RAAF joins US-led Exercise Valiant Shield 26

Bringing together US, Japanese, Canadian, and New Zealand forces, the exercise will be a major global display of defensive interoperability in the land, sea, air, space and cyber environment.

Working across Japan, Hawaii, Guam, and Australia, participants will work together using a range of technologies and vehicles to detect and disable threats.

“This year’s complex training environment reflects the shared challenges we face in the current strategic circumstances,” said Chief of Joint Operations, Vice Admiral Justin Jones.

“In a highly complex and dynamic threat environment across maritime, land, air, cyber and space domains – we need to be able to seamlessly operate with allies and partners.

“The experience we draw from Exercise Valiant Shield 26 ensures Australia is working alongside our allies and partners to deter acts of military aggression, and maintain a credible military force capable of holding potential adversary forces at risk.”

The ADF will also work with a US Air Force MQ-28A Ghost Bat to further advance collaborative combat aircraft engagement.

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Valiant Shield has grown in recent years, with a more direct focus on the cyber and space domain as technology in the environment grows, alongside the potential for warfare threats.

Command and control systems, information sharing, and electronic warfare efforts are some of the critical cyber capacities that have been practiced in previous operations.

The exercise has seen major development from its first iteration in 2006, with partner nations originally joining in 2024.