Australian Defence Force

Australian Defence Force
Founded1 March 1901 (1901-03-01) (federation)
Current form9 February 1976 (1976-02-09)
Service branches
HeadquartersCanberra, ACT, as part of the Australian Defence Organisation
Leadership
Commander-in-ChiefDavid Hurley[1]
Prime MinisterAnthony Albanese
Minister for DefenceRichard Marles
Chief of the Defence ForceGeneral Angus Campbell
Personnel
Military age
  • 16.5 years (for selection)
  • 17 years (to serve)
  • 18 years (to deploy)
  • 19 years (for special forces deployment)
ConscriptionWar time only[2]
Active personnel57,346 (30 June 2023)
Reserve personnel32,049 (30 June 2023)
Deployed personnel1,841 (July 2020)[3]
Expenditures
BudgetA$ 52.588 billion(2023–24)[4]
Percent of GDP2.04% (2023/24)[4]
Industry
Domestic suppliersDefence industry of Australia
Annual exportsAround A$2 billion (2018)[5]
Related articles
HistoryMilitary history of Australia
RanksAustralian Defence Force ranks and insignia

The Australian Defence Force (ADF) is the military organisation responsible for the defence of the Commonwealth of Australia and its national interests. It has three branches: the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), Australian Army and the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). The ADF has a strength of just over 89,000 personnel and is supported by the Department of Defence and several other civilian agencies.

During the first decades of the 20th century, the Australian Government established the armed services as separate organisations. Each service had an independent chain of command. In 1976, the government made a strategic change and established the ADF to place the services under a single headquarters. Over time, the degree of integration has increased and tri-service headquarters, logistics, and training institutions have supplanted many single-service establishments. The ADF has been deployed around the world, including as part of combat and peacekeeping missions.

The ADF is technologically sophisticated but relatively small. Although the ADF's 57,346 full-time active-duty personnel and 32,049 active reservists as of 30 June 2023 make it the largest military in Oceania, it is smaller than most Asian military forces. The ADF is supported by a significant budget by worldwide standards and is well equipped and trained.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference ACs68 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Defence Act 1903 (Cth) s 60
  3. ^ "Global Operations". Department of Defence. Archived from the original on 2 April 2019. Retrieved 13 February 2020.
  4. ^ a b Max Blenkin (9 May 2023). "Australian budget: Historic defense spending, plus AU$1.2B on US-made missiles". breakingdefense.com. Retrieved 1 March 2024.
  5. ^ Dziedzic, Stephen (29 January 2018). "Federal Government accused of contributing to global arms race with defence exports push". ABC News. Archived from the original on 30 January 2018. Retrieved 29 January 2018.

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