence informed each flight, operations coordinated it in real-time and mission assurance specialists processed every byte of data

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The Australian Military Wives Choir deliver a heartfelt performance for staff in the Russell Offices courtyard, Canberra. Story by Corporal Jacob Joseph. Photos by Nicholas Haggarty.
ADF ADF People News 

Military wives united by song

28/10/202528/10/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 663 Views 0 Comments AMWChoir, Russell Offices

The acoustics of the Defence Headquarters courtyard at Russell Offices in Canberra may have left something to be desired, but

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Nominees in the 2025 Women in Defence Awards, Petty Officer Brionee Harvey and Lieutenant Commander Shafiqah Shariff Ali, both of HMAS Brisbane. Story by Warrant Officer Caraline Enniss. Photo by Leading Seaman Danyellah Hill.
ADF People News Royal Australian Navy 

Navy women recognised on the national stage

28/10/202528/10/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 725 Views 0 Comments HMAS Brisbane, Women in Defence Awards

When excellence is measured across the entire Defence community, it is rare for one ship to stand out twice, but

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Soldiers and officers from Army’s 1st Signal Regiment march through Redcliffe, Queensland, during a City of Moreton Bay freedom of entry march. Story by Captain Nigel Jacobs. Photos by Lance Corporal Luke Donegan.
Australian Army News 

Regiment granted freedom of entry

28/10/202528/10/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 741 Views 0 Comments 1st Signal Regiment, Freedom of Entry, Royal Australian Corps of Signals

Residents of the suburb of Redcliffe celebrated the Brisbane-based 1st Signal Regiment as it exercised freedom of entry in Moreton

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Lieutenant Kiesha Dowsett goes under in a kayak roll drill at Latchford Barracks pool. Story by Captain Krysten Clifton. Photos by Michael Banovic.
ADF People Australian Army News 

Young officers learn to manage stress

28/10/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 598 Views 0 Comments Army School of Logistic Operations (ASLO), Bandiana

Your kayak capsizes and you are trapped. Immediately, you are hyper-aware of your breath, where your mates are, and each

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Graduating students, instructors and support staff of the Air Defence Artillery Fire Control Officer course held at RAAF Base Williamtown. Story by Flight Lieutenant Grace Casey-Maughan. Photo by Leading Aircraftwoman Laura Flower.
News Royal Australian Air Force 

Significant milestone for Australian-delivered course

24/10/202524/10/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 1054 Views 0 Comments adafco, RAAF Williamtown

The second cohort of Australian-trained air defence artillery fire control officers graduated from their course at RAAF Base Williamtown on

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Herbert Adams watches the premiere screening of the documentary, An Enduring Legacy: The Empire Air Training Scheme, at RAAF Base Wagga, NSW. Ssdtory by Squadron Leader Karyn Markwell. Photos by Aircraftman Jakob Reid.
History Lest We Forget News Royal Australian Air Force 

History and heritage on show in new film

24/10/202526/11/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 931 Views 0 Comments History and Heritage – Air Force Restoration Support Section (HH-AF RSS), No. 464 Squadron, RAAF Wagga Wagga, RAAFSTT, WWII

History and Heritage – Air Force (HH-AF) officially released the documentary An Enduring Legacy: The Empire Air Training Scheme at a premiere

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