Photo By Sgt. Ezekieljay Correa | U.S. Marines with 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, Marine Rotational Force –...... read more read more
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U.S. Marines with the Marine Rotational Force – Darwin (MRF-D) 25.3 Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF) joined the Australian Army’s 1st Brigade, Australian Defence Force (ADF), for Predator Series 2025, a dual-exercise campaign designed to sharpen interoperability and demonstrate regional readiness across two major evolutions: Predator’s Walk and Predator’s Run.
The Predator Series serves as a cornerstone of allied training in the Indo-Pacific, strengthening U.S.–Australia defense ties and enhancing the collective capability to respond swiftly and decisively to emerging security challenges.
"At some point, the Australians and Americans will be hand to hand together,” said 1st Lt. Brendan Donovan, the company commander of Fox Company, 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, MRF-D 25.3. “If we understand how each other fight — how we communicate, how we operate — we can overcome friction and produce a very effective, very lethal force. That’s going to be great for us — and very bad for any adversary we have to face."
To start the series, the bilateral force focused on small-unit endurance operations during Predator’s Walk. This portion emphasized dismounted patrolling, communications, squad through company attacks, and ambush scenarios. Marines and ADF soldiers navigated austere terrain with limited resupply, testing their decision-making and resilience under pressure.
"We started with buddy pair attacks, progressed to squad-supported assaults using MAAWs [M3E1 Multi-role Anti-armor Anti-personnel Weapon System], machine guns, and mortars — all in the tree line,” said Donovan. “It's very different than back in the States. Marines had to think on their feet, communicate clearly, and execute under stress."
The walk phase stressed the importance of infantry fundamentals, physical endurance, and distributed leadership in preparing U.S.-ADF forces for future complex, multi-domain operations and for the run phase of the exercise.
"It’s not just battle drills,” said Donovan. “You’ve got to have a solid plan and adjust when things don’t go your way. We’ve proven our platoons can execute live-fire through dynamic terrain."
Predator’s Run brought together infantry, artillery, and logistics elements in the next evolution of the series to conduct high-intensity live-fire maneuver training across the rugged expanse of Mount Bundey. U.S. Marines operated shoulder-to-shoulder with 1st Brigade, executing deliberate attacks, integrating combined fires, and reinforcing combined-arms lethality.
"Throughout this exercise, Australian and U.S. Marine forces worked closely, not just in infantry tactics, but in the integration of joint fires and effects,” said 1st Lt. Oscar Little, a joint fires officer with the Royal Australian Artillery. "It’s the result of Months of planning and it’s given both nations a fantastic opportunity to operate together in a demanding environment."
Predator Series 2025 reaffirmed the strategic value of MRF-D’s forward-deployed presence in northern Australia. As regional dynamics shift, exercises like Predator Series ensure allied forces remain agile, interoperable, and postured to uphold security, stability, and a free and open Indo-Pacific.
"We’re here to have a forward presence — and to keep building that connection with the Australians,” said Donoavan. “We learn from each other. We train together. That’s why we’re here."
| Date Taken: | 06.27.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 07.21.2025 06:55 |
| Story ID: | 543311 |
| Location: | NORTHERN TERRITORY, AU |
| Web Views: | 67 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Predator Series 25: A showcase of lethal readiness and allied agility in the Northern Territory, by SSgt James Guillory, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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