A new missile factory in South Australia is seen as the first step towards Australia’s long-range strike capability.
The missiles will be made at the Port Wakefield factory, which becomes only the second factory to make them, for the Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS or rocket artillery), the Defence Department says.
The project created around 20 manufacturing jobs on-site and will support hundreds more across the supply chain.
Constructed in just under seven months, the factory was designed and built by Indigenous-owned company, Intract Australia.
The Port Wakefield site becomes only the second facility in the world to produce GMLRS outside a facility in Camden, Arkansas; a first group of Australian workers has just finished learning to build them at Camden.
Export sales for the factory have already been flagged by the US.
MISSILE PRODUCTION
Defence Minister Richard Marles says, “starting missile production this year is a major step in building the industrial strength our nation needs.”
“It’s about creating advanced manufacturing capability that will serve Australia for decades to come,” he says.
“This factory is part of a bigger picture – growing a high-tech industry that supports skilled jobs, drives innovation and strengthens the economy.”
Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy says the factory marks the start of a sovereign missile industry.
“This is a significant milestone… this will make us more self-reliant and strengthen our national security,” he says.
“It reaffirms our defence partnership with the US and will equip our ADF with long-range strike capability that will help keep Australians safe.”
Patrick Mason, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the US Army for Defence Exports & Co-operation, says the Port Wakefield factory is “a transformative milestone” in US-Australia defence co-operation.
“This partnership… demonstrates the power of allied innovation in building resilient defence supply chains,” he says.
“Our nations’ goal to collaborate on guided weapons manufacturing… potentially creates new opportunities for both countries to support partners across the Indo-Pacific region.”
The GMLRS missile is a precision strike weapon launched from the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) recently bought by the Australian Army.
