The Australian Defence Force (ADF) and the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) have completed an annual joint command post exercise focused on the planning and execution of Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations.
Exercise NUSA BHAKTI AUSINDO 22 (NBA22) was held from 7-11 November in Surabaya, Indonesia, bringing together more than 60 personnel from both nations for training to boost HADR coordination.
Deputy Chief of Joint Operations, Air Vice-Marshal Michael Kitcher said the exercise was designed to build and foster mutual co-operation.
“This bilateral training alternates each year in Australia and Indonesia with the aim of testing a wide range of specialist functions and enhancing interoperability in times of natural disaster,” Air Vice-Marshal Kitcher said.
Indonesia, as the hosting nation this year, developed a rich exercise scenario based around a volcanic eruption and concurrent flooding in Bali. Scenarios in previous years have included earthquakes and tsunamis in Indonesia, and cyclones and flooding in Australia.
“Exercise NBA22 is part of the developing cycle of bilateral joint planning activities which progress in complexity over the period 2021-2025,” Air Vice-Marshal Kitcher said.
NBA22 was supported by a range of government and emergency services organisations, including the Indonesian Foreign Ministry, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, the Indonesian Red Cross, and both nations’ respective disaster and emergency management agencies.
The ADF and TNI have previously supported each other during real-world natural disasters, including most recently the ADF’s support to Indonesia following the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Palu in 2018, and the TNI’s support to Australia during the catastrophic 2019-20 bushfires.