AUSTRALIAN SOLDIERS AT SEA OFF THE GOLD COAST
THERE’S no need to panic if you see Australian Army personnel flying around the sea off Main Beach in small boats – the Gold Coast is not about to be invaded.
Members of the 2nd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (2 RAR) made a rare appearance on the Coast yesterday for a surf negotiation training session as part of the Australian Army’s Advanced Small Craft (boats) Operators Course.
2 RAR was recently selected to transition from being a light infantry battalion in the 3rd Brigade to a specialised pre-landing force of the Amphibious Task Group as part of the 1st Division.
The small boats are used on inland waterways and coastal areas that can be difficult to access by other means, their crews acting as the eyes and ears for commanders of amphibious missions, landing first in support of Australian Defence Force tasks.
Yesterday’s training session saw 27 soldiers prepare their boats and head out to sea to test their teamwork and endurance in a series of high-speed surf trials.
The soldiers have spent two weeks honing their skills in small craft operations including rocky landings, surf negotiation, parent craft drills, approach swimmer drills, beach landing site preparation and reception, advanced marine navigation and tactical operations.
“The soldiers are qualified to insert and extract soldiers on to a beach from a ship,” soldier and trainer Tom O’Farrell said.
While 2 RAR is permanently based in Townsville, the course took place in south east Queensland because of the range of training areas the region offers.
Formed in 1945 as the Australian 66th Battalion, 2 RAR has seen active service in the Korean and Vietnam Wars, Rwanda, East Timor, Iraq and Afghanistan.