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By: Stephen Losey A series of one-day safety stand-downs across all flying and maintenance wings has given the Air Force several clues on how to correct a string of troubling — and sometimes fatal — aviation crashes and other mishaps, the service said Monday. In a news release, the Air Force said the review identified six potential risks to aviation safety: stress caused by high operations tempos; a lack of time to properly focus on flying basics, mission activities and training; pressure to accept risk; a culture that pushes airmen to always execute the mission; decreased availability of aircraft; and the potential for airmen to become complacent when carrying out routine tasks. The full report summary, provided at Air Force Times' request, also raised concerns about the increasing requirements on maintainers, and low experience in some operations and maintenance personnel. The summary also cited “perception of ineffective training” as another area of concern. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Dave Goldfein ordered the stand-down in May, after several high-profile mishaps including the May 2 crash of a WC-130 Hercules that killed the nine Puerto Rico Air National Guardsmen aboard. “The review proved tremendously helpful as we continue to seek both high levels of safety with intense and realistic training,” Goldfein said in the release. “As air superiority is not an American birthright, our training must continue to be challenging and meaningful. But I also want commanders to have the decision authority to determine how far to push.” The service has distributed those findings to the field, the release said, and flying and maintenance leaders are using those findings to help guide their decisions. The summary also cites the aging fleet of Air Force aircraft as a problem contributing to increased maintenance requirements and decreased aircraft availability. The summary said that major commands provided the Air Force Safety Center with their aggregate feedback after completing their safety stand-downs, so senior leaders could find out what issues and concerns were identified across all wings. The Air Force has already started putting plans into place to address airmen's concerns, including adding more support back to squadrons, reducing additional duties, “enhancing information processes for aircrew mission planning” and cutting staff requirements, according to the release. Full article: https://www.airforcetimes.com/news/your-air-force/2018/09/11/air-force-high-ops-tempos-lack-of-aircraft-inexperienced-maintainers-among-mishap-risks

By: Pierre Tran SATORY ARMY BASE, France — Nations in Europe need to forge a more coordinated forceacross the continent, with each ready to step up to play a leadership role during conflict, said the French joint chief of staff. “The future of the defense of nations on the continent cannot be considered outside the European framework,” Army Gen. François Lecointre told the Summer Defense University, a two-day gathering of senior officers, parliamentarians and industry chiefs. “In the context of doubt over multilateralism, greater fragility of alliances and America's refocus of attention to the Indo-Pacific region, the European continent must confront — increasingly on its own — all kinds of threats: might, terrorism, hybrid, cyber and migration,” he said. That use of the term “might” referred to unspecified nations perceived to pose a threat to Western allies. That calls for a common vision in strategy and capability, with a country ready to take the role of a “leader nation,” he said. The aim is to build a “European strategic autonomy,” he added. The French armed forces minister, Florence Parly, came to the army base, just outside Versailles, west of the capital, and watched a dynamic display staged by the Army. The service fielded a Jaguar combat and reconnaissance vehicle, a VBCI infantry fighting vehicle carrying a squad of troops, a robotic vehicle carrying a wounded soldier, and a Leclerc main battle tank carried by a tank transport. France invites foreign officers and political leaders to the high-level annual gathering, organized by CEIS, a think tank and consultancy. https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2018/09/11/french-joint-chief-calls-for-coordinated-european-force

ichmond, BC - MDA, a Maxar Technologies company (formerly MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd.), (NYSE: MAXR) (TSX: MAXR), today announced that it has signed a multi-million dollar contract with the South African National Space Agency (SANSA) for a one-year maritime surveillance program that includes the delivery of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data products from the RADARSAT-2 satellite, using MDA's global network of ground receiving stations. The contract includes two additional option years. As part of the Presidential program Operation Phakisa, SANSA has been tasked to acquire SAR imagery with the aim of enhancing the monitoring and protection of South Africa's coastal regions and oceans. Initiatives under this program are considered crucial in accelerating the delivery of South Africa's development priorities. Operations Phakisa estimates that the approximate total contribution of coastal resources (marine fishing, port and harbour development, attractive lifestyles, recreation and tourism) is 35% of South Africa's GDP. The information provided by the SAR data contributes to ensuring improved governance and enables the securing of South African resources, such as the National Ocean and Coastal Information System. The South African Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) is roughly 1.5 million square km and forms part of the economic resources and trade routes of South Africa. The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), South Africa's central and premier scientific research and development organization will create the ship and oil detection products for SANSA to share with various government agencies. “RADARSAT-2 provides a unique method of cost-effectively and accurately monitoring very large areas and providing information in near real-time, demonstrating immediate value to users,” said Mike Greenley, group president of MDA. “MDA has decades of remote sensing expertise to help our customers anticipate and address their most complex mission-critical challenges with confidence.” Under this contract, using RADARSAT-2 information, MDA will provide systematic weekly broad-area surveillance over South Africa's EEZ and on-demand high-resolution image acquisitions. RADARSAT-2 Ocean Surveillance Mode is well suited for broad area maritime surveillance, and is unique as a single scene covers over 250,000 ㎢ and allows for the detection of ships and oil within the coastal and offshore regions regardless of light or weather condition. https://mdacorporation.com/news/pr/pr2018091001.html

Where do the US Navy's top priorities stand in the CNO's eyes? https://www.defensenews.com/newsletters/tv-next-episode/2018/09/10/where-do-the-us-navys-top-priorities-stand-in-the-cnos-eyes

By: Justin Lynch As hackers become more sophisticated, the top IT officer at the Department of Homeland Security says he needs better mobile security features compared to other U.S. government agencies. The Department of Homeland Security “really operates differently than [the Department of Defense]. We are a very mobile organization, so my attack vectors are out there,” said John Zangardi during the Billington Cybersecurity summit Sept. 7. “We are out there on our mobile devices all day long, and that's not the case with DoD.” Zangardi would know. He previously served as the Pentagon's acting chief information officer from October 2016 to November 2017. In the 2017 Homeland Security industry guide, which lays out the department's investment opportunities, the agency said it was looking to secure communication systems and monitor cyberthreats in mobile devices. Homeland Security has also invested in research to ensure Android phones are secure and is planning to study end-to-end cellphone call encryption. Zangardi said the IT industry is going through an “inflection point” that is being driven by a faster rate of innovation, bolstered digital threats from nation-states and a greater demand for consumer expectations. Full article: https://www.fifthdomain.com/civilian/dhs/2018/09/10/why-dhs-needs-better-mobile-security-than-other-agencies

By: Mike Gruss Leaders at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency announced Sept. 7 a $2 billion initiative, known as AI Next, that aims to substantially improve artificial intelligence research. “With AI Next, we are making multiple research investments aimed at transforming computers from specialized tools to partners in problem-solving,” Steven Walker, the agency's director, said in a press release. “Today, machines lack contextual reasoning capabilities, and their training must cover every eventuality, which is not only costly, but ultimately impossible. We want to explore how machines can acquire human-like communication and reasoning capabilities, with the ability to recognize new situations and environments and adapt to them.” As a result of the effort, DARPA leaders envision improving day-to-day processes, such as vetting for security clearances in a week or accrediting software systems for operational deployment in a day or less. DARPA said it plans to announce multiple broad agency announcements in the next year. The announcement marks the second major artificial intelligence-related initiative in the last three months. In late June, the Department of Defense announced its Joint AI Center, which is expected to help provide a road map for the department's nearly 600 AI-related programs, including the controversial Project Maven program. The funding is a parallel effort to the Department of Defense's Joint AI Center, known as JAIC, which is expected to cost about $1.7 billion in the coming years. That program is run through the DOD CIO's office and is expected to focus more on applications for artificial intelligence while the DARPA programs will concentrate on answering questions related to the “foundational science” related to AI. DARPA has a history of working on AI project. It is currently funding about 20 AI related programs and said its initial funding on the topic dates back to the 1960s. Leaders describe the new investment as working toward what they call the third wave of AI. The first wave focused on rule-based systems for narrow tasks and a second wave has been used to find statistical patterns in large data sets. But DARPA leaders are describing a third wave as one of “contextual adaptation.” In a press conference at the conclusion of DARPA's D60 symposium, agency leaders said the new initiative would include a focus on explainable AI, in other words, how a machine arrived at its answer. They also said they expect a broader discussion of ethics related to artificial intelligence. https://www.c4isrnet.com/it-networks/2018/09/10/darpas-new-2-billion-initiative-for-next-level-ai

by Debra Werner PARIS — Fleet operator SES plans to revolutionize satellite purchasing and operations. Instead of buying individual satellites tailored for a specific job at a precise orbital location as it has for decades, the Luxembourg-based company is seeking homogenous satellites with digitally processed payloads it can reconfigure to perform any job in geostationary or medium Earth orbit. “We will only buy one type of satellite going forward,” Steve Collar, SES president and chief executive, told reporters Sept. 10 at the World Satellite Business Week conference here. “Exactly the same spacecraft can be operated at 19.2 degrees, 23.5 degrees, 108 degrees East, it doesn't matter. We can put them wherever we want.” If the SES board of directors approves the plan, SES will solicit proposals by the end of the month and begin purchasing in early 2019 the new 2.5 to 2.9-ton spacecraft offering approximately 12.5 kilowatts of power, said Martin Halliwell, SES chief technology officer, who leads the initiative. Prior to announcing its plan, SES worked with 11 potential satellite vendors and selected three for continued cooperation. Company executives declined to name the vendors. SES is embarking on this campaign because it expects satellites to be an integral part of evolving global communications networks. To perform that role, however, the industry will need to expand satellite production dramatically, Collar said. “If we get the savings we think we will, we will be able to significantly scale our network without spending more or more modestly scale our network and spend less,” Collar said. “We haven't yet decided where that comes out.” To further improve economies of scale, SES is encouraging manufacturers to share the new spacecraft design with other customers. “Let's make the party as big as possible,” Halliwell said. Collar added, “We think it will improve the economics of the whole industry.” SES plans to stack three of its future satellites, which don't yet have a brand name, on rockets. The rockets could then drop them off in medium Earth or geostationary transfer orbit, as needed, Halliwell said. SES operates 56 satellites in geostationary orbit and 16 O3B satellites in medium Earth orbit. The firm plans to launch four more O3B satellites in 2019. SES also is investing more than 1 billion euros ($1.16 billion) in O3B mPower, a seven-satellite constellation built by Boeing for internet and data connectivity that is slated to begin launching in 2021. SES's plans to fly the new reprogrammable satellites comes after mPower, Collar said. https://spacenews.com/ses-seeks-interchangeable-satellites

Giles Ebbutt, Plymouth - Jane's International Defence Review Elbit Systems UK has been selected as the preferred bidder for the UK's Project Morpheus Battle Management Application (BMA) contract, Jane's has learned. The UK's Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) confirmed the decision, but was unable to comment further because the contract is still at the “standstill” stage, which allows an unsuccessful bidder 10 days (until 18 September) to challenge the contract award. Morpheus is a major part of the Land Equipment Tactical Communication and Information Systems (LE TacCIS) programme and overall is worth GBP3.2 billion (USD4.1 billion). It will replace the current Bowman system and its ComBAT battle management system. https://www.janes.com/article/82879/elbit-emerges-as-preferred-bidder-for-uk-s-morpheus

By ARIE EGOZI TEL AVIV: Until last week there was a shadow war, fought behind closed doors, mainly in the highly guarded complex of the Israeli Defense Ministry and the Israeli Air Force headquarters in Tel Aviv. And in some newspapers. But now the war has gone public and the big guns could be heard all over Israel's national security establishment when one of the opponents sent a high level delegation to Israel. The war is between Lockheed Martin and Boeing. The battles are between F-35's or advanced F-15's, and between the CH-53K and the CH-47 Chinook. The proposed deal to purchase additional F-15 for the Israeli airforce ( IAF) includes the upgrade of the existing F-15I. The deal may have a total price of almost $4 billion for 25 F-15Is. This version has an airframe with an extended life span and large area display cockpit. A high-ranking Lockheed Martin delegation met in recent days with the top figures in the Israeli Defense Ministry and Air Force headquarters. Full article: https://breakingdefense.com/2018/09/israel-keeps-eyes-on-f-35bs-lockheed-boeing-battle-it-out-for-fighters-choppers