Australian Army Fields First Battery of Geelong-Built AS9 Huntsman Howitzers

The Australian Army has officially brought into service its first protected mobile fires battery, equipped with 155mm AS9 Huntsman self-propelled howitzers built at Hanwha Defence Australia’s Geelong facility, during a parade at Lavarack Barracks in Townsville. The unit is working toward full operational capability by 2028.

At a Glance

AS9 Huntsmen arrived at 106 Battery, 4th Regiment, Royal Australian Artillery (RAA), in late May 2026.
The first live-fire took place in May 2026 at the School of Artillery in Puckapunyal, at the conclusion of the inaugural AS9 operator course, with crews firing 150 rounds from multiple vehicles.
106 Battery has received a total of six AS9 howitzers and one AS10 armoured ammunition resupply vehicle.
The unit was formally brought into service under 3rd Brigade during a parade at Lavarack Barracks, Townsville.
The AS9 Huntsman is an Australian-specific variant of the South Korean K9 Thunder self-propelled howitzer.

Background

The AS9 Huntsman programme marks the Australian Army’s shift from towed M777 howitzers to a protected, self-propelled fires platform. The vehicles are produced locally at Hanwha Defence Australia’s Geelong facility, adjacent to Avalon Airport, which also hosts the production line for the Redback infantry fighting vehicle. The AS9s rolled off the production line only months before the live-fire exercise. The programme’s rapid progress reflects the priority Australia has placed on modernising its land forces’ firepower.

Regional Impact

Australia’s fielding of a domestically built artillery platform reflects a broader trend among allied nations of strengthening indigenous defence industrial capacity amid heightened geopolitical tensions in the Indo-Pacific. The development runs parallel to Türkiye’s own localisation strategy in artillery and armoured vehicle manufacturing, and the adoption of similar indigenous production models by allied and partner nations across different regions contributes to the diversification of global defence supply chains.