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Subject:
US to assess Australian FAC course
AMTP10E
1/9/2006 5:49:02 AM
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| JANE'S DEFENCE WEEKLY - JANUARY 04, 2006
US to assess Australian FAC course
A standardisation team from the US Joint Air-Ground Operations Group (JAGOG) at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada (formerly known as AGOS/ Air Ground Operations School), is expected to go to Australia in March 2006 to observe and (desirably) ratify the Australian national tactical air-controller courses and qualifications as US-recognised qualifications.
This will be the culmination of a training capability expansion initiated in 2001, when the number of Australian Defence Force (ADF) forward air-controller (FAC) positions was raised from 20-30 to more than 100.
Major Steve Nichols, officer commanding the Australian Army's Joint Terminal Attack Control (JTAC) Troop, related to attendees at the Omega Offensive Air Support Conference, staged at the Royal School of Artillery, Larkhill in mid-November, that 2001 was also the year in which the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) established an independent Forward Air Control Development Unit (FACDU), supported by a new Australian Army FAC section. With the start of Australian operations in Afghanistan it became clear that the established national Air Contact Officer qualification (based on just four days' training) was not recognised by supporting air forces and led to rapid establishment of courses to train special forces personnel as Secondary FACs. In 2003 it was determined that the ADF should also institute its own Primary FAC postings rather than relying on coalition support, leading to the standing up of the JTAC Troop in January 2005.
JTAC Troop has an establishment of 16 primary controllers and a headquarters element. A quarter of the personnel are found from the RAAF, the remainder being inducted from the artillery, special forces, infantry, army aviation, and the RAAF's own ground-defence organisation. In principle, the Troop's function is to be available to support the Australian Army's 1st Division (with brigades in Darwin, Townsville and Brisbane) down to company level. The qualified JTAC (a junior NCO) functions, in principle, as part of a Joint Offensive Support Team (JOST), for which he provides aircraft terminal control capability, under the orchestration of the team leader, an artillery forward-observation officer. The other JOST members include an assistant forward observer, two signallers, and a mortar fire controller. Naval gunfire support is handled by the artillery observation officer or his assistant. The Australian special forces and army aviation organisations maintain a number of additional JTACs of their own in secondary roles, and a small number of primary controllers are also permanently allocated to high-readiness units within 1st Division.
The JTAC Troop is co-located with the FACDU at RAAF Williamtown, near Sydney, where it has access to three squadrons of F/A-18 Hornets, a Hawk trainer squadron, and four PC-9 trainers employed for procedural instruction. A small number of Primary JTACs are also located in Townsville and Darwin to cater to high-readiness elements in those locations. Secondary JTACs are also located in Special Operations Command (with the SAS Regiment in Perth and 4th Bn Royal Australian Regiment [Commando] in Sydney) and at the Tiger armed-reconnaissance helicopter regiment in Darwin.
Candidate FAC personnel take the four-week Basic TAC course, involving 30-40 day/night controls, including precision weapons delivery, and qualify as Combat TACs. Candidate JTACs then progress to a three- to four-month Advanced Course, which includes more complex activities such as multiple aircraft engagements, fires integration, advanced communications, coalition procedures, joint warfare, air-defence systems and the giving of air-support advice.
Maj Nichols noted that his unit's present 4,400 km2 training area is one of the few in the world where it is possible to conduct live-fire training using CAS and naval gunfire support, in concert with division-level live fire and manoeuvre, and that the new Bradshaw training area in northwestern Australia will be twice the size (8,760km2 - "as big as Belgium").
As well as live controls, JTAC Troop members' operational currency is aided by the use of a FATS I-FACT simulator (see IDR 1/2005, p12), the latest readiness training directive calling for the execution of a minimum of five controls per day. Maj Nichols' expectation was that the troop would be fully manned in 18 months, and fully equipped in two years' time. |
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