Australia faces AUKUS submarine crew challenge, retired admiral warns
Peter Briggs says Australia needs a submarine force of about 3,000 as it prepares for larger nuclear-powered boats; the Navy expects 400 personnel to be trained by 2030.
Australia needs to sharply expand recruitment and training to crew its planned AUKUS nuclear-powered submarines, retired admiral Peter Briggs warned as a US submarine visited HMAS Stirling, south of Perth. The Guardian reported his warning on 28 October, after USS Colorado arrived on 27 October for a month of routine maintenance and work intended to build Australian expertise.
Briggs said Australia must triple the size of its submarine arm and train personnel in nuclear skills. He put the force it would need at about 3,000 submariners. That is his assessment, rather than a stated government recruitment target; the Australian government did not respond to the Guardian’s questions about its targets or whether workforce development was on track.
How many submariners is Australia training?
The Royal Australian Navy has 230 personnel at various stages of the US nuclear-powered submarine training pipeline, the Guardian reported. A Navy spokesperson said about 145 had completed US Naval nuclear power training and were gaining experience aboard US nuclear-powered submarines. The spokesperson said the Navy expected 400 Australian officers and sailors to be trained and ready to serve by 2030.
About 850 submariners are qualified to operate Australia’s Collins-class boats, according to the Guardian. The planned Virginia-class submarines can require crews of up to 134, almost three times as many as Collins-class vessels. Under AUKUS, Australia plans to acquire between three and five Virginia-class submarines from the United States to replace its five Collins-class boats. The larger crews help explain why recruitment matters alongside training for nuclear propulsion.
Delivery timetable and the transition between fleets
Defence Minister Richard Marles said on 28 October that Australia remained on track to receive its first US Virginia-class submarine from around 2030, Reuters reported. Speaking in the Philippines, he described work on the capability as proceeding ‘at a pace’. His delivery assessment addressed the program’s timetable; Briggs’s warning concerned the personnel needed to operate the boats.
The Virginia-class boats are intended to bridge the shift from the Collins-class fleet to the larger SSN-AUKUS submarine being developed by Australia and the UK. Briggs said personnel were one of several major challenges. Operating two submarine types, he argued, would also complicate training, logistics, maintenance and spare-parts arrangements.
At HMAS Stirling, fleet base west commodore Paul Johnson said USS Colorado’s maintenance visit would allow crews to practise procedures in simulated nuclear-related operational scenarios. Officials said no radiological material would be transferred during the visit. From 2027, the program calls for up to four US and one UK nuclear-powered submarine to rotate through the base.
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Sources and context
- Australia must recruit hundreds more to crew Aukus submarines, retired admiral warnsThe Guardian; by Narelle Towie
- AUKUS on track for Australia nuclear-powered subs in early 2030s: Defence MinisterReuters, republished by The Straits Times
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.