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Foreword

Regional
Security  ::

Strength Through Friendship in COBRA GOLD 2007

India-Japan-U.S. Forces Train at Sea in MALABAR/TRILATEX 2007

Enhancing the Australia-U.S. Military Alliance in TALISMAN SABER 2007

Perspectives  ::

PACOM: Moving the Throttle Forward in the Pacific

Humanitarian
Assistance  ::

Indonesian and U.S. Armies Promote Regional Stability in GARUDA SHIELD 2007

Special Interest  ::

Bridging Borders Through Military Medicine

Happenings  ::

Happenings

Australian and U.S. Soldiers and Marines Conduct Ground Operations
“Fire ‘em up boys.” The command echoed its way down the line of sleeping “steel beasts.” Under the cover of darkness, the engines of the U.S. Army Strykers rumbled to life as they led a column of Australian and U.S. vehicles through an “enemy” minefield. The faint glow of night vision devices appeared and danced like fireflies along the road.

The terrain in the Shoalwater Bay Training Area proved a formidable challenge for the U.S. soldiers. Several days of hard rain had turned the outback into a mire of mud, quicksand, and piles of steel-wrenching boulders and tree stumps.

Less than an hour into the exercise, the soldiers encountered a U.S. Marine sniper/forward observation post. They quickly neutralized the Marines, but not before an indirect fire mission was called in on the soldiers.

This confrontation set the overall tone of the exercise – a game of cat and mouse; hit-and-run by the Marines. A lack of heavy, one-on-one battles for the majority of the exercise allowed the soldiers to discover weaknesses and establish immediate corrections, so the same problems would not recur in future exercises, and more importantly, in combat.

Soldiers with little or no field time learned how to build makeshift shelters to sleep under; how to protect their equipment and firearms from the rain, sand and mud; how to create culinary art using parts of Meals Ready to Eat; and how to keep healthy and warm in temperatures that rose to 27 Celsius or more during the day and dropped to 4.4 Celsius at night.

Mounted and dismounted patrols were conducted to start building teamwork, and to expose non-infantry soldiers to combat skills in a harsh environment. Hills were then seized, and the “enemy” routed from their positions. The exercise culminated in a joint raid conducted by the soldiers in an urban warfare center (Camp Raspberry). U.S. Marines played the role of civilians and insurgents in the center.

The assault combined the technology of both nations’ equipment. This allowed the observer-controllers to follow the battle as it flowed from building to building, and to assess “casualties” for both sides. While there were areas of execution the soldiers needed to improve, they resolved problems quickly, showing they had the ability to think and act under pressure.

Community Relations
U.S. Marines and sailors joined school children in Gladstone, for a day of sports, cultural exchange, and building community relations. “The greatest benefit of the Marines and sailors coming here is the students got to interact with people from overseas and learn more about other cultures,” said David Manttan, executive director of schools.

Gladstone South State School Principal Leanne Ibell greeted the service members. “We are the South Stars here, and you’re our stars for today,” said Ibell.

The school choir treated the Marines and sailors to a sampling of Australian culture and pre-kindergarten students performed the “Hokey Pokey” dance with the troops using Aboriginal words for body parts.

After the celebration, the U.S. troops answered questions about American culture and life in the U.S. military.

The Marines, sailors, and students ended the day with a game of soccer. “It’s great that the U.S. military got involved with the sport and boosted the kids’ self-esteem,” said Tenille Riley, Gladstone South State School parent and teacher’s aide. “It made their day.”

Conclusion
TALISMAN SABER gave military forces from both countries the chance to enhance their combined and joint war fighting skills to prepare for military or humanitarian crises.

“I have seen the integration firsthand during the force integration training phase and it has been phenomenal,” said Rear Adm. Pottenger. “As military members, we have a high level of professionalism and sense of mission, that carries through no matter what uniform we wear and for what nation we wear it.”

Noting the importance of combined training needed to sustain peace in the region, Vice Adm. Crowder said, “The United States and Australia have a long-standing relationship. We are strong allies and have a special partnership in the Pacific. This exercise is about strengthening that relationship by building personal and professional relationships between our military members. This is an incredible opportunity, to work as a combined force, developing shared war-fighting proficiency needed to combat the Global War on Terror.”

“[TALISMAN SABER] provided many challenges such as lines of communication, moving troops from point A to point B, and the various changes in the weather. It was very challenging for the blue forces and red forces to react to the various tactical situations,” said U.S. Marine Brigadier John M. Croley, commander of Marine Corps Forces South and the red force commander during the field exercise. “Shoalwater Bay is as large as the European state of Belgium and provides varying terrain and an amphibious operating area and also several airfields that we can work out of in an expeditionary sense. So for us and the coalition forces, this offers many training opportunities ... This has been one of the finest training complexes that I’ve ever worked in.”

“TALISMAN SABER demonstrates the seamless military interoperability of the United States and Australia,” said Capt. David A. Lausman, USS Blue Ridge commanding officer. “Australia is one of our closest and oldest allies in the Western Pacific, and this friendship forms the cornerstone to peace and stability in the region.”

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