By Serge DeSilva-Ranasinghe, Mitchell Sutton and Tim Dempsey*
SINCE the instigation of the ‘Two Ocean Navy’ policy of 1987, Perth has emerged as the Royal Australian Navy’s key outpost on the Indian Ocean. With half of the Navy’s total fleet now based out of HMAS Stirling, a substantial defence maritime industry has developed in southern metropolitan Perth to sustain, upgrade and produce naval vessels.
