Australian Defence Force
The Australian Defence Force (ADF) is the military organisation responsible for the defence of Australia. It is made up of the Royal Australian Navy, the Australian Army, the Royal Australian Air Force and a number of joint groups.
| Australian Defence Force | |
|---|---|
| Current form | 1976 (ADF established) |
| Parts | Australian Army Royal Australian Air Force Royal Australian Navy |
| Headquarters | Part of the Australian Defence Organisation |
| Leadership | |
| Commander-in-Chief | Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove as representative of Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia |
| Minister for Defence | Marise Payne |
| Chief of the Defence Force | Air Chief Marshal Mark Binskin |
| Serving soldiers | |
| Military age | 16.5 years for selection process, 17 years to serve, 18 years to deploy on operations (2013) |
| Available to be a soldier |
4,999,988 males, age 16–49 (2009 est.[3]), 4,870,043 females, age 16–49 (2009 est.[3]) |
| Fit to be a soldier |
4,341,591 males, age 16–49 (2009 est.[3]), 4,179,659 females, age 16–49 (2009 est.[3]) |
| Reaching military age annually |
144,959 males (2009 est.[3]), 137,333 females (2009 est.[3]) |
| Active employees/soldiers | 57,982[1] |
| Reserve personnel | 23,232 (Active)[2] 22,166 (Standby) |
| Deployed personnel | 2,241 (10 September 2015) |
| Expenditures | |
| Budget | A$31.9 billion(2015–16)[4] |
| Percent of GDP | 1.92 percent[5] |
| Industry | |
| Annual exports | Confidential, but thought to be over A$600 million[6] |
At first the Australian Government set up three separate armed services. In 1976, the government decided to have a single military headquarters. Over time, the three services have combined headquarters, logistics and training camps.
The ADF is small, but uses a lot of technology. With 53,000 full-time active-duty service people and 20,000 part-time reserve forces, it is the largest military force in Oceania. It is much smaller than most Asian military forces. The ADF does not have enough people in some highly skilled areas, but it is still able to send forces in many regions outside Australia.
References
- ↑ Defence Portfolio Budget Statements 2014–15 (PDF). Commonwealth of Australia. 2015. p. 22.
- ↑ Defence Issues 2014 (PDF). Commonwealth of Australia. p. 26. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
- ↑ Central Intelligence Agency. "CIA – The World Fact Book – Australia". CIA. Archived from the original on 16 January 2010. Retrieved 16 January 2010.
- ↑ "Minister for Defence – Budget 2015: Defence Budget Overview". 12 May 2015. Archived from the original on 17 November 2015. Retrieved 3 March 2016.
- ↑ Greene, Andrew (12 May 2015). Budget 2015: Defence to receive $750 million boost to extend and expand overseas operations. Australan Broadcasting Corporation. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-05-12/defence-to-receive-750-million-boost/6464304.
- ↑ "Defence and Security Overview". Austrade. Archived from the original on 18 February 2013. Retrieved 23 July 2011.
Other websites
Media related to Military of Australia at Wikimedia Commons