10 juillet 2019 | International, Aérospatial

ORDERS RECEIVED IN TOTAL WORTH 2 BILLION NOK FOR DELIVERIES TO F-35 JOINT STRIKE FIGHTER

Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace AS (KONGSBERG) has finalized a contract with Lockheed Martin Aeronautics adding up to 2 Billion NOK for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Program, where 700 MNOK has been incrementally ordered in previous quarters. The agreement covers production lots 12-14 for rudders, vertical leading edges and main landing gear closeout panels for all three versions of the F-35, totalling more than 500 aircraft.

“This contract confirms KONGSBERG's strong and long term position in the F-35 Program. The F-35 program will produce aircraft for many years to come. This order secures continuous production at KONGBERG's factory, and just as important, paves the way for future contracts”, says Eirik Lie, President Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace AS.

https://www.kongsberg.com/news-and-media/news-archive/2019/orders-received-in-total-worth-2-billion-nok-for-deliveries-to-f-35-joint-strike-fighter/

Sur le même sujet

  • Britain to restart competition for fleet solid support ships, but who’s allowed to bid?

    8 mai 2020 | International, Naval

    Britain to restart competition for fleet solid support ships, but who’s allowed to bid?

    By: Andrew Chuter LONDON — Britain is set to restart a competition later this year to build up to three large logistics ships to support deployment of the Royal Navy's new aircraft carrier fleet, having suspended the procurement effort last year. Ministry of Defence officials are refusing to give an exact date for the restart, despite Defence Secretary Ben Wallace recently telling the parliamentary Defence Committee that he thought it would take place in September. “It will be, I think, in September, but I can correct that if I am wrong. We are hopefully going to reissue the competition sooner rather than later,” he told lawmakers. A Defence Committee spokeswomen said the panel is still waiting on a concrete date from the MoD. “Following the session with the secretary of state for defense, Ben Wallace, the committee wrote to the department asking for clarification on a number of issues, including the timing of the Fleet Solid Support program. The committee has not yet heard back from the Ministry of Defence,” she said. The competition to build up to three 40,000-ton vessels in a requirement known locally as the Fleet Solid Support program was expected to have been worth as much as £1.5 billion (U.S. $1.9 billion) at the time the competition was unexpectedly terminated Nov. 5. The MoD said at the time that it took the action due to a failure to find a value-for-money solution in negotiations with shipbuilders. In his evidence to the committee, Wallace described the program as “ effectively delinquent.” The warships, which will be operated by the Royal Navy's logistics supplier, the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, are a key element of Britain's plan to replace aging Fort-class ships with modern support ships to supply ammunition, dry stores and spares to aircraft carrier strike groups and other maritime task groups. The program had been mired in controversy since the Conservative government opted to open the design to international competition, rather that adopt a “Buy British” policy. The move caused an outcry from politicians, industry and unions who believed naval logistics vessels should be included in the list of warships, like frigates and destroyers, that are off limits to foreign shipbuilders. Ministers and procurement officials argued they had no choice but to follow European Union competition rules, which say logistics ships are not warships and are therefore subject to regulations requiring open competition. Critics pointed out that other European Union member states have previously blocked foreign bids for similar ships. Industry executives suspected the the cash-strapped MoD was running an open competition to keep the procurement cost to a minimum, following in the example of its purchase of four new fleet oilers for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary built by South Korea's Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering. The U.K. has now left the European Union but is in a transitory period where trade rules still apply. That period is currently set to end Dec. 31. The MoD declined to answer Defense News' question on whether the new competition will be held under EU rules, or whether the U.K. will exempt itself from the rule, opening up the possibility for a British-only bid. Defence Procurement Minister James Heappey told Parliament this year that the MoD is reviewing the procurement strategy, the requirements and the schedule ahead of the competition restart. MoD officials said this week that the review is still underway. Defense consultant Howard Wheeldon of Wheeldon Strategic Advisory said with the new coronavirus taking its toll on the country's economy, there should be no question that the procurement is limited to local business. “Having pulled the plug on the original plan, and with potential new U.K. players back in the fray, such as Harland and Wolff, the MoD would risk a very damaging backlash if it tried to do another foreign deal — and rightly so,” he said. “Buying on the basis of lowest cost is rarely the right solution for defense equipment procurement. The new world order that I see emerging elsewhere allows freedom to put national interests first. Thus for the U.K., the right decision on future solid support ships is that these vessels should be British-designed and -built.” What about the original competition? The MoD brought the original competition to a close on the eve of the Conservative government calling a general election for Dec. 12, 2019. Campaigners took that as a sign the government was moving toward a “Buy British” policy. Their position was reinforced last autumn when the MoD published an updated, independent review of the nation's national shipbuilding strategy, which advocated for a policy change that would see logistics ships and other types of vessels added to the list warships closed to foreign bids. The review, conducted by former shipbuilding chief executive John Parker, said Britain was not currently adopting “the right strategic approach” in allowing ships like the fleet solid support vessels to be built overseas. By the time the MoD suspended the competition, two of the five short-listed bidders remained: Navantia of Spain; and Team UK, a consortium of BAE Systems, Babcock International, Cammell Laird and Rolls-Royce. A BAE Systems spokesperson told Defense News on Wednesday that the company is waiting for the MoD to show its hand on the procurement process, and in the meantime remains focused on its commitment to build Type 26 frigates for the Royal Navy. “We are engaged with our U.K. partners and await guidance from the MoD on next steps in the procurement process for the Fleet Solid Support program. We have a long-term commitment to shipbuilding in the U.K. with continuity of production in Glasgow through into the 2030s, and we are focused on delivering our existing commitments,” the spokesperson said. https://www.defensenews.com/naval/2020/05/07/britain-to-restart-competition-for-fleet-solid-support-ships-but-whos-allowed-to-bid/

  • Raytheon wins $74.7M Navy contract for landing platform dock work

    3 décembre 2019 | International, Naval

    Raytheon wins $74.7M Navy contract for landing platform dock work

    ByEd Adamczyk Dec. 2 (UPI) -- Raytheon has been awarded a $74.7 million contract for services on the U.S. Navy's amphibious transport dock ships. Under the new deal, Raytheon Integrated Defense Systems will provide design agent engineering and technical services for the overall management, development, testing, troubleshooting, repair, configuration, maintenance and fleet sustainment of fielded networks and associated network user systems and clients, the Department of Defense said on Friday. The indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract pertains to operational Landing Platform Dock, or LPD 17-class, amphibious transport dock ships, the first of which was the USS San Antonio, commissioned in 2006. The ships, 682 feet long in the case of the USS San Antonio, specialize in delivering troops to a war zone by sea, although they also carry helicopters. Eleven LPD-17 class ships are currently active in the U.S. Navy, with 26 more planned. The majority of the work will be performed at Raytheon's San Diego facilities and is expected to be complete by December 2024. https://www.upi.com/Defense-News/2019/12/02/Raytheon-wins-747M-Navy-contract-for-landing-platform-dock-work/9381575311238

  • Australia changes how it will buy drones for shipborne operations. How is industry reacting?

    1 mars 2019 | International, Aérospatial

    Australia changes how it will buy drones for shipborne operations. How is industry reacting?

    By: Mike Yeo MELBOURNE, Australia — Australia's search for a new unmanned aircraft system to operate from its naval vessels has taken a new twist, as the service announced tweaks to its procurement program to streamline the process and put it in a position to take advantage of future technological advances. Speaking at a media event during an unmanned aircraft conference during the ongoing Avalon Airshow, officers from the Royal Australian Navy, or RAN, confirmed that it was rolling its two-stage procurement program into one. The program, Project Sea 129 Phase 5 Maritime Tactical Unmanned Aerial Systems, will look for a single prime contractor to offer a system to operate from all of the RAN's major fleet units, primarily its upcoming 12 offshore patrol vessels and nine future frigates. Sea 129 Phase 5 had previously been split into two stages, with the first seeking a system to operate from the OPVs and the second to equip the frigates. According to RAN Capt. Adrian Capner, Sea 129 Phase 5 will seek a platform systems integrator, or PSI, to be put in charge of the entire program, with the ability to meet capability requirements taking precedence over platform. “We will tell you what we want the system to do; you are going to come forward and show us how you expect to achieve that,” Capner told the audience. These requirements include being able to operate from the flight deck of a German-designed Lurssen OPV 80-class ships selected by Australia, which are the smallest ships slated to use the selected UAS. The aircraft must be able to perform surveillance and maritime domain awareness missions in Antarctic conditions, and participate in humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. Capner said the RAN is open to using multiple platforms to achieve the program's capability goals, adding that the PSI will also be responsible for constant upgrades to the UAS, as the service needs the system to stay relevant over the next few decades. The program is currently at the request for information stage, with Capner confirming that a request for tender is expected in the first half of 2020 and an initial operating capability planned for the mid-2020s. This change in procurement strategy appears to reduce the burden of risk on the RAN and lessen concerns about operating outdated technology by the time the platform enters service. Rather, these burdens shift to the winning PSI, who will be responsible to managing the program and adjusting for technological changes when the system is in service. The reaction to these changes from potential bidders has been mixed. James Lawless, business development manager at Saab Australia, called it an “intelligent way to approach [the program],” noting that it mirrors Saab's strategy in partnering with UMS Skeldar and Airflite to offer the UMS Skeldar V-200 UAV. Meanwhile, Melissa Pina of Northrop Grumman told Defense News that the company will continue looking for its offering based on the latest development. Northrop Grumman previously offered its MQ-8C Fire Scout drone for Sea 129 Phase 5 Stage 2 for the RAN's future frigates. The Fire Scout is slated to be the platform of choice to go onboard U.S. Navy ships, . The RAN is currently conducting trials on the use of UAS under a “navy minor project,” operating Schiebel's Camcopter S-100, the ScanEagle by Insitu (a subsidiary of Boeing), and other UAS from land bases and onboard its ships. https://www.defensenews.com/digital-show-dailies/avalon/2019/02/27/australia-changes-how-it-will-buy-drones-for-shipborne-operations-how-is-industry-reacting/

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