By BlueShift | 2026-03-16

Australian military leaders, government officials, defense industry executives, academics and international delegates will convene in the country's capital, Canberra, on March 17 for the Air and Space Power Conference 2026.

The biennial conference is hosted by the Air and Space Power Center, a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) think tank dedicated to developing future strategic thinkers in the air and space domains.

It is expected to bring more than 1,000 delegates to the National Convention Center to address the issue of air and space power in national defense, with speakers offering a range of international perspectives on the topic.

"Australia, like many middle powers, faces a challenging strategic environment framed by our geographic, demographic, economic, and industrial realities," according to the conference website.

A panel session moderated by Wing Commander Chris McInnes of the Air and Space Power Center will look at building fighting depth.

The Australian military defines fighting depth as the ability to generate and exploit posture, space and time to provide the country with more options, in more places, and more frequently.

Another session will address space in Australia's Integrated Force, which is the strategic model for the Australian Defense Force (ADF) as the country's balanced force is replaced by a focused force, amid a major restructuring.

This is seeing Australia move away from a model built around separate military services into a unified, single entity designed to operate seamlessly across the maritime, land, air, space and cyber domains.

International insight

During the conference, Middle East Institute distinguished fellow Bilahari Kausikan will offer a strategic update on the region.

Kausikan is a diplomat and strategic thinker who served in Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs for nearly 40 years in various senior roles. He has served as ambassador to Russia and as permanent representative to the United Nations.

In his April 2024 Gaston Sigur Memorial Lecture, and on other occasions, Kausikan has addressed complexities of US-China competition in Southeast Asia.

Swedish Air Force Deputy Commander Brig. Gen. Niclas Magnusson will discuss air power in Sweden's national defense; and Royal Canadian Air Force Commander Lt. Gen. Jamie Speiser-Blanchet will discuss the Canadian approach.

Griffith Asia Institute visiting fellow Peter Layton will offer insights from contemporary conflicts on big long wars, and heterogeneous air power.

In a video posted on the Royal Australian Air Force Facebook page, 2024 Air and Space Power Conference attendees pointed to the value of face to face interaction and networking with international colleagues and peers.

They noted a heightened interest in space power, not just from other services, but from coalition colleagues.

Among them the Five Eyes, an intelligence-sharing alliance comprising Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States, as well as Australia's SouthWest Pacific, Indo-Pacific and NATO partners and allies.

Australia's space operations

Australia issued its first National Defense Strategy (NDS) in April 2024, which outlines its plan to transform its military into an "integrated, focused force."

It will do this with a "larger, more lethal navy," an army optimized for littoral operations, resourcing the RAAF to provide support to integrated operations, strengthening cyber capabilities, and developing enhanced space capabilities.

An updated Australian 2026 NDS is expected to be published in April.

Australia sets out its defense force air domain concept in its Concept ASPECT (Air and Space Power Employment in Complex Environments).

ASPECT points to the challenge of large-scale military build-ups in the region, coupled with the ongoing acceleration of technological advances which include space-based intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR).

This has changed the character of the military threat facing Australia, it notes.

According to the ADF, Australian forces rely on space systems and information, including "meteorology, communications, intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, targeting, positioning, navigation and timing."

"One small step into space operations means a giant leap in capability for our ADF," Minister for Veterans Affairs and Defense Personnel Matt Keogh told the Guardian in February.

Space operations are "a critical domain as we respond to the most challenging strategic environment since the Second World War," he said.