The Australian Defence Force: Meeting the Modernization Challenges examines the Australian Defence Force’s (ADF) modernization efforts in light of evolving geopolitical realities, particularly concerning China. The book analyzes the challenges of balancing immediate readiness with long-term force planning.
The author incorporates interviews and presentations from the 2024 Sir Richard Williams Foundation seminar, highlighting perspectives from various ADF branches and allied nations (U.S., U.K.).
Key themes include the impact of political cycles on defense spending, the need for a national security strategy, and the crucial role of industry collaboration in achieving modernization goals.
The book also explores the complexities of building combat mass through a networked, “kill web” approach, focusing on adaptability and rapid technological upgrades.
In the forward to the book John Blaxland comments: “In The Australian Defence Force: Meeting the Modernization Challenges, Robbin Laird updates us on the work covered in his previous book, Australia and Indo-Pacific Defence: Anchoring a Way Ahead (2023). That work provided much more than just an overview of material covered at the previous Williams Foundation seminar. His lucid distillation of the key issues and challenges related to Australia and Indo-Pacific defence, spanning air, land, sea and beyond, warrant re-reading. It also sets up the reader for the contrast which follows in this volume.
“Laird’s new work focuses on the rub points arising from trying to implement long term strategic choices for acquiring next generation military capabilities, while being required to manage ongoing day-to-day operational requirements for the Australian Defence Force – a force which finds itself increasingly challenged. Laird explains this as ‘a case study in the clash between force design for an envisaged force and the need to enhance the force in being to deal with the world as it is.’
“This book highlights the enduring challenge faced by a democracy in getting the politics right while facing short political cycles and competing national priorities which inhibit government willingness to spend on defence. This reflects the age old ‘guns’ versus ‘butter’ dilemma faced by governments elected not on what might happen on the international stage, but on what they have done so far on the domestic front.
“Laird captures the essence of the challenge for defence readiness whereby exquisite platforms are no longer the sole focus, and in planning for continent-spanning defence capabilities, how to build combat mass effectively. The challenge is a significant one in light of the scale of the emergent security issues in the Indo-Pacific to which Australia may be required to respond and the reluctance of governments to spend to match their rhetoric with reality.”
Featured photo: A heritage formation, led by a CAC CA-18 Mustang flanked by two F-35 Lightning II aircraft from No. 77 Squadron, during the Warbirds Over Scone 2024 airshow. Credit: Australian Department of Defence
For a podcast discussing the book, follow the link.