Defence Update

Similarly, although official statements suggest that civilian manpower will be cut by more than 1300 to 38,369 under the approved average staffing level when compared with last year’s Budget, the actual decrease is estimated at 606.

As regards new projects, the only one applicable to the RAAF is definition and development work for the updating of Automatic Avionics Test Equipment (ATE) for the F-111s. Among major project decisions expected to be made during the year is further development of the Jindalee Over-the-Horizon radar.

On the facilities side, $9 million will be spent on RAAF training and support facilities at East Sale, Vic. Twenty-six replacement houses will be built for the RAAF at Point Cook, Vic. Funds allocated to major capital equipment programs in the RAAF in 1987-88 are:

•$585m towards the F-18 Hornet fighter program. At Budget date 26 of the order of 75 Hornets had been delivered. It was planned to assemble 18 more F-18s in this financial year.

•$94m against the purchase of 39 Black Hawk helicopters with deliveries starting in November. The first Black Hawks will go to No. 9 Squadron at Amberley, which will transfer by early 1989 to Garbutt base, Townsville and become an Army unit.

•$88m towards the Pilatus PC-9 basic trainer order of 67. Like the Black Hawks, deliveries will start to flow from Hawker de Havilland’s Bankstown headquarters in November.

• $34m to acquire more Harpoon sea-skimming anti-ship missiles (for both the RAAF and RAN). $21m for short and medium-range air-to-air missiles for the F-18s.

• $16m for further development and upgrading of the OTHR radar.

• $14m for two air traffic control radars at Tindal, NT, and East Sale, Vic. Deliveries are scheduled for May, 1988 and November, 1988.

The Budget provides $54m to be spent on creating the new permanent air base at Tindal (see Story later in Defence Update). A sum of $14m is being spent this financial year on facilities for the battlefield helicopters at Townsville. Stage 1 of the RAAF’s ‘bare’ base at Derby, WA will be completed in 1987/88 when a further $5m is spent. $5m is allocated to update facilities at Nowra for the introduction of the Navy’s new Seahawk helicopters.

The most significant change in the Defence Budget is that the allocation for Defence Equipment and Stores has been cut by $138. 5m to $2764. 8m. The outlay for Defence Force Personnel is up $70m to $2077. 5m and is the other big ticket item.

The next major allocations are $504. 6m (up $26. 7m) for Civilian Personnel, and $447. 7m (up $61. 9m) for DFRDB.

Overseas payments for equipment grew rapidly in 1985/86 due to rising payments for the F-18 program and further depreciation of the Australian dollar. The 1986/87 expectations are lower and, somewhat surprisingly given that 18 F-18 Hornets are expected to be delivered this financial year, payments on that project have declined from an estimated $1 billion in 1986/87 to just under $600m this year.

Budget Paper No. 1 explains that the May 13 economic statement indicated that Defence planning guidance was to be reduced from the previous level of 3% real growth per annum to a real reduction of 1% in 1987/88. This was to be followed by real growth of 1% in 1988/89 and 2% in 1989/90.

It was revealed that planning guidance for 1988/89 should be increased to 1. 5% real growth, with guidance for the remaining years of the Five Year Defence Program (1988-93) being set at 2. 0% real growth per annum. However it is noted that forward guidance is provided for planning purposes and is not a commitment.

Apart from those already outlined, more significant procurement items budgeted for in 1987/88 are: New submarines ($175m), Australian and US-built FFG guided missile frigates ($161m), Seahawk helicopters ($141m), Raven HF and VHF field communications ($45m), Army medium trucks ($31m). DISCON secure communications ($27m), PERENTIE light field vehicles ($22m), Standard missiles for the Navy ($17m), small arms ($17m), 105mm field guns ($16m), Navy helicopter simulator ($15m), minehunter catamarans ($12m), Electronic warfare systems [Silm).

The Defence budget also provides some $20m for a range of new projects outlined in the White Paper to improve maritime defence, communications and the technological capability of the Defence Force. These include introduction of a minesweeping capability, surface and submarine towed acoustic arrays, enhancement of OTHR, development of a field trunk communications system (PARAKEET) and automatic avionics test equipment for the F-111s.

Tindal Gearing Up for 1988 Commencement of Operation

The RAAF’s No. 75 fighter squadron, which next year will be in the process of converting from Mirage fighters to Hornets, will begin the first permament Air Force operations from the newly established $210 million air base at Tindal, near Katherine, Northern Territory, on October 1, 1988. A RAAF ‘family’ of 1500 will take up residence at Tindal which will become a major forward base in Australia’s northern defences in accordance with long- term planning to place more of the nation’s active military units in the more likely operational areas should a Defence emergency arise.

By late 1988 Tindal will have taken over from the Amberley bomber base near Ipswich in south-east Queensland as the largest air base in terms of area in Australia. Its area which measures 16km by 12km includes allowance for second phase expansion and extra runways to complete the coat-hanger principle of runways. For the first time, an air base in this vast continent will have buildings and facilities built to the NATO standard of designed to avoid major damage in the event of a counterair war.

A total of 379 houses are being built for RAAF personnel being posted to Tindal. There will be 179 married quarters on the actual base. A further 200 houses for the RAAF families are being provided in a new sub-division, East Katherine. The split-up in the location of the married quarters conforms to the preference of RAAF personnel, their wives and children. A survey indicated that about half of Air Force personnel prefer to live in a civilian environment, while the remainder like to live on the base.

Tindal is 17 km south-east of Katherine. The married quarters are being built to the highest standards permitted by official policy, the Tindal Project Development Leader, Group Captain Stan Clark, outlined to Australian Aviation recently. The houses are built of brick and will be air-conditioned. The only items the Servicemen and his family will have to bring with them will be personal effects. All other items in a house will be provided. Phase 1 of the work to establish Tindal as a permament RAAF base began in September, 1984 and should be completed in early 1989. This is the first new planned Air Force operational base built in Australia since the Second World War. It will continue to be the alternative civil airfield to Darwin and can handle modern commercial jumbo jets apart from a wide range of military aircraft. In Phase 2 of the project, when approved, the coat-hanger concept of runways will be completed with additional runways, an extended main runway and improved taxiways.

The decision to establish a permament new base at Tindal was made largely on strategic grounds so that it would become a central base from which RAAF aircraft would be able to deploy to other forward bases in the north. The positioning also bore in mind that Tindal is out of the cyclone belt whereas Darwin is not. When the base becomes operational on October 1, 1988, No. 75 Squadron should be operating with four F-18 Hornets. The conversions courses from Mirage to Hornets will start early next year. By mid 1989, the squadron should have 16 Hornets, which is the full complement for a fighter squadron. These twin-engined multi-role aircraft will be supported by two Squirrel light helicopters and one Caribou light transport. They will provide the SAR (search and rescue) and support components.

No. 75 Squadron will have a personnel strength of about 240. The Base Squadron will comprise 400 servicemen and women, including the headquarters and support areas. There also will be 62 civilians assigned to the base. At present there are some 30 RAAF officers, NCOs and other ranks posted to Tindal and Katherine. The CO of the Base Squadron, Wing Commander Joe Hammond, is due to settle in in December and the Base OC, Group Captain Peter Nicholson is due to take command in mid- 1988.

The Phase 1 construction also includes the development of an air-to-surface weapons range 180km south-west of Tindal. Delamere Station has been acquired for this purpose. The development of the new base required a deviation of the Stuart Highway which runs from Alice Springs to Darwin. This 15km deviation costing $4 million was completed some time ago.

The cost of the first phase of building the base was $167 million in December, 1983 prices. This has since been translated to an estimated project cost of $210 million at February, 1987 prices. Another $40 million is being spent on RAAF supplied equipment, the maintenance facility, land acquisitions and furnishings. The airfield surveillance radar is a separate item.

The dispersed concept under NATO guidelines aims at providing passive defence with buildings and facilities well separated. The new fighters will be dispersed to individual locations around the airfield and will be protected by earthmounds and overhead cover. They will be refuelled and armed at these locations. Only when they require intermediate maintenance and servicing will they be moved to igloo-shaped hangerettes (four in total) which will be capable of housing one aircraft each. The facilities will include the air traffic control tower, an air movements facility squadron headquarters, crew rooms, a flight-line dining room, change rooms, a simulator, an avionics repair workshop, a remotely situated engine runup facility and fuel and armament points.