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March 17, 2023 | International, Other Defence

L'Union europénne se dote d'une stratégie spatiale pour la défense

La Commission et le service européen d'action extérieure ont dévoilé leur première feuille de route pour assumer plus de responsabilité en matière de sécurité dans l'espace. Une loi européenne sur l'espace est promise pour 2024.

https://www.lemonde.fr/international/article/2023/03/16/l-ue-se-dote-d-une-strategie-spatiale-pour-la-defense_6165714_3210.html

On the same subject

  • Saab delivers first Global Eye early-warning plane to UAE

    April 30, 2020 | International, Aerospace

    Saab delivers first Global Eye early-warning plane to UAE

    By: Sebastian Sprenger COLOGNE, Germany — Saab has delivered its first GlobalEye early-warning plane to the United Arab Emirates, the company announced Wednesday. The aircraft arrived in Dubai during the late morning of April 29 following a brief stopover in Bulgaria on its way from Sweden, Saab CEO Micael Johansson said during a call with reporters. The delivery caps four and a half years of work since the UAE and Saab signed a contract for three of the planes — modified Bombardier 6000 business jets equipped with Saab's Erieye long-range radar and other surveillance sensors. Saab is advertising GlobalEye as able to provide ground, air and maritime surveillance in a single package. “The delivery of the first GlobalEye is a major milestone for Saab, but also an important step in the history of airborne early warning and control,” Johansson said. “We have set a new standard for the market, and I am proud to say that we have delivered the most advanced airborne surveillance solution in the world to the United Arab Emirates.” The company, which has been spared from work stoppages in Sweden caused elsewhere by the coronavirus pandemic, had to take “a number of mitigating actions” to prevent the virus from spreading during the actual handover and during the weeks leading up to it, Johansson said. The measures included testing workers for the virus, quarantining them if warranted and retesting them afterward, according to Johansson. Saab is still working to produce the additional two aircraft owed under the 2015 contract. Those would be delivered “rather shortly,” the executive told reporters, declining to be more specific. The company is eyeing the potential sale of yet two more GlobalEye aircraft to the UAE. Such an option is included in the original deal, though details have yet to be finalized. Johansson cited Finland and South Korea as countries also interested in the GlobalEye technology. If Saab manages to drum up additional customers, future offerings are slated to include the Global 6500 jet as carriers, he said. https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2020/04/29/saab-delivers-first-global-eye-early-warning-plane-to-uae

  • Contract Awards by US Department of Defense - August 15, 2019

    August 16, 2019 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security

    Contract Awards by US Department of Defense - August 15, 2019

    ARMY GiaCare and MedTrust JV LLC,* Fort Lauderdale, Florida, was awarded a $218,983,564 firm-fixed-price contract for registered nursing services. Bids were solicited via the internet with two received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Sept. 30, 2024. U.S. Army Health Contracting Activity, San Antonio, Texas, is the contracting activity (W81K04-19-D-0021). Honeywell International Inc., Phoenix, Arizona, was awarded an $110,870,867 modification (P00102) to contract W56HZV-12-C-0344 for Total Integrated Engine Revitalization (TIGER) hardware to meet the Anniston Army Depot production of the Advanced Gas Turbine 1500 engine for the Abrams tanks and TIGER field repair site requirements. Work will be performed in Phoenix, Arizona, with an estimated completion date of Feb. 22, 2022. Fiscal 2019 other procurement, Army funds in the amount of $110,870,867 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Warren, Michigan, is the contracting activity. The Ross Group Construction Corp., Tulsa, Oklahoma, was awarded a $46,949,880 firm-fixed-price contract for the construction of a new visiting quarters facility at Little Rock Air Force Base, Arkansas. Bids were solicited via the internet with three received. Work will be performed in Little Rock Air Force Base, Arkansas, with an estimated completion date of Oct. 1, 2021. Fiscal 2019 non-appropriated funds for Air Force services funds in the amount of $46,949,880 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Louisville, Kentucky, is the contracting activity (W912QR-19-C-0028). Lord & Son Construction Inc.,* Fort Walton Beach, Florida, was awarded a $32,128,489 firm-fixed-price contract for construction of a Long-Range Stand-Off Acquisition Facility on Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. Bids were solicited via the internet with three received. Work will be performed in Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, with an estimated completion date of Aug. 14, 2021. Fiscal 2018 military construction funds in the amount of $21,128,489 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile, Alabama, is the contracting activity (W91278-19-C-0023). GEO Consultants Corp.,* Kevil, Kentucky, was awarded a $9,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract for environmental services. Nine bids were solicited with nine bids received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Aug. 14, 2024. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Louisville, Kentucky, is the contracting activity (W912QR-19-D-0045). Michael Baker International Inc., Moon Township, Pennsylvania, was awarded a $9,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract for communications engineering services within the Central Command Area of Responsibility. Bids were solicited via the internet with two received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Aug. 14, 2024. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Louisville, Kentucky, is the contracting activity (W912QR-19-D-0043). NAVY Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems, Moorestown, New Jersey, is awarded an $80,011,579 fixed-price-incentive, firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-fixed-fee modification to previously awarded contract N00024-14-C-5106 for fiscal 2019 AEGIS Modernization (AMOD) production requirements. This procurement covers the production, test and delivery of multi-mission signal processor equipment sets; electronic equipment fluid cooler; AEGIS Weapon System AMOD Upgrade equipment; Kill Assessment System 5.1 equipment; AEGIS spares; Australia Combat Systems Engineering Development Site; and AEGIS Ashore Japan Sites equipment. This contract combines purchases for the Navy (78.1%); the government of Japan (18.2%); and the government of Australia (3.7%) under the Foreign Military Sales program. This contract includes options, which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract action to $80,411,730. Work will be performed in Moorestown, New Jersey (71.2%); Clearwater, Florida (27.4%); and Owego, New York (1.4%), and is expected to be complete by November 2023. Fiscal 2019 defense-wide procurement; 2019, 2018, 2017 other procurement (Navy); 2019, 2018, 2016, 2015, 2014 and 2013 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy); fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance (Navy); and Foreign Military Sales funding in the amount of $80,011,579 will be obligated at the time of award, of which $968,079 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity. Lockheed Martin Corp. Rotary and Mission Systems, Moorestown, New Jersey, is awarded a $55,960,700 cost-plus-incentive fee, cost-only, firm-fixed-price contract for combat system engineering support on the Ship Self-Defense System (SSDS). The SSDS combat system engineering agent/software design agent primary deliverables will be SSDS tactical computer programs, program updates and associated engineering, development and logistics products. This contract will manage the in-service SSDS configurations as well as adapt and integrate new or upgraded war-fighting capabilities. Work will be performed in Moorestown, New Jersey (95.6%); and San Diego, California (4.4%), and is expected to be complete by December 2019. This contract includes options, which if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $637,583,110 and be complete by December 2028. Fiscal 2019 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy); 2019 other procurement (Navy); 2018 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy); and 2019 operations and maintenance (Navy) funding in the amount of $12,438,006 will be obligated at time of award, and funding in the amount of $1,306 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via the Federal Business Opportunities website, with three offers received. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity (N00024-19-C-5603). American Electronic Warfare Associates Inc.,* California, Maryland, is awarded a $40,103,262 fixed-price indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract. This contract provides for technical support services for the Aircraft Prototype Systems Division of the Naval Air Warfare Center – Aircraft Division Integrated Battlespace Simulation and Test Department. Services to be provided include all phases of program execution from initial conceptual studies, execution planning, management, engineering, documentation, fabrication, installation/ modification and test and evaluation activity support for aircraft research, development, prototyping, experimentation and test and evaluation programs. Work will be performed in Patuxent River, Maryland, and is expected to be completed in November 2023. No funds will be obligated at time of award; funds will be obligated on individual delivery orders as they are issued. This contract was competitively procured via an electronic request for proposals as a 100 percent small business set-aside; two offers were received. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity (N0042119D0076). FLIR Surveillance Inc., Wilsonville, Oregon, is awarded a $12,689,470 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract with a five-year ordering period for supplies, repairs and upgrades for Littoral Combat Ship configuration of Sea Star SAFIRE III Electro-Optics Sensor Systems. Work will be performed in Wilsonville, Oregon, and is expected to be complete by August 2024. Fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance (Navy) funding in the amount of $432,514 will be obligated at the time of award and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured in accordance with 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(1) - only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements. The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane, Indiana, is the contracting activity (N00164-19-D-JQ49). Teledyne Instruments Inc., North Falmouth, Massachusetts, is awarded a $7,666,080 cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost reimbursable, firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for services and supplies to support the ongoing development of autonomous underwater vehicles, localization systems, monitoring and navigation tele-sonar subsea modems. This contract includes options, which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to an estimated $22,222,593. Work will be performed in North Falmouth, Massachusetts (90%); and Keyport, Washington (10%), and is expected to be complete by December 2024. Fiscal 2019 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funding in the amount of $4,281,649; and fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance (Navy) funding in the amount of $1,070,412 will be obligated at time of award and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was procured as a Small Business Innovation Research Phase III award without further competition. The awardee satisfied competition requirements during Phase I and Phase II under Topic N02-082. A justification and approval document pursuant to 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(5) was approved by the Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division, Keyport, Competition Advocate in January 2017. The Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division, Keyport, in Keyport, Washington, is the contracting activity (N00253-19-D-0005). DEFENSE HEALTH AGENCY AMYX Inc., Reston, Virginia, was awarded a fixed-price contract with an estimated value of $56,818,861. The contract provides contracting and program management support to the Defense Health Agency (DHA). Services include, but are not limited to, acquisition and contract management, program management support, and other related workload requirements associated with the award and administration of DHA contracts. The contract was awarded as a competitive 100% small business acquisition. There is a base period of eight months, and four one-year option periods. The places of contract performance are: Falls Church, Virginia; Rosslyn, Virginia; San Antonio, Texas; and Aurora, Colorado. The period of performance begins on Sept. 25, 2019, and the completion date is May 31, 2024. The base period is funded with fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance funding in the amount of $7,208,836. The Defense Health Agency, Enterprise Medical Services, Contracting Division, Joint Base San Antonio, Texas, is the contracting activity (HT0050-19-F-0001). AMYX Inc., Reston, Virginia, was awarded a fixed-price contract with an estimated value of $47,926,649. The program and acquisition support services include, but are not limited to, program management support and other related workload requirements associated with acquisition and business processes. The contractor shall accomplish a variety of acquisition and other related administrative services to complement the government's workplace capabilities. The contract was a competitive 100% small business acquisition. There is a base period of nine months, and four one-year option periods. This contract provides support to San Antonio, Texas; Aurora, Colorado; Falls Church, Virginia; and Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, with a completion date of June 17, 2024. The base period is funded with fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance funding in the amount of $6,077,590. The Defense Health Agency, Enterprise Medical Services, Contracting Division, Joint Base San Antonio, Texas, is the contracting activity (HT0050-19-F-0002). DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY Sysco Alabama, Calera, Alabama, has been awarded a maximum $37,893,960 fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment, indefinite-quantity contract for full line food distribution. This was a sole-source acquisition using justification 10 U.S. Code 2304 (c)(1), as stated in Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1. This is a one-year bridge contract with no option periods. Locations of performance are Central Alabama and Florida Panhandle regions, with an Aug. 8, 2020, performance completion date. Using customers are Army, Air Force, Marine Corps and federal civilian agencies. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2019 defense working capital funds. The contracting agency is Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE300-19-D-3234). Arizona Industries for the Blind, Phoenix, Arizona, has been awarded an estimated $8,600,000 firm-fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment contract for warehousing, storage, logistics and distribution functions. This is a two-year base contract with three one-year option periods. Location of performance is Arizona, with an Aug. 16, 2021, performance completion date. Using military services are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and National Guard and Reserves. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2019 through 2021 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE1C1-19-D-B065). U.S. TRANSPORTATION COMMAND Trident Technologies LLC, Huntsville, Alabama, has been awarded a contract modification (P00013) on contract HTC711-14-D-D003 in the amount of $13,616,300. The contract modification executed Federal Acquisition Regulation 52.217-8 Option to Extend Services for the Enterprise Architecture, Data, and Engineering (EADE) indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity to continue vital support services. The EADE contract acquires enterprise architecture, data, and information technology engineering services for the U.S. Transportation Command, Air Mobility Command/A6, and the Surface Deployment and Distribution Command. Period of performance is Oct. 1, 2019, to March 31, 2020. The location of performance is Scott Air Force Base, Illinois. Operations and maintenance; transportation working capital funds; and research, development, test and evaluation funds will be obligated at the individual task order level. This modification brings the total cumulative face value of the contract from $125,752,500 to $139,368,800. U.S. Transportation Command, Directorate of Acquisition, Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, is contracting activity. *Small Business https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/1935785/source/GovDelivery/

  • Can UAM, Advanced Air Mobility Escape From The Hype Phase?

    February 16, 2021 | International, Aerospace

    Can UAM, Advanced Air Mobility Escape From The Hype Phase?

    Michael Bruno Stop me if you have heard this before: A whole new class of aircraft will democratize and revolutionize seemingly everything, starting with air travel. Will it be advanced air mobility or maybe very light jets? Aviation consultant Brian Foley recalls the latter while thinking of the former, since both are in the news recently. Disruptive paradigms are not a new threat to aviation, even this century, he notes. The Eclipse very light jet (VLJ) was intended to make airborne commuting more of a reality before it became a $1.5 billion “smoking crater in the ground.” In November, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware authorized the sale of Eclipse Aerospace and the Eclipse Aircraft project to AML Global Eclipse, backed by British businessman Christopher Harborne, for $5.25 million. Now some observers wonder whether urban air mobility (UAM) and advanced air mobility (AAM) will experience something similar. “There are two sides of the fence, and you're either on one side or another,” Foley pointed out in a recent edition of the Aerospace Executive Podcast with talent finder Craig Picken. “One side of the fence is that this is disruptive technology, and this will just change the whole landscape of how people travel in cities and between regional points. Some investors believe that, too, and they are putting some chips down on the different potential winners if this thing does come out on the other end and is successful. “There are others that are a little bit curious to see how this thing works,” Foley continued. “We've had helicopter service for years, which isn't all that much different. There are some concerns over noise—these things are overgrown drones.” Yes, billions of dollars are pouring into UAM/AAM, but is it actually significant yet? Silicon Valley is behind this, as are multiple other investors. But UAM/AAM represents a fraction of their investments, which are otherwise cast far and wide and could include UAM/AAM only as a one-off gamble. “Even though it seems like a big number to us, it's just pocket change to them,” Foley said. “They hope there is a return. Right now, there are as many arguments why it's going to succeed and won't succeed.” Such context is easy to forget amid the flurry of recent headlines, such as Joby Aviation's takeover of Uber Elevate and a reported public trading debut on the horizon. What is more, consultants continue to publish eye-catching reports about the market's value in coming decades. The latest from Deloitte consultancy and the Aerospace Industries Association (AIA) says the UAM/AAM sector could be worth $115 billion a year by 2035, employing more than 280,000 “high-paying” aerospace workers and generating an annual $20 billion in U.S. exports. “It's become increasingly apparent that this particular area has become more real,” AIA Vice President for Civil Aviation David Silver told Aviation Week ahead of the release of the Jan. 26 study. “This is very real technology that is just on the horizon, and there is no single silver bullet that is going to make it happen.” Deloitte's global and U.S. aerospace and defense leader, Robin Lineberger, concurred during the interview. The report pushes for a sustained, collaborative approach by the public and private sectors for electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing (eVTOL) aircraft to be widely accepted and adopted, sooner rather than later. “With the market poised to grow sevenfold between 2025 and 2035, it's important for U.S. policymakers and industries to cooperate now to ensure American leadership in this transformative emerging sector,” he said. Already, the global race for AAM leadership is intensifying, the groups said, and the U.S. faces strong competition from China, Germany and South Korea. As a result, the AIA-Deloitte document calls for streamlined eVTOL testing and certification as well as seamlessly integrating aircraft into the U.S. airspace system. Silver said it is important to shed light on the issue now, at the beginning of the Biden administration, as Washington is expected again to consider domestic infrastructure development as a key priority. The point is to broaden policymakers' horizons, he said, so that they wonder, “Are we even asking the right questions?” Still, other observers point out that—like almost everything in aerospace—paradigm shifts come slowly compared with other business sectors. Take the City-Airbus vision from the European giant: “Realistically, we will have to wait until the end of the decade to see more than a demonstrator,” Airbus Helicopters CEO Bruno Even acknowledged in a November press briefing. Even's boss, Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury, was even more clear-eyed days later in a separate online debate with an automotive CEO. Faury explained that eVTOL projects, such as the Vahana two-seater and the CityAirbus four-seater, should be seen primarily as low-cost demonstrators for future technology on commercial aircraft. Faury stressed: “There will be a market eventually, but profitability will be tricky at the start." https://aviationweek.com/aerospace/urban-unmanned-aviation/can-uam-advanced-air-mobility-escape-hype-phase

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