Gregor Ferguson sounds like a pessimist to me, and while he might know more than I do, his description at the bottom of the article he wrote doesn't indicate that he is anyone a government would necessarily listen to.

But he has the right end of the stick in regard to the stupid ban on a nuclear capability our idiotic politicians have deliberately brought about; which, of course still doesn't excuse the French fiasco, which is an albatross around our necks, brought about by a Prime Minister who is history to prop up the seat of an SA politician who is also history. Defence has been just a job creation scheme to the morons in Canberra, and I don't think that any of them can be relied on to defend Australia, with submarines or anything else.

We would actually be better off without these basically useless things if the stuff hits the fan.

As with the Wirrways in Rabaul when taken by the Japs, having a flight of 6 of them achieved nothing but killing some good trained men, who would have been better used training new pilots in Oz until we had something at least useful to put into the air.

These subs will only take a crew to their end totally uselessly.

Are they not finding it difficult to raise crews for submarines, no matter who builds them or what sort they are - or how hugely expensive?

NAVAL SHIPBUILDING MONEY FOR VOTES A REALITY OF LIFE

Hi ttbn

Whered you so gratuitously claim "Defence has been just a job creation scheme to the morons in Canberra" YOU ARE SPOT ON.

Federal money allocated to certain States and the Federal electorates in them is political reality across all Federal Budget items.

South Australia has been dependent on Federal money (cars and submarines) for decades because South Australia is too arid to earn a decent farming return and Adelaide's population is so isolated from profitable cities. Also net immigration into South Australia is low or even negative "growth".

So Federal money was injected into South Australia's car industry (Holden and others) which kept South Australia going from the 1940s.

However without the car industry being articially in Adelaide, Adelaide needed another plausible industry to attract Federal money. That came by way of South Australia's build and maintain submarine industry and the large build destroyers/frigates industry.

More than coincidentally Federal money boosts South Australian jobs which in turn boosts VOTES in key marginal Federal electorates

For example massive Fed money promised for Adelaids's submarine building actually won the Coalition the 2016 Fed Election.

Now continuing shipbuilding cash for Adelaide will win Morrison the Fed Election likely in September/October this year or up to 21 May 2022 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Next_Australian_federal_election#Election_date

Pete
http://gentleseas.blogspot.com/

If it's "spot on" it can't be gratuitous. You don't know much about farming in SA, or Adelaide. But that's beside the point. Money should be spent on arming and training the civilian population, leaving the military to it's cross-dressing, gender politics and whatever the prevailing social fad is.

THE GREATER THE AMOUNT OF MONEY THE GREATER THE POLITICAL SHADOW PLAY

So France (Naval Group) are not building Australia's submarines late and over-budget.

It was the Coalition Government (now led by Morrison) who, in 2016, engineered the situation in which too much Federal money was earmarked over too long a period

TO BUY VOTES FOR THE MORRISON GOVERNMENT IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA IN THE UPCOMING (BY JULY 2022) FEDERAL ELECTION.