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‌In Their Steps: The ADF and Camels

Journal Edition
Volume 15, Number 1, Autumn Edition

Abstract

Conflict in arid and austere environments presents many challenges for sustaining a deployed force over long distances. The Australian Defence Force (ADF) has a long and continuous history of working with animals, all providing companionship and support in the harsh working environment; and, by fate, we are custodians of the last great herd of wild camels. The reintroduction of animal transportation may present opportunities for innovative patrolling and transportation options for our Indigenous service personnel and their communities, the broader Army and our international commitments in inhospitable environments. The very nature of this capability may also interest the Special Forces or Regional Force Surveillance Units. For less than the cost of one fully equipped Hawkei vehicle,1 a troop-sized capability could be raised and sustained for nearly a decade.

Introduction

The topic of renewed animal transportation was first raised by United States Marine Corps (USMC) infantry Captain Jason Topshe in 2016.2 This influenced USMC logistics Captain Michael Chandler to write an Afghan- focused article entitled ‘Let’s Do Camels’.3 This article logically discussed the potential employment of camels for company-and-below tactical distribution. As much as this may sound ridiculous when the Afghanistan threat environment is considered, there are limited opportunities that may actually work when integrated with the local security umbrella and transport battle rhythm. Chandler identified that the use of pack animals, unlike vehicles, allows an army to ‘break track’, enhance route creativity, reduce predictability and present combat service support as a harder target.

The fact that Australia has the world’s last great herd of wild camels, albeit feral ones, in the world reminds us of this concept and prompts the question why we should not consider our options. Further reading identified many challenges to this concept and also the complementary commercial opportunities that have been taken up across the nation.

After discussions with various ADF and community members on this topic during 2017–18, I was motivated to pose the question: should we consider camel transport as a future option?

History of Camels in Australia

Camels were first brought to South Australia in 1840, but it was not until the Burke and Wills expedition 20 years later that they were successfully introduced in Victoria. It was recommended, correctly, that trained handlers should accompany the animals, and thus contracted Muslim cameleers from British territories, including modern-day Afghanistan, Pakistan and India were introduced. These men assisted with opening up the Australian inland through exploration and surveying, and within a generation they were themselves running profitable camel trains as the primary transportation means throughout the inland. They were at times in direct competition with European bullock teams but were considered reliable and trustworthy men who were generally respected. Once roads and rail were introduced, the camel trains experienced competition and most cameleers either returned home or were not allowed to re-enter Australia due to the Immigration Restriction Act 1901.4

The 1920s saw the overland networks, along with their studs and supply lines, superseded by mechanisation. As a reaction to the Camels Destruction Act 1925 (SA),5 the majority of camels were released into the wild, with a prayer from their Muslim handlers, lest they be wastefully shot as pests. However, such an intelligent and hardy animal merely followed its instincts and went inland to areas well away from the reach of the law and rifle, where they multiplied. The knowledge that was possessed by the imported cameleers slowly faded as the remaining handlers themselves retired to their mosques and date palm compounds across the old transit routes of Australia6 to live out their days as a way of life disappeared.7 But not all knowledge was lost; many of the lessons taught to the Indigenous stockmen who worked alongside the cameleers lived on through their oral traditions and continued use of camels until the early 1970s. This was captured by early documentary makers,8 and herein lies a link to the old ways.

Relations between pastoralists and camels have since largely been negative due to damage caused to fencing and competition for feed.9 It is estimated that the wild camel population is currently up to 500,000 animals, despite periodic culls, based on potentially enhanced aerial counting surveys. This has resulted in a continued pastoral eradication program and government- sponsored destruction from aerial and vehicle-mounted shooters. The two areas of greatest concentration are the Simpson and Great Sandy deserts. However, despite the concerns about feral herds, commercial opportunities with camels are being exploited. Tourism, live export, abattoirs and dairies are all being developed as business models across the country. Indigenous communities in central Australia are directly involved, are benefiting, and bring a different perspective to the ethical management of this animal on their lands.

Australian Military Experiences of Animal Transportation

After the evacuation of Gallipoli, forces were stationed in Tel el Kebir, Egypt, to refit and rearm while awaiting a likely deployment to the Western Front.10 The Light Horse regiments were reunited with their mounts and prepared for desert operations, and their story is well known and celebrated. At the same time, volunteers were called for to establish the Australian camel units. Many men took the offer, and several battalions were formed within the Imperial Camel Corps (ICC) that would also continue the desert war against the Ottoman forces. Troops had four weeks training and succeeded, even though the standard of the day demanded five months.11 It was their ability to quickly adapt to this new beast that allowed such a rapid establishment and force deployment. Most Australian men had a working knowledge of horses and other livestock from our predominately rural society, and this element of practical knowledge was inherent in about one-third of all volunteers.12 The ICC embarked on a series of continuous operations against a pro-Ottoman Senussi insurgency in the Western Desert oasis networks and opportunistic Bedouin raiders; and conducted battles against conventional Turkish–German Forces in the Sinai and Palestine.

The main advantage of this camel force was its ability to conduct longer, five-day desert patrols. This is where the camel proved itself to be a reliable and trusted supply vehicle. Where train, motor vehicle or horse could not go, the camel could. The camels pushed east across the Sinai to the Ottomans’ vital Gaza–Beersheba communications line. Without the camels’ ability to conduct wide flanking manoeuvres through the desert to cut off reinforcement and supply, the duration of the conflict, and potentially the fate of the war in Palestine, may have been different.

Since then, conflicts have continued to demand resourcefulness from the Australian soldier, and there is a need for a non-motorised support platform. Despite the effects of mechanisation, the precarious early battles of the World War II in New Guinea may not have ended in our favour if we did not have the support of both local human porterage and our own pack animals along the Kokoda Track.13

At the same time, our commandos in Portuguese Timor14 had guidance from their faithful ‘criados’, food and shelter from the local population and the trusted Timor pony15 to do the heavy lifting in the mountains and valleys. Over 50 years later, when Australian forces returned to East Timor with InterFET, it was again the Timor pony that offered occasional support, along the high border tracks beyond vehicle range, taking vital supplies to observation posts and re-trans sites.

In the early days of the Afghanistan conflict,16 the Special Forces again employed old wisdom to achieve a new mission. A team of donkeys with the names ‘Simpson’, ‘Murphy’, ‘Roy’ and ‘HG’17 were purchased and cared for by the troopers to carry gear up steep terrain not traversable by vehicles. They were invaluable to the troopers, because the beasts were naturally acclimatised to the high altitudes and workload by virtue of birth.18

Other Contemporary Experiences

There are several nations that still have an active animal transportation element. Typically, these nations have high mountain ranges with limited or restricted terrain and have animals that are suited to the load-bearing work of porterage. Although different from Australia, there are common elements of employment, interoperability, equipment and care that could present learning opportunities for the ADF.

The United States’ military experiences have taught the importance of retaining lessons learnt while embracing new technology. The United States Army did have successful employment of camels for desert exploration in the pre-Civil-War years in the south-western United States. However, essentially a horse-and-mule organisation, the United States Army’s Camel Corps (1856–1866) was experimental and was later disbanded. Presently, the USMC teaches pack animal techniques to prepare marines19 and joint and allied forces for operations in mountainous, high-altitude and cold- weather environments through a 16-day animal packing course20 held at the Mountain Warfare Training Centre in northern California.21 This venue specialises in complex, compartmentalised terrain training: the doctrine employed is a refreshed version of FM 3-05.213 Special Forces Use of Pack Animals.22

The Indian Army model of animal transportation covers both steep mountain passes and expansive desert regions. However, the high-altitude operations are not assessed as pertinent to our experience but should be considered as a case study that could generate an engagement opportunity. Their robust Staff Officers’ Aide Memoire, which considers issues such as endurance, feed type, distances, altitude limitations, route planning and load composition, may help in humanitarian and disaster relief planning for future missions in areas affected by earthquake, landslide or flood where road and air options are not available.

Australian Doctrine, Training and Employment

The Australian Army23 does not have current doctrine to support animal transportation. The ICC Training Manual (Camel Corps Training: Provisional 1913)24 provides an excellent basis for understanding animal transportation considerations, and the hard-won lessons and knowledge contained are as important today as they were in the Great War. The Australian Army Royal Australian Corps of Transport Animal Transport Porterage and Labour (1974)25 is another legacy document that outlines all requirements. As the porterage ability of animals has not advanced since this publication was written, it should still be considered relevant. A review to ensure metric tables and current support platforms (that is, aircraft and vehicle types) could confirm its relevance, noting air transportation options are included within existing Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) doctrine. A consolidated document could then be considered alongside contemporary international doctrine to develop an ADF animal transportation and employment publication robust enough for domestic, deployed and partnered operations.

Our present experience with camels is limited to 26 Transport Squadron26 at RAAF Amberley. The squadron has two unit mascot camels, and the assigned handlers participate in a familiarisation course. This course may form an entry-level option to be incorporated into any broader training concept. There are several commercial training packages for camel handling available within Australia. These may be a starting point and could be evaluated to assess suitability for the Department of Defence (Defence) and cross-levelling of qualifications into our training structure.27

The duration of training and annual employment would be dictated by several factors, including weather, season, facilities, availability of instructing personnel and trainees, and the camels themselves. Particular attention must be given to the maturity and hormonal cycle of the animals, and this may significantly influence training. If male camels are ‘in heat’ or ‘rut’, it will affect their ability to perform within a training environment. Indigenous and veterinary advice may determine that actual employment is a seasonal activity, but the care and maintenance of the camels is a year-round program. As ruminant animals, the camels would require large amounts of bulky food and the opportunity to naturally forage. Those who run holding yards and paddock facilities will also need to consider the sourcing of stock, fresh feed, posted or attached personnel, and existing infrastructure for mission success.

The most significant requirement for camels would be veterinary support. In the Great War the Army had 120 veterinarians, but the effects of mechanisation have seen the Australian Army Veterinary Corps (1909–1946) disbanded and the capability later reduced to just two professionals. However, on 1 January 2018, Army Veterinary Health28 was expanded to 17 positions, to be led by a Staff Officer Grade One Veterinary Health.

Ethical Considerations

At the end of the World War I, the disposal of 135,000 Australian horses— but not camels, which were sourced locally—resulted in significant emotional damage to the veterans of the desert campaigns. Many men were reluctant to see their mounts sold into a life of known hardship and neglect. If we are to employ animal transportation, can we establish practices that meet the expectations of our 21st century Australian society?

Careful consideration would need to be given before animals are taken outside of Australia. The return to Australia of our animals would be a mandatory expectation. Therefore, veterinary and logistical advice would need to be factored into planning. As part of a desktop exercise, quarantine stations on external territories or in isolated locations to meet Australian quarantine obligations may need to be identified, designated on seasonal or permanent standby, and reconnoitred once an activity utilising camels was authorised.

Cost Comparison Between Animals and Vehicles

Current Australian doctrine—notably, LWD 5-1-2 Staff Officers’ Aide Memoire, dated 4 October 2010, and LWP-G 0-5-2 Interim, dated 24 January 201829—makes no provision for calculating animal porterage. Essentially, as an organisation we have moved forward with technology and mechanisation, discarding animal transportation as a concept. Therefore, it is difficult to make an accurate cost–benefit analysis.

However, the basic principles apply: there will be no refined fuel but, instead, water, fodder, stabling infrastructure and specialised veterinary support. This will contrast with the cost of refined fuel, servicing and parts, and specialised mechanical training in addition to the original purchase price of the vehicle. The use of camels as a transportation option is assessed to be less expensive than dedicated Defence assets in the same location and along the same permissive routes.

Chandler documented30 that the actual cost realisation is even greater when modelled against a deployed semi-permissive scenario. Fuel is an expensive and delicate requirement regardless of which logistic corridor it utilises. Chandler wrote that the JP-8 fuel type for the US-preferred OshKosh M1075 Palletised Loading System (PLS) will fill the 100-gallon (roughly 380-litre) tank and provide a 300-mile (roughly 482-kilometre) range. The cost to transport JP-8 fuel brought in overland from Europe31 for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) mission in Afghanistan is US$400 per gallon at the refuelling point in-theatre, which means a full tank for this vehicle type is currently US$40,000. The current Afghanistan scenario has United States forces moving supplies at US$1,200 per mile (nearly AUD$1,000 per kilometre).

Australia is fuelling at the same location and should eventually expect similar financial consequences. Land-locked deployments will always require significant financial outlay in order to maintain the required level of active patrolling and logistical support. A future cost comparison table for all vehicle types, once Land 12132 is implemented, may answer this question. As this will probably be the last generation of purely combustion-engine vehicles for the ADF, consideration must be given to transitional fleet options. In a future rapid or ‘shock’ scenario, camel transportation may provide an interim or permanent solution that decision-makers will require and on which they will depend.

An Australian Light Armoured Vehicle waits behind a camel train during a patrol through the Baluchi Valley, Southern Afghanistan.

An Australian Light Armoured Vehicle waits behind a camel train during a patrol through the Baluchi Valley, Southern Afghanistan. Image courtesy Department of Defence

Implementation Considerations

Load-Bearing Equipment

Legacy doctrine, museum artefacts33 and contemporary tourism provide Defence with a good understanding of the saddlery and load-bearing requirements of animal transportation. Within the weight ranges and design specifications developed in the Middle East during World War I, and by studying the cameleer loading techniques and load lists from Australia, a modern saddlery equipment interpretation can be developed based on material, function and durability. Advances in technology will allow lightweight equipment to be included within the load list that will assist patrol endurance, animal and soldier comfort, communications and mission variety, and effectiveness. Additionally, alternative power sourcing techniques, through solar panel generation and small wind turbine use, will reduce the need for consumable energy (that is, batteries) and increase the ‘green footprint’ and range of a patrol.

Within a load list could be included intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) equipment (mini-micro unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), et cetera) and general data collection equipment that would support a broader area familiarisation (water availability; route serviceability). Also, scientific surveys could be supported through data collection if appropriate to the mission and within the capacity of the team. Similar annual expeditions34 are conducted domestically and may provide a model for partnered data collection.

Basing Locations Within Australia

Unlike vehicles, the positioning and deployment of camels will be dependent on several factors: the animal and its support systems; and the suitability of the environment to its performance and comfort. This is largely a ‘self- regulated’ issue, and 90 years of running wild has allowed the camels to map out the most suitable areas of Australia for their employment. They are the dry desert regions of central Australia close to where the camel strings originally plied their trade. Animal transportation would be most successful in this region. Ironically, this may actually see the resurgence of old camel routes. The Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) lands within South Australia would be the suggested location for a camel depot.

The Benefits to Army

Such a program should not be developed purely to experiment with animal transportation. There is recruitment potential from within the local Indigenous community, an active connection with and maintenance of our military heritage, and a reconnection with inland Australia and our broader national history. However, adventurous training, as a team-based endurance activity, should be seen as a benefit: options could include celestial navigation, bush tucker, surveying and assessment, and jackeroo skills in handling livestock, roping and self-sufficiency. In time, this program may even be seen as a tool for selected service personnel to ‘decompress’, assisting our collective mental health. Unlike today, the diggers of World War I had many months of transit time before arriving home. In today’s society only the vast emptiness and silence of the desert can provide such an opportunity for a person to clear their mind.

Indigenous Australian Considerations

The benefits of local Indigenous recruitment would be that young men and women would have the opportunity to reconnect with their country, reconnect with the shared cameleer heritage and generate skills that feed into the other business plans of their community: abattoirs, dairies and tourism. But beyond that there is the benefit of language—maintaining this military capability could be a bilingual undertaking. All training and communication could be achieved in the local language to give another living pathway for knowledge and story. In time there may even be options, including Indigenous communication and field craft. Also, by recruiting and working locally in a modified service structure, there may be better potential for the retention of Indigenous personnel who are serving their nation.

Regional Engagement Options

Animal transportation could be seen as an alternative engagement opportunity. Regionally, our important military association with Timor Leste, as documented, goes back to World War I. The Timor pony helped our commandos at a critical time in our national history. If the ADF wished to further engage with the Timor Leste Defence Force (F-FDTL), a combined animal transportation activity could provide a practical opportunity. This would allow ADF members to formally understand the use of small ponies in mountainous environments and share with the Timorese our knowledge of camels in the desert. The activity could help to maintain our valued historical links to the Timorese people and nation, allow the Timorese to display their own military heritage with the pony, and further develop our professional relationship as defence forces.

Beyond our engagement, there would be opportunity for the United States, New Zealand and Timor Leste35 to share common learning in common terrain: joint participation at respective military exercises employing animal transportation.

United Nations Missions and the Australian Commitment to Peacekeeping

The employment of camels by Dutch soldiers of the United Nations (UN) Mission in Eritrea and Ethiopia (UNMEE) (2000–2008)36 was due to a deliberate restriction of fuel for mission vehicles: although practical for patrols, this was not deliberately planned and therefore did not have the logistical support required.

But what if the UN had a trained camel troop option for military observers that could be sustained independently regardless of fuel and vehicle issues?

Australia may be able to develop our camel transport capability into a regional training option for UN missions. Our inland military training areas are climatically similar to various Middle East and North African UN mission locations suitable for the employment of camels. Assigned forces could conduct relevant pre-deployment training via the ADF Peace Operations Training Centre (ADF POTC) in Canberra and then have practical instruction on the employment of camels as a UN observer/patrol transport option, similar to the UNMEE experience. Alternatively, a familiarisation module could be conducted locally for future consideration. Such a concept may enhance Australia’s profile in the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations, provide additional military engagement opportunities, and potentially support an ongoing mission with ADF involvement.

The other main regional UN training nation is the People’s Republic of China (PRC), through the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). As a nation, the PRC is committing a greater footprint to UN missions37—in particular, to Africa—so there might be scope to work together if camels were employed as a cost- efficient mode of transport for a landlocked UN peacekeeping mission such as in South Sudan.38 As the ADF actively seeks positive engagement with the PLA, the UN may be the opportunity.

UN peacekeeping missions have seen a significant increase in deployments and expenses since the end of the Cold War. Focusing on the need to reduce costs and environmental pressures, the 2012 UN peacekeeping report Greening the Blue Helmet39 identified that road vehicles generate 15 per cent of all carbon dioxide emissions. As the UN actively seeks mission- based carbon dioxide reductions and energy alternatives, such as solar panels40 and electric cars,41 future solutions may support an animal-based alternative.

Proposed Structure of a Camel Transport Capability

A troop-sized element could be the starting point and, with local support and permission, be established in the APY lands of South Australia. Alternative locations may include the Kimberley region of Western Australia with similar Indigenous engagement considerations, and, finally, in vicinity of RAAF Amberley in south-east Queensland, as there are established camel dairies and camel expedition organisations within the region. This would allow initial training models to be developed in conjunction with industry leaders, formalised and documented within Defence, approved as doctrine and implemented as training.

Conclusion

If you walk around the Melbourne Shrine of Remembrance you will see several sandstone reliefs of the Great War. One of these depicts an Australian Imperial Force (AIF) soldier, alert and mounted on his trusted camel. His Rising Sun hat badge holds the image of a camel that was unofficially created by the diggers in Egypt and his dress reveals that he served in the deserts of the Sinai and Palestine. However we have not heard as much of these men as those of the Light Horse that took Beersheba. At the beginning of this article, I asked if the ADF would consider the reintroduction of camel transport. Based on resources, we could, but is the motivation there to support such an undertaking?

As a mark of respect to old ways, but not to mimic them, a modern animal transportation capability could complement our transport, logistical and ISR platforms. This concept uses existing knowledge to maintain both our military heritage and Indigenous connections to alternative modes of transport. Indigenous leaders could be engaged to test the level of interest in their commuities, complement current business approaches to wild camels, and provide opportunity in their lands. This capability could be seen as a potential recruitment opportunity for Indigenous Australians to maintain traditional ways within a modified military structure and have relevance to place, potentially encouraging retention. An adventurous training model could also be developed to include team-building aspects. Finally, an endorsed version of an animal transportation system could be developed for the ADF POTC to consider, to be shared with UN partners and other countries as an option to support desert operations and peacekeeping missions.

The use of animal transportation is not just a legacy capability, but a readily available resource that is established in the Australian landscape. Such a resource may offer a cost-efficient alternative to current fuel-based transport options with a solution that is both valuable and adaptive. Camel teams may provide the Army with a different perspective on logistics and small team development and also provide another engagement opportunity for regional and UN partners. The 19th century Muslim cameleers brought to Australia knowledge and an animal that has stood the tests of time. Now, in the 21st century, the animal can again prove, beyond feral status, its worth to the nation and our ADF.

Endnotes

  1. Craig Duff, 2011, ‘Hawkei Eyes Future ADF Role’, Herald Sun Cars Guide, at: https://www. carsguide.com.au/car-news/hawkei-eyes-future-adf-role-18849
  2. Jason Topshe, 2016 ‘Evolving the Marine Corps for Irregular Warfare’, Marine Corps Gazette, at: https://www.mca-marines.org/gazette/2016/01/evolving-marine-corps- irregular-warfare
  3. Michael Chandler, 2016, ‘Let’s Do Camels’, Small Wars Journal, at: http://smallwarsjournal. com/jrnl/art/coin-logistics-let%E2%80%99s-do-camels
  4. Immigration Restriction Act 1901 (Cth), at: https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/ C1901A00017
  5. Camels Destruction Act 1925 (SA), at: https://dspace.flinders.edu.au/xmlui/bitstream/ handle/2328/24276/17041925.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
  6. Philip Jones and A Kenny, 2017, Australia’s Muslim Cameleers: Pioneers of the Inland 1860s to 1930s, Adelaide: Wakefield Press, p 18
  7. Lisa Pellegrino, 2017, ‘Celebrating the Exotic History of Australia’s Afghan Cameleers’, Overnights with Lisa Pellegrino, 6 Feb, at: https://www.abc.net.au/radio/programs/ overnights/pamela-rajkowski-afghan-cameleers/8244298
  8. Roger Sandall, 1969, ‘Camels and the Pitjantjara’, DVD, Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies, at: https://aiatsis.gov.au/publications/products/camels- and-pitjantjara
  9. CamelScan, 2019, ‘Sighting Map’, FeralScan, at: https://www.feralscan.org.au/camelscan/ map.aspx
  10. Frank Reid, 1943, The Fighting Cameleers, Sydney: Angus and Robertson, p1
  11. George F Langley and M Edmee, 1976, Sand, Sweat and Camels: The Australian Companies of the ICC, Kilmore: Lowden Publishing Co, p 47
  12. C Adele, 2017, ‘RUSIQ Celebrated ALH History of 100 Years Ago’, RUSI The Brisbane Line 5, no 4, pp 3-4
  13. T Fisher, 1942,‘Papua New Guinea, ‘Men Leading Pack Horses and Mules Loaded With Supplies’, Photograph, Australian War Memorial, at: https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/ C10619
  14. C Wray, 1942, Timor 1942, Hawthorn, Victoria: Century Hutchinson Australia, 1st ed, p viii
  15. D Parer, 1942, ‘Australian Guerillas in Timor. Natives Lead a Pack Train of Timor Ponies’, Photograph, Australian War Memorial, at: https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C33182
  16. Peter Churcher, 2002, ‘Two SAS with Simpson the Donkey in the Australian Compound, Bagram, Afghanistan’, Artwork, Australian War Memorial, at: https://www.awm.gov.au/ index.php/collection/C997415
  17. A Hill, 2005, Animal Heroes: Moving True Stories of the Animals Alongside Australian Soldiers, Australia: Penguin Books, 1st ed
  18. Ron Marshall and J Marshall, 2014, ‘Donkey Insertion’, Light Horse Art, at: http://www. lighthorseart.com.au/SAS-Donkey-Insertion.html
  19. Mike Markowitz, 2013, ‘The Virtues of Stubbornness: Mules at War’, Defence Media Network, at: https://www.defensemedianetwork.com/stories/the-virtues-of-stubbornness- mules-at-war
  20. United States Marine Corps, 2019, ‘Animal Packing Course’, Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Centre, at: https://www.29palms.marines.mil/mcmwtc/Staff/S-3- Operations-and-Training/Chief-Instructor/Mountain-Warfare-Formal-Schools/Animal- Packing-Course
  21. Robert Storm, 2013, ‘Mountain Warfare Training Center Teaches Advanced Horsemanship’, United States Marine Corps, at: https://www.marsoc.marines.mil/News/News-Article- Display/Article/513766/mountain-warfare-training-center-teaches-advanced-horsemanship/
  22. US Army Doctrine, 2004, FM 3-05.213 (FM 31-27) Special Forces Use of Pack Animals, US Government, at: https://fas.org/irp/doddir/army/fm3-05-213.pdf
  23. Madras Courier, 2017, ‘Animals of the Indian Army’, Madras Courier, 15 Sep, at: https:// madrascourier.com/insight/animals-of-the-indian-army/
  24. British Army Doctrine, 1913, Camel Corps Training. Provisional, London: HMSO, at: https:// www.greatwarforum.org/topic/252813-online-camel-corps-training-provisio…- manual/
  25. Australian Army, 1974, Royal Australian Corps of Transport, Animal Transport Porterage and Labour, vol 7, pamphlet no 1
  26. Josephine Gillespie, 2011, ‘Mascot Makes its Mark on Students’, The Queensland Times, 28 Apr, at: https://www.qt.com.au/news/mascot-makes-its-mark-on-students-camel- ipswich/834904/
  27. K Wright, 2017, ‘Cameleer Academy’, Camel Connection, at: http://australiancamels.com/ camel-training/
  28. Australian Army Veterinary Health, 2018, at: http://drnet/Army/DAH/Army-Veterinary- Health/Pages/Future-Developments.aspx
  29. Australian Army Doctrine, 2018, at: http://drnet.defence.gov.au/Army/Doctrine-Online/ Pages/LWP-G_0-5-2_Staff_Officers_Aide-Memoire.aspx
  30. Chandler, 2016
  31. Emma Graham-Harrison, 2011, ‘Factbox: NATO Supply Routes into Afghanistan’, Reuters, 27 Nov, at: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-afghanistan-pakistan-isaf/factbox-na…- supply-routes-into-afghanistan-idUSTRE7AP0GV20111126
  32. Australian Army Land 121 Training Team, 2018, at: http://drnet/Army/L121/Pages/ Welcome.aspx
  33. Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences, 2015, ‘Camel Pack Saddle, Nose Peg, Bell and Hobbles Used by Afghan Camel Drivers in South Australia, 1870–1900’, Photograph, Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences, at: https://maas.museum/app/uploads/ sites/7/2015/02/00220685.jpg
  34. See Australian Desert Expeditions website, at: http://www.desertexpeditions.org/home.html
  35. New Zealand Army, 2010, Army News, Issue 407, at: www.army.mil.nz/downloads/pdf/ army-news/16mar2010armynews407.pdf
  36. UN Security Council, 2008, Special Report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea, Report S/2008/145, 2008, at: https://www. securitycouncilreport.org/un-documents/document/EE%20S2008145.php
  37. Minnie Chan, 2017, ‘China to Play a Bigger Role in UNPKO’, South China Morning Post, 20 Nov, at: https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy-defence/article/2120754/ chinese-troops-two-day-drill-prepare-peacekeeping
  38. See the United Nations Mission in South Sudan official website, at: https://unmiss. unmissions.org/
  39. David Jensen and S Halle, 2012, Greening the Blue Helmets, Nairobi: United Nations Environment Programme, p 38, at: https://operationalsupport.un.org/sites/default/files/ unep_greening_blue_helmets_0.pdf
  40. Jensen and Halle, 2012, p 38
  41. Achim Steiner, 2009, Moving Towards a Climate Neutral UN: The UN System’s Footprint and Efforts to Reduce It, France: United Nations Environment Programme, p 44, at: https:// www.icao.int/environmental-protection/Documents/CNUN_report_09.pdf

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