Defence
Australia is to deploy two Boeing CH-47D Chinook transport helicopters and 110 personnel to Afghanistan next month as part of the Combined Forces Command in the country, writes Emma Kelly.
To be drawn from the Australian army’s fleet of six Chinooks assigned to the 5th Aviation Regiment in Townsville, Queensland, the aircraft “will provide additional aero-medical evacuation and air mobility support to Australia’s Special Forces Task Group” of around 190 personnel, says the Australian Department of Defence.
Australia’s Chinooks are undergoing a A$25 million ($18.8 million) upgrade to prepare them for combat operations, with this including the installation of enhanced electronic warfare self-protection systems, improved communications, weapon mounts and enhanced medical evacuation equipment.
The helicopters will be fully operational by late March and are to remain in Afghanistan until Australia’s special forces’ deployment concludes next September.
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