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The commander must work in a medium which his eyes cannot see, which his best deductive powers cannot always fathom; and with which, because of constant changes, he can rarely become familiar. [1]   Carl von Clausewitz (1780–1831) In early June 2020, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute published an article titled ‘Australia’s Navy needs operations research to navigate the future’. [2]  The authors’ central argument posits that operations research (OR) is the critical capability required to enable the …

A Case Study in Thinking for Future Warfare “All human institutions must inevitably deal with the tension between continuity and change, between preserving that which has met the needs of the past and adapting to the challenge of change in a confusing present and uncertain future.”                                                                                                  Harold R. Winton [1] If hindsight is 20/20, how will we prepare for future warfare knowing what we know today? The past offers us …

The Impact of Terrain on British Operations and Doctrine in North Africa, 1940-43 By Neal Dando Helion, Solihull, 2016. 207pp. Reviewed by Brigadier Chris Roberts, AM, CSC In this book, Neal Dando seeks to prove the 'significant impact of the physical terrain' on British operations during the North African campaigns from 1940 to 1943, and 'the subsidiary effect this had on tactical doctrine.' The principal purpose behind this study is his concern that historians have not paid sufficient attention to …

Human Machine Teaming and the Future of Command and Control in the Australian Army Australian Army Occasional Paper No. 7 In 2018, the Australian Army launched its Robotic and Autonomous Systems Strategy to capitalise on the military opportunities presented by the much-anticipated ‘fourth industrial revolution’ in artificial intelligence and machine learning software. The key to realising this potential lies in the effective integration of soldiers and autonomous systems, known as human-machine teaming. …

Australian Army Occasional Paper No. 8 Rapid, globalised power shifts, technological advances, and increasingly interconnected, ungoverned communications networks have resulted in the rise of asymmetric grey zone threats. The lines are now blurred between political, civil, and military information environments. The rise of influence activities is the new ‘sharp power’ in information warfare (the iWar). Western democracies are already at war in the information domain and are being out-communicated by their …

The Quantum Technology Challenge 2022 (QTC22) has been released (see Call for Submissions 22266). Its Demonstration Day has been scheduled for 11 August 2022 and will be held in conjunction with the Army Innovation Day and the Chief of Army’s Symposium at the Adelaide Convention Centre.  The Challenge themes are: Locating electromagnetic emitters in the battlespace: Can quantum sensors detect, locate and identify electromagnetic emitters with greater precision, range and bandwidth, whilst reducing (or at …

Contingencies and Compromises: Mobilisation and The Australian Army Virtual Conference via Zoom – 0830 to 1630 Wednesday 10 November 2021 The theme of the 2021 Chief of Army History Conference is ‘Contingencies and Compromises: Mobilising the Australian Army’. The Conference will focus on the Australian Army’s history of mobilising to meet challenges across the globe. Presenters will explore the challenges of mobilising land forces throughout history to meet different security threats and the successes, …

The content in this article is an extract of  Spotlight Brief 6/21 . Toward a Trusted Autonomous Systems Offset Strategy: Examining the Options for Australia as Middle Power Australian Army Research Centre – Apr 2021 Austin Wyatt and Jai Galliott’s work presents an examination, grounded in theory, of the feasibility of the Army adopting a Trusted Autonomous System as part of an offset strategy. For Australia, the core purpose of an offset strategy is to generate an asymmetry of capability. By maintaining …

The Complete Story of the French Participation in the Dardanelles Expedition of 1915 By George H. Cassar Helion, Warwick, 2019. 238 pp Reviewed by Brigadier Chris Roberts AM, CSC (Rtd) Innumerous volumes and articles have been written about the ill-fated Gallipoli campaign by historians, journalists, and others in Great Britain, Australia, and to a lesser extent New Zealand. Over a century after the last British troops were withdrawn from Cape Helles in January 1916, countless reams are still being written …

The Battle of the Ardennes 22 August 1914 By Simon J House Helion, Solihull, 2017. 252pp. Reviewed by Brigadier Chris Roberts AM, CSC (Retd) This outstanding book delivers on several fronts and is a model of a campaign study. With a clear and easy to read style, Simon House presents an analysis of a crucial but rarely studied series of encounter battles in the opening campaign on the Western Front. He covers what occurred from both the German and French sides, discusses why and how events transpired, and …