Indo-Pacific Endeavour (IPE) returned to Bangladesh in September with a range of engagement activities that broadened and deepened defence relationships following the ADF’s inaugural IPE visit to the country last year.
C-130J maintenance personnel from RAAF’s 37 Squadron exchanged expert knowledge and experiences with their counterparts from the Bangladesh Air Force.
In the regional area of Chattogram, Australian Clearance Diving Team One conducted training with Bangladesh Navy specialist unit the Special Warfare and Diving Salvage, while smaller forums in Dhaka involved the Australian Fisheries Management Agency, Defence legal specialists and ADF chaplains.
The ADF football team also played high-profile matches against the Bangladesh Army and a team from the national sports academy.
IPE 2023 Commander Air Commodore Tony McCormack said this year’s visit has shown that the Australia-Bangladesh Defence partnership is strengthening.
“You can see the relationship is building. You can see that friendships have already been made and you can see the thirst for knowledge on both sides,” Air Commodore McCormack said.
“What we do is we conduct mutually beneficial activities and we learn from each other. It’s a true show of friendship, partnership and camaraderie.”
Flight Lieutenant Alex Colli, an aircraft maintenance officer with 37 Squadron, said RAAF and Bangladesh Air Force had many shared experiences as operators of C-130 Hercules aircraft.
“Australia is the second-oldest global operator of the C-130 variants, so we have a long history with the C-130,” Flight Lieutenant Colli said.
“We have a lot to share with Bangladeshis on our knowledge of the platform and the Bangladeshis have their own workforce pressures that they were happy to share with us, so we learned from that as well.
“This kind of engagement is incredibly important for us and it’s always good to share experiences and knowledge with other C-130 operators.”
Australian defence attaché Lieutenant Colonel John Dempsey noted that the IPE participants had enjoyed hosting their Bangladeshi guests at an IPE23 reception at the Australian High Commission and in return were hosted by their partners, with RAAF aircrew attending the 52nd Air Force cultural concert and dinner.
“Importantly, everyone undertook cultural and military museum tours to gain a better appreciation and understanding of Bangladesh, its people and history,” Lieutenant Colonel Dempsey said.
Australia’s 2023 Defence Strategic Review confirmed the north-east Indian Ocean as a priority region for Australian defence engagement.
Indo-Pacific Endeavour (IPE) 2023 is Australia’s flagship regional engagement activity and will visit 14 countries over four months.
