{"id":7209,"date":"2026-08-19T23:37:27","date_gmt":"2026-08-19T23:37:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/defence\/7209\/"},"modified":"2026-08-19T23:37:27","modified_gmt":"2026-08-19T23:37:27","slug":"central-queensland-bids-for-defence-investment-as-it-hosts-major-army-training-operation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/defence\/7209\/","title":{"rendered":"Central Queensland bids for defence investment as it hosts major army training operation"},"content":{"rendered":"

A new army vehicle has defence officials very excited.<\/p>\n

The Boxer Block II Combat Reconnaissance Vehicle has faced its most significant field test to date in central Queensland, after thousands of army personnel practised combat skills on a simulated battlefield with a live enemy, civilians and even a mock TV crew.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

The Boxer Block vehicles are named after fallen soldiers. (ABC News: Jacob Gamble)<\/p>\n

Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Johnson says the vehicle is bringing the army into the digital age.<\/p>\n

“This vehicle is a step change in capability from the previous Australian light-armoured vehicle that the public would be [familiar] with in Iraq and Afghanistan,” he said.<\/p>\n

“Its robustness, its mobility, the way it can communicate between the vehicles, as well as the ability for the enemy to really struggle to detect the vehicle \u2026 has been a significant advantage.”<\/p>\n

\"Two<\/p>\n

Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Johnson (left) and Major Scott Ferguson with the Boxer Block II. (ABC News: Jacob Gamble)<\/p>\n

Sitting 80 kilometres north of Rockhampton, Shoalwater Bay Training Area has more than 450 hectares of dense bushland and sea.<\/p>\n

It is one of the key assets within the region that a group of central Queensland politicians will be touting in Canberra next month, when they present a business case to the federal government for greater defence investment.<\/p>\n

\"Three<\/p>\n

The Boxer Block II Combat Reconnaissance Vehicles were tested at Shoalwater Bay, as the region pushes for more defence investment. (ABC Capricornia: Jacob Gamble)<\/p>\n

The business case includes a proposal to build a defence-logistics hub to repair and maintain machinery, a medical training centre to boost the number of local health professionals, and a submarine-support facility in Gladstone.<\/p>\n

Rockhampton Mayor Tony Williams said it was about identifying the Defence Force’s priorities and presenting solutions.<\/p>\n

“It’s a fantastic opportunity to diversify our local economy,” he said.<\/p>\n

“If we get a stronger military and defence presence in the region, it just gives us so many more options there and buffers our local workforce.”<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Shoalwater Bay is a key asset for defence, and among its facilities is a simulation city where soldiers can practice operations in urban environments.\u00a0 (ABC News: Jacob Gamble)<\/p>\n

A core part of the proposal is more short-term accommodation, which would serve as an athlete’s village for the 2032 Olympic rowing, while also hosting defence personnel and medical specialists.<\/p>\n

Cr Williams said it would ease the region’s housing shortfall.<\/p>\n

“We have a lot of workforce [that] fly in, fly out for the mines and other development projects in the region,” he said.<\/p>\n

“If we can start to take the pressure off the existing housing market by having a dedicated area for those workers \u2026 that frees up other opportunities for those other needs that we see in our community.”<\/p>\n

\"Young<\/p>\n

Army personnel at Shoalwater Bay, acting in civilian roles. (ABC News: Jacob Gamble)<\/p>\n

Defence legacy<\/p>\n

The land for the Shoalwater Bay facility was acquired by the Commonwealth in 1965 and was used to prepare soldiers for battle in the jungles of Vietnam.<\/p>\n

This month, it hosted 3,000 army personnel for Exercise Pozieres Run, the army’s largest collective training operation of the year.<\/p>\n

Participants were tasked with liberating a community from enemy forces while surviving in the bush on ration packs with no beds and showers.<\/p>\n

\"Three<\/p>\n

Brigadier Jen Harris (middle) led the recent training operation. (ABC News: Jacob Gamble)<\/p>\n

Brigadier Jen Harris, who commands the army’s seventh brigade, said Shoalwater Bay felt like “home ground”.<\/p>\n

“This is where I can conduct and test the brigade \u2026 to the extremities of our war-fighting capability, to bring the whole team together,” she said.<\/p>\n

Defence community researcher Amy Johnson said central Queensland’s “long-standing” military history meant the region was well-placed to grow its defence sector.<\/p>\n

“We’ve got some really strong existing logistics and industry,” Dr Johnson said.<\/p>\n

“Things like Rocky Airport and the Port of Gladstone.”<\/p>\n

\"Four<\/p>\n

Personnel also have access to a simulation hospital at Shoalwater Bay. (ABC News: Jacob Gamble)<\/p>\n

David Andrews, a senior policy adviser at the ANU’s National Security College, said the project may face challenges with labour shortages and costs.<\/p>\n

“There’s a few really big defence-led infrastructure projects going on at the moment that are pulling in lots of focus,” he said.<\/p>\n

“Inevitably, workforce is a challenge as well as purely the cost of a lot of the building materials that we’re getting that are caught up with the trouble in the Middle East.”\"A<\/p>\n

David Andrews says there are challenges to building new facilities, but the argument for readiness is compelling.\u00a0 (Supplied: David Andrews)<\/p>\n

Mr Andrews said while the government’s AUKUS nuclear submarines project was chewing up a lot of the defence budget, there was certainly an appetite for other projects to increase the country’s national resilience.<\/p>\n

“The National Defence Strategy has outlined the fact that we no longer have what is described as 10-year strategic warning time, which means we have to prepare for the hopefully remote prospect of conflict much, much sooner than within 10 years,” he said.<\/p>\n

“That means we have to make investments now to support that to keep Australia safe.”<\/p>\n

\"Two<\/p>\n

Exercise Pozieres Run means no showers, no beds, and living on ration packs for thousands of army personnel. (ABC News: Jacob Gamble)<\/p>\n

In a statement, a spokesperson for the Department of Defence said infrastructure in northern Australia was essential for Australia’s capabilities.<\/p>\n

“Defence remains committed to maximising opportunities for local industry in northern and central Queensland, with ongoing prospects for businesses in logistics, maintenance, administrative and transport support,” the statement said.<\/p>\n

\"Army<\/p>\n

Experts say Shoalwater Bay is an essential site for the ADF to train and prepare for combat.\u00a0 (ABC News: Jacob Gamble)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A new army vehicle has defence officials very excited. The Boxer Block II Combat Reconnaissance Vehicle has faced…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":7210,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[1136,347,4357,38,14,4358,640,4356,4355,4354,4359],"class_list":["post-7209","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news","tag-adf","tag-army","tag-central","tag-defence","tag-defence-industry","tag-exercise","tag-military","tag-pitch","tag-push","tag-resources","tag-shoalwater-bay-training-area"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/defence\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7209","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/defence\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/defence\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/defence\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/defence\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7209"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/defence\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7209\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/defence\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7210"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/defence\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7209"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/defence\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7209"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/defence\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7209"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}