Draft:2026 National Defence Strategy

Ground-launched ballistic missiles

Australia is a partner in the Precision Strike Missile (PrSM) program alongside the United States. The PrSM is a family of short- and medium-range ballistic missiles which are ground-launched through the M142 HIMARS. PrSM variants are referred to as increments:

• Increment I - a 500-km class missile used to strike stationary targets. Australia has been shown to possess this variant and it has been used in the 2026 Iran war.^[7] The United States has expended their entire stockpile of this missile and are awaiting further delivery.^[8]
• Increment II (Land-Based Anti-Ship Missile) - a 1000-km class missile that has the ability to strike moving naval targets. In testing.^[9]
• Increment III - a 1000-km class missile that expands the range of payloads from previous variants. To be produced after variants I, II and IIII.^[10]
• Increment IV - an extended-range class of more than 1,000km range using advanced propulsion.^[11]
• Increment V - a future variant that can be launched from autonomous vehicles.^[12]

Australia intends to procure all variants, and produce them locally.^[13] It is also implied that the ADF intends to progressively expand stockpiles of the missiles.^[14] In 2025, Australia also expanded its order of HIMARS systems, to a total of 90 launchers, which would make Australia the second-largest international customer behind Poland.^[15]

Air Defence

The review prioritised the acquisition of a medium-range ground-based air defence system capable of targeting high-speed ballistic missiles targeting defence infrastructure, facilities or bases. Through an accelerated AIR6502 Phase I, the program will develop a middle-tier of a future Integrated Air and Missile Defence system. Australia will also explore opportunities to acquire further air defence in the short-term.^[16]

In 2023, Israel Aerospace Industries put forward a bid for the program for the Barak MX system.^[17] Raytheon and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems intend to bid the SkyCeptor system, which is the same missile used for Israel's David's Sling air defence system.^[18]

Munitions

In order to expand the range at which the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) can persecute naval targets, the RAAF plans to integrate the AGM-158C LRASM stealth anti-ship missile onto the Boeing F/A-18F Super Hornet, Boeing P-8A Poseidon and Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II aircraft. To increase capability to strike radar systems, the RAAF will integrate the AARGM-ER missile onto Boeing EA-18G Growler and F-35A Lightning II aircraft. The AGM-158 JASSM will be integrated onto the F/A-18F Super Hornet and the F-35A Lightning II to increase the RAAF's ability to persecute land targets. The Joint Strike Missile will be integrated onto the F-35A Lightning II and hypersonic weapons such as the Hypersonic Attack Cruise Missile will be accelerated and integrated onto the F/A-18F Super Hornet.^[19]

Aircraft

Nuclear-powered submarines