June 10, 2020 | International, Aerospace

Ensuring Future Air Power Capability - Key to European and National sovereignty

June 9, 2020 - Contested environments: Threat levels are rising due to the increasing development and dissemination of Anti Access/Areal Denial means. European air forces and navies need to prepare themselves for potential large scale high tempo operations in contested environments. To maintain air superiority and minimize attrition levels, Europe's Future Combat Air System (FCAS) will be a system of systems leveraging manned and unmanned collaborative combat, bringing the next level of Air Power.

Decisive tactical edge: FCAS will ultimately require a New Generation Fighter in 2040, which will be more sophisticated with very low observability, cutting edge passive and active sensors, on board smart applications and human machine collaboration. Such a New Generation Fighter will be a battle management platform capable of operating deep within enemy space. When teaming with unmanned modular platforms, named Remote Carriers, New Generation Fighters will have the needed scalable and flexible force multipliers to open new fields of tactics based on deception and numeric superiority.

Accelerated operational tempo: European air forces and navies will need to accelerate the operational tempo to complete OODA (Observe Orient Decide Act) loops faster than the adversary and take control of the situation. The interoperable Air Combat Cloud will provide common situational awareness by instantaneously capturing, sharing, merging and processing massive amounts of data from all connected manned and unmanned platforms. The Air Combat Cloud's warfare analytics and real-time coordination will provide better situational awareness, tactical options, decisions and collaborative effects to speed-up the OODA loop.

Better effects paths: Operating as a system of systems orchestrated by an Air Combat Cloud, FCAS will allow the OODA loop to be distributed across platforms allowing the dynamic combination of sensing, shooting and battle management capabilities. With a distributed OODA loop, FCAS will provide European air forces and navies with better, faster and more resilient effects paths under human supervision.

Incremental journey: FCAS will be an incremental journey. In a world with increasing threats, Airbus and its industrial partners need to start providing from 2025 the first capabilities to maintain European and National sovereignty. FCAS will lead to a doctrinal and technological change. Using such new capabilities will be a huge challenge for European air forces and navies, which cannot be instantaneously achieved. New doctrines, processes and skills need to be gradually developed in alignment with the planned arrival of FCAS capabilities and meeting the related technological challenges. FCAS will require a step by step approach to be jointly tackled by European air forces, navies and industry.

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November 7, 2018 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security

Defence Minister hails UK-US transatlantic partnership
From: Ministry of Defence and Stuart Andrew MP Defence Minister Stuart Andrew was in Washington today to discuss the enduring UK-US defence present and future relationship and met with some of the biggest players in the US defence industry. As part of the visit, the Minister met with the US Navy Under Secretary Thomas Modly and US Army Under Secretary Ryan McCarthy to discuss bilateral capability priorities and future areas of collaboration between the two armed forces. This came as the Minister addressed the Heritage Foundation think-tank, where he highlighted the threats that both nations face and emphasised the vital role of Nato and the need for long-term planning and the depth of UK-US collaboration. Addressing the Heritage Foundation, Defence Minister Stuart Andrew said: Over the years, the deep UK-US alliance has endured through two World conflicts, the chill of the Cold War, and the continuing struggle against extremist terror. Today our forces work highly effectively together across the globe – on land and sea, in the air, space and cyberspace. We are stronger together. Just as our Armed Forces' capabilities are effectively inter-twined, so too are our industries. We are now moving even nearer the goal of full interoperability, leveraging the talent, strength and innovation of both our Defence industries to meet the challenges of the future. In a move to reinforce stronger industrial partnerships, the Minister also met with the headliners in the American defence industry, meeting with likes of Lockheed Martin, Northrup Grumman, Boeing and General Dynamics. The UK and US are the biggest overseas suppliers to each other's militaries and have worked closely on numerous key projects. The most prominent of these is the F-35 fighter jet programme, with the aircraft now embarked for flight trials on HMS Queen Elizabeth as she sailed into New York just last month. Other recent examples of collaboration are the Unmanned Air Systems programme and a Common Missile Compartment for UK-US Ballistic Missile Submarines. Both nations also play leading roles in Nato, which is vital to the transatlantic partnership and have been calling for other nations to invest more in security and to increase the readiness of their forces. By the end of 2018, eight members will be meeting the commitment of spending 2% of their GDP on defence compared with just three in 2014. In further display of solidarity, Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson recently announced that the Red Arrows are set to carry out their largest ever tour of North America in 2019 as the UK looks to strengthen ties and sign trade deals outside of Europe. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/defence-minister-hails-uk-us-transatlantic-partnership
July 19, 2019 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security, Other Defence

Contract Awards by US Department of Defense - July 16, 2019
DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY Seqirus Inc., Summit, New Jersey, has been awarded a maximum $68,777,956 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-quantity contract for the injectable influenza vaccine. This was a competitive acquisition with two offers received. This is a one-year contract with no option periods. Location of performance is New Jersey, with a performance completion date of July 15, 2020. Using customers are Army, Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2019 through 2020 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE2DP-19-D-0002). Bell Helicopter Textron Inc., Fort Worth, Texas, has been awarded a maximum $27,515,180 modification (P00018) against a five-year contract (SPE4AX-17-D-9410) adding five national stock numbers for stabilizer bar assemblies, pylon mast assemblies, trans case assemblies, quill assemblies and rotary wing blades in support of UH-1N and TH-1H helicopters. This is a fixed-price, requirements contract. Location of performance is Texas, with a Sep. 30, 2023, performance completion date. Using military service is Air Force. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2019 through 2023 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Aviation, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. CORRECTION: The contract announced on June 28, 2019, for Valley Apparel LLC, Knoxville, Tennessee (SPE1C1-19-D-1172) for $10,794,000 was announced with an incorrect award date. The correct award date is July 15, 2019. NAVY Raytheon Co., Integrated Defense Systems, Marlborough, Massachusetts, is awarded a $40,211,517 modification to previously awarded contract N00024-16-C-5370 to exercise an option for fiscal 2019 production long lead material in support of the production of two AN/SPY-6(V) configuration variants – the SPY-6(V)2 Rotator Radar and the SPY-6(V)3 Fixed Face Radar. Work will be performed in Marlborough, Massachusetts, and is expected to be complete by June 2020. Fiscal 2018 and 2017 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funding in the amount of $40,211,517 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity. AIR FORCE Agile Defense Inc., Reston, Virginia, has been awarded a $21,044,844 firm-fixed-price contract for combined air operations center communication services. This contract provides for operations and maintenance of all air operations center communication systems. Work will be performed in the Air Force Central Command's area of responsibility and is expected to be complete by June 2, 2020. This award is the result of a sole source acquisition. Fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $8,627,758 are being obligated at the time of award. The Air Combat Command Acquisition Management and Integration Center, Langley Air Force Base, Hampton, Virginia, is the contracting activity (FA4890-19-F-A050). ARMY Relyant Global LLC,* Maryville, Tennessee, was awarded a $15,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract for repair or replacement of historic windows and doors at Fort Riley, Kansas. Bids were solicited via the internet with two received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of July 14, 2024. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Kansas City, Missouri, is the contracting activity (W912DQ-19-D-4012). *Small Business https://dod.defense.gov/News/Contracts/Contract-View/Article/1906928/source/GovDelivery/
August 20, 2018 | International, Naval

UK restarts frigate competition - but will anyone take part?
By: Andrew Chuter LONDON - Britain's Ministry of Defence is restarting its contest to build five general purpose frigates for the Royal Navy after it terminated the original competition due to insufficient interest from industry. The Defence Equipment & Support organisation, the MoD's procurement arm, has issued a “prior information notice” informing potential bidders it is moving forward with the Type 31e program, and plans a short period of market engagement with companies or consortia that have expressed interest starting on Aug 20. “We have relaunched discussions with industry for our new Type 31e fleet, and this week issued a Prior Information Notice to ensure we do not lose any momentum. We remain committed to a cutting-edge Royal Navy fleet of at least 19 frigates and destroyers, and the first batch of five new Type 31e ships will bolster our modern Navy,” said an MoD spokesperson. “The purpose of the market engagement is for the Authority [DE&S] to share key elements of the new procurement, including technical and commercial elements. The Authority intends to use the feedback from the market engagement to inform the further shaping of its requirements and commercial construct,” said the DE&S in its announcement it was relaunching the competition. DE&S said suppliers should “only respond if they are in a position to undertake the full Type 31e programme, meeting its full requirement including a £1.25billion cost and building the Type 31e in a UK shipyard.” The Type 31e is a key part of the government's 2017 national shipbuilding strategy which in part seeks to open up the sector to local competition, rather than contract via a non-competitive single source contract with U.K. giant BAE Systems, the world's third largest defense company according to the Defense News Top 100 list. The fast track schedule for the Type 31e calls for the initial vessel to be in service by 2023, replacing the first of 13 Type 23 class frigates due to be retired by the Royal Navy in the period up to the middle of the 2030's. The final Type 31e -- the e stands for export -- is due to be delivered in 2028. Eight of the Type 23's will be replaced by anti-submarine warfare Type 26's. The remainder of the Type 23's will be replaced by the Type 31e. DE&S and industry are up against a time crunch on getting the first Type 31e into service, one which some executives here see as daunting, if not unachieveable, thanks to the need to restart the competition. But despite the delay in getting to the competitive design phase contract announcements, DE&S says it remains committed to the 2023 service date. “A new streamlined procedure will present an opportunity to save time in the overall program. We will release more information about our plans when we have completed the market engagement - which we plan to start from Aug 20,” said a second MoD spokesperson. Full Article: https://www.defensenews.com/naval/2018/08/17/uk-restarts-frigate-competition-but-will-anyone-take-part/

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