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December 4, 2020 | International, Land

Army taps industry for Gray Eagle payloads for joint ops against high-end threats

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WASHINGTON — The Army wants its Joint All Domain Operations (JADO) Gray Eagles to have synthetic aperture radars, moving target indicators, electronic intelligence and communications intelligence capability as well as air-launched effects and radar warning receivers, according to a new market survey.

Now, the Army wants help from industry with those payloads for its Gray Eagle unmanned aircraft systems. Specifically, the service is looking for systems that are capable of helping with joint operations across all warfighting domains against high-end threats from adversaries such as China and Russia, according to a solicitation published Dec. 2 to a government contracting website.

The service's Aerial Enhanced Radar, Optics and Sensors (AEROS) product manager wants industry to “identify potential existing sources capable of providing Aerial Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (AISR) payloads for the MQ-1C Gray Eagle Unmanned Aircraft System platform that meet the JADO environment,” the solicitation posted to Beta.Sam.Gov states.

These Gray Eagles payloads must be capable of increased ranges and resolutions “to support target location and Long-Range Precision Fires (LRPF) without the use of traditional line of site visual equipment to include Electro Optical, Infrared (EO/IR) and Full Motion Video (FMV) required for today's Counter Insurgency (COIN) mission,” the request for information stresses.

Traditional COIN payloads won't hold up against peer and near-peer adversaries, the Army noted, as they will “employ anti-access, area denial strategies, posing a significant challenge to the current AISR fleet,” the solicitation states.

Gray Eagles must survive against an “Integrated Air Defense System (IADS)-rich environment,” the request notes. This means the Gray Eagle would fly “racetrack patterns tangential to the IADS threat at 80 km distance” and would be capable of deploying Air-Launched Effects (ALE) forward into enemy territory to detect, identify and locate targets and take out or disrupt threats, according to the request.

The Gray Eagle would also have payloads that could detect IADS threats, locate them and transfer the information to other sensor systems capable of recognizing targets and coordinating long-range fires, the solicitation describes.

The Army is conducting the survey ahead of a Gray Eagle sensor payload JADO demonstration that could potentially take place in fiscal 2022 where systems will be “quantitatively compared” to find the highest performing and best value payloads based on technology readiness and production cost, the request lays out.

The solicitation for more advanced payloads for Gray Eagle comes at a time when the Army is trying to design a complex architecture of helicopters and unmanned aircraft systems that would be part of tight-knit kill chain to include space and ground assets underpinned by an advanced network.

The Army experimented with the kill chain to include air assets at Project Convergence at Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona, over the summer. The effort brings together future weapons and capabilities envisioned for a 2030s battlefield against near-peer adversaries such as Russia and China. It includes using a machine learning and artificial intelligence-enabled battle management system that is in development.

Gray Eagle represented a Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) surrogate.

During the first mission thread at Project Convergence, which focused on the penetration phase laid out in the Army's Multidomain Operations warfighting concept, Gray Eagles and ALE partnered with space-based assets, APNT, and LRPF capabilities to locate, then degrade and destroy enemy assets modeled after the Russian Pantsir air defense systems and other weapons.

The ALE pushed ingested data forward through the network to get it to the right shooters, whether that would be an Extended Range Cannon Artillery (ERCA) system on the ground or a Gray Eagle or another ALE. The Army was able to extend the ALE capability out to almost 62 kilometers, which would provide deep standoff for manned aircraft like FARA. The ALEs performed both the reconnaissance, surveillance and targeting acquisition mission and worked as a mesh network to extend the battlefield. Two ALEs were truck launched and four were air launched.

Also during the final shot of the entire campaign at Project Convergence, a soldier on the ground took control of a LRPF munition surrogate (a Hellfire missile in this case) on a Gray Eagle and fired on the target.

The Gray Eagle at Convergence was able to route around and avoid threat weapon systems and also fired a live Dynetics-made GBU-69 small glide munition.

Previewing the future, the Army also used an open system architecture that was flexible enough for payloads and capabilities to be swapped in out of its Gray Eagles without having to rely on the original equipment manufacturer to do it.

https://www.defensenews.com/land/2020/12/02/army-taps-industry-for-gray-eagle-payloads-for-joint-ops-against-high-end-threats/

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  • Finland’s Air Force chief tackles recruiting challenges and its quest for a future fighter

    August 12, 2019 | International, Aerospace

    Finland’s Air Force chief tackles recruiting challenges and its quest for a future fighter

    By: Valerie Insinna TIKKAKOSKI, Finland — The Finnish Air Force is changing. In a matter of years, it will decide on its future fighter — a €7-€10 billion (U.S. $7.8-$11.2 billion) program that could tie Finland more closely to the country that wins the competition. It's revamping its command-and-control infrastructure. And like other international air forces, it's putting increased pressure on itself to boost readiness. Maj. Gen. Pasi Jokinen, who became the commander of Finland's Air Force in April, oversees the transformation. The job has its perks: During U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Dave Goldfein's trip to Finland in July — his first visit to the nation — the two officers took a break from meetings and sat backseat in two Finnish F/A-18 Hornets for a training mission. Goldfein later said the flight signified the growing trust between the two air forces. Jokinen spoke on July 21 with Defense News, which traveled to Finland with Goldfein, about the service's readiness challenges and its modernization priorities. Tell me about your conversation here today with Gen. Goldfein. Well, we talked about a lot of interesting topics. We talked about the operation environment and the Finnish Air Force and what we do here, and the cooperation with the U.S. and all that. He obviously was aware of a lot of things, but we went into very good detail about everything like that. We know what's happening here, we are strongly here, we are committed here and everything is running smoothly. You said you talked about the operational environment for Finland right now. Can you characterize that, and is it changing? Well, I think we have been using that word “new normal” after Crimea and after 2014, so activity in the Baltic region and in this region is in a little bit elevated level — let's put it that way. And of course our eastern neighbor is actively doing things in Syria and eastern Ukraine. It has had some effects. It seems that they have this big exercise cycle, [in] running the Zapad [exercise] and how they rotate the different regions. In 2017 we saw again this western Russia exercise, and it was noted. It was at peak activity level. Activity-wise, 2017 was the highlight, and now we are calmed down a little bit, but still we are above the level before 2014. Is it fair to say that the number of intercepts peaked in 2017? Yeah, well, when their activity is high, our activity is high. And of course the Gulf of Finland, which is the international airspace nearby our border, that's one of the areas of interest. You used the word “intercepts,” though; that activity is there. I mean, of course then they are operating also in the other, the northeast and eastern border, but that's a solid border. I mean, obviously they are on their side and we are on our side. Then the international airspace where we meet, OK. The Gulf of Finland is mainly transit for mainland Russia to Kaliningrad and back, and in the southern Baltic Sea, or the Baltic sea down more south, there's more room to maneuver, do stuff like that. Here is the very narrow — long but narrow — corridor that normally there is no operational type of maneuvers, neither side, but it's a transit. But we like to know who is going where and all that. Then obviously one the things are that they do not always use transponders or flight plans. There are no flight plans, so we need to find out who is there. That has improved a bit over the years. The equipment is newer and they have the western transponders and they use them, so it's a little bit better situation that we had a few years back, but it's not 100 percent covered with the flight plans or transponders. As you look across the entire Air Force, what's your No. 1 concern? Is it budget? Is it what you're seeing threat-wise from potential adversaries? Well, I'm not concerned about the adversary. Things are relatively stable. We have good relations in all the directions, all directions there. Defense forces in general has been resourced relatively well. The readiness, of course, requires some money. And of course the Army has had a bigger transition the last few years out of the services, from a training organization into a readiness organization. There's of course a need for more money, for operating money also. And the government has been giving quite good money in the last few years. Now the future is not that bright. I mean, there's some dark clouds there. I'm concerned. Of course, the main procurement program, like the HX [fighter replacement program], seems to be well on track, and I'm very happy about that, and that is their main priority, of course, to keep that in schedule and in budget for the procurement side of the house. People have been — I don't know if “stressed” is the right word — but they have been under pressure for the readiness, and we've also gotten more vacant jobs. We are recruiting people, people on the field and into the practical work— so the aircraft maintenance, the surveillance tasks. It's very important that the recruitment works. Aside from HX, are there other modernization efforts that you're trying to keep on track? Well, we are, before the HX selection, before the HX comes in. Right now we are working on our C4I system. But we have had quite a lot of new pieces there and they are IOC [initial operational capability], becoming FOC [full operational capability]. Then whatever solution or whatever HX candidate is chosen, there is a requirement to be able to process and handle all that [information]. So we are working that before so when selection is done and it's actually coming in, the infrastructure is prepared for that. Obviously we need to then fine-tune it, depending on the selection, at the end of the day, but right now we are working on the basic infrastructure. What has Finland already fielded? What is coming up that is still in the planning stages or in the competitive stages? For the C4 side of house? Well, OK, we've got our sensors, relative new sensors for the surveillance sensors. And our networks and the infrastructure and the servers, kind of like the infrastructure there, both the networks and for the servers. They are relatively new. So it's there, and we are getting that into use as we speak or in the near future. Then it's all about the processes and methods and how to handle the data and how to use the data. So that's something that people in organizations need to learn. Not the hardware, but the people need to learn, so that's something that we are working on. Then, when we get the HX here and we know what it is, then we do the necessary adjustments. And it's obviously platform-specific and [dependent on] the requirements there. In all cases, we need to be able to be better in joint warfare inside Finland with data services and of course maintain the international interoperability portion, whether it's about tactical data links or whether it's other things. Did you discuss interoperability with the U.S. Air Force with Gen. Goldfein? Well, yeah, sure. Technology is one thing. You are interoperable and you can use the data and all that. But the processes [of] how you do it is one thing, but then there's this policy side of the house, that if you don't have the policy or to actually be there — interoperable all the time — then you just need to be prepared for that. We are an independent nation. We are not a NATO member, and we are not doing common planning. We are operating as neighbors here. Our AOR [area of responsibility] and the EUCOM [U.S. European Command] AOR and NATO AOR, they are all overlapping or next to each other. Coordination and deconfliction [are] some things that we need to be ready to do. The policy is important and the SOPs [standard operating procedures] and all that. The U.S. is interested in rapidly generating air power in times of crisis. How can the U.S. better defend its bases or set up new expeditionary air bases if needed? From what I understand, that's something that Finland has the capability to do. Did that come up in conversation, and do you think that there are things that the U.S. can learn from Finland in that area? In Finland, we have our main base. But yes, we can deploy and we can swarm, distribute our assets, and then have them under the command and control, and make centralized effects out of those distributed things. So yeah, that was talked about. Of course, it requires the ability to move and begin to move [your resources from the base]. It requires a good situational awareness and plans [for] how to do it, and then the timely execution of that. We've talked about the general concept, and yes, it was mentioned by Gen. Goldfein that they are looking for a more expeditionary mindset, that huge massive bases that you can generate the air power may not be the thing that you want to stick. Finland is not that small [of an] area. There are smaller nations than us, but still in the global or the U.S. scale, it's still a small area. The thing is to look for the agility and mobility and know what's happening and do the right things from there, either move or disperse. Is that a capability in which Finland continues to invest? Yeah, it's part of the HX program. So now the question is how much. It's good for that fight that you distribute, but the main operation is get out there and do the job, then come back and you can go out again. That is the important thing — that you get the effect in the air, what you're doing from the air or in the air. Then it's nice for the survivability part and all that to be distributed. That's what we are still looking [at]. But then, to what extent? That is to be determined. We will find it out when the HX goes forward. On HX, I understand Finland is looking for some industrial incentives. Has it become clear yet what each company might be willing to offer? We are in the middle of the process. I don't know whether the offers are final. We have the ideas that we are discussing. There is a requirement that we need to be able to do certain stuff in Finland, with the Finnish resources and [people with] Finnish passports. That is a requirement [that] is still there. How do you think Finland will have to balance the cost of this project with the capability it wants? That equation needs to be solved, but we have two years of time to solve it. We have the money — €7 billion to €10 billion. And we need to maximize the capability on that money. Are you making additional investments in intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities? There is a desire to have the proper amount of ISR. Obviously the HX is going bring something into it, and we also have a recent area there that we are investigating. Probably when there's better visibility, when we are actually selecting and getting through HX, then we [will] know where the gaps are, and then we are going to fill them in [with] other programs. https://www.defensenews.com/2019/08/09/finlands-air-force-chief-tackles-recruiting-challenges-and-its-quest-for-a-future-fighter/

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  • Contract Awards by US Department of Defense - October 28, 2019

    October 29, 2019 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security

    Contract Awards by US Department of Defense - October 28, 2019

    NAVY Lockheed Martin Corp., Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., Fort Worth, Texas, is awarded a $7,027,643,109 modification to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price, fixed-price-incentive-firm-target, cost-reimbursable contract (N00019-17-C-0001). This modification provides for the procurement of 114 F-35 aircraft for Air Force, Marine Corps and Navy; non-Department of Defense (DoD) participants, and Foreign Military Sales (FMS) customers. Specifically the modification procures 48 F-35A aircraft for the Air Force, 20 F-35B aircraft for the Marine Corps, nine F-35C aircraft for the Navy, 12 F-35A aircraft for the government of Norway, 15 F-35A aircraft for the government of Australia, and eight F-35A and two F-35B aircraft for the government of Italy. The above U.S. aircraft quantities are inclusive of fiscal 2019 (Lot 13) plus up aircraft. In addition, this modification adds scope for the Air System Diminishing Manufacturing Sources integration, software data loads, critical safety items, red gear, non-recurring engineering, recurring engineering and the Joint Strike Fighter Airborne Data Emulator. Work will be performed in Fort Worth, Texas (57%); El Segundo, California (14%); Warton, United Kingdom (9%); Cameri, Italy (4%); Orlando, Florida (4%); Nashua, New Hampshire (3%); Baltimore, Maryland (3%); San Diego, California (2%); Nagoya, Japan (2%); and various locations outside the continental U.S. (2%), and is expected to be completed in March 2023. Fiscal 2019 aircraft procurement (Air Force, Marine Corps and Navy); non-DoD participants; and FMS funds in the amount of $7,027,643,109 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This modification combines purchases for the Air Force ($2,812,512,346); Marine Corps ($1,297,487,314); Navy ($612,389,812); non-DoD participants ($2,243,321,947); and FMS ($61,931,690) customers. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. IAP Worldwide Services Inc., Cape Canaveral, Florida, is awarded an $84,573,278 modification (P00058) to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price, cost-reimbursable contract (N00019-15-C-0120). This modification exercises an option to provide logistics services in support of the E-6B aircraft and the requirement for parts industry management and support equipment maintenance for the E-6B Take Change and Move Out and Airborne Command Post aircraft. Logistics support to the aircraft weapon system as well as systems engineering, associated support sites, and supporting organizations. Work will be performed in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (70%); Bellevue, Nebraska (10%); Fairfield, California (10%); and Patuxent River, Maryland (10%), and is expected to be completed in November 2020. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $26,592,990 will be obligated at time of award, all of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. Lockheed Martin Rotary Mission Systems, Owego, New York, is awarded a $43,439,773 modification (P00015) to a previously awarded cost-plus-incentive-fee, cost-plus-fixed-fee contract (N00019-18-C-1066). This modification increases the scope and ceiling of the contract to provide electronic warfare capability development and integration in support of the design, development, and integration of the advanced digital receiver/processor upgrade to the existing E-2D AN/ALZ-217 electronic support measures receiver/processor, active front end, and receive antenna weapons replaceable assemblies. Work will be performed in Owego, New York (99%); and Clearwater, Florida (1%), and is expected to be completed in September 2023. Fiscal 2019 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funds in the amount of $9,382,120 will be obligated at time of award, all of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. The Whiting-Turner Contracting Co., Greenbelt, Maryland, is being awarded a $30,464,008 firm-fixed-price task order (N62473-20-F-4023) under a multiple award construction contract for an applied instruction facility, a training facility, and site utility infrastructure at Naval Base Coronado, California. The work to be performed provides for construction of two facilities and utilities infrastructure to support the Special Operations Forces Naval Special Warfare Center Advanced Training Command mission to train Maritime Special Operations Forces to meet operational requirements. The options, if exercised, provide for recycled water plumbing, additional parking area with permeable pavers, exterior trellis structures, additional floor area for the training facility, aircraft fuselage trainer and concrete pads and helicopter training fuselages. The planned modifications, if issued, provides for furniture, fixtures, and equipment, audio-visual equipment and physical security equipment. The task order also contains 11 unexercised options and six planned modifications, which if exercised would increase cumulative task order value to $37,782,887. Work will be performed in Coronado, California, and is expected to be completed by May 2022. Fiscal 2019 military construction (Defense-wide) contract funds in the amount of $30,464,008 are obligated on this award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Three proposals were received for this task order. Naval Facilities Engineering Command Southwest, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity (N62473-17-D-0822). Jopana Technologies Inc.,* Oxnard, California, is awarded an $11,474,563 firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost reimbursable, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract. This contract provides for the procurement of AN/ALQ-231(V) Intrepid Tiger (IT II) family of systems hardware and incidental engineering services for the Electronic Warfare and Electronic Attack communications jamming, airborne (Fixed Wing, Rotary Wing, and Unmanned Air Systems), ground based systems, and laboratories. Work will be performed in Oxnard, California (95%); Point Mugu, California (2%); Yuma, Arizona (2%); and China Lake, California (1%), and is expected to be completed in October 2024. No funds will be obligated at the time of award. Funds will be obligated on individual orders as they are issued. This contract was not competitively procured pursuant to 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(1). The Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division, China Lake, California, is the contracting activity (N68936-20-D-0003). AIR FORCE The Superior Forge & Steel Corp., Lima, Ohio (FA8681-20-D-0020); and Ellwood National Forge, Irvine, Pennsylvania (FA8681-20-D-0021), have been awarded $90,000,000 multiple award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contracts. These contracts provided for the procurement of GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrators BLU-J 27C/B Penetrator warhead case assemblies with associated components. Work will be performed at Lima, Ohio; and Irvine, Pennsylvania, and is expected to be complete by Oct. 28, 2027. This award is the result of two sole source acquisitions. Fiscal 2018 ammunition production funds in the amount of $3,000 per contractor for the initial delivery order are being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, is the contracting activity. Industries of the Blind and Visually Impaired, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, has been awarded an estimated $30,000,000 firm-fixed-price requirements contract for the customization and distribution of Air Force Sales Promotional Items (SPIs). This contract provides for the customization and distribution of SPIs. Work will be performed at Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and is expected to be complete by Oct. 31, 2024. This award is the result of a sole source acquisition. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds are being used and no funds are being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force Installation Contracting Center, the 338th Specialized Contracting Squadron, Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph Air Force Base, Texas, is the contracting activity (FA3002-20-D-0004). ARMY Vigor Marine LLC, Portland, Oregon, was awarded an $8,074,147 firm-fixed-price contract for dredge vessel Essayons ship repair and overhaul. Bids were solicited via the internet with one received. Work will be performed in Portland, Oregon, with an estimated completion date of Feb. 28, 2020. Fiscal 2020 revolving funds in the amount of $8,074,147 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Portland, Oregon, is the contracting activity (W9127N-19-G-0002). *Small Business https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/2001094/source/GovDelivery/

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