Bombardier Schoene was posted to 107th Field Battery, 4th Field Regiment as a gun sergeant in 1980 and promoted to in June that year. He was employed as the detachment commander of D sub on the 105mm L5 Pack Howitzer. His detachment was awarded the Rammer (Best Detachment Trophy) in 1980, 1981 and 1984. During 1981/82, Sergeant Schoene was detached to Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment for duty as a Platoon Sergeant 5 Platoon in Rifle Company Butterworth. In 1982, he attended promotion courses and was awarded the best “A’ Grade Student at the School of Artillery, Manly for the Warrant Officer Gunnery Course. In 1983, he was employed as the Command Post Sergeant. Sergeant Schoene was awarded the Order of Australia Medal for his services to 4th Field Regiment in the Australia Day Honours List in 1985.
In January 1985, he was promoted Warrant Officer Class Two and posted to the Officer Cadet School Portsea as the Training Development Officer and instructor. In 1986, he was seconded to Land Command Artillery, to manage and train the L5 Pack Howitzer gun racing teams that had been selected from units to compete in the Sydney International Tattoo. By Jun 1986, he had been posted as a Sergeant Major Instructor Gunnery (SMIG) in Gunnery Wing at the School of Artillery at North Head, Manly.
Warrant Officer Schoene was posted as the Australian Exchange SMIG for duty with the Royal School of Artillery at Larkhill, England in July 1987 to July 1989. He instructed in the Command Post Cell and taught command post duties to all ranks specializing on Field Artillery Computer Equipment (FACE) series 3, 4 and 5 and the manual emergency firing.
On return to Australia in late 1989, he spent the remainder of the year at Gunnery Wing at the School of Artillery until he was posted as the Battery Sergeant Major, 107th Field Battery, 4th Field Regiment in January 1990. In 1991, he successfully attended the Regimental Sergeant Major’s Course conducted at the School of Infantry, Singleton.
Warrant Officer Schoene was promoted and posted as the Regimental Sergeant Major, 7th Field Regiment in January 1992. In January 1994, he was posted as the Master Gunner Land Command Artillery. In 1996, he was posted as the Regimental Sergeant Major, 4th Field Regiment.
In 1998, Warrant Officer Schoene was posted as the Regimental Sergeant Major of 9th Brigade and in 2000 he was deployed to East Timor in a variety of roles culminating as the Australian Defence Liaison Officer at the Australian Mission in East Timor and commenced the Defence Cooperation Program with the fledgling East Timor Defence Force. Returning to Australia in early 2001, Warrant Officer Schoene was initially posted as the Regimental Sergeant Major at the Combat Arms Training Centre. Shortly after moving to Puckapunyal, he was re-posted to the Army Recruit Training Centre as the Regimental Sergeant Major arriving in late March 2001 just in time to coordinate the receiving and trooping of the Governor General’s Banner.
In February 2002, Warrant Officer Schoene transferred to the Inactive Reserve and returned to Townsville with his young family. He was not inactive for long as he was employed under Defence Act s50 as a project officer with the Artillery Trade and Training Cell at the Combat Arms Training Centre and by July 2002, he had backfilled the ARA Regimental Sergeant Major position at the Regional Training Centre, North Queensland.
By April 2003, he had successfully attended ASWOCS selection and had returned to Continuous Full-Time Service (CFTS) posted as the Senior Assistant Proof Officer (SAPO) at the Proof and Experimental Establishment, Port Wakefield. In December 2003, now commissioned as Captain Schoene, he reverted to Active Reserve and was posted to the Regional Training Centre, South Australia as the Senior Instructor of the newly established ARA Soldier Promotion Section. This led to another stint of CFTS in this role and later as the Staff Officer Grade 3 Logistics at the Regional Training Centre, South Australia before re-enlistment in the ARA and re-posting as the SAPO at Port Wakefield. Captain Schoene served at the Proof Range until 2007. It was a busy period which included multiple trials and evaluations including the last live firing of the Naval 4.5 inch and the 155mm High Explosive Rocket Assist projectiles which were used to test the M198 recoil mechanisms.
His previous service and his performance as a Regimental Sergeant Major and Master Gunner had also been recognised resulting in his promotion to Major with effect January 2006. In January 2008, Major Schoene was posted as the Staff Officer Grade 2 to the Head of Regiment at the School of Artillery, Puckapunyal.
In January 2010, Major Schoene was posted as the Manager, Joint Operations Support Services, South Australia at Keswick Barracks. This job included the duties and responsibilities as the Regional Training Area Manager, South Australia and the administrative commanding officer for metropolitan Adelaide. It was a hectic year that saw the need for the job to be split and in January 2011, Major Schoene fulfilled the position as the Regional Training Area Manager, South Australia.
Major Schoene was offered redundancy from the ARA in January 2012 and as part of the redundancy, he was again transferred to the Inactive Reserve. By mid January, Major Schoene was transferred to the Active Reserve and posted to the Directorate of Operations and Training Area Management where he served as a Reserve Joint Operations Liaison Officer, Project Officer and Range Control Officer.
Major Schoene continued to serve in the Active Reserve until he reached Compulsory Retirement Age (CRA) and was separated from Service in April 2021. He was granted the honorary title Major under s33 of the Defence Regulations 2016 at separation.
Honours and awards include the Medal of the Order of Australia, the Australian Active Service Medal with clasp EAST TIMOR, the Australian Service Medal with clasp SE ASIA, the Defence Force Service Medal with four clasps and the Australian Defence Medal.
Kym is divorced and lives in the northern suburbs of Adelaide. He enjoys family life with his daughter Ashlee, caravanning, reading and watching the Sydney Swans Football Club win premierships.
- Master Gunner Land Command Artillery
- Combat Arms Training Centre
- Army Recruit Training Centre
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