Rheinmetall, BAE consummate armored-vehicles joint venture

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  January 13, 2021 | International, C4ISR

  Rafaut acquiert Secapem

  DEFENSE Rafaut acquiert Secapem Rafaut vient d'acquérir Secapem, une PME innovante spécialisée dans les systèmes d'entraînement des forces armées. « Avec cette opération, le chiffre d'affaires de Rafaut, un peu au-dessus de 90 millions d'euros, va s'approcher des 100 millions d'euros », précise Nicolas Orance, directeur général du groupe, qui souligne que Rafaut entre, avec cette opération, dans « une phase plus active d'acquisitions, pour répondre aux enjeux de taille critique, en ayant toujours à l'esprit de maintenir la complémentarité entre le civil et la défense ». Le modèle dual du groupe, civil et militaire, est en effet gage de résilience. Le rachat de Secapem permet à Rafaut d'acquérir des activités liées aux systèmes d'entraînement au tir réel et des solutions de scoring hautes technologies pour les forces armées, précise L'Usine Nouvelle. L'opération concerne aussi Lun'tech, filiale de Secapem depuis 2013, qui propose des solutions complémentaires pour l'entraînement aux tirs guidés par radar. L'Usine Nouvelle du 13 janvier

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  May 25, 2020 | International, Naval

  US Warship Fries Drone With Powerful New Laser

  In a first, the USS Portland took down a target drone with a new solid state laser this week, the first step in the Navy's quest to get the powerful weapon on more ships in the future. By PAUL MCLEARY WASHINGTON: In a first, the USS Portland took down a target drone with a new solid state laser this week, the first step in the Navy's quest to get the powerful weapon on more ships in the future. The shot from the San Antonio-class landing platform ship tested out what's known as the Technology Maturation Laser Weapon System Demonstrator, or LWSD, which has been aboard the ship for several months. The May 16 test, announced by the Pacific Fleet today, is the first public acknowledgement of the system being put to use. The Northrop Grumman-made LWSD is a high-energy laser weapon initially developed by the Office of Naval Research, and its operational employment marks “the first system-level implementation of a high-energy class solid-state laser,” according to a Pacific Fleet release. The test comes as the US, in bits and pieces, ramps up operations in the Pacific as a counterweight to China — moves which include new, ambitious B-1 bomber flights close to Russian and Chinese territory. Just this week, the USS Ronald Reagan and Theodore Roosevelt carriers went back to sea from bases in Japan and Guam, respectively, while the USS Nimitz is getting its air wing up to speed off the coast of Washington state. And earlier this month, two Navy ships sailed into the middle of an ongoing dispute between China and a neighbor in the South China Sea — steaming near a shadowing Chinese warship in Washington's latest effort to show presence in an increasingly contested waterway. The Littoral Combat Ship USS Montgomery and supply ship USNS Cesar Chavez sailed close to a Malaysian drillship, the West Capella, warning off Chinese warships who spent weeks harassing the commercial vessel in international waters illegally claimed by Beijing. Since the passthrough, both the Chinese and Malasyian ships have moved away from one another. Late last month, the destroyer USS Barry cruised near the Paracel Islands, claimed by China, followed a day later by the cruiser USS Bunker Hill sailing near the Spratlys conducting freedom-of-navigation operations. On April 30, a day after Bunker Hill's transit, two B-1 bombers flew over the South China Sea. These transits came just days after the USS America amphibious ship packed with Marine Corps F-35s passed through the South China Sea while conducting flight operations. The laser test was much quieter, but no less significant in the long run. “By conducting advanced at sea tests against UAVs and small crafts, we will gain valuable information on the capabilities of the Solid State Laser Weapons System Demonstrator against potential threats,” said Capt. Karrey Sanders, commanding officer of Portland. The LWSD is thought to pack about 150kw worth of power, a step up from the smaller, 50kw laser that was tested on the USS Ponce starting in 2014. https://breakingdefense.com/2020/05/us-warship-fries-drone-with-powerful-new-laser/

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  July 3, 2019 | International, Aerospace

  These 4 technologies are big problems for US military space

  By: Nathan Strout A recent report highlights the fact that the commercial space sector is an increasingly important part of the military's efforts in space, but there are places where industry falls short. The national security space arena is a niche market, characterized by low production runs paired with a need for high-quality products. That combination makes it a difficult area for the commercial sector. While national security space increasingly relies on industry to provide components for space vehicles, the fact remains that in some key areas there are no domestic suppliers for critical technologies, leaving the United States dependent on foreign suppliers. Here are four such technologies singled out in a recent report on the United States military's industrial base: Solar cells According to the report, the commercial sector is not investing in the research and development needed to improve solar cells, which are used to power satellites. Businesses have maxed out the capacity for triple-junction solar cells, but do not appear capable of pushing forward to four- or five-junction solar cell technology. The Pentagon also wants solar cells that are able to withstand more radiation for longer than current products on the market. Improving solar cells to get the same or more power out of even slightly smaller panels could have a major impact when it comes to launching a satellite into space, meaning that reducing solar panel size is highly valuable. Tube amplifiers Starting in the 1990s, the domestic supplier market share for traveling-wave tube amplifiers — electronic devices used to amplify radio frequency signals to high power — dropped from 50 percent to just 12 percent. While that market has shown a slight recovery, the presence of heavily subsidized companies like Thales in France make it difficult for American companies to compete. Gyroscopes Precision gyroscopes are used in spacecraft to determine altitude and are essential to providing inertial navigation systems. According to the Department of Defense, there is only one domestic supplier of hemispherical resonating gyroscopes, resulting in long lead times — the report claims that the company can only produce one to two units per month. Fiber optic gyroscopes fair better with three domestic suppliers currently manufacturing them, but those companies are themselves vulnerable to overseas supply issues with their subcomponents. Infrared detectors Just one foreign manufacturer produces the substrates necessary for space infrared detectors, and the Pentagon warns that a disruption of any more than a few months of production of the substrates could negatively impact the quality and completion of American satellites. Because of this, the U.S. government has used a Defense Production Act of 1950 provision that allows it to offer economic incentives to either develop, sustain or expand domestic production of technology critical to national defense, and an Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment program is in the works to support the remaining two American foundries for one type of substrate. https://www.c4isrnet.com/battlefield-tech/space/2019/07/02/these-4-technologies-are-big-problems-for-us-military-space/