January 19, 2023 | International, Aerospace
Defense Innovation Unit eyes partnerships for drone-vetting effort
DIU's Blue UAS has become the government standard for certifying drones that meet federal cybersecurity and supply chain requirements.
November 20, 2020 | International, Land
GM Defense conducting nationwide search for new president
By: Jen Judson
WASHINGTON — GM Defense President David Albritton is headed to Amazon so the company is conducting a nationwide search for a new president, according to a GM spokesperson.
Albritton is joining Amazon Web Services as the vice president of global communications in the company's public sector and vertical industries.
GM Defense's website already reflects the change. Tim Herrick, the company's vice president of global product programs, is serving as the interim president and will be dual-hatted until a permanent replacement is found.
Herrick “has been a champion of GM's defense business since its inception and serves on GM Defense's Board of Managers,” a GM Defense spokesperson told Defense News in an emailed statement Nov. 19.
GM Defense is conducting a “national search to find a candidate who is qualified to lead GM Defense and will make an announcement when the right person is identified,” according to the spokesperson.
The company is coming off a big win with the U.S. Army after being selected to build its new Infantry Squad Vehicle.
The first of the vehicles was delivered to the service in a ceremony last month at GM Defense's proving grounds and production facility in Milford, Michigan, just 120 days after being chosen to build the new troop carrier.
The Army awarded the company a $214.3 million contract to produce 649 vehicles by the end of fiscal 2024. The service is planning to procure a total of 2,065 ISVs.
With the success of the ISV program, GM Defense is setting its sights on other opportunities with the Army and other military services such as the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle program.
The service is planning to re-compete for the JLTV and for new Humvees to round out the tactical vehicle fleet.
And while the company can offer fully integrated vehicles, it is also looking to partner with others for such programs like the Advanced Reconnaissance Vehicle for the U.S. Marine Corps or the Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle, the Army's Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle replacement effort.
Such technologies like power and propulsion, lighter weight materials and cybersecurity are all areas in which GM Defense is looking to contribute.
GM spent several recent years helping the Army evaluate a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle using a ZH2 Chevy Colorado and the Army is now taking some renewed steps at getting after an electric vehicles in its fleet to include the pursuit of an electric light reconnaissance vehicle.
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August 10, 2020 | International, Aerospace, C4ISR
A human F-16 pilot will fight against AI in an upcoming contest
Andrew Eversden WASHINGTON ― An artificial intelligence algorithm will face off against a human F-16 fighter pilot in an aerial combat simulation in late August, the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency announced Aug. 7. The simulation — the third and final competition in DARPA's AlphaDogfight Trials — will take place Aug. 20. The event will be virtual due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The AlphaDogfight Trials was created to demonstrate advanced AI systems' ability in air warfare. Eight teams were selected last year to participate in the final competition that runs from Aug. 18-20. The competition is also part of DARPA's Air Combat Evolution, or ACE, program, which was started in 2019, and seeks to automate air-to-air combat as well as improve human trust in AI systems to bolster human-machine teaming. “We weren't able to host the finals at AFWERX in Las Vegas as we'd originally planned with fighter pilots from the Air Force Weapons School at nearby Nellis Air Force Base,” Col. Dan Javorsek, program manager in DARPA's Strategic Technology Office, said in a statement. “We are still excited to see how the AI algorithms perform against each other as well as a Weapons School-trained human and hope that fighter pilots from across the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps, as well as military leaders and members of the AI tech community will register and watch online. It's been amazing to see how far the teams have advanced AI for autonomous dogfighting in less than a year.” The eight teams are Aurora Flight Sciences, EpiSys Science, Georgia Tech Research Institute, Heron Systems, Lockheed Martin, Perspecta Labs, PhysicsAI and SoarTech. On the first day of the competition, the teams will fly their respective algorithms against five AI systems developed by the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab. Teams will face off against each other in a round-robin tournament on the second day, with the third day featuring the top four teams competing in a single-elimination tournament for the championship. The winner will then fly against a human pilot. “Regardless of whether the human or machine wins the final dogfight, the AlphaDogfight Trials is all about increasing trust in AI,” Javorsek said. “If the champion AI earns the respect of an F-16 pilot, we'll have come one step closer to achieving effective human-machine teaming in air combat, which is the goal of the ACE program.” https://www.c4isrnet.com/battlefield-tech/it-networks/2020/08/07/a-human-f-16-pilot-will-fight-against-ai-in-an-upcoming-contest/
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July 11, 2024 | International, Aerospace, Land, Security
Switzerland squares neutrality with its European air-defense push
The European Sky Shield Initiative's focus procurement and other non-operational aspects have eased Swiss neutrality concerns, officials and analysts say.