The Navy’s surface fleet will more than double in size, with Australia buying more smaller warships and increasing the strike capability of larger ones under a $54 billion spend.
A further $11.1 billion will be pumped into Australia’s combat fleet over the next decade, covering the purchase of 11 new general purpose frigates.
There will also be six ‘optionally manned’ ships.
The troubled Hunter-class frigate program will be reduced from nine to six ships to make way for general-purpose ships.
The first Hunter will arrive as planned in 2032, but general purpose boats will arrive at an accelerated pace this decade.
The first three general-purpose frigates will be built overseas to get them in the water faster before the rest are built in Perth.
The ANZAC-class frigates and Hobart-class destroyers will also get a facelift with new anti-ship and long-range missiles as the Australian Defense Force looks to project itself deeper into the Pacific.
This includes replacing Harpoon anti-ship missiles with naval strike missiles and installing long-range tomahawks.
A further $11.1 billion will be pumped into Australia’s combat fleet over the next decade, covering the purchase of 11 new general purpose frigates.
But the government will not take steps to extend the life of the ANZACs, saying the new general-purpose frigates would be more lethal and cost-effective as the navy can only man fewer than six of the eight ships.
The first of the aging class, HMAS ANZAC, will be retired and no longer put to sea. The second will be retired in 2026, reducing the Navy’s overall fleet in the short term until the early 2030s.
Larger warships will have a helicopter gunship and undersea warfare capabilities with sonar and lightweight torpedoes.
The overhaul will increase the combat fleet from 11 to 26 by the mid-2040s, in addition to an additional 25 ‘small warships’.
The latter includes fourteen ships for the Navy, including six Arafura-class offshore patrol vessels, and a further eleven for the Australian Border Force.
The shake-up will be supported by 3700 jobs in South Australia and Western Australia. It includes the continuation of 2000 jobs in South Africa and 500 new ones, as well as 1200 new ones in WA.
The troubled Hunter-class frigate program will be reduced from nine to six ships to make way for general purpose vessels (photo, aerial view from HMAS Perth)
A major review of the Navy’s surface fleet made 18 recommendations and urged the government to take swift action.
“Any delay will increase the risk (and) lead to a level of imbalance,” the review said.
A continuous production line of ships will also be established to ensure that no gaps arise in the future.
The changes would make the Navy the deadliest it has ever been, Defense Secretary Richard Marles said as he unveiled the overhaul Tuesday.
“Australia’s modern society and economy depend on access to the high seas – trade routes for our imports and exports and undersea cables for data,” he said.
Mr Marles also chastised the former coalition government for leaving a budget black hole of more than $25 billion through unfunded projects.
The cash splash will increase defense spending to 2.4 percent of GDP by early 2030.
An improved plan for naval ship construction and maintenance will be released later this year.
The changes would make the Navy the deadliest it has ever been, Defense Secretary Richard Marles said as he unveiled the overhaul Tuesday.