Video shows US Army testing new missiles in Australia
In a milestone moment, the US Army has conducted a live-fire test of its precision strike missiles in Australia, the first ever west of the international dateline.
The test on Friday (US time), seen in footage obtained by Fox News Digital, marks a significant advancement in the region's long-range strike capabilities. The precision strike missile (PrSM) has an unclassified range of 300 miles (about 480km) and can hit moving targets on land or at sea, Fox News reports.
The test saw a US-manufactured PrSM launched from a High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) vehicle owned by the Australian Defence Force.
It was a show of force between the US and Australia at a time of increasing tension in the Indo-Pacific.
The US Army conducted the live-fire test of its precision strike missiles on Friday (US time). Picture: Fox News/US Army
A US-manufactured PrSM was launched from a High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) vehicle owned by the Australian Defence Force. Picture: Fox News/US Army
'This is just one of the key steps we're taking throughout the region to deter conflict, while ensuring that our soldiers have the best capabilities available,' said Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, who observed the test at the Mount Bundey Training Area in Australia.
'The PrSM allows our forces to hold land and maritime regions at risk, which gives adversaries pause and increases deterrence.'
The PrSM is the US Army's newest addition to its long-range precision fires (LRPF) portfolio, a triad of advanced strike systems that includes HIMARS-launched missiles, the mid-range capability platform and the Dark Eagle hypersonic missile.
While HIMARS has already proven itself in combat zones like Ukraine, where its ability to rapidly fire and evade counter-attack has made it a prized system, the integration of the PrSM into this platform significantly enhances its strategic utility.
The test marks a significant advancement in the region's long-range strike capabilities. Picture: Fox News/US Army
The mobile launcher can be deployed from C-17 and C-130 aircraft, a U.S. Navy landing craft and even from ships at sea, a capability tested in joint drills with the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps.
Unlike the 90-mile-range Extended Range Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (ER GMLRS), which fires six missiles per HIMARS, the PrSM packs two missiles per launcher and can reach more than triple the distance.
Asked why the missiles were an important part of preparation for a potential war in the Indo-Pacific, Driscoll told reporters, 'I think if you look at the way conflict is unfolding now, what is not being rewarded is large, massive presences with static locations and big footprints and signatures. What is being rewarded is the ability to be agile, hide your signature and move quickly.'
The PrSM is the US Army's newest addition to its long-range precision fires (LRPF) portfolio. Picture: Fox News/US Army
Fielding of HIMARS continues across the US Indo-Pacific Command, with the 25th Infantry Division in Hawaii recently receiving 16 launchers, a first for a light infantry division tasked with jungle and archipelagic warfare. Officials say they are looking to increase munitions production with key allies.
The test comes after it was revealed the Pentagon privately pressed Australia to define how it might help if war broke out over a Chinese invasion of Taiwan. Australia responded by stressing it would not commit troops in advance of any conflict.
Australia does not permit permanent foreign military bases, but the US is expanding its rotational presence at Australian sites.
Australia and the US recently led a major joint exercise in Sydney involving 30,000 troops from 19 countries.
It also comes at a time when Washington is reconsidering whether to sell nuclear-powered, Virginia-class submarines to Sydney through the Australia-UK-US (AUKUS) deal.
The three nations would jointly design a new class of submarines, with Australian production beginning in the 2040s.
This article originally appeared in Fox News and has been reproduced with permission.
Originally published as Footage shows US Army testing new precision strike missiles in Australia
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The Australian government was cock-a-hope last week after the US president left the nation sitting on his minimum whack in a 10 per cent global benchmark, saying it franked its low-key negotiating tactics that were condemned by the Coalition. However, as is often the case, President Trump's silk glove announcement contained a sledgehammer after he revealed this week that a 250pc levy could be slapped on Australian pharmaceutical exports, leaving Labor leaders with a fight to talk the nation out of the heavy impost. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will have a few hours above the Tasman to mull the human hurricane that is Donald J. Trump on his way to the Australia-New Zealand leaders' meeting being held in the Shaky Isles this weekend. 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The incoming director-general of the European Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting, one of the world's leading forecasting services, Florian Pappenberger, admitted that the combination of those moves would have global ramifications and "without a doubt" lead to a diminished reliability in forecasts for agencies around the world. "The forecast will not be as good," he said. "There's no question about that. We will lose forecast skill." The president said he wants the NASA funding to be diverted into programs to beat China back to the moon and put the first human on Mars. While far from waving the white flag in its long fight to have the idea scrapped entirely, Self Managed Super Fund Association chief executive Peter Burgess said this week that the lobby group was also urging Treasurer Jim Chalmers to defer implementing his super tax changes should the measures pass through the Senate and into law. The contentious plans include doubling the tax on the proportion of fund balances over $3 million from 15 per cent to 30pc. The two most divisive aspects of the plans, as they stand, are that the changes would apply to unrealised capital gains and, to a lesser degree, that they will not be indexed. However, while Dr Chalmers still must reintroduce the legislation, the process technically started on July 1 with Labor planning to make the bill retrospective. Addressing the contentious Division 296 legislation during his opening address at the SMSF Association's 2025 technical summit, Mr Burgess said that while the government would argue that the measure was announced two years ago, "it is completely unreasonable to expect individuals to respond to legislation before it becomes law". "The Government has previously acknowledged the need for a long lead time to allow impacted members to consider the impact and make the necessary changes to their superannuation arrangements," he said. Mr Burgess is also preparing proposed amendments to put in front of the Coalition, which remains totally against the measures. "Those amendments would seek to take unrealised capital gains off the table, which would be great for farmers and small business owners," he told ACM. "The Coalition can dig in their heels and say they don't agree with any amendments, or try and do the right thing by their heartland." Questions around consumer law are being pondered after on-road testing has revealed that some of Australia's best-selling electric vehicles failed to meet their advertised range on a single charge and consumed significantly more power than manufacturers had promised. The Australian Automobile Association released the results on Thursday after road-testing five EVs under its federally funded, $14 million Real-World Testing Program. The Chinese-manufactured BYD Atto 3 SUV performed the worst in running out of juice a stunning 111km short of its spruiked range, as well as using 21pc more power than advertised, prompting industry stakeholders to call the result "not good enough". The energy consumption tests were performed on a 93km circuit around Geelong in Victoria in damp and dry conditions. In other results, Elon Musk's Tesla's entry-level electric car, the Model 3, fell 14pc below the advertised range, or 72km, and used 6pc more power than lab testing. Next were the Tesla Model Y and Kia EV6 SUVs with both falling 8pc short of promised ranges, or just over 40km, while the Smart EV 3 was 5pc below the advertised distance. The results should be a concern for a Labor government and regional Australians looking down the road at an EV-dominated future. Charging stations have been as rare as hen's teeth outside the peri-urban fringes for years and, while installations are increasing and more are being placed along major highways, their placement has been predicated on those manufacturer lab tests. It appears yet another regional and remote connectivity "blackspot" needs to be addressed. The Invasive Species Council has welcomed a $2.8 million federal funding announcement to strengthen bird flu biosecurity across captive-breeding threatened species programs - calling it a vital step in national preparedness for H5 avian influenza. The funding - delivered through the Zoo and Aquarium Association - is part of Labor's broader $100m investment to prepare and protect the nation against H5. It will be sprinkled around 23 facilities, from the Currumbin Wildlife Park on the Gold Coast to Adelaide Zoo, in a bid to protect over 20 threatened species from the virus. ISC policy director Carol Booth said the measure should be the "proactive, collaborative and science-led" blueprint for future wildlife preparedness exercises. "It's exactly the kind of forward-looking action Australia needs to prepare for wildlife emergencies before they hit,' Dr Booth said. In a major win for the nation's biosecurity efforts, it was announced last month that Australia has been officially declared free from high-pathogenicity avian influenza in poultry. The government has also confirmed that Australia remains free of the H5N1 strain, a subtype of avian influenza that remains on its doorstep and has created havoc across entire continents. The highly contagious strain has infected more than 500 wild bird species and 90 mammalian species overseas and, while these were mainly marine mammals and bird-eating scavengers, "spillover" cases have been detected in dairy cattle, cats, goats, alpacas, and pigs. A sheep was also infected after being exposed to a highly contaminated environment in the UK. Asia has been significantly impacted by the H5N1 strain with cases being reported in several countries, including multiple human fatalities linked to the virus in Cambodia notwithstanding that human infections are rare. Dr Booth added that while the funding announced by Environment Minister Murray Watt and Agriculture Minister Julie Collins on Friday would safeguard animals in captivity, "we now need the same level of urgency and coordination for protecting wildlife in the wild", including in high-risk areas like wetlands, seabird colonies and coastal haul-out sites for seals. In an opinion article published by ACM this week, Australia's Energy Infrastructure Commissioner Tony Mahar said that the clean energy transition was a big, complex, fast-moving train that has well and truly departed the station. He warned that if regional communities continue to be left on the platform as the train disappears down the track, they would also be standing in the rubble of a "disastrous trail of lost trust, unfairness, and missed economic opportunity". "Too many rural and regional communities feel like this transition is being done to them, not with them," he said. "Projects are being announced, good people are being approached by charlatans and salespeople looking for a quick sale and signature under a veil of non-disclosure secrecy. "Timelines are being set and decisions made, while locals are left feeling like bystanders in their own backyards. That's not just unfair, it's unsustainable."
