As the US prepares to increase its military presence across northern Australia, a Darwin-based policy expert is urging the next Northern Territory government to land a “fair and reasonable deal” with the Commonwealth ahead of the arrival of American firepower.

The appeal comes after US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin declared the US would deploy more personnel and combat aircraft to northern Australia amid escalating tension across the Indo-Pacific region.

“We’re also increasing the presence of rotational US forces in Australia, and all this will mean more maritime patrol aircraft and reconnaissance aircraft operating from bases across northern Australia,” Mr Austin told a press conference in Maryland.

“It will also mean more frequent rotational bomber deployments.”

While Mr Austin did not specify how many personnel or assets would arrive to Australia – or when – the announcement was met with enthusiasm by Solomon MP Luke Gosling, who said up to $18 billion would support the big move to the Territory.

US military activity will ramp up along the Northern Territory coastline, with more American bombers and fighter jets set to operate out of the Top End as early as next year, while long-range guided missiles will also be manufactured domestically in an effort to bolster the nation’s northern defences.

“We’re also increasing the presence of rotational US forces in Australia, and all this will mean more maritime patrol aircraft and reconnaissance aircraft operating from bases across northern Australia,” he said.

“It will also mean more frequent rotational bomber deployments.”

The United Kingdom has sent an elite Special Forces Unit to the Top End ahead of a massive multinational military exercise this month.

Last weekend, troops from 40 Commando, Royal Marines, touched down at Darwin Airport to take part in the Australian Army-led Exercise Predator’s Run.

Having travelled more than 14,000 kilometres, it is understood 40 Commando’s touchdown was preceded by an advanced party which arrived early to plan alongside local Australian Defence Force (ADF) units.

The Defence spokesman also confirmed personnel from the Philippine Army would participate in the exercise.

Darwin’s Diggers will be allowed to climb aboard the US V-22 Osprey aircraft, despite the controversial tiltrotor being placed on a worldwide flight restriction.

The news comes as Darwin’s 1st Brigade ramp up training activities alongside their US Marine counterparts across the Top End.

The Department of Defence told the NT News there were no restrictions on the carriage of Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel in US aircraft.

Marine Rotation Force – Darwin (MRF-D) also confirmed there were no restrictions stopping their Australian counterparts from boarding their airframes.

“They clearly don’t have answers still on the cause of the mishaps and why the hard clutch engagement is happening, and they don’t have a fix for it”

An MV-22 Osprey touched down on an Australian warship last week, another indicator the tiltrotor is returning to routine service with the Marine Corps after a series of deadly crashes.

The U.S. military grounded its fleet of about 400 Ospreys between Dec. 6 and March 8 as it investigated the Nov. 29 crash of an Air Force CV-22 Osprey that killed eight airmen off Japan’s southern coast. An Osprey assigned to last year’s Marine rotational force crashed in August north of Darwin, in Australia’s Northern Territory, killing three Marines and injuring 20 others, three seriously. The Osprey has been plagued by a problem called hard clutch engagement that caused loss of control in some instances and was blamed for the deaths of five Marines in a June 2022 Osprey crash in California.

After the November crash, the Marines put their Ospreys in the air again less than a week after Naval Air Systems Command cleared them for flight on March 8.

Navy Ospreys are not yet flying passengers to aircraft flight decks