May 13, 2020 | International, Aerospace
La pandémie de Covid-19 chamboule le calendrier des offres pour les nouveaux avions de combat et du système de défense sol-air. Le Département fédéral de la défense (DDPS) a fixé mardi à novembre le nouveau délai pour les offres.
Ce nouveau calendrier n'a aucune incidence sur la suite du processus d'acquisition, assure le département dans un communiqué. Les informations tirées des deuxièmes offres ainsi que des résultats des divers tests permettront d'identifier les points forts de chaque système.
Le DDPS doit réagir au fait que les fabricants sont aussi touchés par les mesures visant à freiner l'épidémie. De plus, les impératifs de confidentialités interdisent les collaborateurs des entreprises sollicitées à traiter les offres en télétravail.
Les entretiens en personne, nécessaires pour concrétiser les exigences relatives aux affaires compensatoires, ne sont pas possibles. Ils ne peuvent pas toujours être remplacés par des téléconférences en raison du degré de classification des sujets abordés.
Armasuisse avait transmis une nouvelle demande d'offre aux autorités françaises, allemandes et américaines début janvier. Celles-ci étaient initialement attendues pour août.
Quatre jets restent dans la course: le Rafale français (Dassault), l'Eurofighter allemand (Airbus), et côté américain, le successeur du FA-18, le Super Hornet de Boeing, et le F-35A de Lockheed-Martin. Pour le système de défense sol-air, seuls les Etats-Unis (Raytheon Patriot) et la France (Eurosam SAMP/T) sont encore en lice.
La nouvelle flotte doit remplacer à la fois les Tiger et les F/A-18. Les exigences ont été précisées sur la base des premières offres remises. Les constructeurs sur les rangs devront toujours calculer le nombre d'avions requis pour accomplir les missions de l'armée de l'air, notamment faire voler quatre avions en permanence pendant quatre semaines et assurer la police aérienne 24 heures sur 24.
Les nouvelles offres devront indiquer un prix correspondant à 36 et 40 engins, frais logistiques et engins guidés compris. La première offre exigeait un prix pour 30 et 40 avions. Le prix proposé sera un point de départ contraignant des négociations approfondies avec le candidat à l'issue du choix de l'appareil.
August 3, 2021 | International, Aerospace
The UK is developing its Future Combat Air System that will include next-generation fighter jets, artificial intelligence, and drones.
September 6, 2019 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security
By: David B. Larter WASHINGTON — The U.S. Army faces problems on multiple fronts when it comes to sending business to small companies, the head of Army Futures Command said Wednesday. Gen. John Murray said small businesses struggle under a procurement system that can take years, and then struggle to scale their businesses to meet the Army's needs. “There is a lack of trust [on the part of small businesses] that the government can sustain [a] small-business model,” Murray told the audience at the third annual Defense News Conference. “The way we do budgeting, [program objectives memorandum] POM cycles and all that — a small business can't survive. We're going to have to prove to small businesses that we can adjust our POM cycles to meet their needs. “And from the small business perspective, there are only a few ways that they can scale to the size we are talking about in terms of production. One of those ways is partnering with a traditional [defense contractor], so that's going to be a challenge going forward.” Murray's comments come as the Army tries to engage with a range of partners — from universities and small businesses to the traditional prime contractors such as Raytheon and General Dynamics — to find ways to integrate new technologies into the force. The outreach to small businesses at Army Futures Command is about finding new ways to get after the challenges the service faces, Murray said, but that in and of itself comes with challenges. “This outreach to small business is not because there is anything wrong with traditional defense primes, it's really an outreach to find new ways to solve our problems,” he said. “I've been in the Army 37 years, and I think about solving our problems a certain way. I guarantee a lot of these small businesses think about how to solve problems a different way. “Part of the challenge I have with small business is comfortably describing our problem to them. I can't talk in acronyms, I can't talk with 37 years of experience, I need to talk very clearly and very plainly.” Murray said his teams have staged events aimed at the private sector, such as a recent one where startups gathered to figure out how to move artillery shells 250 meters using autonomous unmanned systems. Such events have been instructive, he noted. Ultimately, however, the Army will choose the business that best meets the service's requirements, he said. “What it really comes down to is what are our problems and where is the best place — whether that's small business or a university or a traditional prime — where is the best place to solve that problem,” Murray said. https://www.defensenews.com/smr/defense-news-conference/2019/09/04/the-us-army-faces-struggles-working-with-small-businesses/
May 28, 2021 | International, Aerospace
The models will provide a