Defence`s Feeds

The Patria AMV was developed in close co-operation with the Finnish Defence Force and has gone on to enter service with a number of militaries and prove itself capable in an expanding range of missions. Christopher F Foss explores the variants Patria's first wheeled armoured personnel carrier (APC)

Finland’s Minister of Defence, Jussi Niinistö, has approved the amendment of the country’s Foreign Military Sales (FMS) agreement with the US Navy for spare parts and support for the country’s Boeing F/A-18C/D Hornet multirole combat aircraft. According to a statement

Key Points The United Kingdom is likely to be governed by a centre-right Conservative Party minority government, either under incumbent prime minister Theresa May or her replacement as Conservative leader. A weak and potentially unstable UK government increases the risk of slow progress in EU

The shareholders of publicly listed US aircraft components manufacturer LMI Aerospace have approved the acquisition of Belgian aerospace firm Sonaca Group. LMI shareholders are to receive USD14 per share in a deal that was first announced in February. The transaction is expected to close at the end

AN ATTEMPT by the Islamic State-affiliated group Dawlah Islamiya to hoist the group's flag for propaganda purposes was hindered when soldiers clashed with militants in Mamasapano town in the Philippines' Mindanao province on 4 June, The Philippine Star reported. According to the report the militants

Pyongyang's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) has released images of what appears to have been the 8 June test-firing of anti-ship cruise missiles (ASCMs) from North Korea's east coast. The images show that the transport-erector-launcher (TEL) vehicles used to fire the missiles were similar to

The district court of Manhattan in New York City in the United States released on 8 June criminal complaints against two suspected militants of Lebanon-based Hizbullah, identified as 32-year-old Ali Kourani from Bronx, New York, and 37-year-old Samer el Debek, from Dearborn, Michigan. Kourani and El

The Paraguayan government is looking to resupply its armed forces via a number of limited but important acquisitions, including some aircraft upgrades. According to Paraguay's acquisitions directorate, Montevideo is looking to repair a Bell 427 helicopter, overhaul an Esquilo UH-50, and repair a

Key Points USAF requesting USD127 million for improved training ranges Top USAF officer says virtual training key to maximising pilot effectiveness The US Air Force (USAF) requested funding in its fiscal year 2018 (FY 2018) budget request for construction of improved aircraft ranges in Utah and

TWO unnamed men, suspected to be involved in the 24 May double suicide attack in Jakarta, were arrested in a police operation in in the city of Soreang in Indonesia's West Java province on 7 June, EFE reported. No further details were provided.

TWO 20-year-old unnamed men were detained by police in the city of Manchester in the United Kingdom on 7 June as part of the investigation into the 22 May suicide attack that killed 22 people, Reuters reported. According to the report one of them presented himself voluntarily at a police station

The US Navy has awarded a contract to Boeing to deliver seven P-8A Poseidon deployable mission readiness trainers (DMRTs).

Orbital ATK has delivered its 500th advanced anti-radiation guided missile (AARGM) to the US Navy, marking a significant delivery milestone for the weapon.

US-based information technology services provider CSRA has won a SeaPort-e task order to continue providing support to the US Naval Sea Systems Command’s (NAVSEA) Program Executive Officer (PEO) Aircraft Carriers.

Lockheed Martin Mission Systems and Training has secured a $41.95m contract modification from the US Naval Sea Systems Command for the production of TB-37 multi-function towed array (MFTA) production units up to September 2019.

Head of the EDA, High Representative and Vice-President of the European Commission, Federica Mogherini, and Minister of Defence of Spain, Dolores de Cospedal, today officially opened the European Tactical Airlift Centre (ETAC) in Zaragoza. The opening of ETAC marks a significant step forward in European defence cooperation and joint collaboration with the establishment of a permanent operational base for advanced tactical airlift training.

Today (June 8) Zaragoza officially became the home of the European Air Transport Fleet (EATF) Training Programme in a ceremony marking the transfer of this project from the EDA to Spain. The newly created European Tactical Airlift Centre (ETAC) will serve as the permanent home for this project. Created by EDA in 2011, and signed by 20 participating nations, the EATF partnership aims to increase the EU’s airlift capabilities by addressing shortages and increasing interoperability. A flag handover ceremony between EDA Chief Executive, Jorge Domecq, and the ETAC Commander, Colonel Jose Luis Romero, marked the official project transfer of EATF training activities from the EDA to ETAC.

 
ETAC: Transfer from EDA to a permanent host nation

The opening of the ETAC represents the largest transfer of a project, created and developed by the EDA, to one of its Member States on a permanent basis. Speaking about what this transfer means, EDA Chief Executive, Jorge Domecq, said:

“This is significant moment for European defence cooperation and the EDA. This new centre is the culmination of 6 years of development in the EDA, I am proud that this project has reached maturity and will be transferred to the leadership of Spain as a new and permanent host nation. ETAC demonstrates exactly how the EDA enables positive defence collaboration and delivers real capability improvement for our Member States.”
 

Federica Mogherini (Head of the EDA, EU High Representative and Vice-President of the European Commission), Dolores de Cospedal (Minister of Defence of Spain)

 
ETAC: The new home of European tactical airlift  

The establishment of a permanent multinational airlift training centre (ETAC) marks a major step forward in European defence collaboration in the critical capability domain of tactical airlift. 11 nations are the owners of this agreement (BE, BG, CZ, DE, ES, FR, IT, LU, NL, PT and NO) and they will share the burden to plan, organize and execute Advanced Airlift Courses, Training and Symposia in different locations (France, Italy, Bulgaria, Portugal & Sweden) by using a permanent lean command and control structure based at Zaragoza. ETAC will be manned by experts from the different participating nations on a rotational basis. The first composition will be made up from Spanish, Italian, German and French officers, who will be replaced within 3 to 4 years with staff from the remaining signatory nations. 
 

Federica Mogherini

 
EAATTC 17-3: 11th training course successfully concludes

In parallel to the ETAC opening, the graduating crews of the third European Advanced Airlift Tactics Training Course for 2017 (EAATTC 17-3) were also presented with certificates by members of the visiting delegation. Four crews, representing three Member States (Germany: C160; Poland C130 and Spain: C295 and C130) received their certificates following the completion of the two-week training course. Over 120 personnel were involved including support personnel from Italy, Belgium, the European Air Transport Command (EATC) and JAPCC.

The training provided air transport crews with a focused airlift tactics training syllabus specifically designed to enhance interoperability between European air forces. Nine missions were executed, including very low level tactical flights, fighter engagement and evasive maneuvers from ground-to-air threats all trying to stop the air drops of critical cargo and paratroopers.  Each crew flew an average of 20 hours in a particularly demanding environment and completed several successful tactical flights to successfully graduate from the course. 
 

Jorge Domecq (EDA Chief Executive), Federica Mogherini, Dolores de Cospedal

 
3D-Printing in defence: Successful test deployment of AM facility  

EDA’s ground-breaking project, “Additive Manufacturing Feasibility Study & Technology Demonstration”, successfully deployed a 3D-printing lab to Zaragoza for the duration of EAATTC 17-3. The project aims to assess the areas where Additive Manufacturing (3D-printing) can have a positive impact on defence capabilities and to demonstrate the feasibility of on-site critical component manufacture.

On May 31st, the lab was loaded on a Spanish C-130 and successfully completed a 30 minute flight. This test was pivotal to examining the feasibility of the facility to be deployed by air. After landing, the lab and its equipment was inspected and found to have encountered no issues from the airlift. 

During the deployment, the AM lab generated a lot of interest from the multinational units involved in EAATTC 17-3. Lab technicians worked closely with EAATTC 17-3 officials in the design and production of different test parts. Through these interactions, the technicians were able to gather ideas to print parts on-site and on-demand. The deployment also underscored the strong interest and potential of AM technologies across all military branches (pilots, maintenance, technicians and logistic support), who were keen to learn how 3D-printing could benefit their area of expertise. 

The deployment has been successful in terms of showcasing the technologies and raising awareness of their operational application. Furthermore, the lessons learned from the deployment and test flight of the AM lab will also contribute to shaping the design and requirement of future 3D-printing facilities. 

The results of this feasibility demonstration will be presented in September, as part of an exhibition (Exploring Additive Manufacturing impact in Defence capabilities) to high-ranking military staff, to raise awareness on the possible impact of AM in defence.
 

More information: 

• EDA Fact sheet on EAATTC 17-3
• EDA Fact sheet on 3D-printing
   

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Disclaimer : The interpretation of debates serves to facilitate communication and does not constitute an authentic record of proceedings. Only the original speech or the revised written translation is authentic.
Source : © European Union, 2017 - EP

Americas

• Raytheon has bee awarded at $12.5 million modification to an existing contract for the Phalanx Close-in Weapons System (CIWS). Under the terms of the deal, the company will deliver Phalanx CIWS hardware kits to the US Navy that are intended to upgrade the Phalanx weapons system to the latest approved configuration. Work will be performed at El Segundo, Calif. And Louisville, Ky, and the program is expected to be completed by March 2019.

• Elbit Systems of America has been sub-contracted by Lockheed Martin to develop a cockpit display replacement unit for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter under a program, called Technology Refresh 3, Panoramic Cockpit Display Unit. While the cost of the contract was not given, a company statement said that the value of the award was not in a material amount. Details on contract length were also omitted. Elbit already provides power amplifiers, structures and sustainment work for the F-35 and, together with Rockwell Collins, it also provides the F-35 Helmet Mounted Display System, through their joint venture Rockwell Collins ESA Vision Systems.

• SpaceX will launch the USAF’s next X-37B miniature spaceplane mission in August—the company’s first for the service— after four previous X-37B missions have already been undertaken by United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas 5 rockets—a joint venture by Lockheed Martin and Boeing. Unlike most USAF launch contracts, which are awarded some two years before the flight, this recent award was only announced on Tuesday, two months before lift-off. SpaceX’s first publicly disclosed launch contract for the Air Force was awarded last year for a next-generation Global Positioning System satellite flight in 2018. A second GPS launch contract was awarded in March. The contracts are valued at $83million and $96.5 million, respectively.

Middle Easy & North Africa

• A diplomatic spat between Qatar and several Arab neighbors could have knock on effects for Doha’s planned purchase of 72 F-15QA muliti-role fighters from Boeing. Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt, the UAE, as well as he recognised government of Saudi-backed Yemen, all cancelled flights to and cut off diplomatic ties with Qatar on Monday, citing that it had been supporting and funding terrorist activities in the region and was in league with regional rival Iran—charges Qatar denies. However, US President Donald Trump has thrown his weight behind the move, tweeting on Tuesday that they [Saudi and Gulf allies] “said they would take a hard line on funding … extremism, and all reference was pointing to Qatar. Perhaps this will be the beginning of the end to the horror of terrorism!”, arguing that his visit to Saudi Arabia was “already paying off.” Qatar was finally cleared to move ahead with its $21.1 billion F-15 procurement last November, and although the deal has yet to be finalized, it was billed as extending Boeing’s struggling F-15 production line into the 2020s.

Europe

• French FREMM frigates have been integrated with MdCN naval cruise missiles from MBDA. This new deep strike capability was added to the vessels in February, with all six equipped with two A70 eight-cell vertical-launch silos for a total of 16 MdCN missiles. The MdCN is based on the Scalp EG (Storm Shadow in the UK) air-launched cruise missile now in service with Mirage 2000 and Rafale combat aircraft deployed by the French Air Force and Rafale Marine aircraft.

• The Spanish Air Force and Navy are looking into the procurement of F-35s in order to replace the services’ EF-18s and AV-8B Harrier aircraft. For the Navy, its Harrier jets will have to be phased out over the next decade—leaving the Armada’s sole aircraft carrier without a fixed-wing replacement—and is looking at acquiring 15 F-35Bs to fill its capability gap. But in order to make the procurement worthwhile financially, Madrid may also look at adding addition F-35A aircraft to its air Force fleet instead of addition Eurofighters.

Asia Pacific

• Officials from Russia and Indonesia have finalized contracts for the delivery of Su-35 fighters. Negotiations over the draft Su-35 contract had begun in March and it is expected that the deal will be signed by both parties later this year. While further details on the sale have yet to be revealed, earlier reports said that the planned contract envisages the sale of 10 Su-35 jets to Jakarta, which could be paid for in part by Indonesia’s natural rubber and palm oil reserves.

• China has unveiled its FTC-2000 pilot trainer/fighter aircraft ahead of testing in Sudan. The aircraft is developed by the Guizhou Aviation Industry Corporation under the state-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China, and operates as the main advanced trainer used by the PLA Air Force and the PLA Navy. Both the domestic and export variants are powered by the indigenously-built WP-13 turbojet engine, with the export version featuring various avionics systems, navigation guidance systems or external stores tailored for overseas client’s demand for multiple missions.

Today’s Video

• Kim Jong-un oversees Korean People’s Army Air Force combat flight contest:

North Korean has reportedly launched four anti-ship missiles into the sea east of the Korean Peninsula near the eastern port city of Wonsan, Gangwon Province.

The US Navy's George H.W. Bush Carrier Strike Group (GHWBCSG) has commenced strike missions against ISIS from the eastern Mediterranean Sea in support of Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR).