1 July 2024
Members of the Royal Australian Navy Australian Clearance Diving Team (AUSCDT) Four switched from sea to shore to participate in Exercise Wallaby Walk at Queensland’s Wide Bay Training Area in May.
AUSCDT Four was invited by the Australian Army’s 20th Explosive Ordnance Disposal Squadron to join the multinational exercise, featuring partners from Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Canada, Fiji and the United States.
It is the second time AUSCDT Four has been invited to participate, highlighting their specialist skills to other branches of the ADF and partner nations.
The exercise promoted cooperation and developed individual and team explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) skills, tools and methods, operations procedures and disposal tasks.
Executive Officer AUSCDT Four Lieutenant James Bagnato said he was excited to participate in such a high-tempo exercise that demanded excellence from all involved.
“Exercise Wallaby Walk is the ADF’s premier annual EOD exercise,” Lieutenant Bagnato said.
“It focuses on conducting complex EOD tasks in both the land and littoral domains, whilst incorporating the complexities of the modern battlefield.
“Having access and exposure to high-pressure training scenarios like Exercise Wallaby Walk provides the opportunity to perfect our skills for the real-world scenarios where there is zero margin for error.”
'Having access and exposure to high-pressure training scenarios like Exercise Wallaby Walk provides the opportunity to perfect our skills for the real-world scenarios where there is zero margin for error.'
Explosive specialists from AUSCDT Four undertook an array of training scenarios during the three-week exercise, focusing on complex EOD and command and control tasks in urban and mobility-orientated environments.
“High-level exercises like this are integral in allowing our members to push themselves in real-world scenarios and experiment with different techniques on live training devices,” Lieutenant Bagnato said.
“It’s also a great opportunity to get to know and build strong ties with EOD teams from other domestic and international organisations.”
Clearance Diver Chief Petty Officer Thomas Buchanan, a maritime explosive ordnance disposal technician, said the training incorporated high-tech functioning IEDs designed to test the operator's technical and decision-making processes in land and maritime domains.
“The training is vital for our members to keep up to date on defeating real-world threats in a high-tempo joint environment,” Chief Petty Officer Buchanan said.
Clearance divers, a permanent force since World War 2, are Navy’s specialist diving teams and an integral element of the ADF Special Operations structure.
Their tasks include specialist expeditionary and domestic diving missions; surface and underwater demolitions; and disarming and disposal of conventional explosive ordnance and improvised explosive devices.
Members from AUSCDT Four will continue to foster relationships with their partners during the upcoming Operation Render Safe 24-2 in the Solomon Islands.
