US Marines in remote corner of Australia are practicing to guide Air Force bombers to targets across the Pacific

At remote ranges in northern Australia this summer, US Marines and Australian troops trained to guide US bombers to targets on far-flung islands, illustrating the Corps’ increasing focus on a potential war in the Pacific.

COVID-19 affected the deployment of the Marine Rotational Force based in Darwin, on Australia’s northern coast, but didn’t keep it from using new assets and concepts.

In August, Marines flew RQ-21A Blackjack drones in Australia for the first time as part of the month-long Exercise Loobye.

The exercise, which involved Marines, the US Air Force, and the Australian Defense Force, “focused on a small naval expeditionary force’s ability to rapidly deploy, integrate with foreign partners, coordinate airstrikes and call for close air support on targets within contested environments,” according to a release.

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