EDA News

Speaking today at the EDA Annual Conference 2016 on behalf of the Slovak EU Presidency, State Secretary of the Ministry of Defence Dr. Róbert Ondrejcsák called for “common solutions” on European defence.

In his keynote speech, Dr. Ondrejcsák praised the publication of the new EU Global Strategy as “the strongest impetus the CSDP received in terms of strategy since 2003” and recalled the implementation work launched since then, notably the High Level Conference on EUGS Implementation organised by the Slovak Presidency and also attended by High Representative Mogherini. “The debate since then shows how diverse positions of the EU Member States are in defence domain”, he said.
 

“Important to find common solutions on defence”

Dr. Ondrejcsák stated: “Consensus is well reached on the main principles of the level of ambition, such as responding to external conflicts and crises, building the capacities of fragile partners and protecting the Union and its Member states, but when it comes to details, the unanimity is far more difficult, or impossible to reach. Despite the common goal, we still diversify in visions and plans concerning defence cooperation, financing CSDP missions and operations, EU Battle Groups and form of support of our partner countries. Slovakia is not an exception, of course. But it is important that at the end of the day we find common solutions, agreeable to every Member State”.
 

Active role for the EDA

The work of the European Commission is seen by the EU Presidency as “of great importance for the current CSDP context”. In this respect, the upcoming European Defence Action Plan, as part of the wider package, “also creates a space for an active role for the European Defence Agency”, Dr. Ondrejcsák said.

He continued: “We support fostering European defence industry and defence research creating a basis for modern capabilities to maintain security and defence needs of the EU. The initiative with its funding instruments should be open to all beneficiaries with a close focus on small and medium enterprises. We also welcome special attention the European Defence Agency pays to defence industry in Central and Eastern Europe. I am referring to an extensive analysis about measures to enhance balanced defence Industry in Europe, which identifies obstacles and proposes solutions for defence cooperation among central and eastern European countries. The Agency regularly offers room for national armaments directors from the Visegrad 4 countries to seek possibilities for collaborative projects”.
 

European Defence and Technological and Industrial Base

“In times of increasingly fast-changing environment of creating new technologies and the continued need for innovation and the creation of new business models, the European defence sector needs to cope with these changes to remain an important part of the global defence market and remain relevant”, the State Secretary said. “This means preparing for an age of relative uncertainty that can be highly diversified, hybrid and flexible and can well require from the defence sector to adapt quickly to changing innovation patterns, new mind-sets and corporate cultures. In this strategic context, an innovative and competitive European industry is a strategic asset to support EU Global Strategy implementation and be at the centre of development of defence-related capabilities, skills and industrial manufacturing capabilities”.

He added: “At present, we are still situated in an environment of significant economic restrictions in the defence sector. Member States' budgets cuts, increasing prices of defence products and new players on the global military equipment and technology market impact the European defence industry. Therefore, it is necessary to change the approach. If not, the EU and its Member States will face reduced military effectiveness and the defence sector declined military business opportunities. If we use funds more efficiently, combine our efforts and share common capabilities, we can achieve the high effect for less money spent”.
 

Defence R&T

Another risk Europe faces is the lack of Research and Development (R&D) funding, lack of innovation and procurement of new military equipment and defence systems. “In reality it means that Europe and its Member States will no longer be able to afford sophisticated modern military capabilities that would necessarily need to fulfil the tasks determined. It creates a risk for the European defence industry, which will face an increasing competition from companies producing military equipment in the third countries”.

“Pooling requirements and achieving significant savings from economies of scale would enable Member States to acquire the necessary military capabilities that would otherwise could not afford individually. Some activities can be done also on bilateral basis, such as common maintenance, training, exercises and joint research and development. The creation of a common European market for defence would strengthen the European defence industry and would also help Member States to develop military capabilities they need to fully perform its tasks in accordance with the CSDP”, he stated.
 

More information

• Federica Mogherini opens EDA Annual Conference 2016 / speech / video
• Listening to the supply & demand sides: EDA Annual Conference panels deliver interesting insights
• Commissioner Bieńkowska outlines upcoming European Defence Action Plan at EDA Annual Conference
• EDA Annual Conference 2016 closes with call for cooperation on defence innovation

After HR/VP Federica Mogherini's capturing opening speech and an inspiring presentation by Stephan De Spiegeleire of the Hague Centre for Strategic Studies on innovation and research as part of a wider vision for a future European defence, the attendees of the EDA Annual Conference 2016 witnessed two lively and interactive panel debates moderated by Graham Muir (Head of EDA's Strategy & Policy Unit) on the opportunities and challenges from the supply and demand sides.

 

Panel 1: Supply side

High-level panelists in this first roundtable were Lowri Evans (Director General DG Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SME's at the European Commission), Heikki Allonen (former CEO and President of Patria Oyj, the Finnish national defence induystry group), Dr. Kurt Braatz (Senior Vice President at Krauss-Maffei Wegman), Pedro Sinogas (CEO of Tekever) as well as Prof. Witold Holubowicz (CEO of research/consulting company Itti Ltd.).

The panel raised and discussed a number of crucial questions related to the future of the European defence industry, such as 'Are Europe's defence industrial models suited for the future?', 'How best to bring innovation closer to defence?', 'Is enough being done to capitalise on civil and military synergies?' and 'What measures can the European Commission bring to support innovation in defence?'.

A particular emphasis was put on how the role of SMEs and Start-Ups in the defence supply chain could best be maximised and how their full potential as a source of innovation and a key enabler for competitiveness can be realized. In this respect, the need was stressed to promote SME's access to defence research pogrammes and to encourage their greater involvement in EU funding programmes.

 

Panel 2: Demand side

The second panel debate in the afternoon saw high-profile representatives from national governments and EU institutions sharing their views on implications for the defence sector at large: whole-of-government policies in support of strategic innovation, emerging risks and vulnerabilities in terms of technology control, interface with industry, impact on acquisition choices and life-cycle management.

The four high-level panelists were: Rear Admiral Matteo Bisceglia (Director for Naval Armaments, Italy), Ioan Mircea Paşcu (Vice-President of the European Parliament and former Defence minister of Romania),Vice Admiral Mark Mellett (Chief of Defence, Ireland) and Alexander Weis (Vice-Director of the Bundeswehr Planning Office, Germany).

Among the questions discussed were the following: 'Are the current procurement processes of Defence Ministries best adapted to the challenges and opportunities presented by innovation?', 'How important is continued and sustained national investment in research & innovation?', 'What do policy-makers need to do to provide the best possible environment to foster the technological innovations required?', 'How can Europe respond to the US Third Offset Strategy?' and 'How to overcome fragmentation of demand?'.

There was broad consensus on the EDA's role in defence R&T and innovation: the Agency should continue to act as a "catalyst" by identifying innovation gaps and potential collaborative opportunities, bringing interested Member States together and facilitating collaborative R&T projects. However, it was stressed, R&T initiatives need to be driven by capability requirements. The objective is not to fund industrial policy, said Mr Weis. "The EDA has to make sure that R&T projects are capability driven, be it national or EU capabilities".
 

More information

• Federica Mogherini opens EDA Annual Conference 2016 / speech / video
• Slovak EU Presidency at EDA Annual Conference: "Common solutions are needed on defence"
• Commissioner Bieńkowska outlines upcoming European Defence Action Plan at EDA Annual Conference
• EDA Annual Conference 2016 closes with call for cooperation on defence innovation

The European Defence Agency (EDA) Annual Conference 2016 entitled 'A third industrial evolution or revolution in defence?' was opened Thursday morning (10 November) in Brussels by the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission, Federica Mogherini, who is also the Head of the Agency.

Addressing a 500 strong audience coming from the whole European defence spectrum - governments, armed forces, industry, EU institutions, NATO, think tanks and media - Mrs Mogherini said in her opening speech that time had come to make urgent and concrete steps towards a stronger and more efficient European defence, and to do it “the European way”.

We don’t need another theoretical and endless debate about a potential EU army or treaty change but what is needed are "very concrete actions" to be delivered in the next months to make sure Europe can protect it citizens and become a global security provider. This is what citizens expect now that Europe is facing a "security crisis", she stressed. “There are no excuses, we have to do it and we have to do it now”.

March 2017, when Europe will celebrate the 60th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Rome, will be a good moment to have a concrete implementation process up and running and to deliver on defence integration. "Sixty years ago, the founding fathers and mothers of our European Union believed that a united Europe had to be built on two pillars: a European Economic Community, and a Defence Community. They knew that a true Union could not simply rely on the integration of the markets. They were right, and yet they failed. Sixty years later, I believe the original intuition has become even more relevant", Mrs Mogherini stressed.

To move ahead towards a defence union, Europe has not to start from scratch because the Treaty of Lisbon already offers all the tools that are required. “We just need to use them. This is a matter of political will, stated Mrs Mogherini adding that she saw now a “clear window of opportunity” to achieve concrete results in the coming months.

She recalled the three parallel processes currently ongoing, namely the implementation of the EU Global Strategy, the Commission’ upcoming European Defence Action Plan (EDAP) and the follow-up on the recent joint EU/NATO Declaration. These three processes have to be complementary, she insisted. We have to advance quickly, “we have to run”, to make sure that those processes lead to first concrete results by spring 2017. In this respect, the European Defence Agency can act as a pivot between the Commission and Member States on European defence, Mrs Mogherini said.
 

Capabilities are crucial

The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission put a special emphasis on the need to make sure Europe has the required capabilities to play its role in defence. Capabilities have to be up to the task. "And here, Europe has to be very careful, I believe, very careful, that the investment gap is not translated into an ever wider technology gap. Because a technology gap would then lead to an interoperability gap. And if left unchecked, this could translate into a political gap which would clearly not be in our interest. And I would add, this would also have economic implications for our continent".

There will be no strategic autonomy and defence role for Europe without a strong and smart and innovative European defence technology and industrial base, Mrs Mogherini concluded.
 

More information

• Speech of the HR/VP Mogherini / video
• Listening to the supply & demand sides: EDA Annual Conference panels deliver interesting insights
• Slovak EU Presidency at EDA Annual Conference: "Common solutions are needed on defence"
• Commissioner Bieńkowska outlines upcoming European Defence Action Plan at EDA Annual Conference
• EDA Annual Conference 2016 closes with call for cooperation on defence innovation

22 satellite imagery analysts and experts from seven EDA Member States (Austria, Belgium, Spain, France, Italy, The Netherlands, Poland) plus Denmark, as well as six analysts from the European Union Satellite Centre (EU SATCEN) and one from the European Border and Coast Agency (FRONTEX) met from 19-21 October at the SATCEN headquarter in Torrejón de Ardoz/Madrid for a REACT study implementation meeting.

The REACT (Radar imagEry Applications supporting ACTionable intelligence) study, initiated and managed by the European Defence Agency (EDA) in cooperation with EU SATCEN and participating Member States, aims at giving more value to imagery data, identifying areas where military imagery analysts can be assisted by tools/workflows to produce valuable and possibly actionable intelligence, according to users’ information requests. The study is focused on Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) imagery processes and in the combined use of SAR and electro-optical images. The study has been awarded to an international consortium composed by: e-GEOS, Telespazio Ibérica and INTA. The contract was signed in January 2016.

The aim of the REACT implementation session was to test, in a pseudo-operational environment, the workflows for the exploitation of satellite radar imagery defined during the previous phases of the study. Several workflows were tested: Monitoring, Damage Assessment, Search/Targeting. New algorithms, still in a research and development phase, were also presented. For each of programme topics, the operational experts received a “Request for Information” task.

The operators were tasked to perform imagery processing and imagery analysis in accordance with the workflows previously defined during the REACT study. Satellite radar imagery was provided by the EU SATCEN and by the industrial consortium.

The session proved to be extremely useful for the participating experts in many respects, especially because it helped them to face the intrinsic complexity of working with radar imagery and provided practical information in each step of the defined workflow. The expertise acquired during the session will also help the imagery analysts to establish effective working procedures for radar imagery exploitation, understand the pros and cons of using the several software suites available and evaluate the state of the art of new tools and algorithms for radar imagery exploitation (e.g Automatic Target Detection & Recognition).

An additional similar session will be organized in Rome in December for two scenarios typically encountered during FRONTEX activities: pre-frontier and coastal monitoring.

The results of the REACT activities will feed into the work of the forthcoming EDA Project Team Space Based Earth Observation. In addition to that, the lessons learned during the meeting on the new tools and algorithms may also be discussed in the relevant EDA CapTechs.

More information:

• EDA and EU Satellite Centre (SATCEN) formalize cooperation with exchange of letters (webnews July 2016)

The European Commission's services (DG MOVE), the European Defence Agency (EDA), the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the SESAR Joint Undertaking (SJU) are stepping up efforts to address the integration of drones into the European aviation and air traffic management (ATM) system.

A new coordination mechanism was agreed upon at a meeting of the organisations’ director generals on 27 October, which aims to address the research and development (R&D) and regulatory requirements of all categories of remotely-piloted aircraft systems (RPAS) – a subset of drones. It was agreed that these requirements take into account the EDA’s "dual-use strategy" for the integration of military drones.

The SESAR project in coordination with EASA will provide the necessary support framework to address the R&D and regulatory needs in Europe and from a global perspective. This work will be done in close and efficient coordination with the EDA, while further efforts will be undertaken to engage other organisations in Europe in this coordination endeavour.

The coordination mechanism will look at ATM requirements for drone integration and their technical implications. The findings will be reported to DG MOVE in order to support the definition and coordination of policy initiatives with the relevant Commission services. The overall ATM requirements for drone integration will be incorporated into the next update of the European ATM Master Plan – the roadmap for ATM modernisation.

Planned for 2017, the next update will aim to provide a description of the overarching technical, operational, financial and performance related needs and requirements for the integration of drones, while also addressing the global context of initiatives falling under the aegis of ICAO.

Photo: © Dassault Aviation - G. Gosset

The Chief Executive of the European Defence Agency (EDA), Jorge Domecq, today addressed Spanish security and defence stakeholders at a seminar in Seville on European Union funding opportunities. The event was jointly organised by the EDA, the Spanish Ministry of Defence and the Agency of Innovation and Development of Andalusia (IDEA).

Around 130 representatives from the Spanish Ministry of Defence, defence industry and business associations, defence-related research and technology organisations and universities participated in the seminar, which included awareness raising and in-depth know-how building sessions.

The seminar showed in concrete terms how to access funding and other instruments available within two major European Union funding programmes running until 2020, i.e. COSME (EU Programme for COmpetitiveness of SMEs) and the Structural Funds. Rear Adm. Jesús Manrique Braojos, Deputy NAD of the Ministry of Defence of the Kingdom of Spain, welcomed the audience followed by introductory remarks by the Andalusian regional minister for Employment, Enterprise and Commerce, José Sanchez Maldonado.

In his opening speech, EDA Chief Executive Jorge Domecq said: "A 'window of opportunities' was opened by both the June 2016 EU Global Strategy of the High Representative of the Union, Federica Mogherini, and the State of the Union speech by Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker in September. The Global Strategy clearly stated that Union funds - to support defence research and technologies and multinational cooperation - are essential prerequisites for European security and defence efforts, underpinned by a strong European defence industry. EDA’s work has already provided a positive answer to the question whether Structural Funds may co-fund dual-use research and technology projects, which clearly have a favourable impact on both the civilian and the defence fields. EDA has also recently clarified the conditions legitimizing access - for both defence and dual-use related SMEs and clusters - to the opportunities of the EU COSME Programme 2014-2020. Altogether, considering EDA encouraging results on Structural Funds and COSME so far, one can say that the time for action is now”.

Both the European Commission and the Spanish Ministry of Enterprises and Public Administrations’ Directorate in charge for the coordination of the national deployment of Structural Funds made presentations about currently available EU funding for the defence sector.

A particular focus was put on dual-use R&T funding and on the Enterprise Europe Network’s local free services in native languages.

Additionally, more than 40 Spanish project managers were trained to apply for the European Regional Development Fund during a dedicated coaching session. Finally, around 60 business-to-business meetings were arranged during a conclusive matchmaking session.

The seminar raised interest across all attending stakeholders, who have established promising contacts in view of an effective follow-up aimed at accessing EU funding opportunities.

Taking into account the increasingly blurred lines between internal and external security on the one hand and civil and defence technology on the other hand, different stakeholders exchanged views with Mr Domecq on how to take advantage of EDA’s work, through close cooperation with the Ministry of Defence of the Kingdom of Spain, in order to promote civil/military synergies wherever appropriate.

 

More information:

• Access to EU funding (EDA project page)
• Dual-use research (EDA project page)
• 3 out of 3: another EDA supported dual-use R&T project is awarded ESIF funding (EDA News)
• Polish dual-use R&T project co-funded by ESIF (EDA news)
• New funding opportunity for dual-use research

As the defence and security landscape moves into more complex and uncharted areas, studying and developing the capabilities of the future is becoming increasingly challenging. The emergence of new platform concepts and the lead times, often spanning over decades, for materials used in major platforms result in a pressing need to start research efforts in the present. On 18 October 2016, 25 experts from various European Ministries of Defence, the U.S. Department of Defense, European institutions, and industry participated in an EDA workshop to identify materials envisioned to be used by military forces in the year 2050.

High-level experts on materials and defence technologies gathered to discuss the types and functionalities of materials with a potential to improve military operations in 35 years as well as major advances that might be foreseen. Thought-provoking presentations from the European Defence Agency (EDA), the Swedish Defence Research Agency (FOI), the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), the European Union Institute for Security Studies (EUISS) and the European Space Agency (ESA) underlined the importance of long-term defence R&T strategic planning. They showed how innovative materials and manufacturing can be used in a wide range of applications - lowering the burden of the soldier, stealth and protection, ammunition enhancements - and can improve the lifespan, logistical aspects and functional capabilities of existing & future platforms – air, naval and land.

Using a structured brainstorming method, the organizers dynamically combined the various experts in groups to create a maximum level of interaction and balance between governmental and non-governmental actors. The main outcome of the workshop was the identification of promising ideas and possible Research & Technology needs in 4 main areas: additive manufacturing, advanced smart materials, functional materials and structural materials. Computer-assisted modelling, deployed 3D printing, multifunctional materials, integrated sensors, frequency-adaptive signature control materials, and biomimetics were among the topics viewed to be of especially high interest for military forces in the next decades.

Although the participants recognized that predicting the future poses difficulties in the context of evolving political, technological, economic and legislative factors, they considered that defence technology in 2050 will be shaped by capitalizing on the windows of opportunity opened in the present.

The seminar was co-organized by the EDA’s CapTech on Materials & Structures, Fraunhofer INT, ISDEFE, FOI, FFI.

More information:

• For further information, please contact Materials@eda.europa.eu
• European Defence Agency Role in Research & Technology - Towards Enhanced European Future Military Capabilities
• EDA Defence Research & Technology conference report available now (news published on 19 May 2016)   
  
  

Grants agreements worth a total of €1.4 million were signed today 28 October at the European Defence Agency (EDA) for three selected research activities to be carried out under the EU’s first Pilot Project in the field of defence research.

The grant agreements were signed at the European Defence Agency in presence of EDA Chief Executive Jorge Domecq, European Commission Deputy Director General Pierre Delsaux (DG Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs) and representatives of the three winner consortia.
 

Uncharted territory – An EU first

The signing marks an important step in EU defence integration since it’s the first time that the European Union is testing the conditions for defence research in an EU framework, funded by the EU budget.

The Pilot Project also paves the way for the launch, in 2017, of the European Commission’s Preparatory Action (PA) on defence research which, in turn, leads to a fully-fledged European Defence Research Programme (EDRP) as part of the EU’s next Multiannual Financial Framework (2021-2027). All of them - Pilot Project, Preparatory Action and the future European Defence Research Programme - should support R&T that is serving capability priorities identified by Member States in the Capability Development Plan and be taken up in future collaborative capability programmes.

DG GROW Deputy Director General Pierre Delsaux said: "EU funding for defence research was almost inconceivable a few years ago for EU institutions, Member States and the defence community. This Pilot Project is therefore the precursor of a new era."

Mr Delsaux thanked the European Parliament for its support on the Pilot Project and underlined that a lot of effort and intensive work done by both from the Commission and the EDA, to make the Pilot Project work. He also explained that there is still a long way ahead for EU funded defence research and that "the Commission, in accordance with its institutional role and in full compliance with the EU legal context, is ready to work on defining the optimal framework and overseeing the implementation of the defence research priorities set by the Member States."

EDA Chief Executive Jorge Domecq said: “Today’s signing marks an important milestone and opens a new chapter in the way defence research is funded in Europe. The European Parliament, the European Commission and the EDA have worked together, hand in hand, to set up this Pilot Project which is an important test bed for more defence research funded from the EU budget in the future”.

He particularly thanked German MEP Michael Gahler and other members of the European Parliament’s SEDE committee whose relentless efforts back in 2014 resulted in the EP earmarking funding for an EU Pilot Project in the field of defence research for the first time ever. “The EDA is now looking forward to advancing the activities and making the Pilot Project a success”.

Mr Domecq stressed the “additional boost” EU funding possibilities, such as the Pilot Project and the upcoming Preparatory Action, will give to defence R&T by complementing national research programmes and existing cooperative funding schemes. “Using the EU budget for funding defence R&T will help to generate critical mass, to network European research entities and to increase interoperability and standards. The Pilot Project has already shown to what extent EU funding in conjunction with priorities set by Member States at intergovernmental level can be a powerful catalyst to attract Primes and SMEs, Research Centers and Academia, from big and small Member States. Research in defence also has concrete and profitable spill-over effects for everyday life”, he said. “R&T is not nice-to-have. It is an essential prerequisite to develop the required defence capabilities of the future and thus to provide for our citizen’s security”, the EDA Chief Executive concluded.
 

EDA call for proposal

The three activities were selected following an EU-wide call for proposals organized by the EDA between 23 March and 23 June 2016. They cover the following topics:
 

• Inside Building Awareness and Navigation for Urban Warfare (SPIDER) - Grant: €433.225

 The objective of this activity is to provide a proof of concept for an innovative system to improve soldiers’ inside building awareness by introducing into buildings miniaturized sensors which can move and change position to provide better coverage and improved performance. The activity will analyse the possibilities that new technologies and pioneering concepts provide to this aim. The proposed system will be composed by two distinct sensor subsystems: a static outdoor subsystem (a network of radiofrequency sensors that can recognize humans inside the building) and a mobile indoor subsystem which will be based on mobile robots capable of sensing the interior of the building using video camera and range-finding sensors such as depth sensors. The robots will be controlled by operators through a secure communication system. A separate station will receive all information obtained by both outdoor and indoor sensors to reconstruct an indoor map of the building. By visualizing the indoor map, the soldiers will have a crucial awareness enabling them to safely navigate inside the building. The system will be designed to be highly robust to endure operation in hostile environments.

This activity was won by a consortium led by TEKEVER, a Portuguese technology company, and composed of IT Aveiro - Instituto de Telecomunicações (Portugal), Aralia (Spain) and the Bulgarian Defence Institute (BDI).
 

• Standardisation of Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS) Detect and Avoid (TRAWA) - Grant: €433.292

 The aim of this activity is to contribute to the development of standards for a performant and affordable detect and avoid (DAA) system usable on-board Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS). In concrete terms, it will specify ‘well clear’ boundaries in exact terms so that specifications for DAA technical systems can be derived from them. It will also develop requirements for remote pilot HMI (Human Machine Interface) characteristics. In addition, a method will be provided through which it can be identified which RPAS types can be integrated into airspace together with other aircraft categories, and vice versa, given their DAA technology capabilities. The proposed solution will be complementary with on-going European activities of the European Organisation for Civil Aviation Equipment (EUROCAE), Eurocontrol and the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) in this field. It will in particular follow the EUROCAE ED78a standardisation process. The activity is an enabler for the widespread use of RPAS in non-segregated airspace in Europe because it supports the development of standards for the certification of DAA solutions and helps to identify technology capabilities which need to be developed by the European defence industry.

This activity was won by a consortium led by the Netherlands Aerospace Center (NLR) with the following partners: the German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt, DLR), Deep Blue (Italy), Tony Henley Consulting (UK) and EuroUSC (Italy).
 

• Unmanned Heterogeneous Swarm of Sensor Platforms (EuroSWARM) - Grant: €434.000

This activity will demonstrate, through a live experimentation, that typical military missions and tasks can be performed in exemplary scenarios by an unmanned, autonomous and heterogeneous ‘swarm’ system of systems, using emerging enabling technologies.

EuroSWARM’s main objectives are: - to develop key techniques for adaptive, informative and reconfigurable operations of unmanned heterogeneous swarm systems, namely: optimal task allocation and resource management; sensor fusion, cooperative guidance, robust sensor network; - to integrate the developed enabling techniques; - to validate the developed enabling techniques based on empirical simulation studies; - to demonstrate the proposed solutions based on a small scale of experiments.    

The activity is expected to deliver a control & command architecture for autonomous and heterogeneous swarms of sensors. The architecture will host a wide variety of piloted and autonomous swarm elements, such as unmanned air/ground/naval platforms, steerable mast, unattended remote-controlled sensors, protective devices (laser, jammer, smoke generators etc.). Any kind of weaponry is excluded from the system. Using static/mobile sensors and vehicles in an unmanned swarm-based autonomous system such as EuroSWARM can become a pilot for large scale usage to deal with critical European and global challenges such as border control or surveillance-security.

The activity was won by a consortium led by the University of Cranfield (UK) which also includes the French aerospace research agency ONERA (Office National d'Etudes et de Recherches Aérospatiales), the Swedish Defence Research Agency FOI and the University of Patras (Greece).    
 

Pilot Project implementation

The signing of the grant agreements fires the starting shot for the implementation phase of the three activities as off 1 November 2016. SPIDER and EuroSWARM will be delivered after 12 months (November 2017) while TRAWA will run for 18 months (May 2018).

The Pilot Project is run and managed by the EDA on behalf of the European Commission based on a delegation agreement signed between the Agency and the Commission in November 2015. As a result, the EDA is responsible for the project’s implementation and management.
 

More information:

• Details on the three projects (Pilot Project call for proposals)
• Factsheet ‘Preparatory Action for CSDP-related research’

 

On 25 October, EDA Chief Executive Jorge Domecq participated in the opening ceremony of the IAWS 2016 workshop organized by the Counter Improvised Explosive Devices Centre of Excellence (C-IED COE) at the Guardia Civil Officers Academy in Aranjuez/Madrid, Spain. At this occasion, he stressed the important work done so far by the EDA on C-IED and called for increased cooperation between institutions and stakeholders on this crucial issue.

The European Defence Agency is involved in countering IED since the very beginning because C-IEDs has been one of the Capability Development Plan (CDP) priorities almost since the launch of the EDA CDP process itself, Mr Domecq recalled in his speech.

In 2010, the Agency invested one million euros to establish a Counter IED exploitation deployable laboratory. That initiative grew into the Multinational Technical Exploitation Laboratory - or MNTEL - which was successfully deployed to Afghanistan from 2011 to July 2014. MNTEL subsequently led to the establishment of the Joint Deployable Exploitation and Analysis Laboratory (JDEAL) – a capability which presents a real opportunity to tackle technical exploitation in general, and exploitation of Improvised Explosive Devices in particular.

“The pressing operational need to Counter IEDs has been a major driver for these developments. EDA’s projects have aimed to generate exploitation capabilities that directly improve the understanding, identification and exposure of threat networks. And they were successful”, Mr Domecq stressed. In August 2016, a full exploitation deployable capability was deployed to the multinational exercise ‘Bison Counter 2016’.

 

Cooperation is key

To be even more effective in the future, stakeholders have to cooperate and share their knowledge and expertise, Mr Domecq insisted. “We, at the EDA, demonstrated our openness to cooperation very clearly when we signed a successful and productive Cooperation Framework Agreement with the Centre of Excellence C-IED in Madrid. C-IED demands a strong Interagency approach, as do exploitation issues. This agreement has definitely paved the way for others to come. Just opening new lines of action and cooperating with stakeholders enables Institutions to work better and faster together, and of course to broaden the scope for further opportunities”.

The EDA Chief Executive added: “We are strong proponents of developing exploitation capabilities and so is NATO. At the end of the day, Member States and Allies each have one set of forces to deploy and protect, be it for national or EU or NATO or UN engagements. Hence we will continue our close staff-to-staff discussion on what we are currently doing on exploitation and our future intentions. Sharing in certain domains - such as the recent NATO C-IED Task Force meeting - is of enormous benefit to our on-going activities, and also helps avoid duplication of effort”.

“Exploitation disciplines should no longer be a national secret. Proficiency in this domain needs to be improved, shared and deployed by organizations and nations – to fail to do so leaves the door open for those who wish to do us harm. In this respect EDA is delivering capabilities and providing options to strengthen cooperation between MS as well as between all relevant stakeholders. Exchange of experts and training capabilities must underpin the fight against insurgent networks and hybrid hazards and this event provides the best avenue to do so”, he concluded.

 

Background

The IAWS2016 is a 3-day event to discuss about the current situation and the future initiatives on the use of exploitation as an essential tool to counter threat networks that employ or facilitate IEDs.

The general objective for the IAWS 2016 is to promote and enhance interagency cooperation among military, law enforcement and civil organizations and agencies, at both national and international levels, in order to better counter the threat networks that facilitate and employ IEDs.

The IAWS 2016 addresses the current IED threat situation, with a special focus on sensitive areas for NATO and its partners. Exploitation will also be tackled, from a twofold point of view: currently existing exploitation capabilities in the military as well as in the law enforcement, and exploitation-related, capacity-building initiatives in partner countries and possible ways ahead and standards.

More information:

• Counter-IED (EDA project page)
• J-DEAL (EDA project page)
• First deployment of the Joint Deployable Exploitation and Analysis Laboratory (JDEAL)
• Bison Counter 2016 successfully closed (EDA webnews August 2016)

After two intense months of training, the 4th EDA Helicopter Tactics Instructors Course (HTIC), which had kicked off mid-August at RAF Linton-on-Ouse in the North of England, was officially completed on 9 October at Vidsel Airbase in Northern Sweden.

Involving helicopters and aircrew from Sweden, Germany, the United Kingdom and Austria, the course was branded by experienced participants as the ‘most challenging yet’ in terms of adverse weather conditions, aircraft unserviceability and a particularly intense flying programme. Ten instructors managed to graduate with a Silver and eight with a Bronze Level; they are now fully ready and prepared to complete the course in 2017.

After threat briefs and lectures from Air Battle Space Management, the course started with a simulation phase covering all aspects of tactical formation, evasion training and electronic warfare. It culminated in a complex simulated sortie requiring detailed planning and the ability to complete a task in a hostile and contested environment. All trainees reached the required standard that allowed them to move on to the next level: the live flying phase which took place in the Vidsel Test range in Northern Sweden.

During that live flying training in Sweden, HTIC staff was complemented by operations & logistics staff from the Swedish Air Force as well as from the UK. Having such a strong team proved vital in the two weeks that followed when course participants had to cope with very poor weather conditions, unserviceable aircraft and sick aircrew. Despite the flying programme changing constantly, the high degree of flexibility provided by the team made it possible that sorties were still manageable and successfully achieved under testing conditions.

When the weather started to improve, participants had to conduct two sorties every day to make up the delay caused by the earlier bad weather. Most sorties were completed to a satisfactory level meaning that all participants were allowed to move ahead to the Composite Air Operations (COMAO) phase which all completed successfully.

 

More information:

• Third Helicopter Tactics Instructors Course successfully accomplished (webnews, November 2015)
• Helicopter Initiatives (EDA project page)

 

EDA National Armaments Directors (NADs) met on 19 October at the European Defence Agency for their biannual Steering Board meeting under the chairmanship of Czech Deputy Minister of Defence, Daniel Kostoval.

EDA Chief Executive Jorge Domecq updated NADs on progress made in key defence-related dossiers, including the EU Global Strategy Implementation Plan on European Security and Defence, the Policy Framework for Systematic and Long-Term Defence Cooperation, the Pilot Project on defence research, the Preparatory Action on CSDP-related research as well as the EDA strategic review process.

Lead nations also briefed participants on the status of the four key capability programmes: Air-to-Air Refuelling (AAR), cyber defence, GovSatCom, and RPAS.

NADs then discussed a wide variety of topics, including industry involvement in defence cooperation, the Collaborative Database (CODABA), the ongoing work on the setting up of a Cooperative Financial Mechanism, energy and environmental implications for the defence sector and EDA-Nato cooperation.  

EDA Chief Executive Jorge Domecq today (18 October) visited the Euronaval exhibition in Paris where he had a range of bilateral meetings with industry leaders. He also participated in a panel discussion organized by GICAN (Groupement des Industries de Construction et Activités Navales) on the “The future of naval warfare: high-end operations”.

In his panel intervention, Mr Domecq called for more cooperation between Member States on European programs and the development of the next generation of platforms.
“The current scattered approach is ultimately putting at risk the very survival of our naval industry (…) European navies operate 20 different types of frigate, four different types of aircraft carrier, and multiple types of support ships and MCM Vessels. This situation is no longer affordable”, he said.

“There is no need to develop a ‘one size fits all’ solution. But we do need a full, frank, fair and mutual analysis of common gaps, common requirements and respective investments made at national and multinational level by Member States, including on high-end capabilities”, the EDA Chief said.

He called on Member States that face similar regional or procurement challenges to agree on common platforms with an open architecture approach for subsystems. “And I would like to encourage industrial stakeholders not to be afraid about competition nor about possible European consolidation”, he stated.

 

EDA tools available

Tools developed within EDA like the Collaborative Database are unique instruments to identify the business case for cooperative capability developments.

45 collaborative opportunities for naval platforms have already been identified such as ‘surface combatants’, ‘submarines’, ‘maritime patrol vessels’ or ‘auxiliary ships for logistics support’ but also specific naval assets such as ‘maritime patrol aircraft’ and ‘naval helicopters’ or capabilities like ‘naval radars’, ‘sonars’, ‘naval air and missile defence’ and ‘ship protection’.

In particular, the capability of replenishment at sea and logistic support are essential. Many of the Member States share a common need for improved endurance at sea. “Applying a model like the European Air Transport Command (ETAC) can be of interest”, Mr Domecq said.

 

Increased R&T needed

Mr Domecq also said that European naval forces have probably never been confronted with security challenges as big as today, ranging from territorial protection to dealing with refugee crises and combatting criminal trafficking networks in the Mediterranean and the Aegean Sea.

He recalled that the recent EU Global Strategy explicitly highlights the importance of maritime security which will also be part of the upcoming revision of the Capability Development Plan (CDP) for which the EDA will seek a mandate by Defence Ministers in November.

Regarding the CDP revision, Mr Domecq insisted on the need to ensure strong interaction between the naval industry and research and technologies (R&T) community. “These efforts have to lead to an increased R&T commitment, either on an intergovernmental level through the European Defence Agency or on the basis of the future Preparatory Action and the European Defence Research Programme (EDRP). It’s paramount that we push ahead with innovation on disruptive technologies”, the EDA Chief Executive said.

 

More information:

• EU naval industry in good shape but more R&T investment needed, study says (EDA webnews, October 2016)
• Unmanned Maritime Systems Conference (EDA webnews November 2015)
• Unmanned Maritime Systems (UMS) research (EDA project page)
• Key Industrial Capabilities - Naval Domain (EDA project page)

The EDA is now inviting participants to the third conference of the Consultation Forum for Sustainable Energy in the Defence and Security Sector (CF SEDSS) which will take place from 22-24 November in Rome (Italy).

Building on the progress made during the previous conferences, experts from national administrations, industry and academia are encouraged to continue to work in three parallel working groups: (1) Energy Management, (2) Energy Efficiency focusing on buildings, and (3) Renewable Energy.

The Conference will take place in the Hotel Roma Aurelia Antica, Rome.

Registration is open until 06 November 2016. After which, registration will be permitted for conference attendance, but accommodation at the conference facility may not be available.

For more information and registration, please click here.

 

Background

• Second meeting of the Consultation Forum for Sustainable Energy in Defence opens in Dublin (EDA webnews June 2016)
• Energy and Environment Programme (EDA project page)

 

 

On 17 October, the Protection of Critical Energy Infrastructures (PCEI) expert group, established in May of this year, met at the EDA under the chairmanship of the Hellenic Ministry of National Defence. The Ministries of Defence (MoDs) of Cyprus and Greece offered to take the lead on this project within the framework of the EDA.

Colonel Georgios Drosos, Head of the Infrastructure & Environment Department of the Hellenic MoD, was appointed as the group chairman. He stressed that the group’s main objective was “to assess how EU legislation on the Protection of European Critical Energy Infrastructure can be applied by the defence sector in a holistic way”.

Each and every part of defence critical infrastructure needs to be protected appropriately to ensure that the overall energy supply chain can function properly. As Colonel Drosos said, maintaining and improving regional energy security and sustainability within the EU will contribute to achieving this goal. The expert group’s chairman also stressed that possible shortfalls can be addressed by developing “projects of common interest for the defence sector”.

 

Collaboration between defence and research

To promote joint efforts and scientific collaboration between the defence sector and the research community, Professor Athanasios Konstandopoulos, chairman of the board of the Centre for Research and Technology Hellas (CERTH) was appointed as the co-chairman of the group. Professor Konstandopoulos pointed out that “the task of securing Energy Strategic Autonomy in a highly connected world presents challenges and creates opportunities for strengthening collaboration between the research community and the defence sector”. He called on stakeholders “to face the challenges and exploit the opportunities.”

To accomplish its goals, the PCEI expert group will use the expertise of EDA Member States’ Ministries of Defence, national academic and research centres as well as EDA’s partners: the European Commission DG ENERGY, Joint Research Centre, and the NATO Energy Security Centre of Excellence.

Air Commodore Peter Round, EDA Capability Armaments and Technology (CAT) Director, stated that “EDA aims through the PCEI Experts Group to identify common capability and research shortfalls and to address them collectively to help to achieve resilience of Armed Forces in Europe.”

Denis Roger, EDA European Synergies and Innovation (ESI) Director, emphasized that “in times of crises, it is imperative to ensure the continued availability of secure and sustainable energy supplies and we are glad that EDA can contribute to this vital work by exploring the defence element of critical energy infrastructure.”

The PCEI expert group is supported within EDA at an inter-directorate level (CAT and ESI) by CAT Project Officer Protect, Constantinos Hadjisavvas, and ESI Project Officer Energy and Environment Systems, Richard Brewin.

 

Way Ahead

The next PCEI experts group meetings will be hosted by Cyprus in January 2017 and by Greece in March 2017. The meetings will be open to all the participating Member States of the Agency, the Agency’s partners as well as other international organisations.

 

Background

Securing Energy Strategic Autonomy for European Defence (SESAED) is becoming more vital than ever for national and international security and economic prosperity due to the increased number of terrorist attacks, and the emerging threats from hybrid and asymmetrical warfare as well as vulnerability to the impacts of climate change and natural hazards across Europe.

Hence, Protection of Critical Energy Infrastructures was identified as one of the component areas to be examined as part of the Consultation Forum for Sustainable Energy in the Defence and Security Sector (CF SEDSS) which was jointly launched by the European Defence Agency (EDA) and the European Commission in October 2015.

In May 2016, the PCEI Experts Group was established to explore PCEI further from a defence point of view. The Cypriot and the Hellenic Ministries of Defence (MoDs) offered to take the lead on this project within the framework of EDA. In this effort academic and research support is provided by the KIOS Research Center, the Cyprus University of Technology, the European University Cyprus, the Centre for Research & Technology, Hellas CERTH and the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA).

 

More information :

• Energy and Environment Programme (EDA project page)
• Second meeting of the Consultation Forum for Sustainable Energy in Defence opens in Dublin (EDA webnews)

Francisco González Mené and Dušan Švarc, EDA's two recently appointed SME Senior Advisers, participated in their first Member States’ SME Point of Contacts (PoCs) meeting this Thursday 13 October at the Agency premises in Brussels.

The meeting was mainly devoted to taking stock of the implementation of the 2016 priorities of the EDA SME Action Plan and the results of the EDA exploratory study on SMEs. Participants also discussed the progress report on the implementation of the ‘Guidelines for facilitating SME’s access to the defence market’ and EDA future work to support SMEs accessing COSME opportunities.

Both advisors expressed satisfaction about the outcome of their first SME PoCs meeting. "I was impressed by the hands on approach taken by EDA to provide concrete and practical support to defence-related SMEs so that they can access EU funding", said Dušan Švarc. In his view, "the key for EDA's future work in this domain will be to simplify ways, means and procedures for SMEs to benefit from EU funding and other forms of support". Francisco González Mené said he appreciated the increasing role played by the EDA in supporting the development of defence-related SMEs.

It was agreed that at the next SME PoCs network meeting scheduled for spring 2017, the two EDA SME Advisors would share with the group first ideas on how to support defence-related SMEs even better in the future.

 

Exploring new ideas and initiatives in support of SME

The appointment of the two SME Senior Advisers was identified in the EDA SME Action Plan, approved by the March 2013 Steering Board, as one of many means to promote defence-related SMEs. Following a call for expression of interest and a selection process, Mr Francisco González Mené (Spanish) and Mr Dušan Švarc (Czech) were appointed in summer 2016.

Their main role is to provide strategic advice and support to the EDA top management on policies and actions regarding defence-related SMEs/clusters and to identify new potential ideas and concrete initiatives in support of the defence-related SMEs. Their mandate also included the assessment of ongoing EDA initiatives.

 

More information:

• CV of Mr Francisco González Mené
• CV of Mr Dušan Švarc
• EDA launches COSME platform for dual-use & defence SMEs
• 3 out of 3: another EDA supported dual-use R&T project is awarded ESIF funding
• Access to EU funding (EDA project page)
• First meeting with EDA SME Senior Advisers
• EDA and Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) cooperation yields first concrete results

Goods news from our shipyards: EU manufacturers of military vessels and submarines are doing well, especially on international markets where exports are booming. No reason though for the industry to rest on its laurels as it urgently needs to invest in research & technology (R&T) if it wants to stay at the top, as a recent study commissioned by the European Defence Agency (EDA) shows.

This article appeared in the EDA's European Defence Matters
magazine issue 11

Despite difficult conditions on a growingly turbulent global naval market – mainly caused by rising exports from Chinese, Russian and South Korean shipyards - Europe’s naval industry has managed to maintain its position as a highly competitive global player if not a world leader, notably thanks to its technological edge and strong exports, the EDA-commissioned “Study on Industrial and Technological Competences in the Naval Sector” concludes.

The study, which was carried out by a consortium in 2015 and early 2016 (see box below), confirms that European naval industries are very strong in their respective domestic European markets - but also in international markets such as the Middle East, Africa, Asia and Latin America which all devote growing budgets to defence and often have no meaningful indigenous naval industry. Also due to decreasing defence budgets in Europe (at least over the past decade, whereas the trend has now started to reverse), export markets nowadays account for 42% of the European naval order book value.

 

Healthy successful industrial base, but...

Another positive characteristic of the European naval industry, according to the study, is its ability to design, integrate and produce the whole range of naval ships and almost the totality of its core systems and components. “Considering the complexity and sophistication of the products designed and built by these companies, they can be regarded as ‘system integrators’, dismissing once forever the old image of shipbuilders as mere assemblers of steel blocks”, it says.
The European naval industry’s supply chain is also considered both diverse and complete with no area in which a monopoly exists. Most importantly (with regard to Europe’s strategic autonomy in defence) there are European alternative suppliers and replacement options in place for all systems/components currently procured from outside Europe.

Business diversification is another trump card played by the European naval industry. The majority of the naval players are also successful players in the high-end segments of merchant shipbuilding (e.g. cruise ships and mega-yachts) and in the related maritime activities (e.g. offshore and marine renewable energies). “This diversification strategy has created a favourable cross-fertilization between civil and military technologies (dual-use technologies), both at the Prime Contractors and at the Supply-Chain levels, leading to cost-effective designs and solutions”, the study says.

The study’s overall conclusion could hardly be more encouraging: “The European Naval Industrial Base today is made up of healthy, capable, diversified and successful export-oriented companies”.

 

… more R&T investments needed

However, all forecasts in the study are not entirely rosy. The study also warns that some threats stemming from non-European competitors are on the horizon such as fierce price competition from non-EU countries, especially China, South Korea and Russia. Countries which very actively support their naval industries “as an act both of foreign and industrial policy”.

According to the study, the best way to counter this threat is by maintaining Europe’s technological lead at the Prime/System Integrators level as well as across the full supply chain “through increased, more supported, more coordinated and more focused investments in Research, Development and Innovation (RDI) at national and European level”. In order to increase intra-EU cooperation in the naval defence and security domain, a dedicated area for naval related research should be secured within the next multi-annual Framework for Research, Development and Innovation starting in 2021, the study recommends: “This is essential to the long-term sustainability of the European naval industry”.

The European Commission’s upcoming Preparatory Action (PA) on defence-related research and the Defence Action Plan (scheduled for later this year) could also play a key role as political frameworks to increase the resources devoted to defence research activities, including in the naval domain, the study concludes. “Here, a distinct role of overall coordinator is foreseen and advocated for the EDA”, it says. The study also pleads for a regular exchange of ideas between the EDA and the major players in the naval shipbuilding sector in order to better coordinate and integrate the objectives of the future R&T programmes in this field.

Finally, the study has also led to a list of technologies considered of “primary importance” both to maintain the European competitiveness and technological lead and to ensure the required level of operational superiority. In total 13 high priority topics and 4 new items were identified.

The high priority list includes surface technologies topics (virtual ships, simulation, maintenance, oceanography, environmental protection, supply & support), subsea technologies (hydrodynamics and UxV integration, modularity, UxV integration, vulnerability reduction, propulsor) as well as services and transversal technologies (uninhabited systems, propulsor & propellers).

The identified new R&T topics to be focussed on in the future are 3D printing, high capacity batteries, augmented reality and drones.

 

About the study:

With the adoption of the EU Maritime Security Strategy in 2014 which also encompasses defence-related aspects through its CSDP dimension, the maritime domain has gained renewed focus at EU level. The ability for European nations to implement such a strategy will depend on both the availability of required capabilities for both civilian missions and military operations, and the existence of a competent and competitive naval industrial base. Therefore, in 2015, the EDA commissioned this study – which was conducted by a consortium of Sea Europe (lead partner), Damen, DCNS, Fincantieri, Navantia and TKMS - to acquire a comprehensive picture of the European Naval Technological and Industrial base and its technological priorities.

 

More information:

• Unmanned Maritime Systems (UMS) research (EDA project page)
• Maritime Mine Counter Measures - New Generation (EDA project page)
• Modular Lightweight Minesweeping (EDA project page)

Hosted by the National Aviation Authority of Portugal (Autoridade Aeronáutica Nacional, AAN), the Annual Military Airworthiness Conference kicked off in Lisbon this Wednesday with keynote speeches delivered by EDA Chief Executive Jorge Domecq and General Manuel Teixeira Rolo of AAN.

The two-day event (5/6 October) brings together key stakeholders from national authorities, industry, European agencies, NATO and international organisations for presentations and discussions on a variety of topics related to harmonization of military airworthiness requirements , implementation experiences and integration into a global context.

In his speech, Mr Domecq stressed that standardisation, including in the area of airworthiness requirements, was a "key enabler" for the implementation of the EU Global Strategy. "The application of common standards and recommended best practice is a key enabler for defence cooperation and helps strengthen the European Defence Technological and Industrial base. Most importantly, from a defence perspective, such standardisation would support effective cooperation and improve interoperability", he said. 

He also recalled that since the establishment of the Military Airworthiness Authorities (MAWA) Forum, a lot of work has been done particularly in the area of European Military Airworthiness Requirements, the EMARs. “With the EMARs that are now developed, nations have created a baseline for a common approach to processes like certification, organisational approvals and the preservation of airworthiness”. However, “a real common approach can only be established if EMARs are also implemented in a uniform way, which is a national responsibility of the Member States”, he stressed.

Based on an earlier EDA funded study by Eurocopter, it is estimated that the adoption by Member States of optimised and harmonised military airworthiness regulations through the European Military Airworthiness Requirements would deliver a reduction of up to 50% of the development time and at least 10% of development costs up to initial-type certification. Significant further cost savings could also be achieved during the in-service phase.
 

Positive trend

Currently, the status of implementation of the EMARs varies from nation to nation, and at this stage the application is still mostly limited to some multinational aircraft programmes like A400M. “That said, there are signs that things are moving in the right direction. For example, NAHEMA has decided to use EMARs for the certification framework of its NH90 programme. And the participating nations in the MRTT programme will make use of the EMARs to benefit from a common approach”, Mr Domecq said. In the next years, the focus should be on the standardisation of how the Member States ensure and preserve their military airworthiness, Mr Domecq said.

The ultimate outcome Member States should aim for, he said, should include:

1. a single certification approach for multinational programmes, which would result in less development costs and optimised use of certification resources;

2. the development and application of common agreed industrial standards which would strengthen the position of the European defence industry in the global market;

3. optimised pooling and sharing of spare parts and maintenance resources within a single regulatory and oversight system (of key interest in relation to civil-derivative aircraft, but also with regard to military platforms such as A400M, Eurofighter, NH90 and others);

4. optimised use of oversight resources by collaboration in oversight obligations;

5. minimised gaps or differences between national regulatory and oversight systems, which would in turn minimise safety risks in multinational materiel cooperation programmes.

 

More information:

• EDA project page on European Military Airworthiness Authorities Forum (MAWA)
• MAWA Annual Conference 2015 

EDA’s Personnel Recovery Functional Area Service Advanced Technology Demonstrator (PR FAS ATD), a sophisticated information management and Command & Control (C2) tool recently developed within the European Defence Agency to increase the efficiency of personnel recovery actions during military operations and missions, has now started being used by Member States in national PR courses.

Poland broke the first ground with two national Personnel Recovery (PR) courses, one in May and the most recent one from 12-23 September at the National Defence University in Rembertów in which the PR FAS ATD was successfully deployed and used. Organised on a regular basis by the Personnel Recovery Branch of the Polish Armed Forces Operational Command (AFOC), these courses aim at familiarising Polish military staff with PR. More than 60 students were trained on how to collect information and plan the recovery of isolated personnel in challenging and realistic scenarios. EDA facilitated the on-site training of users and provided information and technical support. The demonstrator almost completely replaced the usual ‘table-top’ exercise.
 

Easy to handle

After the courses, students agreed that the demonstrator was easy to use and intuitive. They especially praised its accuracy and considered it an important step in the delivery of PR education and training. “I believe that PR FAS ATD is a very handy tool for exercise purposes and I liked using it” said Major Robert Kietliński, one of the trainees. “Although it is just a technical demonstrator, I can see its potential benefits for real-life missions”.

Lt. Col. Zbigniew Zblewski, the chief of the Polish Armed Forces Operational Command Personnel Recovery Branch, welcomed the new possibilities offered by the demonstrator as a “significant leap forward” in PR training. According to him, “it is time to use the demonstrator on a much wider scale and to introduce it to more students”. “Every piece of available information that matters for PR is centralized in a single tool, everything is stored within the system which is very convenient for students and future controllers alike”, he commented.

The National Defense University in Rembertów was also engaged in the project; its representatives noted that “PR FAS ATD is an important step towards modernizing Personnel Recovery and unifying this field of knowledge within the Polish Armed Forces”. Moreover, an evaluation of the course results showed that students with varying degrees of knowledge of PR consistently found the system to be user friendly and comprehensive; they also concluded that it had improved their knowledge of PR significantly.
 

Demonstrator ready for other deployments

PR FAS ATD is the latest operational output developed in the context of the EDA’s Project Team Personnel Recovery. The tool supports planners and controllers with a number of functionalities and improved situational awareness. While it is usually possible to use the demonstrator through a standard PR FAS physical workstation, an internet-based (on-line) solution was chosen for the Polish course with the connection of six different computers each running an independent system.

EDA has distributed the tool to all its participating Member States (pMS), the European Union Military Staff (EUMS) and the European Personnel Recovery Centre (EPRC). The Capability, Armament & Technology Director, Air Commodore Peter Round, underscored that” the EDA is always ready to provide deployment support and training”. The Agency is also working to address the various aspects of the through-life management of the tool to ensure its operational functionality in the long-term. “An important objective of the EDA is to support member states in the development of the capabilities required to effectively recover isolated personnel and save lives”, Pete Round stated.

 

More information:

• Polish MoD link to PR course
• EDA Personnel Recovery project page
• Hungary hosted EDA Personnel Recovery course (June 2016)

 

EDA Chief Executive Jorge Domecq held talks today (3 October) in Bucharest with Romanian Minister of Defence Mihnea Ioan Motoc. Romania’s participation in EDA projects, the Security & Defence Implementation Plan of the EU Global Strategy and the European Commission’s upcoming European Defence Action Plan were among the main topics on the agenda.

During the meeting, Mr Domecq welcomed Romania’s involvement in EDA projects and activities, for example: EU Satcom Market, the Joint Deployable Exploitation and Analysis Laboratory (JDEAL) project and the European Air Transport Fleet (EATF) programme. Romania was also the first contributing Member States to join the EDA’s ‘Sharing of Spare Parts’ project which allows it today to share military spare parts with eight other Member States who have also joined. The EDA is currently also providing technical assistance to three Romanian dual-use research project proposals as candidates for co-funding by the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF).
The upcoming Preparatory Action for CSDP-related research, to be launched in 2017, as well as the planned future European Defence Research Programme will open many interesting R&T opportunities, also for Romania, it was stressed at the meeting.
Mr Domecq commended Minister Motoc for Romania’s overall support to EDA and encouraged further engagement in the Agency’s work in the future.
“In the light of Romania's 10 year development plan in which it committed to devote 2% of GDP for defence expenditure, EDA is ready to provide all the necessary support as effectively and efficiently as possible, making use of opportunities for cooperation and the EU tools available in support of defence”, Mr Domecq stated.

Tailored approach for CEE countries

Mr Domecq recalled that EDA takes into account the ‘diversity’ of the European Defence Industrial and Technological Base and that it supports the Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries in the same way as it does the V4 or LoI countries.
Based on a specific CEE study which was commissioned by the EDA in 2015, the Agency is currently exploring a number of recommendations for providing more tailored expertise and support to CEE MoDs and industry, especially on defence industry policy and collaborative programmes.
As part of this effort, one idea is to try to identify a pilot collaborative programme which could be undertaken by interested CEE countries, enhancing interoperability among them. CEE countries are currently being consulted on these ideas. Mr Domecq encouraged Romania to participate and to take the lead in some areas.

Copyright picture: Romanian MoD

More information:

• EDA Chief Executive travels to Romania (EDA webnews April 2015)

On 30 September, EDA Chief Executive Jorge Domecq visited Greece for meetings with the Hellenic Minister of Defence, Panos Kammenos, the National Defence General Staff Admiral Evangelos Apostolakis HN, and other senior officials in the Ministries of National Defence and of Foreign Affairs. Mr Domecq also used the occasion for discussions with industry representatives.

Discussions with the Minister of Defence mainly focused on the implementation of the Global Strategy on Foreign and Security Policy which was published by the High Representative Federica Mogherini in June, with focus on EDA’s role on the implementation. The meeting also provided the opportunity to assess progress in a number of EDA projects in which Greece participates such as in the areas of maritime, energy efficiency, logistic support or cyber defence. Additionally, possible involvement in additional EDA initiatives were discussed.

This visit is a follow-up of meetings in Greece in spring 2015 and the Minister's visit to EDA last February.

Copyright picture: Greek MoD

More information:

• News "Jorge Domecq welcomes Greek Minister of Defence at EDA" (9 February 2016)
• News "EDA Chief Executive visits Athens" (22 April 2015)