By Andrew Brown in Canberra

The head of Australia’s navy has been named as the next chief of the country’s armed forces.

Vice Admiral Mark Hammond was announced chief of the Australian Defence Force by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Monday.

He will take over from David Johnston, who has served in the role since July 2024.

“Vice Admiral Hammond has had a distinguished career spanning 40 years in the Royal Australian Navy,” Mr Albanese told reporters in Canberra.

“Vice Admiral Hammond will continue to bring valuable insight to the role of chief of the Defence Force.”

Vice Admiral Hammond joined the navy in 1986 as an electronics technician before becoming a naval office two years later.

Throughout his nearly four decades in the military, he served on the Collins class of submarines, commanding the HMAS Farncomb across the Indo-Pacific, and was posted as an assistant naval attache in Washington DC.

He also served as chief of staff to former defence force chief David Hurley in 2012.

Vice Admiral Hammond became head of the navy in July 2022, overseeing work on the multibillion-dollar AUKUS nuclear submarine deal, one of Australia’s biggest defence projects.