Page 162 - Australian Defence Magazine Sep-Oct 2022

162 DEFENCE BUSINESS VIEW FROM CANBERRA
SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2022 | WWW.AUSTRALIANDEFENCE.COM.AU
VIEW FROM CANBERRA
If anyone needed reminding, the conflict in Ukraine has highlighted the effectiveness of modern anti- tank guided missiles (ATGM), especially against a foe whose bombast has not been matched by ability to conduct manoeuvre and combined arms warfare.
A SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT | CANBERRA
LARGE numbers of Russian tanks and other armoured ve- hicles have fallen to Javelin, NLAW and other missiles do- nated by western nations including Australia.
It’s not quite clear whether Australian Javelins came from actual inventory or out of US stocks, with the understanding that we would reimburse them in due course.
The Australian Army first acquired Javelin in 2003 as a rapid acquisition to equip special forces for Iraq and later Afghanistan. It’s a fair bet that we never held large numbers and a US FMS deal for 200 in October 2020 may have been designed to address that.
Then in August 2018, then Defence Minister Marise Payne announced the Israeli Rafael Spike LR2 would equip new Boxer Combat Reconnaissance Vehicles.
Spike is now mandated for Infantry Fighting Vehicles (Land 400/3) and for dismounted infantry under Land 159 Tranche 2.
So, what does Defence say about this?
“In September 2021, the Commonwealth entered a con- tract with Varley Rafael Australia for the provision of techni- cal data to enable certification. Work towards missile certifi- cation required to ensure the Spike LR2 Missile is safe and suitable for use by Australian soldiers is ongoing,” a Defence spokesperson told ADM.
Considering Spike has been around for 40 years and used in multiple conflicts, is in service with more than 30 coun- tries and manufactured in Israel, Germany and Singapore, Australia’s insistence on rigorous certification seems curious.
That process is expected to be finalised in the next few months. In November last year VRA signed a MOU with Thales. It also provided a proposal to Defence on standing up local production.
So standby.
Spike NLOS is already integrated to Israeli and US Apache helicopters and it could readily be fitted to armed drones, if we ever get them, as well as warships such as the virtually unarmed OPVs.
Making Spikes in Australia would be a significant advance for defence industry. There’s plenty of high tech, much of it well within the capabilities of Australian industry. It would be nice if Australia’s first production Spikes were 100 per cent Aussie made but that might not be possible. Some com- ponents may have to be sourced from Israel (or elsewhere), at least at the outset.
As Ben Greene, EOS CEO noted at the launch of the Sov- ereign Missile Alliance in 2021, the four hard bits of missiles are C2, stabilisation, navigation and seeker.
“Rocket motors are great. If you take the best 10 rocket en- gines in the world, there’s only 25 per cent difference in per- formance between the best one and the ninth one,” he said.
“If you take the best seekers in the world, there’s a 300 per cent difference between the best one and the third one. Tech- nology leverage for Australia comes in those four areas.” ■
ABOVE: In September 2018, Rafael and Australian company Varley formed a joint venture – Varley Rafael Australia (VRA) – to manufacture Spike in Australia
“SO, ALMOST FOUR YEARS ON, WHERE ARE WE WITH STANDING UP AUSTRALIAN PRODUCTION OF SPIKE?”
Then in September 2018, Rafael and Australian company Varley formed a joint venture – Varley Rafael Australia (VRA) – to manufacture Spike in Aus- tralia, creating a sovereign capability.
One certainty of modern combat is that PGMs will be used at a prodi- gious rate. That is certainly the case in Ukraine which started the conflict with substantial stocks of ATGM plus a do- mestic ATGM industry. Yet it’s still need- ed all the donated missiles it can get.
The ADF knows full well once warstocks are exhausted, we are beholden to the US (or whoever) for resupply and, in time of crisis, that nation’s military may have first claim on new production.
Hence the push to create a sovereign missile industry. So, almost four years on, where are we with standing up Austra- lian production of Spike?
Not close and even if Defence gave the go-ahead today, there wouldn’t be an Aussie Spike available inside three years – about the same time it would take to acquire stocks from overseas. However, initial procurements for training will come from Israel maybe sooner.
VRA