The Abbott government is expected to announce that Deputy Chief of Army Angus Campbell will head its plan to stop asylum-seeker boats.
Tony Abbott's new government will be sworn in at Government House in Canberra on Wednesday, after which Operation Sovereign Borders will be launched.
It is understood Major General Campbell will take charge of the operation and be promoted to the three-star rank of Lieutenant-General.
The former SAS commander and Howard government deputy national security adviser will steer a multi-agency task force to deal with people-smuggling and reduce the number of boats.
Australia Defence Association executive director Neil James told AAP that, if Major-General Campbell was to be appointed, he would be "ideally suited because of his senior public service, military experience and special forces background".
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Mr James said the association had no objection to much of the coalition government's plan.
But there were concerns about whether the three-star officer would be seconded to a civil function or in command as an Australian Defence Force order.
"If it is to be a command, there are some interesting legal problems that would need solving first," Mr James said.
The ADA has raised concern that having a military officer answer directly as a commander to the immigration minister could breach the Defence Act and the Westminster convention of separating military command from civil control of the military.
Major General Campbell joined the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet in late 2005 as a first assistant secretary to head the Office of National Security and later became deputy national security adviser.
Returning to the ADF in early 2010, he was appointed to the rank of major-general and assumed command of all Australian forces deployed in the Middle East area of operations.
He was appointed deputy chief of army in February 2012.
A total of 493 people have arrived on seven boats since the election on September 7.
Incoming immigration minister Scott Morrison said any decision to release information about the number of asylum-seeker boats bound for Australia would be a matter for Defence.
