Black Hawk Battle Far From Over
Shadow Assistant Minister for Defence and Federal MP Phillip Thompson has welcomed the decision to fast track the Black Hawk into Australia but cautions that the battle is far from over.
After the permanent grounding of the MRH-90 Taipan helicopter fleet, the Minister for Defence Richard Marles has today announced the fast tracking of the Black Hawk in Australia.
Mr Thompson has been calling for this decision to be made for over 12 months and feels it was poorly communicated, meaning civilian contractors who could have transitioned from the Taipan to the Black Hawk have been left in limbo.
“After the initial rejection of the Black Hawk helicopter to be fast tracked from the Minister for Defence, this decision to now proceed with fast tracking its arrival is welcomed, but the communication of the announcement should be deemed another mismanagement and failure of the Albanese Labor Government,” Mr Thompson said.
“If this inept Minister took his portfolio seriously, he would have informed the personnel who have lost their jobs since the permanent grounding of the MRH-90, allowing them to transition to working on the new airframe. This didn’t happen.”
“Because of this mismanagement, we have lost skilled personnel from our defence industry, which is a massive loss for our aviation support teams and will result in a delay in getting the Black Hawk in the air.”
Mr Thompson is calling for clarity as the Black Hawks continue to arrive in the country.
“This announcement is proof that Richard Marles is not fit to be the Defence Minister, as he has not been honest with our defence industry personnel or the people of Australia.”
“He needs to be clear on his intent and truthful on the details as this continue to unfold.”
ENDS