HMAS Brisbane fired a Tomahawk Land Attack Missile (TLAM) during its ongoing interchangeability deployment in the US.
The firing is the third in a trifecta of capability demonstrations completed by Hobart class air warfare destroyers off the US West Coast this year. In July and August, HMAS Sydney fired the Naval Strike Missile and Standard Missile 6 in Australian firsts.
Australia is only the third nation - after the UK and the US - to fire a Tomahawk and is only the second after the US to employ the vertically launched version of the missile.
While the three capabilities - NSM, Tomahawk and SM-6 - have always been slated for the Hobart class, ADM understands that the reprioritisation of the Integrated Investment Plan (IIP) freed up funding that allowed the upgrade process to be accelerated with the help of the US Navy.
The reprioritised IIP also allowed for NSM to be fitted to Navy’s remaining Anzac class frigates ahead of schedule. HMAS Toowoomba, ADM understands, recently completed an initial test activity with an NSM sans warhead off the coast of Western Australia.
“The enhanced lethality of our surface fleet is a critical and much needed assurance mechanism to ensure our continued access to the sea, which sustains our livelihoods," said the Chief of Navy, Vice Admiral Mark Hammond.
"We are doing everything humanly and legally possible to optimise the Royal Australian Navy’s surface combatant fleet as quickly as possible, as directed by the Australian Government."
ADM understands that Australia is acquiring more than 200 Tomahawk Block IV and V missiles that will eventually equip not only the Hobart class but also Australia’s Virginia class submarines and in all likelihood the Hunter class frigates.
"I'm incredibly proud of our sailors and officers who have displayed professionalism and focus in introducing and delivering this suite of advanced technologies. I'm also grateful for the support and efforts of our colleagues across the wider Navy, the Defence enterprise, industry and particularly our US Navy partners," VADM Hammond added.
That number is consistent with the approved acquisitions made public through the US Foreign Military Sales (FMS) process. In 2023 the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) approved a possible FMS sale of up to 200 Block V and 20 Block IV RGM-109E missiles to Australia. The total cost of that approval and another FMS case related to the Tomahawk capability is ~$1.78 billion (US$1.14 billion).
The capabilities of Tomahawk, NSM and SM-6 will all be enhanced as part of the Hobart class Guided Missile Destroyer Capability Upgrade Program - Project Sea 4000 Phase 6 - which will induct its first ship, HMAS Hobart, for a more than two-year-long overhaul next year.
Brisbane will return to Australia after Christmas following a five-month deployment to the US.
“The acquisition of Tomahawks, along with Naval Strike Missile and Standard Missile 6, is a game-changer for our ADF and comes years ahead of what was previously planned."
“This is about keeping Australians safe. But in conjunction with our other investments in long-range strike, as well as the decision to manufacture NSM in Australia, it’s also about delivering more jobs and a safer future made in Australia. Thank you to our Industry partners for your part in helping Defence to acquire these capabilities,” said the Minister for Defence Industry and Capability Delivery, Pat Conroy.