Government won't rule out Aussie base for US drones

[Somamech]

I SHOULD post this in the Humour section but alas it is sorta breaking news LOL


Government won't rule out Aussie base for US drones

This morning Defence Minister Stephen Smith told AM that the Cocos airstrip would need to be upgraded to be able to launch the drones and stressed that it was "very much a long-term prospect".

"It's not currently ideal because one of the first things that we would have to do, and this has been agreed between me and my counterparts, is a substantial infrastructure upgrade, particularly so far as the airfield is concerned," he said.

"That's one of the reasons why this is very much a long-term prospect. So again, I say, people should not get ahead of themselves."

Mr Smith said US and Australian officials were looking at "three priorities" in the wake of the agreement with Mr Obama.

He said they were: the basing of US Marines in Darwin; greater air traffic through northern Australia; and, in the longer term, American access to the Navy's HMAS Stirling base in Perth.

WHooops!  SOURCE:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-03-28/gillard-tight-lipped-on-us-drones-claim/3916460

A Mil Logistics guy with CEO to his name told me a year or so ago that the US Navy were in out of here Increasingly 

It has to make one laugh that we also get a Sanctioned NSA Pine Gap Book right about the same time these announcements occur LOL

Hallowed are the Ori   

[Somamech]

Plus we here at Pegasus already pinned the US Navy in Pine Gap LOL

[Linda Brown]

The  Marine presence is interesting in Australia.. There is even talk here of transfers being available out of 29 for certain personel...

And its interesting regarding the speed of the newest ones..... LA to New York in twelve minutes?
Other than having the superstructure skin peel off... I wonder what other problems might come up?  Linda