June 11, 2021 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security
Contracts for June 10, 2021
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July 8, 2020 | International, Aerospace
Britain lifts ban on Saudi weapons exports
By: Andrew Chuter
LONDON — Britain has lifted a yearlong ban on the export of military equipment to Saudi Arabia, the government announced July 7.
Weapon sales to Saudi Arabia were banned in June 2019 after a U.K. Court of Appeal ruled that the government may have contravened international humanitarian law by approving weapon sales to the Saudis that might have been used in the civil war in Yemen.
Britain is one of the largest exporters of defense equipment in the world, largely thanks to Saudi Arabia's purchase over more than 30 years of Tornado and Typhoon combat jets as well as Hawk jet trainers. Raytheon Paveway IV precision-guided bombs, partly built in the U.K., are also among the list of recent significant sales to Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia leads a coalition of Middle Eastern nations in a protracted and bloody war against Iranian-backed Houthi rebels trying to seize Yemen.
In an action brought by anti-arms trade campaigners, the court ruling forced the British government to reassess whether previous export licenses had been issued on the correct legal basis, given alleged violations of international humanitarian law by the Saudi military, specifically reported airstrikes that hit civilian targets.
“The incidents, which have been assessed to be possible violations of international humanitarian law, occurred at different times, in different circumstances and for different reasons,” said International Trade Secretary Liz Truss.
“In retaking these decisions, I have taken into account the full range of information available to the government. In the light of all that information and analysis, I have concluded that, notwithstanding the isolated incidents, which have been factored into the analysis as historic violations of international humanitarian law, Saudi Arabia has a genuine intent and the capacity to comply with international humanitarian law,” she added. “On that basis, I have assessed that there is not a clear risk that the export of arms and military equipment to Saudi Arabia might be used in the commission of a serious violation of international humanitarian law.”
Truss said exports will resume after the government completes the court-ordered review of defense export licences to the Middle East's largest buyer of military equipment. The ban only halted new approvals for weapons sales. Work on existing deals, like BAE System's deals to support Typhoon and Tornado jets, have continued unaffected.
The British government will now “begin the process of clearing the backlog of licence applications for Saudi Arabia and its coalition partners that has built up since 20 June last year,” Truss told Parliament. “It may take some months to clear this backlog.”
In a statement, BAE said: “We note that the UK Government has implemented a revised methodology regarding licences for military exports. We continue to provide defense equipment, training and support under government to government agreements between the UK and Saudi Arabia, subject to UK Government approval and oversight. We work closely with the Department for International Trade to ensure our continued compliance with all relevant export control laws and regulations.”
https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2020/07/07/britain-lifts-ban-on-saudi-weapons-exports/
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March 13, 2020 | International, C4ISR, Security
The Army roughs out its $1B cyber training contract
Mark Pomerleau The Army released its draft proposal March 10 for a contract that could worth as much as $1 billion to provide cyber training for the Department of Defense. The Cyber Training, Readiness, Integration, Delivery and Enterprise Technology (TRIDENT) is a contract vehicle to offer a more streamlined approach for procuring the military's cyber training capabilities. The largest part of that contact will be the Persistent Cyber Training Environment (PCTE). PCTE is an online client in which members of U.S. Cyber Command's cyber mission force can log on from anywhere in the world for training and to rehearse missions. Cyber Command leaders have said the component is one of the organization's most critical needs. Currently, no integrated or robust cyber training environment exists. The procurement is being organized by the Army on behalf of the Defense Department. According to slides from a December industry day, a final solicitation is slated for the end of second quarter 2020 with an award expected at the beginning of 2021. “The objective of Cyber TRIDENT is to provide for the managed evolution of the PCTE Platform and to provide support across all facets of the Acquisition Life Cycle for PCTE,” the documents read. “The goal of Cyber TRIDENT is to continue development operations with the integration of software and hardware enhancements from third party vendors as technology insertion occurs while conducting testing, providing periodic system updates, and fielding technology upgrades of PCTE to the Cyber Mission Forces (CMF) through an agile cadence. The vision is to leverage the existing PCTE baseline and investment in cyber training software and related infrastructure through Associate Contractor Agreements (ACAs) or subcontracts with current platform vendors.” The notice also describes how the program manager envisions management, maintenance, and evolution of the PCTE platform. This includes platform architecture and product management, agile development and delivery systems engineering processes, development and automation, hardware and software infrastructure management, user event support, development operations (DevOps) environment management, PCTE infrastructure tool management, help desk support and onsite and remote support. Using what are known as Cyber Innovation Challenges to award smaller companies a piece of the program, the program office is already incrementally building a platform, which is in use and is helping to prove out the concept for PCTE, refine requirements for the final contract, and reduce risk. Officials and members of industry have indicated that the awardee of TRIDENT will inherit the final prototype version of PCTE, dubbed Version C, and advance that forward. Industry officials noted that the draft document doesn't include many surprises and that DoD leaders have been receptive to feedback, through the prototyping process and industry engagements. https://www.fifthdomain.com/dod/2020/03/12/the-army-roughs-out-its-1b-cyber-training-contract/
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September 17, 2018 | International, Aerospace
Indonesia plans to buy C-130J Super Hercules, CH-47 Chinooks
By: Mike Yeo MELBOURNE, Australia — Indonesia's defense minister has said the country intends to acquire new tactical airlifters and heavy-lift helicopters from the United States, as it continues its gradual drive to modernize its military. Speaking in the capital Jakarta earlier this week, Ryamizard Ryacudu said Indonesia is looking to acquire five Lockheed Martin C-130J Super Hercules transport aircraft and the Boeing CH-47 Chinook heavy-lift helicopter, according to the country's state-owned Antara News Agency. He did not specify the number of helicopters Indonesia is seeking, but Defense News understands from an Indonesian source the number of Chinooks will be between three and five. This expected procurement is likely to be just the first step in the southeast Asian archipelago nation's effort to recapitalize its airlift inventory. Earlier this year, the Indonesian Air Force's chief of staff, Air Marshal Yuyu Sutisna, was reported by Antara as saying that the service plans for all six of its airlift squadrons to have new aircraft by 2024, which currently operates a mix of light and medium transports alongside older variants of the C-130. Indonesia's current Hercules fleet consists of about a dozen "B" and "H" variants of the C-130 aircraft, the oldest of which date back to the early 1960s. The inventory has also been bolstered in recent years by the ongoing transfer of nine C-130Hs from Australia, which has retired the type from service in favor of the C-130J. However, this has been offset by the loss of five C-130s since 2000, including one of the former Australian aircraft, which crashed while landing in bad weather at one of Indonesia's remote eastern islands in December 2016, while the older aircraft have suffered from ongoing serviceability issues. This is not the first time Ryacudu has said Indonesia was seeking the C-130J. He first flagged the intention to do so back in May, following a meeting with U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis in Hawaii. There have also been earlier reports that Indonesia was interested in acquiring Chinooks; however, this is the first time the defense minister has confirmed that it will go ahead with the acquisition. Antara also quoted him as saying Indonesia had evaluated the Russian Mi-26T2 heavy-lift helicopter, but found it unsuitable for the country's requirements. The Indonesian military currently does not operate any heavy-lift helicopters, and alongside its relatively small airlift fleet represents a key capability gap for a country made up of more than 17,000 islands that are also prone to natural disasters. Any Indonesian acquisition of the C-130J and CH-47 will likely be done through Foreign Military Sales channels. It is unclear if Indonesia has formally submitted a request to acquire the types, which must first be approved by the U.S. State Department. https://www.defensenews.com/air/2018/09/14/indonesia-plans-to-buy-c-130j-super-hercules-ch-47-chinooks