How is Lockheed Martin supporting Australia's Black Hawk fleet, strengthening sovereign sustainment and preparing the platform for future modernisation?

Speaking with Defence Connect news editor Robert Dougherty at Land Forces International Land Defence Exposition 2026, Lockheed Martin Australia UH-60M sustainment program manager Rodahn Gibbon and Lockheed Martin US UH-60 Black Hawk Strategy senior manager Bobby J Adkins II discuss the program's priorities, including supply chain development, workforce investment and long-term capability growth.

The conversation explores the development of Australia's sovereign maintenance network, opportunities for local small and medium-sized enterprises, and apprenticeship and traineeship programs to build a sustainable workforce.

Gibbon and Adkins also discuss Black Hawk modernisation, including engine and cockpit upgrades, launched effects and the unmanned U-Hawk configuration, alongside opportunities to position Australia as a regional sustainment hub.

Enjoy the podcast,
The Defence Connect team

How can Australian defence industry businesses strengthen security, achieve Defence Industry Security Program membership and position themselves to win more defence contracts?

Speaking with Defence Connect Spotlight host Phil Tarrant at Land Forces 2026 in Perth, De Stefano & Co CEO and managing director Emilio De Stefano discusses the growing importance of security compliance across Australia's defence industry, particularly for SMEs seeking to enter or expand within the sector.

The conversation explores DISP's four security domains, the importance of embedding security into organisational culture, and the challenges of managing cyber vulnerabilities, physical security and insider threats.

De Stefano also discusses DISP application delays, practical pathways to compliance and the additional requirements facing Australian businesses pursuing AUKUS opportunities, including alignment with international frameworks such as the US Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC).

Looking ahead, he explains how proportionate security roadmaps and independent advice can help businesses strengthen resilience, build trust with prime contractors and secure future defence industry opportunities.

Enjoy the podcast,
The Defence Connect Spotlight team

From AI-driven workloads and bank job cuts to attackers exploiting vulnerabilities at machine speed, David Hollingworth and Daniel Croft unpack a turbulent week in cyber security – including Australia's latest threat statistics and proposals to protect artists from AI-generated imitations.

The Finance Sector Union says AI adoption is increasing workloads and stress, while job security falls amid thousands of bank cuts. Meanwhile, Arctic Wolf reports that AI autonomously resolves 60 per cent of security investigations, although human analysts remain involved in almost all cases – highlighting the importance of oversight as automation expands.

PHP vulnerabilities have been added to the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalogue, with AI helping attackers exploit longstanding flaws. The latest Australian Signals Directorate cyber threat report also points to rising data breach notifications, while four Australian organisations were hit by Qilin ransomware in just four days.

There were positive developments, too. Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Deadly Coders are helping 5,000 First Nations students build AI and digital skills, while UNSW academics have proposed a Copyright Plus framework that would give artists greater control and potential remuneration when their work is used to train AI.

Enjoy,
The Cyber Uncut team