March 12, 2024 | International, Land
Space Force mulls refueling as industry calls for funding, standards
The U.S. Space Force wants industry to invest in on-orbit refueling, but companies say they need standards first.
June 11, 2019 | International, Land, Security
Active protection systems demo hits dead end for Stryker, Army evaluating next steps
By: Jen Judson
WASHINGTON — After evaluating two active protection systems in a demonstration late last fall and determining neither were the right fit for the Stryker, the Army is now evaluating how to protect one of its critical combat vehicle.
“Unfortunately for Stryker, we have not found a system that is suitable for the platform,” Col. Glenn Dean, Stryker project manager told Defense News in a June 7 interview.
The Army has found interim APS for both its Abrams tank and Bradley infantry fighting vehicle but has struggled to find one for Stryker. The service has moved quickly to field combat vehicle protection against rocket-propelled grenades and anti-tank guided missiles while it develops a future system.
The service originally considered Herndon,Virginia-based Artis Corporation's Iron Curtain APS for Stryker, but decided in August 2018not to move forward in fielding it to Stryker units.
In an effort to expand its search for an appropriate system, the Army then decided to host a demonstration in late fall last year of two additional systems: Rafael's Trophy VPS and Rheinmetall's Active Defense Systems.
Signs the demonstration wasn't proving fruitful cropped up in March, when the service said they'd need extra time — an entire year — to evaluate options for Stryker. Dean said the Army was hoping they'd see promise in one of the systems at the end of the demonstration and be able to carry it through more complex characterization for better evaluation in order to make a decision.
But as the demonstration wrapped up, the Army decided neither would work.
“Both Rheinmetall and the medium-weight Trophy, both have maturity challenges, but the bottom line is that they turned out to not be a suitable fit for Stryker,” Dean said.
“We did see some potential in systems,” Dean said, adding, “it is our desire to continue to evaluate them further so we can understand them at a greater level of detail.”
Neither system received the same level of testing as Rafael's Trophy on Abrams, IMI's Iron Fist on Bradley or Iron Curtain, Dean said, and the systems could end up being the right fit for some future effort to outfit other vehicles such as the Next-Generation Combat Vehicle program's Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle, Mobile Protected Firepower and the Armored Multipurpose Vehicle, “none of which we have identified APS solutions for yet,” Dean said.
Through continued evaluation “maybe we will eventually learn something that brings us back to Stryker,” he added.
Unlike Bradley and Abrams, Stryker is a relatively light-weight platform, Dean said. “It has challenges in its space, weight and power integration. It has proven difficult for us to find a system that is entirely suitable for integration.”
And while no operational APS system evaluated so far seems to work for Stryker, the Army is still looking into ways to protect it as its value on the battlefield only increases with the addition of bigger guns and more expensive weapon systems.
Under the Vehicle Protection System (VPS) program office, the Army is working on reactive armor improvements focused on Bradley and AMPV, but that could be of particular value for Stryker, Dean said.
The Army's laser warning program that is tied to the Modular Active Protection System (MAPS) program could also contribute to Stryker protection.
MAPS is a system under development with the Army featuring a common controller into which hard-kill and soft-kill protection can be plugged.
And the Army will be conducting a demonstration with layered hard-kill and soft-kill protection capability later this year as part of culminating exercise for its MAPS program, according to Dean.
“The soft-kill may ultimately prove to be particularly well suited for Stryker,” Dean said.
Those soft-kill systems are jammers and smoke systems that help obscure and tend to take up relatively little space and are less expensive then hard-kill APS that require the reloading of countermeasures.
The service is also studying what it may need for a future APS and plans to initiate a program in the late part of the next fiscal year, which could also be an opportunity to develop something more suitable for Stryker, according to Dean.
While the Army does have plans to protect its combat vehicles from rockets and missiles, in a June 6 letter sent to Army Secretary Mark Esper, a group of 13 House lawmakers expressed concern the service isn't doing enough to outfit its current fleet with APS and asked the Army to explain why it hadn't requested any further funding for APS upgrades in the budget
According to Dean, for Abrams and Bradley, “we are resourced to meet the requirements that we have on an urgent basis to outfit a limited number of brigades. We are doing analysis right now to support development programs of record in active protection.”
He added, “What we are buying is not the end of APS activity, but it is the urgent requirements we have been given.”
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October 15, 2020 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security, Other Defence
Contract Awards by US Department of Defense – October 14, 2020
NAVY CAPE Environmental Management Inc.,* Honolulu, Hawaii, is awarded a $90,000,000 cost-plus-award-fee modification to previously awarded indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract N62742-16-D-1807 for environmental remedial action services at various sites within the Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Pacific area of responsibility (AOR). This modification brings the total cumulative contract value to $185,000,000. The work to be performed provides for, but is not limited to, remedial actions such as removal actions, expedited and emergency response actions, pilot and treatability studies, facility operation and maintenance and performing other related activities associated with returning sites to safe and acceptable levels. Task orders and modifications will be primarily funded by environmental restoration (Navy); base realignment and closure; and customer-reimbursable funds. Work will be performed in Hawaii (65%); California (25%); Guam (4%); Washington (1%); and other locations within the NAVFAC Pacific AOR below 1% (5%), and is expected to be completed by July 2021. No funds will be obligated at time of award; funds will be obligated on individual task orders as they are issued. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command Pacific, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, is the contracting activity. Schuyler Line Navigation Co. LLC, Annapolis, Maryland, is awarded an $11,406,250 modification under previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract N32205-18-C-3508 to fund the second one-year option period. The option will continue to provide one U.S. flagged chemical and oil products tanker MT SLNC Goodwill in support of the Department of Defense Logistics Agency Energy for the transportation of clean petroleum products in the Far East region. The current contract includes a 12-month base period, three 12-month option periods and one 11-month option period. Work will be performed in the Far East region, and is expected to be completed by Oct. 14, 2021. The option will be funded by working capital funds (Navy) for fiscal 2021. The Military Sealift Command, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity. CORRECTION: A contract awarded on Sept. 9, 2020, to Core Services Group Inc.,* Virginia Beach, Virginia (N00189-20-D-0020), to provide test and evaluation support services for Commander, Operational Test and Evaluation Force Aviation Warfare Division, was announced with an incorrect value amount. The correct amount is $42,000,000, and if options are exercised, the total amount will be $47,000,000. DEFENSE ADVANCED RESEARCH PROJECTS AGENCY SecuriGence LLC,* Leesburg, Virginia, was awarded a $68,745,415 (excluding unexercised options) fixed-price-award-fee, firm-fixed-price, time and materials, labor hour task order for multi-network support services. This task order provides and manages the entire range of information technology (IT) services, support, engineering and infrastructure necessary to implement the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency IT operational, mission and research objectives. Work will be performed in Arlington, Virginia, with an expected completion date of February 2022. Fiscal 2020 research and development funds in the amount of $4,500,000 are being obligated at time of award. This task order was a competitive acquisition and three offers were received. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Arlington, Virginia, is the contracting activity (GS-35F-626GA HR0011-21-F-0006). ARMY Calgon Carbon, Moon Township, Pennsylvania, was awarded an $18,920,000 firm-fixed-price contract for activated, impregnated copper-silver-zinc-molybdenum-triethylenediamine carbon in support of M49 and M98 filter production at Pine Bluff Arsenal, Arkansas. Bids were solicited via the internet with one received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Oct. 13, 2025. The U.S. Army Contracting Command, Rock Island Arsenal, Illinois, is the contracting activity (W52P1J-21-D-3002). General Dynamics Land Systems Inc., Sterling Heights, Michigan, was awarded a $12,076,618 modification (P00013) to contract W56HZV-19-C-0062 for Utility Bus Interface Modules. Work will be performed in Tallahassee, Florida, with an estimated completion date of July 30, 2021. Fiscal 2021 revolving funds in the amount of $12,076,618 were obligated at the time of the award. The U.S. Army Contracting Command, Detroit Arsenal, Michigan, is the contracting activity. DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY CORRECTION: The contract (delivery order) announced on July 7, 2020, for BAE Systems Information and Electronic Systems Integration, Greenlawn, New York (SPRPA1-20-F-C20G), for $26,305,633, was announced with an incorrect award date and incorrect delivery order number. The correct award date is Oct. 14, 2020, and the correct delivery order number is SPRPA1-21-F-C200. *Small business https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/2382161/source/GovDelivery/
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November 7, 2018 | International, Aerospace
Chinese Stealth UAV Mockup Unveiled At Airshow China
ZHUHAI, China—A new stealth UAV program announced at Airshow China here Nov. 5 could represent a significant step toward the Peoples Liberation Army Air Force acquiring an anti-airborne early warning (AEW) ... http://aviationweek.com/defense/chinese-stealth-uav-mockup-unveiled-airshow-china