May 29, 2020 | International, Aerospace
Spain, May 27, 2020 - The Ministry of Defence has awarded Indra the tender for the IFF (identification, friend or foe) systems modernization for Lanza 3D radars used by the Aerial Surveillance Squadrons of the Spanish Air Force.
With this upgrade, the systems will comply with the most recent NATO interoperability standards, which will soon be mandatory for military aircraft and ground systems.
These are systems capable of interrogating an aircraft over 470 kilometers away to identify it and determine whether or not it is a threat.
The Spanish Air Force will have the following interrogation capabilities throughout the national territory: Mode 5 (encrypted), Mode S and ADS-B. All these identification methods will be incorporated into the different air command and control centers that protect Spanish air space and Europe's southwestern flank within NATO.
The new equipment supplied by Indra will be set up for security accreditation and will be resistant to cyber attacks. They will offer reinforced protection for the data exchanged with civil air traffic control entities.
The contract has a duration of 3 and a half years, and comes with the associated logistic support in the Air Surveillance Squadrons (EVA, in Spanish) as well as in the Logistic Transmissions Center (CLOTRA, in Spanish). This ensures that the systems will be operational throughout their life cycle of at least 15 years.
Indra is one of the leading companies worldwide in the development of IFF systems that it has implemented in ground stations as well as in platforms of all types.
Indra is a leading company in radar development and one of the main suppliers for NATO. The company has won all the radar tenders awarded by the Alliance in the last five years and has delivered a total of more than 50 Lanza 3D radars to countries on all five continents. Its equipment has been extensively tested in all kinds of scenarios and environments. Indra is also experienced in the supply of complete air defence systems that protect the air space of several countries.
About Indra
Indra (www.indracompany.com) is one of the leading global technology and consulting companies and the technological partner for core business operations of its customers world-wide. It is a world-leader in providing proprietary solutions in specific segments in Transport and Defense markets, and a leading firm in Digital Transformation Consultancy and Information Technologies in Spain and Latin America through its affiliate Minsait. Its business model is based on a comprehensive range of proprietary products, with a high-value focus and with a high innovation component. In the 2019 financial year, Indra achieved revenue of €3,204 billion, with more than 49,000 employees, a local presence in 46 countries and business operations in over 140 countries.
View source version on Indra: https://www.indracompany.com/en/noticia/indra-strengthens-spanish-air-defence-system
February 11, 2022 | International, Aerospace
Experts say the Pentagon's call for progress on hypersonic weapons development must be backed up with fiscal 2023 investments in much-needed testing infrastructure.
March 7, 2024 | International, Land
In the coming fiscal year, the government has allotted $594 million for defense.
August 7, 2020 | International, Aerospace
By: Jaroslaw Adamowski WARSAW, Poland — As Russia's military activities in the Baltic and Black seas are mounting pressure on NATO's eastern flank, a number of Eastern European countries are developing programs to acquire unmanned aerial vehicles for their militaries. In Romania, local analysts say the country's Ministry of National Defence aims to boost the military's surveillance, reconnaissance and intelligence (SRI) capabilities by acquiring new drones, ensuring the country's armed forces can efficiently monitor Romanian borders. “Romania wants to increase its SRI capacity in the Black Sea, taking into account that the militarization of the region by Russia is intensively continuing,” George Scutaru, head of the Bucharest-based New Strategy Center think tank and a former member of parliament and government adviser, told Defense News. “At the end of last April, the joint Defense Committees of the Romanian parliament adopted the request of the Ministry of National Defence to start the procurement procedures for five new programs, including the acquisition of UAV systems. Within this program, an acquisition of seven tactical-operative UAV systems is to be carried out.” Romania's previous attempt at purchasing drones for its military came in 2018 under a procedure to buy tactical UAVs for some 250 million lei (U.S. $56 million). The bidders included American firm AAI Corporation, Israel's Aeronautics Limited, BlueBird Aero Systems and Israel Aerospace Industries, as well as Romanian company Ymens Teamnet. However, a Romanian court canceled the tender after some bidders filed complaints. George Visan, the coordinator of the Black Sea Security Program at the Bucharest-based think tank Romania Energy Center, told Defense News it was “known that Romania would like to acquire at least six medium-altitude, long-endurance UAVs as well as a number of smaller tactical UAVs.” Similarly to the failed drone tender from 2018, the new competition is expected to attract bids from the United States, Israeli and Romanian companies. Anticipating the forthcoming procedure, last May, Israel's Elbit Systems signed a memorandum of understanding with local state-run aircraft companies Avioane Craiova and Romaero. “Elbit Systems can easily sell in Romania what it manufactures in Israel, but depending on the order, it is willing to integrate and transfer production here. Avioane Craiova used to produce trainers, IAR-99 aircraft and aero-structures for various manufacturers,” Visan said. The analyst says that, in parallel to its drone procurement programs, the ministry is also funding the development of two UAVs, the medium-range Ultra-20 VTOL and the combat Ultra-20 V drone, by the state-run Research Agency for Military Hardware and Technologies, hoping to secure foreign partners and ensure transfer of technology. “This doesn't preclude other acquisitions,” Visan said. Poland eyes combat, surveillance drones Meanwhile, Poland's Ministry of Defence is developing several acquisition programs to acquire UAVs. To date, the ministry has ordered short-range drones and mini drones, with more programs to procure surveillance and combat drones underway. “In the long-term, the Polish Armed Forces are planning to acquire about a dozen sets of mid-range UAVs under the Gryf program, several MALE combat-reconnaissance UAVs under the Zefir program, and vertical take-off and landing short-range UAVs for the navy under the Albatros program,” a spokesperson for the Polish ministry told Defense News. In 2018 and 2019, Polish privately-owned defense company WB Group secured two orders to deliver a total of 48 mini-drones to the Territorial Defense Forces (TDF), a military branch which comprises volunteers. “We have supplied two types of drones to the Polish military. The first one is FlyEye which, in addition to the TDF, is also used by the artillery forces and special forces in Poland. It can be used in a variety of missions, including reconnaissance, artillery guidance, search and resuce, but also to extend the range of battle management systems. This drone can guide missiles, becoming the heart of an anti-tank system. We have developed FlyEye for more than ten years, and new variants continue to be designed,” company spokesman Remigiusz Wilk told Defense News. “The second one is Warmate which combines reconnaissance capabilities and combat capacities as loitering munition, owing to which it's a highly precise weapon system.” WB Group is also exporting its drones, with Warmate's deliveries to four allies carried out through the NATO Support and Procurement Agency. Most recently, the manufacturer established a subsidiary in Ukraine where its UAVs have been operated by the country's military. “Our drones are combat-proven, and to date, not a single one has been lost over Ukrainian skies carrying out hundreds of challenging missions,” Wilk said. Other countries in the region that plan to acquire drones include the Czech Republic. Last November, Czech President Milos Zeman spurred controversy when he called on the government to buy Israeli UAVs for the armed forces. Combat drones are to be acquired under the country's military modernization program 2027, worth 100 billion koruna (U.S. $4.25 billion). https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2020/08/06/eastern-european-nato-allies-ramp-up-drone-buys-to-protect-their-borders/