Contracts for February 26, 2021

Sur le même sujet

• 

  6 mars 2020 | International, Aérospatial

  Northrop offers Triton drones to Australia, as US budget request pauses orders

  By: Nigel Pittaway MELBOURNE, Australia — Faced with a possible two-year production pause in the wake of the Trump administratoin's fiscal 2021 budget request, Northrop Grumman is offering to accelerate MQ-4C Triton drone production for Australia at what it says is the lowest price it has ever offered for an unmanned platform. Under the budget request, funding for U.S. Navy MQ-4C acquisition will be suspended until at least FY23, and aircraft that was to be built in low-rate initial production Lots 6 and 7 will now be deferred. However, the proposal leaves the door open for Triton production to recommence in 2023 while securing funds to complete development of the IFC 4 variant of the drone. This latter model is required by the U.S. Navy to replace its aging fleet of Lockheed Martin-made EP-3E Aries II aircraft used for signals reconnaissance. Speaking in Canberra on March 4, Northrop's chief executive in Australia, Chris Deeble, said the company's proposal is to move forward production of five aircraft for the Royal Australian Air Force into the current, and funded, low-rate initial production 5 batch during the two years the U.S. Navy might not buy the aircraft. “PB21 has created an incredible opportunity for Australia. We've been working with the U.S. Navy to provide an option to buy the rest of their aircraft as part of the LRIP 5 contract,” Deeble said. “That provides a significant unit-cost saving to Australia, so now's the time to buy more than ever.” Australia has a requirement for six Tritons, built to the IFC 4 standard, under Project Air 7000 Phase 1B. However, it currently has only one aircraft on order, which would be built as part of LRIP 5 and requires a more finalized contract by May 15 if the plan is to go ahead. Deeble said Australia will need to make a decision on the additional five aircraft by the end of June. Northrop Grumman's proposal is to add the five Australian aircraft to the existing three aircraft in LRIP 5 (two U.S. Navy and one RAAF aircraft), bringing the total to eight. Deeble said the offer preserves Australia's planned funding profile for Triton acquisition and that the delivery schedule will remain the same. Should Australia finalize an agreement to meet its six-Triton requirement, it expects to receive them between 2023 and 2025, with declaration of final operational capability in the 2025-2026 time frame. "The two key points are, this will probably the best price you will be able to achieve for the Triton capability, and we're remaining within the [Australian] defense profile,” Deeble added. “We also look to provide Australian industry opportunities as a consequence. And committing to an additional five aircraft in LRIP 5 will provide about AU$56 million [(U.S. $37 million)] of opportunity in that regard.” https://www.defensenews.com/unmanned/2020/03/04/northrop-offers-triton-drones-to-australia-as-us-budget-request-pauses-orders/

• 

  18 décembre 2019 | International, C4ISR

  BAE Systems to Provide Intelligence Analysis for Defense Intelligence Agency

  December 17, 2019 - The Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) has awarded BAE Systems a prime contractor position on Solutions for Intelligence Analysis 3 (SIA 3), a ten-year multiple award indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (IDIQ) with a combined ceiling value of over $17 billion. Through this contract, the company will provide worldwide coverage, support and assistance to DIA, delivering timely, objective and cogent military intelligence to warfighters, defense planners and policy makers. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20191217005768/en/ “We are delivering secure, cost-efficient services to maintain and enhance the mission-critical systems DIA relies on every day,” said Peder Jungck, vice president and general manager of the sector's Intelligence Solutions business. “We're excited to continue our longstanding partnership with DIA and bring our next-generation talent to work for their mission.” BAE Systems was the largest provider of analytic services on DIA's prior IDIQ, SIA 2, and has provided intelligence support and related services to the agency for over three decades. The company will continue to bring a workforce of cleared personnel in highly technical fields with an excellent understanding of the customers, their mission, and their environment. 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. Click here to learn more about career opportunities with BAE Systems. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20191217005768/en/

• 

  9 janvier 2020 | International, Aérospatial

  Bell V-280 flies autonomously for first time

  By: Jen Judson ARLINGTON, Texas — The Bell V-280 Valor tiltrotor demonstrator flew autonomously for the first time Dec. 18 at the company's Arlington facility in two sorties. Over the course of the day, the V-280 met all of Bell's flight goals for the aircraft's first venture into flying autonomously. The V-280 performed an autonomous takeoff, conversion into cruise mode, precision navigation to various waypoints, loiter maneuvers, conversion into vertical takeoff and landing mode and also landed autonomously, Ryan Ehinger, Bell's program manager for the V-280, told reporters at a company demonstration of the aircraft in Arlington on January 8. Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy and Rep. Kay Granger (R-Texas) attended the demonstration. While safety pilots riding in the cockpit took over between different elements of autonomous flight throughout the sorties, the V-280 completed all pre-programmed elements “without issue,” Paul Wilson, the program's chief engineer, said. The company has yet to determine future flight tests as part of a continued effort to advance the tiltrotor's autonomous flight capabilities or whether it might specifically conduct a flight where all autonomous elements are stitched together without pilot intervention in between each maneuver. Bell developed its objective in late 2018 to run autonomous flight demonstrations with the V-280 and, just a year later, was able to execute the flight tests. The V-280 was built for the Army's Joint Multi-Role Technology Demonstration and had its maiden flight in December 2017. The autonomous flight took place on the second anniversary of the aircraft's first flight. The JMR-TD program is meant to inform the Army's Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA) program. A Sikorsky-Boeing team is also flying a demonstrator — the SB-1 Defiant — as part of the program but got off to a late start, flying for the first time in March 2019, mostly due to delays related to issues building the rotor blades for the coaxial helicopter. The Army is planning to modernize its fleet through an ambitious effort to acquire two new Future Vertical Lift (FVL) aircraft — FLRAA and a Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) — back-to-back. The service intends to field FLRAA by FY30 following a full-and-open competition. The Army wants both FLRAA and FARA to be optionally piloted aircraft, but whether that capability comes in the first tranches when the fleet is fielded remain to be seen. Bell told reporters at the demonstration that since its first flight two years ago, the V-280 has logged over 160 flight hours among seven test pilots. It has demonstrated it can fly over 300 nautical miles in one trip and proven it can do 2G acceleration turns, can climb to 11,500 feet and has reached speeds of over 280 knots. The V-280 flew at 200 knots during the January 8 demonstration and performed other agility maneuvers while showing off its hover performance. While the JMR-TD phase is over, Bell continues to consider what could still be demonstrated with the V-280 before the aircraft is officially put to bed. https://www.defensenews.com/land/2020/01/09/bell-v-280-flies-autonomously-for-first-time