Exercise Pitch Black shows employers the benefit of Reserve service

Twenty-one employers will get a taste of military life this week when they head to the Northern Territory for the Department of Defence’s Boss Lift to Exercise Pitch Black.

Exercise Pitch Black is the Royal Australian Air Force’s largest and most complex air exercise that enables the Australian Defence Force to train with international air forces in the Northern Territory once every two years.

As part of Exercise Pitch Black aircraft from Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, Thailand and Australia have begun operating from RAAF Base Darwin, while at RAAF Base Tindal, more Australian aircraft are working alongside counterparts from the United States and French New Caledonia.

Exercise Boss Lift is designed to show employers the vital contribution Reservists make to the Australian Defence Force.

Employers will visit RAAF Base Darwin to view FA18s, C130s and the operation of the control tower. They will meet with members of the Australian Army at Robertson Barracks as well as have the opportunity to use the Weapons Training Simulation System. The participants will also go on a Rigid Hull Inflatable Boat ride and visit Navy’s patrol boat base in Darwin.

Head Cadet, Reserve and Employer Support Division, Major General Iain Spence said he believed the Boss Lift participants would gain a valuable insight into the benefits that Reservists can bring back to the civilian workplace.

"There are over 20,000 Active Reservists in the Australian Defence Force," said General Spence.

"Our aim is to highlight the skills Reservists gain from being in the ADF and to show how those skills can be transferred to the workplace to the benefit of their civilian employers."

For more information on the Reserves go to www.defencereservessupport.gov.au

Media contact:

Defence Media Operations (02) 6127 1999