June 25, 2024 | International, Land, C4ISR
Armed with quantum sensors, France eyes leaps in electronic warfare
Quantum gravimeter technology, used for mapping the seabed, offers the prospect of surreptitiously tracking adversary submarines.
March 2, 2020 | International, Naval
The US Navy’s FFG(X) could be awarded sooner than expected
By: David B. Larter
WASHINGTON – The U..S Navy's next-generation frigate could be awarded within the next few months, earlier than expected, the service's top civilian said Friday.
Acting Secretary of the Navy Thomas Modly told conservative radio talk show host Hugh Hewitt that he had tasked Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development and Acquisition James Geurts to look at accelerating the award of the first ship, which was slated for this fall.
“The plan was to try and do it in the latter part of this year,” Modly told Hewitt. “I've asked [Geurts] to try and accelerate that earlier, and he's looking into the possibilities for doing that.
“But obviously, you know, we have acquisition rules, and we want to make sure that we do this in the proper way.”
The competition has narrowed to bids from Huntington Ingalls Industries; a team of Navantia and General Dynamics Bath Iron Works; Fincantieri; and Austal USA.
Navantia is offering a version of its F-100 design, which is in use by the Spanish Navy; Austal is submitting a version of its trimaran littoral combat ship; Fincantieri is offering its FREMM design; and Huntington Ingalls is believed to be offering an up-gunned version of its national security cutter.
Lockheed Martin's version of the FFG(X), an up-gunned, twin-screw variant of its Freedom-class LCS, was pulled from the competition in May.
The FFG(X) is supposed to be a small, multimission ship with a modified version of Raytheon's SPY-6 radar destined for the Flight III Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, Lockheed Martin's Aegis Combat System, as well as some point defense systems and 32 vertical launch cells for about half the cost of a destroyer.
The first ship ordered in 2020 is expected to cost $1.28 billion, according to budget documents, with the next ship in 2021 dropping to $1.05 billion.
The Navy expects it to take six years to complete design and construction of the first ship, which should be finished in 2026. Once construction begins, planners anticipate it will take 48 months to build.
The second frigate is expected to be ordered in April 2021, and from there it should be delivered about five and a half years after the award date. That means that the first ship should be delivered to the fleet in July of 2026, and the second about three months later.
https://www.defensenews.com/naval/2020/02/28/the-us-navys-ffgx-could-be-awarded-sooner-than-expected
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October 20, 2024 | International, C4ISR, Security
U.S. and Allies Warn of Iranian Cyberattacks on Critical Infrastructure in Year-Long Campaign
Iranian cyber actors target healthcare, IT, and energy sectors via brute force, MFA fatigue, and C2 tools.
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January 9, 2020 | International, Land
BAE Systems equips its CV90 fighting vehicle with Spike antitank missiles
By: Sebastian Sprenger COLOGNE, Germany – BAE Systems has outfitted its CV90 infantry fighting vehicle to fire the Israeli-designed Spike guided antitank missile, according to a company statement. Test shots with a launcher mounted on the vehicle resulted in a target being “defeated” over a distance of 2,000 meters by the LR variant of the weapon, which stands for “long range,” the company said. It is the first time that the CV90, made by the Swedish BAE Systems Hägglunds outfit, boasts an integrated antitank missile capability. According to BAE, the testing took place in northern Sweden last month in below-freezing temperatures during heavy snowfall and limited visibility, though the company declined to say exactly at which test range. “This integrated anti-tank capability confirms that the CV90 is a true benchmark when it comes to expanding a family of multi-mission armored fighting vehicles,” Dan Lindell, CV90 platform director at BAE Systems Hägglunds, is quoted as saying in the statement. The BAE vehicle is in the running for a multibillion-dollar Czech acquisition of new infantry fighting vehicles. The requirements for that vehicle include the ability to launch tank-breaking missiles, a feature that is becoming standard across many NATO land forces. Also competing for the Czech tender, worth upwards of $2 billion, are General Dynamics European Land Systems with the Ascod vehicle, and Rheinmetall's Lynx. The CV90 vehicle is used by the armed forces of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the Netherlands, with more than 1,200 copies built, according to BAE. The Spike missile is used by several European nations, with integration possible on ground vehicles, helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft, as well as ships, according to manufacturer Rafael. https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2020/01/08/bae-systems-equips-its-cv90-fighting-vehicle-with-spike-antitank-missiles/