Defense`s Feeds

Americas According to news reports in Israel, the United States had approached Israel to release its stockpile of MIM-23 HAWK air defense missiles and transfer them to Ukraine. But the head of the Israeli Defense Ministry’s political-Military Bureau, Dror Shalom, reportedly told the Pentagon that Israel has not changed its policy of not sending weapons […]

Americas Lockheed Martin subsidiary Sikorsky has delivered its 5,000th Hawk medium-lift helicopter to the US armed forces. The chopper is a variant of the UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter deployed for international military and civilian operations. “For more than 40 years the Black Hawk has remarkably supported Soldiers in every major contingency operation the Army has […]

Americas Raytheon won a $21.6 million modification, which adds hours to finalize the design, integration, and to conduct test and evaluation in support of Phase Two for the Maritime Strike Tomahawk (MST) rapid deployment capability. Additionally, this effort provides for joint flight test to be performed which will provide additional data for MST integration of […]

Americas The United States will no longer pursue a plan to deploy the US Army’s Strategic Mid-Range Fires (SMRF) System in Japan. The US Indo-Pacific Command had proposed under its Pacific Deterrence Initiative to deploy these intermediate-range missiles to the first island chain as a conventional deterrent to China. Japan’s recent decision to acquire long-range […]

Americas The United States and the Philippines vowed Friday to “invigorate” defense cooperation to address shared security concerns including disputes over the South China Sea. Manila hosted a high-level security dialogue with its top defense ally as part of efforts by President Ferdinand Marcos to restore a seven-decade partnership that was unsettled by his predecessor Rodrigo Duterte. The […]

Americas BAE Systems won a $72 million deal for the manufacture and delivery of five Columbia-class submarine components. Work will be performed in Louisville, Kentucky (100%), and is expected to be completed by May 2030. Fiscal 2023 National Sea-Based Deterrence Fund funds in the full amount will be obligated at time of award, of which […]

Americas Canada has put off a project to replace its five-decade-old Twin Otter military aircraft used in Arctic operations. The move comes despite the government’s earlier assurance that it is committed to improving its defense capabilities in the north. Instead of procuring new aircraft, Ottawa will extend the service life of its aging Arctic planes. […]

Americas The US Air Force has started phasing out one of its oldest and most reliable assets, the HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter. This move comes as the Air Force’s 55th RQS (Rescue Squadron) has just returned from a successful deployment, during which the Pave Hawk fleet played a crucial role in a variety of missions, […]

Americas The US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency has teamed up with California-based SentinelOne for the Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative to “further support the US government’s strategy to secure the cyber ecosystem and critical infrastructure.” As part of the partnership, the company will provide its autonomous platform to assist in data collection, analysis, and sharing of […]

Americas Bell Boeing won a $23.4 million modification, which exercises options to provide continued flight test support for the V-22 aircraft in support of the Navy, Air Force, and Foreign Military Sales (FMS) customers. Work will be performed in Patuxent River, Maryland; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Fort Worth, Texas; and Hurlburt Field, Florida, and is expected to […]

The European Defence Agency (EDA) launched a new project on 13 January to improve the technology behind automatic targeting, as well as in threat recognition and identification, as European militaries seek to make soldiers and weapons systems more effective in battle.

Automatic target/threat recognition, identification and targeting for land systems (ATRIT) can help militaries in detecting, tracking, prioritising and selecting targets, whether off the top of a combat vehicle or from individual weapons. The technology cannot engage, however, without human command. 

Led by Germany, the first phase of ATRIT will also bring together the contributing Member States of France, Greece, the Netherlands and Poland, as well as Norway. It will be carried out by a consortium led by Germany’s Rheinmetall and involves IABG, also of Germany, Safran and Thales of France, ISD SA of Greece, TNO and Thales of the Netherlands, Rheinmetall in Norway and PCO of Poland.  

PHYSICAL DEMONSTRATORS

With a €2 million budget over 18 months, the EDA launch marks the first step in a series of ATRIT projects that eventually aim to develop and test physical demonstrators in relevant environments in a second phase.

ATRIT in its first phase will seek to define the requirements and design the system architecture for an overarching, cross-platform capacity to allocate military targets and enhance detection and to identify threats, including on the basis of behaviour. The new, improved software will not only have the capacity to better identify and enable automatic targeting, but also fuse different sensor data and make it easy for soldiers to use.

As a Category B project managed by EDA, the initiative is co-funded by Member States and additional participants can opt in.

ATRIT analysis in the first phase will be based on the following modules: human behaviour; 360-degree situation awareness; integration of fused sensor information; target allocation; presentation of fused data, including real-time sensor data, C4I and historical data.

For more details, please see here.

EDA'S ROLE

The European Defence Agency (EDA) supports its 26 Member States in improving their defence capabilities through European cooperation. Acting as an enabler and facilitator for Ministries of Defence willing to engage in collaborative capability projects, the Agency has become the ‘hub’ for European defence cooperation with expertise and networks allowing it to the whole spectrum of defence capabilities. 

Member States use EDA as an intergovernmental expert platform where their collaborative projects are supported, facilitated, and implemented. For more details, please see here.

Americas The US Air Force has awarded machine learning-based health developer Sparta Science a small business innovation research deal to identify early signs of sub-concussive brain injury in airmen. Data gathered from the research will assist experts in developing a capability to recognize the impacts of repeated exposures to subconcussive blasts. According to Sparta, results […]

Americas Northrop Grumman demonstrated a scaled-down electronic attack system prototype during the US Navy’s Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise last year. The company demonstrated key components of the future Ultra-Lite Electronic Attack (EA) Prototype System aboard a US Navy Arleigh Burke-class destroyer. Northrop developed the anti-ship missile defense system for smaller ships that cannot […]

Americas Riverview Construction won a $10.5 million deal to construct a C-130 flight simulator training facility. Bids were solicited via the internet with six received. Work will be performed in Scotia, New York, with an estimated completion date of February 14, 2024. According to Lockheed Martin, the C-130 Hercules primarily performs the tactical portion of […]

Americas Northrop Grumman won a $15.5 million delivery order for overhaul of power amplifier modules in support of the E-2D aircraft. All work will be completed by September 2025 with no option periods. Work will be performed in Woodland Hills, California; and Liverpool, New York. Annual working capital funds (Navy) in the full amount will […]

Americas Sauer Construction won a $37.6 million task order to provide construction of two additions to the Trident Training Facility, a Strategic Systems Program missile control center team trainer, and Naval Sea Systems Command weapons handling system team trainer at Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay, Georgia. The contract also contains two unexercised options which, if […]

Americas The US Air Force disclosed that the F-15EX fired air-to-air missiles from the new weapon stations 1 and 9 for the first time on November 29. An AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile was fired from Station 1 and an AIM-9X from Station 9 over the Eglin Test and Training Complex’s water range by pilots […]

Americas The US Army has awarded Oshkosh Defense a $102-million contract to produce Joint Light Tactical Vehicles (JLTV) for its international allies. The tactical vehicles will be handed over to the armed forces of Romania, Lithuania, North Macedonia, Brazil, and Montenegro to bolster their ground mobility. According to the American defense firm, the contract reflects […]

Americas

The US Air Force has received a new E-11A aircraft with a battlefield airborne communications node (BACN) payload at Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudi Arabia. The plane will be integrated into the air force’s 430th Expeditionary Electronic Communications Squadron, the “Black Wolves,” which supports combat communications. The BACN’s “WiFi in the sky” capability allows the E-11A to function similarly to a low-Earth satellite, maintaining aerial command and control capabilities for airborne and ground units.

Colombia has selected the French defense firm Nexter’s Caesar 6×6 self-propelled howitzer for its military, according to Spanish defense news website Infodefensa. The South American nation has reportedly earmarked $101.7 million to purchase an undisclosed number of the artillery platforms, which have become increasingly popular in recent years.

The US Department of Defense and Lockheed Martin have finalized a $30 billion deal to deliver up to 398 F-35 Lightning II aircraft. The agreement includes 145 Lot 15s, 127 Lot 16s, and 126 Lot 17s for Finland, Belgium and Poland. “The F-35 delivers unsurpassed capability to our warfighters and operational commanders,” F-35 Joint Program Executive Officer USAF Lt. Gen. Mike Schmidt stated.

Middle East & Africa

Abu Dhabi Ship Building (ADSB) has announced the start of construction of the United Arab Emirates Navy’s first Falaj 3-class fast patrol vessel (FPV). A steel-cutting ceremony was held recently at an ADSB facility, confirming the completion of the research and design phase for the new vessels. According to the company, the Falaj 3-class FPVs are complex, high-speed warships with state-of-the-art sensors and combat systems.

Europe

The British Ministry of Defence has donated counter-explosive ordnance equipment to war-torn Ukraine. Last week, the UK delivered more than 1,000 metal detectors to help Ukrainian troops clear land mines and clear civilian infrastructure of explosives.

The Polish government has inked a five-year deal with France to purchase two Airbus military observation satellites. With an accuracy of 30 centimeters (nearly 1 foot), the new satellites are expected to bolster the Polish Armed Forces’ reconnaissance capabilities to detect potential military and civilian threats.

Asia-Pacific

Taiwan is planning to purchase 100 units of the Switchblade, a small, attack-type unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) developed by the American company AeroVironment, and give it to the Army’s special forces. The purchase is expected to take place in 2024 via foreign military sales channel. According to Up Media, Taiwan is taking a close look at such type of suicide drone after noticing its successful in the Ukrainian battlefield. An invitation to bid by the Navy suggest the service is seeking to acquire similar drones.

Today’s Video

WATCH: 430th EECS receives new E-11A BACN

Americas

Boeing won a $38.7 million modification for B-1 and B-52 bomber engineering services. This modification is for recurring and non-recurring engineering services to B-1 and B-52 aircraft. Work will be performed at Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma; Edwards AFB, California; Barksdale AFB, Louisiana; and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and is expected to be completed December 31, 2023.

Sikorsky has filed a protest with the US government regarding the US Army’s decision to award a contract for its next-generation helicopter to Textron’s Bell. The Lockheed Martin subsiadary seeks a review of the $1.3 billion deal awarded in early December, in which Bell’s V-280 Valor tiltrotor was selected over Sikorsky and Boeing’s Defiant X coaxial rotor for the Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA) program.

Middle East & Africa

Iran’s army held major military drills in the Gulf on Friday, state media reported. The exercises, which included naval, air and ground forces, were held at the Strait of Hormuz — a key waterway through which 25% of the world’s oil passes and about a third of global liquified natural gas.

Europe

The European Defence Agency (EDA) is launching a new research project to improve the efficiency and success rate of air-to-air refuelling (AAR) missions that uses the hose and drogue method by developing an automated system. The project, which has a budget of $4.26 million, will be led by Spain in collaboration with Germany and involve an industry consortium including Airbus Defence and Space, GMV, the German Aerospace Center, and AES Technology.

Asia-Pacific

The Japanese and Indian Air Forces will conduct their first bilateral fighter jet training in January, bolstering ties amid continued tensions with China. Their first-ever joint air combat training will commence on January 16 to 26 at Hyakuri Air Base in Ibaraki Prefecture, 95 kilometers (59 miles) northeast of Tokyo. The Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) said the 10-day air drills would “promote mutual understanding and strengthen defense cooperation between the air forces.”

South Korea’s Defense Project Promotion Committee has approved two major projects to enhance the country’s military capabilities. The first project is a $2.73 billion effort to upgrade the combat capabilities of its F-15K fighters. The project, which will run from 2024 to 2034 and aims to strengthen the mission capabilities and survivability of the F-15K jets. The upgrade will include replacing the current F-15Ks’ old radar system with an advanced Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar and installing integrated electronic warfare equipment and an up-to-date mission computer. It is not known if the upgrade of F-15Ks will be similar to Japan’s “Japanese Super Interceptor” (JSI) configuration. The JSI uses the APG-82(v)1 Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radars, Advanced Display Core Processor II Mission System Computers and AN/ALQ-250 Eagle Passive Active Warning Survivability System (EPAWSS).

Today’s Video

WATCH: AMA’s Actively Stabilized Drogue Refueling System (ASDRS).