Formal Comment by the Australia Defence Association: 2005
Counter-terrorism laws
Our counter-terrorism laws do need tightening and the debate about them must be calm and informed.
Military justice inquiry
The military justice system is broken but holistic and careful reform is required
Recruiting, retention and remuneration
An old digger joke begins “what do you call a politician who promises to improve defence force conditions of service” — with the rejoinder being “the Opposition”.
Defence budget 2005/06
The real situation behind the budget-day hype, gunsmoke and mirrors
Abduction of Douglas Wood
It really depends on who seized him and who now has him.
Appointment of new CDF
The ADA welcomes the appointment of Air Marshal Angus Houston as Chief of the Defence Force.
Sea King helicopter crash on Nias
It is too early to speculate as to the exact cause of the Sea King helicopter crash on Nias but a key question must inevitably be why we have made our Navy continue to operate such old aircraft.
Iraq: New commitment but old lessons re-learned
The commitment to Al Muthanna Province underlines real deficiencies in our defence force.
Iraq: Increased commitment
An air of inevitability surrounded our increased commitment in Al Muthanna Province.