On 16 November 2011, the Australian prime minister, Julia Gillard, and U.S. president Barack Obama announced that starting in 2012 U.S. Marines would deploy to Darwin on a rotational basis for about six months to conduct exercises and train with the Australian Defence Force in the Northern Territory.

[4] On 14 June 2013, the prime minister announced that in 2014 the size of the deployment would increase to 1,150 U.S. Marines, to be based at Robertson Barracks.

[5] During the 2023 rotation, MRF-D suffered a tragedy when one of their MV-22 Osprey helicopters crashed during a training event, resulting in the loss of three Marines.

Marine Coordination Element (MCE) operates year-round to maintain relationships and seamless transition.

[citation needed] In September 2021, after residents of Timber Creek were shown around BFTA during Exercise Koolendong, MRF-D commanding officer Colonel David Banning expressed his appreciation to the traditional owners for their hospitality and ongoing support.