2012 RAAF Darwin Open Day, Northern Territory, Australia

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Exercise Pitch Black 2012 will take place in the Northern Territory between the 27 July and 17 August. As part of the exercise RAAF Base Darwin will have an Open Day on Saturday the 11th of August.

 

For updates about Exercise Pitch Black follow the Air Force on Facebook ht...tp://www.facebook.com/RoyalAustralianAirForce (event page http://ra.af/PitchBlack12) and on Twitter http://twitter.com/AirForceHQ #PitchBlack12.

 

Once the Exercise commences pictures will be available at http://ra.af/PitchBlack12Pics and videos will be available at http://ra.af/PitchBlack12Vids.

 

Exercise Pitch Black (27 Jul - 17 Aug) and RAAF Darwin Open Day(11Aug) 2012

 

http://www.facebook....26851914056273/

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EXERCISE PITCH BLACK OPEN DAY – 11 AUGUST 2012 – RAAF BASE DARWIN

 

Exercise Pitch Black, the Air Force’s largest exercise in 2012, is being conducted in the Top End from 27 July to 17 August 2012. The exercise will involve 94 military aircraft from Australia, the United States, New Zealand, Singapore, Thailand, and Indonesia.

 

As many Northern Territorians will see fast jets in the air for the three weeks of the exercise, we want to show Darwin residents some of these aircraft up close and allow them to talk to the aircrew and the people who maintain and support them on the ground. To this end, the Air Force is pleased to announce that an Open Day will be held on Saturday 11 August between 9am and 4pm at RAAF Base Darwin.

 

We will have 21 aircraft on static display and ground displays from Darwin based units. No flying will be conducted at the Open Day but a single aircraft display will be held off the coast on the late afternoon of Thursday, 9 August at the Mindil Beach markets. More information regarding this display will be released closer to the event.

 

Amenities

 

While some shade will be available, Air Force recommends the public bring sun protection and practical footwear.

 

Members of the public can bring their own food and drinks, or purchase them on site. Glass bottles are not to be brought on site.

 

Alcohol and smoke are not permitted on site, and there are no ATM facilities for the public.

 

No animals are allowed on the Base (unless registered guide dogs)

 

Photography will be permitted in the public areas.

 

Public Toilets will be available.

 

Getting There

 

A special event bus service will allow the public to park at Darwin Showgrounds on the Stuart Highway, and be transported to RAAF Base Darwin through the Bombing Road Gate.

 

Please note that this will be the only means of accessing the Open Day for the general public. Members of the public who arrive at RAAF Base Darwin will not be allowed access unless they board a bus at the Showground.

 

Parking, bus transit and entry to RAAF Base Darwin is all provided free of charge. Buses will depart from Darwin Showground.

 

Buses will depart for the RAAF Base from 8.55am until 3pm. This will allow the Open Day to finish by 4pm. Scheduled round trips will be conducted throughout the day.

 

Note that there could be minor traffic disruptions between the Showgrounds and the RAAF Base. Defence highly recommends members of the public carpool to this event.

 

Showground Parking

 

The Showground car park access will only be via Shean Road off Stuart Highway. The Showground car park exit will only be via Tate Place onto Stuart Highway (to turn left or right), and to the west onto Hook Road (to join Stuart Hwy at the traffic lights). This information can be found on this map.

 

Disabled parking

 

Disabled members of the public will be permitted through the Bombing Road Gate at RAAF Base Darwin if their vehicle displays an official ACROD-issued Disabled windscreen sticker. Patrons will then be directed to turn left once inside the gate, and directed to the Disabled car park, near the static display area.

 

Updates

 

Traffic and crowd information will be passed to local radio and updated throughout the Open Day. Information will also be posted to our Facebook event page (http://ra.af/PitchBlack12) and via Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/airforcehq), with the hashtag #PitchBlack12.

 

Displays

 

The following aircraft types will be on Static Display:

• F/A-18A Hornet (RAAF)
  
• F/A-18F Super Hornet (RAAF)
  
• C-130H Hercules (RAAF)
  
• AP-3C Orion (RAAF)
  
• B300 Super King Air (RAAF)
  
• F-16 Fighting Falcon (Singapore)
  
• F-15 Eagle (Singapore)
  
• KC-135 Stratotanker (Singapore)
  
• Gulfstream G550 (Singapore)
  
• F-16 Fighting Falcon (Thailand)
  
• Sukhoi SU-30 (Indonesia)
  

The following ground displays are planned:

• Air Movements Pallett Build and Loading Demonstration
  
• Airfield Defence Guard Display
  
• Military Working Dogs Display
  
• Puppy Development Program
  
• Explosive Detection Dogs
  
• Darwin Medical Section Display
  
• Bomb Disposal Unit Display
  
• Piecart & Arrester Vehicle
  
• Australian Aviation Heritage Centre Merchandise
  
• Heritage Aircraft – Harvard, Tiger Moth and Auster
  
• Defence Bank Display
  

It will be a great time; just remember to bring your hat and sunscreen.

 

For further information on Exercise Pitch Black 12 or the RAAF Base Darwin Open Day please phone 1800 424 775.

 

http://www.defence.g...k12/openday.htm

Edited July 20, 2012 by xtemujin

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'Pitch Black' sees enemy battle played out over Darwin

By Clare Rawlinson

26 July 2012, Thursday 5:43PM ACST

 

A 'war games' enemy battle exercise will begin tomorrow over the skies of Darwin, with 94 aircraft from six nations practising for a hypothetical enemy attack.

 

'Pitch Black' is the largest air force exercise in the Southern Hemisphere, and is held bi-annually in Top End skies.

 

This year, a new addition to the multi-lateral exercise has come on board: Indonesia.

 

The country's involvement signals growing cooperation and is being tooted as a historic step in bi-lateral relations.

 

Indonesia expressed suspicion over Australia's move to host 2500 US marines in Darwin when US President Barack Obama made the announcement late last year.

 

Since then, Darwin has hosted Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono for high level talks with the Prime Minister Julia Gillard.

 

During the Indonesian President's visit, Australia gifted Indonesia a decommissioned Hercules aircraft, to be used in disaster relief around the region.

 

The gift was coupled with a Memorandum of Understanding, aimed at boosting regional cooperation between the two nations.

 

RAAF Darwin Group Captain David Thiele said Exercise Pitch Black posed two hypothetical forces against each other, with the 'bad guys' based at Tindil, Katherine.

 

He said the airspace between Darwin and Katherine was one of the best in the world.

 

"Simply the size of it - if you were to compare it to air spaces such as Singapore, you'll see they have a very small operating area. This is an opportunity to get out and test their tactics, test their procedures," Captain Thiele said.

 

Noise levels are expected to disturb some residents in Darwin; a fact Captain Thiele says can't be avoided.

 

"We do acknowledge Pitch Black brings with it an increased level of noise...we do minimise night activity until later in the exercise. Aircraft will be operating in their normal war time profiles," he said.

 

"This is an outstanding opportunity to see a number of very professional nations come together for a major exercise."

 

RAAF Darwin will host an open Day on August 11 for the public to tour the base and aircraft involved in Pitch Black.

 

A flying display is planned for August 9 over Mindil Markets.

 

http://www.abc.net.au/local/photos/2012/07/26/3554412.htm?site=&xml=3554412-mediarss.xml#bigpicturepos