One can only conclude that the Commonwealth Government is actively facilitating the demise of the Australian Submarine Corporation (ASC). The government-owned shipyard has been singled out as responsible for a $3 billion blow-out in cost, …
Sea State The 2015 Shangri-La Dialogue ran over the weekend, and maritime security issues featured prominently in the wake of escalating tensions in the South China Sea. In his keynote address, US Secretary of Defense …
It’s hard to say which is worse: the Navy’s attempt to hide its performance behind a cloak of secrecy or its abject failure to do so effectively. Back in late 2012, it was possible to …
Sea State Last week, TKMS opened its dockyards in Kiel to visiting Australian defence writers to discuss its submarine and surface fleet operations. The Germans have displayed a transparency in the competitive evaluation process that …
Tony Abbott wants a Japanese submarine. To repeat: Australia’s Prime Minister really wants a Japanese boat. If Australia hadn’t embarked on a ‘competitive evaluation process’ pitting Japan against France and Germany, this hack would argue …
Reform programs come and go in the Australian Defence establishment. Sometimes they fulfil their intent; sometimes they don’t. The extent to which the changes sought by the First Principles Review occur will depend on the …
Sea State At last week’s MAST Asia 2015 conference on maritime defence and security technology in Yokohama, it became apparent that Japan’s two largest defence manufacturers—Mitsubishi and Kawasaki—are awaiting the Japanese government’s lead on two …
A Fiery Cross to Bear: Interactive on #China construction on Fiery Cross Reef – http://t.co/hntlFrNXUW pic.twitter.com/prkO9in464 — AMTI (@AsiaMTI) April 20, 2015 In the past 12 months, China has provoked considerable attention with its reclamation …
There have been at least seventy books by individual authors published under the title Gallipoli in as many decades. From the British Poet Laureate John Masefield in 1916 to Australia’s Les Carlyon in 2001 and …
As Joe Hockey rose to his feet in the House of Representatives to launch the Abbott Government’s second budget for 2015/16, shipbuilders in Melbourne were informed by BAE Systems that another 80 permanent skilled jobs …
David McDonough gave a stout defence of the Air Warfare Destroyer on this blog. In several respects it’s a superior platform to our existing fleet and some proposed alternatives—namely, the smaller, cheaper ships suggested by …
Sea State Japan is a serious contender to nab the SEA 1000 project, as news broke last week that the country is expected to provide Australia classified data on Soryu-class submarines. Previously, Japan has only …