It comes after Defence Minister Richard Marles on Friday cast doubt on the deal, arguing the “fuzzy commitment” made by his predecessor Peter Dutton would be subject to a review process.
An ATSB report into the deaths of three American firefighters who died tackling the Black Summer blazes has highlighted the inadequate risk planning of operator Coulson and the NSW Rural Fire Service.
The move means the Victorian airport will now boast 420 return services to Asian cities each week, and help nudge it towards 60 per cent of pre-COVID international travellers.
It comes days after US Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall surprisingly hinted his country would be willing to sell its most prized in-development aircraft to Australia.
The Defence Minister stated his predecessor Peter Dutton’s announcement last year that the Army would buy 40 was a “pretty fuzzy commitment”.
The money from the Australian Research Council will be used to develop ‘diagnostic’ instruments that could be placed in the air, on the ground or even on high-flying drones.