The UFO-like Spirit can carry nuclear weapons and is thought to be the most expensive aircraft ever made, valued at around $2 billion each.
Four Royal Australian Air Force PC-21 aircraft and two JTAC instructors are set to fly across the Tasman to take part in Exercise Raven Kahu — a combined training exercise with the Royal New Zealand Air Force.
The first of Australia’s twelve advanced maritime patrol aircraft is undergoing maintenance work at a newly upgraded hangar at RAAF Base Edinburgh.
Former Chief of Air Force, and later Chief of Defence Force, retired Air Chief Marshal Sir Angus Houston, will lead the largest review of the Australian military in over three decades.
It comes weeks after Rex announced it would scoop up Cobham’s FIFO operation for $48 million and expand its services further into Queensland and the Northern Territory.
It comes after the US Air Force ground its F-35s after discovering the problem in April, with the US Navy and Marine Corps shortly following suit.