James Killen continued as Minister for some years after I retired. During our associations I found him affable and cordial to staff, and courteous to his civilians. One might expect, when visiting his office, to hear about the talents of the racehorse pictured on his wall (just as my first Cabinet Minister 20 years earlier, Casey, liked to talk about the aeroplanes that he flew). Killen took evident pleasure in his association with Service officers whether in his office, on their parade grounds, or in their messes. His strength lay in Parliament where he used his oratorical flourishes and witticisms to change the atmosphere of the House. He showed me personally much consideration. Examples were his insisting that a wall plaque on a new building in Melbourne where he attended the opening should bear my name rather than his; and his generous designation of my wife for the launching of HMAS Canberra at the Seattle shipyards.

Killen had his problems with Fraser’s style and methods as did other Ministers, one of whom resigned in protest. It was not a case of interference in the Defence Minister’s territory but rather locking him up in long Cabinet meetings that denied him the time to spend with his advisers. Whether Fraser was using a commendable process of consultation, as some have suggested, or employing a method of getting his own way by wearing down opposition, is a matter of opinion.^[10] My own judgement is that Fraser disliked going out on his own and had to rally supporters. Whether this was the politician or the man I am unable to say.

Some of his Government’s decisions were troublesome for defence administration. Although the Government proclaimed a priority for fostering productivity in Australian industry, I encountered long opposition to declaring redundancies in the over-manned facilities remaining at Woomera that I described earlier.

At the same time Fraser supported consistently the reforms in the system with which he had earlier been associated when Minister for Defence, one being getting the Defence Force Academy created.