The 16th Air Land Regiment (16 ALR) was established on the 16th of January 2012 following the amalgamation of 1st Ground Liaison Group into 1st Air Ground Operations (AGO) Battery, and the re-titling of the Regiment from 16th Air Defence Regiment, to 16 ALR.
The Regiment is based at Woodside Barracks in South Australia.
The current structure of the Regiment is:
• 110th Air Defence Battery, which is responsible for defending land forces from enemy air attack using the RBS-70 short range missile system, and the PSTAR-ER Radar;
• 111th C-RAM Battery, which is responsible for detecting and warning land forces of incoming artillery attack, as well as locating the point of origin of those attacks to enable joint effects on the enemy using the Giraffe Agile Multi Beam (GAMB) radar and Light-weight Counter Mortar Radar (LCMR);
• 1st AGO Battery, which is responsible for the coordination and allocation of friendly air assets in support of the land force in the joint war fighting environment; and
• Combat Service Support (CSS) Battery, which is responsible for the sustainment and maintenance of the Regiment both in the barracks and field environment, and includes cooks, vehicle mechanics, and technical electricians.
16 ALR is rapidly developing and enhancing capabilities to respond to the requirements of the modern battle space. The GBAD capability will soon be enhanced by the arrival of the Protected Mobility - Air Defence Variant (PM-ADV) vehicle, which will allow the Regiment to maintain a rapid rate of advance, commensurate with the supported land force. The C-RAM capability will also be further enhanced through the arrival of the Advanced Field Artillery Tactical Data System (AFATDS) which will allow communication between C-RAM detachments and friendly Artillery units. The AGO Battery is continuing to refine its processes, and aims to be able to coordinate air assets at all levels of command, as well as providing a strike capability through the Battery’s Joint Terminal Attack Controllers (JTAC) Troop.
The Regiment has, in recent history, deployed soldiers to Timor-Leste, and currently maintains an operational commitment to OPERATION MAZURKA (Egypt), and OPERATION SLIPPER (Afghanistan).