Soldiers from the 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, are pictured disembarking from a CH-47F Chinook attached to the 5th Aviation Regiment. On 2 December the Australian Army established a new Aviation Command Unit. (Commonwealth of Australia)
The Australian Army launched on 2 December a command unit to optimise its aviation assets and support improved co-ordination across the Australian Defence Force (ADF).
Chief of Army, Lieutenant General Rick Burr, said at a ceremony in Canberra that the new Army Aviation Command (AVNCOMD) will enhance the service's resilience and adaptability, and ensure its training systems are “agile and contemporary”.
He added, “The alignment of army's aviation capability, under its own command, optimises army aviation to better support land, amphibious, and special operations.”
A spokesperson from the Australian Department of Defence (DoD) told Janes on 6 December that AVNCOMD comprises three regiments under the 16th Aviation Brigade. These include the 1st Aviation Regiment at Robertson Barracks in the Northern Territory, the 5th Aviation Regiment at Lavarack Barracks in Queensland, and the 6th Aviation Regiment at Sydney.
The spokesperson said AVNCOMD, which will be based in Canberra, will also be responsible for the Army Aviation Training Centre.
According to the spokesperson, AVNCOMD will be expected to “harness the expertise of personnel across a broad range of corps to ensure the delivery of aviation capability in order to support army's generation of land power to the joint force”.
The spokesperson added that the command unit will have access to personnel and equipment from several corps including Australian Army Aviation, Royal Australian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, Royal Australian Army Ordnance Corps, Royal Australian Corps of Signals, and Royal Australian Corps of Transport.
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