Avm Binskin To Am When Caf 4 July 08

[Luig]

Dept of Defence media release.

New Defence leadership team announced

19 March - Chief of the Defence Force Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston has been re-appointed for a further three years, in a round of new leadership appointments announced today by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.

The Prime Minister further announced the appointment of a new Vice Chief of the Defence Force, along with new chiefs of the Navy, Army and Air Force, to take effect on 4 July 2008.

Lieutenant General David Hurley will assume the position of the new Vice Chief of the Defence Force, taking over from Lieutenant General Ken Gillespie.

Lieutenant General Gillespie has been appointed as the new Chief of Army, with the current Chief, Lieutenant General Peter Leahy, to retire.

The new Chief of Navy will be Rear Admiral Russell Crane, who will be promoted to Vice Admiral and take over from the retiring Chief in Vice Admiral Russ Shalders.

The Royal Australian Air Force will also have a new leader, with current Air Commander Air Vice-Marshal Mark Binskin to be promoted to the rank of Air Marshal when he takes over from Air Marshal Geoff Shepherd as Chief of Air Force.

This post has been edited by Luig on Mar 26 2008, 08:55 AM

[Luig]

New top brass for military Mark Dodd | March 20, 2008.

KEVIN Rudd has ordered sweeping changes to the command of the Australian Defence Force, replacing the heads of the army, navy and air force and demanding the new team fix a growing recruitment and skills crisis.

But the current Chief of the Defence Force, Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston, will keep his job for another three years in a strong vote of support from the Prime Minister.

In a sign that the Government expects results from its new defence team, the replacements have been ordered to make progress reports on efforts to lift personnel recruitment every three months.

In the biggest shake-up of the defence force in decades, the chiefs of the three services were issued their retirement orders yesterday after distinguished careers during a period when defence was working at a peak operational tempo.

Lieutenant General Peter Leahy hands over command of the army to his deputy and former land commander, Lieutenant General Ken Gillespie, 55.

General Gillespie becomes the first army chief to have risen right through the ranks. He enlisted as an apprentice in 1968.

As a former member of the national counter-terrorism committee, established after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, in the US, he has extensive administrative experience across state and federal bodies.

Navy chief Russ Shalders and his air force counterpart Geoff Shepherd will be replaced by their respective deputies, Rear Admiral Russell Crane, 53, and Air Vice-Marshal Mark Binskin, 48. The three commanders are expected to retire from military life.

In other moves, Lieutenant General David Hurley, 53, the chief of joint operations, is elevated to vice-chief of the 71,000-strong (including reservists) defence force.

"This team has strong credentials and experience in leadership and management in a joint operational environment," Mr Rudd said in announcing the changes. "They are well placed to assist the Australian Government to meet our security policy challenges into the future."

Mr Rudd announced the changes as he said Australia remained committed to Afghanistan for the long haul. But he called on NATO to produce an agreed strategy for success against the Taliban.

When Mr Rudd becomes the first Australian prime minister to attend a NATO summit meeting - in Romania next month - the 26-member body will try to agree on a road map for military operations and civil reconstruction in Afghanistan. "The reason I am going to Bucharest to attend the summit is very clear-cut: I want to be confident that NATO collectively and the European contributors to it have embarked on a long-term strategy to secure success in Afghanistan and against fixed benchmarks," Mr Rudd said yesterday.

The command shake-up comes at a time of heavy overseas engagement from the defence force. About 3900 defence personnel are expected to be overseas at any time this year on nine operations. About 12,000 members of the defence force will be involved in deployments over the next year.

The Rudd Government has vowed to pull Australia's combat troops out of Iraq this year. But the nation has about 1000 troops in Afghanistan and others throughout the Pacific region, including East Timor.

Australia is reluctant to commit more troops to fight the Taliban in Afghanistan when NATO countries are not increasing their effort. But with the 1650-strong Dutch deployment to Oruzgan province due to be phased down from 2010, Australia will come under pressure from the US and other allies to lift its military effort in the province.

Defence Minister Joel Fitzgibbon immediately put the new chiefs on notice that the Government expected a timely turnaround in patchy defence recruitment numbers.

The Australian has learned that the Government has capped recruitment of civilians into the ADF as it seeks to cut expenses. Hiring of uniformed staff remains unaffected, but the ADF has been restricted to recruiting within the federal public service to fill its civilian vacancies.

The call from Mr Fitzgibbon to improve recruitment will be particularly felt in the recruit-starved navy, which depends on technically skilled personnel.

The Australian revealed this month that the navy was suffering a 37 per cent shortage of submariners, which was restricting the ability to put the Collins Class submarine to sea.

The Howard government last year announced an $11.5billion 10-year program to increase army personnel by 3000. The army's numbers have slipped from a peak of 33,072 in 1982-83 to about 26,000.

"The single biggest challenge facing the Australian Defence Force in the future is our people and skills shortage," Mr Fitzgibbon said. "On that basis, I've asked the new leadership team to make this a particular focus.

"Every three months, or more (frequently) if required, the service chiefs will spell out ... progress they have made in meeting the exacting requirements of their services for skilled trades and professions."

Earlier this week, Mr Fitzgibbon warned of defence belt-tightening amid concerns the military budget was short $6billion over the next decade.

"It is a tough challenge in the face of almost full employment and a booming mining industry," he said.

"However, there is no choice but to succeed. The best available military equipment is of little use without sufficient high-quality personnel."

More pay was not the only answer to attracting staff, he said: "The reality is that we can never hope to compete with other industries, in particular the mining industry, on the remuneration front alone. That's why we need to find new and innovative ways to encourage personnel to stay, rather than to leave."

Extending free medical and dental services to all defence families was an example of an innovation that "might just make the difference when defence families are trying to make this difficult decision", he said.

Brendan Nelson, a former defence minister, welcomed the reshuffle.

Air Chief Marshal Houston, 60, said he was deeply honoured and humbled to be reappointed.

- Additional reporting: Patrick Walters
__________________________________

Decisions deliver experience mix
COMMENT: Patrick Walters | March 20, 2008.
AS he always does, Angus Houston was out running yesterday morning long before sunrise.

The super-lean Houston, 60, is not just the fittest but by far the most experienced defence chief of his generation, having already served four years as air force chief and nearly three years as chief of the defence forces.

His reappointment yesterday as CDF came as no surprise to anyone on Russell Hill.

The only speculation was whether the Government would reappoint him for a full three-year term or opt for a shorter period.

If he serves six years as CDF, Houston's tenure will equal that of general Peter Gration, who served as CDF from 1987 to 1993.

With defence facing its most serious strategic challenges in decades, the Government has opted for the experienced Houston to steer the establishment. He starts his second term in July as defence faces a funding crunch, as well as a shortage of skilled personnel, just as it is gearing up for a series of major equipment acquisitions, including the $16billion Joint Strike Fighter.

He must oversee the creation of a defence white paper this year to form a blueprint for a defence force structure that can support concurrent operations in Afghanistan, East Timor and Iraq.

Given all of these challenges, retaining Houston as CDF was a sensible move. He has proved a highly popular leader with rank-and-file defence force members, taking a close interest in personnel issues.

Of the three service chiefs, the man with the biggest job is new new Royal Australian Navy chief Russ Crane.

Compared with the army and the RAAF, the RAN is in the doldrums, suffering severe shortages of skilled personnel, notably in the submarine arm. The Government is looking to Crane to reinvigorate the senior service.

Houston's most likely successor as CDF remains Lieutenant General David Hurley, 53, who becomes Vice-Chief of the Defence Force. Hurley has performed well in recent posts including a stint as chief of capability development.

Lieutenant General Ken Gillespie, 55, succeeds Peter Leahy as army chief, bringing to the job operational experience in East Timor, Iraq and Afghanistan as well as strategic policy-making.

For Leahy, it marks the end of a distinguished army career, in which he served a record six-year term as chief of army.

Perhaps the only surprise yesterday was the appointment of Mark Binskin, who turns 48 today, as air force chief. Binskin, a fighter pilot with extensive experience in joint operations covering Iraq and Afghanistan, vaulted ahead of more senior air vice-marshals John Blackburn, John Quaife and Greg Evans.

It will now be up to Binskin to sort out a host of complex issues surrounding Australia's future air combat capability, including the transition to the F/A-18 Super Hornet and the stalled introduction of the RAAF's vital early-warning aircraft.

This post has been edited by Luig on Mar 26 2008, 09:15 AM

Attached Image

[Luig]

Below is a VF-805 Sqdn Line Book page from 1981 showing the pilot lineup in a typically humourous style. The second image shows the detail for the "Binny" group. "Masher Maher" transferred to the RAAF and "Bullets Blemish" went to the RN FAA and Harriers when fixed wing folded in 1984. By this time "Binny the Kid" was on exchange with the RAAF and of course he stayed there. The photo of the page (kept at FAAM) has been slightly modified for the A4G PDF.

This post has been edited by Luig on Mar 23 2008, 05:23 AM

Attached Image

[Luig]

Zoom detail:

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[Luig]

http://canberra.yourguide.com.au/news/local/opinion/military-chiefs-on-notice-to-force-through-change/1208806.html

25 March 2008 Military chiefs on notice to force through change Nicholas Stuart

Because Air Marshal Angus Houston is still the Chief of the Defence Force, last week's clean sweep of the heads of the individual services has been portrayed as "steady as she goes". The reality is very different.

The move represents a radical transformation and clearly shows that this Government is determined to get exactly what it wants from the forces. This fundamental shake-up of the high command is a first step towards signalling that things have changed on Russell Hill. These new chiefs have been chosen as agents of change and everyone is on notice that things are going to be done in a new way. The old order is out.

There is no need to look any further than the background of the new chiefs themselves to see what an assault this represents to the traditional way of doing business. None of the three new commanders is a typical product of the officer training establishments.

Navy Chief Rear Admiral Russell Crane began as a junior seaman; Lieutenant General Ken Gillespie started as an apprentice in the army; and Air Vice Marshal Mark Binskin actually began his flying career in the navy. He is perhaps the biggest surprise appointment. Only 48 years old, he is the person who has most obviously leapt ahead of other capable officers to command the air force.

Individually, none of the choices is surprising because all three commanders are more than capable of doing the job.

For the past decade the three services have stopped putting the word "the" in front of army, navy or air force. It was a literary trick, making it seem as if the institutions had some sort of personality that was greater than their individual components or the people wearing the uniform. Perhaps unintentionally, this made it appear as if there was only one way of doing things and that while the organisational structure could be fiddled with, it could never be changed significantly.

The implication was that the military had its own way of doing things, and while it provided a service to government, it did so in its own way. The responsibility of the politicians was simply to fund the forces. This Government is demonstrating, quite decisively, that the services will no longer be able to get away with pretending that things can only be done in a particular way.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd announced the new appointments himself. In part this was a demonstration of his normal tendency to micro-manage, yet it also displayed something else. It signalled clearly that this move to significantly change the services is coming from the top; and that the prime minister will back Defence Minister Joel Fitzgibbon to the hilt as he wrestles with the organisation, trying to get it to perform the way the Government wants.

Nevertheless, this is not a direct assault; it is rather an attempt to reform the organisation from within. People have been inserted into the top jobs who are prepared to think more broadly about how missions can be achieved and, more particularly, are prepared to accept that there is more than one way to skin a cat.

The best example of the crisis that besets the defence structure can be found within the navy. The submarine service is a vital element of this capability. Air warfare destroyers and the surface fleet are absolutely necessary to project power, but the last line of defence of the continent is found beneath the water. As long as the submarine force remains intact, no enemy could ever hope to gain lodgment on Australia's shore.

The previous government focused on the surface fleet, buying equipment and ignoring the increasingly hollow shells of the submarines. Currently, more than 40per cent of the seagoing berths are unfilled. This increases the strain on the remaining submariners. The previous government tried recruiting from overseas and throwing money at the problem but nothing has worked. As a result, only half of the units can be put to sea, and an essential naval capacity is effectively absent from the order of battle.

Fixing this is the job of the Chief of Navy. Under the model that, until now, the Defence Force has enthusiastically embraced, the government determines what particular capability it requires (for example, Output 2.4 capability for submarine operations).

The services then continue doing what they have always done; while also producing a glossy annual report (stating the outcome has been "substantially achieved") to keep the politicians quiet. The reality is then buried deep within the report in small print and weasel words, such as submarine "mission capability was not fully achieved due to systems-related defects and workforce shortfalls". Then, when one of the boats does manage to be put to sea, photographers are quickly deployed to prove that everything is OK, regardless of the reality.

The changes at the top send a clear signal that the politicians will no longer tolerate this state of affairs.

This was reinforced by Fitzgibbon's firm language in linking these appointments to the current "people and skills shortage".

The minister made the point that "every three months or more if required, the service chiefs will still [report] progress they have made in meeting the exacting requirements of their services for skilled trades and professions". He expects to see progress. What makes this frightening from the point of view of the new chiefs is that failure will not be tolerated.

The Government has thrown down the challenge to the forces. There is not an ever-expanding balance sheet that will fund the continuing natural desire of the military to do things its way. The purse strings have now drawn tight. There is not enough money to continue doing things in the old way.

The Government has three service chiefs who it hopes will reform the institution from within. That's what they will be backed to do force through change. If they aren't able or prepared to do this, the Government will find someone who will.

Nicholas Stuart is a Canberra writer.

[Brendan Cowan]

Very interesting perspective.

I did think it very odd to extend the CDF (not sure that has happened before) when so much change had occurred with the rest of the brass.

BC

[Demon50]

No matter how glossy the ads nor how much money you throw at the problem, people won't enlist if they don't want to or have better (and safer) prospects.

I work for one of Australia's largest companies which is staggering under staff shortages. Only a couple of years ago there was a waiting list now we can't get staff for love nor money.

Why ?

Everyone is citing "the mining industry" !

[Rod Farquhar]

Already there are rumblings, service chiefs reject idea of allowing uni students and other civilians open slather work experience on ADF bases. They are already undermanned and cannot afford the manpower to baby sit said work experience hopefuls. Over to to you Minister!
Rod ^_^

[Luig]

Flying high by Soraiya Gharahkani 16 April 2008 - 10:22AM

http://campbelltown.yourguide.com.au/news/local/general/flying-high/1224629.html

MARK Binskin remembers walking down the road to Campbelltown Public School as a child more than 40 years ago.
Back then, he had no idea that his country town upbringing in Hoddle Avenue would lead him to become chief of the Royal Australian Air Force.

“Sometimes, when I’m back in Campbelltown, I drive past my old house just to remember life there,” he said.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd recently announced in Federal Parliament that Air Vice Marshal Binskin would take on his new role from July 4. He will then become Air Marshal.

His appointment is part of a major shake-up of military high command by the Rudd Government, with the Canberra Times declaring Mr Binskin, and other key service chiefs, have been hand chosen as “agents of change”.

Mr Binskin’s impressive career began not in the RAAF, but the navy, which he joined in 1978.

There, he completed an aviation course and flew the A-4G Skyhawk aircraft at Nowra. Mr Binskin was the first navy pilot to complete an exchange program with the air force in 1982.

He moved through the ranks, reaching the top RAAF post a day after his 48th birthday last month.

“What a present – I can’t imagine what I’ll get this Christmas,” he told the Advertiser.

But Mr Binskin said without the experiences he had in Campbelltown, he would not be the person he was today.

“I gained a lot of values growing up in Campbelltown and the people I grew up with instilled those values in me and I hold that with me everyday,” he said.

“As long as I can remember I wanted to fly and I remember right back as a young boy going to plane shows with my father at Richmond and Nowra.

“My fondest memories of Campbelltown were with my school friends, who I still keep in contact with today. I used to ride motorbikes with them back in the paddocks but we did it responsibly.”

After Mr Binskin graduated from Hurlstone Agricultural High School in Glenfield, he said he wanted to take part in guarding Australia’s security.

“I guess I got the job because people have a lot of trust that I can do the job properly,” he said.

There, he served as the chief of staff at the Australian-theatre headquarters.

After his involvement he received the Commendation for Distinguished Service for his support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.

Mr Binskin has more than 3500 hours of experience in single-seat fighter aircraft and was awarded the Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for his services.

The RAAF is the second oldest in the world (after the British air force) and has been stationed in recent years around the globe from East Timor to Pakistan and Somalia.

In his younger days, Mr Binskin served as the RAAF F/A-18 Hornet demonstration pilot in Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and New Zealand.

And he keeps a close eye on his home town, where his proud family still lives.

“I think the biggest change in Campbelltown has been the people,” he said. “It’s a lot more multicultural and I think Campbelltown Council has helped it progress as a community.”

As well as his military qualifications, Mr Binskin is a graduate of Harvard Business School’s advanced-management program.

http://campbelltown.yourguide.com.au/news/local/general/flying-high/1224629.html