Two systems are being considered to fulfil the requirement: Lockheed Martin’s M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) firing the Precision Strike Missile Increment 2 (PrSM Inc 2) Land-Based Anti-Ship Missile (LBASM) and the Kongsberg-Thales Australia StrikeMaster firing the Naval Strike Missile (NSM). Elements of both systems are already in use with the broader Australian Defence Force (ADF) and there are plans to produce both missiles domestically in Australia.
On Friday 6 December, Kongsberg Defence Australia broke ground on a new facility near Australia’s Williamtown Air Force Base which will be able to produce up to 100 NSM and Joint Strike Missiles (JSM) a year from 2028.
Australia’s Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance Plan, meanwhile, outlines a path towards a domestic PrSM production capability. The path to PrSM is based upon the new Australian Weapons Manufacturing Complex (AWMC) which will produce the smaller Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) from 2029.
“This will mean the AWMC will be the first facility outside of the United States that will be capable of producing GMLRS, and potentially PrSM,” states the 2024 Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance Plan.
Common Systems Abound for both Anti-Ship Missiles
Both anti-ship missile solutions share several common systems with other ADF capabilities.
StrikeMaster melds the Bushmaster Protected Mobility Vehicle – which is in active production with more than 1,000 examples already in service with the Australian Army and Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) – with the NSM which is currently being rolled out across the Royal Australian Navy’s (RAN) surface fleet. The RAAF has also ordered the closely related JSM for its fleet of F-35A multirole fighters.
On the other hand, the Australian Army has already ordered 42 HIMARS vehicles for its first Long Range Fires Regiment based in the Southern city of Adelaide. Those vehicles will initially operate only GMLRS, however, they will also receive PrSM Inc 1 missiles in due course to extend the regiment’s reach.
The winner will be decided following the conclusion of a competitive evaluation process that will take place throughout 2025.
“To inform this selection process, a competitive evaluation process will occur over the course of 2025,” Australia’s Department of Defence said in a statement.
In recent years the Australian Army has made significant use of competitive evaluation processes for major procurements, most notably in the case of Project Land 400 Phase 3 which saw a multi-year competitive evaluation take place between Hanwha’s Redback Infantry Fighting Vehicle and Rheinmetall’s Lynx.
While details of the evaluation program haven’t been released, it could include a drive-off, and live fire activities supported by future system operators. It should be noted, however, that with an Australian Federal election scheduled for next year, it is possible that the program may be delayed – or even scrapped.
