Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Defence Minister Stephen Smith have named the new ADF and service Chiefs, whose appointments take effect from 4 July for a period of three years.

The ADF personnel who rotated to Afghanistan in May as part of Mentoring Task Force 3 are equipped with the Army’s new Soldier Combat Ensemble (SCE), which integrates the latest generation of body armour and combat uniform.

The Landing Ship Heavy HMAS Tobruk should be back at 48 hours readiness to sail by the end of August, according to Ministers Smith and Clare.

With the withdrawal of the Australian AP-3C Orion fleet in 2019 or thereabouts, the partial replacement of this highly capable and versatile maritime ISR capability by the P-8 Poseidon presents many challenges, not least the management and support of mission software.

Despite being placed on the government’s Projects of Concern list last November, Project Air 5418 is making progress: Lockheed Martin’s AGM-158A Joint Air to Surface Stand-off Missile should in RAAF service by the end of the year.

Responses are due next month to a call for expressions of interest in the Domestic Munitions Manufacturing Arrangement, or DMMA. This long-term project must balance value for money with strategic necessity.

As widely expected, Defence has chosen the MH-60R ‘Romeo’ Seahawk over Eurocopter’s NH90 NFH to replace the Navy’s ageing fleet of 16 S-70A Seahawks.

The contractual airworthiness certification paperwork, and the ITAR constraints surrounding the arrival of the Airbus Military KC-30A at Amberley don’t detract from the sheer capability of this all-new aircraft, for which IOC is due next year.

The recent changes within Simulation Australia resulted in a strong trade show and a group of keynote speakers who made SimTecT 2011 worth the price of entry for Australian and overseas training and simulation companies.

Defence has signed the $133 million contract with Thales Australia for an additional 101 Bushmaster vehicles, together with associated support.

Austal has been named the preferred tenderer as prime contractor for the design, construction and through-life support of eight new vessels for the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service.

The Saab Giraffe Counter-Rocket, Artillery and Mortar (C-RAM) radar introduced late last year by the ADF has now been rolled out to a number of patrol bases and Forward Operating Bases (FOB) across Uruzgan Province.

Cyber security was once a ‘sleeper’ issue, but no more: a Cyber White Paper, following a number of studies, reports and policy statements, will cement the issue squarely in the national consciousness.

Defence has finalized the purchase of the former UK Royal Fleet Auxiliary amphibious ship Largs Bay.

Saab Bofors Dynamics has developed an innovative, tactical 3D Mapping system which enables artillery forward observers and forward air controllers to identify targets and call in fire with very high precision and accuracy.

Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) is such an intangible asset but one that is increasingly shaping the battlespace at all levels from domestic through to international coalition operations.