Swedish soldiers get a taste of future in NATO during Finland training

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  June 25, 2019 | International, Aerospace

  Airspace Launches Galaxy Drone Security Solution

  Source: Airspace Systems Inc. Airspace Systems today introduced Airspace GalaxyTM, the first family of fully-automated, always-on airspace security solutions that accelerate the integration of drones into cities and protects people and property -- on the ground and in the air -- from clueless, careless or criminal drone operators. The new Airspace Galaxy security platform combines input from multiple sensors to detect drone activity at long-ranges, instantly identifies authorized and unauthorized flights, assesses risk, and if necessary and permitted, deploys an autonomous mitigation system to safely capture and remove an unauthorized or malicious drone. “We created Airspace to accelerate the integration of lifesaving drone technologies while giving communities the ability to ensure safe and secure skies,” said Jaz Banga, Airspace co-founder and CEO. “Galaxy is the first crucial step toward creating the trusted environment required to unlock the full potential of drones.” The airspace security company also today announced that cybersecurity veteran David DeWalt has invested in Airspace through the NightDragon Fund, and joined the Airspace board of directors as Vice Chairman. Additionally, Airspace announced that former Federal Aviation Administration Administrator Michael Huerta has joined the company's board of advisors. Airspace developed the Galaxy security platform for business, public venues, government, law enforcement, and the military to protect people, property, and IP from harm. Galaxy was recently deployed to detect and identify drone activity behind the scenes for Major League Baseball during the 2018 World Series games in Boston and Los Angeles, for the San Francisco Police Department in support of the U.S. Navy to protect its annual San Francisco Fleet Week, and in Sacramento for the 36th annual California International Marathon. And in the fall, during the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff's BLACK DART live-fire exercise, Galaxy was the only airspace security solution to deliver a fully autonomous drone mitigation capability – from takeoff to landing – capturing both stationary and moving targets. “Airspace security is a prerequisite to realize the full potential of the drone economy,” said Huerta. “We are on the verge of many great things that drones can do for us, but without the kind of safety and security Airspace Galaxy offers, we are just one terrible event away from stalling what could be a thriving, multi-billion dollar industry.” We believe in the good that drones can do Drones have already proven critical in disaster response. Firefighters have used them to monitor ongoing fires to focus their efforts, keep themselves safe, and help them save lives. Emergency teams have used drones to survey damage after natural disasters, deliver supplies, and find missing people. But as drones get smaller and cheaper, the potential physical and cyber threats grow exponentially. And regardless of whether a damaging drone event is caused by the naïve or nefarious, the results will be the same: progress derailed, and benefits denied. Airspace developed the Galaxy software platform to protect people, property, and IP by stopping drone threats before they happen. Galaxy: Mobile, Modular, Simple to Operate The critical first step in airspace security is accurate long-range detection of drone activity. As a modular system, Galaxy options include the ability to configure detection based on a customer's site- and mission-specific requirements and includes identification of all types of drones, both signal and non-signal emitting. The Airspace sensors detect anomalies operating from ground level to 400-feet and beyond in the sky, and cover up to a 25-mile radius. Detection comprises three primary functions: radio frequency (RF) sensors that use drone-to-operator communication links to legally identify a drone's unique identifier and launch location, a camera array to minimize false alarms and improve localization, and communication alerts to the Galaxy operator. Galaxy then fuses data from multiple sensors into a single, easy-to-use graphical user interface that is coupled with artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to create actionable intelligence for the system to handle automatically or with human override. Users can log in from a browser on their desktop or mobile device to see all pertinent information. Finally, if necessary and permitted by law, the Airspace mitigation option dispatches the Airspace Interceptor drone with a single click. Using advanced guidance systems and powered by AI, the Interceptor autonomously locks onto identified rogue drones and heads them off at high speed without human guidance. Trusted and deployed by the U.S. Department of Defense, the Airspace Interceptor fires a Kevlar net to neutralize and capture unauthorized or malicious drones, and then delivers them to a safe place, preventing damage to either people or property. “Thinking about security in two dimensions is antiquated -- it's just not good enough to keep the bad guys out today,” said DeWalt, who has led two of the biggest companies in cybersecurity – McAfee and FireEye – and is now Delta Air Lines chairman of Safety & Security. “Today you have to protect in three dimensions – basically create an airspace security dome over everything -- events, your company – your entire city.” Among many other positions, DeWalt is the founder of cybersecurity platform NightDragon Security and the managing director of early-stage investor AllegisCyber. He sits on the boards of several cybersecurity firms, including Optiv, Callsign, and Claroty, and he has served on the Department of Homeland Security's National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee since 2011. DeWalt was president and CEO of McAfee between 2005 and 2012 and was CEO of FireEye between 2012 and 2016. “David's and Michael's experience across the cybersecurity and aviation industries is incredibly relevant to our mission to create autonomous airspace security and our vision of a world of safe and secure skies open for business and social good,” said Banga. “They are both equally strategic assets for Airspace.” Airspace began producing Galaxy solutions that are now ready to deploy in three configurations after raising a $20-million Series A round led by Singtel Innov8 Ventures in March 2017. The company was founded in 2015 by a team from Apple, Google, and Cisco Systems, and backed by SterlingVC – the venture capital arm of the New York Mets – as well as Shasta Ventures, Granite Hill Capital Partner, Singtel Innov8, and S28 Capital. http://www.asdnews.com/news/aerospace/2018/12/20/airspace-launches-galaxy-drone-security-solution

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  April 21, 2020 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security

  Pentagon Pumps $3B Into Industry As COVID-19 Delays Loom

  PENTAGON: The Pentagon's acquisition chief today said she expects major defense programs to be delayed by around three months due to COVID-19 closures and disruptions, while DoD rushes to pump $3 billion into the defense industry to bolster programs at greatest risk. Speaking to reporters here this morning, Lord said she expects to have to ask the White House and Congress for “billions” more to reimburse contractors affected by work delays and broken supply chains. “We believe it will cost us something,” she said, declining to get any more specific than “billions” of dollars. The months-long delays to programs will likely be spread throughout the defense industry as small parts suppliers shut down operations for days or weeks at a time. “We're looking at schedule delays and inefficiencies and so forth: this isn't about a particular program.” Lord singled out “a slowdown in the shipyards, to an extent. Aviation is actually the most highly impacted sector we have right now.” It's unclear what programs are at highest risk, but the Navy has been bullish on speeding up its new frigate program to award contracts some time this summer. If work slowdowns continue, that could be pushed further down the road. The Army and Navy have also been moving ahead on their nascent hypersonic weapons program, with a series of critical tests planned this year. Lord pointedly suggested that large defense companies need to start pushing more money into their supplier base to ensure small parts suppliers don't go out of business, further impacting new programs and ongoing maintenance efforts. She did praise Lockheed and Boeing for increasing cash flow to lower-tier suppliers, then not-so-subtly says, she is “hoping for similar public announcements from other major primes.” Last month, Lockheed said it would advance more than $100 million to suppliers hurt by the slowdown, and this week Boeing said it was reopening the Philadelphia-area facility where it makes the Chinook, the V-22 Osprey and other helicopters. The Pentagon is starting to award higher progress payment rates this week, pumping $3 billion dollars in increased cash flow to industry. “We try to anticipate the problems and work with the companies to keep going to the greatest degree possible,” Lord said. As part of that effort, DoD's first priority is the modernization process of the nuclear triad, she said: “we look at the Missile Defense Agency, we look at the critical capabilities. We're looking where the greatest pain points are.” While she singled out Lockheed and Boeing, shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls is making a push to speed up contracts and get money into the hands of sub-tier suppliers early, in order to ensure companies way down the supply base food chain can continue chugging along. In a recent interview, company representatives told me they've reached out to over 2,000 suppliers in 48 of the 50 US states. “We need their products today, but we also need them in 90 days, so we want to help them brave the storm,” said Lucas Hicks, vice president of new construction aircraft carrier programs. “We've actually changed some payment terms on some of our supplier contracts to try to make sure that we can front them what they need to stay afloat. We're doing some creative stuff to try and help them be able to weather the storm.” The Department's efforts to backstop the defense industrial base while taking steps to protect its workforce and purchase critical protective clothing like facemasks is still in its relative stages, despite the COVID-19 pandemic having been with us for months. “We are just really beginning to pick up momentum,” Lord said. https://breakingdefense.com/2020/04/pentagon-pumps-3b-into-industry-as-covid-19-delays-loom

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  March 10, 2024 | International, Land

  NATO navigates fine line between transparency, information security

  A core theme of the speeches presented by NATO representatives revolved around transparency. Yet many were wary of answering questions related to Russia.