The Royal Australian Air Force is set to purchase an initial wave of 14 Lockheed Martin F-35 JSF multirole fighters, with the first aircraft set to enter service in five years time, it emerged on November 25th 2009.  Four years further down the line, in 2018, the RAAF’s initial F-35 Joint Strike Fighter squadron will be formally activated at New South Wales’ RAAF Williamtown, according to current plans.

“The JSF acquisition will allow Australia to maintain its regional air combat superiority”, RAAF chief, Air Marshal Mark Binskin, stated.  “It will also enable Australia to effectively contribute to regional security and enhances opportunities for interoperability and commonality to support future coalition operations.”

F-35 JSF

The F-35 JSF is to be produced in three distinct variants – A, B and C – all with varying capabilities optimised for different military environments.  Australia’s initial JSF commitment is for 14 F-35As, with a conventional take-off and landing (CTOL) capability.  Taking associated JSF infrastructure into account as well, the order value is in the region of $2.9 billion. 

“The JSF's combination of stealth, advanced sensors, networking and data fusion capabilities, when integrated into the networked Australian Defence Force, will ensure Australia maintains its strategic capability advantage out to 2030”, Australia’s defence ministry stated.

RAAF Joint Strike Fighter Squadrons

Consideration of a second JSF delivery to the Royal Australian Air Force is scheduled to occur in 2012, in line with the country’s pledge to establish three front-line RAAF Joint Strike Fighter squadrons, along with a dedicated training unit, made up of 72 aircraft overall.  Ultimately, though, there could be close to 100 JSF airframes in RAAF service, but a decision on that won’t be made for some years yet.

“Consideration of acquisition of the next batch of aircraft in 2012 will provide the government the opportunity to review Lockheed Martin's progress on implementing the industry participation plan”, Australian Minister for Defence Personnel, Material and Science, Greg Combet, commented. 

The RAAF currently has 24 Boeing F/A-18F Super Hornets on order, which are due to arrive from 2010 onwards.  These aircraft are intended to fill a defence capability gap that will open up once the elderly F-111 aircraft is retired next year, but whether the Super Hornets will be decommissioned once the JSFs themselves arrive - or remain in service to complement them - remains undecided at this moment in time.

The JSF programme is a multi-national collaboration involving the US, Australia, Canada, Italy, Denmark, Holland, Turkey, Norway and the UK.

See also:

Joint Strike Fighter Best for Australia