Page 38 - Australian Defence Magazine March-April 2022

38 DEFENCE EXPORT
MARCH-APRIL 2022 | WWW.AUSTRALIANDEFENCE.COM.AU
ADAC – A MISSED OPPORTUNITY?
At face value, Australian defence industry is optimistic of winning Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) work under the terms of a bilateral agreement with the United States but, after more than a decade, very little of this work has actually flowed across the Pacific.
NIGEL PITTAWAY | MELBOURNE
THE POTENTIAL to perform MRO component overhaul and repair work in support of deployed US forces – and those of its regional allies with equipment sourced via the For- eign Military Sales (FMS) process – is, on paper, a win-win situation for all parties, so why has progress been so disap- pointing to date?
Under the auspices of the AUSMIN Defence Acquisition Committee (ADAC), the Defence Trade Agreement was signed by the Australian and US governments in September 2007 and ratified by both parties in November 2010, to pro- vide a licence-free trade between their respective industries. More recently, this has been expanded to cover MRO oppor- tunities for Australian industry, but to date just two relative- ly small contracts have been awarded and there is concern across the sector that the promised potential may never be realised unless a way to free the log jam can be found.
POTENTIAL BENEFITS
in large numbers.
The drawdown of several US
fleets – for example the retirement of the US Navy and Marine Corps’ ‘Classic’ F/A-18 Hornet, the Navy’s replacement of the P-3 Orion and the USMC’s divesting of its M1A1 Abrams tank fleet – means the throughput of work to US repair de- pots and supporting industry is be-
coming less viable. Australia’s defence industry on the other hand has built up around relatively small volumes of work and so it would seem to make sense for both governments to divert this legacy work to a trusted and capable partner.
From an operational standpoint too, if the supply chain for deployed units can be shortened, fleet availability will
RIGHT: RUAG Australia is just one local company facing a reduction in workload after the completion of F/A-18 Hornet repair and overhaul work for the RAAF
potentially increase in step – and in the event of conflict in the region, a second supply source will only benefit the US armed forces’ ability to project and maintain a force.
Australia’s defence industry already does this work in many cases, and the increased throughput into their facili- ties benefits not only the local economy but also the contin- ued growth of a skilled workforce.
Examples of this include RUAG Australia, which has supported the ADF for many years – including MRO work for the RAAF’s ‘Classic’ Hornets and AP-3C Orions; TAE Aerospace, which overhauled the Hornet’s GE F404 en- gines until retirement (and still provides a similar capa- bility for the Royal Malaysian Air Force), and the Honey- well AGT1500 gas turbine engine fitted to the Australian Army’s M1A1 Abrams; and Quickstep, which has a world- leading composite manufacturing and repair capability and has provided support for platforms ranging from the Hornet to the F-35.
Australia stands to benefit from a number of parallel events, including the deployment of more US forces to the region, the FMS acquisition of equipment of its regional allies and the need to US defence industry to transition from supporting legacy platforms to new generation equipment planned
“TO DATE JUST TWO RELATIVELY SMALL CONTRACTS HAVE BEEN AWARDED AND THERE IS CONCERN ACROSS THE SECTOR THAT THE PROMISED POTENTIAL MAY NEVER BE REALISED”