Australian Amphibious Force hits the Far North’s beaches

Landing craft, helicopters and battleships have hit the beaches south of Cairns as the Australian Defence Force prepares for deployment later this year.

Aviation Support Sailors from the Australian Amphibious Force guide a CH-47 Chinook as it conducts deck landing qualifications on HMAS Adelaide. Photo: CPL Michael Rogers

Landing craft, helicopters and battleships have hit the beaches south of Cairns as the Australian Defence Force conducted training with army, navy and air force personnel to prepare for deployment.

The Australian Amphibious Force this week held Wet and Dry Environmental Rehearsals (WADERs) at the Cowley Beach Training Area south of Innisfail.

The training is designed to maintain and enhance the force’s integrated operability, and prepare the force for deployment later this year.

Soldiers, sailors and aviators from the Australian Amphibious Force disembark an LHD Landing Craft at Cowley Beach, QLD, as part of the Wet and Dry Environmental Rehearsals. Photo: CAPT Annie Richardson

Commander Amphibious Task Force Captain Christopher Doherty said wet dry rehearsals were a basic set of serials practising the taking of our personnel and equipment from the ship to shore by surface craft or helicopters.

“The current series we are conducting off the North Queensland coast have been exceptionally beneficial for us to ensure that we keep the force ready to go at a moments notice and we have been exceptionally proud of the way our services have come together to achieve this objective,” he said.

Soldiers from the Australian Amphibious Force use an M88 Recovery Vehicle to drive an M1A1 Abrams onto a MEXEFLOTE in a recovery scenario. Photo: CAPT Annie Richardson

“The Australian Amphibious Force is a joint element drawn across from army, navy and air force into a fighting force which can respond to any contingency required of us from the government.”

The training saw the Navy’s HMAS Adelaide become the HQ for amphibious raids and assaults upon the Cowley Beach training area.

The landing force saw infantry, armoured vehicles, tanks, and artillery transported to shore by landing craft as well as helicopters.

Soldiers from the Australian Amphibious Force travel to a Beach Landing Site off Cowley Beach in an LHD Landing Craft as part of the Wet and Dry Environmental Rehearsals. Photo: CAPT Annie Richardson

ARH, UH-60, MH-60R and CH-47 ‘Chinook’ helicopters took to the sky as part of the drills and were joined by multiple unmmaned drones such as the RQ-7 Shadow.

“The teams have been doing continuous work over the last few days to ensure that we can train to a standard where we can safely employ navy and army units whether that’s helicopters, landing craft, or personnel ashore so we are integrated as one joint force to respond to anything that comes our way,” Captain Doherty said.

Originally published as Australian Amphibious Force hits the Far North’s beaches