Royal Australian Navy personnel stand to attention on the HMAS Canberra (L02) at the main port in the Sri Lankan capital Colombo on March 23, 2019.  (PHOTO / AFP)

The Australian government has unveiled an ambitious and costly overhaul of its naval surface fleet, which will incorporate drone ships and new frigates.

The A$11 billion ($7.3 billion) expansion will take place over 20 years and will see the surface fleet rising from 11 today to around 25, with at least six of them drone-style or large optionally crewed surface vessels (LOSVs) that can be operated remotely by a support vessel during wartime.

Former Australian senator Rex Patrick said Defense Minister Richard Marles used his Feb 21 announcement “to bury the fact that the navy procurement program is still in a shambles”

The plan will see Australia reduce its order of Hunter-class frigates from nine to six. The new surface combatant fleet will also consist of three upgraded Hobart-class destroyers, 11 new general-purpose frigates to progressively replace the six remaining Anzac-class frigates, and the six new LOSVs, as well as 25 “minor war vessels”.

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The Feb 20 announcement came after the government received an independent analysis, led by the retired US Navy vice-admiral William Hilarides, on changes needed to the navy fleet in parallel with the Australia-United Kingdom-United States (AUKUS) nuclear-powered submarine plan. 

The review of the “size, structure and composition of Navy’s surface combatant fleet” was handed to the government last year.

Former Australian senator Rex Patrick said Defense Minister Richard Marles used his Feb 21 announcement “to bury the fact that the navy procurement program is still in a shambles”.

“We have all these admirals, generals, and air marshals making recommendations about programs with no understanding of risk,” Patrick told China Daily.

In 2021, then Prime Minister Scott Morrison used the AUKUS announcement to “bury the fact he was canceling the troubled Attack Class submarine program … years wasted and A$3 billion wasted,” he said. 

“Then they make recommendations to cabinet ministers who also have no understanding of risk … it’s a mess.

“The real thing that needs to happen is to get rid of this senior management at defense and install a management system that appreciates risk so we don’t have these fictitious programs that will lead us into a disastrous place,” he said. 

“We are in a mess going forward. We don’t seem to be trying to fix the problem,” said Patrick, a former submariner.

The review argued Australia needed a surface fleet with “greater capability in integrated air and missile defense, multi-domain strike and undersea warfare”

La Trobe University’s Emeritus Professor and fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia Joseph A. Camilleri told China Daily: “I think the announcement is in line with the whole drift of Australian defense policy.”

That policy, he said, is to develop a maritime capability, “undoubtedly aimed at China”. 

“The primary aim being to reaffirm Australia's commitment to US regional dominance in the region.”

The review argued Australia needed a surface fleet with “greater capability in integrated air and missile defense, multi-domain strike and undersea warfare”. This echoed calls from the defense strategic review last year which found that the “plan for the surface combatant fleet is not fit for purpose”.

It urged the “immediate implementation” of the shake-up to the fleet, arguing that “any delay will exacerbate the risk” to Australia’s security”.

In a speech about the future of the nation's defense force on Feb 21, Assistant Defence Minister Matthew Thistlethwaite said the government had acted to ensure it would be able to meet challenges posed by an uncertain environment.

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Thistlethwaite said the nation would see an "increased tempo of policy announcements in the next six months".

He said capabilities were being reprioritized in line with the recommendations of a major review of the Australian Defence Force, which had resulted in a realignment of funding and projects.

On Feb 21, Greg Sheridan, the foreign editor of The Australian newspaper, described the government plan as “a dismal cross between a damp squib and a routine government defense con job.”

Contact the writer at karlwilson@chinadailyapac.com