A major live-fire military exercise held north of Perth has seen Australian soldiers fire one of the Army’s most advanced anti-armour weapon systems in Western Australia for the first time.
The anti-armour missile system, known as a Javelin, was used on Friday as part of the Defence Force’s Exercise Dernacourt, a live-fire training activity that brought together more than 400 Army personnel at the Lancelin Defence Training Area.
Soldiers also fired 81mm mortar rounds — explosive projectiles launched from portable tubes — for the first time in more than a decade in WA, as well as thousands of rounds of small arms ammunition during the exercise.
The exercise was led by 13 Brigade, which is part of a division responsible for defending Australia and its offshore territories.
Commander of the 13th Brigade, Brigadier Damian Bushell, said the goal of the exercise, which continues until July 19, was to prepare soldiers to respond to a range of potential operations.
“The whole key training objective for this exercise is for the soldiers to conduct progression training through simulation and also rehearsals, culminating in the live fire, which has occurred this week,” he said.
“This is preparing the soldiers and honing their marksmanship skills, and also their foundation war-fighting skills, which is really, really important as we practice and rehearse and prepare ourselves for any sort of contingency.”
The exercise is typically held once a year, but Brigadier Bushell said this year’s training was “quite a significant moment” due to the level of resources and ammunition that had been allocated.
The live-fire training in Lancelin comes days after China launched an intercontinental ballistic missile into international waters in the South Pacific, an action described as “provocative” by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
However, Brigadier Bushell said the training was unrelated to any recent events, with the exercise having been planned months in advance.
“This is part of what we do. We do this every year, regardless of what’s happening in the global situation,” he said.
“What we’re doing here is what the Army’s been doing for the last 125 years. It’s practising, rehearsing, and preparing the soldiers. The only thing that’s changed is the weapon system.”
Beyond the strategic objectives, the commander said seeing his soldiers put their training into practice was a rewarding experience.
“For me as a commander, it’s a really proud moment to see the professionalism of my soldiers, but more importantly, West Australian soldiers. It’s sort of the culminating event,” Brigadier Bushell said.
“I’ve been doing this for 31 years, and it certainly is the best job just to see the professionalism and the competency of the soldiers that I’ve got, that serve with me.”