Abstract This article operationalises the concept of strategic risk as originally developed by Lykke as an imbalance between ends, ways and means. It explains how non-congruence between any pair of these elements can produce strategic or operational risk. The author develops the new concepts of aspirational, design and menu risk to illustrate how planning risk occurs. Various historical examples demonstrate how these risks can be identified and what techniques are available for their mitigation. The author …

Abstract Stabilisation and support operations such as those currently being undertaken by the Australian Defence Force as part of larger whole-of-government efforts in East Timor and the Solomon Islands present a number of challenges. For the military commanders and staff, the primary challenges lie in understanding the situation, identifying threat sources, determining courses of action and developing lines of operation through the orthodox application of doctrinal appreciation processes. The application …

Abstract The ADF experience of Information Operations is heavily weighted towards ‘influence’ and civil-military interaction. This bias is reflected in our concepts and philosophical doctrine. Army needs to recognise the utility of offensive capabilities, such as electronic and computer network attack, in both conventional and intra-state war. Recognising this, Army should develop appropriate organic capabilities, while enhancing its capacity to harness current and future effects. This development will be …

Abstract This article examines the role of infantry in contemporary warfare, and finds that a highly trained infantry capability is essential for contemporary warfare. Infantry must operate in concert with other arms and services, but at times will be required to operate independently from vehicles. Therefore, the article proposes a balanced force model for the Army based on a single type of infantry battalion and a single type of cavalry regiment, or divided between more specialised reconnaissance cavalry …

Abstract This article discusses the option of crewing all Motorised Infantry Battalion Protected Mobility Vehicles with Royal Australian Corps of Transport (RACT) drivers to better realise the capability of the vehicle. Introduction The Protected Mobility Vehicle (PMV) has been in service for about five years. Originally conceived to provide protected battlefield mobility to an infantry section, the vehicle is now being used in a wide variety of roles across the Army and Air Force. It is an extremely …

Abstract Private Cameron Robison from 2nd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, is currently deployed with Alpha Company on Operation ASTUTE, and he is also a qualified fitness instructor. Like almost everyone who has ever eaten a combat ration pack, he has an opinion. However, the interesting points that Private Robison brings to this discussion are drawn from his own knowledge and experience in fitness. ‘C’est la soupe qui fait la soldat!’ - Napoleon While attributed to Napoleon, the axiom ‘an army …

Abstract From the loads carried by the armies of antiquity to today’s modern forces, this article explores and critically analyses soldier load carriage over two millennia. Historical misconceptions appearing in some military documents and literature regarding the context and weight of the soldier’s load are also discussed. The author looks at how, even with changes in logistic practices, technology and the very nature of warfare, the soldier is still a beast of burden and suggests that relying on improved …

Abstract Operation LAVARACK was an ambushing and reconnaissance-in-force operation conducted by the 6th Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment – New Zealand (Anzac) in Area of Operations (AO) Vincent in Phuoc Tuy Province from 30 May to 1 July 1969. During thirty- two days of continuous patrolling and ambushing, 6RAR-NZ defeated in battle two main force regiments and a district company, captured and destroyed hundreds of enemy bunkers, disrupted the Viet Cong administrative system in Phuoc Tuy Province …

Abstract This article outlines the massacre of the 18th Battalion at Gallipoli in August 1914 and argues that the soldiers of that unit were needlessly lost as a result of being sent unprepared into battle and that their Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Colonel Chapman was made a scapegoat for the debacle. The article refers to a number of eyewitness accounts of the battle and provides a rare glimpse into the behind the scenes interactions of those officers responsible for the operation. There was still …

  Abstract Is Australia prepared to support the possibility of a negotiated solution to the current Afghan situation? A negotiated solution must be from a position of strength, and not as a last resort or from a position of fear. With the Soviet–Afghan war as a backdrop, the insurgencies in Oman and Aden provide the basis for debate on the merits of negotiation as a means to resolve insurgencies. Many of the Afghan population support dialogue with the Taliban. This underscores President Karzais desire to …