With the removal of 3RAR’s jump status in 2012, the Australian Army no longer has a conventional parachute-infantry force and the only combat units to retain a parachute capability are the Special Air Services Regiment and the 1st and 2nd Commando Regiments.
But a concerned Major Giles Cornelia*, in a hard hitting article in The Australian Defence Force Journal of 2010, questioned the rationale for disbanding a conventional airborne force, saying that this country’s strategic circumstances make such a capability more relevant now than ever, given the strategic and operational realities that prompted the ‘entry from air and sea concept’ and its replacement, the ‘joint entry operations’ concept.
Here he says any consideration of removing the airborne combat team from the ADF’s force structure would have an immediate and detrimental opportunity cost for Joint Task Force (JTF) planning to conduct a forced entry operation by air and sea. And while he says it would reduce the airborne component to Special Forces advance force operations only, thereby reducing options for the Joint Task Force Commander and Chief Joint Operations Command, in fact this may be more in keeping with the type of Ship-to-Objective Manoeuvre (STOM) operation envisaged under the ADF’s emerging maritime capability, likely involving first entry by helicopter-borne troops and followed by ground forces in LCM-1Es or similar watercraft.
It seems that the type of new and replacement parachute systems being acquired or sought for the ADF such as the steerable, freefall, high altitude systems, may be geared more to the type of operations best handled by Special Forces, such as covert extraction or the elimination of insurgents on sovereign or friendly territory, than those of conventional parachute infantry.
The new parachute systems sought, (or by now acquired) were detailed in the following three minor projects:
Enhanced Military Freefall Parachute Capability
Proposed by Special Operations Command this enhanced Military Freefall Parachute capability may include systems that will enable the ADF to conduct a range of military freefall and ram air parachute descents. The DMO is currently assisting the project sponsor with the development of the business case and supporting documentation for First Pass endorsement.
Is this requirement linked to the US Army’s requirement for an Enhanced Electronic Automatic Activation Device (EEAAD) for Military Freefall (MFF) parachute systems. The system is aimed at supporting US Army Airborne and Special Operations Forces by providing an enhanced data logging device packaged with an automatic activation device that will activate the reserve parachute of a paratrooper that is unable to activate the reserve on their own, under a partial or total malfunction of the main canopy.
It shall offer performance equal to or greater than the current Electronic Automatic Activation Device while providing the user the ability to collect and store information from the freefall and canopy flight portions of an MFF operation, for later download and analysis.
This minor project aimed to introduce a high altitude parachute operations capability for the ADF. The procured equipment comprises oxygen masks, bailout bottles and portable oxygen consoles, enabling ADF parachute operations to be conducted from altitudes above 12,000 feet.
Approved in March 2007, the equipment specification was developed to ensure that the procured capability met the ADF’s rigorous oxygen and airworthiness standards. Following the release of a sole source Request for Tender, a contract for the required capability was signed with Airborne Systems North America in April 2010. All equipment has been delivered and have been successfully tested against ADF requirements with project closure planned for 2012.
High-altitude military parachuting or MFF is a method of delivering personnel, equipment, and supplies from a transport aircraft at a high altitude via free-fall parachute insertion. Two techniques are used: HALO (high altitude - low opening) and HAHO (high altitude - high opening).
In the HALO technique, the parachutist opens his parachute at a low altitude after free-falling for a period of time, while in the HAHO technique, the parachutist opens his parachute at a high altitude just a few seconds after jumping from the aircraft. HALO is used for delivering equipment, supplies, or personnel, while HAHO is generally used only for personnel.
In typical HALO/HAHO insertions, the troops are dispatched from altitudes between 15,000 feet (4,600 metres) and 35,000 feet (11,000 metres). The technique is used to airdrop supplies, equipment, or personnel at high altitudes when aircraft can fly above surface-to-air missile (SAM) engagement levels through enemy skies without posing a threat to the transport or load. In the event that antiaircraft weapons are active near the drop zone, the HALO technique also minimizes the parachutist’s exposure to flak.
In a typical HALO exercise, the parachutist will jump from the aircraft, free-fall for a period of time at terminal velocity, and open his parachute at a low altitude. The combination of high downward speed, minimal metal and forward air-speed serves to defeat radar as well as simply reduce the amount of time a parachute might be visible to ground observers, enabling a stealthy insertion.
Enhanced static line parachute capability
The aim of this project was to replace the ADF’s in-service fleet of static line T10B-D, T10R and MC-1 parachutes as well as the Army’s fleet of T-100 dispatcher parachutes.
Based on a requirement for the new static line parachute system to comprise separate steerable and non-steerable main canopies integrated with a common harness, pack tray and reserve parachute. The replacement system sought was seen as offering improved performance over the existing in-service parachutes, in particular with respect to load carrying capacity and descent rate.
Following approval in May 2011, US manufactured T-11, T-11R and MC-6 static line parachutes were selected as the replacement static line parachute system and have been acquired through an FMS case, while the replacement dispatcher parachute is being procured through open tender.
So what do we know about the replacement parachutes?
The Non-Manoeuvrable Canopy (T-11) Personnel Parachute System is the next-generation personnel parachute system. The T-11 provides the airborne soldier with the first wholesale modernisation of the tactical parachute system since the 1950s. The T-11 includes a completely redesigned main and reserve parachute and an integrated harness assembly that is suitable for the 5th percentile to the 95th percentile Soldier. The main canopy is a modified version of a cross/cruciform platform. The canopy has an increased inflated diameter of 14 per cent and a 28 per cent increase in surface area, when compared with the T-10D assembly.
The T-11 main canopy uses a unique deployment sequence to reduce the opening shock and canopy oscillation. The T-11 has an average rate of descent of 19 feet per second for the 95th percentile Soldier, compared with 24 feet per second with the T-10D. This results in significantly lower landing injury rates for jumpers.
The reserve canopy is a proven derivative of the British Low Level Parachute (LLP) aero-conical design. It includes apex scoop pockets at the top of the reserve canopy and skirt assist lines at the system’s hem to promote fast opening of the reserve system during low-speed malfunctions.
The T-11 Personnel Parachute System is a highly portable system, which includes the main canopy assembly, the reserve canopy assembly, deployment bag, pack tray, harness assembly, risers, and universal static line. It is suitable for a wide range of soldier sizes, from the 5th percentile female to the 95th percentile male soldier. It enables a stable, safe rate of descent that reduces landing injuries and permits the parachutist to carry a heavier load. The canopy is made of low porosity ripstop nylon with Teflon coated suspension lines.
Parachute training
Training in the parachute systems is undertaken at the Parachute Training School (PTS), located in at HMAS Albatross. The mission of PTS is to train members of the ADF and other authorised personnel to parachute, and to develop parachute doctrine and equipment to meet Army’s needs, now and in the future. PTS conducts a wide range of training including:
Static Line – typically used for massed insertion; it involves paratroopers hooking onto a strong point in the aircraft, jumping from altitudes between 800 and 1,000 feet and descending under a symmetrical canopy onto land or into water.
Military Free Fall – normally involves highly-qualified paratroopers exiting from an aircraft at up to 12,000 feet and going into free fall in a team formation before opening their own parachutes at a designated altitude then flying as a team to a target.
The School maintains one of the best safety records in the world with close to 500,000 descents without a student fatality. It employs instructors from parachute units and members of the specialist Army trades including Parachute Rigger, Air Dispatcher, Commando, Special Air Service Trooper, and Special Operations Engineer Regiment Sapper.
Reference: *Major G.J.S. Cornelia, ‘ADF Joint Entry Operations: Why Conventional Airborne Forces are Fundamental’, Australian Defence Force Journal, No. 183, 2010.
