Japan's military to spend on AI, automation, perks to combat recruitment crisis

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  13 octobre 2020 | International, Aérospatial

  Finland gets the green light to buy F-35, F-18 and billions of dollars in weapons

  Valerie Insinna WASHINGTON — The U.S. State Department on Oct. 9 approved the sale of the F/A-18EF Super Hornet and F-35 Joint Strike Fighter to Finland, paving the way for the nation to purchase American jets should either Boeing or Lockheed Martin win its ongoing fighter competition. The two U.S. offerings are facing off in a multinational contest that also includes France's Dassault Rafale, the British-made Eurofighter Typhoon and the Swedish Saab Gripen E/F. The F-35 package, worth $12.5 billion, includes 64 F-35A conventional-takeoff-and-landing jets, 66 Pratt & Whitney F135 engines, and the aircraft's associated communications and electronic warfare systems. Notably, it contains not only the aircraft's current logistics system — the troubled Autonomic Logistics Information System — but also its replacement — the Operational Data Integrated Network — which is under development. Meanwhile, the Super Hornet package — worth an estimated $14.7 billion — includes 50 single-seat F/A-18E jets, eight double-seated F/A-18Fs and 14 EA-18G Growlers, which is the electronic attack variant. The package also includes 166 F414-GE-400 engines for the dual-engine fighter, Sniper targeting pods, AN/APG-79 radars, AN/ALR-67(V)3 electric warfare countermeasures receiving sets, and Next Generation Jammer Midband and advanced electronic attack kits for the EA-18G. Both offers include a suite of munitions for the aircraft, including 500 Small Diameter Bomb II weapons, 150 AIM-9X missiles, 200 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile-Extended Range weapons, Joint Standoff Weapons, Joint Direct Attack Munition kits that turn dumb bombs into precision-guided weapons, and assorted test and support gear for training and maintenance. After the U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency posted the notification of the potential sale, Finland's Ministry of Defence released a statement clarifying that the announcement represents an important procedural step forward for the HX Fighter Program, but that negotiations with all competitors are ongoing. “The announcement of the notification procedure does not constitute a procurement decision by Finland, as the decision to procure multi-role fighters will be made by the Government in 2021,” the statement said. “Furthermore, the types and quantities of multi-role fighters and weapons specified in the notification do not represent the final content of the Finnish procurement package; instead, the list published by the DSCA indicates those items and quantities that the US administration is prepared to sell at this stage of the procurement process.” Finland also addressed the price of the packages, which exceed the $12 billion budget set by the country for the total cost of the program. “In the FMS procedure, the quantities and prices proposed for approval are generally set higher than what the purchasing country has indicated in its own request. The purpose of this formality is to avoid the need to submit a new and time-consuming Congressional Notification in the event that the purchasing country makes changes to the procurement package,” it said. The winner of the HX competition will produce up to 64 fighters to replace Finland's Boeing F/A-18C/D Hornets, which are expected to be retired by 2030. Instead of issuing a requirement for a particular number of aircraft with set capabilities, Finland is allowing the vendors to create packages of aircraft and weapons that best meet the Air Force's operational needs — and the nation's budget. Despite financial setbacks to the country caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Finland's Defence Ministry in August proposed a massive 54 percent spending boost to the defense budget to $5.8 billion in 2021 (4.87 billion Euros), with much of the increase caused by the HX competition. Corrected on 10/9/20 at 3:23 p.m. EST to reflect the correct budget numbers. https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2020/10/09/finland-gets-the-green-light-to-buy-the-f-35-or-super-hornetand-billions-of-dollars-in-weapons/

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  6 août 2019 | International, Aérospatial

  F-35 talks to US Army’s missile command system, says Lockheed

  By: Jen Judson HUNTSVILLE, Alabama — The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter demonstrated its ability to send data to the U.S. Army's Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System during the Orange Flag Evaluation 19-2 at Palmdale, California, and Fort Bliss, Texas, in June. F-35 manufacturer Lockheed Martin announced in an Aug. 6 statement that the jet, in a live demonstration, sent track data to the IBCS through the F-35 ground station and “F-35-IBCS adaptation kit.” The Northrop Grumman-developed IBCS was able to “receive and develop fire control quality composite tracks during the exercise, leveraging the F-35 as an elevated sensor," the statement added. The capability is seen as important in multidomain operations because it would be able to detect threats that are tough for ground-based sensors alone to pick up. “This demonstration represents a significant growth in capability for the Army IAMD program and Army for multi-domain operations. The capability creates additional battlespace awareness, and the ability to track incoming targets and take action, if necessary,” Scott Arnold, Lockheed's deputy of integrated air and missile defense, said in the statement. “The F-35, with its advanced sensors and connectivity, is able to gather and seamlessly share critical information, enabling greater joint force protection and a higher level of lethality of Army IAMD forces.” But the demonstration isn't only about the F-35′s ability to contribute as a sensor in the air and missile defense architecture, but also about the IBCS' ability to bring in sensor data from a variety of platforms. The IBCS was originally developed as the brains of the Army's future air and missile defense system, but its potential mission continues to grow as the service works to tie other sensors to IBCS to create a layered defense. The service is also working to tie in radars and sensors for its Indirect Fire Protection Capability as well as its Maneuver Short-Range Air Defense system. The idea now is for the IBCS to tie into any sensor or shooter the Army brings into its framework. The F-35 ground station has been sent to White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico, to continue F-35 integration testing during IAMD developmental testing. The Army's IBCS program experienced delays as it added capabilities to its defensive framework to protect against everything from ballistic missiles and cruise missiles to unmanned aircraft to rockets, artillery and mortars. But it is now the top priority for the Army's cross-functional team dedicated to air and missile defense. The team is tasked with modernizing capabilities under Army Futures Command. IBCS will undergo a limited user test next spring ahead of a production decision in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2020. https://www.defensenews.com/land/2019/08/06/f-35-talks-to-army-missile-command-system/

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  20 septembre 2018 | International, Aérospatial, Terrestre

  The Corps just slapped a counter-drone system on an MRZR all-terrain vehicle

  By: Shawn Snow In yet another sign the Corps is becoming increasingly concerned about air defense, the Corps decided to slap a counter-drone system on a Polaris MRZR all-terrain vehicle. It's called the Light Marine Air Defense Integrated System, or LMADIS, and it's comprised of two MRZR vehicles, a command node and a sensor vehicle. The system is a “maneuverable ground-based sensor, electronic attack, C2 [ command and control] system," 1st Lt. Ariel Cecil, the commander of the Low Altitude Air Defense detachment for Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 166, said in a video posted by the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit. The LMADIS can detect, track, identify and take down drones with electronic attack, according to Cecil. The MRZR counter drone system is currently deployed with the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit where it recently participated in the Theater Amphibious Combat Rehearsal exercise in Djibouti. The Corps has been investing heavily in counter air and drone threats. It's an issue the Marines really haven't had to focus on for some time now. But as the Corps begins to face down more sophisticated hostile actors there's no guarantee Marines will always operate on a battlefield where they own the airspace. That means enemy air or drone attacks are now a reality the Corps must plan for. And increasingly, drone technology has found its way into the hands of terrorist groups and ragtag militias. ISIS fighters in Iraq and Syria have been known to weaponize small commercial quadcopter drones, dropping small munitions and hand grenades on Iraqi and partner nation forces. Even the Taliban in Afghanistan have gotten in the game, using small drones to film attacks on remote Afghan army outposts. But the big threat, according to the Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. Robert B. Neller, is that adversaries will eventually learn how to control these small attack drones in massive swarms. “When you think about enemy air attacks, you think about jets and bombers and stuff,” Neller said at the Atlantic Council in April. “I think the real future in enemy air attack is going to be swarming drones.” So, the Corps has embarked on an ambitious plan to field a new suite of tech to bolster the Corps' air defense and counter drone capabilities. Two such systems are the Ground Based Air Defense-Transformation, or GBAD, and the Ground/Air Task-Oriented Radar, or G/ATOR. The GBAD systems is basically a detection system with laser weapon that can track and destroy drones, and it's mountable on the Corps' new Joint Light Tactical Vehicle or Humvee. That program is still undergoing testing and evaluation. The G/ATOR system has been in the Corps' arsenal since 2013 and it can detect rockets, mortars, artillery cruise missiles, and drones. The system is highly mobile making it integral to the Corps' distributed operations plan in the Pacific should a conflict come between the U.S. and China. And the Corps is also dishing out money to modify Stinger missiles as part of Service Life Extension Program. https://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2018/09/19/the-corps-just-slapped-a-counter-drone-system-on-an-mrzr-all-terrain-vehicle