Extending Field of View in Advanced Imaging Systems

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  6 mai 2020 | International, Aérospatial

  Israel acquires FireFly loitering munition for close combat

  Seth J. Frantzman JERUSALEM — Israel's Ministry of Defense has procured the FireFly, a lightweight loitering munition designed for infantry and special forces. Jointly developed by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and the MoD, FireFly's canister-deployed design with multiple rotors enables it to hover around buildings and attack concealed enemies that may be beyond line of sight or hiding in urban environments. FireFly is designed to fulfill a need that platoons and smaller units have on the modern battlefield for an unmanned system that is rugged and lightweight. Mini-UAVs are increasingly in demand for infantry use, and the ability to combine them with loitering munitions that can conduct surveillance and attack has become the next step for ground forces. FireFly was designed over the last 15 years based on sketches produced as far back as the Six-Day War, when Israeli soldiers had to fight in the early morning amid trenches in Jerusalem during the Battle of Ammunition Hill. Also taken into account during the design period were Israel's experiences fighting militants in close combat in urban areas, such as the Gaza Strip, as well as knowledge of the difficulties armies have faced in fighting in places like Mosul, Iraq, against the Islamic State group. Gal Papier, director of business development at Rafael's Tactical Precision Weapons Directorate, said the current FireFly model has a seeker, warhead and data link with electro-optical features that are similar to Rafael's larger Spike missile family. The Spike group of munitions includes precision-guided tactical missiles. The main difference is the addition of dual rotors so the FireFly can hover and remain stable in windy environments. “It's a different way of looking at missile guidance,” Papier said. “This is innovative and new — it's a missile that folds into a small canister.” First unveiled in 2018, Papier foresees the FireFly as “infantry's best friend,” enabling forces to both scout and attack. The warhead is small, coming in at only 400 grams, but Rafael says it is lethal enough for infantry and special forces missions. “Normally the targets are insurgents or suppressing machine guns or a sniper,” Papier explain, comparing the FireFly to UAVs that carry 20-kilogram payloads and must be launched by catapult. FireFly gives an operator up to 1.5 kilometers of line-of-sight use and 500 meters of non-line-of-sight use. It can return to the user with the click of a button, and its technology provides situational awareness to avoid collisions with obstacles. It can also operate during the day or night with a low acoustic signature. Its battery and warhead can both be replaced; the warhead can be swapped for another battery to provide double the 15-minute flying time for surveillance missions. The press of a button on the operator's tablet causes the warhead to slam into an enemy at up to 70 kph. It is also designed with safeguards, such as an abort capability. Rafael also foresees the FireFly launched from vehicles, with several units contained in a pod or “beehive” that would operate from inside the vehicle. This is in line with the increased use of smaller tactical UAVs with armored vehicles, and future battlefield concepts that foresee vehicles and infantry units operating in sync with numerous drones. “We are in [the] design stage of these pods, tailored for different vehicles. We see it as a building block,” Papier said. Israel's procurement of the FireFly and its deployment with infantry units are part of the country's multiyear plan to restructure its armed forces, known as “Momentum.” The plan also calls for increased digitization of land forces and for units to have access to more UAVs and technology. This is meant to bring intelligence assets as far forward as possible to battalion- and company-level units sharing information gathered by UAVs on a network. Papier noted that the increased deployment of loitering munitions like this will change infantry units as they decide how to make soldiers into dedicated drone operators. https://www.c4isrnet.com/unmanned/2020/05/05/israel-acquires-firefly-loitering-munition-for-close-combat/

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  14 juillet 2020 | International, Aérospatial, Naval, Terrestre, C4ISR, Sécurité

  We Need $10B to Pay Contractors’ Coronavirus Expenses, Pentagon Tells Congress

  It's the first time a defense official has put a specific price tag on DoD's COVID relief efforts. The Pentagon needs Congress to approve “around $10 billion” to cover defense contractors' coronavirus-related expenses, a top defense official said Monday. Alan Shaffer, deputy defense undersecretary for acquisition and sustainment, became the first Defense Department official to put a price tag on the relief effort. “If there is another supplemental or stimulus package for realistic economic adjustment, we could be looking at somewhere around $10 billion in additional program costs,” Shaffer said during a taped appearance on the Government Matters television show that aired Monday afternoon. Also on Monday, White House economic advisor Larry Kudlow told Fox Business that the Trump administration is putting together a fourth coronavirus stimulus package. The CARES Act allows defense companies to recoup money they used to keep employees working amid the pandemic. While Congress authorized these reimbursements, they did not appropriate the funding. Until now, Pentagon officials have been vague in saying how much money was needed to cover the costs. During a June 11 House Armed Services Committee hearing, Ellen Lord, the defense undersecretary for acquisition and sustainment, said the Defense Department would request in the “lower end” of “tens of billions of dollars.” Last week, defense analyst Jim McAleese estimated that between $12 billion and $15 billion would be needed to cover companies' coronavirus expenses. If Congress does not appropriate the funds, the Pentagon would likely cut weapons buying and research funding to cover the costs, the CEOs of most major U.S. defense firms wrote in a July 7 letter to White House Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought. Factory shutdowns and trouble receiving parts from suppliers in the U.S. and globally have caused manufacturing disruptions across weapons programs. The current spike in COVID-19 cases in the southern United States in Florida, Texas, and Arizona, states with large defense manufacturing hubs, further disruptions to weapons projects are possible. “We're going to be at this for a while,” Schaffer said. “The exact number of months — your crystal ball is as good as mine.” Pentagon officials have been closely monitoring the aviation sector, where a substantial drop in commercial airline passenger travel has prompted airlines to ground planes and cancel new aircraft orders. In recent weeks, the Pentagon has awarded more than $400 million in bailouts to aviation, shipbuilding, space and even textile companies that manufacture military uniforms. Shaffer in the interview that aired Monday said more bailouts through so-called Defense Production Act Title 3 might be necessary. “I think we're going to have to look at what we can do through Defense Production Act title 3 [and] through other mechanisms to make sure that we remain viable in the aircraft [industry],” he said. “We've seen some projections from the industry that suggest the aircraft industry will take two to three years to rebound.” While Shaffer said “shipbuilding should be OK,” he said, “we're watching the space industrial sector very closely because we've seen a contraction in the commercial side for space launch.” Major U.S. defense firms are scheduled to report second-quarter earnings before the end of the month. https://www.defenseone.com/business/2020/07/we-need-10b-pay-contractors-coronavirus-expenses-pentagon-tells-congress

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  23 novembre 2020 | International, Aérospatial, Naval

  La Marine recevra ses trois premiers Airbus Dauphin N3 le 1er décembre

  20/11/2020 08:45 | Jean-Marc Tanguy Reconditionnés par Héli-Union, les trois premiers Airbus Dauphin N3 rejoindront la base d'aéronautique navale de Hyères, première équipée. Reconditionnés par Héli-Union Ces Airbus Dauphin N3 sont reconditionnés par Héli-Union en France, en Norvège (deux appareils actuellement) et chez Hélidax dans les Landes. Le reste sera ensuite livré à la cadence de trois appareils par an en métropole (Lanvéoc) et outremer (Antilles, Réunion, Nouvelle-Calédonie, Polynésie). Le contrat de location FLIHPER (pour FLotte Intérimaire HélicoPtères EmbaRqués), couvrant dix ans d'exploitation, inclut un objectif de disponibilité extrêmement élevé (supérieur à 90%) que l'industriel dit pouvoir tenir gr'ce à sa connaissance de l'exploitation de l'offshore. Pas forcément simple avec des configurations différentes, dont certaines très complètes (pilote automatique 4 axes, boule optronique Euroflir 410). MCO partagée Des lots de déploiement sont prévus en ce sens, et Héli-Union interviendra dans le Pacifique pour assurer les visites périodiques de maintenance. Ailleurs, et notamment sur les navires d'emploi de ces appareils, la Marine assurera la maintenance en ligne. Environ 300 heures de vol seront générées par chaque appareil par an. Le contrat couvre aussi la formation initiale des pilotes et mécaniciens. Des QT de navigants ont aussi été assurées par la société dans son centre d'Angoulême. Ce sont des navigants de la Marine qui se chargeront du convoyage. En attendant l'Airbus Guépard A l'issue des dix ans, la Marine disposera de suffisamment d'Airbus Guépard pour pouvoir se passer de ces appareils. Une prolongation sera toujours possible si ce n'est pas le cas. Avec cette location, Héli-Union reconvertit ainsi son parc de Dauphin auparavant utilisés dans l'offshore (à l'exclusion d'un unique appareil), une belle martingale d'avoir réussi à faire d'un passif inutilisé par la crise de l'exploitation pétrolière une flotte de location au profit des Armées. Un exploit également réussi pour les trois H225 destinés à DGA EV. https://www.air-cosmos.com/article/la-marine-recevra-ses-trois-premiers-airbus-dauphin-n3-le-1er-dcembre-23880