In the heart of the outback of Australia in Bradshaw Field Training Area, Northern Territory, U.S. Marines and U.S. Navy sailors with 1st Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, Marine Rotational Force – Darwin conducted Koolendong, an annual infantry training exercise, with 4th Marine Regiment from Okinawa, Japan, 8th/12th Australian Artillery Regiment from Darwin, Australia and for the first time, the French Armed Forces New Caledonia.
Described as an opportunity to train as a Marine Air Ground Task Force in an austere expeditionary environment, Koolendong is a military exercise unlike others.
Throughout the two week exercise, U.S. Marines destroyed several enemy positions and as the culminating event, the unit executed movement to contact drills, live-fire exercise gas attack, and a battalion size defensive position, while working with the Air Command Element for close air support.
It’s a unique opportunity for U.S. troops to practice, and for their Australian and French counterparts to learn a trick or two.
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