The Army is looking for industry to help shape its future SATCOM needs

On the same subject

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  December 3, 2021 | International, Aerospace

  Egypt unveils locally made drones at EDEX 2021

  The show was scheduled to take place in 2020 but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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  November 9, 2020 | International, Aerospace

  More funding endorsed for Evader aerial target missile system

  by Julian Kerr Additional funding has been endorsed, although not yet approved, to confirm the supersonic performance of the Australian-developed Evader autonomous aerial target missile system, sources close to the programme have disclosed. An application for a grant of AUD2.85 million (USD2.02 million) from the government's Defence Innovation Hub has been endorsed by both the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) and the Australian Army to fund a second series of flight trials for the low-cost, air-launched system, said the sources. A decision is expected shortly. Initial flight trials, funded by the Innovation Hub and carried out in 2018 at South Australia's Woomera range, validated the Evader's design, autonomous control system and stainless steel ramjet, and proved the parachute-recoverable, 4.2 m-long target missile could be re-used up to 10 times. Endurance of the 90 kg missile is about 30 minutes. While the initial trials were subsonic, the second series of trials will be low-supersonic following relocation of the variable air intake from the top to the bottom of the missile's fuselage. Speeds of up to Mach 2 are anticipated in subsequent trials, with future variants intended to reach Mach 3. https://www.janes.com/defence-news/news-detail/more-funding-endorsed-for-evader-aerial-target-missile-system

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  February 11, 2020 | International, Aerospace, Naval

  U.S. Navy’s Aircraft Launch Rail Gun Revealed

  Guy Norris Details of the U.S. Navy's new generation, electrically powered aircraft launch and recovery system, currently under test for the first time on the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) carrier, are visible in a large-scale model at the Singapore Airshow. The Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS) is in development to replace the traditional steam piston catapult launch system on current carriers. The new configuration also includes the electrically powered Advanced Arresting Gear (AAG), which replaces the hydraulic arresting gear in use on the Navy's 10 Nimitz-class aircraft carriers. The EMALS catapult, which is powered by a linear induction motor, is designed to accelerate aircraft more gradually than the steam system and put less stress on the aircraft. The system is also lighter and more flexible than the current design and is capable of launching a wider range of aircraft weights. The AAG is also designed for a broader range of aircraft, including UAVs. The large-scale cutaway model shows the linear induction motors of the EMALs as well as the banks of rotary engines incorporated in the AAG. Fine control of the arresting forces is provided by a large induction motor, which is coupled to energy-absorbing water turbines. Tests on the Ford, the eponymous lead ship of navy's first new class of carriers since the 1970s, are part of efforts to assess the performance of the technology for launch and landing operations. The system has proved more challenging to develop than expected, and improvements are underway to boost reliability for the required sortie generation rate. The service is evaluating aircraft compatibility before the scheduled deployment of the Ford in 2022. https://aviationweek.com/shownews/singapore-airshow/us-navys-aircraft-launch-rail-gun-revealed