8 avril 2024 | International, Naval
Saildrone, Thales collaborating on sub-sensing unmanned surface vessel
U.S. Navy leadership has advocated for a hybrid fleet, with sailors and Marines augmented by smart machines and the equipment they carry.
29 octobre 2020 | International, Aérospatial
Lockheed to research air-dropped packaged missiles in $25M contract
Oct. 28 (UPI) -- Lockheed Martin Corp. announced the award of a $25 million contract on Wednesday supporting the use of U.S. Air Force cargo planes to deploy missiles.
The contract was issued by the Strategic Development Planning and Experimentation Office, and is meant to support the fourth phase of the Palletized Munitions Experimentation Campaign, Lockheed said in a press release.
The campaign is meant to investigate, and test, the idea of delivering large volumes of air-launched weapons via airlifters.
The system uses C-17 and C-130 cargo planes, rolling the packaged missiles onto the planes for high-altitude airdrops to locations where they are needed.
"Initial studies show that airlifters have the potential to deploy large quantities of Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile Extended Range missiles, providing a significant increase in long-range standoff scale and complementing traditional strike and bomber aircrafts," Lockheed said in a statement.
The Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile Extended Range, or JASSM-ER, is a long-range, conventional, air-to-ground missile used by the United States and allied forces to destroy high-value and well-defended targets.
"This innovative approach enables warfighters to launch offensive operations from a greater number of airfields and engage a larger number of near-peer adversarial targets," the company said.
Tests with simulated weapons earlier this year demonstrated the feasibility of packing JASSM-ER missiles into modular containers atop standard shipping pallets, and then delivering them through airdrops.
"A Palletized Munitions capability could enable various airlift aircraft to employ a range of weapons en masse via a self-contained, roll-on/roll-off palletized system, and may offer an alternative way for the Air Force to bring more mass to the fight," Dr. Dean Evans of the SDPE said after a test in September.
"The successful demo represents a key step in SDPE's Palletized Munitions Experimentation Campaign, which will determine if the Palletized Munitions concept is feasible and provides a competitive advantage for the warfighter."
The first-of-its-kind test was conducted at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla.
The contract announced Wednesday includes a system-level demonstration in 2021 and continuing research of the program's viability.
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3 octobre 2018 | International, Aérospatial
Tiltrotor Experience Positions Bell For MUX Competition
Lee Hudson | Aerospace Daily & Defense Report Bell's experience with V-22Osprey and V-280 Valor tiltrotor aircraft position the company well for the U.S. Marine Corps' Group 5 unmanned aerial system (UAS) competition, the chief executive says. Mitch Snyder, Bell chief executive officer, said Oct. 2 during a Defense One event that the company's offering for the Marine Air-Ground Task Force Expeditionary (MUX) UAS, the V-247 Vigilant, is the next iteration in tiltrotor technology for the company. The multimission aircraft “it could be airborne early warning on one mission, it can be an attack vehicle, it could just be an operating node—it's whatever you want it to be,” Snyder says. Keith Flail, vice president of advanced tiltrotor systems at Bell, told Aerospace DAILY Sept. 25 during Modern Day Marine at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia, that the company is focused on the seven key capability gaps the service outlined during an industry day in June. Full article: http://aviationweek.com/defense/tiltrotor-experience-positions-bell-mux-competition
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11 octobre 2019 | International, Aérospatial
Leonardo: contract valued at over 150 million euros with Guardia di Finanza for the supply of three ATR 72MPs and logistic support services
Rome, October 9, 2019 - Leonardo has signed a contract with Guardia di Finanza valued at over 150 million euros for the supply of three ATR 72MPs and related technical-logistic support services. This contract completes the acquisition of four aircraft, the first order was placed in July 2018, awarded under a European tender. The first aircraft will be delivered by the end of 2019, with the remaining three units expected to be supplied by 2022. Alessandro Profumo, CEO of Leonardo, said: "We are proud that Guardia di Finanza has chosen to rely once again on our ATR 72MP, an aircraft which fully represents Leonardo's technological capabilities in terms of design and integration of platforms and systems at the highest levels.” Lucio Valerio Cioffi, Aircraft Division MD at Leonardo, said: “The ATR 72MP combines reliability, low operating costs, all the advantages of the ATR 72-600 regional passenger transport aircraft together with a state-of-the-art mission system.” The ATR 72MP will be integrated into the aeronautical capabilities of Guardia di Finanza, in the context of the multiple roles assigned to the Corps by the current regulatory framework. The Guardia di Finanza is the only law enforcement agency with general jurisdiction capable of exercising incisive and constant supervisory activities along the entire national coastal development and in international waters, carried out also due to the advanced technological equipment installed on its own aircraft. Specific latest generation capabilities embedded for the first time into the ATR 72MP will be useful to support dedicated surveillance activities entrusted to the Guardia di Finanza. The ATR 72MP will operate in air-sea patrol and research missions, using on-board sensors to identify, even discreetly, sensitive objects, monitor their behavior, acquire evidence, and lead the intervention of naval units and land patrols. The ATR 72MP - already in service with the Italian Armed Forces in a military version called P-72A - is equipped with the modular Leonardo ATOS (Airborne Tactical Observation and Surveillance) mission system. The ATOS manages the wide range of sensors of the aircraft, combining the information received in an overall tactical situation and presenting the results to the operators of the mission system in the most suitable format, providing an excellent and constantly updated scenario. Thanks to its commercial derivation, the ATR 72MP delivers its crew levels of ergonomics that increase its efficiency and effectiveness during maritime patrol, search and identification missions, SAR (search and rescue) missions, counter drug trafficking, piracy, smuggling and preventing any illegal action across the territorial waters, which can typically last more than 8 hours. View source version on Leonardo: https://www.leonardocompany.com/en/press-release-detail/-/detail/09-10-2019-contract-valued-at-over-150-million-euros-with-guardia-di-finanza-for-the-supply-of-three-atr-72mps-and-logistic-support-services