Lockheed scores $1.1B contract to build US Army’s guided rocket on heels of extended-range test

Sur le même sujet

• 

  26 octobre 2022 | International, C4ISR

  Pentagon setting up office to speed JADC2 integration across military

  The Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office, which reached full operations in June, is also working on JADC2 data integration.

• 

  3 octobre 2019 | International, Terrestre

  Latvia relaunches ground vehicle competition following industry complaints

  By: Aaron Mehta WASHINGTON — In recent years, the Baltic nation of Latvia has gone on a modernization spending spree, putting down cash for new Black Hawk helicopters, self-propelled howitzers, reconnaissance vehicles and anti-tank weapons. But there's another platform competition on the horizon, with officials in Riga having relaunched a stalled contest for tactical wheeled vehicles. In 2018, Latvia's Ministry of Defence awarded to Finland's Sisu Auto a €181 million (U.S. $197 million) deal for four-wheel drive armored vehicles. But the contract was overturned in early 2019 by a government watchdog after two bidders — AM General from the United States, and South Africa's Paramount Group — filed complaints over the process. Turkish firm Otokar had also bid on the program at the time. The recompete has seen offers from more than 10 companies for what will be a government-to-government agreement for a final contract. The price for the new contract will depend on the eventual winner and is not locked in at the Sisu contract level. Speaking to Defense News in September, Janis Garisons, state secretary for the MoD, said it's unlikely the government will reach a decision on the winner of the competition in the short term. “What we have to do, we will test the vehicles, because we want to ensure we are looking at vehicles fit for our terrain, that can drive into our forests and we are not [getting] stuck on the roads,” said Garisons, who is the No. 2 official at the ministry. “We will look also at the industrial part because we very much interested to have [the] ability to maintain those vehicles.” The last point is key, as Latvia is concerned about the ability to maintain its new purchases, something the country has struggled with, according to Garisons. “We don't want to be in that situation anymore.” The country is also focused on building up its domestic industrial base so that much of the maintenance on its new equipment can be done in-country, in case of conflict. Along those lines, the competition for a four-wheel drive vehicle is likely be the last big platform purchase for a while, as the ministry is turning its attention toward procurement efforts to benefit training and sustainment. “Now we face trying to implement everything and put [them] into service. This takes time, and of course all logistical tails, which goes with that,” he said. “Therefore, we now have to concentrate more on — it's not very fancy things, but basically the training is going on already on all those capabilities that [have been bought], but now we have to ensure all the logistical issues are solved and maintained and sustainment is ensured.” Regarding research and development, Latvia is working on a joint effort with Estonia to produce unmanned ground vehicles. “That is something for the future capabilities. The goal is to understand our limits and how to engage our companies, also, coming up with solutions for autonomous systems,” Garisons said. “Because I think the biggest issue right now is how to ensure that those unmanned vehicles can operate autonomously and not need the soldier operating, as that doesn't add much value.” https://www.defensenews.com/2019/10/02/latvia-relaunch-ground-vehicle-competition-following-industry-complaints

• 

  31 janvier 2019 | International, C4ISR

  For DoD cyber, 2019 is the year of doing

  By: Mark Pomerleau Following a year of cyberspace strategizing, 2019 will be all about implementing rules and tools, according to the Department of Defense's top uniformed cyber policy adviser. Appearing Jan. 29 before the Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Brig. Gen. Dennis Crall said the department knows where it needs to head following last year's DoD cyber strategy (the first in three years) and now is the time to show results. “This is the year of outcomes and that's what we're focused on — delivering the capabilities and improvements that we've discussed for some time,” he told the committee, adding that the strategy process allowed them to take a look at some departmental gaps and get after them. The strategy actually has actionable lines of effort and there are things they can do to measure progress, he said. The document lays out five objectives and five areas of interest under its strategic approach. The five objectives include: Ensuring the joint force can achieve its missions in a contested cyberspace environment; Strengthening the joint force by conducting cyberspace operations that enhance U.S. military advantages; Defending U.S. critical infrastructure from malicious cyber activity that alone, or as part of a campaign, could cause a significant cyber incident; Securing DoD information and systems against malicious cyber activity, including DoD information on non-DoD-owned networks; and Expanding DoD cyber cooperation with interagency, industry, and international partners. The five areas of interest under the guise of its strategic approach include building a more lethal joint force; competing and deterring in cyberspace; strengthening alliances and attracting new partners; reforming the department; and cultivating talent. The strategy also notes DoD must take action in cyberspace during day-to-day competition to preserve U.S. military advantages and defend U.S. interests. The focus will be on nation states that can pose strategic threats to the United States, namely China and Russia. “We will conduct cyberspace operations to collect intelligence and prepare military cyber capabilities to be used in the event of crisis or conflict,” the document says. Dana Deasy, the department's chief information officer, told the same committee that the threat from Russia and China is so acute he is briefed weekly from U.S. Cyber Command and the National Security Agency on them. This allows him to understand their offensive and defensive posture relative to the DoD. “Suffice to say that these are very strong, capable adversaries, but at the same time we have some strong, capable abilities ourselves,” he said. Cyber Command has now assembled a full force of cyberwarriors and received limited acquisition authority to start equipping them. However, there is much more work to be done. In fact, aside from individual tools, the force is still in need of a training range where cyberwarriors can do individual and collective training, as well as mission rehearsal, similar to rifle ranges or national training centers in the physical world. The Persistent Cyber Training Environment, being run by the Army for the joint force, will get after this; however, it is still in the prototype phase with a limited capability delivered to users. Additionally, the force needs a large-scale command-and-control platform that will house tools, provide commanders global situational awareness of forces and enable forces to plug into operations from remote locations. This is the goal of Unified Platform, which is also still in the prototype phase, though officials have said a limited product could be delivered as early as the spring. https://www.fifthdomain.com/dod/2019/01/30/for-dod-cyber-2019-is-the-year-of-doing