Egypt becomes the first international customer for MBDA’s VL MICA New Generation surface-to-air system

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  October 22, 2019 | International, Land

  Industry Brings Robotic Vehicles To AUSA, Army Awarding Deals For Initial Prototypes Next Spring

  By Matthew Beinart | The Army will release a prototype proposal request for the Robotic Combat Vehicle light and medium of variants before November and award contracts for test vehicles next spring, the lead official for the program told reporters on Monday. The push towards the next phase of the Army's effort to grow a robotic vehicle fleet arrives as vendors such as BAE Systems, Germany's Rheinmetall, as well as a team of Textron Systems [TXT], Howe & Howe and FLIR [FLR] all unveiled potential offerings at this week's Association of the United States Army conference in Washington, D.C. Brig. Gen. Ross Coffman, director of the Army's Next-Generation Combat Vehicle cross-functional team, detailed plans this week for the next phase of the RCV program, which he said would “revolutionize the way [the Army] fights in the future.” The Army will begin to solicit proposals for RCV-Light and RCV-Medium prototypes before the end of the month, with plans to hold a demonstration next March to put the platforms through a platoon-level operations experiment. Following the demonstration, the Army will then select one vendor to build four RCV-Ls and one vendor to build four RCV-Ms, according to Coffman. Those vehicles will then participate in a 2021 experiment going through company-level operations, before ultimately informing a 2023 decision on how the Army wants to construct its robotic vehicle fleet including the addition of an RCV-Heavy. Coffman has said previously that RCV is intended to eventually replace soldiers in dangerous tactical situations on the future battlefield with vehicles that are payload agnostic, semi-autonomous and integrated with a range of sensors and weapon systems (Defense Daily, Aug. 22). BAE Systems unveiled its Robotic Technology Demonstrator at AUSA, which has already participated in a recent demonstration with the Army on an outdoor test track in Sterling Heights, Michigan. “RTD is our way to go after that leap-ahead technology. We've designed it as rolling lab. Our intent is to keep developing this thing. This is a test platform that allows us to keep moving ahead,” Jim Miller, BAE Systems' senior director of business development, told reporters. “This is probably not going to be an RCV-L. It's probably the medium and it may lead us to a heavy option if that's where the Army continues to go.” Miller noted RTD uses a hybrid-electric drive, is currently integrated with a 30mm gun, and contains a range of sensor suites, including a 360-degree situational awareness system and the company's RAVEN soft-kill active protection system. The vehicle also includes a tethered UAS and a legged ground robot developed by Ghost Robotics. Rheinmetall brought its Wiesel Wingman configured toward the RCV-L path, which combines technology from its digitized Weasel platform, in use with the German Army, and the Mission Master unmanned ground vehicle. “That platform already exists in a digitized version. So throw out the hydraulics, the electronic kits inside, the drive-by-wire steering and electric transmission, and you combine it with the sensor and autonomy kit of the Mission Master and then you basically get a new vehicle that we call the Weasel Wingman,” Florian Reisch, director of business development and sales for Rheinmetall's American business, told Defense Daily. Basically you combine the Weasel platform that is able to hold the autonomy kit and then you basically get what the Army is looking for with robotic combat vehicles.” Reisch added that Rheinmetall could be interested in exploring the heavier RCV variants, listing potential options with the company's Lynx or Marder infantry fighting vehicles. “Of course we would be interested in the medium as well because we have different platforms available. We did have different research and development programs where we were modifying these platforms to basically enable them to carry a medium-caliber remote controlled turret. So that would be possible and we are looking at that.” The team of Textron, Howe & Howe and FLIR showcased the Ripsaw 5 platform at AUSA. The companies said it could be scaled down for RCV-L or up to a heavier version for RCV-M. “It's capable for both the RCV light and the RCV medium mission sets that the Army has put forward. What this does is it optimizes the superior value, the logistics, the mission outcome. We've got extraordinary modularity of performance. It's scalable with its high degree of reuse between the light and medium variants, and that just brings unmatched value to the team,” Lisa Atherton, Textron's CEO, told reporters during a teleconference last week. Geoff Howe, senior vice president of Howe & Howe, said the company is continuing to pursue additional technology additions for Ripsaw to grow capability for the robotic vehicle while the Army assesses its needs for a future unmanned fleet. “We are running a parallel program. Our program, we don't stop for anything. We're pushing forward with this technology we've advanced, and our plan is to meet the Army down the road with that parallel program. We're not waiting for anybody. We're pushing this development as far as we can,” Howe said. QinetiQ and Pratt & Miller also announced at AUSA a new partnership to offer a variant of the Expeditionary Modular Autonomous Vehicle (EMAV) for RCV. https://www.defensedaily.com/industry-brings-robotic-vehicles-ausa-army-awarding-deals-initial-prototypes-next-spring/army/

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  June 16, 2020 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security

  205 M€ pour le fonds européen de la défense

  La Commission Européenne a annoncé que 205 M€ allaient être débloqués afin de soutenir le fonds européen de la défense et plus précisément les initiatives PADR (volet recherche) et EDIDP (volet développement). « Renforcer l'autonomie stratégique et la compétitivité industrielle de l'Union européenne ». La commission européenne a annoncé le 15 juin qu'un financement de 205 M€ avait été approuvé dans le cadre du fonds européen de la défense, une somme qui devrait ainsi permettre de soutenir au total 19 projets européens. Parmi cet ensemble, 16 projets se consacrent aux questions de défense et 3 autres sont orientés vers les « technologies de rupture qui seront menés à l'échelle paneuropéenne » précise la Commission européenne. Par ailleurs, notons que les projets menés dans le cadre du FEDEF s'inscrivent dans la continuité du développement de l'Europe de la Défense, avec 9 propositions issues de projets CSP (coopération structurée permanente). Préparer la création du fonds européen de défense. Dans ce cadre, ces projets seront développés à travers les initiatives PADR (preparatory action on defence research) et EDIDP (european industrial developement programme), qualifiés comme étant « deux programmes précurseurs d'un véritable Fonds européen de la défense ». Le premier se concentre sur le volet recherche lorsque le second vise à soutenir les développements industriels. Thierry Breton, commissaire au marché intérieur, s'est réjoui de cette annonce et a ainsi déclaré : « Ces projets prometteurs démontrent la capacité de l'Union à promouvoir et à soutenir la coopération entre les industries de la défense sur le territoire européen et entre les États membres. En développant des technologies et des capacités de défense de haut niveau, nous renforçons la résilience et l'autonomie stratégique de l'Union. Tous les participants à la chaîne de valeur dans le secteur de la défense, quelles que soient leur taille et leur origine au sein de l'Union, peuvent en retirer des bénéfices. Doté d'un niveau de financement adéquat, le Fonds européen de la défense permettra d'étoffer considérablement ces premiers succès ». Un intérêt paneuropéen. Outre les financements, la Commission Européenne a également tenu à souligner l'intérêt des entreprises de l'Union pour ces dispositifs, puisque au total de 40 propositions qui ont été soumise au titre de l'EDIDP, 16 ayant finalement été sélectionnées et représentant 223 entités. Plus de 24 Etats membres étaient ainsi représentés. Par ailleurs, ces fonds permettent de soutenir l'ensemble du tissu industriel européen et attirent particulièrement les PME et ETI qui peuvent, par ce biais, nouer des partenariats mais également diviser les coûts de R&D. « Les PME représentent 37% (83 entreprises) du nombre total d'entités bénéficiaires d'un financement au titre de l'EDIDP, ce qui montre le rôle important des appels à propositions spécifiques pour les PME et des bonus PME mis en place », détaille ainsi la Commission Européenne. Les technologies futures. La Commission Européenne rappelle enfin que l'ensemble des projets retenus permettent de répondre aux priorités fixées par les Etats européens et qu'un volet important est consacré aux technologies de rupture. Parmi les axes de recherche et développement, un effort particulier est consacré aux drones, aux solutions spatiales, aux véhicules terrestres sans pilote, aux systèmes de missile de haute précision, aux futures plateformes navales, aux capacités d'attaque électronique aéroportées, aux réseaux tactiques et de haute sécurité, aux plateformes de « Cyber situational awareness » ainsi qu'aux solutions basées sur la furtivité active. https://air-cosmos.com/article/205-m-pour-le-fonds-europen-de-la-dfense-23237

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  March 23, 2022 | International, Naval

  Lockheed Martin making final push for Greek frigate construction, modernization work

  Greece has already committed to buying three French frigates -- but there are still a lot of gaps in its surface modernization program that Lockheed Martin is trying to fill, now that talks with Greece have been extended for six more months.