Australian – CONTACT magazine

Seaman Angus Norbury and Able Seaman Christopher Diviak lay a wreath on board HMAS Ballarat during a service commemorating the Battle of Leyte Gulf. Story by Sub-Lieutenant Jake Badior. Photos by Leading Seaman Connor Morrison.

Honouring our fallen

07/11/202507/11/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 256 Views 0 Comments HMAS Ballarat, WWII

HMAS Ballarat paused at sea to honour those who fought and fell in the Battle of Leyte Gulf – one of the

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.

Urban warfare realism on Wantok Warrior

07/11/202507/11/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 479 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),

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 312 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

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 274 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

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 1212 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

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 776 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

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 731 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

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 806 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

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 946 Views 2 Comments

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

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 665 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,

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 767 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

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 530 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

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 588 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

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 555 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

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 477 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

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 926 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

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

24/10/202524/10/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 820 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

Royal Australian Air Force Avionics Technicians, Leading Aircraftwoman Rosalia Frichot and Aircraftman Izaak Mazurek during Exercise Bushido Guardian 2025, Misawa Air Base, Japan. Photo by Leading Aircraftwoman Paris Rigney.

ADF People Japan News Royal Australian Air Force

Avionic technicians living the dream in Japan

24/10/202526/10/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 811 Views 0 Comments Exercise Bushido Guardian, F-35A Lightning II, Gap Year program, Japan, Japan Air Self-Defense Force, No. 3 Squadron

For two young RAAF avionic technicians, their decision to join the permanent air force after “dipping their toes” in the

An F-35A Lightning II from 75 Squadron flies alongside a Lear Jet as part of Trial Swagman in the NT. Story by Flight Lieutenant Kayla Walliss.

News Royal Australian Air Force Science & Technology

Swagman returns to the Top End

23/10/202523/10/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 853 Views 0 Comments Delamere Air Weapons Range, EA-18G Growler, F-35A Lightning II, Joint Electronic Warfare Operational Support Unit (JEWOSU), No. 6 Squadron, No. 75 Squadron, No. 80 Squadron, RAAF Tindal, Trial Swagman

On Trial Swagman, F-35A Lighting IIs and EA-18G Growlers used the vast Northern Territory airspace to test and advance their

Royal Australian Air Force PC-21 and Wirraway aircraft perform a flyover during the RAAF Base Wagga Freedom of Entry parade, in Wagga Wagga, NSW. Story by Flying Officer Belinda Barker. Photo by Aircraftman Jakob Reid.

History News Royal Australian Air Force

Freedom of Entry marks bond of 85 years

23/10/202523/10/2025 Posted by Mike Hughes 686 Views 0 Comments Freedom of Entry, RAAF Wagga Wagga

With swords drawn and drums beating, 500 RAAF Base Wagga personnel marched in perfect formation as a Freedom of Entry

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