Back to news

November 24, 2021 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security

Contracts for November 23, 2021

On the same subject

  • Opinion: Defense Is Unscathed By COVID-19? Think Again.

    May 27, 2020 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security

    Opinion: Defense Is Unscathed By COVID-19? Think Again.

    John Dowdy May 22, 2020 The rapid onset of the novel coronavirus has wreaked havoc on markets around the world, hitting commercial aviation especially hard as load factors plummet, flights are canceled and suppliers cut production rates and furlough workers. Amid all this disruption, defense manufacturers appear to have been relatively unscathed. But defense has always been a long-cycle business, driven more by annual budgets than daily load factors. And as the bill for rebuilding the global economy mounts, defense budgets are sure to come under pressure. COVID-19 is first and foremost a human tragedy, and its continued spread is still a major concern. But we must solve for both the virus and the economy; the dual imperative of our time is the desire to preserve lives and livelihoods. Both will require substantial resources for public health and for economic rejuvenation. Countries around the world are making massive investments to rebuild battered economies, putting out more than $11 trillion in the last 2.5 months, with more sure to follow. In the U.S., Congress passed the $2.2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act at the end of March, bringing the total stimulus thus far to $3 trillion, which could push the fiscal 2020 budget deficit to a record $3.8 trillion, an eye-watering 18.7% of the country's GDP. Other countries have passed similar aid packages, leading to soaring debt levels around the world. And more may well be necessary: The House has passed proposals for another $3 trillion in aid, although the bill's fate in the Senate is unclear. Government debt levels are already high, swelling as the global financial crisis of 2008 caused a drop in tax revenues and a rise in social-safety-net payments. And the wave of deleveraging many expected as the recession eased never materialized: From 2008 to mid-2017, global government debt more than doubled, reaching $60 trillion. According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), this year's increase in public-sector debt has reached 122.4% of gross domestic product (GDP) on average in developed countries. Increased deficits worldwide are likely to put pressure on all discretionary spend, including defense. In the U.S., military spending accounts for 15% of all federal and roughly half of discretionary spending, so defense may come under real pressure. Rep. Ken Calvert of California, the ranking Republican on the House Appropriations defense subcommittee, says defense budgets were strained even before this year's unplanned burst of deficit spending. “There's no question that budgetary pressure will only increase now for all segments of our federal budget, including defense,” Calvert said. Defense Secretary Mark Esper has said he is preparing for future defense budget cuts and that legacy systems may need to be scrapped to pay for more modern forces. South Korea shows early signs of this trend, with leaders recently announcing a shift in resources to disaster relief in response to the pandemic. Money came from education, agriculture, and environmental protection but mostly from defense. This example is particularly significant, given that South Korea is still technically at war, frozen in conflict with its immediate neighbor to the north. Furthermore, South Korea has been more effective than its peers in addressing the pandemic with a swift medical response and widespread testing that allowed the country to reopen its economy faster than other advanced countries. If South Korea is altering its budgetary priorities, others could follow. The coronavirus has already had a massive human cost, resulting in approximately 300,000 deaths, including more than 90,000 Americans, more than were killed in Vietnam, the Gulf War, Iraq and Afghanistan combined. But the financial cost has been even greater. The cost in the US has already exceeded that of all the wars the U.S. has fought over the last 50 years. And if an additional $3 trillion is approved by Congress, the cost will surpass that of World War II. At this point, it is too early to predict how much the defense budget will draw down how quickly. Indeed, the shift might not occur immediately. Broadly speaking, two factors have historically had the most influence on defense spending: threats and affordability. Governments will all calibrate the relative importance of the threats they face against their new economic realities. In keeping with past patterns, countries may give most weight to threats, real or perceived, over the near term. If there are anticipated or ongoing conflicts, their defense budgets will probably increase. Over the longer term, however, economic factors tend to prevail, and governments may set defense budgets in line with their diminished resources. Either way, we face some tough decisions ahead. https://aviationweek.com/aerospace/manufacturing-supply-chain/opinion-defense-unscathed-covid-19-think-again

  • Lockheed Martin Skunk Works®' Project Riot Demonstrates Multi-Domain Operations

    September 16, 2019 | International, Aerospace

    Lockheed Martin Skunk Works®' Project Riot Demonstrates Multi-Domain Operations

    PALMDALE, Calif., Sept. 16, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) Skunk Works®, the Missile Defense Agency and the U.S. Air Force successfully connected an F-35, U-2 and a multi-domain ground station in a ground-breaking test demonstrating multi-domain operations and the secure distribution of sensitive information across multiple platforms. During the demonstration, called Project Riot, an F-35 detected a long-range missile launch with its onboard sensors and shared the information through the U-2 to the air defense commander on the ground, enabling the commander to quickly make the decision to target the threat. This next-level connectivity reduces the data-to-decision timeline from minutes to seconds, which is critical in fighting today's adversaries and advanced threats. In partnership with the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center at Hanscom Air Force Base, Massachusetts, and the Missile Defense Agency, Skunk Works' Project Riot builds on a series of open systems architecture demonstrations proving how incremental increases in capability can be rapidly fielded to enable a connected network across air, ground, sea, space and cyber domains. "This demonstration continues our commitment to provide complete battlespace awareness and seamless interoperability to enable multi-domain operations," said John Clark, vice president of ISR & UAS at Lockheed Martin Skunk Works. "With its long-range standoff sensors, on-board processing and ability to operate in and around contested environments, the U-2 continues to play a critical role in demonstrating new capabilities today, while transforming operations for tomorrow's battlespace." Leveraging common industry standards to drive down cost and shorten schedules, the team achieved four mission critical data points in less than four months: Demonstrated the ability to leverage F-35 sensor data for missile defense Leveraged the modernized U-2's extensive payload capacity, modular design and open architecture to provide beyond line of sight communications between the F-35 and a multi-domain ground station Established two new data paths to securely transmit 5th generation sensor data at multiple levels of security to the warfighter, enabling a multi-domain network of legacy and 5th generation systems Disseminated 5th generation data using the Air Force's Universal Command and Control Interface and Open Mission Systems standards for faster capability deployment and seamless connection between systems "The F-35, with its advanced sensors and connectivity, is able to gather and seamlessly share critical information enabling the joint force to be safer and more effective," said Greg Ulmer, Lockheed Martin vice president and general manager for the F-35 program. "No other fighter jet in the world has this capability – and this test was a critical step on the path to unlocking its full potential for multi-domain operations." This demonstration builds on successful flight tests completed since 2013 that establish the foundation for a distributed, systems-of-systems architecture in the not-too-distant future. For additional information, visit our website: www.lockheedmartin.com/MDO https://news.lockheedmartin.com/2019-09-16-Lockheed-Martin-Skunk-Works-R-Project-Riot-Demonstrates-Multi-Domain-Operations

  • ULA place sur orbite le satellite de défense anti-missile Sbirs-Geo 5

    May 20, 2021 | International, Aerospace

    ULA place sur orbite le satellite de défense anti-missile Sbirs-Geo 5

    Le 18 mai, United Launch Alliance (ULA) a placé le satellite d'alerte avancée Sbirs-Geo 5 sur orbite de transfert géostationnaire. SBIRS GEO-5,construit par Lockheed Martin, est le 5ème et dernier satellite rejoignant l'OPIR (Overhead persistent infrared), une constellation équipée de puissants capteurs de surveillance. « Ces gardiens orbitaux 24h/24 et 7j/7 détectent les lancements de missiles, soutiennent la défense antimissile balistique, élargissent la collecte de renseignements techniques et renforcent la connaissance de la situation sur le champ de bataille », précise Lockheed Martin. Estimant que le monde est désormais « un endroit menaçant avec plus de 1000 lancements de missiles balistiques chaque année », Tom McCormick, vice-président de la zone de mission OPIR de Lockheed Martin Space, déclare que le système de satellites SBIRS constitue « le fer de lance de la défense antimissile » afin d'assurer la sécurité nationale et celle des forces armées américaines. Air & Cosmos du 20 mai

All news