Private 'space port' to test guided weapons in Queensland outback

Thargomindah outback launch facility to expand guided weapons testing Wed 22 Jul 2026 at 5:47pm In short: The Queensland government is partially funding construction of a private weapons-testing facility in south-west Queensland. The range will support testing of aerospace equipment and guided missiles. What's next? Phase one of the project is scheduled to open in mid-2028 and will be open to both domestic and allied users. A small outback town will host a private weapons and aerospace testing facility in its backyard as part of the Queensland government's efforts to bolster local industry. The 1.2 million-hectare MaxQ range will test horizontal-launch equipment and guided weapons on leased grazing land near Thargomindah, 11 hours west of Brisbane. Due to enter operation in mid-2028, phase one of the project will be available to "domestic and allied" users, according to the state government. The new launch infrastructure, explosives storage and a 2.5-kilometre runway are expected to create 60 construction and operational jobs. The range, operated by Black Sky Aerospace, has been known as the Outback Space Port and used for sub-orbital rocket launches. State push for sovereign defence capability [VID of launch]Attending a missile launch at the range, Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie said the government would be funding half of the $15 million project. "This is going to go 'boom' for the Queensland economy in the defence space, literally,"Mr Bleijie said. He said weapons manufacturers currently had to look interstate or overseas for testing sites. "This is the sort of facility you can't do in South East Queensland," he said. "I don't think Brisbane would be particularly happy with rockets being launched and missiles being launched from their backyards." The state's contribution is drawn from its $180 million Sovereign Industry Development Fund launched last year to invest in defence, biomedical and biofuel capabilities. "It is so uncertain in the world at the moment, and the dynamics the world has at the moment in defence and security," Mr Bleijie said. "We've got to look at sovereign capability, we've got to look at national security." Expanded industry an 'oil boom' for community Bulloo Shire Mayor John 'Tractor' Ferguson said he welcomed the employment the project would bring to the region. "I'm over the moon with it," Cr Ferguson said. "Most people in Thargo are pretty positive about new industries coming to town because, you know, most of these little towns are crying out for other industries other than council work." The outback mayor compared the expansion of defence industries to the oil boom decades prior. "I remember when they first [established] Jackson's oil fields back in the 80s. Straight away there was a new motel built in Thargomindah used to accommodate the throughput of traffic," Cr Ferguson said. "That's more people in the town, that's more families, that's more kids at the school. It's all good stuff." Cr Ferguson said Black Sky had been "mucking about" at the site for several years. "I don't know where else they've looked in Queensland but this seems to be the [one]. They're very excited about this site," he said. Queensland-based Black Sky Aerospace was founded in 2018 and develops propulsion technology including rocket motors and fuels. Headquartered in Logan it also operates a launch and production facility near Goondiwindi. The federal government has previously invested in the company's manufacturing capability.