July 2, 2024 | International, Security
New Intel CPU Vulnerability 'Indirector' Exposes Sensitive Data
Discover how the 'Indirector' attack threatens Intel CPUs and learn about the 'TIKTAG' vulnerability in Arm processors.
October 9, 2018 | International, Land
Army leans on scientists to push the boundaries of munitions range, precision, lethality
By: Todd South
Army researchers are speeding up development on key conventional munitions, from field artillery to long-range missiles, and making them more deadly when they land.
At a panel hosted by Defense News at the annual Association of the United States Army annual meeting, commanders with the Army's Research, Development and Engineering Command, Program Executive Office-Ammunition and the Long-Range Precision Fires Cross-Functional Team gave a few updates on those efforts.
Brig. Gen. Alfred Abramson III, head of PEO Ammo and Picatinny Arsenal, New Jersey, told audience members that his researchers are finding the quickest ways to go after extending ranges, saying that the XM1113 round will be “critical” for the conventional artillery in the Extended Range Cannon Artillery program, a centerpiece of artillery modernization.
Abramson noted that the existing M795 High Explosive artillery round, the base of the 155mm munition portfolio, includes about 614,000 rounds in the nation's stockpile. But those rounds only reach out to about 30 kilometers.
The problem developers face in pushing the ranges of conventional rounds is keeping them both accurate and having a real effect when they strike, he said.
“You want to push it out to 70 kilometers and ensure it's not just a long-range paintball,” Abramson said.
The XM1128 pushes those ranges to about 40 kilometers currently. But work with “lithographic fragmentation technology,” Abramson said, makes the round more lethal on target.
Col. John Rafferty, director of the LRPF CFT, said that recent testing has gotten 155mm artillery rounds to the 60-kilometer range at the Yuma, Arizona, testing facility.
Abramson said that his organization has seen a significant spike of about $2.5 billion for fiscal years 2017 to 2022 funding for ammunition and armament systems products.
Another $1.5 billion has been allotted to update the aging ammunition manufacturing plants across the Army, he said.
Recent Overseas Contingency Operations funding for 2019 was marked at about $4.1 billion simply to replenish munitions consumed during combat.
What's being done to advance the science?
Maj. Gen. Cedric Wins, commanding general of U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command, said that over the past year, $900 million was realigned for science and technology development for the LRPF initiatives, and another $500 million was also realigned for the Air Missile Defense CFT.
His organization just completed a six-month study of energetics propulsion that included a detailed study of adversary capabilities and advancements over the past two decades.
It also looked at how those advances were achieved and what gaps exist in the United States' armaments, he said.
While the study has not yet been released to the public, he said two non-technical gaps that the United States must correct are in their ability to collaborate with global partners and science, chemistry and energy experts within government.
Further down the development pipeline he said was a shortfall in transitioning the research to the PEOs for development and fielding.
One tech challenge is the existing stockpiles. As the developers push the capacities of conventional rounds and their systems they must also maintain “backwards compatibility” with the substantial munition stockpiles, he said.
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February 4, 2019 | International, Land
Pentagon releases RFP for ‘optionally manned’ Bradley replacement
The Pentagon seeks industry feedback on the draft request for proposals for Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle (OMFV) vehicle. The U.S. Army on 31 January posted a request for proposal (RFP) on Federal Business Opportunities for OMFV combat vehicle that will be designed for and used by military forces to maneuver Soldiers in the future operating environment (FOE) to a position of advantage, in order to engage in close combat and deliver decisive lethality during the execution of combined arms maneuver. In a notice posted on the Federal Business Opportunities Website, the army called on companies to submit their plans to develop pre-production prototypes of new combat vehicles. The Next-Generation Combat Vehicle – OMFV must exceed current capabilities while overmatching similar threat class systems. It must be optimized for dense urban areas while also defeating pacing threats on rural (open, semi-restricted and restricted) terrain and be characterized by the ability to spiral in advanced technologies as they mature. Since its inception, the NGCV-OMFV program has represented an innovative approach to Army acquisition by focusing on delivering an essentially new capability to the Armor Brigade Combat Teams (ABCTs) while under a significantly reduced timeline, as compared to traditional acquisition efforts. This will be achieved by leveraging existing material solutions with proven capabilities coupled with new technologies to meet the requirements. The draft request sticks to the original target of awarding up to two EMD contracts during the second quarter of fiscal year 2020. Each contractor at that time will deliver 14 pre-production vehicles, as well as two ballistic hulls and turrets. One of the U.S. Army's top research centers has already achieved considerable success in developing a prototype of the Next-Generation Combat Vehicle (NGCV). Some sources claimed that the United States Army Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC) are now nearing production of demonstrator of new robotic vehicle build onto a surrogate platform. https://defence-blog.com/army/pentagon-releases-rfp-for-optionally-manned-bradley-replacement.html
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December 27, 2018 | International, Aerospace
Air Force establishes office at Tyndall AFB to guide five-year rebuilding process
By Ed Adamczyk Dec. 26 (UPI) -- A Program Management Office has been established by the Air Force at Tyndall Air Force Base to lead redevelopment and reconstruction efforts there, which are expected to take more than five years and cost about $3 billion. The PMO will be responsible for leading the redevelopment and reconstruction efforts at the base after it sustained devastating damage in October from Hurricane Michael, the U.S. Air Force said in an update Wednesday. Full article: https://www.upi.com/Defense-News/2018/12/26/Air-Force-establishes-office-at-Tyndall-AFB-to-guide-five-year-rebuilding-process/7501545848204/