Three NATO allies sign deal to speed up military deployments to eastern flank

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  February 8, 2021 | International, Aerospace, Land

  Boeing, Raytheon missile sales to Saudi Arabia paused by Biden administration

  By: Joe Gould and Aaron Mehta Updated 2/5/2021 at 11:50 am EST to clarify status of the two arms sales WASHINGTON —The Biden administration has paused indefinitely two precision guided munition sales to Saudi Arabia, worth as much as $760 million, as part of a new policy aimed at curtailing violence in Yemen, Defense News has learned. However, that policy, announced Thursday by President Joe Biden, left open the possibility for future sales that are considered vital for Saudi Arabia's national defense, a fine line that would mean some munitions sales will continue. “We are ending all American support for offensive operations in the war in Yemen, including relevant arms sales,” Biden said during a speech at the State Department. “At the same time, Saudi Arabia faces missile attacks, UAV strikes, and other threats from Iranian-supplied forces in multiple countries. We're going to continue to support and help Saudi Arabia defend its sovereignty and its territorial integrity and its people. " The two deals include a foreign military sales case for 3,000 Boeing-made GBU-39 small diameter bombs, which was cleared by the State Department in late December with an estimated price tag of $290 million, according to two sources familiar with the matter. The second is a direct commercial sale for Raytheon Technologies munitions, likely the reported $478 million sale of 7,000 Paveway IV smart bombs. Raytheon CEO Greg Hayes foreshadowed the move in a Jan. 26 investor call, when he said the company was backing off the sale of an “offensive weapon system” to an unnamed middle eastern customer because it did not believe a license would be granted by the new administration. Boeing did not immediately respond to a request for comment. It is possible that further Saudi weapon sales may be paused or outright cancelled in the future, as the Biden administration has announced a wide-ranging review of weapon sales cleared by the Trump administration. According to a White House spokesperson, arms sales to Saudi Arabia will go back to the traditional arms sale oversight process, after the Trump administration pushed multiple weapon sales through over objections by Congress. “All arms sales to Saudi Arabia will return to standard procedures and orders including with appropriate legal reviews at the State Department,” the spokesperson said. “We have reestablished an interagency process for working through the details of individual cases, led by the White House and with all relevant agencies at the table, bringing expertise, discipline, and inclusivity back to our policymaking on these issues.” Added an administration official, speaking on background, “we are ending all American support for offensive operations in Yemen, including relevant arms sales. Importantly, this does not apply to offensive operations against either ISIS or AQAP. “It does include both materiel and terminating our intelligence sharing arrangement with Saudi Arabia regarding the war in Yemen. You've seen that we have already paused two arms sales with Saudi Arabia to ensure while we examine whether they meet our objectives and policies.” Since 2015, the Arab Sunni nations of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have led a coalition of states in Yemen against rebel Houthi forces, which are backed by the Shia government of Iran. Aligned with former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, the Houthis took over Yemen's capital, Sanaa, in September 2014. The armed conflict in Yemen has resulted in the largest humanitarian crisis in the world, according to Human Rights Watch. Citing the Yemen Data Project, HRW says that during the Saudi-led air war in Yemen, more than 17,500 civilians have been killed and injured since 2015, and a quarter of all civilians killed in air raids were women and children. More than 20 million people in Yemen are experiencing food insecurity; 10 million of them are at risk of famine. Howard Altman with Military Times contributed to this report. https://www.defensenews.com/global/mideast-africa/2021/02/05/boeing-raytheon-missile-sales-to-saudi-arabia-canceled-by-biden-administration

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  April 23, 2020 | International, C4ISR

  FCC and Ligado are undermining GPS – and with it, our economy and national security

  Sen. Jim Inhofe, Sen. Jack Reed, Rep. Adam Smith, Rep. Mac Thornberry Right now, the coronavirus is rightly our country's most immediate concern. But the Federal Communications Commission has used the crisis, under the cover of darkness, to approve a long-stalled application by Ligado Networks — a proposal that threatens to undermine our global positioning system (GPS) capabilities, and with it, our national security. The FCC granted Ligado (formerly known as LightSquared) permission to repurpose spectrum adjacent to GPS frequencies for a terrestrial cellular network — framing this proposal as essential to “winning the race to 5G.” But what Ligado has done is conflate two different and important spectrum issues: the sharing of mid-band 5G spectrum by the Department of Defense and commercial industry, and harmful interference of Ligado's signal with the low-band GPS signals used in nearly every aspect of daily life. The result: some members of Congress, members of the administration, and the public are now confused about the real and immediate impacts of Ligado's proposal. So, we wanted to clarify things: domestic 5G development is critical to our economic competiveness against China and for our national security. The Pentagon is committed working with government and industry to share mid-band spectrum where and when it makes sense to ensure rapid roll-out of 5G. [Editor's note: C4ISRNET first broke the news that the FCC would move forward with Ligado's request on April 10.] The problem here is that Ligado's planned usage is not in the prime mid-band spectrum being considered for 5G — and it will have a significant risk of interference with GPS reception, according to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). The signals interference Ligado's plan would create could cost taxpayers and consumers billions of dollars and require the replacement of current GPS equipment just as we are trying to get our economy back on its feet quickly — and the FCC has just allowed this to happen. Think of all the ways Americans use GPS each and every day. GPS satellites provide free precise timing and navigation that powers thousands of functions: making financial transactions at our banks, keeping the lights on in our homes, traveling around the country — the list goes on and on. Studies show GPS satellites contribute at least $1 billion to our economy every single day. GPS also forms the backbone of countless military operations and applications — to get supplies to our war fighters on the battlefield, guide unmanned aircraft and vehicles, target its precision weapons, and much more. It would be practically impossible to identify and repair or replace all of the potentially adversely affected receivers. It would “needlessly imperil [Department of Defense] GPS-dependent national security capabilities,” per Secretary Esper, putting the war fighter, U.S. Space Force, military readiness, and even the defense of our homeland at risk. American families and businesses would lose coverage or be forced to use systems from our strategic competitors, China and Russia, jeopardizing our global leadership in precision timing. We're not the only ones with serious concerns. Nine federal departments and agencies have completed extensive engineering tests and analyses on Ligado's proposal; and the results are clear: Ligado's plan would interfere with millions of GPS receivers across the nation. The Departments of Defense, Commerce, Interior, Justice, Homeland Security, Energy, and Transportation — as well as NASA, the National Science Foundation, the Coast Guard and the Federal Aviation Administration — all strongly object to Ligado's plan. What kind of precedent is the FCC setting by disregarding near unanimous opposition of federal agencies to this proposal? It's not just the government, either — industry leaders representing GPS, satellite communications services, automotive companies, commercial aviation, and weather data have also voiced concerns over Ligado's proposal. We would expect that the FCC listen not just to Ligado's privately funded research, but also broad-based, in-depth research from experts in national security and other fields. This makes it all the more confusing — why is the FCC ignoring all the evidence, especially now, at the height of a global crisis? The Ligado application highlights the need to use a technical, data-driven approach to balance the use of the spectrum between war fighter requirements and commercial needs, rather than strong-arming a proposal through the process like the FCC just did. We can expect this issue to be an ongoing national security challenge. If we want to strike a responsible balance moving forward, the U.S. government must modernize the infrastructure needed to manage and share spectrum efficiently, promote policy and technology innovation, and improve the ability of military systems to operate alongside commercial systems. Considering the risks, it's clear the FCC commissioners made the wrong decision regarding Ligado's plan, which will set a disastrous precedent while impeding ongoing work on spectrum sharing. The vulnerabilities to our national and economic security are not worth the risk, particularly for a band of spectrum that isn't necessary to secure a robust 5G network. We encourage the FCC to withdraw its approval of Ligado's application and take this opportunity to work with the NTIA and other federal agencies, including the Departments of Defense and Transportation, to find a solution that will both support commercial broadband expansion and protect national security assets. Moreover, we expect the FCC to resolve Department of Defense concerns before moving forward, as required by law. If they do not, and unless President Trump intervenes to stop this from moving forward, it will be up to Congress to clean up this mess. Senator Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., is the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee. Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., is the ranking member on the Senate Armed Services Committee. Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., is the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee. Rep. Mac Thornberry, R-Texas, is the ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee. https://www.c4isrnet.com/breaking-news/2020/04/22/fcc-and-ligado-are-undermining-gps-and-with-it-our-economy-and-national-security/

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  July 9, 2019 | International, Aerospace

  Enhancing Unmanned Operations in Extreme Conditions with the Power of Two-Stroke

  Peter Lietz, Head of International Business Development for Hirth Engines, explains why engine manufacturers must raise the endurance bar for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to advance capabilities in extreme weather conditions. Drones have become a popular choice for various exploits, from hobbyist aerial photography to large organisations such as Amazon exploring the future of delivery services. In the same vein, governments, militaries and research groups are exploring the use of UAVs to enable highly effective monitoring of unforgiving terrains without risking manned aircraft or land-based patrols. The need for unmanned aerial systems to navigate harsh environments is vital for the maritime, military and commercial sectors. Providing reliable and to the minute information on the status of, and threats to, environments like the Arctic is crucial as governments prepare to take action against significant issues such as climate change and increases in populations. UAVs will play a crucial role in this future considering the need for operators to monitor harsh environments and difficult to reach terrains, especially rotary UAVs. Reaching inhospitable locations can present a variety of logistical challenges, not least of which is the cost of sending land-based patrols or manned aircraft often from navy ships or other maritime vessels. This is where UAVs can enable operators to safely monitor terrains in a cost-effective and efficient way to better understand complex habitats. Carrying out monitoring exercises in areas such as the Artic where there is a real risk to life can be a major challenge. Through the use of well-engineered rotary UAVs, organisations are able to perform a variety of tasks with ease. The responsibility to advance the endurance capabilities of UAVs falls on engine manufacturers. For this reason, we must continue to innovate to increase performance. Over the last few years, rotary UAVs have grown in complexity, not only in terms of the platforms themselves but also the robustness and performance of the engines they run on. As the operational requirements for UAVs grows, engine manufacturers must continually innovate to improve power-to-weight ratios, reduce emissions, and accelerate capabilities in harsh environments. For a long time, fixed-wing UAVs were considered the optimal choice for endurance and speed over their rotary counterparts. However, this is changing rapidly thanks to enhancements in engine design. Rotary UAVs are now becoming a platform of choice due to their reduced logistical footprint and the ability to take off and land in a confined or limited space, especially in maritime environments such as on-board navy ships and coastguard cutters for example. The requirement for rotary UAVs to operate in extreme temperatures such as the cold of the Arctic or the severe heat of warmer climates is essential for operators. This is where two-stroke propulsion engines play a vital role. Two-stroke applications present rotary UAV manufacturers with a range of benefits, including ease of maintenance due to less moving parts and the ability to operate on heavy fuels which are a must for corrosive marine environments. Alongside this, two-stroke powered rotary UAVs are often capable of flying missions with a full payload in extreme conditions for more than five hours without overhaul. With this as a backdrop, it is vital for UAV and engine manufacturers to accelerate the development of propulsion systems capable of operating in extreme locations around the globe. As the industry moves towards hybrid and electric propulsion new challenges will arise and it is crucial that OEMs raise the bar to power the next generation of UAVs. In order to advance the endurance and capabilities of rotary UAVs, engine manufactures must look to innovate the propulsion technology used. Electric is an increasingly popular option for commercial drones. However, electric comes with its own challenges and limitations, such as operational endurance and increased weight of the electrical motors. Considering the performance of batteries in extreme temperatures in comparison to their fuel-based counterparts, there is a long way to go before pure electric UAVs will be capable of flying extended missions in harsh terrains. Hybrid applications that utilise both a combustion engine and electric propulsion systems will provide a bridge toward the future of pure electric flight. A clear advantage for hybrid applications is improving power to weight ratios to enable increased payload capacities. Hybrid UAV applications can be used in various functions, such as: electrically powered take-off and landing with conventional engines powering horizontal flight; or powering flight using only electrical motors whilst the combustion engine acts solely as a generator. In addition, safety is a key purpose behind the pursuit of hybrid applications. For UAV manufacturers, having the ability to convert to an electric battery should the combustion engine fail could make all the difference in enabling a safe landing. Operating UAVs in extreme weather conditions reduces the chances of potential health and safety issues associated with deploying staff or manned systems into harsh environments. In addition, a further key benefit of using UAVs is enabling the deployment of cost-effective systems that perform safely in extreme locations. Ultimately, developing UAVs that can fly farther and for longer in harsh environments will require engine manufacturers to consider alternative fuel and power systems such as heavy fuel two-stroke applications. Heavy fuel is widely considered a must in the maritime industry when dealing with complex environments due to its resistance to extreme temperatures. At Hirth, pairing a robust heavy fuel combustion engine with electrical propulsion is something we are pursuing to advance the future capabilities of unmanned systems and bridge the gap to pure electric flight. For further information about Hirth's portfolio of engines, visit: http://hirthengines.com/ About Hirth Hirth Engines GmbH, based near Stuttgart, with global sales operated from Vienna, has a long pedigree in the development of propulsion systems, stretching back to The innovative company was founded by German aviation pioneer and World War I ace Helmuth Hirth, a student of US inventor Thomas Edison, and collaborator with the Wright Brothers and Zeppelin. The company has set its sights on consolidating its leading role in the development of two-stroke engines for a range of diverse sectors including:  Unmanned and manned light and experimental aircraft (fixed wing and helicopters)  Hovercraft Next generation R&D will focus on hybrid engines, based on the company's winning formula of providing easy to maintain power to weight ratio propulsion technology across civilian and military applications. https://dronescrunch.com/enhancing-unmanned-operations-in-extreme-conditions-with-the-power-of-two-stroke/