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) |
| Service branches | 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 |
| Personnel | |
| Military age | 16.5 years for selection process, 17 years to serve, 18 years to deploy on operations (2013) |
| Available for military service | 4,999,988 males, age 16–49 (2009 est.[3]), 4,870,043 females, age 16–49 (2009 est.[3]) |
| Fit for military service | 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 personnel | 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.
Related pages
References
Other websites
Media related to Military of Australia at Wikimedia Commons
