On the basis of this comment and plenty of others along the sames lines previously, it would appear the consensus is that Australia does not require top end defence equipment on the basis that no threat exists that will neccesitate it’s use.
The defence of our nation is still important, I don’t see this ever changing. The threat that doesn’t exist, is the one the Kopp continues to manufacture out of near fantasy. He does this to try and justify the need for platforms that would be sheer overkill in the context of our strategic situation. We do need capable weapons, and we need enough of them, but within reason and within budgets, this has to be achieved.
Assuming for a moment this is true, then what reason does any other country have to possess highly sophisticated defence equipment. Surely America is not going to be invaded by Canada. Surely France is safe from the Dutch. If immediate danger was a defining factor is defence capability requirements, no country could claim a need for the shiny toys.
Again, national defence is a long-held accepted norm regardless of any perceived danger, or lack of it. History has taught many a valuable lesson about been prepared, and been able to effectively defend borders. Today’s friends could be tommorow’s foes. There are too many unknowns to risk not having a defence force. And if you look at defence budgets since the end of the cold war you’ll see that a lot of nations have been restructuring to fit the new reality, but they have NOT dismissed their forces as redundant.
I really don’t why a civilian like Kopp has such a hard on for the F-111, he is hardly part of the National Secuirty Council, or the Air Force chief. He has to accept that they will eventually go, and while the current government continues to believe in a better alternative solution, they will go sooner than later. Does Kopp seem to think we are going to be plundered if they go? Get a grip on reality I say.
Plawolf,
We are not going to see eye to eye on this, and I may have missed your point, but I have made mine. But that’s what these forums are about after all, debate and discussion. No one is ever going to accept everything all of the time. It is impossible to obtain a Holy Grail of absolute truth about historcial events, UNLESS you were actually there. I can live with that. 
While this incident might be over rated by passenger accounts, I can’t help but feel this will be the way the first QANTAS plane will go down. There have been a few ‘near miss’ incidents in the last couple of years over the Australian skies.
The one you posted the above link to, analyst :p 🙂
Sorry, thought so. Nice info there, and I really like the True Supersonics site you listed as a source. Some REALLY good pics of Russian missiles there.
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