Defense Industry Daily

Americas Thales Defense & Security Inc. won a $16 million deal for the repair of three items that are part of the H-1 Optimized Top Owl system. All work will be performed in Valbonne, France, and work is expected to be completed by October 2024. Annual working capital funds (Navy) in the amount of $11,933,292 […]

UH-1Y and AH-1Z by Neville Dawson The US Marines’ helicopter force is aging at all levels, from banana-shaped CH-46 Sea Knight transports that are far older than their pilots, to the 1980s-era UH-1N Hueys and AH-1W Cobra attack helicopters that make up the Corps’ helicopter assault force. While the tilt-rotor V-22 Osprey program has staggered […]

Americas Lockheed Martin won a $46 million order by the US Navy, which provides non-recurring engineering for the development, integration, testing, and deployment of the MH-60 aircraft product line system configuration 26 fleet release for all MH-60 air platform variants, to include baseline management integrated management planning, integrated development environment support, support equipment baseline management, […]

MH-60Rs fire Hellfire (click to view full) Australia’s AIR 9000, Phase 8 project aimed to buy 24 modern naval helicopters to 16 existing S-70B-2 Seahawks, along with the disastrous A$1.1 billion, 11-helicopter SH-2G “Super Seasprite” acquisition attempt. With a total sales and support value of over A$ 3 billion, it was a highly coveted award. […]

Americas General Dynamics Land Systems  was awarded a $21,998,374 modification for Abrams systems technical support. Work will be performed in Sterling Heights, Michigan, with an estimated completion date of Jan. 15, 2025. Fiscal 2024 research, development, test, and evaluation, Army funds in the amount of $21,998,374 were obligated at the time of the award. Army […]

Americas BAE Systems has been awarded $25 million to provide the US Marine Corps with more Amphibious Combat Vehicle-Personnel units (ACV-P) under its fourth order for full-rate production. The deal is a follow-on order to a previously-awarded $181-million contract for the vehicles. The agreement also covers the vehicles’ fielding and sustainment costs, as well as support […]

Americas Lockheed Martin Aeronautics won an $8.4 million modification, which adds scope to procure diminishing manufacturing sources in support of production, retrofit, spares, replenishment and repairs for the F-35 Lightning II program for the Air Force, Marine Corps, Navy, Foreign Military Sales customers, and non-US Department of Defense participants. Work will be performed in Fort […]

F-35B: off probation (click to view full) The $382 billion F-35 Joint Strike fighter program may well be the largest single global defense program in history. This major multinational program is intended to produce an “affordably stealthy” multi-role fighter that will have 3 variants: the F-35A conventional version for the US Air Force et. al.; […]

Americas The Georgia Air National Guard has received its first of eight C-130J-30 Super Hercules tactical airlifters from defense giant Lockheed Martin. The new jet builds on a tradition of Hercules operation for the 165th Airlift Wing, which received its first model in 1975 and has been operating many versions of the military transport aircraft […]

RAAF C-130J-30, flares (click to view full) The C-130 Hercules remains one of the longest-running aerospace manufacturing programs of all time. Since 1956, over 40 models and variants have served as the tactical airlift backbone for over 50 nations. The C-130J looks similar, but the number of changes almost makes it a new aircraft. Those […]

Americas General Dynamics won a $96.4 million modification for Long Lead Time Material associated with the Virginia Class submarines SSN 812 and SSN 813. Work will take place in Colorado, California, Pennsylvania, Illinois, New York, New Jersey and other locations within the US as well as the United Kingdom. The United States and Britain launched […]

Virginia Block I-II (click for SuperSize) “GDEB Receives $148M as Virginia Class Lead Yard” described changes to the Virginia Class submarine’s design that are expected to reach 20% of the $200 million savings goal by the time orders for the versatile sea attack/ land attack/ special forces submarines rise to 2 per year, in 2012. […]

Americas Canada has awarded Bell Textron a $2.28-billion contract to deliver in-service support for its air force’s CH-146 Griffon multirole utility helicopters. The agreement will cover program management as well as technical, engineering, and design change services for the fleet. The US Army has awarded Allison Transmission an $83.3 million contract to supply upgraded and new X1100 […]

M1A2 SEP (click to view full) America’s M1 Abrams tanks come in a number of versions. In addition to the M1A1 that is now standard, the US Army is beginning to field its M1 TUSK for urban warfare. It also operates the M1A2 System Enhancement Program (SEP), currently the most advanced standard variant. This Spotlight […]

Americas Boeing’s KC-46A Pegasus has encountered some turbulence. Plagued by technical glitches and safety concerns, the aerial refueller has faced a $7 billion headwind. Boeing is taking the Pegasus back to the hangar for a thorough overhaul. Six critical issues stand between the Pegasus and its full potential. Michael Marrow from Breaking Defense toured Boeing’s […]

Block IV Cutaway (click to view full) Block IV Tomahawk is the current generation of the Tomahawk family of cruise missiles. The BGM-109 Tomahawk family began life in the 1980s as sub-sonic, low-flying nuclear strike weapons, before being developed into long-range RGM/UGM-109 conventional attack missiles. They’re most frequently launched from submarines and surface ships, and […]

Americas Boeing won a $102.7 million cost-plus-fixed-fee modification, which exercises options for the production and delivery of ten P-8A increment three retrofit A-kits and provides for three retrofit kit A-kit installs, in support of anti-submarine warfare capabilities upgrades for the Navy. Work will be performed in Jacksonville, Florida; St. Louis, Missouri; and Mesa, Arizona, and […]

P-8A Poseidon (click to view full) Maritime surveillance and patrol is becoming more and more important, but the USA’s P-3 Orion turboprop fleet is falling apart. The P-7 Long Range Air ASW (Anti-Submarine Warfare) Capable Aircraft program to create an improved P-3 began in 1988, but cost overruns, slow progress, and interest in opening the […]

Americas According to the Defense Post, the US Air Force is seeking a vendor to integrate the upcoming Long-Range Standoff (LRSO) nuclear missile on the B-52H Stratofortress bomber. The service expects the vendor to build and integrate the Bomber Weapon Interface Equipment (BWIE) on the aircraft in support of the LRSO. The US military remains […]

B-52H: flyin’ low, dyin’ slow… (click to view full) Officially, it’s the B-52H Stratofortress. Unofficially, it’s the BUFF (Big Ugly Fat F–cker). Either way, this subsonic heavy bomber remains the mainstay of the U.S. strategic fleet after more than 50 years of service. A total of 102 B-52H bombers were delivered from FY 1961-1963, and […]