The Combined Arms Training Centre (CATC) is an

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...

training establishment that is part of Forces Command. Its headquarters is located at Bridges Barracks, at

Puckapunyal Puckapunyal (more formally the Puckapunyal Military Area, but also known as the Puckapunyal Camp or Puckapunyal Army Base, and colloquially as "Pucka") is an Australian Army training facility and base 10 km west of Seymour, in central Vic ...

, near

Seymour, Victoria Seymour () is a historic railway township located in the Southern end of the Goulburn Valley in the Shire of Mitchell, Victoria, Australia and is located north of Melbourne. At the , Seymour had a population of 6,569. The township services t ...

, approximately to the north of

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

. The centre was established in 1998–1999, in the mould of the

Army Logistic Training Centre The Army Logistic Training Centre (ALTC) is an Australian Army training establishment that is part of Forces Command. Established on 1 December 1995, through the amalgamation of nine separate logistic, health and personnel services schools and t ...

, to group the individual schools of the Army's combat corps – armour,

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...

engineers Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the ...

and

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...

– under one command. At the time of its establishment it was known as the Combat Arms Training Centre, but in 2006 it was redesignated as the Combined Arms Training Centre. The centre is commanded by an

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," f ...

with the rank of

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

who holds the appointment of commandant. Of its constituent schools, two – the School of Artillery and the School of Armour – are co-located with HQ CATC at Puckapunyal, while the

School of Infantry A School of Infantry provides training in weapons and infantry tactics to infantrymen of a nation's military forces. Schools of infantry include: Australia *Australian Army – School of Infantry, Lone Pine Barracks at Singleton, NSW. France ...

is located at

Lone Pine Barracks Lone Pine Barracks is an Australian Army base located in New South Wales, south of Singleton. The barracks is home to the Australian Army School of Infantry, Special Forces Training Centre, Defence Support Group Singleton and other regular suppo ...

Singleton, New South Wales Singleton is a town on the banks of the Hunter River in New South Wales, Australia. Singleton is 197 km (89 mi) north-north-west of Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city ...

, and the School of Military Engineering is located at

Holsworthy Barracks Holsworthy Barracks is an Australian Army military barracks, located in the Heathcote National Park in Holsworthy approximately from the central business district, in south-western Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The barracks is part of ...

in the

Liverpool Military Area Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

. The establishment provides individual training to officers and

soldier A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a conscripted or volunteer enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, or an officer. Etymology The word ''soldier'' derives from the Middle English word , from Old French ...

s across a number of courses including initial employment training and regimental officer basic courses, as well as more advanced and specialty courses, using a variety of techniques and technologies including simulators and other training aids, as well as operational equipment and weapons platforms. In addition, the centre is the venue for a number of other training exercises and activities. This includes the Australian Army Skill at Arms Meet (AASAM), which includes teams from the Army, Air Force and Navy, as well as teams from overseas. A combined arms firepower demonstration is also carried out at CATC every year called Exercise Chong Ju.

References

{{reflist Australian Army Military units and formations established in 1998