Australia Has Counter-Drone Tech. So Why Was Williamtown Exposed?

Australia has a growing drone problem, and the repeated breaches of restricted airspace over RAAF Base Williamtown have raised serious questions about how prepared we really are.

Karl speaks to Justin Olde, CEO of Canberra-based defence technology company Boresight, about the emerging threat posed by drones, the lessons Australia is learning from the war in Ukraine and why critical military and civilian infrastructure could be vulnerable.

Justin warns that drones over a military installation are unlikely to be harmless. They could be gathering intelligence, testing defences and identifying weaknesses in Australia's counter-drone capability.

His message is blunt: ‘if you're a modern military and you don't have an effective counter drone system in place, then you're not an effective military.’

So why were drones able to repeatedly enter restricted airspace over Williamtown? What other Australian assets could be vulnerable – from Sydney Harbour and Garden Island to critical infrastructure around the country? And why isn't Australia already fully equipped to deal with this threat?

Justin also explains how Boresight is building sophisticated target drones in Canberra to help militaries train against increasingly complex drone attacks, and why Australian technology companies such as Boresight, EOS and DroneShield are becoming increasingly important to the future of defence.

With drones transforming modern warfare, Justin argues Australia cannot afford to ignore the threat – or assume it won't happen here.

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