Defense`s Feeds

Americas

The US Missile Defense Agency awarded Boeing a $4 billion contract modification to Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD) and Development and Sustainment Contract (DSC). The modification will extend the DSC period from January 2018 to December 2023. The GMD is designed specifically to counter long-range ballistic missiles threatening the US homeland. It uses a three-stage booster, giving the necessary “legs” to perform intercepts over great distances. This range gives GMD by far the greatest coverage area of any US missile defense system, defending all fifty states and Canada. The modification also includes the delivery of a new missile field with 20 silos and two extra silos in a previously constructed missile field at Fort Greely in Alaska. The Missile Defense Agency is also deferring the production of 20 additional Ground Based Interceptors (GBIs) due to the deal associated with not meeting the entrance criteria for the Redesigned Kill Vehicle (RKV) critical design review. GBIs are silo-launched and intercept ballistic missiles in their midcourse, while they are outside of the atmosphere and at their highest trajectory. The missile consists of a multi-stage rocket booster and a kinetic kill vehicle, which makes interception of ballistic missile warheads possible using hit-to-kill technology. The definitized part of the modification provides for technical capabilities to improve a state-of-the-art missile defense system in order of ensuring that defensive capabilities remain relevant and current. These efforts include Boost Vehicle (BV) development; providing GBI assets for labs and test events; development, integration, testing and deployment of ground systems software builds to address emerging threats; development and fielding of upgraded launch support equipment; expanded systems testing through all ground and flight testing; cyber security support and testing; and, operations and support via performance based logistics approach. Work will take place within the US.

Northrop Grumman won a $245 million contract modification from the Naval Sea Systems Command to support the Expeditionary Warfare Program Office. The modification provides for the Joint Counter-Radio-Controlled Improvised Explosive Device Electronic Warfare (JCREW) Increment 1 Block 1 (I1B1) systems full-rate production. JCREW devices are high-power, modular, programmable, multiband radio frequency jammers designed to deny enemy use of selected portions of the radio frequency spectrum. Northrop Grumman was selected to work on the JCREW 3.3 program, which has been replaced by the JCREW I1B1 development, but the terms can be used synonymously. According to the Department of Defense, the JCREW I1B1 system is the first-generation system that develops a common open architecture across all three capabilities and provides protection for worldwide military operations. This integrated design maximizes commonality across all capabilities, reduces life cycle costs and provides increased protection against worldwide threats. Work will take place in San Diego, California and is scheduled to be finished by January 2021.

The Bolivian Air Force will upgrade its UH-1H „Huey“ helo for counter-narcotics operations. As Jane’s reports the government approved a budgetary increase of $6.8 million on March 19. UH-1H is a multimission, medium-lift helicopter. Actually called Iroquois, the helicopter played an important role in the Vietnam War, in which 7,000 aircraft were deployed. The UH-1 was actually the first turbine-powered helicopter produced for the US Military. Under the upgrade for Bolivia, 11 of the Bolivian Air Force’s 15 helos will be modernized to Huey II standard. Combining a modernized airframe of the basic UH-1H helicopter and Bell 212 components, the Huey II upgrade offers lower direct maintenance costs and greater mission flexibility. It is equipped with new features such as increased horsepower, crashworthy seats, multifunctional interior, new wiring and digital cockpit. The helicopter has a two-blade, semi-rigid main rotor and a two-blade tail rotor. It is also equipped with a new skid type landing gear.

Middle East & Africa

The US Air Force awarded AAR Airlift Group a $34 million task order modification that provides continued support of NATO Air Command-Afghanistan/Combined Security Transition Command. According to the DOD, services include dedicated rotary wing air transportation to move passengers, cargo, and human remains as well as perform casualty evacuation in support of the Afghan Air Force within Afghanistan. The Afghanistan/Combined Security Transition Command advises, and assists within Afghan security institutions to develop resource management capability. The Command helps Afghanistan develop a sustainable, effective and affordable National Defense and Security Forces in support of the Afghan Government. The order is to be performed over the next year.

Europe

The UK will acquire five Boeing 737-based E-7 airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) system aircraft. As reported by Flight Global, the UK Ministry of Defense confirmed the $1.98 billion contract that will lead to the replacement of the Royal Air Force’s current Boeing 707-based E-3D Sentry fleet, on March 22. Designed for the Royal Australian Air Force under “Project Wedgetail” and designated E-7A Wedgetail, the E-7 is based on a standard Boeing 737 NG airliner modified to carry a sophisticated Northrop Grumman active electronically-scanned radar. The L-band electronically scanned AEW and surveillance radar is located on a dorsal fin on top of the fuselage, dubbed the “top hat”, and is designed for minimal aerodynamic effect. Last year the UK wanted to proceed with a non-competitive selection of the E-7 with the Ministry of Defense having been keen to acquire an operationally-proven system to replace its current assets.

The US Air Force awarded General Atomics a not-to-exceed $8.9 million contract action for the France MQ-9 Block 1 Weapons integration effort. The Foreign Military sale comes under an undefinitized contract action for the production and integration of the kits for the remotely piloted aircraft. The Reaper has a range of 1,150 miles up to 50,000 feet in altitude with a takeoff weight of 10,500 pounds. In 2013, the French ordered two MQ-9 Reaper medium-altitude long endurance drones to replace its Harfang drones. Last November, the US Air Force awarded General Atomics Aeronautical Systems a $263.4 million contract for production of the Reaper. Work under the contract action will take place n Poway, California and is expected to be complete by September 30, 2020.

Asia-Pacific

According to reports, Turkish defense company ASELSAN will equip Turkey’s F-16 with a new nose radar. The F-16 AESA Nose Radar Development Project was launched to meet the need for modernization of the radars of the F-16 aircraft in the Air Force Command inventory with new generation radars that have Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) antenna technology. Turkey acquired its first F-16 Fighting Falcons in the 80s. Last month, it was reported that the new electronics warfare system for the Turkish F-16s, the SPEWS-II developed by ASELSAN, had successfully completed tests and entered into use.

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Watch: Should Canada resize type 26 warship to meet Canada’s needs?

Harfang UAV, DGA
(click to view full)

France is wondering what to do about its next high-end UAV buy. They bought mini-UAVs off the shelf, but turned to a build-in-partnership approach for their current set of Predator-class Medium Altitude, Long Endurance (MALE) machines. That sacrificed some fielding speed and cost more, in order to build the industrial capabilities of key French firms. Unfortunately, their Harfang/ SIDM IUAV Program to field an IAI Heron derivative hit some snags. Harfangs have been very useful in several conflicts now, but the fleet isn’t keeping up with France’s growing land and naval needs. Which leads to the question: what’s next?

The answers to that question remain unclear, several years after French efforts began. What is becoming clear is that France needs UAVs of this type. By mid-2013 a request for MQ-9s came. Will it be more than a stopgap?

Programs and Choices

Luftwaffe: Heron-1
by M. Bertram
(click to view full)

There are really 3 programs going on in France. There’s a short-term program to field an immediate solution, which bought MQ-9 Reapers after much to-ing and fro-ing. There is a long-term program to develop a “European” UAV, however that term is defined. Then there’s a joint program with Britain, which seems likely to build a UCAV design that draws on the experience of the British Taranis and multinational nEUROn programs.

The Interim Buy. Unmanned Aerial Vehicles have become a must-have item for modern armies, and the pressures of modern campaigns are forcing rapid acquisitions. Mini-UAVs are being bought off the shelf, and leased tactical options like Boeing’s ScanEagles and Aeronautics DS’ Aerostars have carved out their own niche. These days, rent-a-UAS services even include high-end MALE (Medium Altitude Long Endurance) options like IAI’s Heron UAVs.

Instead of renting, however, France decided to buy a fleet of advanced medium UAVs, type unspecified, under a program labeled “DTIA”. Deliveries were eventually pushed back from 2013-2015 to 2020 or later, which brought France back to an interim solution. France initially chose to repeat their Harfang approach, and buy modified IAI Heron TP/ Heron-2 UAVs. After a great deal of controversy over the cost of their choice’s industrial benefits, and France’s growing need for immediate help, a new French government switched to an interim buy of MQ-9 Reaper UAVs from the USA.

With France’s interim option set, the question is what they will do as their long-term option.

FE-MALE/ MALE2020. The EU is nudging this idea along via research programs etc., and potential base platforms like Piaggio’s Hammerhead and BAE’s Mantis have already flown. France’s problem is that developing a qualified high-end UAV from the ground up is very expensive. France and its likely partners are struggling to afford the social programs their aging populations have been promised, while negotiating the fallout from the Eurozone’s overall economic policies.

One cheaper possibility for a future European MALE UAV would involve modifying MQ-9 Reapers to include all-European systems, removing the need for American permission to conduct weapons integration or other add-ons. France, Britain, Italy, and soon the Netherlands will all operate this platform soon. Unfortunately, American politics and diplomacy have injured that option, by creating a lot of uncertainty around American obstructionism. Germany’s decision not to buy any advanced UAVs before 2018 or so has also weakened this case.

France & Britain. On Nov 2/10, the Lancaster House Treaty promised that the 2 countries would “work together on the next generation of Medium Altitude Long Endurance Unmanned Air Surveillance Systems”. BAE and Dassault got a small study contract, but that was all, and their Mantis/Telemos UAV collaboration ended up being displaced by a collaboration agreement between Dassault, EADS, and Alenia.

A GBP 120/ EUR 150 million “future combat air system” follow-on in January 2014 appears to have shifted toward a full UCAV that’s more similar to stealthy, jet-powered options like Britain’s Taranis or the French-led nEUROn. All of the yo-yoing in France’s UAV plans to date, and a questionable ability to finance a full UCAV within France & Britain’s future defense budgets, makes one wonder if the R&D contracts will translate into an operational UAV.

France’s Next MALE UAV: Contenders

MQ-9 at Kandahar
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Initial reports said that France’s next UAVs would be used only for surveillance and targeting. Britain’s experience with its MQ-9 Reapers, and the realities of modern battlefields, suggested from the outset that however France’s DTIA project began, French UAVs would wind up carrying weapons. Experiences in Libya and Mali are driving that truth home, despite American obstruction preventing France from arming its own MQ-9 interim UAVs. France’s future UAVs will either be armed, or will operate in conjunction with armed aircraft that offer low operating costs compared to France’s high-end fighters.

With that in mind, France has a number of options.

MQ-9 Reaper (General Atomics, interim buy). A battle-proven choice, with higher carrying capacity and costs. The Reaper initially lost to IAI’s Heron TP, but persistent rumors came true in May 2013, when France’s defense minister pledged to buy 2 Reapers for delivery before the end of the year. Its biggest advantage is immediate availability, and there is speculation that the UAVs may even come from the USAF’s active fleet. This is still an interim capability, however, not a long-term program.

The biggest question involves France’s ability to make use of the Reaper’s comparatively huge 3,000 pound/ 1,360 kg carrying capacity. The USAF’s progress with very advanced wide-area sensors like Gorgon Stare and ARGUS-IS adds to the Reaper’s attractiveness, if America will export them, and Reapers are qualified to use JDAM and SDB GPS-guided bombs, Paveway laser-guided weapons, and Hellfire anti-armor missiles. On the other hand, the Americans’ reluctance to allow even key NATO allies like Italy to arm their drones is a stumbling block. Early reports suggest that French MQ-9s will be unarmed, and France’s reputation for pervasive industrial espionage, even during combat operations, may get in the way of advanced sensor exports.

General Atomics has floated the idea of a European Reaper, with an open architecture and all-European sensors etc. The UK, France, and Italy have already ordered standard MQ-9s, the Dutch have made a commitment to the platform, and there are rumors that Poland will follow, creating a strong European customer base for modifications and upgrades. American interference would still be a sticking point, and the other unresolved issue involves long-range control. If France wants to operate the Reapers via the preferred satellite link method, they’d need to either spend the time and money to build their own control facility, make arrangements to share Britain’s newly-built RAFB Waddington facility, or co-locate with the USAF at Creech AFB, NV. A European MALE project would make a new joint control facility easier to swallow financially, and provide workshare and economic benefits to distribute within the partnership.

P.1HH: 1st flight
click for video

P.1HH Hammerhead (Piaggio/ Selex ES). Italy has declared their intention to buy 10 of these converted executive turboprops, and Piaggio has good odds of picking up sales in the UAE. The Hammerhead offers a unique 395 KTS cruising speed at up to 45,000 feet, with 16 hours endurance at lower speeds and a payload whose 500 kg limit is treaty-related rather than technical. Testing and flights have begun, and core development is largely covered by existing private investments. Additional development would be required to integration national communications capabilities, modify the ground stations, and arm the UAV, but Hammerhead’s development costs would rival the Reaper’s for cost-effectiveness.

The bad news is that Piaggio isn’t closely associated with the major industrial players like EADS or Dassault, who can call in political favors. EADS has already stated that the UAV partnership with Dassault and Alenia would use one of its platforms as the base, and even the prospect of failure might not be enough motivation to change that. Hammerhead’s comparatively low endurance for a MALE UAV could also become an issue, and so could operating costs. Hammerhead’s operating costs might beat Telemos or Talarion, but probably wouldn’t compare as well with the slower, single-engine, and slim-bodied MQ-9 design. The P.1HH may be one of Europe’s most achievable MALE 2020 options, but at this point, it has to be rated as a long shot. Read “MALE Performance Enhancement: Piaggio’s P.1HH Hammerhead UAV” for full coverage.

Israeli Heron-TP
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Harfang (IAI/ EDAS). systems are one option, at about $25 million each for UAVs and ground stations. The benefit of additional Harfangs is that adaptation and integration have already been handled, costs are known, and deliveries could begin very quickly. On the flip side, EADS would have to show that existing issues with the type have been resolved, and adding weapons would require its own integration effort and costs.

Heron TP (IAI/ Dassault/ Thales). Also known as the Heron 2 or Eitan, this is a larger and more advanced version of the Heron UAV that formed the basis for EADS’ Harfang. The Eitan project began in 2004, initial flights began in October 2007, and the new Israeli squadron was formally unveiled in February 2010 – but was reportedly operational before that. A French version would involve a number of modifications, plus testing time, and it was thought that by 2015-2016, Thales-Dassault’s derivative SDM could be available for under EUR 1 billion investment.

The drone’s history in France helps to explain why France is having a UAV crisis in 2013. Thales & Dassault were one of the 2 teams that put in French UAV bids in 2010, but the competition hit a cul-de-sac as France stepped back from the proposed buy, and began looking at alternatives. France’s need for an interim UAV replacement revived the competition, and in July 2011, and IAI’s proposed knowledge transfer and workshare with Dassault and Thales made the Heron TP France’s choice as their interim UAV, to enter service around 2014. Eventually, rising costs, stalled decision-making and very belated acknowledgement that France couldn’t wait for more drones pushed the Heron TP aside.

It could still become the basis of a European “Super MALE” UAV project, but it will have to compete anew. With Dassault (and hence Thales) linked to EADS and Alenia now, its odds are iffy.

Patroller (Sagem). On the developmental front, Sagem already supplies France’s Sperwer tactical UAVs, and is working on a Buzard/ Patroller UAV based on Stemme AG’s S15 powered glider. Sagem is advancing Patroller’s flight schedule, and hoped to be able to offer delivery by 2012-13 at a price of EUR 20-30 million per system. Patroller participated in a French government operational trial, but wasn’t a top option for the interim buy. It’s even less likely to become the basis for a Europe-wide project, but it could win some border control and maritime security customers on its own, given its characteristics.

BAE’s Mantis
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Telemos/ Mantis (BAE). BAE and Dassault were using Mantis as the basis for their Telemos MALE UAV partnership. Their design offers a number of benefits. Twin engines are attractive to navies because they’re safer for long over-water flights, and the type’s carrying capacity is expected to be comparable to an MQ-9 Reaper. Like the Reaper, Mantis’ design is very suitable for carrying weapons, or large and heavy sensors.

On the flip side, a new UAV design means higher project risk, and estimated full development costs were in the EUR 1 – 1.5 billion range. The 2 firms were tapped for a future MALE UAV study, which will help define their design and industrial partnerships, but won’t get Telemos anywhere near production. Dassault’s shift to an EADS/ Alenia partnership, without BAE, would appear to doom Telemos as a future European UAV. Nor is Britain likely to invest in it alone.

Talarion concept
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EADS’ Talarion. The Talarion Advanced UAV project was rolled out in 2009 as the European MALE (Medium Altitude, Long Endurance) UAV collaboration between France, Spain, and Germany, and was one of the 2 bids submitted to the French in 2010. After that impressive entrance, however, it faded. The reasons boil down to time, cost, and risk.

Unlike the other options here, Talarion is an entirely new design. That increases risk, and ensures that all integration must be done de novo. It’s also the only jet-powered UAV in this set, and seems positioned as a heavy, high-end option somewhere between the MQ-9 Reaper and the USAF’s high altitude, very long endurance RQ-4 Global Hawk. EADS reportedly offered a pre-financed EUR 1.4 billion development deal for Talarion, in return for a purchase commitment beginning around 2017. French parliamentary estimates have placed Talarion’s total program costs at around EUR 2.9 billion, including around 12-15 systems of 3 UAVs each.

France didn’t bite. Turkey said yes in principle, but needed others to step forward. Meanwhile, Spain’s ongoing financial crisis, and Germany’s sharp defense budget cuts, stripped Talarion of its original European support. EADS was investing its own funds to continue development, but they officially suspended that work in February 2012. EADS has another opening, thanks to November 2013 EDA declarations of intent to cooperate on MALE UAV projects, and an announcement that EADS Talarion would be the basis a MALE UAV partnership with France’s Dassault and Italy’s Alenia. The question is still cost, however; EADS’ November 2013 proposal estimated EUR 1 billion for development alone.

WK450 Watchkeeper
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WK450 Watchkeeper UAV (Elbit/ Thales). This collaboration between Thales UK and Elbit is another system that would be available quickly, but not immediately. Britain is paying for development and ensuring its tactical relevance, but the system is behind schedule, and the UK MoD is still renting the popular Hermes 450 base platform for now. Co-developer Thales is a French firm, but the UAV would still require some adaptation to France’s systems and needs. A February 2012 announcement confirmed that France intends to field Watchkeeper as a future UAV, but that hasn’t turned into a purchase commitment beyond 1 system for evaluation.

Watchkeeper is smaller than other contenders, with lower than average payload and endurance. If it does enter French service, it will probably be in the same role it plays for Britain: as a lower tier companion to the Reaper or its replacements. Watchkeeper isn’t being developed as an armed UAV, either, although Israel has reportedly added weapons to its Hermes 450 base platform.

If France wants a more capable solution, Elbit does offer a larger Hermes 900, which has been sold to Israel and to Latin American countries. If France asked, the Hermes 900 could be shared under the same Thales joint venture that runs Watchkeeper.

Contracts & Key Events 2014

UCAV MoU with Britain

Taranis unveiled
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March 26/19: MQ-9 The US Air Force awarded General Atomics a not-to-exceed $8.9 million contract action for the France MQ-9 Block 1 Weapons integration effort. The Foreign Military sale comes under an undefinitized contract action for the production and integration of the kits for the remotely piloted aircraft. The Reaper has a range of 1,150 miles up to 50,000 feet in altitude with a takeoff weight of 10,500 pounds. In 2013, the French ordered two MQ-9 Reaper medium-altitude long endurance drones to replace its Harfang drones. Last November, the US Air Force awarded General Atomics Aeronautical Systems a $263.4 million contract for production of the Reaper. Work under the contract action will take place n Poway, California and is expected to be complete by September 30, 2020.

2014

May 19/14: MALE 2020. Airbus Defence and Space, Dassault Aviation and Alenia Aermacchi deliver a MALE2020 Unmanned Aerial System (q.v. Nov 20/13) proposal to the Ministries of Defence in France, Germany and Italy. The offer proposes a Definition Phase, backed by an industrial agreement on workshare and a cooperative agreement to start the MALE2020 program. Once the Definition Phase is done, European governments would have to make decisions, but the release says that a quick go-ahead could mean “an affordable and certifiable solution ready by 2020.”

Of course, we have been here before… (q.v. May 28/09). Sources: Dassault Aviation, “Airbus, Dassault Aviation and Alenia Aermacchi propose joint approach to Europe’s next generation drone” | Finmeccanica, “A joint approach to the development of Europe’s next generation drone”.

Jan 31/14: UCAV MoU. Britain and France build on the 2010 Lancaster House treaty with various commitments, including “a statement of intent for a future combat air system, which would launch a 2-year, [GBP] 120 million joint feasibility phase that will see British and French industries working together.” The consensus is that this R&D will involve a stealthy, jet-powered Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle like the British Taranis and European nEUROn programs.

The twin catches are funding and commitment beyond the initial 2-year period. Despite efforts of this nature, and continued development of an Anglo-French Combined Joint Expeditionary Force, French sources are expressing quiet reservations. These include the difficulty of securing program cooperation with British political counterparts who are already in campaign mode for 2015, and concerns about British austerity measures and their potential effects on joint programs and endeavors. If the parties conclude that a stealth UCAV isn’t a reasonable fiscal option, many of the component technologies would still be useful within a lesser UAV. Sources: UK MoD, “UK and France agree closer defence co-operation” | Dassault, “Dassault Aviation salutes a major step forward for the Future Combat Air System” | Defense Update, “UK, France to Invest £120 million in a Joint UCAV Study” | IHS Jane’s, “France and the UK sign defence co-operation agreements” | The Independent, “Britain to set up controversial drone development partnership with France” | Le Monde, “La defense au coeur du sommet franco-britannique”.

2013

France needs UAVs now, commits to 2 Reapers and deploys them at year end; Italy frustrated by American obstruction, wants European armed drone project – France agrees; EU EDA takes steps toward a European MALE (FEMALE) UAV program.

Meilleure idee?
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Jan 1/14: MQ-9. Defense World reports that French MQ-9s arrived “in the Sahel Region” on this day, for operations over Mali. Sources: Defense World, “France Receive First MQ-9 Reaper Drone “.

Dec 19/13: MQ-9. The DGA procurement agency receives its 1st Reaper UAV, which is being readied for deployment to Mali along with a 2nd UAV, associated ground systems, etc. The DGA praises the USA’s help in getting personnel trained, helping with communications planning, etc. A record of six months from order to delivery is impressive, and demands nothing less. Sources: DGA.

MQ-9s delivered & deployed

Nov 20/13: FEMALE. Defense Ministers committed to the launch of 4 programs during the EU European Defence Agency’s Steering Board session, 1 of which centered around a 4-part program for UAVs. “Ministers tasked EDA to prepare the launch of a Category B project” to develop a Future European MALE (FEMALE!?!) platform, to be introduced from 2020 – 2025. Other documents, noting the obvious potential for ridicule if Future European MALE = FEMALE, refer to it as “MALE 2020” – a timeline that would be imperative for industrial and competitive reasons. EDA hasn’t launched the project yet. Once it does, can Europe’s traditionally fractious program negotiations and fragmented execution hit a 2020 target date?

In parallel, a coalition of countries also plan to create an operator community of UAV users, so they can share experiences and improve the foundation for future cooperation. Germany, France, Spain, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands and Poland have all joined.

Other areas of cooperation will include streamlining UAV certification in European airspace, now that its costs and uncertainties have already killed Germany’s major Eurohawk UAV program. In a related move, Austria, Belgium, Britain, the Czech Republic, Germany, France and Spain signed a joint investment program around technologies required for UAV use in civil airspace. Sources: EDA, “Defence Ministers Commit to Capability Programmes” | Les Echos, “Drones : des pays europeens s’engagent a collaborer”.

Nov 4/13: Talarion. The EADS-Dassault-Alenia partnership has followed its June 16/13 announcement with a broad overview of their proposed solution. As expected, EADS would resurrect a variant of its shelved Talarion project as the base platform. Dassault would be the overall system integrator, and Finmeccanica would supply key sensors and related equipment. The remaining development cost is estimated at EUR 1 billion, with orders costing more on top of that.

The launch of an actual project will require a number of steps, from harmonization of UAV requirements in a way that fits Talarion, to the reasonable promise of a solution that countries can afford to buy, to the willing commitment of enough development funds by budget-strapped countries. Sources: Les Echos, “Drone : Dassault, EADS et Finmeccanica levent le voile sur leur projet”.

Sept 30/13: Reaper. General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc., Poway, CA receives a not-to-exceed $49.8 million unfinalized cost-plus-fixed-fee contract action for France’s MQ-9 Reaper urgent request program of 2 UAVs. That seems about right.

Work will be performed in Poway, CA, and is expected to be complete by July 15/15. USAF Life Cycle Management Center/WIIK’s Medium Altitude Unmanned Aircraft Systems group, at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, OH, acts as France’s FMS agent (FA8620-10-G-3038, DO 0112).

Just days earlier the first of 3 crews from the French air force had taken its initial training flight at Holloman AFB, NM. They want to be ready when 2 UAVs and 1 GCV are delivered at the end of the year. Sources: Pentagon | French Air Force, “Premier vol d’un equipage francais aux commandes d’un drone Reaper”.

MQ-9 Reaper contract

June 27/13: France wants more? The US DSCA notifies Congress [PDF] of a possible Foreign Military Sale to France for 16 unarmed MQ-9s and the necessary equipment and support, for a potential $1.5B total. Such a commitment would further damage the prospects for a future European UAV, but this is a possible sale at this stage, not a contract yet. This will surely get Dassault and EADS howling.

Le Figaro (a newspaper incidentally owned by Dassault) explains [in French] that the size of the request is just a reflection of the FMS process, but that the maximum quantity France would buy is 12 UAVs – in line with the latest whitepaper – for a maximum of 670 million euros (about $875M). But this gives France the option to meet more than its urgent operational requirement. If not directly off-the-shelf as some amount of “francisation” would be expected, at least from a supplier with an already well-established program.

The package would include 48 Honeywell engines (2 spare engines for each installed one), 8 ground control stations, 40 ground data terminals, 24 satellite earth terminal substations, 40 ARC-210 radio systems, and 48 IFF systems. Again, these quantities are very unlikely to happen.

DSCA request: 15 MQ-9s

June 18-24/13: Hammerhead. Italy indicates that they intend to buy 10 Piaggio P.1HH “Hammerhead” MALE UAVs. The twin-engine unmanned derivative of the civil P180 Avanti II will have a max speed of 395 knots, loiter speed of 135 knots, and endurance of 16 hours, with a ceiling as high as 45,000 ft. Payload will be limited to 500 kg in order to stay under Missile Technology Control Regime limits, but that should be enough to allow a couple of weapon stations, along with a Selex Seaspray 7300E radar in the ventral bay. Italy is looking for an initial operational capability in 2016-17, and says they will proceed with or without additional partners – but partners would be nice. Read “MALE Performance Enhancement: Piaggio’s P.1HH Hammerhead UAV” for full coverage. Aviation Week | AIN re: Hammerhead | Aviation Week follow-on.

June 16/13: EuroMALE. EADS, Alenia, and Dassault call for a European program along the lines Italy has suggested.

The most significant aspect of their announcement is Dassault’s inclusion and BAE’s exclusion, which appears to flip them out of their Telemos UAV focus with BAE. Note, also, Rheinmetall of Germany’s exclusion despite their UAV agreement with EADS (q.v. Sept 12/12):

“EADS Cassidian, Dassault Aviation and Finmeccanica Alenia Aermacchi, having a common view on the current situation in Europe regarding MALE drones, call for the launch of a European MALE program… through pooling of research and development funding. With a new development, critical requirements around the certification of drones, allowing their safe passage and operation in European air space, would inherently be built into the program from the onset.”

May 31/13: MQ-9. French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian writes an article for Les Echos, stating his commitment to buy 2 MQ-9 Reaper UAVs from the USA, for delivery before the end of 2013. After so much procrastination, with only 2 Harfang drones operational, and with pressing commitments in Mali and elsewhere, he says that France must take the immediately available choice. Defense Aerospace suggests that the French Air Force finally got their way, after stalling other options.

The Americans’ reluctance to allow even key NATO allies like Italy to arm their drones suggests that French MQ-9s will also be unarmed, and Le Drian confirmed this when he said these UAVs would be weaponless. France’s reputation for pervasive industrial espionage, even during combat operations, could also get in the way of advanced sensor exports, leaving their Reapers with 3,000 pounds of ordnance capacity that doesn’t get fully used. The other unresolved issue involves long-range control. If France wants to operate the Reapers via the preferred satellite link method, they’ll need to either spend the time and money to build their own control facility, make arrangements to share Britain’s newly-built RAFB Waddington facility, or co-locate with the USAF at Creech AFB, NV.

Ultimately, Le Drian argues for a European partnership that will share expertise and develop a Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) UAV like the Reaper. The Italians must be happy to hear that, and Le Drian seems to be referring to their discussions when he says “Cette ambition est d’ores et deja en chantier” (loose trans. “we’re already working on it”). At the same time, Dassault wasn’t happy, noting that there would already be a European MALE UAV if the requirement had been set and a project declared.

The question in Europe is always whether talk will lead to action, so we’ll wait until we see a contract. The advanced nEUROn stealth UCAV is a contract, for instance, and Le Draan’s “all means necessary” commitment that “lui consacrerons a cette fin les moyens necessaires” has immediate and positive significance for its long-term prospects. Les Echos [in French] | Tele

| Usine Nouvelle [in French] | Defense-Aerospace.

France will buy 2 MQ-9 Reapers

May 9/13: Italy. Aviation Week interviews Italy’s national armaments director Gen. Claudio Debertolis, who reveals that Italy asked to arm its MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper UAVs 2 years ago. The USA has refused to cooperate, halting Italian efforts even though Italy is responsible for wide swathes of territory in Afghanistan, and was the point country for NATO’s campaign against Libya in 2011.

Arming the Aeronautica Militare’s UAVs is a high priority, and Debertolis confirms that Italy is in talks with potential European partners to move forward with a covert “Super MALE” weaponized UAV program. The main question revolves around funding. America may have delayed Italy for so long that it doesn’t have the budget to do anything, even convert its existing UAVs. Aviation Week.

Feb 17/13: Armed UAVs. French experiences in Mali and Libya are pushing them toward armed UAVs. The realities of on-call firepower needs, and the high cost of fighter air cover, are staring them in the face. Unfortunately, there’s no quick fix. There aren’t any armed European UAVs, and EADS/IAI’s formal proposal to extend France’s Heron-derived Harfang rent-a-drone service involves sensor upgrades, but no weapons.

Israeli Herons do carry weapons, and in principle, it would be possible to modify the Harfang UAVs to add RAFAEL’s Spike-LR missiles, or MBDA’s Viper Strike glide bombs. In exchange, the Armee de l’Air would have to become more involved in operations and maintenance, and may even have to take the UAVs in-house.

The MQ-9 Reaper is a more capable option because of its weapon choices and higher payload, and appears to be France’s preference. The bad news is the 2+ year time frame for buying Reapers through the USA’s weapon export bureaucracy, modifying them with European sensors, and then fielding them. A formal letter of request is reportedly being prepared, so it can be ready immediately if and when the French defense minister decides.

Another option would involve manned light planes such as the EMB-314 Super Tucano, which is related to the Armee de l’Air’s EMB-312 Tucano trainers. They would offer less loiter time, and place a pilot at risk. In exchange, they would work alongside UAVs like the Harfangs to provide better situational awareness, more speed, mounted guns, lower loss rates, and faster delivery and fielding. Purchase costs would be similar, and operating costs of $1,000 or less per flight hour could be very competitive if UAV infrastructure and loss costs are factored in. With Brazil pondering its next fighter buy, a conditional Super Tucano purchase might even offer France a negotiating edge. Defense Aerospace | Defense News.

2012

Reaper rising; Winner to fly in NATO’s AGS?; EADS’ JV campaign adds Germany; Franco-German MALE UAV agreement; Tarrying over Telemos; Talarion looks to be toast.

Mantis/Telemos
(click to view full)

Dec 19/12: DGA chief Laurent Collet-Billon confirms to reporters that France is discussing the option of buying MQ-9s through the US Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program, then modifying them to carry European sensors and weapons. Collet-Billon believes that this proposition could interest existing operators in Britain and Italy, as well as potential future operators in Germany and Poland.

IAI’s Heron TP also remains in the running. Aviation Week.

Oct 19/12: La Tribune reports that France’s DGA is having informal discussions with General Atomics about their Predator family UAVs. France’s dilemma is that if they want to field UAVs quickly, the MQ-9 may be their best bet. Drawbacks include limited or no access to source codes, and strong American leverage over the drones’ use. They hope to be able to “Europeanize” the drone’s sensors and control software, and the report says that they’re looking to make a decision about their interim MALE UAV by the end of 2012.

DGA chief Laurent Collet-Billon also confirms that France spent EUR 30 million on the Talarion project, but says that the resulting UAV was too large. France didn’t even pursue sensor development for Talarion. La Tribune [in French].

Sept 12/12: France & Germany. France and Germany sign an agreement to cooperate in the MALE UAV field, to create a “European” solution. Actually, they agreed to a common set of key operational needs, with a MALE UAV as a goal, and possible operational cooperation between their Heron-derived fleets in the meantime.

The French announcement didn’t directly address the fate of Franco-British efforts, except to say that anything they do with Germany will be “coherent avec” the Treaty of Lancaster House. That could certainly become easier, if BAE and EADS decide to merge. In the end, however, they didn’t merge. French DGA [in French] | Aviation Week | Defense News.

French – German agreement

July 25/12: No joy. Following a meeting in London, defense ministers from the UK and France confirm that France will buy 1 WK450B Watchkeeper unmanned system for operational assessments and trials in 2012 and 2013. They also agreed on a joint EUR 13 million (about $15.7 million) UCAV research study by BAE (Taranis) and Dassault (nEUROn lead).

What did not happen, is any kind of collaboration announcement on an Anglo-French medium-altitude, long-endurance (MALE) UAV, like the Dassault/BAE Telemos. Defense News | Thales Group.

July 10/12: No-show. France and Britain cancel a joint press conference at Farnborough 2012, which was scheduled to discuss progress on joint UAV projects. British defense procurement minister Peter Luff, said the announcement of a medium-altitude, long-endurance (MALE) UAV risk-reduction contract and an unmanned air combat vehicle demonstration deal is being delayed as the new French government “is pausing for breath to look at what it can afford.”

Defense News adds that France recently signed a more limited security cooperation deal with Germany, and MALE UAV development is a possible area. Looks like the EADS vs. BAE/Dassault jostling is back on. Defense News.

July 9/12: Mantis Plan B. BAE Systems announces its intention to fly the Mantis UAS Concept Demonstrator again, but this time in UK airspace. BAE touts it as a way to “support the development of future MALE (Medium Altitude Long Endurance) and UCAS (Unmanned Combat Air Systems) operational capabilities… [and] address the associated challenges of airspace integration and safe operation of an airborne system in accordance with UK rules and regulations.”

That might be enough to pick up additional research funding, if Anglo-French cooperation on the derivative Telemos project fails. Their stated goal is as flight in 2013.

June 10-17/12: French elections. France holds legislative elections. The Socialist Party wins again, and its coalition has 331 seats to 229 for its center-right opposition coalition. The Socialist party gains 94 seats, to reach 280 of the total 541 in the National Assembly. As the Feb 17/12 entry notes, this may have consequences for France’s UAV programs.

May 6/12: French elections. France’s Presidential election is a win for the Socialist candidate Hollande, who beats Sarkozy 51.6% to 48.3%.

Elections

Feb 20/12: Talarion tails off. Flight International reports confirmation from EADS Cassidian that it has halted work on Talarion, at least for now:

“Cassidian said several times during the last few months that we will only continue to invest in the Talarion programme if we would get a firm commitment from our potential customers,” the company says, referring to France, Germany and Spain. “Unfortunately, we did not get this commitment so far. Therefore we decided to ramp down the programme.”

Note that “ramp down” is not “cancel,” and the 2012 French elections remain to influence Talarion’s future. Meanwhile, EADS is resuming flights of its jet-powered Barracuda UAV, with a focus on civil airspace integration, testing certain technical advances, and UAV autonomy.

Feb 17/12: A study? Britain & France follow up on their Nov 2/10 cooperation statement with an underwhelming announcement: they’ll commission a study about a next-generation UAV, and France will evaluate Britain’s smaller Watchkeeper MK450B:

“Medium Altitude Longue Endurance (MALE) Drone: The Joint Program Office was launched in 2011. We will shortly place with BAES and Dassault a jointly funded contract to study the technical risks associated with the MALE UAV. We look forward to taking further decisions jointly in the light of the outcomes of this risk reduction phase… Watchkeeper drone: France confirms its interest for the Watchkeeper system recognising the opportunities this would create for cooperation on technical, support, operational and development of doctrine and concepts. An evaluation of the system by France will begin in 2012, in the framework of its national procurement process, and conclude in 2013.”

The BAE/Dassault study is expected to be worth EUR 50 million, which isn’t enough to develop a joint UAV. The main production contract is expected by 2013, with a 2020 fielding goal. Defense-Aerospace correctly points out that this structure leaves BAE and Dassault very exposed to an election loss by Sarkozy, whose socialist opponents are expected to have EADS’ outgoing CEO Gallois as a candidate and potential cabinet minister. The DGA is very unenthusiastic about another EADS drone, however, alluding to problems with EADS’ Harfang:

“Collet-Billon was dismissive of a future role for EADS in French UAV programs. When asked if the company and DGA were still talking on the subject, he noted that EADS had provided French forces with the Harfang UAV, “and we are in constant dialogue at least on this subject.”

While it is very easy for new politicians to terminate a study and pick a different platform, like EADS’ Talarion, France cannot develop Talarion alone. If Gallois ascends to Cabinet and insists, the big question is whether Britain would go along with that, or if enough European partners would sign on.

Meanwhile, the Elbit/Thales WK450B Watchkeeper is smaller and less capable than France’s Harfang Heron derivatives, and much smaller than the Heron TP or Telemos, but it is still a MALE class UAV. Depending on what France chooses to do, Watchkeeper could either complement the Harfang & Heron TP fleet after 2013, or become a Heron substitute. UK Prime Minister | Defense Aerospace | Defense-Aerospace re: political risks.

Feb 5/12: Telemos. The UK’s This is Money offers an unconfirmed, unsourced report that:

“Britain and France are expected to sign a [GBP 1 billion] deal to develop a high-tech unmanned aircraft based on the topsecret Mantis project developed by BAE Systems in Lancashire.”

Time will tell.

Jan 20/12: EADS German JV. Fresh from its UAV pact with Alenia (vid. Dec 14/11), EADS signs an agreement with Rheinmetall for a joint venture in the UAV field. It’s effectively a merger involving the German firm’s UAV operations, in exchange for 49% ownership by Rheinmetall. The German firm makes the KZO tactical UAV, which has been fielded in Afghanistan alongside Germany’s longer-range, Rheinmetall-operated, leased Heron-1 UAVs.

EADS & Rheinmetall JV

Jan 16/12: Heron TPs for AGS? Defense News reports that France is offering the modified Heron TP drones as its contribution to NATO’s Alliance Ground System battlefield surveillance program – which wants cash as promised, in order to buy the program’s 5 larger and more capable RQ-4B Global Hawk Block 40 jet-powered UAVs. NATO statements later confirmed that France could join by contributing flight hours from compatible UAVs, and receive AGS intelligence in return.

Their report adds that the bill for France’s Heron-TPs, with additions like satellite communications and de-icing gear, will be even higher than expected, at about EUR 620 million total. The difference from the EUR 320 million budget is said to be an extra EUR 150 million each for Dassault and Thales. French Defense Minister Gerard Longuet reportedly told French journalists that the Heron TP deal would be finalized and signed by the end of 2012, adding that:

“We could have found a cheaper, more efficient, quicker solution, but at the [unacceptable] price of long-term dependence… No proposition was made by Reaper, which did not want to share, nor to adapt to French standards…”

Sharing MQ-9 technology with French competitors might be an issue with both General Atomics and the US government. On the other hand, the magazine’s industry sources say that the proposition remains untested. General Atomics is said to have sent no offer because there was no letter of request for one.

2011

Heron TP picked amid controversy; EADS’ Italian JV; Telemos & Talarion lobbying.

Dec 14/11: EADS’ Italian MoU. EADS Deutschland GmbH/ Cassidian and Alenia Aeronautica S.p.A. sign a Memorandum of Understanding to investigate cooperation in the field of Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) UAVs and Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicles (UCAV). Talarion is mentioned explicitly in the joint release.

The move is underscored, not-so-quietly, by Senate Intelligence Committee Chair Dianne Feinstein [D-CA], who opposes giving armed UAVs to even key allies. The USA has already done exactly that with Britain’s MQ-9 Reapers. Italy is also a Reaper customer, but does not arm them. It doesn’t really matter if Feinstein succeeds here. The mere fact that she is trying, and that the Obama administration is vacillating on the issue, will cause other countries to step up their own efforts. Alenia | EADS | Wall Street Journal [subscription].

EADS & Alenia MoU

Nov 28/11: Faucheur pour la France? The French Senate adopts its Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee’s recommendation to re-route EUR 109 million in funding from France’s UAV budget line item, dropping it from EUR 318 million to EUR 209 million, and adding a proviso that French industrial policy would (unusually) play no role in UAV selection. Because of the way the French system is structured, the vote is mostly symbolic, unless it can ignite a larger controversy, and either get traction in the Assemblée Nationale, or lever the executive branch or the French DGA into backpedaling on the deal.

The key to understanding the move’s symbolism is to understand the package bids for the Harfang replacement project. Dassault and IAI reportedly bid EUR 320 million for 7 modified Heron TP UAVs, 2 ground stations and 10 years’ maintenance. French sensors, satellite communications gear, and other modifications would be added by Dassault and Thales, bringing total costs to around EUR 370 million. In contrast, General Atomics and EADS proposed – yes, EUR 209 million for 7 MQ-9 Reapers, 2 ground stations, and 10 years maintenance. EADS’ proposed modifications were more expensive, at EUR 88 million, bringing the total to EUR 297 million. That’s still less than Dassault’s bid, but France opted for the Heron TP on the basis of its transfers and workshare for French industries.

Under the Commission des Affaires Etrangères et de la Défense’s proposal, the missing EUR 109 million wouldn’t be cut. EUR 80 million would become R&D funds for France’s long-term drone replacement: Dassault (Telemos/Mantis) and EADS’ (Talarion) are directly mentioned, but this wouldn’t preclude other investments by that program. The other EUR 29 million would pay for Harfang UAV upgrades. That way, the Sénat can argue that it’s actually increasing the net industrial benefits to French industry. Serge Dassault is predictably unhappy with the Senat’s move:

“We proposed the Israeli drone to meet an obvious gap in drones today… while we wait for a French drone. If we buy an American one, well then everything is screwed up and we’ll spend more money, drive up unemployment and reduce exports – if that’s what you want, I don’t understand.”

His math was not clarified, but it’s worth noting that Dassault Group’s head is also a Senator, for President Sarkozy’s UMP party. Article 32, Amt II-104 [in French] | French Sénat release [in French] | Defense News | Reuters.

July 21/11: Heron TP picked. The French Defense Ministry has entered into talks with Dassault Aviation to adapt IAI’s Heron TP for use by the French military, starting in 2014. The idea is to plug the gap in availability before a “new generation” of drones becomes available in 2020. The Jerusalem Post reports that the deal is expected to be worth around $500 million, though it isn’t clear whether that amount refers just to Israeli firms, or also includes contracts to participating French firms like Dassault and Thales.

Options like Sagem’s Patroller and the Elbit/Thales Watchkeeper appear to have missed the shortlist. Reports cite General Atomics’ MQ-9 Reaper drones as the military’s preferred choice, while the other finalist was reportedly another 4 updated Harfang drones from EADS. In the end, however, the high-value workshare for Dassault and Thales SA clinched the Heron TP as the Ministère de la Defense’s interim choice. MdlD [in French] | Dow Jones | Jerusulaem Post.

Heron TP picked as interim UAV

July 12/11: Telemos. Dassault Aviation exhibits a full-size Telemos mock-up at the 2011 Paris Air Show, confirming its strong Mantis derivation. Dassault Aviation.

June 18/11: Talarion. EADS Cassidian CEO Stefan Zoller confirms that they will offer their jet-powered Talarion UAV for Britain and France’s new-generation MALE UAV competition. He says the drone is very close to the design review stage, and could fly as early as 2014.

He also confirms that Turkey has signed a Memorandum of Understanding for Talarion, and continues EADS push to engineer a political outcome in which 1 favored European UAV is picked in advance. Defense News | Defense News Show Scout.

June 8/11: Telemos. At the 2011 Paris Air Show, Dassault and BAE unveil their proposed offering, named “Telemos”. It looks like the Mantis UCAV, with a name change. In Greek mythology, Telemos was the prophetic son of Eurymos, known for having the foresight to warn Polyphemus about an attack by Odysseus. That may not be a great name choice – despite this warning, the cyclops Polyphemus had his lone eye put out by Odysseus/”Noman”, who escaped to continue his Odyssey.

The current plan reportedly calls for BAE Systems to be responsible for aircraft and engine selection, as the Mantis UAV’s originator. They are reportedly considering the possibility of turbofans instead of turboprops for the final design, and talking to both Safran SA and Rolls-Royce. Dassault will reportedly focus on systems integration and testing. With respect to EADS’ repeated calls for a single European medium-high end UAV project, the 2 firms kept to the Greek theme and offered EADS a Spartan answer: the door is open for EADS to become a junior partner in Telemos. BAE Systems | Dassault Aviation | Aviation Week | Defense Aerospace: “BAE Systems-Dassault Aviation Telemos Revives France’s UAV Wars.”

BAE / Dassault’s “Telemos”

March 28/11: Talarion. During a financial presentation, EADS Cassidian CEO Stefan Zoller cuts Talarion’s requested initial development funding by 90%, from a complete EUR 3 billion commitment to to EUR 300 million: 100 million each in initial funding from France, Germany and Spain. That would finance a flying prototype by early 2014, putting Talarion on a level field with other flying designs, and also created an initial commitment trap by tying defense careers and local industries to the project. Meanwhile:

“We still go full speed ahead with the development, pre-financed with our own money… We can’t wait any longer, and we can’t self-finance forever.”

So far, the firm has invested EUR 500-600 million in various UAV projects, but Zoeller would not answer questions about Talarion’s share of that. One bright spot is that Turkey has reportedly earmarked funds to participate in Talarion. The question is whether there will be a project to participate in, and if so, whether Turkey will be a 4th partner, or a replacement for one or more existing partners. Bloomberg | Flight International | EADS Financial Statements & Presentations, 2011.

March 14/11: BAE/Dassault MoU. BAE Systems and Dassault Aviation announce a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate exclusively on the Anglo-French Medium Altitude Long Endurance Unmanned Aircraft System (MALE UAS) competition, per the Nov 2/10 Declaration on Defence and Security Co-operation.

BAE Systems and Dassault Aviation have already completed a joint MALE UAS feasibility study for the United Kingdom and French Governments, but their releases do not say anything about which platform they’d bid. BAE’s Mantis is seen as a likely option, and Reuters specifically identifies it as the base platform. BAE Systems | Dassault Aviation [in French] | Reuters.

BAE & Dassault

March 3/11: MQ-9. In the wake of Boeing’s $25 billion KC-X aerial tanker win, following the Pentagon’s cancellation of EADS’ KC-45 contract and subsequent recompete, Flight International reports that there may be follow-on effects:

“Newspaper Les Echos published a small article four days after the contract award noting that the USAF’s decision on tankers will make it “very difficult” for Paris to purchase the General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper unmanned air vehicle, which is competing against the EADS Talarion and a Dassault/Thales/Indra consortium offering the Israel Aerospace Industries Heron TP.”

Jan 17/11: Scavenger vs. bi-MALE? Reports indicate some confusion concerning the bi-national Anglo-French future MALE UAV program (bi-MALE?). A Daily Telegraph report appears to confuse that project with the British Scavenger ISTAR deep reconnaissance UAV program, believed to be worth about GBP 600 million ($952 million). Scavenger bidders are believed to include BAE and Dassault (Mantis UAV), Cobham plc and General Atomics (jet-powered Predator-C), and Northrop Grumman (RQ-4 Global Hawk). EADS is reportedly holding Talarion partnership discussions with Thales and MBDA, and considering a bid of its own.

The contracts may remain independent, as the bilateral MALE UAV program has yet to be defined. On the other hand, bidders are all aware that the outcome of Scavenger could affect the Anglo-French project, by locking in a British buy that pulls the subsequent competition toward a common platform, if that’s possible. A win by the Mantis team, for instance, would place it in a very strong position. Meanwhile, the choice of MBDA as a potential Talarion partner is especially interesting. Arming the Talarion has not been a focus to date, but the joint Franco-British project reportedly wants the UAVs to have some offensive capabilities. Meanwhile, EADS is lobbying hard to make Talarion Europe’s sole bet on the future MALE UAV front – thus far, without success. Daily Telegraph | Shephard Group.

2010

Lots of jockeying for position.

Nov 2/10: Franco-British agreement. The “UK-France Summit 2010 Declaration on Defence and Security Co-operation” includes a proviso regarding MALE UAVs:

“16. Unmanned Air Systems have become essential to our armed forces. We have agreed to work together on the next generation of Medium Altitude Long Endurance Unmanned Air Surveillance Systems. Co-operation will enable the potential sharing of development, support and training costs, and ensure that our forces can work together. We will launch a jointly funded, competitive assessment phase in 2011, with a view to new equipment delivery between 2015 and 2020.”

As far as existing contenders go, this may weaken EADS’ Talarion even further, and probably gives BAE’s Mantis platform a boost, as BAE is reportedly in talks with Dassault. If they can keep that delivery timeframe, France’s Harfang fleet could leave service in 2015 instead of 2014. This might remove the need for a stopgap buy, but such decisions depend on available budgets, the priority that frontline commanders place on other large UAVs, and what France believes it can learn from any UAV technologies it buys.

Franco-British defense cooperation

Oct 5/10: DGA projections. French Defense Minister Hervé Morin speaks to the National Assembly’s defense committee (translated):

“It seems to me preferable to retain an intermediate system with effectively an off-the-shelf purchase, all the while looking in the medium term for a lasting European solution, allowing France and the United Kingdom to position themselves at a higher level…”

Morin reportedly added the DGA’s assessment of various UAV options for France. EADS’ Talarion option is seen as the slowest project and highest risk, at 8-10 years, with very high costs. BAE’s Mantis also gets good sovereignty marks, with delivery in about 7 years for an undetermined price and high risk. Dassault/Thales Heron TP-based UAV gets medium marks in all areas, with delivery in 4-5 years. They rated an off-the-shelf Heron TP option at 4 years delivery, with no sovereignty benefits, while rating the MQ-9 Reaper as available in 3 years, and closer to a fit within the EUR 139 million in available MALE(Medium Altitude Long Endurance) UAV funds from 2010-2014, under the current budget law.

Oddly, Thales’ Watchkeeper Mk450 is not mentioned in the reports, nor is Sagem’s Patroller. Their common denominator seems to be a lack of weapons. The delivery times for both the MQ-9 and Heron TP both seem rather high, but taken together, it seems likely that France will look to field MQ-9 Reaper UAVs as their immediate option (or possibly MQ-1/ MQ-1C Predators if the USA won’t sell MQ-9s), while leaning toward the Mantis UAV as their future surveillance and counterinsurgency platform. AN CNDFA transcript [in French] | Defense News | UPI.

Sept 15/10: Barracuda/ Talarion. EADS has run another set of test-flights of its Barracuda jet-powered UAV at Goose Bay AFB, Canada, in order to test technologies for its proposed Talarion UAV. Foci included Sense & Avoid capabilities, Auto Taxi Systems, a Structure Integrated Antenna, and Automatic Target Detection Systems. The firm has been adamant that Talarion remains its focus, saying they do not wish to develop the Barracuda and its stealth features into a UCAV(Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle). Flight International.

Sept 14/10: Sagem/Elbit MoU. Safran Group subsidiary Sagem Defense Securite signs a Memorandum of Agreement with Israel’s Elbit Systems Ltd., to form a 50/50 Joint Venture company by early 2011. The joint venture company would offer current UAVs, as well as “derivative products” and newly developed products, to France and “designated international markets” as a French corporation, located in Eragny and Montlucon.

Joint ventures seem to be emerging as a preferred strategy for Elbit’s bids in advanced markets, with partnerships in Britain (Thales UK), the USA (General Dynamics), and now France. There are several obvious possibilities for cooperation here, as well as several pitfalls, if the Sagem joint venture is actually established. The most obvious pitfall is the potential to undercut Elbit’s existing UTacS JV with Thales UK, to produce and export the Watchkeeper derivative of its Hermes 450.

Potential cooperation seems promising in several areas. French special forces already use Elbit’s Skylark mini-UAV. Elbit’s Hermes 90 UAVs can be offered as a battalion level option. Sagem’s Patroller UAV could benefit from Elbit’s technologies and development experience, and Elbit’s own Hermes 900 or Hermes 1500 could also form the basis of a bid to replace the Harfang. DID asked Elbit Systems about the potential for conflicts, whether any UAV types had been excluded from the JV, and whether the Patroller was included. Elbit’s response was that the JV company has not been formed yet, and so these details remain unsettled.

Sagem Patroller, pre-test
(click to view full)

Aug 12/10: Patroller. Safran Group subsidiary Sagem Defense Securite will conduct a series of operational trials of its Patroller UAV for the civil security division of the French Ministry of the Interior, from Aug 16-31/10. Their Patroller system will offer complete image surveillance services in the southern Provence-Alps-Cote d’Azur region, and will be fitted with Sagem’s Euroflir gyrostabilized optronics pod. The Patroller ground station will be located at the Canjuers military camp, and connected via radio and satellite links to the French Civil Security Division’s command centers. Units in the field will also be equipped with a Sagem RVT portable remote video terminal.

The test is not a prelude to anything, militarily, but it may accomplish 3 objectives. One is continued funding and encouragement for development. The second is greater familiarity and comfort within the French government for Sagem’s slightly unusual approach. The third benefit could involve positive media coverage, if the Patroller features in wildfire efforts or successful search-and-rescues. Sagem DS | Defense News | Shephard Group | UPI.

June 25/10: No decision yet. A ministerial investment committee meeting [in May 2010] determined that EADS’s [Talarion] and Thales-Dassault Aviation’s [SDM Heron-TP variant] development options for meeting the MALE requirement are too uncertain, and the likely cost would be well beyond the [EUR] 139 million ($171 million) currently budgeted… “How can we develop a MALE UAV while funding the A400M [and other priority programs]?” [French defense minister] Morin asks. Aviation Week:

“French industry officials say they expect the DGA to release a request for information for development of a joint tactical UAV system toward year-end, with a request for proposals to follow in early 2011 and a selection in late 2011 or early 2012. Originally known as SDT and now called DTIA, the system will be designed to meet both army and navy needs, although definition of navy specifications is well behind the curve. The notional requirement is 60 air vehicles for the French army, to be delivered starting in 2015-16, and 15 for the navy, with first deliveries in 2019. According to a new doctrine released in May, the requirement will include target-designation and damage-evaluation capabilities, a multisensor payload and a real-time data link. Autonomy will be 6-8 hr., radius 80-100 km. (50-62 mi.) and fielding time 30 min.”

June 16/10: Talarion. Dow Jones reports that the German government will decide whether it can finance Talarion as it draws up the 2011 budget, which will implement EUR 11.2 billion in austerity measures, including a EUR 1 billion cut in defense spending. Meanwhile, at Eurosatory 2010, EADS DS CEO Stefan Zoller reverses course, and tells the Associated Press that EADS will continue to invest its own funds to develop the Talarion UAV:

“The Talarion is the solution to stay in military airborne systems… You give that up you would lose the industry thereafter. Once you lose airborne military systems, what will be the consequences for sensors, avionics, for ground stations, for data links and so on? That’s why I say we are at a crossroads… The shortage of budgets is a reality, it’s something we have to accept… Therefore I have to envisage for still a while EADS has to pre-finance further.” He said he hopes for a political commitment from the three governments – and possibly Turkey which has expressed an interest – but declined to set a deadline.”

A June 14/10 Aviation Week article made similar points, via an interview with EADS Military Air Systems head Bernhard Gerwert. EADS’ offer involved corporate “pre-financing” of development costs, in return for confirmed orders by 2017:

“While German government officials have indicated support for an initiative to build home-grown UAV capacity… France and Spain have been less enthusiastic… bidders there argue that the governments should focus on system and payload development, not the air vehicle… Workshare also has been a point of discussion; Thales, for example, is unhappy with its role and the level of radar work. But Gerwert argues that… work allocation is now equally split… EADS had hoped to secure a program commitment by now to ramp up staffing to more than 400 engineers, from around 150… development efforts will continue for now without financial backing, but at the lower staffing level – which effectively means the in-service date will start slipping… [EADS] would still want to be paid… not just attempt to recoup the development bill during the production run… too financially risky.”

March 30/10: Next-gen UAV study. The UK’s Labour Party Minister of Defence Quentin Davies says that the U.K., France and Italy have commissioned a set of firms including Dassault Aviation SA to study a multinational project for an armed UAV with surveillance capabilities. The goal is “an improvement on [MQ-9] Reaper, the next generation,” and the report is due in June 2010.

BAE’s Mantis UAV project is one possible basis for an effort of this type, and the UK MoD has confirmed that “Mantis will be one contender in the assessment phase [but] no firm commitments have been made.” Other possibilities might include widening the current French/ German/ Spanish Talarion UAV project, or merging the UK’s stealthy Taranis UCAV project into the similar nEUROn consortium, which already includes France and Italy. A great deal depends on the specifications laid out for the new UAV. BusinessWeek.

Jan 18/10: Talarion. EADS warns that it may freeze the Talarion program, unless it can receive orders. Der Spiegel:

“In an interview with the Financial Times Deutschland newspaper published on Monday, EADS defense chief Stefan Zoller said the Talarion project would have to be frozen by this summer if Germany, France and Spain do not place concrete orders for the drone. Developing the drone will cost the three countries an estimated total of [EUR] 1.5 billion, plus a further [EUR] 1.4 billion to procure 45 models. So far the countries have invested [EUR] 60 million into the project.”

The comments come amidst a funding crisis and negotiations surrounding EADS’ A400M large tactical transport aircraft.

2008 – 2009

Talarion study & mock-up; Interest in the MQ-9 Reaper.

Barracuda
(click to view full)

Oct 10/09: MQ-9. Reports surface in the French media that France is considering an urgent purchase of 2 MQ-9 Reaper systems (4 MQ-9s, 2 ground stations) for use in Afghanistan at a cost of up to $100 million, because 2 of its 3 deployed EADS SIDM/ Harfang UAVs are grounded for repairs, and have had issues with human error and contractor support.

France has advanced UAV programs in development, in collaboration with other European countries, at the medium, heavy, and UCAV levels. A recent test of the jet-powered Barracuda UAV demonstrator in Canada, and ongoing progress on the multinational Talarion and nEUROn UCAV underscores the seriousness of those efforts, but they are not realistic near-term fielding options. Assuming that France does not wish to lease a UAV service as the Australians, British, Canadians, and Dutch have done, the MQ-9 offers commonality with the American, British, and Italian contingents in theater, as well as a UAV with strong weapons options that set it apart from the rest. Reuters || In French: Le Point magazine EXCLUSIF | France-Soir | TF 1.

Sept 9/10: Talarion. EADS DS CEO Stefan Zoller urges Britain to consider joining the Talarion program, in an interview at Britain’s DSEi 2009 trade show. Flight International reports:

“EADS hopes to secure a production commitment by year-end from the three partners on its Talarion unmanned air vehicle project… Zoller says EADS “will target something” by the end of the year to have a commitment from France, Germany and Spain… Zoller says the European capability has already attracted interest from Turkey… he said: “I can hardly see a standalone UK approach: it’s a huge investment. If we were to discuss with the UK, the requirements and the missions would be very much the same.” ADS has already spent more than [EUR] 500 million ($728 million) of its own money on the pursuit of the Talarion system, which it says is capable of performing 20 different mission types.”

July 27/09: Ooooh, Barracuda! EADS Defence & Security announces a successful series of 4 flight tests for its jet-powered Barracuda UAV at Goose Bay AFB, Newfoundland, Canada. During the test campaign, the demonstrator flew completely autonomously along pre-programmed flight profiles. The new system is a further development of the first Barracuda technology test bed, which performed its maiden flight in April 2006. Since that time the software, systems and solutions have been continuously developed under the Agile UAV program.

Barracuda is not currently envisioned as a serving UAV, but is seen as risk reduction for advanced projects like Talarion and nEUROn. EADS.

June 15/09: Talarion. EADS DS offers a full-scale mockup of the tri-national Advanced UAV project at the Paris Air Show. The UAV is now named “Talarion.” The name comes from the winged sandals of Hermes in the Greek mythology. EADS adds that:

“Talarion, with its 27,90 m wing span, is a joint endeavour of DS in France, Germany and Spain… Given a governmental go-ahead for development in 2009, the maiden flight of “Talarion” would be in 2013, and with first series deliveries in 2015. The industry proposal to the three partner nations contains six Talarion systems for France and Germany each, and three for Spain, respectively. One system consists of three Talarion units plus ground segment. In addition to the three partner nations, there is also a growing interest on the advanced UAV programme Talarion in the international markets.”

See: EADS | Flight International.

May 28/09: Euro study done. The concluding review meeting of representatives from France, Germany and Spain marks the end of the “tri-national Advanced UAV” (Talarion’s) risk reduction study, after almost 2 years of work. Thales electronics led the radar partners team, and with EADS Defence Electronics, and Indra in Spain. EADS DS Military Air Systems SVP Nicolas Chamussy:

“The twin-jet propulsion system of the Advanced UAV will not only supply ample on-board energy for the satellite communications, sensors and data links, but also safeguard secure flight conditions in the densely populated skies over Europe… I firmly believe that we fully understood our customers’ requirements, including their tight timeframe…”

May 28/08: Heron TP bid. Dassault Aviation, Thales and Indra submit a joint MALE UAV offer in Franco-Spanish cooperation to the French and Spanish Ministries of Defence. Their bid is based on IAI’s Heron-TP. Dassault.

Additional Readings

• DID – France’s Harfang/SIDM IUAV Program.

• EADS Cassidian – Harfang.

• DID – MQ-9 Reaper: The First Operational UCAV?

Further UAVs are listed in alphabetical order by name.

• Piaggio Aero – P1HH Hammerhead. Italian armed MALE project.

• Air Force Technology – Heron / Machatz 1 Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), Israel.

• Air Force Technology – Mantis Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), United Kingdom.

• Flight International, via WayBack (May 11/10) – Sagem advances Patroller UAV flight tests.

• Air Force Technology – Talarion MALE UAV, France.

• EADS Cassidian – Future European MALE. Note that this acronym = FEMALE, someone has a sense of irony. Was known as Talarion.

• BAE – Telemos. Its Dassault partnership, using the Mantis as the base.

• DID – The UK’s Watchkeeper ISTAR UAV.

• Think Defence (June 19/13) – Telemos, Talarion, Hammerhead and the Mystery of the European MALE

Turkish F-16
(click to view full)

The Turkish and US governments signed a letter of offer and acceptance (LOA) on April 26/05 for the $1.1-billion modernization of 117 Turkish Air Force F-16s to a common avionics configuration. December 2006 saw a $635.1 million contract under that framework issued to Lockeed Martin.

The upgrade will create a common avionics configuration for the service’s fleet of F-16 Block 40 and 50 aircraft. More than 200 F-16 aircraft make up the backbone of Turkey’s current fighter fleet. Systems to be integrated on Turkey’s upgraded F-16s include:

• The AN/APG-69(V)9 radar that is currently being installed on new F-16 Advanced Block 50/52 aircraft
  
• Color cockpit displays
  
• The Modular Mission Computer and new avionics processors
  
• The Joint Helmet-Mounted Cueing System (JHMCS)
  
• The Link 16 datalink
  
• New identification-friend-or-foe (IFF) transponders
  
• AN/AVS-9 night-vision goggles
  
• Upgraded navigation systems; and
  
• BAE Systems’ AN/ALQ-178(V)5+ electronic-warfare (EW) system, mounted internally, with radar-warning and jamming capabilities for aircraft self-protection

The aircraft will also be modified to accept new missile systems of unspecified types; some potential candidates include the AIM-9X Sidewinder, AIM-120 AMRAAM, and MBDA Meteor.

The deal will be conducted under the US Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program, with Lockheed Martin in Ft. Worth, TX serving as principle contractor, although the actual modification of the aircraft will be performed by TUSAS Aerospace Industries in Ankara, Turkey. TUSAS is currently the focus of a Turkish defense industry consolidation plan sponsored by the Turkish government.

Political Background

In all probability, this program’s cost and scope will end Turkish inquiries concerning the Eurofighter Typhoon as a bridge between its current F-16 fleet and the J-35 Joint Strike Fighter scheduled to arrive around 2015. Turkey had also been complaining about levels of local work share and technology transfer in a number of defense deals with the United States; presumably, the work done by TUSAS was enough to address this.

The joint statement also came immediately after Turkey’s Cabinet approved a long-standing U.S. request to allow the American military to fly more supplies into Iraq and Afghanistan from a strategic air base in southern Turkey. Incirlik, located on the outskirts of the southern city of Adana, is currently home to some 10 U.S. refueling aircraft used to support operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. There are about 1,400 U.S. airmen at the base.

The United States was seeking permission to establish an expanded logistics hub at Incirlik to be able to fly large civilian cargo flights to the base and redistribute the cargo to military aircraft bound for Afghanistan and Iraq. Washington was also asking for blanket clearance for all cargo flights. Turkey has insisted in the past that the United States had to get separate permission for each flight.

The Turkish decision on Incirlik was a step toward improving relations with the United States that were strained when Turkey refused to allow the 4th Infantry Division to invade Iraq from Turkish territory in March 2003. Erdogan’s Islamist government has also strained ties in other ways, but a 2011 decision to allow AN/TPY-2 ballistic missile tracking radars in Turkey, as part of NATO’s European Phased Adaptive Approach to missile defense against Iran, appears to have opened more doors.

Contracts & Key Events

Turkey’s Fighter Future?

March 26/19: New Nose Radar According to reports, Turkish defense company ASELSAN will equip Turkey’s F-16 with a new nose radar. The F-16 AESA Nose Radar Development Project was launched to meet the need for modernization of the radars of the F-16 aircraft in the Air Force Command inventory with new generation radars that have Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) antenna technology. Turkey acquired its first F-16 Fighting Falcons in the 80s. Last month, it was reported that the new electronics warfare system for the Turkish F-16s, the SPEWS-II developed by ASELSAN, had successfully completed tests and entered into use.

Oct 30/11: Turkish media report that the Obama administration has agreed in principle to transfer key F-16 software source code information to Turkey. This would let Turkey modify those codes themselves, if they wished to integrate locally-produced avionics and weapons. The deal reportedly involves around 50 pages of technical details defining the transfer, followed by US congressional approval.

Source code access would be more convenient for the Turks, and could be lucrative if some of the F-16 operators who already deal with Turkey for maintenance and modifications choose to purchase locally-designed weapons and modifications. It also acts as a form of partial insurance against any American support cutoff. Recent years have seen greater efforts by Turkey to develop its own equipment, and their SSM procurement agency has a project called Ozgur, which aims to develop:

“…an avionic suit [sic] solution and integrating that suit to a fighter A/C and by execution of integration and certification of a set of defined weapon systems including locally developed weapon systems… The developed solution will be integrated to a fighter and the certification of the whole system including weapon systems will be performed.”

Reports speculate that the source code transfer agreement may be connected to Turkey’s September 2011 agreement to emplace an AN/TPY-2 early warning radar near Diyarbakir in SE Turkey, facing Iran and linked to US Navy systems via Cooperative Engagement Capability. The radar is part of the US-led European Phased Adaptive Approach to missile defense. Today’s Zaman.

Feb 11/11: SavunmaSanayi.net reports that Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) is set to develop new indigenous modernization kits and mission computers. They’d be used as upgrades to all of the TuAF’s F-16s, and as a possible export to other countries. TRDEFENCE:

“Latest reports indicate that the companies have finalized their technical consultations with the MOD and industrial suppliers as of the end of January and the project has been given green light in order to equip Turkey’s vast fleet of F-16s with newly developed indigenous sensors and weapons such as Aselpod navigation and targeting system, various missiles and high-precision munitions produced and/or currently under development in Turkey… Hardware for the avionics upgrade will be exclusively manufactured by Aselsan, while TAI will tackle the development of millions of lines of highly specialized software.”

June 23/08: The USAF is modifying a firm fixed price contract with Lockheed Martin Aeronautics of Fort Worth, TX to update the current Peace Onyx III contract/baseline, which is a comprehensive hardware and software aircraft modernization to the Turkish Block 30 C/D, 40 C/D, and 50 C/D aircraft. This not-to-exceed $18 million effort supports foreign military sales to Turkey. At this time $9 million in FMS Funds has been obligated. The Aeronautical Systems Center, 312 AESG/PKA at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, OH manages the contract (FA8615-05-C-6002, PO 0021).

Sept 26/07: Boeing subsidiary McDonnell Douglas Corp. received a $10 million order against a previously issued Basic Ordering Agreement (N00019-05-G-0026) for the integration and test support for the Turkish Peace Onyx III F-16 Integration and Test Program for the Government of Turkey under the Foreign Military Sales Program. Work will be performed in St. Louis, Mo. and is expected to be completed in December 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md. is the contracting activity.

Dec 22/06: Lockheed Martin Corp., in Fort Worth, TX receives a $635.1 million firm-price-incentive contract modification for 216 modification kits that cover 76 F-16 Block 50s, 103 F-16 Block 40s, and 37 F-16 Block 30 aircraft for the Turkish Air Force (TuAF). The effort also includes flight testing, training, technical support and sustainment activities.

This contract continues work started under an initial contract signed in July 2005, based on an agreement signed between the governments of Turkey and the United States in April 2005; at this time, total funds have been obligated. Solicitations began May 2005, negotiations were complete November 2006, and work will be complete by February 2016. Work will occur primarily at the Lockheed Martin Aeronautics facility in Fort Worth, TX and at TUSAS Aerospace Industries in Ankara, Turkey. The Headquarters Aeronautical Systems Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, OH issued the contract (FA8615-05-C-6002/PZ00002).

Additional Readings

• F-16.NET – Turkey: Turk Hava Kuvvetleri/ Turkish Air Force – TUAF

• Turkish Aerospace Industries – PO III F-16 Modernization

• DID (Oct 2/06) – Turkey Orders 30 F-16C Block 50s etc. for $2.9B. This is a separate deal.

• DID (Oct 27/05) – Greek F-16 & Weapons Sale Clearing for Takeoff. Ah, rivalry…

• DID (Sept 9/05) – Turkey Requesting JSOWs to Go With Its Upgraded F-16s

• Turks.us (April 27/05) – Turkey, US Agree to Upgrade Turkey’s F-16 fleet

Americas

The US Navy awarded Boeing a potential $4 billion contract modification for 78 F/A-18 Super Hornets. The F-18 Super Hornet is a twin-engine, multirole fighter capable of carrying air-to-air and air-to-surface missiles. The deal provides for the full-rate production and delivery of 61 F/A-18E and 17 F/A-18F aircraft for fiscal years 2018 through 2021. The F/A-18E is the single-seat variant and the F/A-18F is the tandem-seat variant of the Super Hornet. According to reports Boeing will start converting Block II Super Hornets to Block III in the next ten years. The Block III update consists of structural and sensor upgrades. It also adds the ability to receive and transfer large amounts of sensor data with other Super Hornets and the Northrop Grumman E-2D Advanced Hawkeye. A second-generation infrared search and track (IRST) radar will allow the aircraft to detect and track enemy aircraft without giving away its own position by using its radar. The Block III update also comes with a Rockwell Collins Tactical Targeting Network Technology (TTNT) radio and an advanced processor, which allows two or more F/A-18E/Fs to share IRST sensor data, giving a single fighter enough information to use for a targeting solution. Work under the contract modification will take place in the US and Canada and is scheduled to be completed in April 2024.

The Naval Air Systems Command contracted Northrop Grumman Systems with a $37.5 million modification in support of the E-6B Mercury aircraft. The deal includes procurement and delivery of seven MR-TCDL B-Kits, one Mission Avionics Systems Trainer B-Kit, and associated A- and B-Kit spares for the MR-TCDL upgrade. The Multi-Role Tactical Common Data Link (MR-TCDL) provides real-time networking connectivity to warfighters and commanders by enabling extremely fast exchange of data via ground, airborne and satellite networks. The E-6B Mercury is a modified version of the E-6A Mercury, which is a command post and communications relay aircraft. The E-6B features battle staff positions and an airborne launch control system equipped with land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles. Last month, an E-6B was damaged while being moved out of a Hangar at Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma. Work for the contract modification will take place in Utah, California, Boston, and Massachusetts and will likely be completed in October 2021.

Middle East & Africa

Boeing handed over the first of 24 AH-64E Apache Guardian helicopters to Qatar last week. Qatar initially requested the helos in 2012, with the contract being signed in 2016. The Apache is a twin-turboshaft attack helicopter that features a nose-mounted sensor suite for target acquisition and night vision systems. The AH-64 was designed to perform in front-line environments, and to operate at night or day and during adverse weather conditions. Systems on the Apache include Target Acquisition and Designation System, Pilot Night Vision System, passive infrared countermeasures, GPS, and the IHADSS. The AH-64E is the latest version of the AH-64 and is also called the Apache Guardian. The gunship comes with new sensors, avionics and has improved night operation capabilities. Furthermore, the AH-64E helicopter can control a couple of UAVs. Weapons requested by Qatar in the original Foreign Military Sales notification included AGM-114R Hellfire laser-guided missiles, FIM-92H Stinger missiles with air-to-air launchers, and 70 mm Hydra air-to-surface rockets. The first Apache was handed over during a delivery ceremony at a Boeing plant in Arizona.

Europe

Two Bombardier Global 6000 business jets arrived in Turkey in order to be fitted with airborne stand-off jammers (Air SOJ). The Air SOJ is also known as the Remote Electronic Support/Electronic Attack Ability and has been initiated by the Turkish Presidency of Defense Industries (SSB) to develop electronic warfare special mission aircraft. It is developed by Turkish defense company Aselsan. The system will be designed to detect, identify, jam, and spoof enemy communication systems and radars so that they cannot be used against friendly platforms. The Global 6000 business jet is part of the Bombardier Global Express family, which are large cabin 11,100 km range jets. It entered service in 2012. Defense Industries Presidency Chairman Ismail Demir and representatives of Turkish Aerospace Industries, Aselsan, Air Forces Command and Bombardier, examined the aircraft at TAI facilities. Under an agreement signed in August 2018, the SSB contracted Aselsan to develop and deliver four Air SOJ systems to the Turkish Air Force Command between 2023 and 2027.

During an event launched by British Minister for Defense Procurement, Stuart Andrew, companies from all over the UK came together in the first opportunity for suppliers to engage with the Government and Team Tempest partners over the future of Combat Air System development in Great Britain. The Tempest is a proposed stealth fighter aircraft to be designed and manufactured in the UK. A consortium named „Team Tempest“, consisting of the UK Ministry of Defense, BAE Systems, Rolls-Royce, Leonardo and MBDA is developing the future fighter. The Tempest program aims to harness and develop UK capabilities that are critical for Next Generation Combat Air capability and to retain the UK’s position as a globally competitive leader through understanding of future concepts, technologies and capabilities. The recent event in Farnborough aimed for its participants to build connections and take part in a series of briefings outlining the capabilities and skills needed to shape the future of Combat Air System delivery in the UK

Asia-Pacific

Japan is planning to extend the range of it ASM-3 air-launched anti-ship missile, Jane’s reports. The country wants to develop long-range air-to-surface cruise missiles to bolster defense capabilities. The ASM-3 is a supersonic anti-ship missile that was jointly developed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and the Japanese Ministry of Defense to replace Japan’s 93 series of missiles. The missile is expected to be carried by Japan’s F-2 multirole fighters. However, a new advanced mission computer for the F-2 is yet to be made and the missile cannot yet be integrated with the aircraft. The Mitsubishi F-2 is a multirole fighter that entered service in 2008. On October 2018, it was reported, that Japan wants to replace its F-2 fighter with a indigenously made aircraft after rejecting proposals from Lockheed Martin, Boeing and BAE Systems. The domestic cruise missiles are also intended for use on the new fighters that will replace the F-2 after its retirement in 2030.

Today’s Video

Watch: Japanese New Generation Concept, Advanced Stealth Fighter Aircraft

Latest updates: Total rises to 68.

Replacement required
(click to view full)

War takes its toll on equipment, as well as men. In some cases, it wears out. In other cases, enemy fire or accidents destroy equipment. The USA has recognized this fact by funding wartime replacement expenditures as supplemental funding, which is outside the normal budgetary process. The intent is that this money will be spent on replacing equipment that has been worn out, damaged or destroyed, or will be used to provide specialized capabilities like MRAP mine-resistant vehicles that are directly related to front-line demands.

Admittedly, this hasn’t always been true. Politicians are what they are, and so are large organizations like the military. One area where this ethic has undoubtedly been honored, however, has been the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter fleet. This article covers US Army Wartime Replacement Aircraft (WRA) AH-64D Longbow buys, which are the only truly new attack helicopters in the America’s inventory. That will change with the new Block III model, which is more advanced than the WRAs.

• AH-64D Program: Past and Present [updated]
  
• AH-64D WRAs: Program Contracts [updated]
  
• The AH-64’s Future
  
• Additional Readings [NEW]
  

AH-64D Program: Past and Present

AH-64A & AH-64D Longbow
(click to view full)

The current contract brings the number of war-replacement AH-64 aircraft (sometimes called WRAs) under contract to 68. These WRAs supplement the 720 or so AH-64s that survive as of October 2005, out of the 821 AH-64s originally built for the US Army.

Apache helicopters are in very heavy demand as escorts for other helicopters in the war zones, to the point that the AH-64 fleet had logged more than 2 million flight hours by April 2006 – nearly 1/3 of which had been logged after Sept. 11/01. Apaches have also taken losses in combat. Even armor rated to stop 23mm cannon shells may not survive a missile hit, and helicopters are relatively fragile war machines, that can be seriously damaged if they take enough fire in smaller calibers, or endure an unlucky strike in the wrong place.

That’s a problem, because with the collapse of the RAH-66 Comanche program, and re-dedication of its funding into the ARH-70 Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter (ARH, future now uncertain), the UH-145 Light Utility Helicopter (LUH), and other programs, the AH-64 Apache will remain the USA’s primary attack helicopter for several more decades.

While a small percentage of the coming Block III Apaches will be new-build machines, the WRA Apaches will be the only new-build AH-64Ds in the fleet for a little while. Most of the USA’s fleet was remanufactured from AH-64A Apaches to AH-64D Apache Longbow status over a 10-year period, under 2 multi-year contracts that ran for 5 years each. These helicopters received equipment upgrades, and were also rebuilt to “zero flight hours” condition.

• The first multi-year contract was for 232 helicopters, and covered Lots I-V. A total of 284 helicopters, which includes the Lot VI helicopters from the second multi-year contract, were built to the AH-64D Block I standard.

• Another 217 helicopters in Lots VII-X were built to the AH-64D Block II standard, which adds improved electronics and software. All were built during the second multi-year contract period.

• The lateness of the JTRS program, and other issues, have delayed the future Block III model, and so January 2007 saw a contract to convert another 96 American AH-64As to the AH-64D “Extended Block II” standard.

Note that Block II+ or “Extended Block II” Apaches are the same as the current retrofitted standard for the Block II aircraft fleet, except for minor hardware differences associated with advancing electronics and improved sub-systems. The “Extended” or “Block II+” simply denotes a Block II machine that was remanufactured or built outside of the 2 big multi-year contracts noted above. Most of these helicopters will eventually be remanufactured again under current plans, this time to Block III status.

The new-build WRA Block II+ helicopters are assembled on the same line as the remanufactured Apaches, which is located in Mesa, Arizona. That facility holds the distinction of being the first Boeing location to win a Shingo Prize for manufacturing excellence (2005), due to its work in process improvement and lean production. Williams informs DID that AH-64 remanufacturing rates are fairly stable right now at about 3 US Army AH-64Ds per month, plus another 1-2 under the UAE’s program. In contrast, annual WRA contracts are variable, and use spare capacity within the facility.

Boeing is currently delivering new-build AH-64D Block II+ WRAs within 28 months of contract issue, and total orders stand at 68.

AH-64D WRAs: Program Contracts

AH-64D Longbow
(click to view full)

Please note that the full fly-away cost of an AH-64D helicopter cannot be calculated from any of the contracts below. These contracts cover only AH-64D airframes and integration, or involve long lead-time items that must be ordered early. Expensive items like GE’s T700 engines, the Longbow radar mast, Arrowhead sensors, weapons, communications equipment etc. are bought separately as “government furnished equipment.” The contracts below provide for assembly and integration at Boeing, but they do not buy the equipment itself.

Unless otherwise noted, Boeing subsidiary McDonnell Douglas Helicopter Co. in Mesa, AZ is the contractor, and contracts are managed by the US Army Aviation and Missile Command in Redstone Arsenal, AL.

March 22/19: Qatar Boeing handed over the first of 24 AH-64E Apache Guardian helicopters to Qatar last week. Qatar initially requested the helos in 2012, with the contract being signed in 2016. The Apache is a twin-turboshaft attack helicopter that features a nose-mounted sensor suite for target acquisition and night vision systems. The AH-64 was designed to perform in front-line environments, and to operate at night or day and during adverse weather conditions. Systems on the Apache include Target Acquisition and Designation System, Pilot Night Vision System, passive infrared countermeasures, GPS, and the IHADSS. The AH-64E is the latest version of the AH-64 and is also called the Apache Guardian. The gunship comes with new sensors, avionics and has improved night operation capabilities. Furthermore, the AH-64E helicopter can control a couple of UAVs. Weapons requested by Qatar in the original Foreign Military Sales notification included AGM-114R Hellfire laser-guided missiles, FIM-92H Stinger missiles with air-to-air launchers, and 70 mm Hydra air-to-surface rockets. The first Apache was handed over during a delivery ceremony at a Boeing plant in Arizona.

April 25/17: Singapore is to upgrade their fleet of AH-64D Apache helicopters. The Ministry of Defense announced that it the program aims to equip the country’s existing Apache rotorcraft with enhanced Helicopter Integrated Electronic Warfare Systems and updated satellite communication solutions in a drive to enhance their mission capabilities. While the government added that the upgrade program is expected to be complete within the next few years, they did not disclose an official date. Approximately 20 Ah-64D helicopters have been operated by Singapore’s 120 Squadron since 2006.

Nov 1/11: A $29.9 million firm-fixed-price contract modification for 2 AH-64D Apache War Replacement Aircraft. Work will be performed in Mesa, AZ, with an estimated completion date of Oct 31/13. One bid was solicited, with one bid received (W58RGZ-05-C-0274).

This brings the total ordered so far to 68.

Feb 4/11: A $70 million firm-fixed-price contract for 14 new build AH-64D war replacement aircraft. Work will be performed in Mesa, AZ, with an estimated completion date of Dec 31/12. One bid was solicited with one bid received (W58RGZ-05-C-0274).

July 29/08: A $79.8 million firm-fixed-price contract for 5 war replacement AH-64D Apache Longbow Block II+ attack helicopters. Work will be performed in Mesa, AZ and is expected to be complete by April 30/11. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. There was one bid solicited on Dec 20/07 and one bid was received (W58RGZ-05-C-0274).

March 14/07: A $15.5 million modification to a firm-fixed-price contract for war replacement AH-64D Apache Longbow aircraft. Work will be performed in Mesa, AZ and is expected to be complete by May 31/10. This was a sole source contract initiated on April 4/07 (W58RGZ-05-C-0274).

Feb 7/07: Boeing subsidiary McDonnell Douglas Helicopter Co in Mesa, AZ received a $136.9 million modification to a firm-fixed-price contract “for procurement of war replacement AH-64D Apache Longbow aircraft.” Work will be performed in Mesa, AZ and is expected to be complete by April 10/11. This was a sole source contract initiated on Jan 31/07 by the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command in Redstone Arsenal, AL (W58RGZ-05-C-0274).

Just before this contract was announced, a pair of Apaches were lost in Iraq. The causes were reported as 12.7mm machine gun fire and an SA-7 Strela man-portable missile.

Nov 1/06: A $152 million modification to a firm-fixed-price contract for war replacement AH-64D Apache Longbow Aircraft. Work will be performed in Mesa, AZ and is expected to be complete by Nov 30/09. This was a sole source contract initiated on July 19/06 (W58RGZ-05-C-0274).

May 31/06: A $40.9 million modification to a firm-fixed-price contract for AH-64D Apache Longbow aircraft. Work will be performed in Mesa, AZ and is expected to be complete by Oct 31/08. This was a sole source contract initiated on Oct 31/05 (W58RGZ-05-C-0274).

Sept 26/05: A $5.9 million firm-fixed-price contract for AH-64D Apache Longbow aircraft. Work will be performed in Mesa, AZ and is expected to be complete by Oct 31/07. This was a sole source contract initiated on June 2/05 (W58RGZ-05-C-0274).

The AH-64’s Future

No sunset yet.

With the cancellation of the RAH-66 Comanche next-generation attack/scout helicopter in 2001, the US Army was forced to reconsider its plans for the AH-64 Apache. Instead of the Comanche, it will field the AH-64D Block III Apache, with capabilities that include improved communications, the ability to take feeds from or even control UAV drones in their area, enhanced engines and drive systems, a new composite rotor blade, and extended sensor range.

AH-64D Block III deliveries are currently scheduled to begin in 2011, under yet another remanufacturing program. This program is currently slated to begin by updating the 284 AH-64D Block 1 helicopters via a second remanufacturing process. If all goes well and no further versions are called for, they would remanufacture the Block II fleet to AH-64D Block III standard by 2020.

There are reports that the remaining 100 or so AH-64A attack helicopters in the Army’s fleet will be offered to foreign buyers, most of whom are likely to order AH-64D remanufacturing upgrades of their own.

Additional Readings & Sources

DID thanks Boeing’s AH-64D WRA Program Manager Travis Williams, and others at Boeing, who helped to put these purchases in context.

• DID – Boeing Remanufactures AH-64A Apaches to AH-64D Block II. This will also be the new-build WRA standard.

• DID – Apache Block III Program: The Once and Future Attack Helicopter.

EDA today launched ‘IdentiFunding’, an online tool which allows defence-interested stakeholders (industry - including SMEs, Ministries of Defence, research and technology entities, universities, etc.) to quickly and easily identify existing EU funding schemes available for defence-related projects. 

The new application, which is accessible via EDA’s European Funding Gateway for Defence and the SME corner, performs an instant scan of all existing defence-related EU funding opportunities based on a project’s topic, scope, objectives as well as the participants involved.

The application will thus considerably facilitate the task of defence-related project organisers wondering if their project qualifies for potential EU support.
The tool will be constantly updated to include also new funding opportunities arising under the EU’s upcoming Multiannual Financial Framework 2021-2027, such as the European Defence Fund and the InvestEU Programme, which will bring together under one roof the multitude of EU financial instruments currently available to support investment in the EU.

Americas

The US Air Force contracted Goodrich Corp. with $92.9 million to help develop ISR Sensor technology. The deal includes Hyperspectral Imaging, AgilePod®, Standoff High Resolution Imaging Next Era, and Multi-Mode Lidar research and development. The company will help the Air Force Research Laboratory examine and integrate electro-optical, infrared, radio frequency, multispectral and hyperspectral imaging, lidar and related Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) systems. Goodrich Corporation supplies aerospace components, systems, and services for the commercial and general aviation airplane, and defense as well as space markets. The company provides a range of actuators, including primary and secondary flight controls, helicopter main and tail rotor actuation, engine and nacelle actuation, utility actuation, precision weapon actuation, and land vehicle actuation products, landing gear systems, and aircraft wheels and brakes. Work for the contract will take place in Westford, Massachusetts and is scheduled to be completed by September 29, 2025.

The Naval Air Systems Command awarded Boeing a $326.3 million Delivery Order to develop, integrate and test Increment 3 Block capabilities into the P-8A aircraft for the US Navy as well as the government of Australia. The P-8A Poseidon is derived from Boeing’s 737-800 and designed for anti-surface and submarine warfare, broad-area maritime missions, littoral operations, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions. It features the Raytheon APY-10 multi-mission surface search radar. Work under the deal will take place in Washington, New York, Illinois, California, Maryland, Arizona, Missouri as well as Florida and is expected to be finished in March 2024.

Raytheon’s Enterprise Air Surveillance Radar (EASR) will begin live testing at Wallops Island Test Facility, the company announced on Tuesday. The EASR is the newest sensor in the US Navy’s SPY-6 family of radars. It is the Navy’s next generation radar for aircraft carriers and amphibious warfare that provides simultaneous anti-air and anti-surface warfare, electronic protection and air traffic control capabilities. The radar just recently completed subsystem testing at Raytheon’s Near Field Range in Sudbury, Massachusetts. Raytheon is building two variants of EASR: a single-face rotating array designated AN/SPY-6(V)2 for amphibious assault ships and Nimitz class carriers, and a three fixed-face array designated AN/SPY-6(V)3 for Ford class aircraft carriers and the future FFG(X) guided missile frigates. According to Raytheon, the radar will undergo system-level testing, tracking a variety of aircraft through the end of 2019 once it is up and running.

Middle East & Africa

Israel’s Missile Defense Organization and the US Missile Defense Agency successfully completed a series of interception tests with the David’s Sling weapon system. Israeli company Rafael carried out the experiments at a test site in southern Israel. During the trials, advanced capabilities of the David’s Sling missile system were tested in a new version developed for a number of scenarios to simulate future threats the system may face during a confrontation. David’s Sling is a joint Israeli-US project, with Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense Systems collaborating with US defense contractor Raytheon. The weapon system is also called „Magic Wand“ and became operational in 2017. It is designed to intercept tactical ballistic missiles, medium- to long-range rockets, as well as cruise missiles fired with ranges of 40 to 300 km.

Europe

The US Air Force sent six B-52 long-range bombers to the UK for a series of training activities over Europe. The aircraft along with 450 airmen arrived at Royal Air Force Fairford on Thursday. The United States has deployed strategic bombers in Europe at least once a year since 2014. The current deployment marks the largest deployment of the bombers to Europe since Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003. The Boeing B-52 is a long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber that has been utilized by the US Air Force since the 1950s and can carry conventional as well as nuclear weapons. The current training activities will test how the bombers can conduct missions out of Fairford and will familiarize aircrews with operations over Europe, including the Norwegian Sea, Baltic Sea and the Mediterranean.

Asia-Pacific

KT Consulting won an $11.9 million firm-fixed-price task order for F-16 Weapons System support. The contract involves a Foreign Military Sale to Singapore. The F-16 Fighting Falcon is a single-engine, supersonic multirole fighter. Early fighters could be armed with up to six AIM-9 Sidewinder, heat-seeking, short-range air-to-air missiles (AAM), and radar guided AIM-7 Sparrow medium-range AAMs. The recent versions of the aircraft support AIM-120 AMRAAM. The Republic of Singapore Air Force operates 62 F-16 Fighting Falcons, all of which are advanced F-16C/D block 52 aircraft. These aircraft are equipped with state-of the-art armament, including AIM-120 AMRAAM as well as presumably the Israeli Python 4 missile linked to a DASH-3 Helmet Mounted Sight. Work will take place at Luke Air Force Base in Arizona and Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico and is scheduled to be finished by March 31, 2024. Fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $4,435,581 and Singapore National Funds in the amount of $34,969 are being obligated at the time of award.

The Naval Air Systems Command awarded Lockheed Martin a $264.7 million modification for additional operation and technical services in support of the government of Korea’s F-35 Lightning II program. The stealth F-35A is supposed to provide the Republic of Korea (ROK) with enhanced capability to protect safety and security. The ROK signed a Letter of Offer and Acceptance between the US and Korea for 40 F-35A Conventional Take Off and Landing variant jets with initial deliveries beginning in 2018. The first Korean F-35A made its debut in March 2018. It is expected that the aircraft will start to deliver to Chongju Air Base in spring 2019. Work under the modification will take place in Fort Worth, Texas and is scheduled to be completed in June 2020. Foreign Military Sales funds in the amount of $264,655,025 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year.

Today’s Video

Watch: Beijing to build another base in the South China Sea despite threats from American

David’s Victory
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David didn’t need high technology to defeat Goliath, just some stones and a sling. But in the modern world, David is getting some high-tech help from the likes of Raytheon and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, who are developing a missile defense system called David’s Sling Weapon System (DSWS).

The DSWS is a joint short-range ballistic missile defense program between the US Missile Defense Agency and the Israel Missile Defense Organization. The system is designed to defeat short-range ballistic missiles, large-caliber rockets and cruise missiles in their terminal phase of flight.

Raytheon received 2 contracts from Rafael worth more than $100 million to build DSWS components.

The 1st contract was awarded to codevelop the missile component of the DSWS called the Stunner Interceptor. Stunner is a hit-to-kill interceptor designed for use in the DSWS and allied integrated air and missile defense systems.

The 2nd contract was awarded for the development, production and integrated logistics support of the missile firing unit (MFU), the launcher component of the DSWS. The MFU will provide the DSWS with vertical interceptor launch capability for 360-degree extended air and missile defense.

Other joint US-Israel missile defense efforts include coproduction of the Arrow missile defense system interceptors and an initiative to provide Israel an upper-tier missile defense system. According to Defense Update, the United States and Israel have begun development of an upper-tier component to the Israeli Arrow 3 missile defense architecture. According to Arieh Herzog, director of Israel’s Missile Defense Program, the main element of this upper tier will be an exo-atmospheric interceptor, to be jointly developed by Israel Aerospace Industries and Boeing.

Updates

March 21/19: Interception Tests Israel’s Missile Defense Organization and the US Missile Defense Agency successfully completed a series of interception tests with the David’s Sling weapon system. Israeli company Rafael carried out the experiments at a test site in southern Israel. During the trials, advanced capabilities of the David’s Sling missile system were tested in a new version developed for a number of scenarios to simulate future threats the system may face during a confrontation. David’s Sling is a joint Israeli-US project, with Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense Systems collaborating with US defense contractor Raytheon. The weapon system is also called „Magic Wand“ and became operational in 2017. It is designed to intercept tactical ballistic missiles, medium- to long-range rockets, as well as cruise missiles fired with ranges of 40 to 300 km.

August 10/17: Production of interceptors jointly-developed by US and Israeli industry for the latter’s multi-tiered missile defense system is being ramped up, as three interceptor programs transition from low-rate initial production (LRIP) to full-rate production. The Boeing-IAI developed Arrow-3, and the Rafael-Raytheon developed Stunner—used in the David’s Sling system—and Tamir—used by the Iron Dome—interceptors are built in a large part by US-based firms, with a network of contractors and sub-contractors stretching out across 30 of its 50 states. This is due to congressional mandates and government-to-government agreements which stipulates that at least 50% of the work is produced in the US. Potential exports are also being taken into account, as the Stunner—marketed abroad as the SkyCeptor—is currently being considered by the Polish government for its Patriot active defense system.

April 3/17: Another Israeli missile defense system, David’s Sling, has had its initial operating capability (IOC) declared by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at a ceremony on April 2. Deliveries of the system’s major components by Israel’s Missile Defense Organization and state-owned Rafael began in early March, followed by integration testing of all system components prior to gaining its IOC. The system was also put through multiple operational simulations as part of the US-Israel Juniper Cobra exercise, a biennial air defense drill aimed at honing interoperability between the two nations.

March 21/17: Israel will declare their multi-tier defense network operational from next month following the deployment of the David’s Sling interceptor system. Developed and manufactured jointly by Rafael and Raytheon, David’s Sling will be responsible for shooting down rockets fired from 100 to 200 kilometers away, such as projectiles fired by the Iranian-backed Lebanese guerrilla group Hezbollah. The network will include the IDF’s short-range Iron Dome and long-range Arrow missiles.

January 31/17: Israel and the US government have granted Israeli manufacturer Rafael permission to discuss the David’s Sling air-defense system with Poland as part of a wider export push for co-developed interceptor systems. The announcement comes as the anti-ballistic system was recently cleared during a fifth round of trials. Tel Aviv has been developing multi-tiered missile defense system with US and local industry for some years now, with their Iron Dome, Arrow and David’s Sling systems all being offered to foreign customers.

January 30/17: Israel and the US have completed a fifth series of tests on the David’s Sling missile defense system. The Israel Missile Defense Organization (IMDO) and US Missile Defense Agency (MDA) collaboration was tested at the Yanat Sea Range in Israel, with the system’s Stunner interceptors successfully engaging its targets. The David’s Sling project is for defense against large-caliber rockets and short-range ballistic missiles.

March 4/16: The Israeli Air Force (IAF) has begun to take possession of the David’s Sling Weapon System (DSWS). The first phase of the gradual delivery of components include multimission radar by Elta Systems; Stunner interceptors by Rafael and its US partner, Raytheon Missile Systems; and the Golden Almond Battle Management Center by Elbit Systems Elisra. Once these are in place, an integration testing of all system components will take place prior to a declaration of initial operational capability by the IAF. The DSWS has been developed to bridge the gap between the lower and upper tiers of Israel’s four-layer active defense network, deployed above Israel’s Iron Dome and below the upper-atmospheric Arrow-2 and exo-atmospheric Arrow-3.

RSAF F-16C/Ds
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In September 2013, Singapore confirmed its much-anticipated intent to upgrade its F-16C/Ds with improved radars and other changes. By January 2014, that was a published DSCA request. There’s no firm timeline just yet, but the proposal is part of wider-ranging military improvements underway in Singapore. It’s also seen as an early example to many other F-16 operators around the world, who respect Singapore’s as a discerning buyer and may wish to do the same thing.

That decision is expected to launch at least 2 fierce competitions. One will be between Lockheed Martin and BAE Systems. The other will be between Raytheon and Northrop Grumman.

RSAF: The Bigger Picture

F-5S on highway
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After the 2004 sale to Thailand of the RSAF’s initial handful of F-16A/B fighters, the RSAF became an all Block 52 force, built with fighters accepted between 1998 – 2004. Their planes aren’t entirely standard set. The long dorsal spine on many F-16Ds holds extra electronic countermeasures, and the planes reportedly carry a number of Israeli systems within, including DASH-III helmet mounted displays.

Singapore has about 14 F-16C/Ds based in the USA for training, and another 48 F-16C/Ds in Singapore at Changi AB and Tengah AB. Current plans indicate an intent to upgrade up to 60 planes at about $40.5 million per plane.

Basing will also change. In the near future, they plan to expand Changi and Tengah and consolidate around both facilities, while closing Paya Lebar AB. Paya Lebar’s F-15SGs, upgraded F-5S interceptors, and C-130 transports will go elsewhere, though the 40 or so F-5s are due for phase out in the near future.

RSAF F-16D-52
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There is some question as to whether the F-5s will be replaced, though a March 2013 announcement that Singapore would buy more F-15SGs seems to indicate at least partial near-term replacement. The rest of that question hinges on Singapore’s timeline for acquiring F-35s. If they’re bought soon, they’ll grow the fleet, effectively replacing the F-5S with some F-16C/Ds. If Singapore postpones their F-35 buy, they will pay less per plane, and the F-35s will become de facto replacements for the F-16+ fleet as they age out. Upgrading the F-16s might suggest to some that Singapore intends to delay the F-35s, especially since they recently elected to expand their F-15SG fleet instead of making an expected announcement about 12 F-35Bs. In his September 2013 statement, Minister for Defence Dr. Ng Eng Hen would say only that Singapore continues to evaluate the F-35’s suitability “in meeting our long-term security needs to further modernise our fighter fleet and replace our older aircraft.”

Other Changes

Aster-30
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Singapore’s consolidation into just 2 main air bases adds operational risk to their future fleet, but protection is also being improved. Beyond Singapore’s confirmed F-16 upgrades and new F-15SGs, new IAI Gulfstream G550 CAEW jets have improved their advance airborne warning.

On the ground, new mobile Spyder air defense systems from RAFAEL offer a more modern, longer-range complement to the legacy Rapier systems from Britain. At the top tier, MBDA’s long-range Aster-30 missiles will soon replace Raytheon’s MIM-23 I-Hawks on land, offering Singapore the ability to intercept short range ballistic missiles as well as aircraft, cruise missiles, etc. Singapore’s Formidable Class frigates already use a combination of Aster-15 and Aster-30 missiles, so the land-based Aster-30 buy will draw on an existing support network.

None of Singapore’s immediate neighbors can match this array, and Singapore’s qualitative advantage is large enough that it’s very unlikely anyone would test it. The city-state is extremely serious about its defense, with a long history of strong spending in this area. That well-known commitment, and the visibility of its strategic position, ensures that Singapore’s defense choices get attention far beyond their immediate neighborhood.

The Competitions

RACR
click for video

Singapore has a number of options with respect to their F-16s.

Contractor. First of all, Lockheed Martin and BAE can be expected to compete hard for the upgrade work. Lockheed Martin is the manufacturer, but Britain has picked up significant F-16 upgrade wins in the USA and around the world.

AESA. Then there’s the radar question. The new radars will use advanced AESA technology, improving range/ discrimination by 2x – 3x, offering entirely new modes of operation, and sharply reducing maintenance costs.

NGC’s SABR
click for video

Lockheed Martin recently announced that Northrop Grumman’s SABR radar would be the cornerstone of its F-16V offering, which was unveiled at the 2012 Singapore air show. The F-16V can be bought as an upgrade, or as new fighters. Modernized American and Taiwanese F-16s will also use SABR.

On the other hand, South Korea picked Raytheon’s RACR radar for their advanced F-16 upgrade, and Singapore already flies with related Raytheon AN/APG-63v3 AESA radars in its 20 new F-15SGs. If Singapore also picks RACR for its F-16s, in order to take advantage of common software and radar mode development, it will give Raytheon a significant and much-needed boost in the global F-16 refit competition.

There’s also the non-US option of using the Israeli ELM-2052 AESA, but the US reportedly took protectionist measures and threatened to cut off F-16 support if Israel introduced that radar to its own F-16s. Export to Singapore seems unlikely.

Contracts & Key Events

RSAF F-16D-52
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March 21/19: Weapons System Support KT Consulting won an $11.9 million firm-fixed-price task order for F-16 Weapons System support. The contract involves a Foreign Military Sale to Singapore. The F-16 Fighting Falcon is a single-engine, supersonic multirole fighter. Early fighters could be armed with up to six AIM-9 Sidewinder, heat-seeking, short-range air-to-air missiles (AAM), and radar guided AIM-7 Sparrow medium-range AAMs. The recent versions of the aircraft support AIM-120 AMRAAM. The Republic of Singapore Air Force operates 62 F-16 Fighting Falcons, all of which are advanced F-16C/D block 52 aircraft. These aircraft are equipped with state-of the-art armament, including AIM-120 AMRAAM as well as presumably the Israeli Python 4 missile linked to a DASH-3 Helmet Mounted Sight. Work will take place at Luke Air Force Base in Arizona and Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico and is scheduled to be finished by March 31, 2024. Fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $4,435,581 and Singapore National Funds in the amount of $34,969 are being obligated at the time of award.

December 3/15: The US Department of Defense (DoD) has awarded a $914 million contract to Lockheed Martin to upgrade F-16 aircraft for the government of Singapore. The work is to be carried out at Fort Worth, Texas. The number of aircraft to be upgraded is unknown, but the DoD notified Congress that they had approved the sale of upgrades for 60 fighters in 2014. The Singapore Air Force announced earlier this year that it was planning a major overhaul of its current fleet, with enhancements including laser-designated JDAM munitions, air-to-air weapons, datalink capability and helmet mounted displays, in addition to an Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar system.

July 6/15: Singapore’s Ministry of Defense (MINDEF) has released more information on its plans to upgrade the RSAF’s fleet of F-16C/D fighters. The upgrades will take place in phases from 2016 onward, with various capability enhancements planned. These include laser-designated JDAM munitions, air-to-air weapons, datalink capability and helmet mounted displays, as well as an Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar system, as per a previous DSCA request. The AESA system is thought to be the Northrop Grumman AN/APG-83 Scalable Agile Beam Radar (SABR) system. Singapore announced its intention to upgrade its F-16s in 2013, with Lockheed Martin seemingly tipped to win the upgrade contract.

March 19/15: Lockheed tipped to win. Singapore is reportedly close to signing a contract with Lockheed Martin to upgrade its F-16s, after a cancelled deal with BAE in November. The country initially confirmed its intention to upgrade the fleet in September 2013.

Feb 10/14: Boeing? Boeing DSS VP for business development and strategy Chris Raymond says that Boeing would be interested in bidding, if Singapore were to open their F-16 upgrade program to competition. Boeing is an unlikely competitor, given their thin record servicing and enhancing global F-15 fleets. Raymond cites their experience with the QF-16 conversion, and with other fighter and aircraft upgrades. They could also leverage an existing relationship with the RSAF, supporting their F-15SG fighters and AH-64D Apache helicopters.

Lockheed Martin has indicated that NGC’s SABR radar is their preferred choice for upgrades, and for new-build F-16Vs. BAE is tied to Raytheon’s RACR via their South Korean experience. Boeing doesn’t have an official allegiance, but their in-production fighters both carry Raytheon AESA radars, and there’s a RACR variant for F/A-18A-D upgrades. Sources: Aviation Week, “Boeing Could Bid On Singapore F-16s”.

Jan 14/14: DSCA. The US DSCA details Singapore’s official request to upgrade 60 F-16C/D+ Block 52 fighters to something like the F-16V standard, at a cost of up to $2.43 billion ($40.5 million per plane). That’s about 2/3 the cost of buying similar F-16E/F Block 60 aircraft new off of the production line.

Upgrades would include:

• 70 Active Electronically Scanned Array Radars (AESA). Note that no pick is being made here between Raytheon’s RACR (South Korea) or Northrop Grumman’s SABR (Taiwan, US ANG).
  
• 70 Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing Systems (JHMCS)
  
• 70 LN-260 Embedded Global Positioning System/Inertial Navigation Systems (GPS/INS)
  
• 70 APX-125 Advanced Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) Combined Interrogator Transponders
  
• 1 AIS Interface Test Adapters for software updates
  
• 1 Classified Computer Program Identification Numbers (CPINs)
  
• Site surveys and construction. Note that Singapore is busy consolidating its air bases after removing Paya Lebar.
  
• Also included: flight test of the new configuration; aircraft ferry services with aerial refueling support; a Joint Mission Planning System (JMPS); Modular Mission Computers, a software maintenance facility, cockpit multifunction displays, radios, secure communications, video recorders; maintenance, repair and return, aircraft and ground support equipment, spare and repair parts, tool and test equipment; engine support equipment, publications and technical documentation; personnel training and training equipment, and other forms of US Government and contractor support.

They also want a set of test weapons:

• 3 AIM-9X Block II Captive Air Training Missiles. Singapore already fields AIM-9X on its F-15SGs.
  
• 3 TGM-65G Maverick Missiles for testing and integration. GM-65K is the latest standard.
  
• 4 GBU-50 Guided Bomb Units (GBU) for testing and integration (2,000 pound laser-guided bunker-buster)
  
• 5 GBU-38 Joint Direct Attack Munitions for testing and integration (500 pound GPS)
  
• 3 CBU-105 (D-4)/B Sensor Fused Weapons for testing and integration (GPS anti-armor cluster bomb)
  
• 4 GBU-49 Enhanced Paveways for testing and integration (500 pound GPS/laser)
  
• 2 DSU-38 Laser Seekers for testing and integration
  
• 6 GBU-12 Paveway II, Guidance Control Units (used in 500 pound laser-guided)

Contractors aren’t mentioned specifically, implying that they’re still to be chosen by Singapore. In terms of overall priorities, Minister for Defence Dr. Ng Eng Hen said recently that the F-16 fleet’s condition and prospective upgrades meant that they were in “no particular hurry” to make an F-35 decision, though it’s a “serious consideration.” Sources: DSCA #13-67 | Defense News, “US: Singapore To Buy Upgrade For Its F-16 Fighter Jets”.

DSCA request: F-16 upgrades

Sept 16/13: Singapore’s Minister for Defence Dr. Ng Eng Hen’s Parliamentary reply confirms that Singapore has picked MBDA’s Aster-30 as its upper-tier air defense system on land, and will upgrade their F-16s. The planes will be refitted with new electronics and systems, and the RSAF also plans to extend their service lives. Sources: Singapore MINDEF, “Reply by Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen to Parliamentary Question on Relocation of Paya Lebar Air Base”.

Additional Readings

• YouTube – New Lockheed Martin F-16V Singapore Airshow 2012 HD. By LMCO.

• DID – South Korea Looking to Upgrade its KF-16 Fighters. They picked Raytheon’s RACR AESA radar.

• DID – Import or Die: Taiwan’s (Un?)Stalled Force Modernization. Taiwan’s F-16s will carry Northrop Grumman’s SABR radar, picked for them by the USAF.

• DID – Singapore’s RSAF Decides to Fly Like An Eagle. In April 2013, it became clear that Singapore would grow their F-15SG fleet again, instead of buying 12 F-35Bs.

News & Views

• Fort Worth Star-Telegram (June 11/14) – At Alliance, BAE Systems challenges Lockheed on F-16 upgrades.

• Aviation Week (Feb 3/14) – Fast-Changing Trends In Asia Fighter Market

• DID (Sept 18/13) – Singapore’s Steps: Long-Range Aster-30 Defensive Missiles on Land & Sea.

• Lockheed Martin (Feb 15/12) – Lockheed Martin’s Fighting Falcon Evolves With New F-16V

• Defense News (March 22/10) – [F-5] Retirement or Replacement?

• DTI (Jan-Feb. 2008) – Target Acquisition: MAST Highlights Missile Defense Concepts. Says that the Formidable Class carries both Aster-15s and Aster-30s, along with the Herakles active radar and Sylver A50 launchers.

Americas

The US Navy awarded General Dynamics a $2 billion contract modification to provide additional materials required to build the Virginia Class submarines from fiscal 2019 through fiscal 2023. The deal includes additional Long Lead Time Material and Economic Ordering Quantity items for SSN-802 to SSN-811 underwater vessels. The SSNs 802 -811 Virginia Class submarine hull numbers have not been named yet. The Virginia Class is the Navy’s newest undersea warfare platform. Attack submarines are designed to seek and destroy enemy submarines and surface ships, project power ashore with Tomahawk cruise missiles and Special Operation Forces, carry out Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions, support battle group operations, and engage in mine warfare. The modification falls under a previously awarded sole-source contract. General Dynamics is the lead contractor of the Virginia Class submarine program. In February 2017, General Dynamics won an initial $126.5 million contract by the US Navy for long lead time material for the first two Block V Virginia Class submarines, SSN-802 and SSN-803. The Block V submarines built from 2019 onward will have an additional Virginia Payload Module (VPM) mid-body section, increasing their overall length. Work under the contract modification will take place within the USA.

The Naval Sea Systems Command tapped Raytheon Missile Systems with a $97.8 million modification to obtain materials needed for fiscal 2019 Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile (ESSM) Block 2 low-rate initial requirements. The ESSM is a medium-range, surface-to-air missile that is currently in service with the US Navy and some of the 12 NATO Sea Sparrow consortium nations. Consortium members include Australia, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Turkey and the US. The missile is equipped with a tail-control system to obtain high speed and maneuverability. It can operate in all weather conditions and has a length of about 3.64m, diameter of 254mm and a weight of 280kg. The Evolved SEASPARROW Missile program is an international cooperative effort to design, develop, test, and procure ESSM missiles. Work will take place in Canada, Germany, Australia, Spain, Netherlands, Mexico, Greece, Denmark, Turkey, Portugal as well as various sites within the US and is scheduled to be finished by March 2023.

The Naval Air Systems Command awarded Lockheed Martin a $14.6 million contract modification in support of the F-35 Program. The deal provides for 62 low-rate initial production Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) Helmet Display Units and spares for the F-35 Joint Strike Aircraft. The contract caters to the US Marine Corps and Navy. The F-35 Lightning is a supersonic, multi-role fighter jet used by the defense forces of the United States and 11 other nations. The F-35 is Lockheed Martin’s largest program that generates more than 25 percent of its total sales. OLED panels are made from organic materials that emit light when electricity is applied through them. Since OLEDs do not require a backlight and filters, they are more efficient, simpler to make, and much thinner and in fact can be made flexible and even rollable. Work related to the deal is scheduled to be over by February 2020 and will be carried out in Fort Worth, Texas.

The US Navy ordered thousands of Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) kits from BAE Systems, the company stated in a press release. The APKWS guidance kits are the US government’s sole program of record for 2.75-inch laser-guided rockets. They are available in all four military branches as well as to allied nations through Foreign Military Sales. The APKWS kits transform standard 2.75-inch Hydra rockets into guided munitions that provide warfighters with a precision strike capability with limited collateral damage. The APKWS II uses the Distributed Aperture Semi-Active Laser Seeker technology. This system allows a laser seeker to be located in the leading edge of each of the forward control canards, working in unison as if they were a single seeker. The company announced, it will continue to deliver APKWS guidance kits ahead of schedule and accelerate production rate to meet growing demand.

Middle East & Africa

According to reports, Egypt signed a $2 billion contract to buy more than 20 SU-35 multirole fighters from Russia. The delivery of the aircraft, including their weapon systems, will begin as early as 2020-2021. The deal is yet to be confirmed by official sources. The SU-35 is a single-seat, twin-engine, supermaneuverable aircraft. With 12 to 14 weapon hardpoints, the SU-35 is able to use K-77M radar-guided missiles that reportedly have a range of almost 200km. The jet is also armed with a 30mm cannon with 150 rounds for strafing or dogfighting. The SU-35 can reportedly carry up to 8,000kg of air-to-ground munitions. It is Russia’s most advanced operational fighter. Its first foreign customer was China, which ordered 24 aircraft in November 2015. Indonesia also signed a contract for the SU-35 worth $1.1 billion with deliveries possibly beginning at the end of the year. Egypt has one of the biggest Armed Forces in the Middle East. Between 1982 and 2013, the Egyptian Air Force received 240 Lockheed Martin F-16s from the US. Egypt ordered and received in FY 2015-2017, 24 Dassault Rafale fighters from France, followed by the MiG-29Ms, which are currently being delivered.

Europe

The US Naval Sea Systems Command awarded RAM-System, Germany an €81.4 million ($92.4 million) and $1.1 million contract modification for the German Navy’s requirements for Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM) MK49 guided missile launching systems. The RAM is a small, lightweight, infrared homing surface-to-air missile that together with the Mk 49 Guided Missile Launching System (GMLS) and support equipment, make up the RAM Mk 31 Guided Missile Weapon System (GMWS). It is designed to provide anti-ship missile defense for multiple ship platforms. The Federal Republic of Germany will fully fund the contract. The RAM MK 31 guided missile weapon system is an international cooperative development, production and in-service program between the U.S. and German governments. The participating governments operate under a series of memorandums of agreement/memorandums of understanding that establish the business principles for program execution along with contracting and financial agreements. The contract also includes associated shipboard hardware and spares. Work will take place in Germany as well as the US and is scheduled to be completed by December 2023.

Orbit Communication Systems received a $3 million order for Maritime TVRO Satcom Systems from a European Navy. Delivery of the spares for Orbit’s widely-deployed AL-7200 series of maritime TVRO is planned in 2019. Orbit’s maritime TVRO satcom systems provide uninterrupted reception of TV and data services for NATO and international naval vessels operating in extreme conditions. The framework agreement will extend the TVRO satcom system’s service life for multiple years. Orbit secured a well-stocked inventory of spares to allow the Navy to maintain its existing TVRO systems well into the future.

Asia-Pacific

Taiwan requested more than 100 main battle tanks, designated as M1A2X, from the US. The M1A2X is a special configuration of the M1A2C, the latest variant of Abrams tanks in production. The M1 Abrams is a highly mobile main-battle tank for modern armored ground. Three main versions of the M1 Abrams have been deployed, the M1, M1A1, and M1A2, incorporating improved armament, protection, and electronics with each new model. These improvements and other upgrades to in-service tanks have allowed the vehicle to remain in front-line service. Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense plans to acquire US-made Abrams tanks to replace some M60A3 Patton and CM-11 Brave Tiger tanks in service. Washington said it will make a decision on the tanks within 120 days of the application date.

Today’s Video

Watch: UK begins integrating next gen weapons for F 35

The European Defence Agency (EDA) today (19 March) published the three 2019 calls for proposals for the EU’s Preparatory Action on Defence Research (PADR).

The work programme includes the following calls/topics:

• Electromagnetic Spectrum Dominance: Combined radar, communications, and electronic warfare functions based on European Active Electronically Scanned Arrays for military applications (PADR-EMS-03-2019);
• Future Disruptive Defence Technologies: 

       o  Emerging Game-changers (PADR-FDDT-EMERGING-03-2019); 
       o  Challenging the future (PADR-FDDT-OPEN-03-2019);

• Unmanned Systems: Interoperability standards for military unmanned systems (PADR-US-03-2019).

Details about the calls and participation conditions can be found here. 

The Preparatory Action on Defence Research is funded by the European Union. The decision on the work programme for 2019 and on the financing of the 'Preparatory action on Defence research, authorising the use of unit costs under the preparatory action was adopted by the European Commission on 19 March 2019.
 

Info & Brokerage Day on 11 April 2019 

Following the publication of the 2019 calls and two successful editions in the previous years, EDA and the European Commission will organise the third Info & Brokerage Day on the PADR. The event will take place on 11 April 2019 in Brussels. 

The Info & Brokerage Day aims at providing industry, research entities and other interested defence stakeholders with first-hand information on the 2019 PADR calls for proposals.

EDA and European Commission experts will provide participants with detailed explanations of the 2019 PADR topics, the rules and conditions for participation in the calls for proposals, as well as with the modalities and access to the Funding & Tender Opportunities Portal. A brokerage session with b2b meetings will allow participants to exchange the views and find potential future consortia partners. 
 

More information:

• Preparatory Action on Defence Research (EDA project page)
• PADR Info & Brokerage Day 2019
• European Commission financial decision on PADR 2019 

On 13-14 March 2019, the first ad hoc meeting of the EDA Renewable Energy Sources and Technologies Working Group was hosted in Vienna by the Austrian Energy Agency, as coordinator of the Concerted Action on Renewable Energy Sources (CA-RES). 

The purpose was to develop further the deliverables on renewable energy as part of the second phase of the Consultation Forum for Sustainable Energy in the Defence and Security Sector (CF SEDSS II) including specific project proposals on hydrogen fuel cells, self-sufficient military bases, technology feasibility assessments, energy performance contracting, and energy storage. 

It was also an opportunity to strengthen civilian-military interactions through the relationship between CF SEDSS II and CA-RES, both of which are funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme. CA-RES is a structured and confidential dialogue between national authorities responsible for the implementation of the Renewable Energy Directive and is co-ordinated by the Austrian Energy Agency. 
  

About CF SEDSS II

CF SEDSS is a European Commission initiative managed by the EDA. It aims at bringing together experts from the defence and energy sectors to share information and best practices on improving energy management, energy efficiency, the use of renewable energy as well increasing the protection and resilience of defence energy-related critical infrastructures. On 20 October 2017, the second phase of the Consultation Forum (CF SEDSS II) was launched. This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme, and the agreement is between the EASME executive agency and the EDA. The contract was signed on 16 October 2017 for 22 months, expiring on August 2019. 

Based on the foundations laid during the first phase of the Consultation Forum (2015-2017), the second phase has been further expanded to cover the following interrelated subjects through three main working groups (including sub-working groups): WG 1: Energy Management including Energy Efficiency (Sub-WG1: Energy Management and Sub-WG2: Energy Efficiency; WG 2: Renewable Energy Sources and Technologies; WG 3: Protection of Critical Energy Infrastructure and one cross-cutting theme: Finance.
 

More information:

• CF SEDSS II
• Concerted Action on Renewable Energy Sources

 

Americas

The US Air Force contracted Boeing $250 million to integrate the Long Range Stand-Off (LRSO) Cruise Missile on the B-52H bomber platform. This contract provides for aircraft and missile carriage equipment development and modification, engineering, testing, software development, training, facilities, and support necessary to fully integrate the LRSO Cruise Missile on the B-52H bomber. The B-52H Stratofortress is a long-range, large-payload multirole bomber. It is the Air Force’s strategic nuclear and conventional weapons platform and supports the US Navy in anti-surface and submarine warfare missions. The US Air Force awarded a $750 million, ten-year engineering sustainment program contract to Boeing in June 2009 to provide engineering and technical support services for the B-52H and its components, as well as support and test equipment, and system integration laboratory. The LRSO is a nuclear-tipped air-launched cruise missile that is currently being developed to replace the subsonic air-launched cruise missile AGM-86 ALCM. It is being developed to penetrate and survive integrated air defense systems and strike its targets. Work under the contract will take place in Oklahoma City and is schedules to be completed by the end of December 31, 2024.

The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center awarded Raytheon $21.2 million to retrofit the F-15 fleet. The deal provides for retrofitting the F-15 fleets current Identity Friend of Foe Units. Identification Friend or Foe enables military and civilian air traffic control interrogation systems to identify aircraft, vehicles or forces as friendly and to determine their bearing and range from the interrogator. The Units offer Mode 5 capability for the APX-114 and APX-119 on the F-15 models C/D/E via a hardware retrofit and software upgrade. Per the terms of the deal, these units will provide National Security Agency approved cryptography and robust anti-jam interrogation and reply encryption capabilities. The F-15 is a twin-engine, all-weather tactical fighter aircraft designed to permit the Air Force to gain and maintain air supremacy over the battlefield. A multi-mission avionics system sets the F-15 apart from other fighter aircraft. It includes a head-up display, advanced radar, inertial navigation system, flight instruments, ultrahigh frequency communications, tactical navigation system and instrument landing system.

The Navy awarded Pratt & Whitney a $71.4 million task order in support of the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Aircraft for the Air Force, Navy, non-Department of Defense participants and Foreign Military Sales customers. The United Technologies subsidiary will mature the F-35 propulsion system ahead of service operational use of the fighter aircraft. The company will provide non-recurring services to help address safety and durability challenges, maintain technical performance and advance the engine technology of F-35 jets. The F-35 is a family of single-seat, single-engine, all-weather stealth multirole fighters. The Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) is a development and acquisition program intended to replace a wide range of existing, strike, and ground attack aircraft for the United States, the United Kingdom, Turkey, Italy, Canada, Australia, the Netherlands, and their allies. Work under the order will take place in Connecticut and Indiana and is scheduled to be finished by December 2023.

Middle East & Africa

Sudan’s Military Industry Corporation revealed a new wheeled armored personnel carrier, the upgraded Russian BTR-70 8×8 called the Shareef-3, Jane’s reports. The new carrier replaces BTR-70’s original two ZMZ-4905 engines with a more fuel-efficient KAMAZ-7403 V8 water-cooled diesel developing 260hp at 2,600 rpm. This gives a maximum road speed of 80 km/h. The Shareef-3 has an amphibious water speed of 8- 10 km/h. The vehicle carries six dismounts seated on two bench seats in the middle of the troop compartment. Dismounts can exit via roof hatches or side hatches between the second and third road wheels. Additionally, Shareef-3 retains the launcher rail for the Russian 9M14 Malyutka anti-tank guided weapon.

The Israel Defense Forces Intelligence (IDF) Directorate inaugurated a new Targeting Center as part of the establishment of the General Staff Targeting Directorate at the Glilot base. The Center will serve as a focal point for all the units involved in the acquisition of emergency and routine targets in the IDF. The Directorate will enhance the connection with the operational edge in the various commands and branches. The goal is to enable an effective operational process alongside increasing the rate of target acquisition for all sectors according to their importance. The Military Intelligence Directorate’s technologies will be combined in the fields of data science and machine learning in order to acquire targets. The Targeting Center has been operating for about a month.

Europe

BAE Systems handed over the HMS Medway to the British Royal Navy. The HMS Medway is a Batch 2 River Class offshore patrol vessel. On November 6, 2013, the Royal Navy announced it had signed an Agreement in Principle to build three new offshore patrol vessels, based on the River Class design. The Medway is the second Batch 2 River Class vessel to be commissioned. Meanwhile, the Batch 2 River Class HMS Forth and her crew are in the final stages to resume trials and training. Medway will be a couple of months behind Forth in going to sea for a second time. The River Class is a class of offshore patrol vessels. The Batch 2 ships are fundamentally different in appearance and capabilities from the preceding Batch 1. Notable differences include the 90.5 meters (296 ft 11 in) long hull, a top speed of 24 knots, Merlin-capable flight deck, a displacement of around 2,000 tonnes and greatly expanded capacity for accommodating troops. The Batch 2 ships are the first Royal Navy ships fitted with BAE Systems Shared Infrastructure operating system.

Asia-Pacific

The US State Department approved the sale of air-to-air missiles to Australia. The proposed deal for AIM-120C-7 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAM) and related equipment is estimated at $240.5 million. The Government of Australia has requested to buy up to 108 AIM-120C-7 AMRAAMs, six AIM-120C-7 AMRAAM Air Vehicles Instrumented as well as six spare AIM-120C-7 AMRAAM guidance sections and associated parts, hardware, engineering support and training. This proposed sale is in support of the Australian Defense Force project LAND 19 Phase 7B for acquisition of a ground based air and missile defense capability.

Today’s Video

Watch: The New F-15X Fighter Jet Will Complement the F-22 and F-35 in Aerial Battlefields

River Class
(click to view full)

The UK’s forthcoming Ocean Class 90m+ Offshore Patrol Vessels stem from a shipbuilding sector agreement that the UK MoD signed with BAE in November 2013. Britain needed to find an affordable bridge-buy that kept its naval shipyards running in-between completion of existing ships, and delayed construction of the new Type 26 frigates. Rather than paying termination and industrial costs to keep the shipyard idle, the UK government decided to buy 3 OPVs, for delivery by 2017. This would also allow the Royal Navy to retire or gift out the existing River Class OPVs HMS Tyne, HMS Severn and HMS Mersey.

As of August 2014, the contract for these new open-ocean patrol vessels is complete…

Batch 2 OPVs

The new British OPVs will be built at BAE Systems’ facilities in Glasgow, under a GBP 348 million contract announced on Aug 12/14. That brings the total to GBP 368 million, following a GBP 20 million long-lead parts contract announced on March 12/14.

The design based on vessels already sold abroad: Thailand’s HTMS Krabi, and the 3 similar Amazonas Class OPVs that Brazil picked up when Trinidad and Tobago cancelled their deal.

The new ships will be larger and more efficient than Britain’s existing River Class OPVs, with more room for embarked personnel, more storage space, and the addition of a flight deck capable of landing the Royal Navy’s AW101 Merlin medium-heavy helicopters. The Ocean Class are designed for a maximum speed of 24 knots, and a range of 5,500 nautical miles. Sources: UK MoD, “£348 million warship contract delivers Clyde jobs boost” | BAE, “New contract award for Royal Navy Offshore Patrol Vessels” | UK MoD, “£20 million contract for new Royal Navy ships” (March 2014) | UK MoD, “New offshore patrol vessels for Royal Navy” (Nov. 2013).

Update

March 15/19: HMS Medway on her way BAE Systems handed over the HMS Medway to the British Royal Navy. The HMS Medway is a Batch 2 River Class offshore patrol vessel. On November 6, 2013, the Royal Navy announced it had signed an Agreement in Principle to build three new offshore patrol vessels, based on the River Class design. The Medway is the second Batch 2 River Class vessel to be commissioned. Meanwhile, the Batch 2 River Class HMS Forth and her crew are in the final stages to resume trials and training. Medway will be a couple of months behind Forth in going to sea for a second time. The River Class is a class of offshore patrol vessels. The Batch 2 ships are fundamentally different in appearance and capabilities from the preceding Batch 1. Notable differences include the 90.5 meters (296 ft 11 in) long hull, a top speed of 24 knots, Merlin-capable flight deck, a displacement of around 2,000 tonnes and greatly expanded capacity for accommodating troops. The Batch 2 ships are the first Royal Navy ships fitted with BAE Systems Shared Infrastructure operating system.

January 30/18: First Delivery The British Royal Navy has received its first River Class Offshore Patrol Vessel, HMS Forth, from manufacturer BAE Systems. In attendance at the handing over ceremony at the firm’s Clyde shipyard in Scotland was the recently appointed Under-secretary of State for Defence Procurement at the Ministry of Defence (MoD), Guto Bebb MP. HMS Forth will remain at the Scotstoun yard in Glasgow for a short period to complete some additional work requested by the MoD and on departure will be the first complex warship to leave Glasgow since HMS Duncan in 2013. She will be commissioned into service later this year in Portsmouth. During his visit, Bebb also oversaw the progress in the production of the first vessel to be produced under the Type 26/City Class frigate program, the future HMS Glasgow.

December 9/16: BAE Systems has been contracted by the UK government to build two additional River-class Offshore Patrol Vessels for the Royal Navy. The $360 million deal adds two more manufacturing and support projects to the five-ship program, bringing the total contract value to $797 million. Work on the two vessels, named Tamar and Spey, will involve more than 100 companies from Britain. The designs build on existing River-class ships with variants already used by the navies of Brazil and Thailand.

On 9-10 October 2019, the annual EDA Military Airworthiness Conference will be held in Lithuania.

The conference will bring together key stakeholders from national military airworthiness authorities, industry, European agencies and international organisations to discuss the latest developments in the cooperation between National Military Airworthiness Authorities (NMAAs).

Initiated by the Ministers of Defence in 2008, EDA participating Member States started this cooperation with the establishment of the Military Airworthiness Authorities Forum aiming at the harmonization of national regulations on military airworthiness in Europe. Since that moment, under auspices of the MAWA Forum, a comprehensive set of European Military Airworthiness Requirements (EMARs) has been developed and is now being implemented by the participating Member States The MAWA Forum is now focusing on increased cooperation in the area of oversight based on a new Airworthiness Roadmap that was approved last year.

The conference is an INVITE ONLY event. Details regarding the venue, conference agenda, registration and accommodation will be sent out in due time.

Inquiries regarding the event should be directed to: MAC2019@eda.europa.eu

 

Americas

The US Air Force received a KC-46 Pegasus on March 11 after the aircraft passed a Foreign Object Debris inspection at Boeing’s production facility. The Pegasus is a military aerial refueling aircraft developed by Boeing. The Air Force selected the Pegasus to replace the KC-135 Stratotankers. The first Pegasus was scheduled to be delivered in August 2017 but was delayed until January 2019. Deliveries of the jets were halted last month after foreign object debris was found in one of the aircraft. Boeing had offered to inspect all the aircraft that were accepted by the Air Force. Loose tools and other items were found inside a completed airplane. Subsequent deliveries will occur as Boeing successfully completes each aircraft’s inspections and actions assigned from the review. Boeing plans to deliver 36 of the aircraft this year and about a dozen more are nearing completion.

The US Air Force on Tuesday unveiled a nearly $166 billion budget request for fiscal 2020. The Pentagon plans to buy eight Boeing F-15EX fighters FY 2020 as part of a purchase of 144 total aircraft over an undisclosed number of years. According to the budget request, it will cost $80 million per airframe. However, that cost will rise to approximately $125 million for each of the eight jets to set up the line and account for non-recurring engineering costs in the first year of procurement. The total deal will be priced at more than $1.1 billion and covers production of eight brand-new F-15EX fourth-plus generation fighters. The F-15EX is the latest version of the F-15 Eagle fighter jet. The Eagle is a twin-engine, all-weather tactical fighter aircraft that has an all-metal semimonocoque fuselage with a large-cantilever, shoulder-mounted wing.

The USS Zumwalt arrived in British Columbia, Canada on March 11 after it left its homeport of San Diego for its first deployment that includes a trip up the West Coast. Zumwalt is the lead ship of the next-generation multi-mission destroyers. It has stealth capabilities with a radar cross-section similar to a fishing boat despite the large size of the ship. The Zumwalt Class was primarily designed to support ground forces in land attacks, in addition to the usual destroyer missions of anti-air, anti-surface, and antisubmarine warfare. The ship is equipped with two Advanced Gun Systems, which are designed to fire the Long Range Land Attack projectile. During the scheduled port visit in BC, Zumwalt will host Canadian Forces, Marine Forces Pacific Commander, Rear. Adm. Bob Auchterlonie, and US Consul General in Vancouver Katherine S. Dhanani.

Middle East & Africa

The US Army Corps of Engineers awarded ExpFederal Inc. an $11.3 million firm-fixed-price contract in support of the US Forces-Afghanistan. The deal includes electrical safety assessments, repairs program, materials management and control services. ExpFederal operates as an architectural company that provides engineering design, construction management, interior, landscape, urban design, surveying, and master planning services. Work will take place in Bigram, Afghanistan and is scheduled to be finished by March 11, 2021.

Europe

Germany’s chief defense staff, General Eberhart Zorn, reported improvements in the readiness of the country’s military equipment to German parliament defense committee. According to the report, which unlike the past years will from now on be classified as secret, 70 percent of the most important weapon systems of the Bundeswehr, the Unified Armed Forces of Germany, were operational in the past year. The general added that the low availability of Luftwaffe CH-53 helicopters and Tornado bombers was stabilized at the 2017 level, despite the deployment of the former to Afghanistan and the latter to Jordan. In comparison to previous years, Zorn sees the equipment readiness of 70 percent as a positive development.

German defense contractor Rheinmetall anticipates more sales and operating result growth for 2019, the company stated in a press release. This increase is primarily driven by continued dynamic development in the defense sector. The trend toward stepping up the modernization of Armed Forces linked to the rising budgets is already leaving its marks in Rheinmetall’s order books. The Rheinmetall Group generated sales of $6.9 million in fiscal 2018, an increase of 4.3 percent. The defense sector achieved an operating result of $287.3 million, 46 percent above the previous year’s figure of $196.9 million. Sales growth in the defense sector was due to increased deliveries of trucks for the major project Land 121 in Australia and to the fact that series production was being utilized to full capacity for the Puma infantry fighting vehicle for the German Armed Forces. In addition, the start-up of the major project Future Soldier System – together with the German Armed Forces – contributed to a significant increase in sales in the Electronic Solutions division. However, the Weapon and Ammunition division suffered a year-on-year drop in sales of approximately 10 percent or $134.6 million in 2018, owing to the loss of trading sales.

Asia-Pacific

Indonesia’s Ministry of Defense is leaning towards a variant of the Danish Iver Huitfeldt Class in their plan to acquire two more frigates for the country’s Navy, Jane’s reports. Within the second phase of the Minimum Essential Force (MEF) modernization blueprint, Indonesia acquired two SIGMA 10514 vessels from Damen that now serve as the Martadinata Class. The country requires at least four more hulls in the longer term as part of wider MEF requirements. A piece of unclassified correspondence between the country’s defense minister, Ryamizard Ryacudu, and the cabinet secretary of President Joko Widodo made the case for the Iver Huitfeldt class. The Iver Huitfeldt Class is a three-ship class of frigates. Its main role is air defense. Most anti-air warfare sensors and equipment are similar to the German Sachsen Class frigates as well as the Dutch De Zeven Provincien Class destroyers. The Iver Huitfeldt class frigates have a modular mission payload system.

Today’s Video

Watch: AC-130J Ghostrider Gunship Upgrade gives AFSOC Its Most Lethal Aircraft

At the Single European Sky (SES) Award Ceremony 2019 which took place on Tuesday (12 March) in the margins of the World ATM Congress (WAC) in Madrid, an Italian project nominated by EDA and aimed at improving interoperability between civil and military air navigation service providers was rewarded with a ‘Special Mention of the Jury’. 

Run by the Italian Air Force and the Italian air navigation service provider ENAV, the ATC Control System moving to i4D project is set to improve data sharing which is key to enhance civil-military interoperability and to achieve efficient and sustainable SES objectives. The project will introduce data link services based on air-ground point-to-point data communications and replace voice communication by standardised messages shared between the civilian and military controller in order to minimise voice communication and ensure consistency, availability and reliability of information flows across the civilian and military domains. 

EDA Chief Executive Jorge Domecq, who attended the Award Ceremony, said: “It is important that EDA works closely with all the European aviation organisations in view of integrating the military views into the Single European Sky. The fact that a civil-military project nominated by the Agency was rewarded with a ‘Special Mention of the Jury’ is an additional encouragement to continue to work for improved civil-military cooperation within the Single European Sky”.

With the Single European Sky Awards, the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport rewards stakeholders who contribute to achieving the SES which aims to modernise and harmonise Europe's airspace management. The ceremony was one of the highlights of the ‘Europe For Aviation’ event at the WAC 2019 in which all European aviation organisations teamed up to showcase the joint efforts they make to achieve the SES. 
 

More information: 

• Single European Sky Awards
• The Military in the Single European Sky (EDA brochure)

 

Americas

The US Navy contracted Northrop Grumman Systems $89.5 million in support of the MQ-4C Triton Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS). The deal provides for sustainment and engineering services. The Triton is a high-altitude long endurance unmanned aerial vehicle that together with its associated ground control station is considered a UAS. The system provides real-time intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions over ocean and coastal regions as well as continuous maritime surveillance, conduct search and rescue missions. They complement the Boeing P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft. The drone can descend and ascend through harsh maritime weather environments in order of gaining a closer view of ships an other targets at sea. Last year the Navy announced plans to deploy Triton drones to Guam to assist with Surveillance in the South China Sea. The South China Sea is one of the most contested geopolitical regions on Earth. The current contract procures the technical expertise of field service representatives, logisticians and test support to ensure MQ-4C air vehicles and mission control and operator training systems are fully sustained and mission capable. Work under the deal will take place within the US as well as at Andersen Air Force Base in Guam and is expected to be finished by March next year.

The Navy awarded General Atomics a $18.9 million delivery order to provide engineering and diagnostics support for the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS). The deal includes test and evaluation effort for EMALS test site operations, Failure Reporting Analysis and Corrective Actions System, prototype and testing, environmental qualification testing and remediation, electromagnetic interference testing, and training efforts. The EMALS is a type of aircraft launching system designed to replace the steam catapult systems currently used on the Navy aircraft carriers. The USS Gerald R. Ford is the first carrier to use EMALS. John F. Kennedy and Enterprise are also scheduled to install and use EMALS. EMALS can launch a wide variety of aircraft weights and can be used on a variety of platforms with differing catapult configurations. Work will take place in New Jersey, Mississippi, and California and is expected to be finished in January 2021.

The US Special Operationa Command (USSOCOM) tapped Barret Firearms Manufacturing with approximately $50 million for the purchase of advanced sniper rifles. Barrett Firearms Manufacturing is an American manufacturer of firearms and ammunition. It was founded in 1982 by Ronnie G. Barrett to build semi-automatic rifles chambered for the powerful .50 BMG (12.7x99mm NATO) ammunition, originally developed for and used in M2 Browning machine guns. Work will take place in Christiana and is scheduled to be finished by March 2024. Fiscal 2019 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $387,234 are being obligated at the time of award.

Middle East & Africa

Turkey will start to deploy S-400 anti-aircraft missile defense systems in October this year. Turkey is acquiring S-400 anti-aircraft missile systems from Russia because of the urgent need to ensure the country’s security. The S-400 Triumf is a Russian anti-aircraft weapon system designed to destroy aircraft, cruise and ballistic missiles, including medium-range missiles. It can also be used against ground installations. In June 2018, it was announced that Turkey assigned defense enterprises the task of completing the production of S-400 surface-to-air missile systems in May 2019 for their delivery to Turkey. Earlier this month, the United States threatened to cancel Turkey’s participation in the F-35 fighter jet program and also impose sanctions on it if Ankara persists on its planned purchase of Russian S-400 air defense systems.

Europe

Raytheon partnered with German sensor specialist Hensoldt to provide integrated air surveillance radars to the Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF) and the Deutsche Flugsicherung. The Royal Netherlands Air Force will receive one system that will provide both advanced air traffic control and wind-farm interference mitigation at De Kooy airfield. The Deutsche Flugsicherung, which is a German air navigation provider, will receive three systems to replace aging radars as part of Germany’s airspace modernization efforts. The radars will combine Hensoldt’s next-generation primary airport surveillance radar, the ASR-NG and Raytheon’s Mode S monopulse secondary surveillance radar, the Condor Mk 3. Hensoldt’s multibeam 3D S-band solid-state approach control primary surveillance radar combines fully digital Doppler detection and tracking solution with highly flexible and self-learning clutter and site optimization capabilities.

Norway will house the world’s first licensed service center to service F-16 fighter jets. Lockheed Martin together with AIM Norway will jointly establish the so called „Falcon Depot“ center for the Royal Norwegian Air Force and other regional F-16 customers. AIM Norway provides maintenance, repair and modification services for fixed wing aircraft, helicopters and field equipment for the Norwegian Armed Forces. Lockheed Martin continues to grow its F-16 customer base and sees new F-16 production opportunities totaling more than 400 aircraft. There are approximately 3,000 operational F-16s in service today with 25 countries.

Asia-Pacific

The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) successfully test-fired an indigenously developed range smart weapon from JF-17 multi-role fighter aircraft. The JF-17 Thunder is a single-engine, multi-role combat aircraft developed jointly by the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex and the Chengdu Aircraft Corporation of China. The PAF inducted its first JF-17 squadron in February 2010. The Thunder was part of media attention during recent hostility between Pakistan and India. It was recently reported by CNN that a JF-17 fighter jet brought down an Indian warplane in Azad Jammu and Kashmir. The report contradicted Indian claims that Pakistan used F-16s to down Indian planes.

Today’s Video

Watch: Say goodbye to the EA-6B Prowler — Here are 5 impressive facts about the EA-6B Prowler

‘Europe for Aviation’ is the theme around which civil and military European aviation organisations working to implement the Single European Sky (SES) gather for two days at this year’s World ATM Congress which opened today in Madrid. Speaking at the joint ‘Europe For Aviation Partners’ conference, EDA Chief Executive Jorge Domecq stressed the need to accommodate civil and military requirements in the effort to develop a modern and innovative SES, as civil and military aviation share the same airspace and conduct mutually supportive activities. 

‘Working together will allow us to remain innovative. We need to act jointly in making the European airspace a digital European sky designed to accommodate the needs of both civil and military stakeholders, all types of platforms, manned and unmanned, and all types of missions, roles and applications, in a balanced and proportioned way, in peace time and in crisis situations", Mr Domecq stated

Over recent years, EDA has achieved tangible results when it comes to military integration into SES. The Military Aviation Strategy in the context of SES is in place and €93 million of EU co-funding have been awarded to military projects relating to SESAR deployment. With the support of EDA, the defence sector is involved in SES activities from the outset, providing inputs into the regulatory, technical and operational efforts aimed to enhance the security and defence dimension in SES. A common civil-military roadmap for Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS) Air Traffic Insertion has been developed to enable seamless integration of certified RPAS alongside manned aviation from 2025. One of the eleven European Capability Development Priorities approved in the 2018 Capability Development Plan (CDP) is directly linked to SES: the integration of military air capabilities in the changing aviation sector. It will contribute to foster civil-military synergies notably through digital solutions benefiting from connectivity, automation, virtualisation and artificial intelligence in support of European industries.

The ‘Europe for Aviation’ stand and theatre (#849 and #1151) at the 2019 World ATM Congress is hosting a wide range of debates, presentations and guided walking tours, illustrating the collaboration in action between European aviation organisations working to implement SES, namely the European Commission, EUROCONTROL, SESAR Joint Undertaking (SESAR JU), SESAR Deployment Manager (SESAR DM), European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), Innovation and Networks Executive Agency (INEA), European Organisation for Civil Aviation (EUROCAE) and the European Defence Agency (EDA).
 

Background

The World ATM Congress is the world’s largest international air traffic management (ATM) exhibition and conference, bringing together the world’s leading product developers, experts, stakeholders, and air navigation service providers (ANSPs).

More information on the Europe For Aviation stand is available here. 

 

Americas

The US Navy awarded Bell Boeing a $85.7 million contract modification to update the MV-22 Osprey aircraft. The joint venture of Boeing and Bell Helicopter will convert four MV-22s into a new configuration. The Osprey is a joint service multirole combat aircraft that combines the vertical performance of a helicopter with the speed and range of a fixed-wing aircraft. With its rotors in vertical position, it can take off, land and hover like a helicopter. Once airborne, it can convert to a turboprop airplane. Bell Boeing will modify Block B MV-22 Osprey units into Block C vehicles and support a maintenance interval effort for one aircraft through the Common Configuration Readiness and Modernization program. Block C configurations provide mission enhancements and upgraded inherent features onboard the Osprey. The main difference between Block B and C is that it moves the aircraft from a combat-capable aircraft with upgrades to improve maintainability to an aircraft that can be used in multiple combat roles such as those assigned to special operations. In January, the Defense Logistics Agency awarded Bell Boeing a $143.8 million to engineer and provide logistics services to the Osprey. Work under the modification will take place in Pennsylvania and Texas and is scheduled to be finished in March 2021.

The US Air Force awarded Sierra Nevada Corp. a $23.7 million modification to install an Airborne Mission Networking (AbMN) Program on the MC-130J Commando II tankers. The Commando II is an improved variant of the C-130J aircraft and can be deployed for missions requiring clandestine, single ship, formation, low-level in-flight refueling for helicopters and tilt-rotor aircraft of the US Special Operation Forces. The MC-130J features extended service life wings and additional elements to meet the requirements of special operations missions. Under the contract modification, Sierra Nevada provides additional hardware and labor necessary to support the AbMN program through flight test for the tankers used by Air Force Special Operations Command. Work will take place in Sparks, Nevada and is expected to be finished by November 16, 2021.

The US Air Force’s Valkyrie UAV demonstrator completed its first flight on March 5. The XQ-58A Valkyrie completed 76 minutes of flight time at Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona. The Air Force Research Laboratory and Kratos Unmanned Aerial Systems developed the Valkyrie based on the „loyal wingman“ concept, which will have the drone accompany fighter aircraft in the future. The idea is, that the drone will fly next to a piloted vehicle that controls it. However, during the test flight, the drone flew on its own. The Valkyrie can carry a small payload of smart bombs, and has a range of just under 2,500 miles. This test flight was the first of five planned flights that will be carried out in two phases. The aircraft will be tested on system functionality, aerodynamic performance, and launch and recovery systems.

Middle East & Africa

Israeli defense electronic company Elbit Systems won a deal to supply combat suites and perform systems integration for three new patrol vessels of the Hellenic Coast Guard, the National Coast Guard of Greece. Systems to be supplied are electro-optic payloads, radars, navigation systems, Warship Automatic Identification System (W-AIS) as well as Remote Control Weapon Stations (RCWS) with full integration into a Command and Control software. The contract will be performed over a two-year period with warranty and logistic support continuing for an additional five-year period.

Europe

Dassault Aviation’s Rafale F4 will include an upgraded version of a Thales/MBDA Rafale Fire-Control Radar Protection and Avoidance System (SPECTRA) self-protection suite, Jane’s reports. The SPECTRA provides long-range detection, identification and accurate localization of infrared, electromagnetic and laser threats. It incorporates radar warning, laser warning and missile warning receivers for threat detection and a phased array radar jammer as well as a decoy dispenser for threat countering. In March 2017 the French government authorized development of the F4 configuration. Last month the French government awarded Dassault a contract to develop the Rafale F4. The F4 standard is part of the ongoing process to continuously improve the Rafale in line with technological progress and operating experience feedback. The Dassault Rafale is a twin-engine, canard delta wing, multirole fighter aircraft intended to perform air supremacy, interdiction, aerial reconnaissance, ground support, in-depth strike, anti-ship strike as well as nuclear deterrence missions.

Saab won a potential $10.1 million contract with the Finnish Defense Forces to deliver virtual simulators of marksmanship and basic combat training. Initial deliveries will take place this year and the simulators are scheduled to be in full-scale use in 2020. Saab’s newly developed Ground Combat Indoor Trainer is a modular and scalable system that is able to be combined in several configurations to cover a variety of weapons. The contract contains models of the weapons used in Finland, computers with software that creates the virtual environment and provides the basis for analysis after the training. Saab will also be responsible for maintaining the systems.

Asia-Pacific

The Japan Maritime Self Defense Force commissioned its second Asahi-class Guided Missile Destroyer last month. The new destroyer was christened JS Shiranui. The Asahi-Class is based on the Akizuki-class, but focuses on anti-submarine warfare. Its ships measure 151 meters in length and reach speeds of 30 knots. Armament includes Mark 41 vertical launch systems for self protection, 62-caliber naval guns, close-in weapon systems and two Mark 32 surface vessel torpedo tubes. The lead ship of the class, the JS Asahi, was laid down in 2015 and commissioned in March 2018. The Shiranui was launched in October 2017 and began sea trials in July 2018. The commissioning ceremony was held at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries subsidiary Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works in Nagasaki City.

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