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Defence manufacturer Thales Australia's commercial firearms subsidiary Lithgow Arms is moving to prioritise government orders and placing a pause on commercial business, according to new industry information.
The new arrangement was announced to the company’s firearms distributor network in Australia earlier this week.
“Lithgow Arms has recently advised us that they will be prioritising Government orders and will hence put a pause on the civil line. There is currently no confirmed date for resumption,” according to one distributor.
“We will continue to support the dealer network across the rest of our brands and will update you as soon as Lithgow issues a firm statement on resupply.”
The Australian government has previously confirmed 3,500 Australian Combat Assault Rifles would be manufactured by Thales Australia for the Papua New Guinea Defence Force.
That supply selection was revealed during a Senate estimates discussion between Western Australian senator Tyron Whitten and Capability Acquisition and Sustainment Group Deputy Secretary Chris Deeble on 11 February, earlier this year.
The government had previously pledged to supply 5.56mm Australian-made automatic rifles to the PNGDF as part of a larger $35 million defence aid package in October last year.
The modern weapons are considered part of the new PNG–Australia Mutual Defence Treaty, also known as the Pukpuk Treaty, and are intended to enhance PNGDF’s operational readiness.
“We’re working through those 3,500. They would be manufactured in the Lithgow facility, which will provide ongoing manufacturing of that capability. It’s the ACAR weapon, which is a Thales-developed weapon,” according to Deeble.
“We will be using our facility. This is a sovereign capability that we maintain, supported by Thales, who have been in charge of that facility for a number of years. They provide the Steyr weapon and have provided that to the ADF and other component parts for a number of our weapons, including Mag 58 and others.
“The answer is that we’ll be working with Thales, maintaining that sovereign capability in Lithgow.”
Australian Combat Assault Rifles have allegedly already been tested by members of the Australian Federal Police and the Australian Defence Force’s 2nd Commando Regiment.
Defence Connect has contacted Thales Australia for comment.
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