European Nations Are Teaming Up to Make a 6th-Gen Fighter. Can the US Keep Up?

On the same subject

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  November 6, 2020 | International, Aerospace

  Exclusive: Trump administration advances $2.9 billion drone sale to UAE - sources

  By Mike Stone, Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department gave Congress notification it plans to sell 18 sophisticated armed MQ-9B aerial drones to the United Arab Emirates in a deal worth as much as $2.9 billion, people briefed on the notification said. The move comes on the heels of last week's notification of a potential sale of F-35 fighter jets to the middle-eastern country. This would mark the first armed drone export since the Trump administration reinterpreted a Cold War-era arms agreement between 34 nations to allow U.S. defense contractors to sell more drones to allies. Reuters has reported that UAE has long shown interest in purchasing drones from the United States and would be among the first customers in line after U.S. export policy changed this summer. A $600 million deal to sell four unarmed but weapons-ready MQ-9B SeaGuardian drones to Taiwan was the first to be formally notified to Congress on Tuesday. This informal notification for the Reaper-style drones is the precursor to the State Department's formal and public notification. The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations and House of Representatives Foreign Affairs committees - whose members have criticized UAE's role in civilian deaths in Yemen's civil war - have the ability to review and block weapons sales under an informal review process before the State Department sends its formal notification to the legislative branch. The U.S. State Department may wait to formally notify Congress of the sale once staff and members are briefed on the potential sale, one of the people said. The formal notification gives Congress 30 days to object to any sales. A U.S. State Department spokesman told Reuters, “As a matter of policy, the United States does not confirm or comment on proposed defense sales or transfers until they are formally notified to Congress.” The armed MQ-9B drones will also be equipped with maritime radar and could be delivered in 2024. The package notified to Congress is for 15 with an option for three additional drones, one of the people said. The UAE is also seeking a package of Boeing Co EA-18G Growlers, an electronic warfare version of the two-seat F/A-18F Super Hornet aircraft, that are capable of jamming radar and other advanced capabilities. Growlers are operated buy the U.S. and Australia. The United Arab Emirates, one of Washington's closest Middle East allies, has long expressed interest in acquiring the stealthy F-35 jets and was promised a chance to buy them in a side deal made when they agreed to normalize relations with Israel. The informal notification for 50 Lockheed Martin Co F-35 jets was made on Oct. 29. But any deal the U.S. makes to sell weapons in the region must satisfy decades of agreement with Israel where the U.S.-made weapon must not impair Israel's “qualitative military edge,” guaranteeing U.S. weapons furnished to Israel are “superior in capability” to those sold to its neighbors. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-emirates-drones-exclusive/exclusive-trump-administration-advances-2-9-billion-drone-sale-to-uae-sources-idUSKBN27M06L

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  December 7, 2018 | International, Aerospace

  Top départ pour le futur avion de combat franco-allemand

  Le futur chasseur franco-allemand devra remplacer, à l'horizon 2035-2040, le Rafale français et l'Eurofighter déployé dans les armées allemandes. Découvrez les noms des industriels qui s'envoleront avec lui. Le coup d'envoi industriel du futur avion de combat franco-allemand est donné. La ministre des Armées Florence Parly et son homologue allemande Ursula von der Leyen se sont accordées pour attribuer l'an prochain aux industriels européens les premiers contrats d'études pour affiner le concept de système aérien de combat du futur (Scaf). Le futur chasseur franco-allemand devra remplacer, à l'horizon 2035-2040, le Rafale français et l'Eurofighter déployé dans les armées allemandes. Dassault Aviation a été confirmé comme le chef de file industriel du programme. Il travaillera avec Airbus pour l'étude de l'architecture du Scaf et sur un démonstrateur d'appareil. Safrandirigera celle sur le démonstrateur du moteur en partenariat avec le motoriste allemand MTU. Thales, qui fournit l'électronique et les systèmes de combat du Rafale, n'a pas été pas mentionné en premier rang dans l'attribution des contrats d'études et fait figure de grand perdant de ce premier round industriel. La France et l'Allemagne ont déjà rappelé qu'ils comptaient ouvrir leur collaboration à d'autres pays européens, notamment à l'Espagne. https://www.usinenouvelle.com/article/top-depart-pour-le-futur-avion-de-combat-franco-allemand.N774254

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  May 5, 2020 | International, Land

  U.S. arms makers and medical device firms team up to make ventilators

  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. weapons makers have teamed up with medical device companies to increase the supply of ventilators that can be used to combat the coronavirus pandemic, people working on the project said. The two groups do not regularly partner on projects, but when a defense industry consultant with an engineering background realized weapons makers could help solve supply-chain problems within the U.S. ventilator industry, the creation of Vent Connect was set in motion and is set to be announced on Monday, the people said. The idea gathered momentum when industry associations like the Aerospace Industries Association, which represents plane makers and defense contractors including Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) and General Dynamics Corp (GD.N), teamed up with AdvaMed, the Advanced Medical Technology Association, whose members include vent manufacturers. A handful of ventilator makers including ResMed Inc (RMD.N), and Zoll, an Asahi Kasei Corp (3407.T) company, post requests in the ventilator parts marketplace to a group of 60 weapons and airplane makers to help meet surging demand for the life-saving machines, an AdvaMed representative said. Working since March to cut through challenges as varied as how to handle intellectual property, confidentiality issues, cybersecurity and logistics, the two associations created the marketplace that is now serving as a new avenue for the ventilator supply chain. The defense companies involved in the project did not want their names published because they did not want to appear to seek credit for their efforts. At its outset, the task was gargantuan. One ventilator maker, Medtronic (MDT.N), released a parts list with over 1,500 items to see if there was any crossover with the defense supply chain, two of the people said. Alphabet Inc's Google (GOOGL.O) was brought in to help set up a website so that the companies could better coordinate online. The two industries share some common equipment. For example, fighter jets use pressure sensors to regulate oxygen to their face masks, which are also a key element in a ventilator to ensure that the rhythm of a patient's breathing pattern is monitored and maintained for the person's comfort. The efforts to try to stem the ventilator shortage are being worked on by the U.S. Army as well. In mid-April, Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy offered an investment of $100,000 to innovators who could come up with a “rapid ventilator production system to support field hospitals that are still requiring critical infrastructure.” https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-industry/u-s-arms-makers-and-medical-device-firms-team-up-to-make-ventilators-idUSKBN22G12C