March 2009: Australia’s CTD Program Boosts 4 Tech Projects

Warren Snowden(click to view full) Research and Development is essential to any national technology base, and to the health of its defense industrial base. The USA is a global research leader, and some of its efforts have created international infrastructure – like the internet. In other cases, it has been a matter of adapting existing civilian research like low-power, flexible displays for military use. For smaller nations like Canada, Australia, et. al. R&D budgets are smaller, and so funded research must be more focused. Australia’s Capability and Technology Demonstrator (CTD) Extension Program aims to take existing DSTO research projects to higher maturity levels for operational./ commercial evaluation, in a manner similar to the USA’s SBIR Phase III awards. Australia’s Minister for Defence Science and Personnel Warren Snowden recently announced 4 winners in this area: The electronic warfare specialists at Avalon Systems Pty Ltd’s missile detection system, designed to provide ships with additional warning time. In an era of supersonic cruise missiles, that can offer 45 seconds or less from the moment they break the radar horizon until the moment the hit the ship, every second counts. Further development will move this technology forward to land and sea trials. Sentient Pty […]