Army eyes Australian-made missile vehicle – report
12/06/2024 05:00 PM
An off-road armoured truck made in Victoria could be used as a mobile platform for a missile system to help protect Australia’s coastlines in remote areas.
The Australian off-road armoured troop carrier known as the Bushmaster could be repurposed as a missile launch vehicle.
According to a report from ABC News, the Australian Government has approved a tender process that will see the locally-made Strikemaster – based on the Bushmaster – go up against the US-made High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS).
While the Australian Army has plans to purchase 42 HIMARS vehicles from Lockheed Martin, the government is considering acquiring a fleet of Strikemaster mobile missile platforms made by Thales in Victoria.
MORE: What is a Bushmaster? We drive the Australian-built armoured vehicle
The missile systems would be deployed to improve the country’s ‘area denial’ capability across the country’s remote northern coastlines.
The Strikemaster is based on the Bushmaster, which boasts successful deployments in both Afghanistan and Ukraine, protecting soldiers as they’re ferried through hostile environments.
But instead of troops, the Strikemaster would have a battery of naval strike missiles manufactured by Kongsberg Defence Australia – with the Norwegian-owned company promising to build a new munitions factory in Newcastle.
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Designed to fly over land and sea at low levels, the missiles use infrared imaging to search for and identify enemy vessels – with the ability to recognise different ship classes – up to 250 kilometres from the launch site.
Despite the HIMARS being able to reach out to 300 kilometres, the ABC cites sources who say the Strikemaster is “considerably more affordable”, while also increasing Australia’s sovereign manufacturing capability – reducing our reliance on allies to supply such vehicles.
As reported in May 2024, the Australian Defence Force is exploring a transition to an all-electric vehicle fleet – including a battery-powered version of the Bushmaster, and, presumably, the Strikemaster, if it wins the tender process.
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