The Australian government said on Monday it would spend A$9.8 billion ($6.60 billion) to buy 20 new Super Hercules military transport aircraft, a move that will increase by two-thirds the size of the fleet of its second-largest heavy air force planes. The purchase comes amid the largest-ever Australia-U.S. joint military exercise, involving more than 30,000 troops and participants from 11 other countries in a show of unity and force when China emerges as an increasingly assertive power.
Defence Minister Richard Marles said the Hercules would help boost Australia’s capacity to carry equipment and personnel, and supplies for disaster relief and humanitarian missions. “This will be an important capability for the Australian Defence Force, and it will support our ability to contribute to regional security and humanitarian efforts around the world,” he said in a statement. The Australian air force also operates eight larger Boeing C-17A Globemaster heavy transport jets. The Hercules will be built by Lockheed Martin, a leading American maker of aerospace, defense, and advanced technology systems. The US government approved the potential sale of the aircraft, manufactured by Lockheed Martin, and related equipment to Australia in November.
The Deal is a high-profile sign of growing ties between the US and Australia, which share a common vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific. The US and Australia cooperate bilaterally and via regional fora such as the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, which combines the United States with Japan, India, and Australia. Both nations have heightened their ties in response to China’s rise by inviting Japan to join three-way military cooperation on their territory.
This week, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will meet with their Australian counterparts Penny Wong and Richard Marles for annual consultations known as AUMIN. The focus will be “force posture modernization, defense industrial base cooperation, and regional security integration,” the State Department said in a news release. Austin will then travel to Australia to visit US and Australian troops participating in the biennial Talisman Sabre military exercises, which aims to build readiness for joint operations against various threat scenarios, including disaster relief.
During this year’s Talisman Sabre, a partnered 1st Marine Expeditionary Unit company, conducted an air assault exercise on Mount Bundey with Australia’s 13th Brigade. A force-on-force evolution between the Australian and American troops followed this.
Talisman Sabre, whose leadership switches between the United States and Australia every two years, is being held this year at Shoalwater Bay Training Area in western Sydney. The US military has trained at the facility for over a decade. The exercises have been the site of protests from groups concerned about the militarization of Australia. Hundreds of people have been arrested for breaching the live-fire zone at the training grounds, and there have been threats to disrupt the 2018 exercises.
