Overview
- The government chose Lockheed Martin’s HIMARS with the Precision Strike Missile on Tuesday, setting up a second long‑range fires regiment based in South Australia.
- Thales will build 268 Bushmaster protected mobility vehicles in Bendigo over seven years, a AU$750 million order that supports about 300 local jobs.
- The plan also funds AU$450 million of upgrades for Hawkei vehicles and Army trucks in Brisbane, supporting about 150 jobs after earlier Hawkei brake safety issues paused deliveries.
- Australia agreed to sell a Bushmaster fleet to the Netherlands, with Thales to replace the exported ADF vehicles at no cost in a later production run.
- The new build comes on top of vehicles replacing about 120 sent to Ukraine and 59 tied to the Army’s missile program, while Thales says a next‑generation Bushmaster line starts in 2027 with added protection and digital systems.