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June 17, 2020 - When facing today's uncertainties, air superiority, which was underpinning western military operations for over 40 years, is no longer a given thing. The playing field is levelled by opponents' constant investment in integrated air defence systems, hypersonic weapon technologies and low observability technologies. Western air forces need to regain their ability to counter threats by accessing highly contested environments in a scalable, flexible and dynamic way rather than a local and static one. By intelligently teaming sixth generation manned fighters with unmanned platforms, the Next Generation Weapon System or NGWS will provide European air forces & navies with capabilities well beyond existing fighters. With no agreed definition of a sixth-generation fighter, Airbus' understanding is that such a New Generation Fighter or NGF will be a more sophisticated and connected platform than what currently exists. The NGF will set the next level of survivability in terms of passive stealth (signature reduction and electromagnetic emission control) and active stealth (electronic counter measures). The heart of the NGF will be provided by its extremely capable avionics and sensor suite. The increase in processing power, storage and connectivity will grant the pilot with greatly heightened situational awareness and the ability to rely not only on its own sensors and effectors, but also on other platforms' ones. Combined with the introduction of artificial intelligence and the ability to team with unmanned platforms, the NGF will become a battlefield management platform capable of operating deep within the enemy airspace. Powerful engines equipped with thrust-vectoring nozzles combined with high-performance flight control system will ensure the NGF's manoeuvrability, speed, and range. Innovative effectors will provide the fighter with unprecedented firepower, ranging from stand-off kinetic loads (including hypersonic ones) to directed energy weapons (lasers and microwaves) to electronic warfare capabilities (including cyberattack). However, more sophistication also means higher development costs leading to a declining number of platforms and/or effectors. Eventually such dangerously low levels result in critical availability levels. This is problematic, as operational studies indicate that penetrating contested environments will require an adequate number of manned platforms. Hence, it is important to set the right level of capabilities for the NGF by taking a holistic approach when right sizing its stealth, velocity, manoeuvrability, range, sensing and effects generation's capabilities. The NGF alone will not suffice for the most demanding missions in highly contested environments. To counter such threats, the NGF will team with unmanned platforms called Remote Carriers or RCs acting as force multipliers. Adding capabilities in a scalable and flexible manner will enhance the overall mission effectiveness, efficiency and survivability of the NGWS. RCs will be a family of unmanned platforms ranging from 200 kilograms for disposable RCs, to under 2 tons for recoverable ones and even several tons in the case of loyal wingmen. Airbus is currently studying and optimising with users their design. The RCs will provide various non-kinetic effects (Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance, Airborne Electronic Warfare) as well as kinetic ones (A2G SEAD/DEAD and Strike). With “packs” of RCs teaming with NGFs, the NGWS will clearly establish a new operational dimension. An augmented level of effectiveness will be achieved by opening new fields of tactics based on collaborative combat, the use of deception and numeric superiority. Efficiency will improve by ensuring the required mix of capabilities for a given mission is deployed. The NGF will stay at a safe stand-off distance whilst closer RCs deal with the threats, thus keeping the pilots out of harm's way and increasing the manned platform's survivability. Within the NGWS, the Air Combat Cloud or ACC will connect the manned and unmanned platform and provide the teaming intelligence for faster collaborative combat. The ACC will deliver common situational awareness by instantaneously capturing, sharing, merging and processing massive amounts of data from all connected NGFs and RCs. The ACC's warfare analytics and real-time coordination will provide better situational awareness, tactical options, decisions and collaborative effects Airbus has a leading role within the Next Generation Weapon System programme programme which will be the core of FCAS. Airbus is Dassault's main partner for the NGF and the lead for the RCs and the ACC with MBDA and Thales as its respective main partners. This will benefit Airbus' sites in securing work and maintaining technological excellence for decades to come. More on FCAS here View source version on Airbus: https://www.airbus.com/newsroom/stories/Future-Combat-Air-System-Owning-the-sky-with-the-Next-Generation-Weapons-System.html

The Swedish government on Tuesday revealed its plans to improve its military capabilities including development of a new fighter jet to replace the JAS 39 Grippen. “The development of the next generation fighter aircraft will commence,” Swedish Carl Anders Peter Hultqvist said in a statement June 16, without divulging any more details. Swedish Air Force JAS 39/D combat aircraft will be maintained, as the new fighter JAS 39 E is integrated into the squadrons and becomes operational. This will allow the service to keep six fighter squadrons. The Army will be reorganized and consist of three mechanized brigades, one smaller motorized brigade and, on the island of Gotland, one mechanized battalion with support elements. Additional ranger, intelligence, security, artillery, engineer, logistics and air defence units will be added. When it comes to the Navy the existing corvettes will be upgraded with new air-defence missiles. Two new corvettes will be acquired in order to replace two older ones after 2025. One existing submarine will get a mid-life upgrade and therefore the number of submarines will increase from four to five. A new amphibious battalion will be established on the west coast of Sweden. In 2020, the government will also establish a national cyber security centre. This centre will strengthen Sweden's ability to prevent, detect and handle antagonistic cyber threats and reduce cyber related vulnerabilities. It will also provide support to private and public actors on how to improve their cyber security and protection against cyber attacks. In July 2019, Governments of Sweden and the United Kingdom (UK) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to develop future combat aircraft capabilities and combat aircraft systems. The collaboration offers the opportunity to further insert advanced technologies into JAS 39 Gripen. https://www.defenseworld.net/news/27229#.Xuz9ymhKiUk

By: Vivek Raghuvanshi NEW DELHI — Indian defense companies may have lost $3 billion in potential revenue during March 24-May 31 amid a nationwide lockdown in response to the coronavirus pandemic, according to a Ministry of Defence official. Those affected include more than 100 large defense firms and some 4,000 small and medium aerospace and defense businesses. The lockdown has also impacted the supply of local and foreign material for 50 major defense projects. Currently, every Indian-made weapon and platform is designed to use 10-20 percent of imported components. The COVID-19 pandemic is expected to disrupt the supply of such components for at least a year, which could cause delays and cost overruns for major defense programs, according to a senior executive with the Society of Indian Defence Manufacturers, a defense industry advocacy body. Speaking on condition of anonymity, he said local defense industry factories are operating at 30-50 percent capacity and that the outlook is grim. “This will lead to a direct hit in the first-quarter revenue of all defense companies operating in India, which will also seemingly struggle for cash flows for operation costs,” he said, adding that those costs could increase in the second quarter of the current fiscal year. Another MoD official told Defense News that some of the ongoing major defense projects — such as licence production of French Scorpene submarines, Project 17A destroyers, Indo-Russian BrahMos cruise missiles and license production of Russian T-90MS main battle tanks — will take a major hit because foreign engineers are unwilling to come to India to supervise the projects. Due to disruption in the supply chain, the SIDM exec warned, the cost of material and components will increase sharply — possibly an extra 10-15 percent — and Indian defense companies will have to spend more if fluctuations in the exchange rate between the Indian rupee and the euro or U.S. dollar harms India's purchasing power. https://www.defensenews.com/industry/2020/06/17/indias-defense-industry-is-set-to-lose-3-billion-from-nationwide-lockdown/

AIR FORCE Accenture Federal Services LLC, Arlington, Virginia (FA7014-20-D-0006); Booz Allen Hamilton Inc., Arlington, Virginia (FA7014-20-D-0007); Deloitte Consulting LLP, Arlington, Virginia (FA7014-20-D-0008); Digital Mobilizations Inc., Warrenton, Virginia (FA7014-20-D-0010); KMPG LLP, McLean, Virginia (FA7014-20-D-0009); BCG Federal Corp., Bethesda, Maryland (FA7014-20-D-0005); Grant Thornton Public Sector LLC, Arlington, Virginia (FA7014-20-D-0004); and McKinsey & Co. Inc., Washington, D.C. (FA7014-20-D-0003), has been awarded a ceiling $990,000,000 multiple-award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, firm-fixed-price contract to provide advisory and assistance services to support the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air Force Office of Business Transformation and Deputy Chief Management Officer in managing and improving strategic transformation initiatives at the enterprise level. Work will be performed at various locations and is expected to be completed June 16, 2027. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition and seven offers were received. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $500 for each contract are being obligated at the time of award. Air Force District of Washington, Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, is the contracting activity. NORTHCON Inc., Hayden, Indiana (FA4814-20-D-0005); Pro-Mark Services Inc., West Fargo, North Dakota (FA4814-20-D-0006); Danner Construction Co. Inc., Tampa, Florida (FA4814-20-D-0007); ABBA Construction Inc., Jacksonville, Florida (FA4814-20-D-0008); Bay Area Building Solutions, Tampa, Florida (FA4814-20-D-0009); HCR Construction Inc., Norcross, Georgia (FA4814-20-D-0010); OAC Action Construction Corp., Miami, Florida (FA4814-20-D-0011); Frazier Engineering, Melbourne, Florida (FA4814-20-D-0012); Benaka Inc., New Brunswick, New Jersey (FA4814-20-D-0013); RELYANT Global LLC, Maryville, Tennessee (FA4814-20-D-0014); Polu Kai Services LLC, Falls Church, Virginia (FA4814-20-D-0015); Nisou LGC JV LLC, Detroit, Michigan (FA4814-20-D-0016); KMK Construction Inc., Jacksonville, Florida (FA4814-20-D-0017); Burgos Group LLC, Medford, New Jersey (FA4814-20-D-0018); A&H-Ambica JV LLC, Livonia, Michigan (FA4814-20-D-0019); P&S Construction Inc., Chelmsfor, Massachusetts (FA4814-20-D-0020); Northstar Contracting Inc., Cleveland, Ohio (FA4814-20-D-0021); ESA South Inc., Cantonment, Florida (FA4814-D-20-0022); and RUSH Construction Inc., Titusville, Florida (FA4814-D-20-0023), have been awarded a $500,000,000 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for execution of a broad range of maintenance, repair and minor construction projects affecting real property at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida; and Avon Park Air Force Range, Florida. Work is expected to be completed June 16, 2027. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $9,500 will be obligated at the time of award. The 6th Contracting Squadron, Tampa, Florida, is the contracting activity. Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., Linthicum Heights, Maryland, has been awarded an $18,733,197 firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-fixed-fee modification (P00026) to contract FA8615-17-C-6047 for active electronically scanned array radars of Air Force F-16 aircraft. The contract modification is for definitization of the radio frequency target generator, additional support equipment and software development to support Phase Two. Work will be performed in Linthicum Heights, Maryland, and is expected to be completed by April 2023. Fiscal 2018 aircraft procurement funds in the amount of $3,510,172; and fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $10,103,436 are being obligated at the time of award. Total cumulative face value of the contract is $1,027,044,025. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity. NAVY Huntington Ingalls Industries, Pascagoula, Mississippi, is awarded $145,598,728 for a not-to-exceed, undefinitized contract action for long lead time material in support of one Amphibious Assault Ship (General Purpose) Replacement (LHA(R)) and Flight 1 Ship (LHA 9). Work will be performed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin (42%); Baltimore, Maryland (24%); Pascagoula, Mississippi (17%); Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania (10%); Fairfield, Ohio (6%); and Warminster, Pennsylvania (1%). Work to be performed is the procurement of long lead-time material for LHA 9, the fourth (LHA(R)) America Class and the second LHA(R) Flight 1 variant. Work is expected to be complete by February 2024. Fiscal 2019 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) advance procurement funding in the amount of $145,598,728 will be obligated at award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. In accordance with 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(1), this contract was not competitively procured with only one responsible source. No other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity (N00024-20-C-2437). Barnhart-Reese Construction Inc.,* San Diego, California (N62473-17-D-4635); Bristol Design Build Services LLC,* Anchorage, Alaska (N62473-17-D-4636); I.E.-Pacific Inc.,* Escondido, California (N62473-17-D-4637); and R.A. Burch Construction Co. Inc.,* Ramona, California (N62473-17-D-4638), are awarded $92,000,000 to increase the aggregate capacity of the previously awarded suite of firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, multiple award construction contracts. The maximum dollar value, including the base year and four option years for all four contracts combined, has increased from $99,000,000 to $191,000,000. The contracts are for new construction, renovation and repair, primarily by design-build or secondarily by design-bid-build, of general building construction at various federal sites and government installation locations within the Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Southwest area of operations. Work will be performed in various locations, including but not limited to, California (90%); Arizona (6%); Nevada (1%); Utah (1%); Colorado (1%); and New Mexico (1%). No funds are being obligated on this award, and no funds will expire. Future task orders will be primarily funded by military construction (Navy); operations and maintenance (O&M), Navy; O&M, Marine Corps; and Navy working capital funds. The original contract was competitively procured via the Navy Electronic Commerce Online website. The NAVFAC Southwest, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity. L3 Technologies Inc. KEO, Northampton, Massachusetts, is awarded a $17,275,863 firm-fixed-price modification to previously awarded contract N00024-15-C-6250 for options to procure spare parts for the photonics mast program. Work will be performed in Northampton, Massachusetts, and is expected to be complete by February 2022. Fiscal 2020 other procurement (Navy) funding in the amount of $2,831,502 will be obligated at time of award. Funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity. Epsilon Systems Solutions Inc.,* San Diego, California, is awarded a $17,175,335 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for Southwest Regional Maintenance Center (SWRMC) support services. Work will be performed in San Diego, California. The SWRMC production department Code 900 is responsible for providing intermediate-level (I-Level) maintenance and repair support and selective maintenance training to over 100 surface ships, submarines, shore activities and other commands of the U.S. Pacific Fleet. SWRMC Production Department is broken into four product families, and each contains multiple product lines and shops. The SWRMC production department product families currently consist of corrosion control products, engine products, machine products and combat systems product family. Within the SWRMC production department, there are also production control division, I-Level planning division and an off-site facility. Work is expected to be complete by September 2021. This contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $106,240,249. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Navy) funding in the amount of $1,431,278 will be obligated at the time of award, and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via the Federal Business Opportunities website, and four offers were received. The Southwest Regional Maintenance Center, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity (N55236-20-C-0003). Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., Fort Worth, Texas, is awarded a $16,026,098 modification (P00001) to cost-plus-fixed-fee order N00019-20-F-0817 against previously issued basic ordering agreement N00019-19-G-0008. This order procures support to manage diminishing manufacturing sources in support of the F-35 Program for the Air Force, Navy and non-Department of Defense (DOD) participants. Work will be performed in Fort Worth, Texas, and is expected to be complete by June 2021. Fiscal 2018 aircraft procurement (Air Force) funds in the amount of $6,586,406; fiscal 2020 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $6,586,406; and non-DOD participant funds in the amount of $2,853,286 will be obligated at time of award, of which $6,586,406 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. Phillips Corp., Hanover, Maryland, is awarded a $12,790,000 fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract. This contract procures equipment related services necessary for the inspection, evaluation, repair, upgrade, training and rebuild for the sustainment of industrial plant equipment that is required to adequately support overhauling and repairing fleet aircraft, engines and components in support of the Commander Fleet Readiness Centers. Work will be performed in North Island, California (50%); Cherry Point, North Carolina (35%); and Jacksonville, Florida (15%), and is expected to be complete by June 2023. No funds will be obligated at the time of award. Funds will be obligated on individual orders as they are issued. This contract was not competitively procured, pursuant to Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Lakehurst, New Jersey, is the contracting activity (N68335-20-D-0017). DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY Federal Prison Industries Inc., Washington, D.C., has been awarded a maximum $17,548,000 modification (P00007) exercising the first one-year option period of one-year base contract SPE1C1-19-D-F027 with four one-year option periods for coveralls. This is a firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract. Locations of performance are Georgia, Arizona, Washington, D.C., and Mississippi, with a June 20, 2021, ordering period end date. Using military service is Navy. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2021 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Entwistle Co., Hudson, Massachusetts, has been awarded a maximum $8,135,400 firm-fixed-price contract for air launch and recovery equipment shuttle assemblies. This was a sole-source acquisition using justification 10 U.S. Code 2304 (c)(1), as stated in Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1. This is a 42-month contract with no option periods. Location of performance is Massachusetts, with a Dec. 31, 2023, performance completion date. Using military service is Navy. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 Navy working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Aviation, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPRPA1-20-C-Z043). DEFENSE ADVANCED RESEARCH PROJECTS AGENCY PAR Government Systems Corp., Rome, New York, was awarded an $11,920,160 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for a research project under the Semantic Forensics (SemaFor) program. The SemaFor program will develop methods that exploit semantic inconsistencies in falsified media to perform tasks across media modalities and at scale. Work will be performed in Rome, New York, with an expected completion date of June 2024. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation funding in the amount of $1,500,000 are being obligated at time of award. This contract was a competitive acquisition under a full and open broad agency announcement and 37 proposals were received. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Arlington, Virginia, is the contracting activity (HR0011-20-C-0126). ARMY ControlPoint Surveying Inc.,* Honolulu, Hawaii (W9128A-20-D-0002); Masa Fujioka & Associates,* Aiea, Hawaii (W9128A-20-D-0003); and Sam O. Hirota Inc.,* Honolulu, Hawaii (W9128A-20-D-0004), will compete for each order of the $9,900,000 firm-fixed-price contract for indefinite-delivery architect-engineer services for miscellaneous projects in the Pacific region. Bids were solicited via the internet with four received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of June 16, 2025. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Honolulu, Hawaii, is the contracting activity. Honeywell International Inc., Phoenix, Arizona, was awarded a $7,738,247 modification (P00101) to contract W56HZV-12-C-0344 for hardware and services exercise of options for the Total Integrated Engine Revitalization Automated Gas Turbine 1500 program for the Abrams tank and family of vehicles. Work will be performed in Phoenix, Arizona, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 31, 2020. Fiscal 2020 Army working capital funds; and weapons and tracked combat vehicle procurement (Army) funds in the amount of $7,738,247 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Detroit Arsenal, Michigan, is the contracting activity. *Small Business https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/2223800/source/GovDelivery/

“Replacing ships lost in combat will be problematic," Marine Commandant Gen. David Berger writes in a forthcoming paper. "Our industrial base has shrunk while peer adversaries have expanded their shipbuilding capacity. In an extended conflict, the United States will be on the losing end of a production race.” By PAUL MCLEARYon June 17, 2020 at 4:44 PM WASHINGTON: The Commandant of the Marine Corps, Gen. David Berger, dismisses current Marine and Navy plans for amphibious ships as “obsolete,” and worries that in any conflict, China could replace damaged ships faster than the US in a draft operating concept obtained by Breaking Defense. The warnings are the latest in a campaign waged by the reform-minded Berger to overhaul how the Marine Corps trains and equips to meet the challenges of China and other advanced nations, while working more closely with the other armed services and allies around the globe. In the sharply-worded 22-page document, Berger rejects war plans anticipating a Cold War-style confrontation in which huge ships can creep close to shore free from the threat of precision-guided munitions being launched from batteries deep inland. He calls the current configuration of amphibious ships “the most obvious manifestation of this obsolete paradigm” in a draft document obtained by Breaking Defense. In an unsigned draft of the unreleased report, “Naval Campaigning: The 2020 Marine Corps Capstone Operating Concept,” Berger underlines the need for new thinking about how the Marine Corps and Navy will fight an advanced Chinese military that can control islands, coastlines, and vast swaths of the sea with aircraft carriers, a swelling blue ocean fleet and long-distance precision munitions. The old way of thinking “is also exemplified by our current amphibious warships and maritime prepositioning ships, which are large and built for deployment efficiency rather than warfighting effectiveness,” he writes. “These superb, multipurpose ships are extremely expensive—meaning we've never had the desired number.” Berger also raises significant concerns about the United States' ability to replace any combat losses, even in a short, sharp conflict. “Replacing ships lost in combat will be problematic, inasmuch as our industrial base has shrunk, while peer adversaries have expanded their shipbuilding capacity. In an extended conflict, the United States will be on the losing end of a production race—reversing the advantage we had in World War II when we last fought a peer competitor.” The stark admission comes as the Navy's shipyards struggle under the disruptions caused by COVID-19, leading the service to order an emergency call up over 1,600 Reservists to fill labor shortages to do repair work on aircraft carriers and submarines in a desperate effort to get them back out to sea as soon as possible. Berger takes care not to blame the Navy for building expensive, relatively slow amphibious ships to carry Marines across the globe. “These issues should not be construed as a criticism of our Navy partners who built the fleet—to include the types of amphibious warfare and maritime prepositioning ships the Marine Corps asked for—that was appropriate to the security era within the constraints of finite resources.” But that era is now over the Corps wants to build a more dynamic “inside force” of smaller ships that can operate within range of Chinese and Russian weapons and pack a potent offensive punch while offering more and smaller targets than the current amphibious fleet. But these small ships won't replace their bigger cousins — they'll come in addition to them, creating new issues for both Navy budgets and the limited number of shipbuilders who can produce hulls for the sea service. The ships will also need ports to call home. “One can think of basing forces and lots of smaller vessels in theater, but this raises the issue of where to put everything and doesn't seem to be a ready solution that replaces divestiture of large ships,” said Dakota Wood, senior research fellow for defense programs at The Heritage Foundation. In recent weeks, the Navy met with shipbuilders to talk about plans for a new class of logistics ship that can operate under fire and resupply Marines deep within the range of enemy precision weapons. The Next Generation Medium Logistics Ship would resupply both ships at sea, as well as small, ad hoc bases ashore. The ship fits within plans Berger has made to stand up several Marine Littoral Regiments designed to move fast and have their own integrated anti-air and possibly anti-ship weapons. The Corps and Navy are also looking to buy as many as 30 Light Amphibious Warships in coming years, which would be much smaller than the current amphibious ships. The draft document doesn't include any those specifics. But Berger has already done that work in previous statements and documents, where he outlined plans: to rethink the role that large amphibious ships play in future; divest of M1 Abrams tanks; cut artillery units; slash helicopter squadrons; and reassess the role F-35s might play in future operations. Berger has admitted he realizes he needs to undertake this transition within existing budgets, leading him to call for cutting tanks, helicopters, and even some end strength. But for the Navy, Wood said, “I think much of this will be added cost because it must maintain current capabilities (types of ships) while developing new capabilities. It does not have the luxury of getting rid of current before new replacements are ready.” A significant omission in all of these plans is the absence of a larger, coherent naval strategy. The 30-year shipbuilding plan, due to Congress in February, continues to be missing in action. A major Navy force structure review was rejected by Defense Secretary Mark Esper earlier this year. The force structure review, currently being taken apart by Deputy Defense Secretary David Norquist, is expected this fall. The Navy's plans are in such a fluid state that Vice Adm. Stuart Munsch, head of the service's Warfighting Development office, cited Chinese attention as a reason to decline to give a progress report in a call with reporters earlier this month. “I'm not going to divulge our intentions,” he said. “I'm very conscious that, if I say anything public, I'm an authoritative source and the Chinese will key on what I say, and likewise any kind of public-facing document that we put out as well.” Pressed to explain what the Navy's strategy for operating in a world with competing great powers looks like, Munsch said, “I'm not sure how you would see that keeping our intentions for warfighting classified is something you would want as an American citizen.” While Berger continues to push out papers and strategies for pushing the Marines into the future, the Navy, which will provide much of the lift he needs, is still at the drawing board. https://breakingdefense.com/2020/06/in-war-chinese-shipyards-can-outpace-us-in-replacing-losses

While at least two of six competitors have dropped out, the Army says it will still have plenty of 30mm turret options to choose from as it starts testing this fall. By SYDNEY J. FREEDBERG JR.on June 17, 2020 at 2:43 PM WASHINGTON: “This is a healthy competition,” the head of the Army Stryker program, Col. Bill Venable, reassured reporters. “My No. 1 mandate as the overall program manager was to protect the competition in this first phase.” Venable was allaying anxieties yesterday about the five-year-old effort to upgun the infantry transport version of the Stryker, an 8×8 armored vehicle that's become an Army workhorse worldwide since its controversial introduction in 2003. The wheeled Stryker was criticized for having lighter armor than the tracked M1 Abrams and M2 Bradley, although it's far better protected than Humvees. It often struggled over Afghan terrain. But its ability to move rapidly by road – with fewer stops for gas and maintenance than heavy armored vehicles – made it a favorite of US commanders from Iraq to Estonia. So, while overshadowed by high-tech prototypes from hypersonic missiles to high-speed helicopters to robotic tanks, the Army is doubling down on the proven Stryker in several ways: Two light infantry brigades are being converted into Stryker units, which increases the number of active-duty Stryker brigades from five to seven. (There are two more part-time units in the National Guard). Original manufacturer General Dynamics has a $2.4 billion contract to rebuild hundreds of existing Strykers as DVHA1 models with bigger engines, upgraded electronics, and mine-resistant “double-V” hulls. Leonardo DRS is developing a new anti-aircraft variant called IM-SHORAD. It is several months behind schedule due to COVID disruptions and software issues. And the Army is upgunning the basic infantry-carrier variant from an exposed 12.7mm (0.50 cal) machinegun, viable against infantry and unarmored trucks, to a turret-mounted Medium Caliber Weapon System (MCWS), a 30mm autocannon capable of killing light armored vehicles widely used by Russia General Dynamics urgently built 83 upgunned Strykers to reequip a single Europe-based brigade. Now the Army is holding an open competition for an official Program of Record (POR) to upgrade at least three more brigades with a more refined 30mm turret design – but we've heard some anxiety over whether any other vendor can really unseat the incumbent. Out of six companies awarded $150,000 design contracts last summer, Venable confirmed that at least two have dropped out. At the current — sensitive — stage of the competition, the program manager said after a quick consultation with his staff, he isn't allowed to disclose how many companies remain and how many have quit. But Venable did tell reporters that one vendor dropped out because it wasn't making adequate progress to meet the technical requirements, while another decided it didn't have a good enough chance of winning to justify the investment. While the Army gave competitors free Strykers and 30mm guns, they must provide their own turrets, electronics and other components to integrate the weapon and the vehicle into a functional fighting system, to be delivered to the Army for testing by August 10. “We're not funding their development,” Venable said, “[which is] in some cases millions of dollars they're going to invest.” While he won't second-guess any company's cost-benefit calculus, he's been working with all of them to try to keep them in the running, despite disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. “We have adjusted the evaluation strategy in order to maintain the competition as robust as we can,” he said. “This isn't the first competitive selection effort that I've run, and I will say we have more [viable competitors] than the incumbent, significantly more than the incumbent,” Venable told reporters. “We're going to present a variety of choices to the source selection authority to evaluate starting on 10 August.” Once the vehicles arrive in August, the Army will live-fire the 30 mm guns, check out the armor, and conduct a host of other tests. By January, Venable expects to have that data ready for the evaluation board, which aims to announce a winner by the end of April, 2021. After that, the winning company will start mass production, with the first vehicles scheduled for delivery to a Stryker unit in August or September 2022. That meets the Army's previously announced deadline to start fielding by the end of fiscal '22, Venable said. But the brigade will spend months more taking possession of the vehicles and training on them – a “Rubik's Cube” of logistics and scheduling, Venable said — before it's officially declared the “First Unit Equipped,” probably around March 2023. https://breakingdefense.com/2020/06/army-rebuffs-anxiety-over-stryker-cannon-competition

Steve Trimble Boeing on June 17 delivered the first F/A-18E/F Block III to the U.S. Navy to launch a yearlong testing campaign on a new configuration with around a $60 million flyaway cost that is currently being offered to five foreign air forces. “The Navy is going to go through their test program with these two test assets over the next year, and then about this time next year is when we'll start delivering the fully operational Block IIIs,” said Jennifer Tebo, Boeing's director of development for F-18 programs. The delivery milestone completes an unexpected resurrection of the twin-engine, carrier-based fighter. Until the fiscal 2019 budget was released, the Navy planned to order no additional F/A-18E/Fs after the last of 608 Block II jets ordered in fiscal 2018, which Boeing delivered to the Navy on April 17. But the newly-inaugurated Trump administration had different plans for the 25-year-old design. Although the Navy previously showed no interest in a 2013 Boeing proposal to reduce the radar cross section by half, the Navy in 2017 started showing interest in a more modest improvement. Rather than attempt to remake the F/A-18E/F to operate alongside the more stealthy Lockheed Martin F-35C, Boeing made tweaks to allow the Super Hornet to shoulder the predominantly air-to-air fleet defense mission, while staying on-station longer, carrying more weapons and more tightly integrating into the Naval Integrated Fire Control-Counter Air system. The result is an F/A-18E/F Block III configuration anchored by the addition of the Distributed Targeting Processor Network (DTP-N), a mission computer 17 times more powerful than the previous system and capable of fusing data from onboard and off-board sensors. Boeing also integrated the high-bandwidth Tactical Targeting Network Technology datalink for the aircraft to receive the off-board data. To complete the new capability, Boeing also installed the Advanced Cockpit System, with large format displays to present the fused situational awareness data to the pilot. The new upgrade also comes with a pair of dorsal-mounted conformal fuel tanks to extend the aircraft's range. Meanwhile, the belly-mounted, centerline fuel tank is upgraded with an improved infrared search-and-track sensor, which is needed to help the F/A-18E/F acquire aerial targets without giving away its location by turning on its radar. Finally, Boeing also modified the structure to accommodate a 9,000-hr.-plus service life. The aircraft is also set to receive new kinetic capabilities, likely starting with the H18 Operational Flight Program scheduled for release in fiscal 2023. The H16 release planned next year adds most of the Block III enhancements. The H18 release adds a powerful new weapon with the Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile-Extended Range. The U.S. Air Force has also said that the F/A-18E/F will receive the Lockheed Martin AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missile after fiscal 2022, which aligns with the H18 release. Finally, the Navy has not defined the service's vision for manned/unmanned teaming, but the scheduled arrival of the Miniature Air-Launched Decoy-Navy (MALD-N) in fiscal 2023 adds an intriguing new capability, with a single-use decoy or munition capable of operating in swarms with other unmanned or manned assets. The Boeing MQ-25 unmanned tanker is also scheduled to enter service in fiscal 2024. “We're obviously exploring that area, trying to determine what are the best use cases,” Tebo said. “So I see that start to become more and more a reality as you start to see things like MQ-25 on the carrier deck and then other unmanned vehicles such as MALD-N.” The Navy decided this year to truncate new F/A-18E/F Block III production after fiscal 2021 and divert the funding to the Next Generation Air Dominance program. Boeing now plans to deliver 72 new F/A-18E/F Block IIIs over the next two years, then start delivering 364 Block II jets modified to the new standard. Canada, Finland, Germany, India and Switzerland are also considering additional orders, which could extend new production well beyond fiscal 2021. https://aviationweek.com/defense-space/aircraft-propulsion/boeing-completes-resurrection-fa-18ef-first-block-iii-delivery

NDO/VNA - Deputy Minister of National Defence Sen. Lt. Gen. Nguyen Chi Vinh on June 16 engaged in two online talks with Jody Thomas, Deputy Minister of Canada's Department of National Defence, and Peter Tesch, Deputy Secretary for Strategic Policy & Intelligence at Australia's Department of Defence. Canadian and Australian ambassadors and military attaches to Vietnam also took part in the talks. During the talks, Vinh informed the Australian and Canadian officials on the COVID-19 situation in Vietnam, attributing the good outcomes in controlling the disease to concerted efforts of the entire political system, with the Vietnam People's Army serving as the core and vanguard force. Highlighting the importance of international collaboration in the fight against the pandemic, he thanked Australian and Canadian defence bodies' cooperation in sharing information on COVID-19 prevention, control, research and treatment. He hoped the joint work will last for long given the COVID-19 complexities. On the occasion, Vinh and his counterparts reviewed outcomes of Vietnam-Australia and Vietnam-Canada defence ties in the past time and sought agreement on future orientations with a stress on military medical coordination in disease prevention and control. All sides vowed that they will not allow the pandemic to hinder their thriving cooperation. The Vietnamese and Canadian officials expressed their delight at breakthroughs in the relations of the sides after their defence ministers exchanged visits, particularly in human resources training and UN peace keeping mission. The Canadian side said it plans to set up a military attaché office in Vietnam this year, and the two sides agreed to push for the establishment of a bilateral defence policy dialogue mechanism toward building a three-year cooperation scheme for the two defence ministries. Meanwhile, Vietnam and Australia took note of outstanding joint work, such as Australian military aircraft, for the second time, transporting personnel of Vietnam's level-2 field hospital to South Sudan for peacekeeping mission. The sides also began teaming up to organise activities in searching for Vietnamese soldiers going missing during wartime, shooting skills exchanges; and discussions on women, peace and security. Vinh stated Vietnam's Defence Ministry is committed to the effective implementation of defence cooperation with Australia and Canada based on signed documents and agreements for the benefit of the sides involved and of the region. The official also informed his counterparts on the schedule of activities during the year Vietnam serves as Chair of ASEAN 2020 and its tenure as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for 2020-2021. He highlighted Vietnam's determination in strengthening collaboration within the framework of the ASEAN Defence Minister's Meeting (ADMM) and ADMM Plus. He stressed Vietnam backs Canada's responsible participation in the region in line with ASEAN's consensus principle and praised Australia's success in hosting the first informal ASEAN – Australia defence ministers' meeting. https://en.nhandan.org.vn/politics/item/8778302-vietnam-boosts-defence-cooperation-with-canada-australia.html

James Bosbotinis June 15, 2020 There is growing international interest in the development of offensive hypersonic weapon systems, particularly following the deployment by Russia and China of nascent hypersonic strike capabilities. France, India, Japan and the UK all are seeking to develop a hypersonic strike capability too. Beyond Russia's Avangard hypersonic glide vehicle (HGV) and Kinzhal air-launched ballistic missile (ALBM), and China's DF-17 HGV, both nations are developing additional hypersonic weapon systems. Russia, for example, is working on the Zircon hypersonic cruise missile (HCM) and related technologies, while China is developing an expansive technological base and infrastructure for the development and production of hypersonic systems for military, commercial and space applications. Given the technical challenges and cost inherent in developing hypersonic weapons, particularly in areas such as propulsion, airframe design, guidance and thermal management, what roles will such weapons undertake? The speed, maneuverability and flight characteristics of hypersonic weapons makes them challenging to detect, track and intercept, reducing the warning time available and window for interception. Hypersonic weapons thus provide advantages for the prosecution of time-critical targets, mobile or relocatable targets or in the face of adversary missile defense capabilities. Maritime strike is also a key projected role for hypersonic missiles under development or being deployed by Russia, China and Japan. In the conventional precision-strike role, hypersonic weapons will require a robust set of supporting intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance capabilities, in particular for the prosecution of mobile/relocatable targets. France is developing its fourth-generation air-launched nuclear missile, the ASN4G, which will be scramjet-powered and is due to enter service in the mid-2030s, replacing the current ASMP-A. It is also developing an HGV demonstrator, the “Vehicule Manoeuvrant Experimental,” or V-MaX, which is due to make its first flight before the end of 2021. India is similarly pursuing two hypersonic weapon projects, the BrahMos-2, developed by the BrahMos joint venture between India and Russia, and another HCM project. The BrahMos-2 is intended to be an HCM capable of speeds of Mach 5-7; HCM development is supported by the scramjet-powered Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle (HSTDV). An attempted test flight in June 2019 failed due to a technical problem with the Agni-1, serving as the launch platform for the HSTDV. Japan has outlined plans for two hypersonic weapon systems; the Hyper-Velocity Gliding Projectile (HVGP) and a Hypersonic Cruising Missile. Japan outlined in its Midterm Defense Program (fiscal 2019-23) plans to strengthen the defense of “remote islands in the southwest region,” including through the establishment of HVGP units. The HVGP is intended to be a tactical HGV, capable of delivering a penetrating warhead for targeting, for example, aircraft carriers, or a “high-density EFP” (explosively formed penetrator) warhead for “area suppression.” An initial variant will be deployed in the 2024-28 time frame with an improved variant following in the 2030s. The Japanese HCM will be a scramjet-powered missile, armed with the same warheads as the HVGP, and intended to provide a standoff capability to counter “ships and landing forces attempting to invade Japan.” The HCM will be deployed in the late 2020s/early 2030s, with an improved variant following later in the 2030s. The UK is exploring options for the development of a hypersonic strike capability, including potentially as part of the joint Future Cruise/Anti-Ship Weapon project with France to replace the Storm Shadow/SCALP standoff cruise missile and the anti-ship Exocet and Harpoon from 2030. In July 2019, Air Vice Marshal Simon Rochelle, then chief of staff capability, announced that the UK sought to deploy an affordable, air-launched hypersonic weapon by 2023. Moreover, as Aviation Week disclosed, a joint U.S.-UK study, Thresher (Tactical High-Speed, Responsive and Highly Efficient Round), is underway between the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory and UK Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (AW&ST April 6-19, p. 14). It is due to be completed in 2022 or 2023. With the notable exception of the UK's intention to rapidly acquire a hypersonic missile by 2023, the majority of known programs are not likely to deliver weapon systems until the second half of the 2020s or 2030s. This period is also likely to see a significant expansion in Russian and Chinese hypersonic strike capabilities. Russia possesses a nascent hypersonic strike capability following the initial deployment in December 2017 of the Kinzhal ALBM and in December 2019 of the Avangard HGV system. The Kinzhal and Avangard were both announced by President Vladimir Putin in his state of the nation address on March 1, 2018, and reflect Russia's long-term efforts to develop hypersonic weapons, particularly as a response to U.S. missile defense efforts. Although seeming to catch the U.S. public by surprise, the development of the Avangard can be traced back to the Albatross project started in the late 1980s as part of the Soviet response to the U.S. Strategic Defense Initiative. NPO Mashinostroyeniya performed several tests of the Yu-70 prototype in 1990-92, until the program was put on hiatus amid the dissolution of the Soviet Union, says Markus Schiller, founder of ST Analytics and a Germany-based consultant on hypersonic technology. The Yu-70 project was revived shortly after Putin assumed power in 2000, leading to a series of test flights in 2001-11. The Avangard HGV is based on an improved version known as the Yu-71, which performed a series of tests in 2013-18, Schiller says. The development of hypersonic weapons also reflects Russia's interest in developing a robust conventional long-range precision-strike capability as part of its wider military modernization efforts. It is developing and deploying both nuclear and conventionally armed hypersonic weapons, including dual-capable systems, to undertake tactical and strategic roles. In addition to the Avangard and Kinzhal, at least three more development programs are underway: the Zircon, GZUR (deriving from the Russian for “hypersonic guided missile”) and an air-launched weapon to arm the Sukhoi Su-57 Felon. The Avangard is an ICBM-launched HGV, initially equipping the UR-100N, a modernized version of the SS-19, and might equip the developmental SS-X-29 Sarmat (Satan 2). The Avangard is reportedly capable of attaining speeds in excess of Mach 20, can maneuver laterally and in altitude, and can travel intercontinental distances. Although principally intended as a nuclear system, the Avangard can reportedly also be used in the conventional strike role. The Kinzhal is a dual-capable, air-launched derivative of the Iskander-M tactical ballistic missile, with a range of 2,000 km (1,250 mi.) and a speed of Mach 10. It is being deployed with a modified variant of the Mikoyan MiG-31, the MiG-31K, and may be integrated with other aircraft, including reportedly the Tupolev Tu-22M3 Backfire. Russia is also developing a scramjet-powered HCM, the 3K22 Zircon, which will be capable of speeds up to Mach 9, have a range in excess of 1,000 km, and operate in the land attack and anti-ship roles. The Zircon will be compatible with existing launchers capable of launching the Oniks supersonic cruise missile, such as the UKSK vertical launch system. It is due to enter service in 2022. A Zircon was successfully test-fired from the new frigate Admiral Gorshkov in February 2020. Following the collapse of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, Putin announced the development of a ground-launched Zircon variant. The GZUR is reported to be an air-launched missile capable of a speed of Mach 6, a range of 1,500 km and sized to fit within the bomb bay of a Tupolev Tu-95MS Bear. It may enter service in the early 2020s. In this regard, Russian media reports in May noted the testing of a new hypersonic missile from a Tu-22M3 that is intended to arm the modernized Tu-22M3M. Another hypersonic missile is reported to be under development and intended to equip the Su-57. China has thus far only confirmed one hypersonic weapon, the DF-17. Its pursuit of hypersonic weapons is driven by the requirements to counter U.S. missile defenses and acquire a robust precision-strike capability as part of its wider efforts to develop “world-class” armed forces. The DF-17 is a conventionally armed medium-range ballistic missile (potentially derived from the DF-16), equipped with an HGV, with a range of 1,800-2,500 km. When it debuted at China's National Day Parade on Oct. 1, it was announced as being intended for “precision strikes against medium- and close-range targets.” In testimony before the U.S. House Armed Services Committee this March, U.S. Air Force Gen. Terrence O'Shaughnessy, commander of U.S. Northern Command and the North American Aerospace Defense Command, stated that China is testing an intercontinental HGV. It is likely that the DF-41, China's new ICBM that also debuted at the October 2019 National Day Parade, would be armed with the new HGV. O'Shaughnessy's testimony appeared to echo public statements in 2014 by Lee Fuell, who was then in Air Force intelligence and linked China's HGV development program to plans for that country's nuclear arsenal. China is developing the technologies required for HCMs. For example, in May 2018, a scramjet test vehicle, the Lingyun-1, was publicly exhibited for the first time in Beijing, while in August 2018 China successfully tested a hypersonic waverider test vehicle, the XingKong-2, which attained a speed of Mach 6. Notably, in April 2019, Xiamen University successfully flew the Jiageng-1 test vehicle, which employed a “double waverider” configuration. Interest in developing an air-launched hypersonic strike capability has also been noted. China is also believed to be developing two ALBMs, which would provide China with a near-term air-launched hypersonic strike capability. The new CJ-100, which also debuted at China's 2019 National Day Parade, warrants mention. Aside from the statement that the weapon offers “long range, high precision and quick responsiveness,” no technical information on the CJ-100 has been officially released. The South China Morning Post, citing the Chinese publication Naval and Merchant Ships, suggests the CJ-100 has a cruising speed of Mach 4 and top speed of Mach 4.5, adding that it employs a two-stage configuration utilizing a rocket booster and ramjets. Given China's progress in developing hypersonic technologies, the possibility that the CJ-100 is a hypersonic cruise missile cannot be dismissed. In a further indication of China's progress in the development of hypersonic technologies, in January 2019 it was reported that an indigenous Turbine-Based Combined-Cycle engine had completed its design and development phase and was proceeding to the aircraft integration test phase. https://aviationweek.com/defense-space/missile-defense-weapons/international-hypersonic-strike-weapons-projects-accelerate