Safran buys AI firm Preligens for 220 million euros

On the same subject

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  October 1, 2020 | International, Land, Other Defence

  US Army scraps ERCA autoloader plans, heads back to the drawing board

  Ashley Roque Weight and mobility challenges have forced the US Army to abandon a government-designed autoloader for its Extended Range Cannon Artillery (ERCA) programme and the service is now looking for help from six tech companies. Brigadier General John Rafferty, the head of the Long-Range Precision Fires Cross-Functional Team, spoke at a virtual Fires Conference on 29 September and provided an update of programmes under his purview. One notable change is an army's decision not to move forward with an autoloader that it had been developing for the new weapon based off BAE Systems' Paladin M109A7 self-propelled howitzer. “The integration challenge for [it] was too much of a trade with mobility and durability, and some of the results from putting 3,000 miles on a combat vehicle [out at Yuma Proving Ground] weighted up with the centre of gravity issue that we had,” the one-star general told the audience. “It was an easy decision to say that we can't do that.” Instead the army is looking to a group of six companies previously picked to help find artillery munition resupplying solutions – Actuate, Apptronik, Carnegie Robotics, Hivemapper, Neya Systems, and Pratt Miller. Although Brig Gen Rafferty did not provide in-depth information on the path ahead, he noted that a future capability may not be an autoloader at all. ”I've learned that it was really stupid to go into this saying, ‘Hey, we want an autoloader'. I don't want an autoloader; What we want is an improved rate of fire,” he added. ”What I told them is I don't care if there's cannoneer there setting fuses if we're able to get the six to 10 rounds a minute,” Brig Gen Rafferty furthered. https://www.janes.com/defence-news/news-detail/us-army-scraps-erca-autoloader-plans-heads-back-to-the-drawing-board

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  August 15, 2018 | International, C4ISR

  Cost Isn’t Everything. Pentagon Should Judge Contractors on Cybersecurity, Report Says

  Security would be ‘fourth pillar' in weapons purchase decisions The Pentagon should take into account the cybersecurity capabilities of defense contractors in addition to cost and performance measures when awarding contracts, a U.S. government-funded think tank recommended in a report published Monday. Through its buying process, the Pentagon “can influence and shape the conduct of its suppliers,” the Mitre Corp. said in a report titled “Deliver Uncompromised: A Strategy for Supply Chain Security and Resilience in Response to the Changing Character of War.” The Defense Department “can define requirements to incorporate new security measures, reward superior security measures in the source selection process, include contract terms that impose security obligations, and use contractual oversight to monitor contractor accomplishments,” the report said. The Pentagon must consider new measures because the very nature of war is changing, the Mitre report said. Adversaries no longer have to engage the United States in direct conflict using weapons but can respond to American military strikes “through blended operations that take place through supply chain, cyber domain, and human elements,” the report noted. The report recommends that security be made a “primary metric” in Pentagon weapons purchase and sustainment decisions and that the Defense Department increase awareness of risks associated with its supply chains. It also calls for a National Supply Chain Intelligence Center that would include officials from the FBI, Homeland Security, the Pentagon and intelligence agencies to track risks and advise agencies. When choosing current or new contractors, in addition to considering cost, performance and schedule, the Pentagon must also make security a so-called “fourth pillar,” the report said. Contractors should be continuously monitored and assessed for the degree of risk they pose, the report said. In addition to measuring a contractor's ongoing performance on a contract, an independent, federally-funded research agency could develop a risk rating similar to credit ratings done by agencies like Moody's, the report said. Mitre is a federally-funded research and development center. The Pentagon did not respond to an email seeking comment on the report. The report and its recommendations come as U.S. intelligence officials have become increasingly alarmed at potential cybersecurity risks that may be embedded in vast computer networks and systems that power government agencies as well as weapon systems. Last year the Trump administration banned federal agencies from using a popular anti-virus software made by Kaspersky Labs, which was alleged to have close ties with Russian intelligence services. Full Article: https://www.rollcall.com/news/politics/pentagon-judge-contractors-cybersecurity

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  November 23, 2022 | International, Aerospace

  Northrop Grumman to Enhance UH-60V Aircraft Capabilities

  The UH-60V is a comprehensive digital cockpit redesign that replaces the UH-60L’s legacy analog instrumentation with a fully open and integrated avionics suite