Army General Service Officers are allocated to specific roles shortly before graduation from the Royal Military College - Duntroon. The allocation of roles is based on performance during training.
The role of a Transport Officer (Transport Corps Officers, Royal Australian Corps of Transport (RACT)) is to control and operate Army owned surface and riverine transport, other than unit transport, and to provide movement control, terminal, postal and Army aspects of air logistics support. Transport Officers has about 351 officers and 1984 other ranks (about 8 percent of the Regular Army).
The Transport Officer delivers the Army's petrol, oils, food, equipment and ammunition. The Corps is also responsible for the Army's movement systems, which coordinates the use of land, sea and air transport to meet the Army's and Defence's requirements. The Corps consists of several trades, which you could expect to be streamed in at least one, but probably two of the following trades:
1. Road Transport: command a Troop with up to 50 people and 30 vehicles ranging from G Wagons and rigid four tonne trucks to triple road train semi trailers
2. Water Transport: command a Troop with up to 40 people and six watercraft that are either LCM8 or LARC V which operate independently for extended periods of time
3. Cargo Specialist (or Terminal Support): command a Troop with up to 40 people and 20 vehicles ranging from 2.5-20 tonne rough terrain forklifts, 20 tonne cranes and various wheeled vehicles. A Troop is responsible for Logistics over the shore, port, road, air and rail cargo receipt, storage and on forwarding
4. Air Dispatch: command a Troop with up to 45 people responsible for packing parachutes, storing parachute equipment and and rigging loads for air drop operations; this role may involve becoming parachute qualified. The trade actively supports airborne, airmobile and airland operations providing aerial logistic resupply and force insertion
5. Movements: Command a Troop of up to 20 people. Develop plans and coordinate and control the operational deployment, sustainment and redeployment of up to 10,000 people within Australia and overseas
All Transport Officers are expected to demonstrate high standards of leadership and command, possess a thorough knowledge of logistics, tactics, an ability to quickly analyse complex and changing situations, and a detailed knowledge of Transport Officers vehicles and equipment, including how they are best employed.
Transport Officers has a need for officers with degrees. This requirement comes from an increasing involvement by the Corps in the fields of system management, computing, fleet management, capability development and introduction into service and civilian business (transport) practices.
Regular Officers could expect the following types of employment as their career progresses:
Lieutenant -Troop Commander and one other appointment.
Captain - Troop Commander of a larger Troop (90 personnel and 50 vehicles), sub-unit Operations Officer, Second in Command of a sub unit, Adjutant, Instructor, Movements Officer, UN Observer, Staff Captain, long term schooling for a transport or business related post graduate diploma or degree.
Major - Squadron Commander, unit Operations Officer, Senior Instructor, Transport and Movements Staff Officer, staff officer, UN Observer, overseas training or exchange appointments, student at Command and Staff College.
In more recent time many Transport Officers have served on operational tours of duty overseas in places such as Afghanistan, Iraq, East Timor, Sinai, Sudan, Israel, United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Bahrain.