Australian Army – CONTACT magazine

Australian soldiers fire off a practise mortar round as part of a mortar concentration activity at Puckapunyal Military Area. Story by Tim Klingner. Photos by Private Sera Mar.

Reservists refine live-fire mortar skills

02/07/202602/07/2026 Posted by Mike Hughes 258 Views 0 Comments 2nd (Australia) Division, Army Reserve, Puckapunyal

Army reservists from across the country converged on Puckapunyal in early June to demonstrate and develop their skills during the

Explosive ordnance technicians from the Australian Army, PNG Defence Force and Canadian Armed Forces prepare to remotely move explosive ordnance during Operation Render Safe in East New Britain, PNG. Story by Captain Annie Richardson. Photo by Sergeant Andrew Sleeman.

Australian Army News Pacific

Operation renders East New Britain safer

02/07/202602/07/2026 Posted by Mike Hughes 234 Views 0 Comments Operation Render Safe, PNGDF, WWII

More than 2200 munitions were disposed of across East New Britain during Operation Render Safe 2026. CAPTION: Explosive ordnance technicians

Defence scientists test emerging sensor technologies to build a clearer picture of the coastal environment during a recent trial. Story by Robert Nutbrown.

ADF Australian Army News Royal Australian Navy

Beach survey teams assess new tech

26/06/2026 Posted by Mike Hughes 511 Views 0 Comments DSTG, Littoral Manoeuvre Group

Defence scientists are working closely with the Australian Defence Force to strengthen Army’s ability to operate in coastal areas. CAPTION:

The next generation of aviation warfighters graduates at HMAS Albatross. Story by Sub-Lieutenant Dishant Shah.

Australian Army News Royal Australian Navy

New cohort of pilots graduate

26/06/202628/06/2026 Posted by Mike Hughes 535 Views 0 Comments HMAS Albatross, No. 723 Squadron

The Royal Australian Navy and Australian Army welcomed a new cohort of aviation professionals last month following the Joint Helicopter

A joint excavation by South Korea’s Ministry of National Defense Agency for KIA Recovery and Identification, operating in partnership with the Unrecovered War Casualties – Army. Story by Squadron Leader Bel Culley. Photo by Corporal Luke Kern Choi.

Australian Army Lest We Forget News

Search for digger’s remains yields remnants of war

25/06/202625/06/2026 Posted by Mike Hughes 693 Views 0 Comments 3rd Battalion RAR, Korean War, Unrecovered War Casualties – Army (UWC-A)

Despite a month-long excavation, a joint recovery operation has been unable to locate the remains of Australian Army Corporal William

An explosive ordnance disposal team discovers unexploded ordnance during the remediation of Townshend Island. Story by Leading Aircraftman Chris Tsakisiris.

Australian Army News

Deep search clears hidden threats

24/06/202628/06/2026 Posted by Mike Hughes 481 Views 0 Comments EOD, No. 65 Air Base Recovery Squadron

Sixteen metres below the surface of Townshend Island, off Shoalwater Bay, the digging stopped – not because the crew had

Australian Army soldiers conduct inert ordnance during Exercise Possum Walk at RAAF Base Townsville, Queensland. Story by Major Jesse Robilliard. Photos by Corporal Kurt Lewis.

Australian Army News

Crews prepare Australian Apaches for first live-fire

19/06/2026 Posted by Mike Hughes 669 Views 0 Comments 1st Aviation Regiment, AH-64E Apache, Exercise Possum Walk, RAAF Townsville

Aviation ground crew have loaded fuel and inert ordnance onto AH-64E Apache helicopters to prepare for the new attack platform’s

Private Malakai Williams, of 5th/7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, fires a Carl Gustaf recoilless rifle during Exercise Predators Walk in the Northern Territory. Story by Major Sarah Kelly. Photos by Corporal Michael Currie.

Australian Army News

Diggers train alongside US marines

19/06/2026 Posted by Mike Hughes 494 Views 0 Comments 1st Brigade, Exercise Predator’s Walk, United States Marine Corps

Personnel from Army’s 1st Brigade and the United States Marine Corps rehearsed combined arms operations across the Northern Territory during

Army general surgeon Major Joseph Dawson, left, and orthopaedic surgeon Major Jarrad Stevens perform minor surgery on a member of Operation Render Safe in Papua New Guinea. Story by Captain Annie Richardson. Photos by Sergeant Andrew Sleeman.

Australian Army News

Medical facility proves its worth

19/06/2026 Posted by Mike Hughes 451 Views 0 Comments 3rd Health Battalion, Operation Render Safe

Just two days after unpacking their equipment in Papua New Guinea, the Role 2 (R2) health capability supporting Operation Render

A USAF MC-130J prepares for takeoff after delivering a HIMARS unit to Delamere Air Weapons Range, Northern Territory, during Exercise Talisman Sabre 2023. Photo by Leading Seaman Susan Mossop.

Australian Army News Royal Australian Air Force

Introducing Australia’s ‘tactical dream team’

17/06/202617/06/2026 Posted by Brian Hartigan 673 Views 0 Comments

C‑130J ‘Super Hercules’ is the workhorse of the sky and, matched with the ADF’s growing fleet of HIMARS launchers, forms

Facility dog Quinley comforts soldiers from 1st Regiment, Royal Australian Artillery, at Gallipoli Barracks, Queensland. Captain Elisha Crowther. Photo by Gunner Jesse Linards.

Australian Army News

Paw patrol brings calm to units

12/06/202612/06/2026 Posted by Mike Hughes 522 Views 0 Comments 1st Regiment RAR, Chaplains, Gallipoli Barracks, Joint Military Police Unit (JMPU), Service Dogs

In a unit known for guns, grit and high-tempo training, one of the most recognisable faces around the 1st Regiment,

Army’s new handbook is designed to prepare soldiers for the realities of warfare. Picture – Owen Stanley Trail, Alola (1942), by Frank Hodgkinson. Source: The Australian War Memorial.

Australian Army News

The essential guide for soldiers

12/06/202612/06/2026 Posted by Mike Hughes 663 Views 0 Comments The Soldier

Fear, fatigue, trauma and killing sit at the heart of The Soldier – Army’s new publication. CAPTION: Army’s new handbook is designed

Commander 1st (Australian) Division Major General Ash Collingburn speaks with a Japan Ground Self-Defense Force officer during Exercise Southern Jackaroo at the Townsville Field Training Area. Story by Captain Andrew Page. Photos Linda Bone.

Australian Army News Videos

Partner nations rehearse for war

12/06/202612/06/2026 Posted by Mike Hughes 565 Views 0 Comments 1st (Australian) Division, 3rd Brigade, Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs)

More than 3000 personnel are participating in the Australian Army’s largest domestic multinational exercise this year. CAPTION: Commander 1st (Australian)

Brigadier Mick Scott and Dr Robert Wyse sign the contract for Volume 5 of the official history of the Corps of Royal Australian Engineers at Holsworthy Barracks, NSW. Story by Sergeant Matt Bickerton. Photos by Corporal Johnny Huang.

Australian Army News

Updated sappers’ history in the works

10/06/2026 Posted by Mike Hughes 459 Views 0 Comments Corps of Royal Australian Engineers (RAE)

The latest instalment of the official history of the Corps of Royal Australian Engineers (RAE) will be written over the

Medical personnel from the 2nd Health Battalion use a deployable CT scanner at a Role 2 Enhanced treatment facility on Exercise Viper Walk at Gallipoli Barracks, Enoggera. Story by Captain Chris Wade. Photo by Private Alli Craig.

Australian Army Health and Wellbeing News Royal Australian Air Force Royal Australian Navy Videos

CT scanner a game changer for medics in the field

05/06/202605/06/2026 Posted by Mike Hughes 652 Views 0 Comments 2nd Health Battalion, Exercise Viper Walk, Gallipoli Barracks

It’s widely regarded as one of the most important medical innovations of the past 50 years, earning its inventor –

One of the first Australian-built AS9 Huntsman systems fires during live-fire serials at Puckapunyal Training Area during Army’s inaugural AS9 operator course. Story by Trent Pollard. Photos by Corporal Luke Bellman.

Australian Army News Science & Technology Videos

Huntsman’s first shots in Puckapunyal

04/06/202607/06/2026 Posted by Mike Hughes 709 Views 0 Comments 4th Regiment Royal Australian Artillery, AS9 Huntsman, Puckapunyal, School of Artillery

When the first Australian-made AS9 Huntsman fired on its distant target, you’d have been forgiven for mistaking it for cracks

Lieutenant Guy Campbell, 1RAR, pushes through a gruelling stretcher carry at the French Foreign Legion's Jaguar Course in French Guiana. Photo supplied.

Australian Army News Pacific

1RAR officer completes French Foreign Legion’s Jaguar Course

27/05/2026 Posted by Brian Hartigan 2587 Views 2 Comments French Foreign Legion, Jaguar Course

An infantry officer from 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (1RAR), has become just the second Australian soldier to complete and

The latest Australian Army AH-64E Apache is offloaded from a RAAF C-17 Globemaster at RAAF Townsville. Photo by Corporal Raiar Cordwell.

Australian Army News

Army Apache fleet reaches six

14/05/202627/05/2026 Posted by Brian Hartigan 546 Views 0 Comments

Two additional AH‑64E Apache attack helicopters have been delivered to the Australian Army, marking another step in the transformation of

Australian Army News

SAS WO2 killed in parachute accident

12/05/202627/05/2026 Posted by Brian Hartigan 690 Views 1 Comment

Defence confirm an Australian Army soldier died during a parachuting training course at the Jervis Bay Airfield on the evening of

A UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter from the 16th Aviation Brigade conducts integration training with soldiers from the 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment as part of Exercise Valkyrie Crawl. Story by Captain Chloe Ellwood. Photos by Corporal Riley Blennerhassett.

Australian Army News

New choppers give battalion’s training a lift

08/05/2026 Posted by Mike Hughes 515 Views 0 Comments 16th Aviation Brigade, 1RAR, Exercise Valkyrie Crawl., UH-60M Back Hawk

UH-60M Black Hawk from the 16th Aviation Brigade flew into Townsville to conduct training with soldiers from the 1st Battalion,

← Previous