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Le classement mondial des industriels de l'armement, publié lundi, est trusté par des groupes américains. Par Isabelle Chaperon Publié aujourd'hui à 00h00, mis à jour à 07h39 En tête, rien ne bouge. Cinq groupes américains – Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon and General Dynamics – dominent le classement mondial des industriels de l'armement, publié lundi 7 décembre par l'Institut international de recherche sur la paix de Stockholm (Sipri). Ce palmarès a été établi à partir des données de 2019, année où les ventes d'armes et autres équipements militaires des 25 premiers acteurs du secteur ont atteint 361 milliards de dollars (298 milliards d'euros), soit 8,5 % de plus que le top 25 en 2018. Derrière les leaders, la hiérarchie évolue. D'abord parce que, pour la première fois, le Sipri a inclus des fabricants chinois. Quatre d'entre eux, dont Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC), apparaissent ainsi parmi les vingt-cinq groupes mondiaux de l'armement sachant que d'autres entreprises chinoises auraient pu y figurer « mais les informations étaient insuffisantes », précise le Sipri. En un an, les ventes de Dassault Aviation ont augmenté de 105 % Ces quatre représentants de l'Empire du Milieu raflent 16 % des ventes du club des 25 leaders mondiaux et forment le deuxième bataillon national derrière les douze fleurons de l'armada américaine et leur 61 % de part de marché. Ensemble, les six Européens de l'Ouest (BAE Systems, Leonardo, Airbus, Thales, Dassault, Rolls Royce) comptent pour 18 %. Les deux Russes (Almaz-Antey, United Shipbuilding Corp) pour 3,9 %. A noter la création de EDGE, un acteur des Emirats arabes unis né en 2019 de la fusion de vingt-cinq entreprises locales, qui se place au 22e rang. Du côté des industriels français, « une forte hausse des livraisons de l'avion de combat Rafale a propulsé Dassault Aviation dans le top 25 pour la première fois », souligne Lucie Béraud-Sudreau, directrice du programme armes et équipements militaires au Sipri. En un an, les ventes de l'avionneur tricolore ont augmenté de 105 %, soit la croissance la plus élevée en pourcentage dans le secteur. En parallèle, Naval Group qui figurait en 2018 au vingt et unième rang a perdu sa place dans le club. Airbus arrive à la 13e place (10e en 2018) et Thales à la 14e (13e). https://www.lemonde.fr/economie/article/2020/12/07/dassault-dans-le-premier-cercle-des-vendeurs-d-armes_6062420_3234.html

NAVY DRS Laurel Technologies Inc., Johnstown, Pennsylvania (N63394-21-D-0001); and VT Milcom Inc., Virginia Beach, Virginia (N63394-20-D-0002), are each awarded a cost-plus-fixed-fee and firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity multiple award contract to sustain the Technical Insertion 2016 equipment. The maximum dollar value for both contracts combined is $211,588,719. DRS Laurel Technologies Inc. is awarded a maximum value contract of $211,588,719. VT Milcom Inc. is awarded a maximum value contract of $188,428,823. This contract will provide for the manufacture, assembly, and testing of Technical Insertion 2016 equipment spares; associated engineering services, procurement, and harvesting; and installation of ordinance alteration kits and related products. Work will be performed in Dahlgren, Virginia (10%); Norfolk, Virginia (10%); Pascagoula, Mississippi (10%); Port Hueneme, California (10%); San Diego, California (10%); Virginia Beach, Virginia (10%); Wallops Island, Virginia (10%); Everett, Washington (5%); Honolulu, Hawaii (5%); Kauai, Hawaii (5%); Mayport, Florida (5%); Moorestown, New Jersey (5%); and Yokosuka, Japan (5%), and is expected to be completed by December 2025. Fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $10,000 ($5,000 per contract) will be obligated at time of award to satisfy the minimum guarantee and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. All other funding will be made available at the order level as contracting actions occur. This contract was competitively procured via beta.sam.gov with two offers received. The Naval Surface Warfare Center Port Hueneme Division, Port Hueneme, California, is the contracting activity. Southeastern Computer Consultants Inc., King George, Virginia, is awarded a $42,989,767 cost-plus-fixed-fee level of effort task order which shall provide Tactical Tomahawk Weapon Control System (TTWCS) Integrated Logistics Support (ILS) products and services in support of Training Support Activity responsibilities at Naval Surface Warfare Center, Port Hueneme Division. This is a single award, five-year, cost-plus-fixed-fee term level of effort task order that consists of one base year with four option years, which, if all line item quantities are ordered, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $42,989,767, with an ordering period through December 2025. Work will be performed in Norfolk, Virginia (26%); Dahlgren, Virginia (21%); Port Hueneme, California (11%); San Diego, California (8%); Norfolk, Virginia (8%); Mayport, Florida (6%); Bangor, Washington (6%); Kings Bay, Georgia (4%); Pearl Harbor, Hawaii (4%); Yokosuka, Japan (4%); and the United Kingdom (2%), and is expected to be complete in December 2021, and if all options are exercised, will be complete in December 2025. Fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance funding in the amount of $42,989,767 will be obligated at contract award and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. A sources sought notice was posted to Seaport-NxG on Oct. 2, 2020, and closed on Feb. 24, 2020, to all large and small business primes in Seaport-NxG. In accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 5.202 (a)(6), a synopsis is not required if the proposed contract action is an order placed under FAR 16.505, Ordering. The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Port Hueneme Division, Port Hueneme, California, is the contracting activity (N63394-20-F-3006). Lockheed Martin Space, Titusville, Florida, is awarded a $29,120,167 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification (P00003) to procure a pilot assessment of the contractor's property management system and exercise options under previously awarded contract N00030-20-C-0100 for Trident II (D5) missile production and deployed systems support. The modification includes a $5,000,000 not-to-exceed value for the pilot assessment, which is being awarded as an undefinitized contract action. Work will be performed in Denver, Colorado (28.9%); Magna, Utah (23.3%); Titusville, Florida (18.7%); Rockford, Illinois (16.3%); Elma, New York (11.2%); and Sunnyvale, California (1.6%). Work is expected to be completed Sept. 30, 2025. Fiscal 2021 weapons procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $15,039,964; fiscal 2020 weapons procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $9,080,203; and fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $2,500,000 are being obligated on this award, $2,500,000 of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract is being awarded to the contractor on a sole-source basis under 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(1) and was previously synopsized on the Federal Business Opportunities website. The Strategic Systems Programs, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity. The Boeing Co., St. Louis, Missouri, is awarded a $20,704,459 firm-fixed-price order (N61340-21-F-0020) against previously issued basic ordering agreement N00019-16-G-0001. This order provides for the production and delivery of 48 retrofit kits, support equipment and special tooling in support of phase two of the T-45 Service Life Extension Program (SLEP) for SLEP production Lots Three and Four. In addition, this order provides retrofit engineering and logistics from the original equipment manufacturer to support the installation of associated technical directives. Work will be performed in St. Louis, Missouri, and is expected to be completed in May 2024. Fiscal 2020 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $10,259,695; and fiscal 2021 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $10,444,764 will be obligated at time of award; none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Warfare Center, Training Systems Command, Orlando, Florida, is the contracting activity. ARMY Dobco Inc., Wayne, New Jersey, was awarded a $137,836,600 firm-fixed-price contract for construction of the Cyber Engineering Academic Center structure and parking lot at the U.S. Military Academy. Bids were solicited via the internet with four received. Work will be performed in West Point, New York, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 4, 2024. Fiscal 2021 military construction (Army) funds in the amount of $137,836,600 were obligated at the time of the award. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New York, New York, is the contracting activity (W912DS-20-C-0002). Vectrus Mission Solutions Corp., Alexandria, Virginia, was awarded a $35,510,370 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for logistics support services at Fort Benning, Georgia. Bids were solicited via the internet with nine received. Work will be performed in Chattahoochee, Georgia, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 9, 2025. Fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance (Army) funds in the amount of $2,077,440 were obligated at the time of the award. The U.S. Army Contracting Command, Rock Island Arsenal, Illinois, is the contracting activity (W52P1J-21-F-0035). VS2 LLC, Alexandria, Virginia, was awarded a $9,513,800 modification (0001BG) to contract W52P1J-13-G-0029 for logistics support services at Fort Benning, Georgia. Work will be performed in Chattahoochee, Georgia, with an estimated completion date of March 9, 2021. Fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance (Army) funds in the amount of $9,513,800 were obligated at the time of the award. The U.S. Army Contracting Command, Rock Island Arsenal, Illinois, is the contracting activity. Butt Construction Co. Inc.,* Dayton, Ohio, was awarded a $9,061,000 fixed-price-award-fee contract for renovation of Human Performance Wing Building 441 at Wright Patterson Air Force Base. Bids were solicited via the internet with seven received. Work will be performed at Wright Patterson AFB, Ohio, with an estimated completion date of April 3, 2023. Fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance (Air Force) funds in the amount of $9,061,000 were obligated at the time of the award. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Louisville, Kentucky, is the contracting activity (W912QR-21-C-0004). DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY Bell Textron Inc., Fort Worth, Texas, has been awarded a maximum $39,093,369 modification (P00030) to five-year contract SPE4AX-17-D-9410 with one five-year option period for H-1 consumables. This is a firm-fixed-price contract. Location of performance is Texas, with an April 14, 2023 performance completion date. Using military service is Navy. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2023 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Aviation, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Guardian Manufacturing LLC,** Willard, Ohio, has been awarded a maximum $9,315,618 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for butyl chemical protective gloves and toxicological agent protective gloves. This was a competitive acquisition with one offer received. This is a one-year base contract with one one-year option period. Location of performance is Ohio, with a Dec. 4, 2021, ordering period end date. Using military services are Army, Air Force and Navy. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2021 through 2022 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE1C1-21-D-1416). UPDATE: SupplyCore Inc., Rockford, Illinois (SPE8EC-21-D-0075), has been added as an awardee to the multiple award contract for commercial construction equipment, issued against solicitation SPE8EC-17-R-0005 and announced Aug. 29, 2017. AIR FORCE M1 Support Services, Denton, Texas, has been awarded a $23,459,155 firm-fixed-price modification (P00070) to contract FA4890-16-C-0005 for the back-shop and flight-line maintenance of multiple aircraft types. Work will be performed at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, and is expected to be completed March 31, 2021. Fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance funds in the full amount are being obligated at the time of award. The Acquisition Management and Integration Center, Langley-Eustis Air Force Base, Virginia, is the contracting activity. BlueForce Inc., Hampton, Virginia, has been awarded a $14,179,677 firm-fixed-price Option Two modification (P00004) to contract FA3002-19-F-A045 for continued support for the Royal Saudi Air Force English language training outside the continental U.S. program. Work will be performed at King Abdul Aziz Air Base, Saudi Arabia, and is expected to be completed Jan. 3, 2024. This contract involves 100% Foreign Military Sales (FMS) to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The total cumulative face value of the contract is $42,188,737. FMS funds in the full amount are being obligated at the time of award. The 338th Enterprise Sourcing Squadron, Joint Base San Antonio, Randolph, Texas, is the contracting activity. Apogee Engineering LLC, Colorado Springs, Colorado, has been awarded a $12,870,921 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification (P00001) to contract FA8730-21-F-8501 for advisory assistance services. Work will be performed at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, and is expected to be completed Feb. 17, 2022. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $985,000 are being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Offutt AFB, Nebraska, is the contracting activity. *Small business **Small disadvantage business in historically underutilized business zones https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/2436087/source/GovDelivery/

Par Le Figaro avec AFP Publié le 02/12/2020 à 14:55 Le «fonds innovation défense», doté de 200 millions d'euros et destiné à financer des start-up et PME portant des projets innovants, sera lancé vendredi, a annoncé mercredi la ministre des Armées Florence Parly en inaugurant le Forum innovation défense. «Je signerai cette semaine avec Bpifrance l'acte de naissance du fonds innovation défense qui s'inscrit dans la stratégie de développement de l'innovation que j'ai souhaitée», a affirmé la ministre dans une allocution retransmise en ligne. Cette signature doit avoir lieu vendredi, selon l'agenda de la ministre. Le fonds, nommé Definnov alors qu'il était au stade de projet, «sera destiné à des start-up et des PME qui développent des technologies innovantes, transverses et présentent un intérêt pour la défense», a-t-elle expliqué. Il «pourra aller jusqu'à 400 millions d'euros» avec la contribution de Bpifrance et la participation souhaitée d'industriels, selon le cabinet de la ministre. «À ce stade, quelques industriels se sont manifestés, pas forcément les plus grands maîtres d'œuvre industriels de défense que l'on connaît habituellement», selon cette source, sans plus de précisions. Le fonds innovation défense sera complémentaire du fonds «French Tech Souveraineté», a par ailleurs affirmé Mme Parly. Ce dernier, doté de 150 millions d'euros, vise à défendre les start-up françaises fragilisées par la crise de l'appétit de prédateurs étrangers. Le ministère des Armées prévoit de consacrer un milliard d'euros par an à partir de 2022 aux projets d'innovation ou «études amont», contre un peu plus de 700 millions en 2017. «En 2021, nous approchons du but, en investissant 901 millions d'euros pour les projets d'innovation», a détaillé la ministre. Organisé en ligne pendant trois jours par l'Agence de l'innovation de défense, le Forum innovation défense doit notamment se pencher sur les questions d'éthique de «soldat augmenté», le militaire dont les capacités physiques ou cognitives sont stimulées afin de renforcer son efficacité. Y seront également lancés les premiers travaux de la «Red Team», une équipe réunissant une dizaine d'auteurs de science-fiction chargés de réfléchir aux scénarios de menaces et de conflits à l'horizon 2030-2060. «Ce n'est pas un gadget, le but est d'imaginer des scénarios totalement disruptifs qu'on n'aurait pas imaginés dans le travail au quotidien», explique-t-on au cabinet de la ministre. https://www.lefigaro.fr/flash-eco/le-fonds-innovation-defense-dote-de-200-millions-d-euros-lance-vendredi-20201202

By: Jen Judson WASHINGTON — The Army wants its Joint All Domain Operations (JADO) Gray Eagles to have synthetic aperture radars, moving target indicators, electronic intelligence and communications intelligence capability as well as air-launched effects and radar warning receivers, according to a new market survey. Now, the Army wants help from industry with those payloads for its Gray Eagle unmanned aircraft systems. Specifically, the service is looking for systems that are capable of helping with joint operations across all warfighting domains against high-end threats from adversaries such as China and Russia, according to a solicitation published Dec. 2 to a government contracting website. The service's Aerial Enhanced Radar, Optics and Sensors (AEROS) product manager wants industry to “identify potential existing sources capable of providing Aerial Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (AISR) payloads for the MQ-1C Gray Eagle Unmanned Aircraft System platform that meet the JADO environment,” the solicitation posted to Beta.Sam.Gov states. These Gray Eagles payloads must be capable of increased ranges and resolutions “to support target location and Long-Range Precision Fires (LRPF) without the use of traditional line of site visual equipment to include Electro Optical, Infrared (EO/IR) and Full Motion Video (FMV) required for today's Counter Insurgency (COIN) mission,” the request for information stresses. Traditional COIN payloads won't hold up against peer and near-peer adversaries, the Army noted, as they will “employ anti-access, area denial strategies, posing a significant challenge to the current AISR fleet,” the solicitation states. Gray Eagles must survive against an “Integrated Air Defense System (IADS)-rich environment,” the request notes. This means the Gray Eagle would fly “racetrack patterns tangential to the IADS threat at 80 km distance” and would be capable of deploying Air-Launched Effects (ALE) forward into enemy territory to detect, identify and locate targets and take out or disrupt threats, according to the request. The Gray Eagle would also have payloads that could detect IADS threats, locate them and transfer the information to other sensor systems capable of recognizing targets and coordinating long-range fires, the solicitation describes. The Army is conducting the survey ahead of a Gray Eagle sensor payload JADO demonstration that could potentially take place in fiscal 2022 where systems will be “quantitatively compared” to find the highest performing and best value payloads based on technology readiness and production cost, the request lays out. The solicitation for more advanced payloads for Gray Eagle comes at a time when the Army is trying to design a complex architecture of helicopters and unmanned aircraft systems that would be part of tight-knit kill chain to include space and ground assets underpinned by an advanced network. The Army experimented with the kill chain to include air assets at Project Convergence at Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona, over the summer. The effort brings together future weapons and capabilities envisioned for a 2030s battlefield against near-peer adversaries such as Russia and China. It includes using a machine learning and artificial intelligence-enabled battle management system that is in development. Gray Eagle represented a Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) surrogate. During the first mission thread at Project Convergence, which focused on the penetration phase laid out in the Army's Multidomain Operations warfighting concept, Gray Eagles and ALE partnered with space-based assets, APNT, and LRPF capabilities to locate, then degrade and destroy enemy assets modeled after the Russian Pantsir air defense systems and other weapons. The ALE pushed ingested data forward through the network to get it to the right shooters, whether that would be an Extended Range Cannon Artillery (ERCA) system on the ground or a Gray Eagle or another ALE. The Army was able to extend the ALE capability out to almost 62 kilometers, which would provide deep standoff for manned aircraft like FARA. The ALEs performed both the reconnaissance, surveillance and targeting acquisition mission and worked as a mesh network to extend the battlefield. Two ALEs were truck launched and four were air launched. Also during the final shot of the entire campaign at Project Convergence, a soldier on the ground took control of a LRPF munition surrogate (a Hellfire missile in this case) on a Gray Eagle and fired on the target. The Gray Eagle at Convergence was able to route around and avoid threat weapon systems and also fired a live Dynetics-made GBU-69 small glide munition. Previewing the future, the Army also used an open system architecture that was flexible enough for payloads and capabilities to be swapped in out of its Gray Eagles without having to rely on the original equipment manufacturer to do it. https://www.defensenews.com/land/2020/12/02/army-taps-industry-for-gray-eagle-payloads-for-joint-ops-against-high-end-threats/

By: Valerie Insinna and Jen Judson UPDATE — This story has been updated to add comment from L3Harris on its participation in the competition. WASHINGTON — A year after the U.S. Army awarded a contract to build a heavy-duty robot able to dispose of bombs and other explosives, the Air Force is looking for its own system — and it wants to see what's on the market before committing to purchasing what the Army buys. The Air Force in October released a solicitation for a large explosive ordnance disposal robot, a commercial off-the-shelf system equipped with a maneuverable arm and a camera system that can function in all terrain types, environments and weather conditions. An Air Force spokesman declined to confirm how many companies submitted bids for the program, which were due Nov. 20. One competitor has already come forward: FLIR, which is set to rake in as much as $109 million building its Kobra robot for the Army's Common Robotic System-Heavy program. The company began full-rate production of Kobra last month and is confident the Air Force will follow the Army's example by choosing the same system. “As the chosen provider for the Army's Common Robotic System-Heavy (CRS-H) program, FLIR believes its extensively tested and proven unmanned ground system meets the Air Force needs in the large EOD robot category, while enabling commonality of equipment with other services' EOD forces,” said Tom Frost, who runs FLIR's unmanned ground systems business. QinetiQ, which lost out to FLIR in the CRS-H competition, did not respond to a query about whether it had bid on the Air Force program. An L3Harris spokesperson confirmed to Defense News that it had submitted its T7 EOD robot to the Air Force competition. L3Harris said it wanted to be chosen for the CRS-H program in 2018. The company unveiled the robot at the Association of the US Army's annual conference in 2016 letting show attendees take a crack at operating the arm on the robot. The controller looks like the back end of a gun making it easy to hold, and is hooked to sensors that transfer information to the robotic arm on the T7. The United Kingdom is a customer of the T7 for EOD missions. At times, the Air Force has joined Army robot programs without needing to hold a competition. But in the case of larger EOD robots, the two services have differing requirements that have led the Air Force to seek out its own system instead of jumping into the CRS-H program, said S. Chase Cooper, a contracting officer who is managing the EOD robot solicitation on behalf of the Air Force's 772nd Enterprise Sourcing Squadron “The major difference is that the Army's mission is primarily to operate ‘outside the wire' ” — that is, outside of a secure military installation — “where the Air Force's mission is primarily ‘inside the wire.' These are two entirely different environments,” he said in a statement to Defense News. Cooper also pointed to additional considerations such as the size and weight of the system. Most Air Force EOD missions occur after bombs or other improvised explosive devices are found at a base or installation. When that happens, teams load robots and other gear into a Base Response Vehicle or Bomb Squad Emergency Response Vehicle, drive out to the location of the explosive device, and safely dispose of the explosive. Whatever robot the Air Force chooses must be small enough to fit inside those vehicles, Cooper said. That includes passing through a 32-inch-wide door opening and parking into a space 91 inches long and 63 inches high. The Air Force's requirement for weight, which is set at a maximum of 1,000 pounds, is less stringent than the Army's 700-pound limit. The Air Force also called for a system with a minimum 800-meter, line-of-sight radio range, and a 3-hour runtime that will allow it complete the majority of EOD missions. Cooper noted that the Air Force's decision to pursue an open competition does not preclude the FLIR robot from being chosen by the service. “It is unknown at this time if that system would meet our requirements,” Cooper said. “Through our contracting process, we are evaluating all of the proposed large robot systems against the Air Force's requirement so we can make sure the system we purchase is the best one for our airmen.” The Air Force has a history of both collaborating with the Army on EOD robots and going its own way. For its medium-sized unmanned ground vehicle, the Air Force opted to use the Army's existing contract under the Man Transportable Robotic System Increment II program for FLIR's Centaur UGV, which is also being purchased by the Navy and Marine Corps. But while QinetiQ beat out FLIR in the Army's competition for CRS-Individual — a man-packable robot that is less than 25 pounds — the Air Force ended up pursuing a separate contract to meet its own unique needs for small unmanned ground vehicles. https://www.defensenews.com/air/2020/12/03/the-air-force-wants-to-buy-a-big-robot-to-help-with-bomb-disposal/

Par Le Figaro avec AFP Publié hier à 19:55 Le Sénat a adopté ce jeudi le budget 2021 des Armées, en hausse pour la troisième année consécutive (+4,5% sur un an) à 39,2 milliards d'euros. Ce budget «pour la troisième année consécutive respecte à la lettre les engagements et la trajectoire financière de la loi de programmation militaire» (LPM) 2019-2025, a fait valoir devant les sénateurs la ministre des Armées Florence Parly. «Nous le faisons malgré la crise sanitaire et malgré la crise économique qui prévaut actuellement. Donc c'est à la fois de la continuité, de la confiance par la visibilité donnée et de la relance», a-t-elle affirmé à l'AFP peu avant le vote des sénateurs. Lors du débat, la ministre a été interrogée sur le coût du remplacement de 12 avions Rafale prélevés sur l'inventaire de l'armée de l'Air au profit de la Grèce. Athènes a annoncé mi-septembre son intention d'acquérir six Rafale neufs et douze d'occasion, pour un montant compris «entre un et deux milliards d'euros», selon le cabinet de la ministre. «Les discussions pourraient aboutir d'ici la fin de l'année», selon Florence Parly. «Si ce contrat aboutit, alors le produit de la vente des Rafale d'occasion reviendra bien au ministère des Armées» et non au budget général de l'Etat, a-t-elle déclaré. «Nous avons eu toutes les assurances du ministère de l'Economie et des Finances à ce sujet.» Pour remplacer les 12 avions d'occasion vendus à la Grèce, Paris doit commander en parallèle 12 Rafale neufs pour les besoins de l'armée de l'Air française. Florence Parly a par ailleurs indiqué aux sénateurs que les surcoûts des opérations extérieures (Opex) et intérieures s'élevaient en 2020 à 1,46 milliard d'euros. Ils «sont couverts en 2020 à la fois par la provision constituée en loi de finances initiale (1,1 milliard, NDR), ainsi que par des contributions internationales et des redéploiements internes inférieurs à 60 millions d'euros et enfin par des ouvertures de crédits (...) pour 200 millions d'euros», a-t-elle détaillé. La ministre a toutefois indiqué avoir renoncé à ce dernier financement en raison du «contexte sanitaire» et «par solidarité interministérielle». Sur le milliard d'euros de crédits gelés en début d'année au titre de «réserve de précaution», «800 millions d'euros qui étaient gelés ont été dégelés dès la mi-novembre», a-t-elle plaidé auprès de l'AFP. Le budget 2021 doit faire l'objet d'une adoption définitive par le Parlement au plus tard le 18 décembre. https://www.lefigaro.fr/flash-eco/le-budget-defense-2021-adopte-par-le-senat-20201203

12/4/2020 By Jon Harper Business is still booming on the foreign military sales front even though the world is reeling from the economic effects of the COVID-19 crisis. Boosting exports of U.S.-made defense equipment has been a top policy goal of the Trump administration. The government finished fiscal year 2020 with a total of $84 billion in potential FMS sales that had been approved. Roman Schweizer, an analyst with the Cowen Washington Research Group, called it a “massive” case load. “This isn't technically the ‘real' number but it's still impressive,” he said in a newsletter, noting that not all of the deals had been consummated. In 2019, $68 billion in potential FMS cases were announced, with $55 billion in actual sales reported, according to the research group. The 2020 numbers were better than many observers anticipated. “Some of the concerns that have been initially identified in April have not come to fruition,” R. Clarke Cooper, assistant secretary of state for political-military affairs, told reporters in October. In July, the U.S. government processed the second highest amount of FMS case work in the history of the State Department, he noted. “On large items that would take a long train or trail in contracting and production, have we seen a change there? No,” he said. “If anything, the work toward getting significant procurement for, let's say, F-16s or a Patriot missile battery, those things have not abated.” What explains this dynamic? Some nations have had better than expected economic recoveries, Cooper said. “There has been a recommitment by states who at one point understandably could have put on park or pause their modernization plans,” he said. “Overall, if we're looking at long-term modernization plans across the board ... we're currently remaining on a trajectory of where we were in FY '19 going into '21.” That doesn't mean nothing will change, he noted. There will probably be fluctuations on payments and payment schedules, he said. Some buyers could seek foreign military financing or grant assistance, or sequence their procurements differently. While trends seem positive, government officials don't have a crystal ball when it comes to FMS in 2021 and beyond, he noted. The new fiscal year began strong, with the Defense Security Cooperation Agency announcing in October that it had cleared more than $4 billion worth of missiles to Taiwan, as well as $27.2 billion worth of aircraft to Finland including F/A-18E/F Super Hornets, EA-18G Growlers and F-35 joint strike fighters. https://www.nationaldefensemagazine.org/articles/2020/12/4/us-arms-sales-remain-robust-despite-pandemic

Nathan Strout WASHINGTON — The fourth GPS III satellite has achieved operational acceptance from the U.S. Space Force at record speeds using an expedited process that was 10 days faster than previous efforts. “[The fourth GPS III satellite] sets a new standard for handover from the contractor launch team to operational acceptance, setting the satellite healthy to the global user community approximately 30 days post launch. Moving forward with future GPS III launches, the timeline between launch and the satellite being set healthy will be at a minimum,” said 2 Space Operations Squadron Flight Commander Capt. Collin Dart in a statement. The satellite was launched Nov. 5 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The addition of SV04 to the GPS constellation marks another step toward making M-Code — a more robust GPS signal for military use — available to the war fighter. M-Code provides a more accurate GPS signal with anti-jamming and anti-spoofing capabilities, making it harder for adversaries to block or degrade. Lockheed Martin is the primary contractor for the 10 GPS III satellites and the 22 GPS III Follow-On satellites in development. The Space Force granted GPS IIIF Milestone C in July, clearing the way for production to begin. “M-Code signals are more-secure, harder-to-jam and spoof, and are critical to helping our war fighters complete their missions, especially in contested environments,” Tonya Ladwig, Lockheed Martin's vice president for navigation systems, said in a statement. “GPS III is a war fighting system and we are proud to be helping bring this critical capability to the men and women protecting our nation.” “The highly encrypted M-Code to protect GPS signals from jamming and spoofing is currently enabled on 22 GPS satellites of various generations; 24 are needed to bring the M-Code to the next level of operational capability,” Dart said. “SV04 brings the constellation to 23 M-Code capable vehicles.” The 24th M-Code-enabled GPS satellite, which will be the fifth GPS III satellite, is currently ready for launch. However, the launch is not expected until July 2021 at the earliest. Upgrades to the GPS ground systems and distribution of M-Code-enabled receivers to the field are also needed to get the advanced signal into the hands of war fighters. In addition to moving the constellation closer to M-Code availability, the addition of another GPS satellite to the constellation will provide greater access to the improved L2C and L5 signals to civilian users. “For our billions of civil users, it brings the count up to 23 L2C spacecraft and 16 L5 spacecraft,” said Col. Ryan Colburn, director of the Space and Missile Systems Center Portfolio Architect office's Spectrum Warfare Division. “For professional users with existing dual-frequency operations, L2C enables faster signal acquisition, enhanced reliability, and greater operating range. L5 is broadcast in a radio band reserved exclusively for aviation safety services. It features higher power, greater bandwidth, and an advanced signal design.” And according to Lockheed Martin, the GPS III satellites also include the new L1C signal, which provides improved civilian user connectivity. https://www.c4isrnet.com/battlefield-tech/space/2020/12/03/fourth-gps-iii-satellite-receives-operational-acceptance-in-record-time/

Nathan Strout WASHINGTON — Could drones hold the answer to putting satellites on orbit faster? Space logistics company Aevum is betting on it with its new Ravn X drone, which it built in the hopes of launching rockets into orbit every three hours. “Aevum is completely reimagining access to space,” said Jay Skylus, Aevum's founder and chief executive, said in a statement unveiling the new launch solution Dec. 3. “U.S. leadership has identified the critical need for extremely fast access to low Earth orbit. We're faster than anybody. “Through our autonomous technologies, Aevum will shorten the lead time of launches from years to months, and when our customers demand it, minutes,” he added. Founded in 2016, the company has been developing its product in stealth mode for years. On Dec. 3, they officially unveiled the new Ravn X autonomous launch solution ― an 80-foot long drone designed to launch small payloads into low Earth orbit. The company has yet to conduct its first test flight but is working toward airworthiness certification. Leaders hope to launch a payload for the military before the end of 2021. “We have a small launch vehicle that's more or less designed from scratch to be reusable and for responsive space access,” Skylus told C4ISRNET in an interview. “We do this by operating this sort of three stage launch vehicle stack. The first stage is an unmanned aircraft that is completely autonomous. The second and third stages are rocket systems.” Following take off, the drone rises to between 30,000 and 60,000 feet, where the rocket separates and ignites, launching the payload into orbit. Ravn X can take off and land horizontally on any airstrip at least one mile long. “The entire system is designed for a turnaround time and response time of about 180 minutes,” Skylus explained. The idea of launching satellites into space from the air isn't a new concept. For example, Northrop Grumman's Pegasus rocket ― designed to be launched into orbit from a carrier aircraft ― has been used for Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Air Force and NASA missions since the 1990s, with the most recent mission taking place in October 2019. A more recent entrant into the air-launch-to-orbit arena is Virgin Orbit's LauncherOne rocket. The company's first test flight, which failed to reach orbit, was conducted in May 2020. Aevum thinks of itself as taking the concept one step further by adding autonomy to the launch process. “This entire process is more or less fully autonomous, and this allows us to basically reduce the cost of labor that's required by about 90 percent,” said Skylus. Aevum's approach also gets at one of the most frustrating issues with launch: weather. In 2018, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency announced the DARPA Launch Challenge, where small launch companies were asked to show that they could put a payload into space within just 30 days. While about 50 companies applied, by 2019 their were only three companies remaining in the competition. By 2020, there was just one: Astra Space. The company came close to achieving its goal, ultimately failing after inclement weather forced them to scrub multiple launch attempts. Ravn X is largely impervious to those issues. “Because of the architecture, we're really not dependent on weather and those types of things. We expect to be available more than 96 percent of the year,” said Skylus. The company is already drawing attention from the Department of Defense. Ravn X's first mission will be the ASLON-45 mission for the U.S. Space Force, a $5 million contract. With that mission, the focus is on showing how the company can get a payload into orbit in 24 hours or less, said Skylus. That launch is expected to be complete before the end of 2021. In addition, the company has received a Phase II Small Business Innovation Research award, a classified contract, and is one of eight company's to receive a $986 million indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity contract for Orbital Services Program-4. “I'm excited to see the bold innovation and responsiveness in development today by our small launch industry partners to support emerging war fighter needs” said Lt. Col. Ryan Rose, Chief of the Space and Missile Systems Center's Small Launch and Targets Division, in a statement coordinated with Aevum's announcement. “The U.S. Space Force is proactively partnering with industry to support U.S. space superiority objectives. Having a robust U.S. industry providing responsive launch capability is key to ensuring the U.S. Space Force can respond to future threats.” The Pentagon has been pushing industry for responsive launch solutions, ensuring that they can place payloads into orbit with little notice. Aevum's focus on software and automation gives them an edge in meeting those elusive responsive launch requirements, Skylus said. “The responsive space launch type of problem has been a problem for several decades now, and the government has been seeking a solution to this. While others, our peers, are trying to tackle this from a technology/engineering perspective, Aevum is really tackling the problem from a system level perspective,” said Skylus. That's meant taking proven hardware solutions and applying autonomous software solutions to the ground processes and mission assurance elements. “If you look at our financials and things like that, we really do look more like a software company as opposed to a launch company,” said Skylus. “Which is great, because that means we're profitable right out of the gate.” For Aevum, the focus is on being that dependable, responsive launch service, and that may come at a premium for prospective customers, including the Pentagon. “We're not looking to be the lowest cost provider. That was never something that we claimed to be,” said Skylus. “Our focus has been: How do we make sure that we can go when our customers need to go? “Our niche market is going to be composed of customers like the Department of Defense who can't afford to wait a week to gather intel ... Or a customer like a commercial constellation customer who if they're down for over a week, they're going to lose more in revenue than they would be willing to pay for a launch,” he continued. “Those are the customers that we're really targeting.” https://www.c4isrnet.com/battlefield-tech/space/2020/12/03/this-company-wants-to-launch-satellites-into-space-via-drone/