Navy shows off skills during Exercise Kakadu
Epic action shots of Operation Kakadu as international warships take to Darwin shores in warfare games. See the 100+ photos from HMAS Perth here.
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As the sound of German and Singaporean fighter jets and 50 calibre gunfire engulfed HMAS Perth warship, those on board would be forgiven for mistaking the training exercise for a bona fide conflict.
The imitation conflict, part of the Royal Australian Navy’s multinational maritime training operation Exercise Kakadu, saw fighter jets from Germany and Singapore’s defence forces pitted against each other.
This year marks the 15th time Australia has hosted the exercise which will see around 3000 navy personnel take part.
Kakadu acts as an opportunity for Australia to test its capabilities against, and work alongside, about 20 nations including Fiji, Germany, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Samoa and East Timor.
It also features 15 ships, an Australian submarine and more than 30 aircraft.
HMAS Perth Commander Tony Nagle said the goal for Exercise Kakadu was for forces to demonstrate “partnership, leadership and friendship”.
“Exercise Kakadu is very important for the Royal Australian Navy because it brings together many of our partner nations from around the Indo-Pacific region,” he said.
“It’s important for defence forces to be able to operate together because really we do operate in very different ways even across our region, even with the nations we co-operate with quite closely, so it’s important for us to learn from each other … so that when we do have to work together for significant reasons we actually have an understanding about how they function.”
For Friday’s training exercise the HMAS Perth was tasked with the role of air warfare commander, controlling the placement of ships to defend against the incoming fighter jet attacks.
Despite growing tensions between Australia and China, Commander Nagle said the scenarios were “purely notional” and “hypothetical”.
For some of the young HMAS Perth crew, about 120km from Darwin, Exercise Kakadu is an opportunity to get a taste of the excitement they joined up for.
Sub-Lieutenant Samantha Horsfield, 26, said the operation was a chance for a wide range of navy personnel to train and upskill.
“It’s a fantastic opportunity,” Lieutenant Horsfield said.
“We get a lot of other people who aren’t normally part of ships such as fighter controllers and it’s a really good way for us to integrate with them so that when we do deploy on operations we have that capability already and it’s quite organic.
Lieutenant Horsfield, who comes from a long line of navy personnel, said the warfare training operations like Friday’s got her “fire burning”.
Darwin local and Midshipman Jacinta Saynor, who boarded the HMAS Perth a week ago, said she joined the navy for the career and travel opportunities.
“It’s been really good,” she said.
“Darwin is a obviously a real military town … I kind of wanted to get out and travel or do something different. Something that most of my friends wouldn’t get to do and have the opportunity to get around and do something because I live in such a small place.”
SEE THE ALL THE ACTION OF OPERATION KAKADU
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