Photo By Sgt. Isaac Copeland | An excavated trench provides fire mitigation and a tactical feature for follow-on forces during Super Garuda Shield 2026 at Baturaja Combat Training Center, Indonesia, Sept. 3, 2026. Super Garuda Shield is an annual exercise between the Indonesian National Armed Forces and U.S. Military designed to strengthen bilateral interoperability, capabilities, and cooperation. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Isaac Copeland) see less
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U.S., Indonesian forces add wildfire safeguards ahead of Super Garuda Shield joint land strike
BATURAJA, Indonesia — The Super Garuda Shield 2026 Joint Land Strike is scheduled for Sept. 4 after U.S. and Indonesian forces added wildfire safeguards at Baturaja Combat Training Center, including firebreaks, improved emergency access and staged firefighting resources.
The measures address wildfire concerns during the dry season. They are intended to protect personnel, nearby communities and the environment, while preserving realistic multinational training. Conditions will be reassessed continuously, and leaders can modify or stop training if necessary.
At the impact area, engineers cleared vegetation around target zones and improved a road so firefighting vehicles can easily reach the site. They also placed firebreaks along the response route and around areas to be used by the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or HIMARS.
“We’ve emplaced multiple fire breaks for not just the fire route itself so that the trucks can get in and out, but also for the impact areas where the Apaches and the HIMARS will be shooting,” said U.S. Army 1st Lt. Calderon, commander of the 766th Engineer Company.
Indonesian fire trucks and a U.S. Army HIPPO water tank will provide firefighting capacity near the impact area. At the firing point, engineers cleared vegetation around the launch area, where the ground will be wetted before firing and response personnel will remain nearby.
“This is a combined effort. We’ve got Indonesian fire trucks backed up by American water, American manpower for firefighting backed up by Indonesian fire trucks,” said U.S. Army Maj. Emerson Davis, the 4th Infantry Division operations officer for Super Garuda Shield.
Personnel will monitor the firing point and impact area throughout the event so response elements can identify and address a potential fire quickly. Davis said anyone on the range has authority to call a cease-fire if something appears unsafe.
Senior U.S. and Indonesian leaders reviewed both areas, assessed the preparations and aligned their approach to risk. That shared planning is part of the exercise’s training value: participating forces must establish common procedures, communicate across organizations and adapt to Indonesia’s terrain and seasonal conditions.
“We don’t want to have any negative impacts on the country that we are training in. With the U.S. presence, we want to ensure and reconfirm confidence within our partners when we conduct training to a professional standard,” said U.S. Army Maj. Stephen Plante, a 4th Infantry Division G-35 planner.
The preparations show how interoperability during Super Garuda Shield extends beyond employing equipment together. U.S. and Indonesian forces are combining resources, establishing shared safety standards and adapting plans to local conditions while preserving the Joint Land Strike training objective.
Super Garuda Shield 2026 is an annual multinational exercise led by Indonesia and the United States that strengthens interoperability and provides participating forces opportunities to plan, train and operate together in support of regional peace and stability.
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