December 23, 2024 | International, C4ISR, Security
Top 10 Cybersecurity Trends to Expect in 2025
AI-driven attacks, zero-day flaws, and supply chain risks shape 2025 trends, demanding proactive defenses.
September 19, 2019 | International, Aerospace
AFA 2019: US Air Force will maintain F-35 buy as it pursues Digital Century Series
Key Points
- The US Air Force will maintain its current F-35A buy as it starts to experiment with its new approach to acquisition, called the Digital Century Series
- The F-35A will be fielded through approximately 2040, so a retired pilot believes the USAF must act fast if it wants to avoid a gap between fighters
The US Air Force (USAF) will maintain its Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) programme of record of 1,763 aircraft as it pursues its futuristic Digital Century Series (DCS) next-generation acquisition effort, according to the air force's acquisition boss.
Will Roper, assistant secretary of the USAF for acquisition, technology, and logistics (AT&L), told reporters on 16 September that the DCS will be a software-focused approach to acquisition. It will enable the USAF to begin exploring what Roper calls the digital trinity of agile software development: agile software, open architecture (OA) systems, and digital engineering; and what it can provide the air force as it develops a futuristic and connected kill web.
Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) will be one of the first USAF efforts to experiment with the DCS. The output of this effort, Roper said, will determine the acquisition strategy for NGAD and if it will fit with the funding profile that it has. The USAF requested USD1 billion in fiscal year 2020 (FY 2020) for NGAD, the concept the USAF is pursuing to prepare for warfare against near-peer nations such as China or Russia.
Roper said he is going to announce a team on 1 October that will figure out how to run a programme based on those three attributes. He said it will be similar to how the USAF put together its Kessel Run software development hub.
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May 22, 2020 | International, Aerospace
Indra leads the European project that will give control of radioelectric space to fighters and aircraft
Spain, May 20, 2020 - Indra will lead the European CROWN R&D project that will equip European fighters and aircraft with capabilities which combine radar, communications and electronic defence to dominate radioelectric space and operate at an advantage over the enemy. The company will coordinate the work of a consortium formed by Thales, Office National D'Etudes et de Recherches Aerospatiales (ONERA), Hensoldt, Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, SAAB, Totalforsvarets Forskningsinstitut (FOI), Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research (TNO), Leonardo, Elettronica, and Baltijos Pazangiu Technologiju Institutas (BPTI). The project has been selected to form part of the Preparatory Action for Defence Research of the European Commission managed by the European Defence Agency and the grant agreement is now being prepared. This group of companies and research centers from seven countries will design the first element capable of integrating radar, electronic defence and communications equipment into a single compact and lightweight item of equipment that can be installed in the aircraft nose cone, camouflaged in the fuselage, or in an under-wing pod, on multiple platforms (even in UAVs). It will be a system based on active electronically scanned array (AESA) and sophisticated algorithms that will enable multi-purpose use for different capacities and in an optimized way. No other country as yet possesses this capability so it will bring a major advantage to whoever acquires it first. This integration will enable the aircraft's radar to intelligently select the least congested area of the spectrum to operate effectively and extend its range, even in environments where the adversary tries to interfere with its operation. At the same time, coordination of the radar with the systems that monitor the radio spectrum and those that generate countermeasures (ES/EA) will significantly improve the performance of these systems and of aircraft weapons systems in general. As for communications, they will gain range and bandwidth to exchange a greater volume of data with other platforms at higher speeds. The ultimate goal is to equip the aircraft of the future with a compact solution, smaller in size, with a lower weight and cost, and more power to provide a decisive advantage. On this will depend the ability to detect the enemy, select and fix targets and exchange data with other platforms on land, sea or air to prevail in combat or protect themselves from attack. Electronic defence has been placed at the center of military strategy in recent years as some countries resort to controlling radioelectric space as a way to counter the superiority of European and allied aircraft. The CROWN project could subsequently address the adaptation of this system for use by ground units and all types of land vehicles and ships. Leadership of the European defence sector The Spanish Government has appointed Indra as the national industrial coordinator in the European Defence Program FCAS (Future Combat Air System), the largest joint European Defence program to date and the most ambitious in terms of technological development. Indra will carry out this work together with the industrial leaders appointed in turn by France and Germany, Dassault and Airbus, respectively. The company also participates in the proposals for 9 EDIDP consortiums (European Defence Industrial Development Program) that are being evaluated and acts as coordinator in 3 out of 5 consortiums led by Spain, among others, the PESCO program for Strategic Command and Control, probably the most important of them all, in which Spain, Italy, Germany, France, Luxembourg and Portugal participate. Besides this, Indra has been participating for decades in international programs such as the Eurofighter, A400M, NH90, Meteor and ESSOR, as well as non-European projects and in the NATO environment such as ESSM, FLEPS, ACCS and many others. About Indra Indra (www.indracompany.com) is one of the leading global technology and consulting companies and the technological partner for core business operations of its customers world-wide. It is a world-leader in providing proprietary solutions in specific segments in Transport and Defence markets, and the leading firm in Digital Transformation Consultancy and Information Technologies in Spain and Latin America, through its affiliate Minsait. Its business model is based on a comprehensive range of proprietary products, with an end-to-end focus and a high innovation component. In the 2019 financial year, Indra achieved revenue of €3.204 billion, with more than 49,000 employees, a local presence in 46 countries and business operations in over 140 countries. View source version on Indra: https://www.indracompany.com/en/noticia/indra-leads-european-project-will-give-control-radioelectric-space-fighters-aircraft
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June 10, 2020 | International, Aerospace
Des commandes publiques pour les armées et les forces intérieures, à hauteur de 832 millions d'euros
Afin de soutenir les entreprises aéronautiques, le gouvernement anticipe des commandes d'avions, d'hélicoptères et de drones militaires pour les armées et les forces intérieures, pour un montant de 832 millions d'euros. La ministre des Armées, Florence Parly, a annoncé l'acquisition de trois avions ravitailleurs A330-MRTT, d'un avion de surveillance et de renseignement, de huit hélicoptères de transport militaire Caracal et de drones de surveillance navale, ce qui représente « une charge de travail de 1 200 emplois sur trois ans». «La commande de trois nouveaux MRTT à livrer en 2021 et 2022 au lieu de 2027 et 2028 est très importante. Elle va nourrir la chaîne de fabrication des A330 à un moment critique, alors que la crise pèse davantage sur les gros-porteurs A330 et A350 », explique Antoine Bouvier, directeur de la stratégie chez Airbus. La sécurité civile et la gendarmerie ont également concentré leurs commandes sur les nouveaux modèles d'hélicoptères afin d'appuyer leur commercialisation. La Sécurité civile commande ainsi deux hélicoptères H145 de nouvelle génération (5 pales), dont la certification est en cours, tandis que la gendarmerie commande 10 H160 pour 200 millions d'euros. En développement depuis près d'une décennie, le nouvel H160, présenté pour la première fois dans sa version militaire au Bourget en juin dernier , attend de manière imminente sa certification européenne. La ministre des Armées a également indiqué que de nouveaux engagements sur la commande d'avions de combat Rafale de Dassault Aviation pourraient être examinés. Ensemble de la presse du 10 juin