Defence and Space Projects
Discover a world of opportunity in South Australia’s defence and space industries.
We’re building some of the most technologically advanced naval ships on the planet and sending satellites into space – and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
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Hobart class destroyers
Upgrades to the combat management system of three Hobart class Air Warfare Destroyers (AWD) will occur at Osborne Naval Shipyard.
Collins class submarines
Adelaide is home to both full-cycle docking and life-of-type extension project for the current fleet of Collins class submarines to maintain submarine capability prior to the introduction of nuclear-powered conventionally armed submarines.
Nuclear-powered submarines
Under the AUKUS trilateral security partnership (with the US and UK), South Australia is the home of the build for Australia’s new fleet of nuclear-powered submarines, the SSN-AUKUS.
Hunter class frigates
Already underway at Adelaide’s Osborne Naval Shipyard, this project will deliver six vessels, among the most advanced warships in the world.
Whalers Way
The Whalers Way Orbital Launch Complex is located on the Southern tip of the Eyre Peninsula.
Space assembly and test facility
A new $20 million space manufacturing facility will be developed at Lot Fourteen to provide space companies with open access to a space assembly, test and integration facility in the Adelaide CBD at Lot Fourteen.
Kanyini
Fully manufactured at Adelaide’s Lot Fourteen, South Australia’s first state-funded satellite, Kanyini, was launched onboard SpaceX’s Transporter-11 mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base, California on 17 August 2024.
Koonibba
The launch site specialises in suborbital launches and provides companies with the ability to recover rockets and their payload to do further testing and systems validation before launching into orbit.
Land 19 Short-range ground-based air defence
The $2.5 billion short-range air defence missile system program Land 19 Phase 7B is currently underway at the new Centre for Joint Integration at Mawson Lakes.
Gulfstream G550
Four Gulfstream G550 aircraft, designated the MC-55A Peregrine will be based at RAAF Base Edinburgh, providing electronic warfare support to naval, air and land forces.
Unmanned aerial systems
Adelaide will be the centre of Australia’s strategic unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) fleet, complementing the fleet of P-8A Poseidon aircraft based at RAAF Base Edinburgh.
P-8A Poseidon Aircraft
Twelve maritime surveillance aircraft are based at RAAF Base Edinburgh, also the location for deep level maintenance thanks to a new purpose-built Defence 373 deep maintenance and modification facility (DMMF).
Jindalee Operational Radar Network (JORN)
A multi-billion-dollar investment in three over-the-horizon radar systems that use the ionosphere to monitor air and sea movements across at least 37,000 square kilometres.
