September 1, 2023 | International, Land
Missile Defense Agency cancels test of Long-Range Discrimination Radar
The test was intended to demonstrate LRDR capabilities against a live ballistic missile target.
June 2, 2022 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security
Renforcer la coopération pour améliorer la crédibilité européenne en matière de sécurité
Il existe une opportunité unique de réaliser un « saut quantique » dans la manière dont l'Europe soutient sa base industrielle et technologique de défense selon une tribune d'Alessandro Profumo, président de l'Association des industries aérospatiales et de défense (ASD), et Jan Pie, secrétaire général de l'ASD. Alors que les propositions de la Commission européenne sont encourageantes, comprenant, entre autres, un instrument de passation de marchés conjoints pour les besoins capacitaires les plus urgents, soutenu par un financement communautaire de 500 M€, et un programme européen d'investissement dans la défense. La proposition visant à renforcer le soutien de la Banque européenne d'investissement à la BITDE (Base industrielle et technologique de défense européenne) est également importante, mais les États membres de l'UE doivent prendre des mesures tant au niveau national qu'européen, pour les deux dirigeants. « Nous soulignons la nécessité pour nos dirigeants d'augmenter également les lignes budgétaires de l'UE pour la sécurité et la défense. C'est important pour renforcer la coopération européenne en matière de défense et éviter de retomber dans les solitudes nationales » déclarent-ils. Les initiatives visant à renforcer la BITDE doivent donc viser à améliorer la capacité de l'industrie à remplir ses quatre fonctions : fournir à tout moment et en toutes circonstances les équipements requis et les services connexes ; améliorer les technologies de défense clés et leurs applications ; réagir aux nouvelles tendances et percées technologiques des concurrents et des adversaires potentiels ; et enfin défier les concurrents et les adversaires potentiels. L'Union européenne peut y contribuer avec ses propres politiques, instruments et ressources et en offrant à ses membres un cadre de coopération. Ensemble, l'Union et ses États membres doivent arriver à construire une base solide pour une défense européenne efficace.
Euractiv du 1er juin
On the same subject
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October 8, 2019 | International, Aerospace
Arms firms fret over delays in Franco-German fighter project
PARIS — France's Dassault Aviation and Europe's Airbus have stepped up pressure on France and Germany to agree the next stage of a planned fighter project, warning Europe's arms industry and long-term security could suffer from delays. The two companies are the leading industrial partners in a project to build a futuristic swarm of manned and unmanned warplanes, announced by the leaders of France and Germany two years ago and expanded earlier this year to include Spain. Dassault and Airbus won a 65-million-euro contract in January to develop the concept for the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) but await a new contract to build demonstrators for interlinked fighters, drones and an “air combat cloud” by 2026. Dassault Aviation Chief Executive Eric Trappier told a conference of policymakers last month that the demonstrator contract should have been launched in September but this was now slipping towards end-year. He called it “indispensable” to avoid any further delays in order to maintain the 2026 deadline. No reason has been given for the delays. On Monday evening, Dassault and Airbus amplified those warnings with a joint statement. “If Europe does not move forward — and move forward quickly — on this program, it will be impossible to maintain the development and production capabilities needed for a sovereign defense industry,” the companies said. The warplane system is expected to be operational from 2040, with a view to replacing Dassault's Rafale and the four-nation Eurofighter, in which Airbus represents both Germany and Spain. The new project faces competition from Britain and its plans for a new combat jet dubbed “Tempest”. The fighter developments have split the current Eurofighter consortium and led to a shake-up of industrial alliances as Italy joins Eurofighter partner Britain on Tempest, turning its back on Germany and Spain, while Sweden has opened the door to abandoning its independent stance by co-operating on Tempest. The FCAS is also overshadowed by differences between France and Germany over export policy after Germany imposed a ban on arms exports to Saudi Arabia over the death of killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi a year ago by Saudi operatives. The ban, recently extended to March, has raised questions over a long-delayed Saudi border systems contract run by Airbus. Airbus Defence and Space Chief Executive Dirk Hoke called in a magazine interview last week for the export ban to be relaxed. German Chancellor Angela Merkel's government has said there is no reason for the moratorium to be lifted. France and Germany are expected to discuss the issue at ministerial meetings this week. AIRBUS SETBACK IN SPAIN Airbus meanwhile faces a battle to shore up its position as a top defense contractor in Spain after losing its place as the representative of Spain's interests on the upcoming fighter project to local defense electronics firm Indra Sistemas. Spain last month named Indra as contractor for the Spanish share of the Franco-German-led FCAS project, displacing Airbus from the Spanish coordinator role it had held on Eurofighter. Airbus officials have pledged to try to overturn the move but a Spanish defense source told Reuters there was no change in the decision. Indra declined to comment. Publicly, Airbus has said it was surprised by the decision but has pledged to continue to defend Spain's best interests. Dassault will meanwhile mark a long-awaited milestone on Tuesday when it delivers the first of 36 Rafales to India, the culmination of a fighter procurement process that lasted almost 20 years and involved the cancellation of a much larger deal. La Tribune reported on Monday that France and India were discussing a possible repeat order for 36 more Rafales. (Additional reporting by Emma Pinedo Gonzalez in Madrid, Tassilo Hummel in Berlin, Editing by Deepa Babington) https://business.financialpost.com/pmn/business-pmn/arms-firms-fret-over-delays-in-franco-german-fighter-project
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June 23, 2023 | International, Other Defence
AI data mining can bridge gap between defense tech developers, users
Leading technology firms conduct extensive early user testing and utilize AI/ML tools in real-world environments to improve designs.