Future structure of Australia’s infantry battalions: 1RAR – 3rd Brigade, Townsville By January 2019, 1RAR will be equipped with a fleet of organic Bushmaster PMVs. From mid to late 2018, it will also begin to receive Hawkei PMV-Ls. 2RAR (Amphibious) – 1st Division, Townsville On 16 October 2017, 2RAR was officially renamed 2RAR (Amphib) and placed under command of the Amphibious Task Group (ATG), in 1st Division. It will remain at Lavarack Barrack, Townsville. From 2018, 2RAR (Amphib) will be reduced in manning to an admin company, battalion headquarters, one rifle company (with integral small-boat and helicopter insertion capabilities, and direct fire support weapons), and an ISR company (intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance) with sniper detachments, small boat operators, signallers, and a joint-fires team. 3RAR – 3rd Brigade, Townsville By January 2019, 3RAR will be equipped with a fleet of organic M113AS4 APCs, which will eventually be replaced by LAND 400 Phase 3 infantry fighting vehicles.
As the infantry battalions transition, their surveillance sections will be reinvested to create larger and more reconnaissance patrols and their DFSW platoons will be renamed anti-armour platoons. All the battalions must maintain expertise in dismounted, airmobile and combined-arms TTPs (tactics, techniques and procedures) and skills – and all battalions (except 2RAR) will continue to rotate through the RBG (ready battlegroup) and operational duties in accordance with the combat-brigade forcegeneration cycle – and one rifle company from the RBG will train to meet the ARE GCE (amphibious ready element, ground-combat element) responsibilities.
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CONTACT Air Land & Sea – Issue 57 – March 2018