Defence has only acquired land from willing sellers as part of the Australian-Singapore Military Training Initiative. Defence will only seek to acquire land from willing sellers. Land acquisition is well advanced and Defence continues to negotiate with willing sellers in the Shoalwater Bay Area.…

Royal Australian Navy frigate HMAS Ballarat has seized more than 2.1 tonnes of hashish and 345 kilograms of heroin in two boarding operations in the Arabian Sea.   The narcotics seizures, worth approximately $105 million* and $103.5 million* respectively, took place on 28 and 29 January 2019…

Defence can confirm that an Australian airstrike or nearby Coalition airstrikes in the Al Shafaar neighbourhood of Mosul on 13 June 2017 may have caused civilian casualties. An Australian investigation found that it is not possible to determine the number of civilian casualties that occurred as a…

In the jungles of Malaysia, 19 Australian senior executives from private and public organisations will receive a taste of life in the Army Reserve during Exercise Boss Lift 2019. Exercise Boss Lift is a Department of Defence program designed to show employers the training, skills and experience…

The Royal Australian Air Force has deployed more than 370 personnel and eight aircraft to participate in the world’s most complex air warfare training at Exercise RED FLAG Nellis 19-1 in the United States. Air Commander Australia, Air Vice-Marshal Steve Roberton said there were a number of…

Chief of the Defence Force, General Angus Campbell, AO, DSC, travelled to Vanuatu, Tonga, Fiji and Solomon Islands from 20-25 January 2019.   General Campbell was accompanied by the Commissioner of the Australian Federal Police, Andrew Colvin APM OAM, Commissioner of the Australian Border…

RAAF Base Williamtown Hawk Lead-In Fighter aircraft will return to the Salt Ash Air Weapons Range (SAAWR) to conduct fighter training for aircrew from Monday, 4 February, 2019. The jets from Number 76 Squadron aircraft have scheduled three weeks of operations on the range from 4-22 February, during…

More than 30 Australian Defence Force (ADF) athletes arrived in Europe ahead of the United Kingdom (UK) Armed Forces Inter-Services Snowsports Championships as part of Exercise Alpine Challenge 2019.  The Exercise will run from 12 January to 10 February 2019 and involves training and…

Royal Australian Navy frigate HMAS Ballarat has seized more than 3.1 tonnes of hashish worth about $155 million* during a boarding operation that took place 8-9 January 2019 in international waters in the Arabian Sea.The fishing vessel, known as a dhow, was believed to be engaged in…

Royal Australian Navy frigate HMAS Ballarat has seized more than 900 kilos of heroin worth approximately $279 million* during two boarding operations that took place 21–23 Dec 18 as part of Operation MANITOU. Ballarat conducted flag verification checks by boarding vessels of…

Defence has completed feral horse population control measures at the Singleton Military Training Area.  The measures were carried out by a FAAST accredited team professionally, swiftly and accurately.  Verification was undertaken throughout the day of 20th December 2018, no injured horses…

The Department of Defence has substantially completed the feral horse population control measures in the Singleton Military Training Area. Further verification will take place in the coming days before the measures are considered finalised.

The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) has helped deliver seasonal cheer to remote Pacific communities through its participation in Operation Christmas Drop 18. The RAAF deployed a C-130J Hercules and crew to Andersen Air Force Base in Guam to work alongside American and Japanese counterparts from 5…

Defence seeks to be a good environmental steward.  From time to time this means Defence may be required to remove or control the population of feral or invasive species. There are currently in excess of 100 feral horses on the Singleton Military Training Area. The feral horses habitually live…

THE Australian Defence Force (ADF) has responded rapidly to render safe explosive remnants of war at the request of the Vanuatu Government.The unexploded ordnance were discovered recently in a residential area at Malapoa Estate, Port Vila, Vanuatu.Following initial assessment by Vanuatu Mobile…

The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) has completed a training exercise with two United States Air Force (USAF) B-52 Stratofortress Bombers operating from RAAF Base Darwin, on the eastern Australian coast. Aircraft from RAAF Base Amberley and RAAF Base Williamtown participated in the training…

The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) will deploy a C-130J Hercules transport aircraft to Guam for Operation Christmas Drop 18, the world’s longest running humanitarian airdrop activity, from 5 to 18 December 2018. Held annually since 1952, Operation Christmas Drop is led by the United States…

The 70th anniversary of the raising of the Australian Army’s Royal Australian Regiment (RAR) was marked with a ceremonial parade at the Australian War Memorial today. The revered Queen’s and recently updated Regimental Colours, featuring the 17 theatre and battle honours bestowed on the RAR, were…

The Department of Defence today commenced the first stage of the open market sale process for the Bulimba Barracks site in Brisbane, marking a significant step in the Government’s commitment to unlocking surplus Commonwealth land for housing.   This 20-hectare waterfront development…

The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) hosted Singaporean Senior Minister of State (Defence) Heng Chee How at RAAF Base Pearce today to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Republic of Singapore Air Force training at the base. Australia and Singapore are close and longstanding partners, with shared…

Defence personnel join all Australians this Remembrance Day to honour our military history and those who have paid the ultimate price in service to our nation.   Chief of the Defence Force, General Angus Campbell, AO, DSC, said the Centenary of the Armistice to end the First World War was an…

The Governor-General, His Excellency General the Honourable Sir Peter Cosgrove AK MC (Retd) as Commander-in-Chief, has visited Australian troops deployed to the Middle East region.   The visit took place in the lead up to the 100th anniversary of the signing of the armistice, which saw the…

Two Royal Australian Navy Minehunters, HMA Ships Gascoyne and Huon, have completed a successful visit to the Republic of Korea (ROK), in their first deployment to the region in more than 70 years. Participating in multi-national Mine Countermeasure Warfare activities, Gascoyne and Huon joined ships…

Department of Defence Department of Home Affairs Australian Cyber Security Centre  The Australian Government is aware of the cyber security incident affecting Austal.  This matter has been referred to the Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) and the Australian Federal Police (AFP) for…

The Secretary of Defence, Mr Greg Moriarty and the Chief of the Defence Force, General Angus Campbell visited the People’s Republic of China this week to conduct the Australia-China Defence Strategic Dialogue.Held in Beijing on 29 October 2018, the dialogue was hosted by Chief of the Joint Staff…

The 2018 Marine Rotational Force – Darwin (MRF-D), consisting of 1,587 US Marines, has completed another six months of training and exercises in Northern Australia and has now departed Australia.   This year’s MRF-D was the seventh and largest rotation to date and also included a squadron of…

Today’s Commissioning Ceremony at HMAS Albatross marked a major milestone in the Royal Australian Navy’s capability to operate unmanned aerial systems in the maritime domain. At the ceremony, the Naval Unmanned Aircraft Systems Unit (NUASU) was formally transitioned to 822X Squadron, making it the…

The Australian Army hosted its fifth consecutive annual Innovation Day at the Australian Defence Force Academy in Canberra today.The theme for the event was Delivering a Next Generation Army, with 19 companies from Australia and overseas presenting 24 industry proposals.The Australian Army’s Head…

The latest rotation of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) KC-30A multi role tanker transport aircraft has returned to Australia following a successful four month deployment to the Middle East. The aircraft completed 95 missions, equating to 776 hours of flying over Iraq and Syria,…

Yesterday marked the end of an era for former HMPNGS Rabaul, which has completed its final voyage to Port Macquarie from Lombrum Naval Base on Manus Island, after 31 years of service with the Papua New Guinea Defence Force. The patrol boat was gifted to Papua New Guinea in May 1987 under the…