Israel-Hamas war: What are the US MQ-9 Reaper drones that have been flying over Gaza? | Reuters

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  December 13, 2019 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security

  Brexit A Certainty After Boris Johnson Election Landslide

  By Tony Osborne LONDON – Britain's aerospace industry is waking up to Brexit certainty after Prime Minister Boris Johnson secured a landslide majority in a Dec. 12 general election. Johnson's Conservative party secured a significant majority in the British Parliament – the largest since Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s - which will enable him to push through his vision of Brexit on Jan. 31, 2020 ending Parliamentary and legal deadlocks that have delayed the UK's departure from the EU since the original date of March 29, 2019. For aerospace, the Parliamentary majority means stability in planning and investment, and there are unlikely to be any more delays to the process. It should also mean that the threat of a no-deal Brexit – widely considered the worst-case scenario for aerospace – has largely evaporated for now. The current iteration of the withdrawal agreement between Britain and the EU calls for regulatory alignment with the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA), but the two sides still have to negotiate future trade agreements once the UK has exited the EU. A lack of agreement here could result in a no-deal. British aerospace and defense trade association ADS said it was looking forward to working with the new government but said that ministers needed to “deliver a close future relationship with the European Union." In a statement, ADS CEO Paul Everitt called on the government to push forward with “investments in innovation and green technologies, develop a defense and security industrial strategy and an ambitious national space program.” Airbus, one of the most vocal aerospace companies against Brexit, said it welcomed the fact that the British government now has a “clear mandate” and is looking forward to “positive discussions.” “Airbus remains concerned by the potential for a ‘no-deal' in December 2020 and we will continue to plan for that scenario as that is the only way any responsible business can plan,” the company said in a statement. “We will continue to run our major Brexit project in order to further eradicate and/or mitigate risks.” If the election result made Brexit more likely, it makes the break-up of the UK more probable too after the Scottish National Party (SNP) secured 48 of the 59 Parliamentary seats in Scotland. SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon said the result was a mandate for a second Scottish independence referendum. The Conservative government is unlikely to green-light such a referendum, but independence would have significant ramifications for UK defense given the presence of several airbases and the UK's ballistic missile submarines carrying the nuclear deterrent. https://aviationweek.com/defense/brexit-certainty-after-boris-johnson-election-landslide

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  February 3, 2021 | International, C4ISR

  HENSOLDT South Africa launches new radar business

  Pretoria, South Africa, February 1, 2021 – HENSOLDT South Africa has launched its new radar business after acquiring the Air Traffic Management (ATM) and Defence & Security business units of Tellumat at the end of 2020. Together with the company's existing radar and other capabilities, these business lines are integrated to form the Radar Business Unit of HENSOLDT South Africa. The acquired activities represent an extensive portfolio, more than 50 years of expertise in the defence electronics landscape and a workforce of over 100 employees. “With the integration of the Tellumat Defence & Security and ATM business units into HENSOLDT South Africa, we are now representing the three major sensor solution business lines of the HENSOLDT Group here in South Africa,” says Rynier van der Watt, Managing Director of HENSOLDT South Africa. “Expanding from Optronics and Spectrum Dominance to now also include radar, identification friend or foe (IFF) and datalinks therefore creating a complete sensor solutions offering,” says Van der Watt. Through this acquisition, HENSOLDT South Africa's capabilities are expanded with a new portfolio area, centring around radar, IFF and datalinks. The radar offering focuses on naval and land radar, which will include leading-edge new development in this product range. Identification friend or foe (IFF) and datalinks will also be offered, where HENSOLDT is inheriting a world-class product range that it aims to enhance even further. Finally, air traffic management (ATM) and radar services become part of the overall portfolio, with the aim of expanding the ATM services and developing existing radar support services into full-blown maintenance, repair and operations (MRO). Heading up these activities is Bennie Langenhoven, Chief Executive of the Radar Business Unit, previously the head of Tellumat's ATM business unit. “Launching the Radar Business Unit of HENSOLDT South Africa is a strategic expansion of HENSOLDT's radar business with the goal to become the leading manufacturer and exporter of air-surveillance and defence radars on the African continent,” says Langenhoven. The South African radar capability will integrate with and expand on the Group's existing radar products. “Our long track record in the maintenance, repair and operation of radar systems puts us in a very good position to not only support the Group's radar portfolio, but also those of our partners and OEMs, including legacy systems,” says Langenhoven. In addition to providing the latest radar technology, HENSOLDT South Africa also offers midlife upgrades to extend the life of existing radar systems, especially in cases where budget constraints limit or prevent the acquisition of new radars. The acquisition also gives rise to strong synergies between HENSOLDT South Africa's Radar, Optronics and GEW business units, with collaboration envisioned on various fronts. The ASTUS tactical surveillance unmanned aerial system (UAS), previously part of the Defence & Security business unit in Tellumat, is being integrated into HENSOLDT South Africa's Optronics portfolio as part of the company's strong airborne capability. The ASTUS' exceptional product offering, combined with HENSOLDT's design, manufacturing and certification competency, gives ASTUS the opportunity to become a world-class product and game changer in the market. Through its Optronics and GEW business units, HENSOLDT South Africa has already achieved significant success as a sensor solutions house in the world market, delivering more than 55 products into 40 export countries, with a combined heritage of 70 years. HENSOLDT South Africa now increases its portfolio to more than 60 products, exported to over 43 countries. HENSOLDT South Africa aims to be a leader in driving innovation and fostering local capability and expertise. To further expand its technical capability in South Africa, “the Radar business unit will also become the custodian of the HENSOLDT South Africa engineering hub, where we will be incubating new radar products to support the HENSOLDT Group,” says Van der Watt. The HENSOLDT Group is expanding its radar product portfolio through the development of a next generation air defence radar product range in HENSOLDT South Africa. “This development marks the first time that a new HENSOLDT tactical air defence radar for land and sea is developed outside Germany,” says Erwin Paulus, head of HENSOLDT's Radar Division. “The opening of the HENSOLDT Radar Business Unit in South Africa is of high strategic importance to continue our efforts to further internationalise the HENSOLDT Radar Business,” says Paulus. The company is pleased that this development will also contribute to the country's wider technical and defence industry, as well as the growth of the economy. “Partnerships with local industry players are currently one of our focus areas,” says Langenhoven. “These partnerships aligns well with HENSOLDT South Africa's strategy to maintain strong relationships with suppliers and local OEMs,” continues Langenhoven. With an extensive portfolio representing all HENSOLDT's major business lines, five sites in South Africa and now employing a workforce of more than 700 employees, HENSOLDT South Africa is the Group's biggest industrial footprint outside Europe. Therefore, this expansion strategy is central to HENSOLDT's vision to become the leading, platform-independent provider of defence and security sensor solutions worldwide. About HENSOLDT South Africa HENSOLDT South Africa is a global pioneer of technology and innovation in defence and security electronics. With its combined experience, creativity and innovation, HENSOLDT South Africa brings together a comprehensive range of products, systems and services across defence and civil markets, from electronic warfare and optronics, spectrum monitoring and security solutions, as well as radar, IFF and datalink. With more than 700 local employees and combined revenues in excess of R1.7 billion, HENSOLDT South Africa is one of the largest defence and security electronics companies in South Africa. About HENSOLDT HENSOLDT is a pioneer of technology and innovation in the field of defence and security electronics, with more than 150 years of heritage through predecessor companies such as Carl Zeiss, Airbus, Dornier, Messerschmitt and Telefunken. Based in Taufkirchen near Munich, Germany, the company is a leading strategic player in the field of sensor solutions for defence and non-defence applications. HENSOLDT develops new products to combat a wide range of threats based on innovative approaches to data management, robotics and cybersecurity. With more than 5,500 employees, HENSOLDT generated revenues of 1.11 billion euros in 2019. Since September 2020, HENSOLDT has been listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and the SDAX stock market index there. www.hensoldt.net Press contact Ferri Erasmus Tel.: +27 (12) 421 6290 ferri.erasmus@hensoldt.net View source version on HENSOLDT: https://www.hensoldt.net/news/hensoldt-south-africa-launches-new-radar-business/

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  October 6, 2020 | International, Naval

  US Navy’s aging surface fleet struggles to keep ships up to spec, report shows

  David B. Larter WASHINGTON — The U.S. Navy's aging surface fleet is getting harder to maintain, and overall is showing declining health in several key areas, such as its main propulsion systems, electrical systems and Aegis combat systems, according to an annual report of the Navy's Board of Inspection and Survey submitted to Congress earlier this year. The so-called INSURV inspections found that over five years, the surface fleet found big dips in the main propulsion systems — the plants that produce the power to push the ship through the water — as well as in the electrical systems and aviation systems. The Aegis systems, a collection of sensors and software that protects the ship primarily from air threats, has also shown some signs of slipping over the last half-decade. The declining trend comes after years of intense focus on readiness inside the Defense Department, but the Navy says that recent changes to how the Navy conducts the notoriously intrusive INSURV inspections are making the fleet more ready. Still, the slipping scores do raise questions about whether the Navy's much-in-demand surface combatants are getting adequate time in maintenance. For INSURV, ships are graded across a wide variety of systems, with scores adding up to a “figure of merit” where perfect equals 1.0. Over more than 30 surface ship inspections in 2019, the Navy tracked a 20 percent drop in scores between 2014 and 2019 in the main propulsion plant and another 20 percent drop in scores for the ships' electrical systems. Aegis, which is the beating heart of the combat systems on cruisers and destroyers, saw a slight but concerning drop from a figure of merit of 0.88 in 2017 to 0.77 in 2019. Aviation systems, the systems concerned with launching and recovering rotary wing aircraft, dropped from 0.77 in 2014 to 0.68 in 2019. By contrast, scores from submarine main propulsion — governed by strict Naval Reactors guidelines and inspections — scored figures of merit of 0.94, submarine electrical systems scored 0.90, and submarine combat systems scored a 0.84. Overall, the Navy's surface fleet got high marks in navigation systems, medical systems, anti-submarine warfare systems and preservation. INSURV changes The Navy accounts for its drop in scores by pointing to a recent change in how the service conducts the inspections. In 2019, the chief of naval operations ordered that INSURV be conducted once every three years, the length of one deployment readiness cycle where the ship is maintained, the crew is trained, and the ship deploys. The inspections were also changed from an event that is planned for well in advance, to an event that comes with little notice, and requests for delays to the inspection were prohibited. The short-notice INSURV inspections are designed to get a more accurate picture of ships' readiness, instead of allowing sailors ample time to borrow parts from other ships and make temporary fixes that can boost the overall score on the inspection, according to Naval Surface Force Pacific. “Because ships knew exactly when the inspection would occur, they were able to put their best foot forward during the exam,” said SURFOR spokesperson Cmdr. Nicole Schwegman. "Over time, it became clear the (consistently good) INSURV scores ships were receiving did not accurately capture the material condition of the surface fleet. “As a result, Navy leadership directed that future INSURV inspections be performed at any time during a ship's [deployment cycle], and with minimal notice. At the same time, the Board of Inspection and Survey eliminated the possibility of ships receiving a delay to their inspection date due to a late occurring equipment casualty. The inspection is therefore more ‘come as you are' than it has been in the past.” SURFOR has also directed that ships conduct more rigorous and regular shake-out tests, such as directing the ships to max out their propulsion system in what's known as a “full power run,” and has increased the frequency of inspections of the ship's transmission, known as the main reduction gear, and monitoring of the health of the ships' SPY-1 radar system, Schwegman said. The surface fleet has made investments in increasing self-sufficiency of sailors so they can fix their own gear and made sure they have the right spares on board their ships to make sure they can fix broken gear, Schwegman said. The goal is to make sure the fleet gets away from relying too heavily on technical experts employed by the companies who make the gear on ships. “While we have the funding and availability of technical representatives (and we send them, to include with COVID-19 protocols in place), we will continue to ensure that ships are able to maintain most if not all of their equipment should technical assistance not be immediately available,” Schwegman said. Lingering questions Part of the issue, of course, is that the Navy's surface fleet is getting older. The cruisers are all closing in on their expected 35-year expected hull lives, and the first 27 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers are not far behind them. Keeping the radars going in earliest ships has been a particular challenge, as has maintaining the aging engineering plants. There remain questions, however, about how much the roughly 10-to-20 percent drop in scores across critical areas inspected by INSURV is attributable to the change in the inspection regime that SURFOR points to, said Bryan Clark, a retired U.S. Navy submarine officer and senior fellow at Hudson Institute. “Probably part of that 10-20 percent is a function of just not being able to prepare as much as you would in the past,” Clark said. "The way you'd do it in the past is you'd see you had INSURV coming up and you'd have a bunch of [preventive maintenance checks] you'd perform to make sure the equipment they were going to test was in working order. You'd go run things that are almost never run and see, ‘Oh, I need to go fix that.' “So, really the old system was to both test the ship as well as force the ship to make sure all of its systems were working at the right level of capability. Now it's much more of a test where they come on board, test a bunch of stuff and they see if it works or not.” But given that the downward trends go back so far, it's also likely that the high demands placed on the force continue to degrade the material condition of the ships without adequate time for maintenance, Clark said. “Part of it has to be that the Navy continues to struggle to put the time and money into maintenance availabilities that they need to,” Clark said. “Particularly in the surface fleet, the ships' schedules have just not been able to be freed up they way they need to be, and in some cases they've had to manage costs and growth, which meant they couldn't do all the maintenance they needed to.” The move to schedule more INSURV inspections will likely yield good results over the long term, he added, but said the whole outlook on how the Navy deploys must change if any significant progress is to be made. “Doing INSURV more frequently is a good time, especially since it is pretty much the most comprehensive inspection your ship is going to get,” Clark said. "You test things that you use infrequently so that you don't need to find out they don't work in extremis. “But I suppose I question how much the Navy really has taken a turn on readiness. They've put more money into it due to supplemental funding. They've done a much better job managing availabilities. But Navy-wide, you need to complement that with a supply-based model where you tell combatant commanders ‘We just can't get you the forces you want because they need to go into maintenance and they have to be there for as long as they need to be there.'” https://www.defensenews.com/naval/2020/10/05/the-us-navys-aging-surface-fleet-struggles-to-keep-ships-up-to-spec-report-shows/