4 décembre 2023 | International, Terrestre
EU lawmakers finalize tough cyber security rules
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14 août 2020 | International, Aérospatial
B-21 bomber program survives pandemic disruptions
By: Valerie Insinna
WASHINGTON — Despite impacts from the coronavirus pandemic, the U.S. Air Force's B-21 Raider program remains on track as Northrop Grumman continues production of the first B-21 bomber, the head of the service's Rapid Capabilities Office said Thursday.
Speaking at a Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies event, RCO Director Randall Walden acknowledged that some B-21 suppliers had been adversely affected by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. For instance, Spirit AeroSystems — which builds large composite aerostructures for the bomber — has run into challenges not only on its defense side, but also for its commercial division due to the halt in Boeing 737 Max production, Walden said.
Spirit received $80 million in Defense Production Act funds meant to help stimulate struggling businesses, and Walden noted that the company also funneled employees who normally work on the 737 Max line into augmenting B-21 production efforts.
“The folks that are not manufacturing 737s and those components came over to our production line and really kind of beefed up — where people had some COVID issues — they beefed up that portion of our production,” he said. “Right now, the components that we're building are really for the test fleet, but the good news: All of what we're doing today is really insightful for what we're doing for production in the future.”
After completing a critical design review in 2018, B-21 prime contractor Northrop Grumman is currently building the first B-21 test aircraft in Palmdale, California. The Air Force plans to buy at least 100 Raiders.
On Aug. 3, Walden traveled with Defense Secretary Mark Esper to Northrop's B-21 design and development office in Melbourne, Florida, to receive a program update.
“I think overall his takeaway was he's happy with the progress we're making,” Walden said. “The good news is all of the tough critical designs, all of the hard engineering is kind of behind us, and now it's a matter of actually producing the airplane and actually rolling it out and getting on with the developmental flight test activities.”
Walden said his office has flight tested some B-21 mission systems and avionics on a surrogate aircraft to work though software bugs and design problems before installation on the actual B-21 test aircraft.
“I know we're not going to be immune from design flaws. We're going to have to work through those, and we're doing some of that today. From my perspective, I want to find out what those design deficiencies were as fast as I can, get on with a solution, get that into the program in the development phase, and get on with production.”
In July 2019, Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Stephen Wilson said the Raider could take to the skies in about “863 days,” which would pinpoint an inaugural flight in December 2021. Walden has since said that would be the earliest possible date for first flight.
https://www.defensenews.com/air/2020/08/13/b-21-still-on-track-despite-complications-from-pandemic/
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4 mars 2020 | International, Naval
BAE Systems Secures $188 Million Contract for U.S. Navy’s AEGIS Combat System
March 2, 2020 - BAE Systems Inc. was awarded a five-year $188.2 million contract to provide the U.S. Navy's AEGIS Technical Representative (AEGIS TECHREP) organization with critical large-scale system engineering, integration, and testing expertise for the AEGIS Weapons and Combat Systems aboard U.S. Navy surface combatant ships. “BAE Systems personnel have worked side-by-side with Navy sailors and civilians for nearly 40 years to strengthen and modernize the fleet of AEGIS-equipped surface ships,” said Mark Keeler, vice president and general manager of BAE Systems' Integrated Defense Solutions business. “Our team brings a wealth of AEGIS combat system expertise with the agility, innovation, and technical acumen to ensure the U.S. Navy has the safe and effective combat capability it needs to meet mission objectives.” As part of the AEGIS Technical Representative Engineering Support Services contract, BAE Systems will provide Navy acquisition managers with on-site leadership and systems engineering to validate Total Ship Combat design at Navy sites in Mt. Laurel, New Jersey; Bath, Maine; and Pascagoula, Mississippi. The company also will support systems engineering and test and evaluation personnel to provide fleet experience and operational insight. Additionally, the company will provide logistics, cybersecurity, production, acquisition, and waterfront support required for upgrading and maintaining development of AEGIS Combat System capabilities and baselines across the entire life cycle. The task order was awarded under the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Information Technology Acquisition and Assessment Center's Chief Information Officer–Solutions and Partners 3 (CIO-SP3) Government-Wide Acquisition Contract. CIO-SP3 is an Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity contract. This contract is intended to provide information technology solutions and services. BAE Systems delivers a broad range of services and solutions enabling militaries and governments to successfully carry out their respective missions. The company provides large-scale systems engineering, integration, and sustainment services across air, land, sea, space, and cyber domains. BAE Systems takes pride in its support of national security and those who serve. View source version on BAE Systems: https://www.baesystems.com/en/article/bae-systems-secures--188-million-contract-for-u-s--navy-s-aegis-combat-system
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24 mars 2023 | International, Autre défense
NATO preps tech competition to solve real-world security issues
A call for participants to apply for the challenges is to take place in mid-2023, and up to 30 participants are to be selected for each challenge.