War games to transform old RAH into makeshift battleground

THE old Royal Adelaide Hospital will be turned into an international war zone as soldiers in camouflage infiltrate the city.

Smoke plumes rise after an airstrike in west Mosul on March 10. Picture: AFP/Aris Messinis

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THE old Royal Adelaide Hospital will be turned into an international war zone as soldiers in camouflage infiltrate the city.

New intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities for use in urban conflict will be tested in Adelaide from November 20 to December 1.

About 100 Australian Defence Force personnel and 80 researchers from the so-called Five Eyes alliance — Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States — will take part in the science research challenge.

The Defence Department emphasised participants would be carrying unloaded weapons. Military personnel in civilian clothing will also move through Adelaide University.

Some streets within the sites will be closed but Defence Minister Marise Payne said there would be “little disruption” to the general public.

She said the old RAH buildings were “the best location to test the new technologies” and would be well signposted.

“Our soldiers need to be well-equipped and better prepared and innocent civilians protected as more conflicts are now being fought in urban areas,” she said.

“Adelaide is the first city chosen to host a field activity as part of the international strategic challenge, reinforcing its reputation as a Defence science hub.”

Smoke plumes rise after an airstrike in west Mosul on March 10. Picture: AFP/Aris Messinis

Cities are considered more complicated than open ground battle because there are civilians, limited views, and the possibility of being trapped.

The International Committee of the Red Cross has warned that urban conflict is becoming more common, with drone technology used to spread pictures of destroyed hospitals, schools and buildings reduced to rubble in the Middle East.

The Defence Science and Technology (DST) event is called CUE Adelaide 17 and is part of an ongoing program run by The Technical Cooperation Program, which is comprised of the Five Eyes countries.

DST chose the old RAH site because of its city location and multi-storey buildings “which deliberately add to the complexity of the activity”.

DST said it is not a specific anti-terrorism exercise. Urban warfare tends to be staged battles between opposing groups, rather than one-off attacks.

“CUE Adelaide 17 is a Defence cience activity investigating new and emerging technologies that can improve the intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities of soldiers when operating in overseas urban environments during a conflict so there is less risk to them and innocent civilians,” DST said.

Defence is also interested in how the public respond to the trial, and will monitor mentions on social media.