4 July 2013. The CEO of the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service (ACBPS), Mr Michael Pezzullo, has this evening clarified comments made earlier today by a senior officer of the Service in relation to the capability of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) at the Sir Richard Williams Foundationâ?Ts Biannual Seminar on 'Protecting Australia with Drones: Cheaper, Better, Smarter, Safer' in Canberra.

ACBPS is fully conversant with the virtues of unmanned aerial systems and the contribution they can make to border protection.  The specific contribution that high altitude UAVs (such as the Triton) can make to border protection is being examined by the Department of Defence, with support from ACBPS, as a result of work commissioned in the 2009 and 2013 Defence White Papers.  Mr Pezzullo, as the Deputy Secretary of Defence responsible for the 2009 Defence White Paper, was the principal author of that document, and was also consulted as a member of the Secretaries Committee on National Security on the 2013 Defence White Paper. The Service has no pre-determined view about the merits of any particular platform in this capability area.

Mr Pezzullo added that the capabilities of UAVs are evolving rapidly, and relevant sensor technologies are continually being improved to overcome the difficulties of high altitude detections.

ACBPS will work closely with Defence, as the lead agency in this capability area, in order to ensure that fully developed options are presented to the Government of the day in relation to this vital area of future national security capability.  This will be done in accordance with standard capability development processes, which require objective, factual and evidenced options to be put to Government.