2020 has been a big year for the nation, Defence and defence industry, with major projects reaching critical stages in the design, build and delivery phase transforming the Royal Australian Navy well into the next decade. In this episode of the Defence Connect podcast, hosts Phil Tarrant and Steve Kuper discuss the year that was for the Royal Australian Navy as it continues to embark on a generational transformation of its platforms and capabilities and the role Australia's growing defence industry is playing in this transformation. As part of an ongoing series of the Defence Connect podcast leading up to the end of the year, the pair discuss the top ranking stories in the Maritime & Undersea Warfare domains according to engagement by the Defence Connect audience – this includes a focus on programs like the Royal Australian Navy's SEA 1180 Arafura Class offshore patrol vessels and concerns around 'upgunning' the vessels. Building on this, the pair discuss the recent arrival of the Navy's next-generation fleet replenishment ship NUSHIP Supply and the key capabilities it will deliver to the Royal Australian Navy and allies as they operate in the Indo-Pacific. Tarrant and Kuper also discuss content covering the rising power of the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) and its ongoing transformation as a carrier power, as well as the ongoing French Navy program to replace and supplement the force's aircraft carrier, the FNS Charles de Gaulle, with a design similar to the Royal Navy's Queen Elizabeth Class aircraft carrier. Finally, the hosts discuss US Marine Corps Commandant General David Berger's push to field a growing number of 'Lightning Carriers' to support distributed operations with a growing number of F-35Bs to complicate adversary decision making processes, the successful participation of Australian frigate HMAS Ballarat in the US Navy's Nimitz carrier strike group, and US Navy Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Mike Gilday's push to develop the US Navy's next-generation destroyers.

Enjoy the podcast,

The Defence Connect team