Defence official John Chandler likens purchase of US Virginia-class submarines to used cars

A senior defence official has described US Virginia-class submarines as “good enough” for Australia’s navy and likened the country’s immediate plans for acquiring a nuclear-powered fleet to buying a “second-hand BMW” rather than an “exquisite” Rolls-Royce.

The previously unreported comments from John Chandler, the first assistant secretary for submarines, were made during an appearance before a parliamentary inquiry in Perth last week and have raised eyebrows among other figures involved in the AUKUS endeavour.

At a hearing of the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade, officials were quizzed about progress on getting critical platforms and systems “into the hands of ADF war fighters as soon as we can”.

Under the AUKUS optimal pathway, Australia will first purchase second-hand Virginia-class submarines from the United States in the 2030s, before a new locally designed and built SSN-AUKUS fleet is scheduled to come into service the following decade.

During questioning from Labor MP Claire Clutterham, Mr Chandler explained how the Australian Defence Force can acquire “good enough” capabilities “off the shelf” while “having a path” to then turn it into something “really good”.

“If you want a family car, then, sure, you could get a Rolls-Royce that’s reasonably exquisite — fantastic; no doubt. But it might take a while and cost a bit,” the first assistant secretary told MPs and senators.

“You might also be a bit more modest and want to import a new car, but you might have to wait for it to be imported for a few months. Or you could get a new second-hand family car, like a BMW. That would be very credible”.

“I pick BMW just because they’re reasonably good. You could get that. It would get your family around the place as a good family car. And it’s possible to turn that, with aftermarket support, conceivably, into a race car,” he explained.

Mr Chandler then elaborated on his automotive comparison by explaining that when families purchase a car, an assessment has to be made on what minimal standard is acceptable.

“That is really where a bit of judgement comes in. It’s the same with your family. What is the standard you won’t go below for your family? It’s a bit like that for our servicemen and women. We need it to be good enough.”

Senior US and Australian naval figures have repeatedly praised Virginia-class attack submarines as the “apex predators” of the ocean because of their world-class ability to move quickly and quietly below the surface.

One defence industry figure predicted Mr Chandler’s comments would not be well received by Australia’s AUKUS partner the United States, which has privately expressed doubts about this country’s preparedness to operate nuclear-powered submarines.

“The US is rightly proud of its advanced Virginia-class submarines, because they are a world-beating platform — Australia is not the only country that is hoping to get hold of this incredible technology,” the industry representative tells The Nightly.

Another American official involved in AUKUS negotiations quipped that the Defence Assistant Secretary may soon have to issue a “clarification” about his comments on Virginia-class submarines.

Next month Australia’s Defence and Foreign Ministers are scheduled to meet their US counterparts for the annual AUSMIN talks in Washington, where progress on AUKUS will dominate discussions.

During a White House meeting with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese last month, US President Donald Trump declared the Biden-era AUKUS agreement was going “full steam ahead”.

In June, senior Pentagon official Elbridge Colby began a review of AUKUS to examine whether it aligns with the US administration’s “America First” agenda, but President Trump has now indicated his intention to expedite the deal, not withdraw from it.