The future of Australia's air defence

The government has rolled out its 2026 National Defence Strategy and Integrated Investment Program, and there's plenty to dissect for aviation – an early sunset for Tiger helicopters, the retirement of the C-27J Spartan, and a $7 billion boost to counter-drone defences, just to start with. While the RAAF alone is slated to get between $34-41 billion over the next 10 years, as the world becomes more unstable and traditional alliances get shakier, is Australia doing enough to bolster its own air defences? On this week's Australian Aviation Podcast, Jake and David are joined by aerospace and defence lead Stephen Kuper to discuss what Australia is doing – and could be doing – to safeguard its skies. Plus, the Iran conflict has driven Australian traffic to the Middle East off a cliff – which hubs are picking up the slack, and what's happening to our domestic capacity?