The Australian Government has launched a pair of ambitious defence initiatives aimed at rapidly strengthening the nation’s asymmetric warfare capabilities. Under the leadership of the Advanced Strategic Capabilities Accelerator (ASCA), Mission Talon Strike and Mission Syracuse mark a new phase in Australia’s military posture—one defined by speed, sovereignty, and strategic precision.
With the release of a Request for Tender (RFT) on May 19, 2025, ASCA invited Australian industry and research organizations to submit proposals for Mission Talon Strike. The goal: deliver a medium-range precision loitering munition capability that is fully sovereign, cost-effective, scalable, and rapidly deployable. According to the timeline, evaluation of proposals will conclude by June 9, with initial deliveries expected by June 20—a breathtakingly fast track for a capability of such strategic significance.
In a formal statement accompanying the RFT, Major General Hugh Meggitt, Head of ASCA, laid out the core vision: “The mission of ASCA is to accelerate the development and transition of asymmetric capabilities to the ADF through national collaboration and innovation. Talon Strike will establish a local baseline for loitering munitions launched from land that are ready to meet the challenges of a modern battlefield.”
This initiative—highlighted as a priority in the 2024 National Defence Strategy—underscores the Albanese Government’s recognition of the evolving threat landscape and the urgency of equipping the Australian Defence Force (ADF) with modern tools to counter it.
Loitering munitions, often described as the hybrid of drones and missiles, are capable of flying to an area, loitering while surveilling or waiting for a target, and then striking with high precision. These systems fill a crucial gap between traditional artillery and longer-range strike weapons. Their agility, precision, and cost-efficiency make them a cornerstone of modern asymmetric warfare.
While the ADF has previously relied on imported systems and ad hoc acquisitions to address emerging threats, Talon Strike aims to establish a homegrown capability—manufactured, maintained, and upgraded within Australian borders.
What makes Talon Strike especially notable is its emphasis on a modular and scalable supply chain—a requirement designed to ensure long-term sustainability, cost control, and rapid adaptation to emerging threats. This aligns with Defence’s broader push for industrial sovereignty, a priority made more urgent by the disruptions of recent years and the increasing instability across the Indo-Pacific.
Defence Minister Pat Conroy, speaking on the program’s significance, said, “Talon Strike is not just a procurement project—it’s a strategic investment in our defence industrial base. For three years, we’ve been working with industry to build this capability. Now, we’re accelerating it.”
Launched just days before Talon Strike, Mission Syracuse serves as a complementary effort, this time focusing on counter-uncrewed aerial systems (counter-UAS). As drones become cheaper, more autonomous, and more widely used by state and non-state actors alike, countermeasures have become a critical focus for militaries worldwide.
Mission Syracuse will develop systems capable of detecting, tracking, and neutralizing small aerial threats, especially those posed by swarming drones or modified commercial UAVs. These technologies are to be developed with integration in mind—working in concert with existing systems and feeding into the LAND 156 program, which seeks to provide a full-spectrum counter-drone solution.
According to Major General Meggitt, Syracuse reflects a rapidly shifting threat environment: “Small drones have moved from nuisance to genuine battlefield threat. We have been tasked to respond quickly, and Syracuse is our answer.”
Unlike traditional procurement paths, Syracuse will use a two-stage acquisition process, leveraging early collaboration between Defence, research institutions, and private industry. The aim is to enable faster prototyping, earlier testing, and real-world evaluation within the ADF operational context.
The push behind Talon Strike and Syracuse is not occurring in a vacuum. Rather, it’s a response to rising geopolitical uncertainty, a shifting global military balance, and Australia’s reassessment of its defence posture.
In April 2024, the National Defence Strategy reoriented the ADF’s priorities toward asymmetric, integrated, and regionally responsive capabilities. At its core is the belief that Australia must be able to project force quickly, accurately, and independently in its near region, especially in the face of grey zone tactics and non-conventional threats.
The rise of asymmetric warfare—from loitering munitions to uncrewed swarms—has disrupted the conventional doctrine that once underpinned national security. Traditional big-ticket platforms like fighter jets and submarines still matter, but the tools that win today’s conflicts often cost far less and arrive far faster. These missions are Australia’s bid to stay competitive in this evolving environment.
Mission Black Thorn, launched in 2024, laid the groundwork by exploring capabilities to degrade hostile air and missile defences. With Talon Strike and Syracuse, ASCA is expanding the playbook to include both offensive and defensive asymmetric tools, forming a triad of rapid-response initiatives aimed at equipping the ADF for modern hybrid warfare.
Australia’s Defence spending is poised to grow significantly in the coming years. According to GlobalData, the 2024 Defence budget of AUD 37.8 billion is expected to increase by more than 6% annually through 2029. Much of this growth is earmarked for platforms like submarines, surface vessels, and missile systems.
But a key slice of the budget is now being directed toward sovereign innovation, particularly in areas where traditional procurement models have proven too slow or too rigid.
In that context, loitering munitions and counter-drone systems stand out as high-impact, relatively low-cost tools with rapid development potential. Talon Strike and Syracuse are structured to exploit those advantages by:
Minimizing logistics chains by enabling local manufacturing;
- Shortening development timelines through agile RFT processes;
- Strengthening national resilience by insulating critical systems from foreign supply disruptions;
- Enhancing operational readiness by ensuring faster deployment cycles.
The broader implication is clear: the government wants to establish a “fast lane” for defence innovation, sidestepping the traditional barriers that slow delivery of urgently needed capabilities.
Despite the ambitious goals, challenges remain.
The compressed timelines—with tenders evaluated in three weeks and deliveries expected shortly thereafter—place considerable pressure on both industry and Defence to deliver. While these timelines reflect urgency, they also demand extreme coordination, mature prototypes, and streamlined certification pathways.
The modular, scalable, and sovereign nature of the requirements further complicates vendor selection. Australia’s defence industrial base, while growing, remains relatively small compared to global powers. Delivering an integrated loitering munition system from scratch, with full sovereign control, within weeks, will be a stern test.
Additionally, the integration challenge for Mission Syracuse—merging new systems into existing and future CsUAS architectures—could expose gaps in interoperability and data-sharing protocols.
But ASCA’s approach is built to overcome these hurdles. By cultivating early-stage innovation and marrying it to rapid delivery frameworks, the agency is betting that speed and flexibility can counteract some of the entrenched weaknesses of past programs.
The twin launches of Talon Strike and Syracuse mark more than just a tactical response—they signal a paradigm shift in how Australia thinks about defence capability generation.
Where traditional acquisition has often lagged behind threat evolution, ASCA is attempting to reverse the model: pushing innovation out front, leaning into partnerships, and demanding deliverables that match operational timelines—not bureaucratic ones.
