Defence`s Feeds

Defence Ministers met today at EDA’s Ministerial Steering Board (in virtual format) under the chairmanship of the Head of the Agency, High Representative Josep Borrell.

Ministers were presented with the final report of the first cycle of the Coordinated Annual Review on Defence (CARD) developed by the European Defence Agency in close coordination with the European External Action Service (EEAS) and the EU Military Staff (EUMS)  over the past 12 months. The report, approved today by Ministers, draws for the first time a comprehensive picture of the European defence landscape based on information gathered by Member States on their national defence spending and capability development plans, and identifies more than 100 collaborative opportunities to be taken up by Member States in six main focus areas. 

The CARD is designed to serve as a pathfinder for new collaborative programmes and to lead over time to more synergies and increased coherence between Member States´ defence planning, spending and capability development, through cooperation. The findings and recommendations of the first CARD report can be found here. 
 

2021 Budget

Ministers adopted the proposal made by the Head of the Agency, Josep Borrell, setting the Agency’s 2021 general budget at €37.5 million. The budget reflects the continuous high demands on the Agency to support Member States in the development of defence capabilities as well as the implementation of EU defence initiatives such as CARD, the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) and the European Defence Fund (EDF).
 

Three-Year Planning Framework 

Ministers also approved EDA’s Three-Year Planning Framework (2021-2023) which provides a coherent and comprehensive overview of the Agency’s activities structured around the three chapters reflecting its core taskings: - prioritising and planning defence cooperation; - supporting technology and capability development; - facilitating the interface with wider EU policies. Each chapter of the Planning Framework elaborates on key activities which EDA is undertaking, providing an overview of the nature, scope and expected impact of the Agency’s activities in support of overarching policy objectives and the added value for Member States.
 

More information

• CARD Press Release (in different languages)
• CARD factsheet
• CARD summary report
• CARD video

 

The first ever overview of the European defence landscape, the Coordinated Annual Review on Defence (CARD) report, identifies significant avenues for European defence cooperation with 55 new opportunities for countries to develop defence capabilities together. It recommends six next generation high impact capabilities as focus areas for joint European development efforts. The review also finds that the European defence landscape is characterised by high levels of fragmentation and low investment in cooperation.

Americas

Bell Boeing won a maximum $36.5 million contract modification to extend the period of performance for delivery of V-22 spare consumable and depot-level repairable parts. The V-22 Osprey is a joint-service, medium-lift, multimission tilt-rotor aircraft developed by Boeing and Bell Helicopters. Boeing is responsible for the fuselage, landing gear, avionics, electrical and hydraulic systems, performance and flying qualities. The aircraft operates as a helicopter when taking off and landing vertically. The nacelles rotate 90° forward once airborne, converting the aircraft into a turboprop aircraft. Work will take place in Maryland, Texas and Pennsylvania. Estimated completion date is May 10, 2023.

The US Army will seek solicitations to build the Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle, a replacement for the Bradley Fighting Vehicle. A competitive request for proposals is expected to be released on or about Dec. 18, Brig. Gen. Ross Coffman, director of the Next Generation Combat Vehicles Cross-Functional Team, said this week. The vehicle’s name derives from one of the features demanded by the Army, which is its capability to engage in close combat and then be piloted remotely after troops disembark. The request for proposals will ask for concept designs, and up to five companies will be awarded contracts in June 2021, with a detailed design expected by early 2023, Coffman said.

Middle East & Africa

The final class of Afghan A-29 students pilots at Moody Air Force Base has graduated on November 13. Kelli Seybolt, deputy under secretary of the Air Force for international affairs said this group was one of the strongest classes in the program, which has saw more than 30 student pilots and 70 maintenance technicians graduating over the past five years.

A three-day exercise between Cyprus and Israel from November 17-19 saw Israeli F-35s flying over Limassol and Paphos to test the local air defense system. Exercise ONSHILOS-GEDEON takes place in the Nicosia FIR. The Cyprus-Israel joint three-day military exercise was completed with absolute success, the Defense Ministry said. The exercise falls under the Bilateral Defense Cooperation Program between the Republic of Cyprus and Israel. The purpose of the exercise was to bring personnel up to speed with tactics and developments in the air defence sector, to increase their combat capability, as well as to gain experience from cooperation with the IAF.

Europe

Germany’s defense minister, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, reinforced her position this week that Europe still depends on United States security guarantees. The United States will remain “the most important ally in security and defense policy,” Kramp-Karrenbauer said in a speech. “Without the nuclear and conventional capabilities of the US, Germany and Europe cannot protect themselves. These are the sobering facts.” Kramp-Karrenbauer reiterated the view that Europe needs US help “for the foreseeable future.” This followed French President Emmanuel Macron “profoundly” disagreeing in an interview on Monday, suggesting that European nations must increase their own defense abilities to earn US respect.

Asia-Pacific

India’s navy received its ninth P-8i surveillance aircraft on Wednesday, manufacturer Boeing Co. reported. The plane is the first delivered under an option contract, signed in 2016, for four additional aircraft, the remaining three of which are expected to arrive in 2021. The Indian navy was the first international customer to receive the plane, in 2013. The P-8i is modified from the Boeing 737-800ERX passenger plane and built originally for the US Navy. It is used in anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare and shipping interdiction roles. Armed with torpedoes, Harpoon anti-ship missiles and other weapons, it can drop and monitor sonobuoys, and can operate in combination with Northrop Grumman’s MQ-4C Triton maritime surveillance drone.

Today’s Video

Watch: India should Procure at-least 10 more P-8I | 9TH DELIVERED | 18 in plan

The F-5 flew for more than 170,000 hours and contributed to the training of over 1,000 fighter pilots. The Spanish Air Force (Ejército del Aire) reached the historic milestone of 50 years of service of [...]

The post The F-5 Freedom Fighter Reaches 50 Years Of Service In The Spanish Air Force appeared first on The Aviationist.

One of the Blue Angels “Legacy” F/A-18C Hornet has joined the collection of the National Air and Space Museum. On Nov. 18, 2020, an F/A-18C of the U.S. Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, piloted by Cmdr. [...]

The post First Blue Angels F/A-18C Has Arrived At The National Air and Space Museum’s Udvar-Hazy Center appeared first on The Aviationist.

Americas

Honeywell International won a $25.7 million deal for the manufacture of four parts associated with the wheels and brakes used in support of the F/A-18 aircraft.  This contract includes a three-year base period with no options. F/A-18 Hornet became the nation’s first all-weather fighter and attack aircraft, and was designed for traditional strike applications such as interdiction and close air support without compromising its fighter capabilities. The F/A-18 A-D is employed in Marine Corps fighter attack squadrons, US Navy and Marine Corps Reserve squadrons, the Navy Flight Demonstration Team (Blue Angles), and various other fleet support roles. F/A-18E/F Super Hornet entered fleet service in 1999, as the replacement for the F-14 Tomcat. The Super Hornet is the second major model upgrade since the inception of the F/A-18 aircraft program highly capable across the full mission spectrum: air superiority, fighter escort, reconnaissance, aerial refueling, close air support, air defense suppression and day/night precision strike. The single-seat F/A-18E and the two-seat F/A-18F are high performance, twin-engine, mid-wing, and multi-mission tactical aircraft designed to replace the F/A-18C (single-seat) and F/A-18D (two-seat) aircraft as they reach the end of their service lives and retire. Work will take place in Indiana and is expected to be finished by December 2023.

Testing of a new fan rotor design for the Pratt & Whitney F135 turbofan engine has resumed at Arnold Air Force Base. Being carried out at the J2 Engine Test Cell, work had started back in 2019 but put on pause as the cell required scheduled maintenance. “Test results to date have been positive and encouraging, and early results allowed us to complete an AMT (Accelerated Mission Test) with the same newly-designed rotor,” said 2nd Lt. Gregory Landrum, AEDC Jet Engine Test project manager.

Middle East & Africa

According to the Time of Israel, a program designed to teach newly discharged combat soldiers cybersecurity skills and help them find jobs as the coronavirus pandemic wreaks havoc on the economy has won an innovation award by the chief of staff of the Israeli Defense Forces. The six-month bootcamp, called Cyber4s, was developed by Scale-Up Velocity, a nonprofit organization that partners with tech firms and academic and training institutions to set up initiatives to help Israel’s tech industry tap into talented human capital.

Europe

Lithuania signed for four Sikorsky UH-60M Black Hawk transport and utility helicopters, the country’s Ministry of National Defence announced. The $213 million procurement, which will be paid off over five years, includes additional equipment, spares, and a training, repair, and logistical support package. The US government is providing $30 million to support the purchase, and has cleared the sale of a further two helicopters should the Lithuanian Armed Forces request them. News of the contract came four months after the US State Department approved the sale to Lithuania of six Black Hawks for $380 million.

Hungary has placed an order for two C-390 cargo planes with Embraer. The planes will be used for air-to-air refueling, tactical airlift and medical evacuation. Embraer says the delivery is to start in 2023. “Following the procurement of personnel air transport capabilities in 2018, we will see the arrival of KC-390 aircraft to Hungary in 2023-24, able to deliver large military loads in an operational environment, as well as providing air-to-air refueling services. We are acquiring a multi-role transport fleet for the Hungarian Defense Forces to fulfill the widest possible range of tasks within the national framework, in a sovereign way, ”said Gáspár Maróth, government commissioner responsible for defense development.

Asia-Pacific

According to news reports, the Japan Air Self Defense Force (JASDF) has assigned an officer to Vandenberg Air Force Base, California since October 15. The motive is to coordinate space surveillance between both countries. Japan is preparing to build its own space surveillance system by 2025.

Today’s Video

Watch: Embraer KC-390 Impressive Take off (Paris Air Show 2019)

At the initiative of the FEMM Committee, the European Parliament held its first ever European Gender Equality Week during the last week of October 2020.
2020 is a special year, marking the 25th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. This important milestone provides an excellent opportunity to discuss the achievements and future challenges for the advancement of girls' and women's rights and gender equality. Therefore, the European Parliament held for the first time its European Gender Equality Week, which gave much-needed input to the long lasting battle for women's empowerment and gender equality as well as more visibility and recognition to gender mainstreaming in all policy areas.

Many committees took part in the Gender Equality Week and organized events during the last days of October, while some others will look into gender mainstreaming aspects in their fields of competences later this year.

Please consult below the Programme and details of events happening during the European Gender Equality Week.

Location : European Parliament
Programme of the Gender Equality Week
Programme of Subsequent Events of the Gender Equality Week
Watch again the committee events
Public Hearing on "Trafficking in human beings" (Joint LIBE - FEMM) (26 October 2020)
Public Hearing on “Beating Breast Cancer: Challenges and opportunities” (BECA, in association with FEMM) (27 October 2020)
Public Hearing on "Women and digitalisation" (FEMM, in association with AIDA) (28 October 2020)
Presentation on "Placing care at the heart of the EU’s recovery efforts" (EMPL) (28 October 2020)
Public Hearing on "Women in Transport" (TRAN) (29 October 2020)
Exchange of views on the "UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security" (SEDE) (29 October 2020)
Presentation of the Gender Equality Index 2020 (FEMM) (29 October 2020)
EP Research Service Topical Digest on "Gender Equality - A review in progress"
Gender Equality week - Presentation video
Communication
     Press release: "Parliament launches its first European Gender Equality Week"
     #EPGenderEqualityWeek on Twitter
     #EPGenderEqualityWeek on Facebook
     Speech of David Sassoli, President of the European Parliament
Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

Americas

L-3 Communications won a $38 million contract modification for contractor logistics support of the Air Force C-12 fleet. Originally developed by Beechcraft, the Raytheon C-12 is a short-range personnel and cargo lift aircraft for the US military. Powered by two Pratt & Whitney turboprop engines, the low-wing, all-metal aircraft is the military version of the civilian Super King Air 200 aircraft. The pressurized cabin is capable of an altitude of 35,000 feet and can be reconfigured to accommodate a mix of passengers, and cargo. The first C-12s were fielded to the US Army in 1974 and the aircraft has undergone a series of upgrades since then. Work will take place in Mississippi, Texas, Oklahoma, Argentina, Brazil, Turkey, California, Colombia, Egypt, Ghana, Honduras, Hungary, Maryland, Kenya, Morocco, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Thailand. Work is expected to be finished by December 31, 2021.

The Defense Department has a four-month supply of personal protective equipment as it anticipates an increase in COVID-19 cases, a statement released. The supplies include respirators, gloves and masks for use by military personnel and families, and was purchased and stockpiled by the Defense Logistics Agency. Much of it will be used for patient care at medical treatment facilities worldwide. The increase in supplies comes as the number of COVID-19 infections has risen sharply in the United States since September. On Monday, the Defense Department reported a total of 99,389 infections and 113 deaths among its military and civilian personnel, dependents and contractors. Last week it announced the award of a $6.18 million contract to Illinois-based Medline Industries Inc. to increase domestic production capacity of surgical masks.

Middle East & Africa

A detachment of US Air Force F-16 fighter planes moved from Germany to the United Arab Emirates, the US Central Command announced. Planes of the 480th Fighter Squadron, 52nd Fighter Wing, deployed at Spangdahlem Air Base, arrived last week at Al Dhafra Air Base, UAE, the command said. Although CENTCOM did not offer specific information about the move, the UAE base has been the center of operations for planes patrolling the Persian Gulf to monitor activities by Iran’s military.

Europe

The French Defense Ministry seeks a drone capable of intercepting radio communications transmitters, a request for proposal indicates. A “call for projects for a mini-payload of electronic support on drones” was revealed by France’s Defense Innovation Agency for “an electronic support payload that can be integrated into drones with a maximum take-off mass of less than” 55 pounds. “This payload must be able to detect, locate, identify or even interact with or block telecommunications transmitters,” the agency said in a press release.

Asia-Pacific

Lockheed Martin won a $12 million contract modification, which provides continued support required to establish the common reprogramming tool development network and selection of a service-oriented architecture for the development of enhanced reprogramming tools, which is essential for all standing labs in support of the F-35 aircraft for the Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and the governments of Australia and Great Britain. The F-35 is an American family of single-seat, single-engine, all-weather that is intended to perform both air superiority and strike missions. Work will take place in Texas and Florida. Estimated completion is in December 2021.

Complaints from local residents in South Korea has forced US Forces Korea (USFK) to cancel a live-firing exercise for its attack helicopters on November 16. The training was supposed to be conducted at the range in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province. The helicopters had moved there for their training after the traditional training ground at Rodriguez Live Fire Complex in Pocheon, Gyeonggi Province was abandoned earlier this year, due to noise complaints as well.

Today’s Video

Watch: The C-12 Variants for U.S Army

What Are Bump Helmets?

 

Americas

General Dynamics won a $23.1 million deal for additional fiscal 2021 development studies, design efforts and material for Virginia Class submarines. The contract modification provides additional development studies and design efforts related to Virginia Class submarine design and design improvements. The contractor will continue development studies, design efforts and procurement of material required to fully evaluate new technologies for Virginia Class submarines. The Virginia Class attack submarine is an advanced stealth multimission nuclear-powered submarine for deep ocean anti-submarine warfare and littoral (shallow water) operations. The US Navy awarded several modification contracts to General Dynamics Electric Boat over the years in support of the Virginia-Class attack submarine programme.

Rockwell Collins Simulation won a $19.6 million modification, which is for the production and delivery of one 2F211 S/N 5 aircrew procedures trainer device, associated technical data and proposal preparation in support of the E-2D Hawkeye Integrated Training System program. The E-2D Advanced Hawkeye is the latest version of the Hawkeye early warning aircraft and features a new radar system. It brings new capabilities including the new and powerful AN/APY-9 radar, which is a two-generational leap in technology. The APY-9 radar is an Ultra High Frequency (UHF) surveillance system that provides both mechanical and electronic scanning capabilities designed to “see” smaller targets as well as more of them at a greater range, particularly in coastal regions and over land.

Middle East & Africa

MD Helicopters won a $34 million contract modification for logistics support for the Afghanistan Air Force MD-530F aircraft fleet. The MD-530F is an evolution of the fabled OH-6 Cayuse light observation helicopter, known for speed, safety, agility and the ability to operate with ease in confined spaces, the Armed MD-530F Light Scout Attack Helicopter delivers increased operational capabilities, greater mission versatility and superior performance in the execution of a broad range of mission profiles. Work will take place in Arizona and Afghanistan. Estimated completion date is May 31, 2021.

Europe

Raytheon won a $51.1 million contract modification for the Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) production program. This modification provides for the procurement and upgrade of test environment/equipment for AMRAAM production capacity. The AIM-120 advanced medium-range air-to-air missile (AMRAAM) is a new generation all-weather, missile manufactured by Raytheon. The AMRAAM has been delivered to more than 36 countries. This contract involves Foreign Military Sales to Norway, Denmark, Australia, United Kingdom, Japan, Slovakia, Poland, Netherlands, Kuwait, Qatar and Spain.  Work will take place in Arizona. Expected completion is in January 2025.

The Charles Stark Draper Laboratory won a $133.5 million modification to provide research into the applications of technologies to meet guidance requirements for operations on the Common Missile Compartment for the US Columbia Class program and the United Kingdom Dreadnought Class program; provide specialized technical knowledge and support for the hypersonic guidance, navigation and control application; and provide technical and engineering services to support the guidance, navigation and control system that will support the Navy’s hypersonic flight experiments. The Columbia Class is an upcoming class of nuclear submarines. The Columbia SSBN program consists of a minimum of 12 submarines to meet the requirements for U.S. strategic deterrent force structure as set forth in the 2018 Nuclear Posture Review. The Columbia Class program completed Acquisition Milestone B on January 4, 2017 and is in the Engineering and Manufacturing Development Phase. The British Navy has also planned to acquire Columbia-class submarine under the name of Dreadnought-class SSBN. This submarine will be armed with eight D-5 SLBMs, or half the number to be carried by the Columbia class. The modular design of the CMC (Common Missile Compartment) will accommodate this difference. The UK provided some of the funding for the design of the CMC, including a large portion of the initial funding. Work will take place in Massachusetts and California. Estimated completion date is September 30, 2021.

Asia-Pacific

VAQ-131 has completed its first expeditionary deployment at NAF Misawa, Japan on November 6 and was relieved by VAQ-135. That was the unit’s first expeditionary deployment. But due to COVID-19, the EA-18Gs did not detach to any other places. As an expeditionary squadron, VAQ-131 deploys their EA-18G Growlers to air bases worldwide and fluidly integrates with US Air Force and foreign entities. While deployed to NAF Misawa, VAQ-131’s primary objective shifted from their previous mission of supporting combat operations while deployed to the Middle East, to supporting security and stability operations within the Indo-Pacific Area of Responsibility.

Today’s Video

Watch: Meet The AIM-260: The Air Force And Navy’s Future Long-Range Air-To-Air Missile

Length of video : 120'

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, 2020 - EP

Polish Borsuk Infantry Fighting Vehicle

Length of video : 67'

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, 2020 - EP

We are now in a day where there is an app for everything, our lives are pretty much run by small program applications from everything from deciding what to eat for tonight’s dinner to personal banking.

So what are the best apps out there? Well, I can’t answer that as there are so many but I can give you an overview of the apps I use, why I use them and where to get them.

1. Adium (Mac)
This is a one-stop shop for Instant Messaging on the Mac. You can organise hundreds of contacts within one main window which allows for organisation and structuring. What I like about this program is you can connect different types of chat accounts in one place; I currently use MSN, Google Talk, MobileMe and Facebook but there are 18 different options to choose from so it gives massive amounts of flexibility! The only thing it lacks for me is the use of video chat. Chuck that in and this would be a massive winner!

You can download Adium for free from www.adium.com

2. Checkpoint Widget 2.2 (Mac)
This widget allows you to compare the brightness and colour differences thus checking “Checkpoint 2.2” of the “Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0”. You can check the colours either by using hex references or RGB values.

This I feel is really useful and convenient when designing for screen and can be downloaded for free from the www.dirkeinecke.de.

3. Crypt3 (Mac)
This program allows you to easily encrypt files and folders so sensitive material doesn’t get ‘accidentally read’. It’s really handy if more than one person uses your machine or you save material externally to a hard drive or server with shared access.

You can download this for free from here

4. Cyberduck (Mac)
This is a basic FTP client which I tend to use for general uploading and downloading of files, it allows for bookmarking and the storing of passwords in your keychains.

This is available to download for free from www.cyberduck.com

5. Echofone (iPhone App)
This is a basic Twitter app for the iPhone that I use, it’s probably for more of a ‘social user’ such as myself as it probably doesn’t allow for the functionality of other Twitter apps, but I like it. It’s fast, allows for push notification and multiple accounts. You can also download it as a Firefox browser plugin, which I use. This places a tiny Twitter icon in the bottom right hand corner of the browser window which when clicked shows you a quick insight into the world of your twitter contacts. This is great for quickly sharing links and thoughts without having to log in to the Twitter main page, again this saves you a little time but it’s worth it!

This can be downloaded for free from www.echofon.com/

6. iCal, Address Book and Mail (Mac)
For me this is a bundled package that comes with every Apple Machine and its awesome! We use it throughout the Creativitea Studio and are all synched in together; we share contact lists, calendars and to do lists, etc, on all our machines and iPhones and find that the programs work seamlessly together as if they were one. Without this we would be completely lost and its already included!

To find out more visit Apple’s website.

7. IE Tester (PC)
The bane of every web developer’s life is cross browser testing (and IE6 support). With this program, which is free to download for the PC, you can look at your websites side by side throughout IE versions, ensuring the sites work and are looking great! There is a debug bar which is also available to download for free which allows you to look at any snagging you may have to do along the way.

You can download this for free from www.my-debugbar.com/

8. iPlotz (Air Desktop Application and Online)
iPlotz is essentially a wire framing and sitemap generating application that can be used as an online tool or as a desktop application run through Air. What I like about this program is it is so fast to put complex page structures together and elements in place. You can quickly link up all the main pages of your websites and share it as a preview URL so you and your clients can experience the new website in wire frame format. Building the pages couldn’t be simpler; you have the option of drawing out websites using a complex number of web elements, from forms, tabs and media placements. This program has it all!

iPlotz is available from a limited free account or from $15 a month subscription, visit their website at www.iplotz.com

9. Lorum Ipsum Generator Widget (Mac)
This is basically a widget that generates dummy copy to be used within your designs. You can choose from a selection of preset options; paragraphs, lists, sentences, titles and single words. You also have the custom length option, say 200 characters for instance. This simply copies the text to your clipboard to paste into place.

You can download this for free from the Apple website.

10. Navicat Lite (Mac and PC)
I haven’t really had much to do with this program, however I can see massive potential with it and have found it quite useful so far. It is basically an online database administration tool, which is built for simplifying database management. If your familiar with FTP clients, etc, you’ll find the GUI intuitive, secure and easy to use. So far I have only used it for testing my SQL connections so I haven’t fully explored the program but I will be looking into it in the near future.

Check it out at www.navicat.com. The lite version is free but for more advanced usage you can upgrade for a small fee.

So like I say, there are thousands of apps out there just destined to help us all out with our day to day lives-I can’t mention them all! If you have a recommendation, let us know and we’ll check it out.

Ways for Military Service Members to Prosper

Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

Ways Casino Fashion Will Make Yoy Winner

The US has taken delivery of the first of two Multi-Mission Radars (MMR), the powerful tracking system behind Israel's Iron Dome air defense system. Washington bought two Iron Dome batteries from Israel to fill an urgent close-in air defense need.

The projected victory of Joe Biden in the US presidential election will not affect the contracts for the supply of F-35 fighters and air-defence system Patriot to Poland, as the defence deal is mutually beneficial, Michal Dworczyk, the head of the Chancellery of the Polish Prime Minister, told Radio Poland on Monday.

The Russian military earlier said its Mi-24 helicopter was downed from a man-portable air defence system (MANPADS) over the territory of Armenia, which Azerbaijan has claimed responsibility for, saying it shot down the aircraft by mistake.