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November 12, 2023 | International, Aerospace

US Air Force's new B-21 Raider "flying wing" bomber takes first flight | Reuters

The U.S. Air Force's B-21 "Raider" bomber shaped like a flying wing took its first flight on Friday, the next step in rolling out a new fleet of long-range nuclear-capable stealth bombers built by Northrop Grumman , according to a Reuters witness.

https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/us-air-forces-new-b-21-raider-flying-wing-bomber-takes-first-flight-reuters-2023-11-10/

On the same subject

  • Eastern European NATO allies ramp up drone buys to protect their borders

    August 7, 2020 | International, Aerospace

    Eastern European NATO allies ramp up drone buys to protect their borders

    By: Jaroslaw Adamowski WARSAW, Poland — As Russia's military activities in the Baltic and Black seas are mounting pressure on NATO's eastern flank, a number of Eastern European countries are developing programs to acquire unmanned aerial vehicles for their militaries. In Romania, local analysts say the country's Ministry of National Defence aims to boost the military's surveillance, reconnaissance and intelligence (SRI) capabilities by acquiring new drones, ensuring the country's armed forces can efficiently monitor Romanian borders. “Romania wants to increase its SRI capacity in the Black Sea, taking into account that the militarization of the region by Russia is intensively continuing,” George Scutaru, head of the Bucharest-based New Strategy Center think tank and a former member of parliament and government adviser, told Defense News. “At the end of last April, the joint Defense Committees of the Romanian parliament adopted the request of the Ministry of National Defence to start the procurement procedures for five new programs, including the acquisition of UAV systems. Within this program, an acquisition of seven tactical-operative UAV systems is to be carried out.” Romania's previous attempt at purchasing drones for its military came in 2018 under a procedure to buy tactical UAVs for some 250 million lei (U.S. $56 million). The bidders included American firm AAI Corporation, Israel's Aeronautics Limited, BlueBird Aero Systems and Israel Aerospace Industries, as well as Romanian company Ymens Teamnet. However, a Romanian court canceled the tender after some bidders filed complaints. George Visan, the coordinator of the Black Sea Security Program at the Bucharest-based think tank Romania Energy Center, told Defense News it was “known that Romania would like to acquire at least six medium-altitude, long-endurance UAVs as well as a number of smaller tactical UAVs.” Similarly to the failed drone tender from 2018, the new competition is expected to attract bids from the United States, Israeli and Romanian companies. Anticipating the forthcoming procedure, last May, Israel's Elbit Systems signed a memorandum of understanding with local state-run aircraft companies Avioane Craiova and Romaero. “Elbit Systems can easily sell in Romania what it manufactures in Israel, but depending on the order, it is willing to integrate and transfer production here. Avioane Craiova used to produce trainers, IAR-99 aircraft and aero-structures for various manufacturers,” Visan said. The analyst says that, in parallel to its drone procurement programs, the ministry is also funding the development of two UAVs, the medium-range Ultra-20 VTOL and the combat Ultra-20 V drone, by the state-run Research Agency for Military Hardware and Technologies, hoping to secure foreign partners and ensure transfer of technology. “This doesn't preclude other acquisitions,” Visan said. Poland eyes combat, surveillance drones Meanwhile, Poland's Ministry of Defence is developing several acquisition programs to acquire UAVs. To date, the ministry has ordered short-range drones and mini drones, with more programs to procure surveillance and combat drones underway. “In the long-term, the Polish Armed Forces are planning to acquire about a dozen sets of mid-range UAVs under the Gryf program, several MALE combat-reconnaissance UAVs under the Zefir program, and vertical take-off and landing short-range UAVs for the navy under the Albatros program,” a spokesperson for the Polish ministry told Defense News. In 2018 and 2019, Polish privately-owned defense company WB Group secured two orders to deliver a total of 48 mini-drones to the Territorial Defense Forces (TDF), a military branch which comprises volunteers. “We have supplied two types of drones to the Polish military. The first one is FlyEye which, in addition to the TDF, is also used by the artillery forces and special forces in Poland. It can be used in a variety of missions, including reconnaissance, artillery guidance, search and resuce, but also to extend the range of battle management systems. This drone can guide missiles, becoming the heart of an anti-tank system. We have developed FlyEye for more than ten years, and new variants continue to be designed,” company spokesman Remigiusz Wilk told Defense News. “The second one is Warmate which combines reconnaissance capabilities and combat capacities as loitering munition, owing to which it's a highly precise weapon system.” WB Group is also exporting its drones, with Warmate's deliveries to four allies carried out through the NATO Support and Procurement Agency. Most recently, the manufacturer established a subsidiary in Ukraine where its UAVs have been operated by the country's military. “Our drones are combat-proven, and to date, not a single one has been lost over Ukrainian skies carrying out hundreds of challenging missions,” Wilk said. Other countries in the region that plan to acquire drones include the Czech Republic. Last November, Czech President Milos Zeman spurred controversy when he called on the government to buy Israeli UAVs for the armed forces. Combat drones are to be acquired under the country's military modernization program 2027, worth 100 billion koruna (U.S. $4.25 billion). https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2020/08/06/eastern-european-nato-allies-ramp-up-drone-buys-to-protect-their-borders/

  • General Dynamics Awarded $2 Billion US Department of State Global Supply Chain Contract

    July 10, 2019 | International, Other Defence

    General Dynamics Awarded $2 Billion US Department of State Global Supply Chain Contract

    GDIT wins competitive rebid to continue supporting the State Department's global security, engineering and supply chain mission. FALLS CHURCH, Va. – General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT) announced today it has won a $2 billion contract to continue managing the U.S. Department of State (DOS) global technical security supply chain. The single-award contract with the Bureau of Diplomatic Security (DS), Countermeasures Directorate includes a base period of five years and a five-year award term. “This award demonstrates GDIT's commitment to providing world-class solutions for our customers and expanding the broader security mission of federal agencies,” said GDIT President Amy Gilliland. “We are excited to continue supporting one of the federal government's largest supply chain and logistics operations.” This award adds to the scope of the current supply chain management contract, which was awarded to GDIT in June of 2012. Under the new contract, GDIT will provide DOS with a fully-integrated, turnkey solution consisting of technical security systems, engineering and solution development, hybrid supply chain and distribution management, as well as a global logistics and transportation network. These elements work together as a cohesive system of systems to deliver efficiency, cost-effectiveness and customer service. “GDIT delivers millions of security-related items to embassies and high-threat posts worldwide,” said Senior Vice President Paul Nedzbala, head of GDIT's Federal Civilian Division. “We remain committed to this important work for the State Department and its employees across the globe.” GDIT's security engineering experts apply the industry's best practices to deliver reliable and high-impact security solutions. This includes deploying supply chain and logistics experts who embrace state-of-the-art commercial supply chain processes, tools and techniques. These and other innovations counter existing and evolving security threats to U.S. diplomatic personnel and facilities. https://www.gdit.com/about-gdit/press-releases/general-dynamics-awarded-usd2-billion-us-department-of-state-global-supply/

  • These 7 Chinese companies each topped $5B in defense sales — and could rival American firms

    August 24, 2018 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land

    These 7 Chinese companies each topped $5B in defense sales — and could rival American firms

    By: Aaron Mehta WASHINGTON — With China now the second-largest spender on defense in the world, Chinese companies are logically going to rank among the largest defense firms. But quantifying that number has proven incredibly difficult thanks to the opaque nature of both government spending and the firms themselves. Now, a London-based think tank has concluded that seven Chinese firms would rank among the top 20 defense companies in the world, each breaking $5 billion in defense revenues — a proportion that rivals any one nation outside the U.S. Lucie Beraud-Sudreau and Meia Nouwens, two researchers with the International Institute for Strategic Studies, looked at eight key defense firms from China — the China Aviation Industry Corporation (AVIC), China Electronics Technology Enterprise (CETC), China North Industries Group Corporation (NORINCO), China South Industries Group Corporation (CSGC), China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC), China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC), China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), and China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (CASIC). The researchers looked at the largest defense firms and key subsidiaries, excluding a pair of nuclear-focused Chinese companies, classifying each as defense- or civilian-focused. Then they used the differentiation to calculate how much of each company's total revenues was derived from defense-related sales. Full article: https://www.defensenews.com/top-100/2018/08/23/these-7-chinese-companies-each-topped-5b-in-defense-sales-and-could-rival-american-firms

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