Back to news

September 17, 2023 | International, Land

Romania considers joining French-led Mistral procurement program

The security situation in Romania has become more turbulent than normal, with the finding of drone debris near the country’s border with Ukraine.

https://www.defensenews.com/air/2023/09/15/romania-considers-joining-french-led-mistral-procurement-program/

On the same subject

  • As deadline nears, Senate approves $674 billion defense budget bill

    September 19, 2018 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security

    As deadline nears, Senate approves $674 billion defense budget bill

    By: Leo Shane III and Joe Gould WASHINGTON — With the fiscal year winding down, Senate lawmakers on Tuesday advanced a multi-agency appropriations deal that would prevent a government shutdown and give the Defense Department its full-year budget on schedule for the first time in a decade. The measure, which provides for more than $606 billion in base defense spending and nearly $68 billion more in overseas contingency funds, is in line with White House requests and spending targets outlined in the annual defense authorization bill approved earlier this summer. “After subjecting America's all-volunteer armed forces to years of belt tightening, this legislation will build on our recent progress in rebuilding the readiness of our military and investing more in the men and women who wear the uniform,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said before the Senate vote. The funding total — approved by a 93-7 vote — amounts to an increase of more than 3 percent for military spending in fiscal 2019, but as important as the boost is the timing of the measure. In recent years, Congress has struggled to pass any appropriations measures before the start of the new fiscal year, relying instead on a series of budget extensions to avoid partial government shutdowns. That has infuriated Pentagon leaders, who have said the fractured appropriations process prevents them from keeping equipment purchases and new program starts on time. If the House finalizes the appropriations measure next week and President Donald Trump signs it into law in the following week (all parties involved have already signaled they expect to do so ), it will mark the first time since 2008 that Congress and the White House have passed their spending plans on time. Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., called that “a major victory” for Congress and the military. The measure funds a 2.6 percent pay raise for troops starting next January and a boost in military end strength of 16,400 spread across the active-duty and reserve forces. Operation and maintenance spending totals $243.2 billion of the defense total, and research and development efforts another $96.1 billion. Defense health and military family programs would receive $34.4 billion. The appropriations fund 13 new Navy ships ― including three DDG-51 guided missile destroyers and two Virginia-class submarines ― 93 F-35 aircraft, 58 UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters, 66 AH-64 Apache helicopters, 13 V-22 aircraft, and $1.5 billion for the upgrade of 135 Abrams tanks. The National Guard and Reserve Equipment Account would also see a $1.3 billion boost from the appropriations plan. In order to avoid political fights over non-defense spending levels, lawmakers agreed to package the military budget bill with the full-year funding for the Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and Education. In addition, the legislation contains a budget extension for a handful of agency budgets lawmakers have not yet finished negotiating. The move will prevent a government shutdown at the end of the month, when the fiscal year ends. Several senators lamented before the vote that all of the appropriations bills have not yet been finalized, but for the first time in years, defense advocates aren't among those complaining. In addition to the full Defense Department appropriations plan, lawmakers last week finalized a spending plan for military construction projects and the Department of Veterans Affairs, covering nearly all aspects of national defense and military personnel spending. https://www.militarytimes.com/news/2018/09/18/as-deadline-approaches-senate-advances-674-billion-defense-budget-bill

  • L'Eurofighter réussi le premier tir en conditions réelles du missile Brimstone

    July 9, 2022 | International, Aerospace

    L'Eurofighter réussi le premier tir en conditions réelles du missile Brimstone

    BAE Sytems a réussi le premier tir en conditions réelles du missile Brimstone depuis un Eurofighter Typhoon, a annoncé BAE Systems le 14 juillet. Il représente une étape supplémentaire vers l'amélioration des capacités de l'appareil.

  • CAE Wants to Help the Pentagon Train Pilots Through Data Analysis

    April 29, 2019 | International, Aerospace

    CAE Wants to Help the Pentagon Train Pilots Through Data Analysis

    By Brian Garrett-Glaser Canadian simulator and training provider CAE is in talks with the U.S. Navy to add its new high-tech data analysis tool suite, CAE Rise, to existing and future programs, including aircrew training services for the T-44C Pegasus, according to the company. Launched for the civil aviation market in 2017, CAE Rise allows instructors to objectively assess pilot competencies using live data during training sessions, accessible via iPad interface. CAE pitches the system as a means of using big data analysis to reduce subjectivity in pilot assessment, allow instructors to focus more on teaching and help create more efficient training programs. The CAE Rise system can "detect everything for a maneuver, and it's able to tell the instructor what parameter went out of whack, where [the pilot] did not do according to standards,” said Terry Constantakis, CAE's director of civil aviation training solutions. “So in terms of key benefits for CAE Rise, we often use the term ‘better than the naked eye' in terms of detecting errors and helping the instructor provide assessments,” he added. “It also allows the instructor to focus more on soft skills. For example, when we look at things like grading, we noticed that when instructors have RISE they spend more time providing comments on soft skills like teamwork, communication and workload management — things that are not necessarily performance-based or technical skills.” CAE Rise has been adopted by a number of airlines in Asia, including a five-year agreement with AirAsia to train its long-haul pilots to fly for affiliate airline AirAsia X on the Airbus A330. More recently, in late 2018, CAE released its RISE data suite for the defense market, with key features like development on Microsoft Azure Government for cloud computing to meet government cybersecurity and compliance requirements. The company is offering CAE Rise to the Pentagon as an enhancement to its current contract for T-44C aircrew training devices, which the company began delivering in 2014. “As far as what branches of the U.S. military have expressed an interest, I will say we have had ongoing discussions with the U.S. Navy,” said a company spokesperson. “We have briefed and demonstrated to the Navy how CAE Rise could be used to enhance and improve naval aviator training.” “There are no other CAE Rise customers on the defense side that we can disclose currently,” the spokesperson added. CAE hopes the platform will, in addition to improving the quality of aviation training services, help address the global civil and military pilot shortage that is expected to worsen in coming decades. The company's analysis on pilot demand published in 2016 estimated a need for 180,000 new captains globally within the next 10 years. Drivers of that shortage differ regionally but include aging populations of pilots reaching retirement, expected growth in air travel and falling supply from universities, business aviation and military training compared to previous decades. https://www.aviationtoday.com/2019/04/25/cae-wants-help-pentagon-train-pilots-data-analysis/

All news