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There is need for the Australian Army and its logisticians to address the transformation of its logistics capabilities, concepts and processes. This is not only because Army must look to the future and the ever-changing face of war, nor is it because of revelations gained through nearly twenty years of operational experiences. It is not simply because the Chief of Army, Lieutenant General Angus Campbell, directed his senior logisticians to lead a ‘revolution’ in late 2016 or that Army’s balance of forces …

As the Australian Army seeks to understand the institutional lessons of its last 15 operationally intensive years, it is timely to examine the concept of expeditionary warfare — an idea fundamental to the Australian approach to war. This examination becomes increasingly necessary as Defence progresses in its development of Australia's 'Maritime Strategy', a strategic policy approach based upon an operational concept proposed to Sir Julian Corbett in 1914.  Expeditionary warfare is a contentious idea and …

Adaptive Campaigning - Future Land Operating Concept (AC-FLOC), replaces Complex Warfighting 04 and Adaptive Campaigning 06 as a single, holistic document.   It is Army's new capstone concept.  By identifying and analysing the challenges of current and emerging operating environments, in conjunction with guidance from the Defence White Paper 2009 and the Adaptive Army initiative, AC-FLOC describes actions of an integrated Joint Land Force response, as part of the whole-of-government approach to the demands …

Generalship is an intellectual endeavour; generals must understand the character of war and create a vision of success. They must be resolute in their commitment and bold in their execution to achieve this success. But, they must also never let go of their humanity, their compassion for innocent civilians, their own soldiers and even the enemy. In the abstract, this seems straightforward, but on the ground when you are exhausted, when information is confused and you are being shot at, even straightforward …

Many of history’s great armies have distinguished themselves by demonstrating superb individual and organisational resilience. From Field Marshal Sir William Slim’s Fourteenth Army in Burma, which snatched victory from the jaws of defeat during the Second World War, to the 39th Battalion which prevailed over a tenacious Japanese Army on the Kokoda Track, or the actions of I Anzac Corps at Pozieres on the Western Front during the First World War, resilience has played a decisive role in achieving victory. …

The  Australian Maritime Strategy 2013  for the Australian Defence Force acknowledges the complex archipelagic nature of our near region and highlights the importance of the littoral environment for future operations by the Australian Defence Force. It implicitly requires the ADF to hold a balanced force structure that is capable of “Joint Archipelagic Manoeuvre”. Specifically, it must be capable of applying focused maritime control operations that deny an adversary’s access to, or ability to control, the …

This paper explores the urban, networked littoral and proposes concepts for control operations in this setting. The ensuing discussion considers in turn the environment, missions and threats, the operational response, and capability implications. As we leave Afghanistan, the urban littoral will rise in importance simply because Australia’s primary operational environment (POE) is overwhelmingly littoral and increasingly urbanised. But we no longer face the littoral of which Ralph Peters or Charles Krulak …

While recovery from PTSD can be expected in the majority of cases, early identification, diagnosis, and timely treatment have been found to reduce the length of treatment and the disruption to the individual’s social and occupational functioning. One significant determinant of whether people receive early diagnosis and treatment is fear of stigma and the negative judgements of those around them.  The Mental Health of the Australian Defence Force – 2010 ADF Mental Health Prevalence and Wellbeing Study …

In 2007, a number of events and ideas combined to initiate improvements to the Australian Army's land force projection. By 2008, the Adaptive Army initiative was one of the most significant structural reforms since the Hassett Review recommended the establishment of the Army's functional command system in the early 1970s. The Army was not only strengthening its capability and capacity to generate land forces for the defence of the Australian homeland, but also streamlining the challenging process of …

Australian Special Operations and the performance of our Special Forces have long been objects of fascination to many. Yet despite this interest and the proven utility of Special Forces especially since the terrorist attacks in the United States in 2001 and the Bali terrorist attacks on Australians in 2002, Special Forces (unlike Land, Maritime, and Air Forces) have not been defined by a universally accepted theory of employment. This paper seeks to aid military planners by explaining the principles and …