4000 SA Defense Force personnel in military exercise for next 10 days.

New and experimental technology is at the core of a multimillion-rand military exercise which is testing the state of readiness of the country’s defence force.

With thousands of South African soldiers, sailors, pilots and paratroopers taking part in the R20 million exercise, which has been three years in the planning, the country’s commander-in-chief, President Jacob Zuma, will know within weeks whether the defence can respond to a threat to South Africa’s sovereignty.

From across the country 4 000 defence force personnel, including mechanised infantry, airborne and maritime forces, tactical intelligence troops and special forces operatives have been gathering for Exercise Indlovu, which will culminate in a mock battle for the defence of Kimberley.

With the maritime section of the exercise, involving the navy’s reaction force along with submariners and sailors, nearing completion, the army is now preparing for its role.

The exercise will, in the next 10 days, see vicious land battles playing themselves out at the SANDF’s combat training centre in Lohatla as paratroopers and ground forces respond to the attacks.

While the main battles will take place in the Northern Cape, it is in specially located military headquarters in Bloemfontein that the defence force’s new state-of-the-art and experimental command and control technology will be put to the test.

www.iol.co.za...

Coincidence?

Lately ATS has been abuzz with the upcoming US national emergency tests and now SA? It’s kinda out of the blue… There hasn’t been much of this in the news lately.
This got me thinking, how many other countries are busy with military training during November 2011?

I found these so far…

Pakistan/China

Pakistan, China joint military exercise YOUYI-IV in mid November
'Pakistan Times' Federal Bureau
RAWALPINDI: Pakistan, China Joint Military Exercise YOUYI-IV is scheduled to be held in mid November in Pakistan.

The joint exercise, spread over a period of two weeks, is aimed at mutual exchange of experience and information through a comprehensive training programme in real time, a press release issued by ISPR said here on Thursday.

pakistantimes.net...



Singapore/Australia

From ABC News Online (www.abc.net.au...)
Last Update: Monday, June 20, 2005. 1:00pm (AEST)
Dept outlines benefits in Singapore defence training

Australia's Defence Department says training in Australia by Singapore's Armed Forces offers important benefits to Australia and the region.

The department was giving evidence to a parliamentary hearing on a five-year extension of Singapore's right to conduct military exercises in the Shoalwater Bay Training Area near Rockhampton in central Queensland.

The proposed treaty allows Singapore to deploy up to 6,600 troops for a maximum of 45 days a year.

A deputy secretary of the Defence Department, Shane Carmody, says Singapore uses sophisticated technology and is a high quality exercise partner for Australia.

militarynuts.com...

Another good link
kementah.blogspot.com...

4 000 defence force personnel

When I was in we trained all of the time to keep up readiness. I don't think there's much to this small SA exercise. I say small because one American aircraft carrier has more personnel in training than that whole country combined.

Ex:

USS Ronald Reagan (CVN-76)
Complement: Ship's company: 3,200
Air wing: 2,480

Good to keep an eye out for these things though but it would take more forces in readiness to make me sit up and notice. Who knows it could be something.

Nothing. Lost of countries conduct military exercises in November-not just this year but every year.