12 mars 2019 | International, Naval

Navy to Contract New Class of Unmanned Surface Vehicle by Year’s End

The Navy is moving fast to acquire a new class of unmanned surface vehicles and hopes to award a contract for USV designs by the end of the year, USNI News has learned.

In the next two months, the service is set to issue a request for proposals for a new class of medium USV, up to 50 meters long, according to an unclassified readout of the program reviewed by USNI News.

A Wednesday USNI News request to Naval Sea Systems Command for additional details related to the competition was acknowledged but immediately returned.

According to a notional list of requirements, the medium USV will function as a sensor and communications relay as part of a family of unmanned surface systems being developed by the service. The craft will be able to carry a payload equivalent to a 40-foot shipping container, will operate on its own for at least 60 days before needing to
return to port, and be capable of refueling at sea.

The craft will have to also be able to autonomously operate under the rules of the maritime road at a cruising speed of about 16 knots with a minimum range of about 4,500 nautical miles and operate via a government-provided communication relay system.

The size of the MUSV – 12 to 50 meters – ranges from about the size of the service's 11-meter rigid hull inflatable boats (RHIBs) to the Navy's Cyclone-class patrol craft (PCs).

It's unclear what the price per hull of the craft will be, but the modular focus of the Navy's USV vision would place the bulk of the costs in the modular payload rather than the hull itself.

Full article: https://news.usni.org/2019/03/06/navy-contract-new-class-unmanned-surface-vehicle-years-end

Sur le même sujet

22 novembre 2021 | International, Aérospatial

Les États-Unis accélèrent le développement des missiles hypersoniques
Les groupes Raytheon, Lockheed Martin et Northrop Grumman vont développer des missiles pour aider les États-Unis à mieux se défendre contre des attaques hypersoniques, a indiqué le Pentagone, vendredi 19 novembre. Les trois contrats, à hauteur de plus de 60 M$ au total, ont été conclus pour le développement de missiles intercepteurs. Les missiles hypersoniques sont plus manœuvrables que les missiles balistiques et peuvent évoluer à basse altitude, ce qui les rend plus difficilement détectables. Selon Washington, Pékin a testé en août dernier un missile hypersonique avec charge nucléaire très difficile à intercepter. Les États-Unis estiment que Pékin développe cette technologie beaucoup plus rapidement que prévu. Le Figaro du 20 novembre
2 avril 2024 | International, Naval

Naval Group and PT PAL have signed a contract with Indonesia for 2 locally built Scorpène® Evolved Full LiB submarines
In accordance with the Defence Cooperation Agreement signed between the governments of France and Indonesia in August 2021, the Indonesian authorities have chosen Naval Group and PT PAL for their...
18 juin 2018 | International, Naval

Naval Group execs head to Poland to extoll virtues of its submarine
Pierre Tran PARIS — Naval Group has fielded top executives to Poland to pitch the Scorpene submarine in Warsaw's Orka naval program. The senior executives were in Poland June 14 and 15 presenting the Scorpene, which is a frontrunner in the Polish tender, said François Dupont, director of the international trade department. That French Scorpene is competing with the 212CD submarine from ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems and A26 boat from Saab in a closely watched competition reported to be worth 10 billion zloty (U.S. $2.71 billion). A creation of 2,000 local jobs and offer of the MBDA cruise missile are part of Naval Group's “highly significant offer,” he said. Naval Group has long played down the impact of political discord between France and Poland stemming from Warsaw's cancellation in 2016 of talks for an offset deal tied to 50 Caracal military helicopters. The previous Polish government had picked Airbus Helicopter as preferred bidder, but the present administration cancelled that when it took office. Meanwhile, chances of Naval Group of winning a sale of two Scorpene to Italy and displacing the incumbent supplier TKMS seem to be slim. “This is a complex campaign,” Dupont said. Italy is due to add a further two U212A boats to the present four-strong fleet built by Fincantieri under licence from TKMS. Political ties between France and Italy hit a low this week, calling into question whether Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte would go ahead with a June 15 visit to France. But Conte went ahead with the meeting with president Emmanuel Macron, despite the French head of state three days earlier decrying the “cynicism and irresponsibility” of Rome in turning away the Aquarius, a humanitarian rescue ship with 629 migrants aboard. In Canada, Naval Group has explained why concerns over handing over intellectual property rights led to a joint offer with Italian partner Fincantieri being submitted directly to the Canadian government rather than observing a procedure calling for filing a bid to Irving Shipbuilding. “We have explained, we have been heard,” he said. Naval Group hopes the Franco-Italian offer will win over rival bids which include the Type 26 frigate from BAE Systems, which Dupont points out has yet to be built. In India's plan to acquire six more submarines under the P-75I project, Naval Group hopes its supply of the first six Scorpene in the P-75 program with local partner Mazagon Dock Limited will lead to a follow-on deal. Exports are critical to Naval Group, which seeks to make half of annual sales from foreign deals by 2020, compared to around a third presently. Dupont, a graduate of Columbia University, took up his post as head of international trade on April 2. Dupont previously worked for Thales, specializing in export sales of sonar systems. https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2018/06/15/naval-group-execs-head-to-poland-to-extoll-virtues-of-its-submarine/

Toutes les nouvelles