Canberra, Australia: The Australian Government has announced a $2.4 billion investment to strengthen the country’s air and missile defence capabilities while supporting the development of a resilient sovereign defence industrial base. The announcement was made on 9 September 2026 by Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles and Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy.
The investment forms part of the second tranche of AIR 6500 and represents a component of the Albanese Government’s commitment under the Integrated Investment Program to spend $30 billion over the coming decade on developing a layered and integrated air and missile defence system.
The $2.4 billion programme will be delivered over six years through Defence’s existing strategic partnership with Lockheed Martin Australia. The Australian Government said the project will provide more than 360 highly skilled jobs across the Hunter Region and South Australia, while also supporting the Australian defence industry.
At the centre of the project is the Joint Air Battle Management System, which will connect information and capabilities from across the Australian Defence Force into a single network. According to the government, the system will provide commanders with a better view of the battlespace and help them make faster and better-informed decisions.
The investment will replace the existing system and modernise air-surveillance and aircraft-control functions, while supporting the coordination of Australian Defence operations both within Australia and overseas.
The new capability will connect both current and future Australian Defence Force platforms, including Hobart-class destroyers, F-35A Lightning II aircraft and the accelerated Medium-Range Ground-Based Air Defence system.
The government said the integration will strengthen Australia’s ability to operate as an integrated force and improve its ability to detect, track and respond to increasingly sophisticated air and missile threats.
The capability is being designed and built in Australia, which the government said reflects its priority of strengthening Australia’s sovereign defence industrial base while supporting well-paid, secure and highly skilled local employment.
Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles said the project would support Australian workers and the domestic defence industry.
“Today’s announcement is seeing the Albanese Government once again supporting well-paid, secure Australian jobs and backing the Australian Defence industry,” Marles said.
He described AIR 6500 as a “landmark investment” in Australia’s air and missile defence capability and said it would help the Australian Defence Force respond effectively to future threats while delivering on the priorities of the National Defence Strategy and the Defence Industry Development Strategy.
Marles added: “The project will upgrade the command and control systems needed to strengthen the Australian Defence Force’s ability to detect, track and respond to threats in an increasingly complex strategic environment.”
Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy said Australia’s security depended not only on the military capabilities it acquired but also on the country’s ability to develop and sustain those capabilities domestically.
“The Defence Industry Development Strategy recognises that Australia’s security depends not only on the capabilities we acquire, but also on our ability to design, sustain and evolve them here in Australia,” Conroy said.
He added: “Through AIR 6500, we are delivering a world-class command and control capability while strengthening Australia’s sovereign industrial base, growing a highly skilled workforce and retaining critical integrated air and missile defence expertise in Australia.”
Conroy also said the government’s investment would directly support more than 360 highly skilled Australian jobs.
“The Australian Government’s investment directly supports more than 360 highly skilled Australian jobs helping build the workforce, expertise and industrial capability Australia needs into the future,” he said.
The Australian Government said the AIR 6500 investment is intended to strengthen the command-and-control architecture underpinning Australia’s integrated air and missile defence while simultaneously developing domestic industrial capability and retaining critical expertise within the country.
The announcement was issued jointly by Richard Marles, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence, and Pat Conroy, Minister for Defence Industry and Minister for Pacific Island Affairs, on 9 September 2026.
