Australia's New Military Leaders: Hammond & Coyle

0:00Australia is shaking up its top military brass with two big appointments. Vice Admiral Mark Hammond is stepping up as the new chief of the defense force, taking over from David Johnston in July after 40 years in the Navy. And in a history-making move, Lieutenant-General Susan Coil becomes the first woman to lead one of the military branches as Chief of Army. Hammond's no stranger to high-stakes leadership. He commanded submarines and played a key role in the government's push for nuclear power subs under AUKUZ. Defense Minister Richard Marles called him out for rising from scrubbing decks to the top job, praising his strong ties with the Prime Minister and his Navy's readiness. Coil, currently heading joint capabilities, replaces retiring Simon Stewart, and Marles hailed this as a deeply historic moment. She nailed it with that line. You can't be what you can't see. Highlighting the breakthrough for women in the ranks. Hammond's already laying out priorities, zeroing in on recruitment to make the defense force an employer of choice,

1:00where folks actually want to show. Up, retentions looking good and near-record lows, and rear Admiral Matthew Buckley steps in as the new Navy Chief. These changes come amid calls to optimize the fleet and tackle threats to Australia's security, with no word yet on replacing the outgoing defense. Secretary, eyes are on how this team ramps up readiness down under. That's the story for today. Sydney News Today, driven by AI. I'm Cory with the story.