The new vehicles will now undergo additional testing, training and verification activities, including firing trials, as part of preparation for operational service.
Hanwha Defence Australia said the milestone builds on the earlier Batch 1 delivery of two AS9 units and one AS10 unit manufactured in South Korea and announced last year.
The company noted that operator and maintainer training has been conducted alongside testing activities over the past 12 months, with new vehicles being progressively added to the program as they become available.
“Seeing the first Australian-made AS9s come off the production line and drive their first laps around our test track is a milestone that we’re all very proud of,” said HDA and UK/Europe CEO Ben Hudson in a statement from Hanwha Defence Australia.
He described the program as delivering a “game-changing capability” for the Australian Army, supported by a strategic industrial partnership.
Hanwha Defence Australia said the AS9 Huntsman is based on global experience drawn from the K9 and K10 fleet, which the company said is the most widely operated self-propelled howitzer platform in the world, with more than 2,400 units in service internationally.
The AS9 is equipped with a 52-calibre 155mm gun system used across multiple countries, including within the NATO alliance, while the AS10 Huntsman Armoured Ammunition Resupply Vehicle is designed to provide protected and manoeuvrable ammunition support.
Hanwha said the AS10’s loading system aims to reduce soldier exposure to battlefield fire while supporting operator safety.
The program is supported by a supply chain involving both local and international partners, including Australian manufacturers AME, Aurizn, Axalta, Bisalloy Steel, CBG Systems, Defcon, DVR, Elphinstone, Eylex, HIFraser, Kongsberg Defence Australia, Maser, MMCLD, Redline Engineering, Rojone, Safran Electronics and Defence Australasia, Stahl Metal, TEi, Thales Australia and Thomas Warburton.
Hudson said the technology transfer component of the LAND 8116 program between South Korea and Australia had served as a pilot model for deepening industrial collaboration between the two countries.
“This experience provides the foundation to succeed on our other Defence vehicle programs,” he said.
Hanwha Defence Australia said the milestone production event was celebrated with government, defence stakeholders, supply chain partners and the workforce at the company’s purpose-built facility in Geelong.
The first Australian-made AS10 Huntsman is scheduled to come off the production line at the H-ACE facility later this year as manufacturing and testing activities continue.
