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Shadow minister for defence industry and defence personnel Phillip Thompson has levelled accusations at the federal government’s $7.3 billion Hanwha Redback infantry fighting vehicle project with cost blowouts, delays and unresolved technical risks.
Independent experts warned that delivering operational Redbacks by 2028 would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, with ongoing problems around vehicle weight, weapons accuracy and the remote weapon station, according to a recently released report from the Australian National Audit Office, which examined the plan to replace M113AS4 armoured vehicles with new Hanwha AS21 Redback infantry fighting vehicles.
“Labors’s Defence Minister Richard Marles has failed to deliver a critical capability when our national security environment is becoming more dangerous by the day,” Thompson said.
“Our soldiers deserve modern, reliable equipment, not delays, design flaws and excuses.”
The audit found Defence’s management of the project was only “partly effective” despite the urgent need to replace the ageing and unsafe M113 armoured vehicles, first identified as obsolete more than 20 years ago.
Adding to concerns, Labor gutted LAND 400 Phase 3 from around 450 vehicles down to just 129, a number defence experts have repeatedly warned is nowhere near enough to meet Australia’s combat and training needs, according to Thompson.
“This decision wasn’t about what our warfighters need, it was about politics,” Thompson said.
“Defence manufacturing decisions appear to have been driven by electoral considerations, including locating projects in the Deputy Prime Minister’s electorate, instead of delivering the capability and scale our Army actually requires.”
The project has blown out from $4.6 billion to $7.3 billion, with the government paying penalty interest and signing non-compliant contracts, raising serious questions about governance and value for money, Thompson said.
“These failures matter deeply to our Defence Force members and their families, especially in Townsville, where the consequences of further delays and relying on ageing armoured vehicles highlights a capability gap.” Thompson added.
“As a warfighter, I know the importance of good equipment, survivability and lethality, they are my priorities. Only a Coalition government will restore discipline, accountability and focus to Defence procurement, putting national security and the safety of our soldiers first, not politics.”
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