Australia reveals secret Woomera missile defence test after China’s Pacific missile launch

Images of the recent test firing of a medium range missile in outback Australia have been released by the Albanese government just days after China conducted a “provocative” launch of a nuclear-capable weapon into the Pacific.

This week’s actions by the People’s Liberation Army have sparked Opposition warnings about Australia’s lack of air defence and “dangerously exposed” military bases, a concern that is shared by security experts. Late on Thursday the government released details of a joint “live firing” of a Standard-Missile 2 (SM-2) that took place in June during Exercise Taipan Strike 26, as Labor insists it is moving quickly to improve the country’s air defences.

The previously secret operation by the Australian and US militaries at the highly restricted Woomera testing range in remote South Australia involved a prototype ground-based active missile defence system being used to engage an airborne target with an SM-2.

Earlier versions of the SM-2 were first ordered by the Howard government in 2004, and the weapon is currently deployed on board the Royal Australian Navy’s Air Warfare Destroyers.

Details of the live fire were revealed a day after shadow defence minister James Paterson warned that Australia did not have sufficient capabilities to intercept missiles such as the one fired by China’s military on Monday.

“Australia’s integrated air and missile defence (IAMD) is totally inadequate for an age of missiles and drones,” Senator Paterson told The Nightly on Wednesday.

He also highlighted the impending rotation of US and British nuclear-powered submarines at HMAS Stirling under the AUKUS program to stress the need for Australia to quickly acquire technology to defend against ballistic weapon attacks.

In a statement on Thursday evening Defence Minister Richard Marles insisted the Albanese government was continuing to “accelerate” the introduction of integrated air and missile defence capabilities for the Australian military.

“This first of type life fire test is a practical demonstration of how the Australian Defence Force is working with its partners, and local industry to deliver crucial defence capabilities — growing our sovereignty and helping to keep Australians safe,” he said.

As part of the exercise US defence giant Lockheed Martin teamed up with Australian defence company CEA Technologies for a “first-of-type integration” of CEA’s locally made radar and the Aegis Combat System.

“Taipan Strike 26 highlights the Albanese Labor Government’s commitment to working with partners and defence industry to build sovereign capability and self-reliance in support of our national defence,” Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy added.

Chief of Air Force Air Marshal Stephen Chappell claimed the success of the Taipan Strike 26 live-fire event was “further evidence of the strength of our partnerships, as well as our integral relationship with industry”.

“Taipan Strike 26 is an Air Force-led Integrated Air and Missile Defence activity designed to explore medium range air defence capability options to inform capability acquisition decisions,” the RAAF Chief said in a statement.

This week the Albanese government has led global condemnation of Beijing’s “provocative” actions after a People’s Liberation Army-Navy submarine on Monday launched a ballistic weapon into waters close to Tuvalu and Nauru.

Earlier this year The Nightly revealed secretive testing was underway for newly developed air-launched hypersonic cruise missiles in a joint program with the Pentagon’s Missile Defence Agency (MDA).

Under the Southern Cross Integrated Flight Research Experiment (SCIFiRE), Australia and the United States are working to rapidly develop the weapons to catch up with similar technology produced by China and Russia.