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U.S. and Australia demonstrate current, future space priorities at Avalon International airshow April 3, 2025

By 1st Lt. Casey Sturdivan

VICTORIA, Australia – U.S. and Australian forces demonstrated their combined focus on cooperation, warfighting effectiveness and lethality in the Indo-Pacific space domain during the Avalon International Airshow and Trade Days, March 25 – 30, 2025.  

Avalon is the Southern Hemisphere’s largest airshow and aerospace and defense exposition. During the 2025 event, multiple industry exhibits, keynote speakers and engagements focused on current priorities and future development of space concerns. 

 Australian Army Lieutenant General Susan Coyle, Chief of the Joint Capabilities Group, served as one of the keynote speakers during the event. She urged attendees to consider both the advantages of space superiority and the necessity to rise to the challenges of the future.   

“Space has never been more contested and never been more central to Australian interests. Losing in space is not an option,” Coyle said. 

Reinforcing the criticality of partnerships in space, U.S. Space Force Col. Eamon Murray, Director, Strategy, Plans and Force Development, U.S. Space Forces Indo-Pacific, shared the need to continue development alongside Australian partners. 

“We must be integrated with our allies, our partners, and our industry counterparts from the beginning, ensuring that unity of effort is the starting point and not just the outcome,” said Murray. “Global reliance on space, coupled with the growing sophistication of adversaries who seek to exploit that reliance, make space a true warfighting domain.

Murray also shared the necessity of combined U.S. and Australian exercises such as COBRA GOLD and TALISMAN SABRE. These recurring exercises test and perfect the integration between the two nations needed to collectively respond to emerging regional threats, regardless of domain.

“We are living in an era of profound transformation in the space domain,” Murray said. “An era that demands bold action, deep collaboration and a commitment to resilience in the face of threats.”

To inspire future bold action and further interest in space careers from a young age, the U.S. based Endeavour scholarship used Avalon as a platform to award four space-inspired students and one educator the opportunity to attend “Space Camp USA” in summer 2025.   

“Today we don’t just look from earth to space, we also look from space to earth to guide our lives,” said Royal Australian Air Force Group Captain Katherine Bennell-Pegg, Director of Space Technology, Australian Space Agency. “The next greatest discoveries, the next most impactful discoveries for humans, are going to come from a place beyond all horizons, and perhaps one day from a place with new horizons.”

The weeklong Space Camp program allows students from 10 countries around the globe to attend a weeklong astronaut training in Huntsville, Alabama. These young students work alongside allied nations to not only develop their understanding of space capabilities, but to further international cooperation and dedication to mutual space priorities.  

“The Endeavour scholarship has supported me to look outside of regular career paths and inspired me to literally reach for the stars when thinking of what I want to pursue,” said Ruby-Jane Roberts, 2024 scholarship recipient and program alumni. 

The scholarship program intends to both encourage careers in STEM education and bolster critical international cooperation, a key component of continued success in the space realm. 

“Put simply, space is too big and too important for us to go alone,” said Coyle. “It’s all about ensuring that we have a unity of purpose that is built on a solid foundation of trust.”

U.S. participation in Avalon is a testament to the strength of our alliance and our dedication to working with our partners to promote peace, stability, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region, on all frontiers.