Troops heading north but NT bombs on long-range missiles

Up to 1000 more troops could be heading north but the army’s big guns are tipped to stay down south. Read what’s likely to change.

Up to 1000 infantry and armoured regiment soldiers are set to be relocated to Northern Australia including Darwin under the biggest structural changes to the Australian Defence Force in more than a decade.

The Australian newspaper reported on Monday the army’s so-called “order of battle” will be released this week, with Darwin and Townsville expected to share in up to a thousand additional infantry and armoured regiment soldiers.

But a key recommendation of the Defence Strategic Review, released in April, appears set to be ignored.

Up to 1000 additional Australian soldiers could be based in Darwin.

The report said the Army is preparing to re-raise the World War I era 10th Brigade to establish a “future focused” unit to operate the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System and National Advanced Surface-to-Air-Missile System capabilities.

The DSR specifically said Northern Australia should be the primary area of focus for the Australian Defence Force but the new units will remain based in South Australia to access the Cultana and Woomera training ranges.

The report said the Royal Australian Regiment’s 7th Battalion would be relocated from Edinburgh Barracks in Adelaide to Robertson Barracks where it would be combined with the 5th Battalion’s Royal Australian Regiment.

Assets such as the HIMARS are likely to remain in southern Australia. Picture: Juni Kriswanto/AFP

The 1st Armoured Regiment, which operates M1A1 Abrams tanks, appears to be headed from Adelaide to Townsville. This change will reverse a 2010 decision to move the unit from Darwin to Adelaide which was estimated to cost $1bn.

The article in the Australian quotes an anonymous military figure casting shade on Darwin as a place where troops want to relocate, saying units such as the Armoured Regiment were shifted to Adelaide to “stop the haemorrhaging” of personnel from Defence

“Soldiers will go to Darwin once, if they get married, they might go twice but then their families don’t want to stay there,” they said.

The Australian Defence Force has been contacted for comment.