SingaporeSome very disturbing new information has come to light regarding the fiasco of retiring and burying the Taipan helicopter fleet. Senator David Fawcett (Lib/SA) confirmed to me that he had advised the government in mid-October that Ukraine was interested in acquiring them. He was in a NATO meeting October 7-12 and met a number of Ukrainian military figures who stated their interest in Taipan, especially for MEDEVAC.

It is unconscionable that the government then went ahead with the secret scheme to trash them. And let’s talk cost of living pressures. Getting rid of Taipans and unnecessarily replacing them with older Black Hawks costs around $4 billion, which works out to about $640 for a family of four.

Which would you rather have: that money or some buried helicopters? Inflation? What is a major cause of inflation – the war in Ukraine. You want to put downward pressure on inflation then how about giving Ukraine the means to defeat Russia? And a final word about AUKUS. There’s also bipartisan support in the US for Ukraine – and look where that’s got them.

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Kym Bergmann
Kym Bergmann is the editor for Asia Pacific Defence Reporter (APDR) and Defence Review Asia (DRA). He has more than 25 years of experience in journalism and the defence industry. After graduating with honours from the Australian National University, he joined Capital 7 television, holding several positions including foreign news editor and chief political correspondent. During that time he also wrote for Business Review Weekly, undertaking analysis of various defence matters.After two years on the staff of a federal minister, he moved to the defence industry and held senior positions in several companies, including Blohm+Voss, Thales, Celsius and Saab. In 1997 he was one of two Australians selected for the Thomson CSF 'Preparation for Senior Management' MBA course. He has also worked as a consultant for a number of companies including Raytheon, Tenix and others. He has served on the boards of Thomson Sintra Pacific and Saab Pacific.

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