Defence`s Feeds

The F-16V will continue flight testing before being ferried to the U.S. for final upgrades and certification. The first F-16V of the Hellenic Air Force flew for the first time after the end of the [...]

The post First Greek F-16V Performs Maiden Flight After Block 72 Upgrade appeared first on The Aviationist.

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc (GA-ASI) has revealed a new anti-submarine warfare (ASW) capability for its MQ-9A Reaper and MQ-9B SeaGuardian unmanned aircraft...

The US Army is in the throes of modernising its weapon systems to better compete with Russian and Chinese forces, and incoming political appointees, both acting and...

The first of 84 Hellenic Air Force (HAF) F-16C/D Fighting Falcon combat aircraft to be upgraded to the latest F-16V standard made its maiden flight on 17 January.

The US Air Force’s (USAF’s) outgoing acquisition chief has laid the foundation for supersonic transportation, which is a flight faster than Mach 1 (1,236 km/h at sea...

The Australian Department of Defence (DoD) has confirmed that audits of foreign contractors’ partnerships with local businesses have now begun.

The Dutch Defence Materiel Organisation (DMO) has signed a contract with BAE Systems for the mid-life upgrade (MLU) of 122 CV9035NL infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) of...

The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has contracted Atlas Elektronik UK (AEUK) for the supply of new combined influence minesweeping systems as part of the Royal Navy’s...

The new Multi-Domain exercise follows the lead of the last summer’s drills, while continuing to increase the presence of the United States in the Black Sea region. The U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Air [...]

The post U.S. Forces Conduct A New Multi-Domain Exercise With F-16s, KC-135s, P-8A And RQ-4B Over The Black Sea appeared first on The Aviationist.

The US Air Force Life Cycle Management Center (AFLCMC) has released a request for information (RFI) for radars that are carried by aerostats to increase their ability to...

The Indian Army has highlighted its growing ties with local industry in efforts to integrate swarming technologies for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

South Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) has formally selected a localised version of the M3 amphibious rig to meet a Republic of Korea Army...

First hand account of a test pilot’s first flight in a Eurofighter Typhoon prototype, 25 years ago. Editor’s note: Fabio Consoli is a former Italian Air Force test pilot and USAF Test Pilot School distinguished [...]

The post Eurofighter Typhoon: a Test Pilot’s Tale appeared first on The Aviationist.

A Tornado IDS of the Aeronautica Militare (Italian Air Force) was shot down on Jan. 18, 1991, during Italy’s first mission in Operation Desert Storm. Even though the fact that the Italian Air Force lost [...]

The post “Legion 15”: The Story Of The Italian Air Force Tornado IDS Shot Down During Operation Desert Storm appeared first on The Aviationist.

Tempest’s new Multi-Function Radar Frequency System will collect and process 10,000 times more data than existing systems thanks to advanced miniaturization and digitalization technologies. A few months ago, Leonardo revealed to media outlets that the [...]

The post New Details About The Advanced Radar That Will Equip Tempest 6th Gen. Aircraft Revealed By Leonardo’s Engineers appeared first on The Aviationist.

The lessons learned from the construction of the first B-21 Raider bomber are being used to improve the second one, which will be used for structural testing. A second B-21 Raider bomber is under construction [...]

The post Second B-21 Raider Under Construction As The First One Approaches Roll-Out In Early 2022 appeared first on The Aviationist.

The Pentagon has reduced the US military footprint inside Afghanistan to 2,500 troops after seeking a ‘waiver’ to circumvent a Congressional mandate to pause reductions,...

The RAF is exploiting this capability of the C-17, already well known by the US Air Force, to further expand the flexibility of its fleet. The Royal Air Force recently announced that a C-17 Globemaster [...]

The post RAF C-17 Trained For The First Time To Operate From Austere Runways appeared first on The Aviationist.

Stab Vest VS Bullet Proof Vest - The Definitive Guide

An arrangement was signed today between EDA, represented by Chief Executive Jiří Šedivý, and the EU’s Military Planning and Conduct Capability (MPCC), represented by Vice Admiral Hervé Bléjean, on the transfer of ownership of the Agency’s Smart Energy Camps Technical Demonstrator based at the EU Training Mission Mali (EUTM Mali) to the MPCC.

The Smart Energy Camps Technical Demonstrator (SECTD), previously developed as an EDA project, was deployed to EU Training Mission Mali (EUTM) at Camp Koulikoro between October 2015 and March 2016 to test the practical implementation of an intelligent power management system (energy demand management, renewable production and storage) in a challenging military environment. The demonstrator included fixed solar photovoltaic panels on a test building (16KWp), flexible soldier portable solar photovoltaic panels as well as monitoring and metering equipment for water and electricity. Over the six-month test period, the renewable energy systems were not only successfully integrated into the existing camp power architecture (requiring only minimal reconfigurations of the network) but it also led to substantial energy management improvements and cost savings.

Even though it was decided to keep the demonstrator at the camp after the test deployment and let it continue its services and renewable energy supplies to EUTM Mali, it was never the ambition of EDA to remain the owner and remote technical maintenance manager of the system in the long run. Hence the agreement now reached with the EU’s Military Planning and Conduct Capability, as the commander of EUTM Mali, to take over the full ownership rights of the demonstrator on behalf of ATHENA, the mechanism which handles the financing of common costs relating to EU military operations under the EU's common security and defence policy. This arrangement will allow for the demonstrator to continue its services to EUTM in the future under the best technical conditions.

EU Chief Executive Jiří Šedivý said: “The Smart Energy Camps Technical Demonstrator deployed at EU Training Mission Mali, at Camp Koulikoro, has successfully shown under operational and harsh conditions that smart energy management of military camps is not only technologically possible but also profitable. Its handover to the EU’s Military Planning and Conduct Capability, as the commander of EUTM, is a logical step as it offers the best guarantee for the good and smooth functioning of the system in the future”.

MPCC Director General Hervé Bléjean stated: “I would like to thank and acknowledge the European Defence Agency’s support to the EU’s Common Security and Defence Policy and its support to our EU Training Mission. The significant energy efficiency that this innovative project provides is tangible benefit to our mission in Mali. Its operational reliance enhances our capability to function in even the harshest of environments and reduces our environmental footprint. I have absolute faith in the ability of our personnel in Mali to ensure its continued operation and development.”
 

Background

The Smart Energy Camps Technical Demonstrator project is only one of EDA’s activities aimed to help Member States make their Armed Forces more energy-efficient and environmentally sustainable. For example, EDA also manages the European Commission’s Consultation Forum for Sustainable Energy in the Defence and Security Sector (CF SEDSS) which assist EU Member States’ Ministries of Defence to move towards green, resilient, and efficient energy models.  The Agency has also set up a dedicated ‘Energy and Environment Working Group’ which supports Member States in dealing with the many energy and environment-related aspects in defence.  Furthermore, EDA will also be working closely with the Commission via a new “Incubation Forum” on circular economy in defence to generate cooperative project ideas for Member States, to help steer them toward a more circular defence.