The Virginia-class vessels are part of a stopgap phase to boost the Royal Australian Navy’s capabilities until the first AUKUS-class nuclear-powered submarines start arriving from about 2042.<\/p>\n
Some analysts have been critical of the pivot, questioning whether relying on used submarines would reduce Australia’s naval capabilities.<\/p>\n
But others say the older fleet could work in Australia’s favour.<\/p>\n
How old is old?<\/p>\n
Under the original plan, the US was selling Australia two “used but refurbished” Block IV Virginia-class submarines.<\/p>\n
Australia scraps new Virginia-class submarines in AUKUS shake-up<\/a><\/p>\n The US, UK and Australia have announced they will “streamline” the purchase, with Australia no longer buying any new submarines, and acquiring three second-hand submarines.<\/p>\n The third was intended to be a newer Virginia-class model straight from the production line.<\/a><\/p>\n But now the purchase would be streamlined and all three would “be of the same type”, Mr Marles said.<\/p>\n “I cannot overstate the significance of that, both in terms of the submariners who are operating them, but also the people who are working on them to sustain those submarines,” he said.<\/p>\n Richard Marles (centre) announced the AUKUS changes alongside John Healey (right) and Pete Hegseth in Singapore.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0 (Reuters: Edgar Su)<\/p>\n Marcus Hellyer, head of research at defence think tank Strategic Analysis Australia, said there had been a lot of “hand wringing” about acquiring older vessels.<\/p>\n But the Block IV submarines only started entering service between 2020 and 2026, with the remainder of the fleet set to be finished by next year.<\/p>\n “These are the boats the US is currently finishing, so they’re not old in a sense of old,” Dr Hellyer told the ABC.<\/p>\n “They’re just old in that they will already have been in service.” Marcus Hellyer does not believe Australia’s submarine capabilities will be compromised without a new Virginia-class vessel.\u00a0 (ABC News: Ian Cutmore)<\/p>\n The average life span of the Block IV submarines is about 33 years.<\/p>\n The first one is expected to arrive in Australia in 2032, with the additional vessels being delivered at intervals until 2038.<\/p>\n The first two boats would be refurbished ahead of delivery, with about 23 years of life remaining, according to the AUKUS plan outlined by the government in 2023.<\/p>\n “They will be 10 years old maybe, which for a boat with a 30 to 35-year life span, we’re not talking about old clunkers that are at the end of their life,” Dr Hellyer said.<\/p>\n What capabilities does Australia need?<\/p>\n Virginia-class submarines are the latest class of nuclear-powered fast-attack submarines in service with the US Navy.\u00a0<\/p>\n Australia could still buy five US submarines if needed, Marles says<\/a><\/p>\n Australia’s defence minister has defended a shake-up to AUKUS that would involve Australia buying three second-hand Virginia-class submarines from the United States.<\/p>\n The Block IV models were developed to replace the aging Los Angeles-class submarines.<\/p>\n They were designed for a wide range of missions, including anti-submarine warfare, intelligence gathering and strike operations using Tomahawk cruise missiles.<\/p>\n The Block IV also has improved acoustic stealth capabilities, making them harder to detect by enemy forces.\u00a0<\/p>\n “The Block IV is arguably the best submarine in the world right now,” said Jennifer Parker, maritime security expert at The Australian National University National Security College.<\/p>\n Jennifer Parker is positive about the fleet of three Block IV Virginia-class submarines.\u00a0 (ABC News: Callum Flinn)<\/p>\n The third, new submarine Australia had planned to buy from the US was either going to be a Block\u00a0V or Block VII Virginia-class<\/a>.<\/p>\n A main feature of the Block V is the longer length, which increased the number of launch cells used for weapons such as Tomahawk cruise missiles.<\/p>\n “There is a big difference in terms of the land attack capability, because Block V has 40 cells against only 12,” Dr Hellyer said.<\/p>\n But that was a capability Australia did not necessarily need.<\/p>\n He said it was more useful for America “because as we’ve seen, they just love launching lots of cruise missiles into countries they don’t like”.<\/p>\n Beyond attack capabilities, submarines are used for intelligence and reconnaissance, anti-submarine warfare and special forces insertion.<\/p>\n US admiral outlines first AUKUS submarine sale<\/a><\/p>\n The first newly built nuclear-powered submarined can be expected to be sold to Australia in 2038, according to a senior US naval officer.<\/p>\n “The biggest tasks for Australian submarines \u2026 regardless of what type of submarine we’re talking about, is submarine warfare,” Dr Hellyer said.<\/p>\n “So to find and kill the other guys’ submarines.”<\/p>\n Ms Parker, who is a former naval officer, agreed that needing a submarine with a larger range of land attack missiles was not a priority for Australia.\u00a0<\/p>\n “If I was actually looking at how we employ these submarines, I would be employing them predominantly in the Pacific and the Indian Ocean in an anti-surface and anti-submarine warfare role,” she said.<\/p>\n “So to find and sink warships and for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.”<\/p>\n A US Navy officer walks on the Virginia-class fast-attack submarine USS Minnesota. (Reuters: Colin Murty\/Pool)<\/p>\n In 2023, the US commander of submarine forces, Vice Admiral Bill Houston, said the new Virginia-class submarines being sold to Australia would likely be the Block VII.\u00a0<\/p>\n Ms Parker said not a lot was known about the model, except it did not have the additional payload length.<\/p>\n “That was almost a mythical submarine, the design of which doesn’t exist and they haven’t started building it,” she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n “We always thought that the third submarine would be a new build, but beyond that we never actually knew what capabilities it would have.”<\/p>\n Timing could get risky<\/p>\n Until the AUKUS fleet arrives, Australia is extending the use of 30-year-old Collins-class submarines, keeping the six boats in the water for an extra 10 years.<\/p>\n Why there’s more talk of an AUKUS ‘plan B’<\/a><\/p>\n Defence industry experts argue Australia should consider how to prevent a naval “capability gap” \u2014 or risk being left exposed.<\/p>\n “We had the prospect \u2026 of almost having four classes of submarines operating at the same time \u2014 the last of the Collins class, two in-service Virginias, a brand new Virginia, and a brand new SSN-AUKUS. That gets pretty complicated,” Mr Marles said.<\/p>\n “What we will have here is a simpler pathway.”<\/p>\n Ms Parker said it would be beneficial to operate three of the same Virginia-class submarines instead of bringing another model into the mix.<\/p>\n “When you look at operating the same type of boat with the same type of systems on board, that means you reduce the workforce needed for the training,” she said.<\/p>\n “I actually think this is a much more positive development.”<\/p>\n The downside would be there are fewer years available to operate the second-hand fleet.<\/a><\/p>\n Australia is extending the use of 30-year-old Collins-class submarines. (ABC TV: Four Corners)<\/p>\n![\"Three](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/54fbbd5079f5271432e01ce8d975e0ea.jpeg\")
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