Australia to spend S$7.05 billion on drones to patrol borders, South China Sea

MELBOURNE - Australia will spend nearly A$7 billion (S$7.05 billion) to buy high-tech surveillance drones for joint operations with the United States and monitor surrounding waters, including the South China Sea.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said on Tuesday (June 26) the government will buy six US Triton remotely piloted aircraft to beef up its maritime patrols, with an initial investment of A$1.4 billion for the first drone.

The total cost of the six drones, including facilities upgrades and support, will be A$6.9 billion, a person familiar with the transaction said.

The Triton drones, made by Northrop Grumman Corp, would be used alongside P-8A Poseidon aircraft for long range operations and intelligence gathering, and would improve anti-submarine warfare and marine strike capability.

"Together, these aircraft will significantly enhance our anti-submarine warfare and maritime strike capability, as well as our search and rescue capability,” Mr Turnbull said in a statement.

"This investment will protect our borders and make our region more secure."

The Triton drones will replace the aging P-3 Orion surveillance planes that have been operational since the 1980s.

The drones can fly for up to 24 hours and for more than 11,000km a day. The Triton can monitor an area the size of Switzerland - or around 40,000 sq km - in one day.

It has the wingspan of a Boeing 737 and will easily be able to complete a lap of the South China Sea after taking off from the Northern Territory, reported The Sydney Morning Herald.

“It gives us enormous capabilities in surveillance and reconnaissance,” Defence Industry Minister Christopher Pyne told 9NEWS.

"It is very important for us to know who is operating in our area and therefore be able to respond if necessary to any threats. Also we'll use it for people smugglers, people who want to (do) environmental damage in our area (and) illegal fishers."

The first of the Triton aircraft is due to enter service in mid-2023. All six drones would be in operation by late 2025, based in South Australia.

Mr Pyne said the drones will cover all of the south to the Antarctic, the Indian Ocean, the Pacific Ocean, the South China Sea and South-east Asia.

"Australia insists on its right to be able to travel through the South China Sea in international waters as we have always done, whether that is with surface ships or with aircraft," ABC News quoted Mr Pyne as saying.

The purchase of the drones come on the heels of the government's 2016 Defence White Paper where Canberra is committed to increase defence spending by nearly A$30 billion over the next 10 years, seeking to protect its strategic and trade interests in the Asia-Pacific as the US and its allies grapple with China’s rising power.

China claims almost the entire South China Sea, through which about US$5 trillion (S$6.81 trillion) worth of trade passes each year. Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims to parts of the sea. Australia is not a claimant but it has supported US-led freedom-of-navigation activities in the region.

As such, Australia will be working with the US Navy to develop, produce and sustain the MQ-4C Triton, the government said on Tuesday.

"Australia's alliance with the US is our most important defence relationship, underpinned by strong cooperation in defence industry and capability development," the government said. AGENCIES