Tag Archives: ISR

The modern coastwatchers in Australia

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From the Australian Army on the reservists that patrol the sparsely populated northern half of the island continent:


A Patrolman is a member of a Regional Force Surveillance Unit Patrol. These patrols are highly mobile teams that use small patrol tactics; skills employed by our Special Forces (SF). Their role is to gain information by observation and patrol in the remote north and western regions of our vast land where the population and infrastructure is widely dispersed. Most Patrolmen are Army Reservists who are knowledgeable on the local area and are able to work in small teams, living rough for days or weeks on end.

The intelligence they gather assists the ADF and other government agencies such as Border Protection, Customs and Department of Primary Industry in ensuring our sovereignty is not violated.

A Patrol is normally a six-man team: Patrol Commander, Patrol 2IC (second in command), Patrol Signaller, Patrol Medic, Patrol Scout and Patrolman. Some tasks may see the team numbers change to as low as two Patrolmen. RFSU patrols rely on stealth; the ability to move and see without being seen, and liaising with the local community as they gather intelligence.

The image above show a Patrolman listening to an ‘O’ group (Orders Group) as he gets details on his mission.

The other image is of the AOs (Areas of Operations) of the three RFSUs: The Pilbara Regiment; the North West Mobile Force, aka NORFORCE; and 51st Battalion, Far North Queensland Regiment (51 FNQR)

The group’s The G-Wagons are pretty fly

Mercedes Benz G-Wagon 6 x 6 Truck, Light, Surveillance and Reconnaissance variant. Normally crewed by three soldiers, they have been modified for Australian conditions and prove a great asset to our Regional Force Surveillance Units such as Pilbara Regiment, North West Mobile Force – NORFORCE and 51st Battalion, The Far North Queensland Regiment – Image by CPL N Campos

The U-2 is still amazing some 70 years on

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Boxcar is still utterly magnificent even far past the 1950s technology that tossed this unlikely recon asset into the air as shown in this video from USAF.

Beale Air Force Base, California, is home to the U-2, an aircraft that was originally designed to fly high-altitude intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions during the Cold War. Today, the U-2 flies in support of a variety of missions from ground combat to disaster relief. During high-altitude missions, U-2 pilots often see a natural occurrence called the “terminator line,” which separates day and night. This “ah ha” moment is an awesome reminder of mankind’s diminutive size when skimming the edge of space. (U.S. Air Force Video by Andrew Arthur Breese)