Page 22 - Australian Defence Magazine Sep 2021

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DEFENCE BUSINESS
RETROSPECTIVE
SEPTEMBER 2021 | WWW.AUSTRALIANDEFENCE.COM.AU
Another Avalon rolled around in 2011, with the MRTT making headlines for misplacing some booms during flights in Spain but the issues would not affect the RAAF delivery schedule, according to Luis Guerra of Airbus Military.
I headed down to BAE Systems Williamstown site for a check in with the LHD program in 2012. There is a 20 per cent learning curve between doing blocks on the ship. Head of Maritime for the company Brent Clark explained that the relationship between BAE and Navan-
munition and propellants took me around the world to look at capabil- ity in eight nations with contenders. I learnt about insensitive munitions, the pros and cons of wood vs paper for propellent production, what on earth a Meisner melt pour facility is, and how tightly integrated the international supply chain is for raw materials when it comes to sovereign production. This was a huge oppor- tunity to modernise the efforts at Benalla and Mulwala and redefine what value for money looked like. The program was cancelled and existing arrangements with Thales extended with slight amendments in 2014. I still have a small eyeball twitch about this program.
Another Avalon in 2013; JSF is still cool but there was no decision on timing of another 12 from Defence Minister Stephen Smith. But a decision on acquiring Super Hornets was due that year. UAVs are getting cool but still not as cool as manned platforms, either fixed or rotary wing. The Russian government/in- dustry delegation really wants to speak to me about how cool their stuff is and why the RAAF will benefit from
it. I listen politely.
Head of Helicopter Division Rear Admiral
tia on the LHD is ‘great and much more of a partnership, and very different to that of the AWD Alliance’. The quality issues around AWD blocks were examined with lessons learned being applied.
Then-Chief of Air Force Air Marshal Geoff Brown explained at a Williams Foun- dation seminar that it only takes 4-5 years for joint experience to disappear after a con- flict winds up. Engagement with regional partners takes time and money but is impor- tant to remain relevant in our region and be- yond. Integration is key to such operations.
“PACIFIC 2010 SAW UK ADMIRALS TALKING UP THE POSSIBILITY OF AUSTRALIAANDBRITAIN WORKING TOGETHER ON AN ANZAC REPLACEMENT SOLUTION”
Tony Dalton explained how Australia Aero- space and Eurocopter need to ‘demonstrate evidence that they are committed to the re- mediation of Air 9000 Phases 2, 4 and 6 as a Project of Concern’ if future RFTs are to includethem.
2014 was when the Australian Cyber Se- curity Centre (ACSC) was beginning to take shape after being announced the previous year. Cyber is something we need to care more about, behind closed doors and in pub- lic, according to the Gillard Government.
Head of Capability Development Group Major General John Caligari stood up their integration branch working across three levels; physical, EM/frequency concerns and data. Data is a culture issue rather than a technical one. Projects need to take a wider program approach when it comes to capability coordination. Targeted spirals of acqui- sition need to be in place as the seven plus years for DCP project delivery is not good enough.
STILL NOT HAPPY
2012/2013 also saw the Domestic Munitions Manufactur- ing Arrangements (DMMA) contenders spend about $40 million across the board in bid costs. Education about am-
ABOVE: Northrop Grumman and the USN regularly hosted Australian media.
In August that year we reported “As a result of the 2009 Defence White Paper, Defence was directed to develop proposals aimed at rationalising the RAN’s patrol, mine countermeasures, hydrographic and oceanographic forces into a single modular multi-role class or family of around 20 Offshore Combatant Vessels (OCVs). This program, Project Sea 1180, signalled a shift away from the special- ist platform-based capabilities... and instead embraced the concept of a common OCV platform from which to deploy role-specific mission modules largely based on unmanned systems and technologies.”
How far we’ve come in our thinking since then . . .
ARMY’S DIGITISATION JOURNEY
March 2015 saw the digitisation of Army achieve a signifi- cant milestone when then-Chief of Army Lieutenant-Gen- eral David Morrison declared Final Operational Capability (FOC) on Tranche 1 of Project Land 200.