Peacekeeping, Protection and Perspective: Lessons from Operation ASLAN with Maj Mark Vele

Peacekeeping, Protection and Perspective: Lessons from Operation ASLAN with Maj Mark Vele

In this episode of The Cove Podcast, John Hardgrave speaks with an Australian Army officer Mark Vele about his 12-month deployment on Operation ASLAN with the United Nations Mission in South Sudan. The discussion explores the realities of preparing for a UN peacekeeping mission, working in a multinational headquarters, living and operating in Juba, and the personal and professional challenges of serving in a complex security environment far from home.

Training, Culture, and Cohesion: A Rifle Company in Malaysia with Maj San-Joe Tan and Private Tom Lefevre

In this episode of The Cove Podcast, we unpack a recent Reginal Combat Team (previously known as Rifle Company Butterworth) rotation through the perspectives of a soldier and an officer. They discuss how they were selected, the lead-up training and integration between reserve and full-time soldiers, and what it’s really like operating and living in Malaysia. It’s a practical look at the challenges, adaptations, and experiences that make RCT a unique and valuable Army deployment.

On Call to War, Inside the Mind of an Army Surgeon with Brigadier Andrew Higgs, Director General Health Reserves Army

This episode of The Cove Podcast explores the unique career of an Army Reserve surgeon, tracing his journey from medical school to operational deployments in Afghanistan and Iraq. He unpacks the realities of balancing a demanding civilian surgical career with military service, and the long pathway to becoming a specialist in both worlds. The conversation dives into the role of Defence health professionals beyond the operating theatre, highlighting leadership, teamwork, and decision-making in high-pressure environments. Listeners gain insight into trauma care on deployment, the importance of values and character in selection, and how the Army attracts and retains highly skilled medical personnel. It’s a candid look at service, sacrifice, and the pursuit of excellence that shows how medicine and soldiering intersect in some of the most challenging conditions imaginable.

Advising, Not Commanding: Inside ADFs PNG Defence Cooperation Programme with WO2 Dathan Rolfe

In this episode of The Cove Podcast, we unpack the reality of a posting to the Defence Cooperation Programme in Papua New Guinea. Joined by Warrant Officer Dathan Rolfe, we explore what it means to operate in an environment where influence matters more than authority and relationships outweigh rank. From competing for the position and preparing family for an accompanied move to Port Moresby, through to the professional demands of advising the PNG Defence Force, this conversation highlights a side of service many soldiers never see. It’s not a warfighting deployment, but it is operationally significant, shaping regional stability, strengthening partnerships, and reinforcing Australia’s strategic interests in our near region. This episode is about career risk, professional growth, family commitment, and why PNG matters far more to Australian security than most realise.

From Snow to Slouch Hat, Transitioning Between Two Armies with LTCOL Devon Matsalla

In this episode of The Cove Podcast, John Hardgrave sits down with a former Canadian Army Colonel who traded snow boots for a slouch hat and brought 26 years of coalition experience with him. From early service in the reserves as a bagpiper to deployments in Bosnia and Afghanistan, and later leading multinational warfighting seminars within Australia’s 1st Division, this conversation explores what happens when two professional armies—shaped by different histories, geographies, and cultures—collide in the best possible way. They unpack the Canadian Army’s identity forged at Vimy Ridge, its bilingual and multicultural foundations, Arctic operations and the Canadian Rangers, and how a “do more with less” mindset contrasts with Australia’s operational focus in the Indo-Pacific. Along the way, they discuss coalition warfare, sustainment, capability development, and the subtle but telling differences between militaries—from equipment procurement to wearing the slouch hat correctly. This episode is a practical and candid look at professional military culture, adaptability, and what junior and senior leaders alike can learn from operating across nations.