November 14, 2023 | International, Aerospace, C4ISR
Turkey and UAE cozy up over drone, missile cooperation
The countries have focused on strengthening bilateral ties through agreements in the defense and technology sectors, among others.
March 12, 2019 | International, Naval
India signs $3 billion contract with Russia for lease of a nuclear submarine
NEW DELHI — India on Thursday signed a $3 billion contract for the lease of an Akula-1 class nuclear-powered attack submarine from Russia for a period of 10 years.
An agreement was signed between India and Russia after two years of negotiations on the price and various other aspects of the deal. Under the pact, Russia will have to deliver the Akula-1 class submarine, to be known as Chakra III, to the Indian Navy by 2025.
It will be the third Russian nuclear attack submarine to be leased to the Indian Navy. A senior Indian Navy official said the deal includes refurbishment of the submarine with Indian communication and sensor systems, spares support and training technical infrastructure for its operations.
The INS Chakra III will not be equipped with long-range nuclear missiles because of international treaties and because it is not meant for deterrence patrols. Its armaments include conventional land-attack and anti-ship missiles and torpedoes.
The Indian Navy already operates one Russian nuclear-powered attack submarine, INS Chakra, that was taken on lease for a period of 10 years at a cost of around $1 billion in 2012, and its lease is new expected to be extended for three more years. The service acquired its first nuclear attack submarine, a Charlie-class boat from the Soviet era. The sub served in the Indian Navy from 1988 to 1991.
The Indian Navy also operates the home-built, nuclear-propelled submarine INS Arihant, which is equipped with nuclear ballistic missiles. A second nuclear submarine, INS Aririghat, will be commissioned later this year, with two more currently under construction.
On the same subject
-
-
September 28, 2020 | International, Aerospace, Naval
Lockheed Martin to perform ‘unique sea trials' of F-35 for non-US customers
Gareth Jennings The United States Department of Defense (DoD) has contracted Lockheed Martin to conduct aircraft carrier trials of its F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) for potential international operators. The award, announced on 24 September, is part of a wider USD245.5 million developmental support contract for DoD and international operators of the F-35 that will run through to March 2022. “[Additional to the wider developmental support work], this modification provides unique sea trials on aircraft carriers for non-DoD participants,” the contract notification stated. Though no further details pertaining to the aircraft carrier trials were disclosed, they are likely to relate to the short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) F-35B variant of the aircraft. To date, the US Marine Corps (USMC), United Kingdom Royal Navy (RN) and Royal Air Force (RAF), and Italian Navy (Marina Militare Italiana: MMI) have procured the F-35B to equip their respective amphibious assault ships and aircraft carriers, while current F-35A customers, Australia, Japan, Singapore, Spain, and South Korea, have all expressed interest in the STOVL jet's carrier capabilities over recent years, as had Turkey before it was disbarred from the wider JSF programme. Australia was reporting its interest in the F-35B for the Royal Australian Navy's (RAN's) two Canberra-class landing helicopter dock (LHD) amphibious assault ships as far back as 2014. The two 27,800-tonne LHDs – HMAS Canberra and HMAS https://www.janes.com/defence-news/news-detail/lockheed-martin-to-perform-unique-sea-trials-of-f-35-for-non-us-customers
-
February 11, 2021 | International, Aerospace
Pentagon science office launches program to develop manufacturing in space ... and on the moon
Nathan Strout WASHINGTON — The Defense Department's emerging technology research arm will invest in new materials and processes that could enable manufacturing in space and on the moon's surface. To that end, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is launching the Novel Orbital and Moon Manufacturing, Materials and Mass-efficient Design program, or NOM4D. “NOM4D's vision is to develop foundational materials, processes and designs needed to realize in-space manufacturing of large, precise and resilient Defense Department systems,” said Bill Carter, program manager in DARPA's Defense Sciences Office, in a press release. DARPA is launching the program in response to the natural limitations of rocket launches in placing larger structures and systems in orbit, the agency said. While the launch industry has expanded significantly in recent years, with dozens of new providers entering the fray, rocket launches are inherently limited — even the largest rockets have weight and volume restrictions. The solution? Place smaller pieces of a structure on orbit with multiple launches, and then assemble them in space. Or better yet, collect materials from the moon to build with. “We will explore the unique advantages afforded by on-orbit manufacturing using advanced materials ferried from Earth,” Carter said. “Large structures such as antennas and solar panels can be substantially more weight efficient, and potentially much more precise. We will also explore the unique features of in-situ resources obtained from the moon's surface as they apply to future defense missions.” Manufacturing in space could also enable more flexibility in the design of space systems. Today, most satellites are designed to be as compact as possible in order to be integrated with and launched on rockets. But by assembling systems in space, systems could be designed without some of those volume restrictions, allowing them to be more mass efficient. “We're looking for proposers to come up with system designs that are so mass efficient that they can only be built off-earth, and with features that enable them to withstand maneuvers, eclipses, damage and thermal cycles typical of space and lunar environments,” Carter said. “Given the constraints of ground test, launch and deployment, the traditional approach to designing space structures is not likely to result in dramatic improvements in mass efficiency. In order to take the next step, we've got to go about materials, manufacturing and design in a completely new way.” The idea of assembling systems and structures in space isn't new. Famously, the International Space System was assembled in space using a number of components individually launched into space. “People have been thinking about on-orbit manufacturing for some time, so we expect to demonstrate new materials and manufacturing technologies by the program's end,” Carter added. With NOM4D, DARPA will work with participants over three 18-month phases to develop precise, mass efficient structures that could be used for on-orbit construction. Each phase will focus on one of three applications: large solar arrays, large radio frequency reflector antennas, and segmented infrared reflective optics. The agency will host a proposers day webinar on Feb. 26 and expects to release a broad agency announcement solicitation in February. https://www.c4isrnet.com/battlefield-tech/space/2021/02/09/darpa-launches-new-program-to-develop-manufacturing-in-spaceand-on-the-moon/