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THE senior ADF officer in North Queensland - COMD 3Bde BRIG Chris Field - will begin work this year with a broad smile ... he will have the pleasure of inducting no less than 11 ADFA candidates for Army . It ’ s a big jump on the two appointees he welcomed last year , and is a good kick-start to the final stretch in the Brigade ’ s road to Exercise Hamel and “ Ready ” status . BRIG Field said 3Bde would become the Ready Brigade on July 1 , taking over from 1Bde and the occasion would be marked by a parade . The Brigade Ready Muster parade on June 30 will be a few days before Ex Hamel begins in the first week of July . It ’ s a slight departure from what has happened previously in that , in the very month 3Bde goes “ online ”, it will be tested at Ex Hamel , traditionally the exercise at which the final certification of readiness is issued . But there are several milestones that need to be passed before then , beginnning with Exercise Carbon Brolga , a desktop command post exercise , the first chance incoming Brigade Major MAJ Roland Spackman will have to work with the Brigade ’ s command teams . While HQ 3Bde will be tackling Ex Silicon Brolga at Lavarack Barracks , a slightly more complex CP exercise , in the second part of March , 1RAR , preparing to take on the responsibility of providing the Ready Battle Group will tackle the Combat Training Centre-run Ex Warfighter at High Range . And while those exercises are underway , HQ 3Bde will also be participating in a 1Div CP exercise - Ex Polygon . Also , in March , CO 3RAR LTCOL Giles Cornelia will bring together the 400 members of Task Group Taji-5 to begin their Mission Rehearsal Exercise .
Bushmasters drive onto Cowley Beach during Exercise Sea Explorer 2016
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