Land Forces 2024 Wrap-Up: A Record-Breaking Defence Exposition

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Land Forces 2024 has concluded in spectacular fashion, leaving a lasting impact on the global land defence industry. This year’s event, held at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC), broke records and set new standards for what a defence exposition can achieve, becoming the largest and most successful defence event ever held in Australia.

With a staggering 15% increase in attendance compared to the previous record-breaking event in 2022, Land Forces 2024 attracted upwards of 25,000 attendances over its three-day duration. The exhibition space expanded by nearly a third, thanks to the MCEC’s larger venue capacity, allowing more companies and industry leaders to showcase their products and innovations. The event hosted an impressive 995 exhibiting companies from 31 countries, truly cementing its status as a global platform for defence industry collaboration, engagement, and innovation.

“This has been the biggest and best Land Forces yet,” remarked Justin Giddings, CEO of AMDA Foundation, the event’s organiser. “Not only is it the largest defence exposition ever held in Australia, but it has also provided a highly effective engagement platform for the Australian and international land defence community. We've seen record numbers of delegates, and the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.”

From the opening breakfast to the exhibition floor, conferences, industry dinners, and an array of networking events, Land Forces 2024 delivered on its promise to create a world-class platform for collaboration. Day One saw a 22% increase in attendance compared to the first day of the 2022 event. Over 400 people attended the official

opening ceremony and breakfast, which set the tone for a high-energy week filled with major industry announcements, including those from BAE Systems Australia, Supacat, Anduril Industries, and xReality Group.

Perhaps one of the most anticipated events of the exposition was the Chief of Army Symposium (CAS 2024). Held for the first time at Land Forces and open to all attendees, this symposium drew over 2,000 participants, offering a unique opportunity to hear directly from the Chief of Army and other top military and industry leaders on the future of land warfare, army modernisation, and technological advancements.

Complementing the symposium, was the Army Innovation Day and Quantum Technology Challenge, allowing innovators and industry experts to explore cutting-edge developments in land defence technologies, from autonomous systems to advanced quantum technologies with military applications.

One of the most celebrated moments of Land Forces 2024 was the presentation of the Innovation Awards, which highlighted the best and brightest Australian innovators. The awards, announced on Day One of the event, distributed a total of $120,000 in prizes following a series of intense three-minute pitches by 20 finalists.

The winners were:

• Innovation Award: Shane “Buzz” Sarlin, Buzzworks – for breakthrough optical clarity and ballistic protection for tactical helmets.
• Emerging Technology Award: Daniel Stevens, Seitec – for a system that detects and localises unexploded ordnance in real-time.
• Young Innovator Award: Tara Penboss, Black Sky Industries – for contributions to the Ultra-Mobile Artillery Rocket System V2.0.
• Best Pitch Award: Katie Donaldson, Praxis – for advanced tactical solar panels for land, sea, and air applications.

Justin Giddings commented, “These awards are not just recognition; the $40,000 cash prizes are designed to help innovators take their concepts to the next stage. This financial boost can be the difference between a great idea and a successful, market-ready product.”

Currently, to keep the air as clean as possible, mines invest a lot of money in the infrastructure for ventilation systems and the energy required to run them. With battery electric vehicles, considerably less ventilation is required with cleaner air and lower temperatures.

“The millions of dollars that they need to spend on creating exhaust shafts is dramatically changed,” Ryan explains. “We’re often asked if it is a lost cause for customers that are currently running diesel to switch to BEV. I would say no, because usually the trend is that our customers are going deeper.

“If they decide to adopt BEV equipment such as SmartDrive, as they go deeper, they will still see the benefits with regards to the ventilation requirements. In some cases, we’re already seeing that because they can save money on infrastructure, energy, ventilation, and operations that we once considered to be too expensive become viable again.”

Beyond the Innovation Awards, the exposition hosted major technology announcements. One of the most notable was BAE Systems Australia’s reveal of their latest autonomous platform, the Autonomous Tactical Light Armour System (ATLAS™) Collaborative Combat Variant. This uncrewed ground vehicle (UGV) offers military commanders enhanced tactical options while reducing soldier exposure to dangerous tasks, marking a significant leap in battlefield automation. Australian company MRead introduced its game-changing explosive and drug detector, which builds on CSIRO’s world-leading technology. Their direct standoff detection could revolutionise mine clearance rates and enhance threat detection. They are also partnered with The HALO Trust to understand the threats and develop their technology and reduce the terrible global landmine legacy.

Developed in collaboration with Supacat, Valhalla Turrets, and Marand,ATLAS™ was designed to complement crewed vehicles like infantry fighting vehicles and main battle tanks. The platform boasts high autonomy levels, both on and off-road, and was met with widespread interest from attendees for its potential to reshape future land warfare strategies.

Meanwhile, Lockheed Martin Australia and Thales Australia announced a new Teaming Agreement to develop and produce Solid Rocket Motors for the Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS), advancing Australia’s sovereign guided weapons capability. This collaboration, building on a 2021 agreement, aims to strengthen Australia’s defence industrial base, establish domestic manufacturing of critical weapon system components, and boost partnerships with Australia SMEs.

Counter-drone technologies were a major standout, as companies such as, EOS, DroneShield, Department 13, and SMARTSHOOTER showcased their solutions to combat growing UAS threats.

EOS demonstrated its Slinger kinetic counter-drone system and the High Energy Laser Weapon, capable of neutralising drones and missiles, alongside the versatile R150, R400, R800, and laser Dazzler systems.

DroneShield CEO Oleg Vornik led a session on ‘Counter-UxS Technologies,’ highlighting systems like DroneGun Tactical and DroneSentry-X for real-time detection and neutralisation of hostile drones.

Department 13 introduced its non-jamming CUAS technologies, DART and SCOUT, designed for efficient drone threat mitigation across varied environments.

SMARTSHOOTER showcased its combat-proven, handheld and remotely controlled SMASH family of Fire Control Systems, with advanced targeting that minimises human error and compensates for target movement.

Reflecting on the week, Giddings emphasised the collaborative effort behind the event’s success: “The undoubted success of Land Forces 2024 is the result of a very strong partnership between the Victorian Government, the Australian Army, our sponsors, defence industry participants, and the MCEC staff. Together with our own AMDA team, we have managed to successfully stage a world-class event.”

As the curtains close on Land Forces 2024, the defence industry is already looking ahead to Land Forces 2026. With this year’s record-breaking event setting a new standard for industry engagement and innovation, anticipation is high for what the next iteration of this landmark event will bring.