ADM Podcast 198 - Reviewing developments in AUKUS Pillar 2, Saab's space domain system, & funds for Austal

In this News Review episode, Grant McHerron, Ewen Levick and Nigel Pittaway discuss a few recent news items of interest.

We start with Nigel's review of the Land Forces 2026 event in Perth earlier this month, which was followed straight away by ADM's Western Australian Defence Summit. Land Forces had plenty of Counter UAS caabilities on display but there were no major announcements for other big programs. The ADM Summit did feature an update on the Henderson Defence Precinct which you can read all about in the next ADM magazine.

We then look at the recent announcement at Anduril's facility regarding payloads for the Ghost Shark, Speartooth and Bluebottle platforms, which confirmed a number of expectations. We discuss the AUKUS Pillar 2 developments and the timing of the announcement. The discussion then moves on to Saab's recent launch of its Allied Mission System which represents their first expansion into the space domain, providing a level of space domain awareness along with Command and Control capabilities for space based assets.

We wrap by looking at the government's provision of funding to Austal through the National Reconstruction Fund, noting that it is indicative of potential future funding mechanisms along with private capital. The funds will be used to develop facilities at Henderson to support construction of the Landing Craft Heavy and we consider whether it could be used for Mogami as well. There's going to be many developments in the area given the need for protection systems and expansion to support construction of spaces for nuclear submarine maintenance.

Links:

Government unveils AUKUS Pillar 2 payloads
Saab launches into space
NRFC invests in Austal Landing Craft Heavy
Western Australia Defence Summit
ADM's Land Forces 2026 Day 1, Day 2 & Day 3 Coverage

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