25 janvier 2023 | International, C4ISR

Pentagon updates autonomous weapons policy to account for AI advances

The Pentagon's director of emerging tech policy said the changes incorporate the Defense Department's vision for AI.

https://www.c4isrnet.com/artificial-intelligence/2023/01/25/pentagon-updates-autonomous-weapons-policy-to-account-for-ai-advances/

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  • Production of one of the F-35′s most anticipated bombs has been on hold for almost a year

    15 juin 2020 | International, Aérospatial

    Production of one of the F-35′s most anticipated bombs has been on hold for almost a year

    By: Valerie Insinna WASHINGTON — Deliveries of a new precision-guided bomb under development by Raytheon for the F-35 and other fighter jets have been at a standstill for about a year as the company struggles to correct a technical problem involving a key component. A fix for the issue, which brought production of the Small Diameter Bomb II to a halt in July 2019, could be approved by the government as soon as July, said Air Force spokesman Capt. Jake Bailey in response to questions by Defense News. However, a June report by the Government Accountability Office pointed out that continued technical issues have already caused a delay in fielding the munition, with Raytheon forced to redesign a key component and retrofit all 598 bombs already delivered to the Air Force and Navy. The Small Diameter Bomb II — also known as the GBU-53 StormBreaker — was designed with a tri-mode seeker that includes a millimeter wave radar, imaging infrared and semi-active laser that allow the weapon to engage targets in all weather conditions and environments where visibility is obscured by dust and debris. The Air Force and Navy plan to integrate SDB II with a range of fighter aircraft including the F-15, F/A-18 Super Hornet and F-35 joint strike fighter, but the munition has been mired in development for more than a decade. This latest stoppage in production was prompted by internal audits by Raytheon, which found that the clips used to hold the bomb's fins in place “suffered vibration fatigue over long flight hours,” Bailey said. The clips serve “as the backup fin storage device” used to keep the fins in place in case other components fail, noted Bailey, who added that there have been no incidents during tests involving the SDB II fins inadvertently deploying. However, the GAO wrote that the premature deployment of the fins, which help guide the bomb in flight, could damage the weapon as well as cause a safety hazard for the aircraft carrying it. “While this problem could affect all aircraft carrying the bomb, officials said the greatest impact is to the F-35, because the bomb is carried in the aircraft's internal weapons bay and could cause serious damage if the fins deploy while the bomb is in the bay,” the GAO stated. Raytheon declined to comment on this story, directing questions to the Air Force. Raytheon plans on mitigating the issue with a newly designed clip that reduces the vibration of the fins, and will completely pay for developing the fix and retrofitting it on the bombs that have already been delivered, the GAO said. The Air Force confirmed that testing of the new device has already been completed and is going through final reviews. But while Raytheon and the Air Force had hoped to restart production in April, travel restrictions caused by the ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic contributed to further delays. The government now hopes to approve the fix in July, after which production will restart and the retrofit process for existing bombs will begin. “The fin clip failure is the sole reason production was partially halted; once final government approval is obtained, ‘all up round' production can resume,” Bailey said, using a phrase that describes a fully assembled weapon. The Air Force estimates that retrofits will be completed by August, as Raytheon's supplier has already begun manufacturing the replacement component, which are easily installed on the outside of the weapon. “Until production resumes, the total Lot 3 deliveries remain at 204 of the 312 assets on contract,” Bailey said. All this puts initial operational capability at least a year later than the service's original timeline, which predicted IOC would occur in September 2019. The Air Force declined to name a current estimate for when IOC would be achieved, but said it would happen after a separate milestone known as the “initial fielding decision,” which involves the approval of the head of Air Combat Command and is set for the third quarter of 2020. The issue with SDB II's fins is just one of several technical problems with which Raytheon is grappling. The program completed operational tests in 2019, but hardware and software changes are needed after 11 failures were reported. Two hardware fixes have already been put in place, and eight failures were related to software problems that will be addressed in future updates, the GAO said. The sole outstanding issue involves an anomaly with SDB II's guidance system. Fixing it could require Raytheon to redesign the component and conduct retrofits on all bombs already delivered, according to GAO. A review board of the problem is in the “final stages of analysis,” Bailey said. The Air Force and Raytheon plan to establish whether a replacement component is necessary no later than June 30. Although the weapon has not even been officially fielded, some components are already becoming obsolete. A Raytheon subcontractor that makes circuit cards used in the guidance system is expected to stop producing those components years sooner than anticipated. As a result, that the Defense Department may have to order all circuit cards needed for the program of record before December, according to the GAO. That timeline has now been extended to January 2022, “which provides ample time for program office action before the new deadline,” Bailey said. Despite the bomb's ongoing problems, Raytheon continues to rake in contracts for the program. In February, the Defense Department awarded a $15 million increase to a previous SDB II contract for additional technical support. In September, the company received a $200 million contract for lifecycle support during the bomb's engineering and manufacturing development phase. According to a Raytheon news release, the Navy recently completed the first guided release of SDB II from a F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. https://www.defensenews.com/air/2020/06/12/production-of-one-of-the-f-35s-most-anticipated-bombs-has-been-on-hold-for-almost-a-year

  • UK Ministry of Defence orders Leonardo/Thales protection system for RAF Shadow ISTAR fleet

    13 septembre 2019 | International, Aérospatial

    UK Ministry of Defence orders Leonardo/Thales protection system for RAF Shadow ISTAR fleet

    London September 11, 2019 - The UK Ministry of Defence has contracted Leonardo and Thales, under a single source procurement, to deliver an integrated UK Defensive Aids System (DAS). The procurement will equip the RAF's fleet of eight Shadow R1 intelligence-gathering aircraft, providing an advanced DAS which will protect the aircraft against latest-generation of Infra-Red (heat seeking) missiles. Designed, developed and manufactured in the UK, the system provides a sovereign capability which will be able to evolve in anticipation of changing threats to air platforms. The contract will be delivered by a combined MOD/Leonardo/Thales team under a Leonardo prime systems integration contract, with the equipment being integrated onto the platform by Raytheon UK. Initial Operating Capability is targeted for early 2021. The system consists of the following subsystems: Thales “Elix-IR” Threat Warner Leonardo DAS Controller Leonardo “Miysis” Directed Infra-Red Counter Measure (DIRCM) Thales “Vicon” Countermeasures Dispensing System The single source selection by the MOD follows the recent SALT III international trials hosted by the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration in Sweden. There, the integrated Miysis/Elix-IR system, using a jamming waveform developed by the UK MOD's Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, proved its ability to defeat Infra-Red missiles in live fire exercises. How the system works: The integrated DAS brings together world-class capabilities in threat warning, self-protection co-ordination, countermeasures dispensing and in DIRCM. At the heart of the system, the DAS Controller is able to assess multiple threats to the aircraft and prioritise the appropriate response using the Countermeasure Dispensing System (CMDS) and Miysis DIRCM. Elix-IR is constantly on the lookout for missile and gunfire threats, providing long range, rapid and accurately-located alerts when they occur. The dual-head fit of the Miysis DIRCM provides 360 degree protection and the ability to defeat multiple threats simultaneously by accurately directing a jamming laser onto the missile's seeker, confusing its guidance system and steering the missile away from the aircraft. The integrated and optimised threat-warning/threat-defeat chain ensures that sequential incoming missiles are thwarted quickly and effectively. Shadow: The RAF's fleet of Shadow aircraft, which are based on the King Air 350CER, are operated by 14 Squadron out of RAF Waddington. Because of the ISR role of the aircraft, it may be required to fly through hostile airspace, necessitating protection from enemy forces. A particularly deadly and prevalent threat are heat-seeking, Man-Portable Air-Defence Systems (MANPADS), which are widely employed around the world. The Shadow's new defensive aids suite will effectively counter this threat, being able to rapidly defeat incoming missiles. About Leonardo Leonardo, a global high-technology company, is among the top ten world players in Aerospace, Defence and Security and Italy's main industrial company. Organized into five business divisions, Leonardo has a significant industrial presence in Italy, the United Kingdom, Poland and the USA, where it also operates through subsidiaries such as Leonardo DRS (defense electronics), and joint ventures and partnerships: ATR, MBDA, Telespazio, Thales Alenia Space and Avio. Leonardo competes in the most important international markets by leveraging its areas of technological and product leadership (Helicopters, Aircraft, Aerostructures, Electronics, Cyber Security and Space). Listed on the Milan Stock Exchange (LDO), in 2018 Leonardo recorded consolidated revenues of €12.2 billion and invested €1.4 billion in Research and Development. The Group has been part of the Dow Jones Sustainability Index since 2010.http://www.leonardocompany.com >For the RAF Shadow, Leonardo will draw on its experience providing protective systems for the UK's Eurofighter Typhoon and AW159 Wildcat, AW101 Merlin, Puma and Chinook helicopter fleets. The Company was also contracted in April to provide a UK sovereign defensive aids suite for the British Army's new fleet of Apache AH-64E helicopters. >While being smaller, lighter and drawing less power than other DIRCM systems on the market, the Miysis DIRCM still offers the full spherical coverage required to counter advanced threats. Its Laser Pointer Tracker offers sophisticated tracking to counter long range threats and exceptional response speed to counter short range threats. A multi-band IRCM can defeat even advanced threats. Miysis has been selected by customers in Canada and the Middle East. Contact: Leonardo Press Office pressoffice@leonardocompany.com +39 0632473313 About Thales Thales is a global technology leader for the Aerospace, Transport, Defence and Security markets. With 62,000 employees in 56 countries, Thales reported sales of €14 billion in 2016. With over 22,000 engineers and researchers, Thales has a unique capability to design and deploy equipment, systems and services to meet the most complex security requirements. Its exceptional international footprint allows it to work closely with its customers all over the world. https://www.thalesgroup.com > Elix-IRTM is a passive multi-function Threat Warning System that uses single wide spectrum colour Infra-Red sensing technology to deliver simultaneous and unimpeded Missile Approach Warning, Hostile Fire Indication and Situational Awareness from a single sensor system to increase overall platform survivability and help to mitigate the ‘Risk to Life'. Elix-IRTM is an ITAR free UK sovereign capability, developed in collaboration with the UK MOD that ensures Freedom of Action that assures a rapid and timely response to countering evolving threats and supporting new theatres of operation. Designed from the outset to provide the capabilities required to support a DIRCM and output data in support of off-board countermeasures, such as Smart Stores, it enables greater exploitation and utilisation of platform capabilities that support broader operational employment and increased mission success rates. Contact Thales Media Relations – Justine Degez, Media Relations – Land and Naval Defence justine.degez@thalesgroup.com +33 6 89 34 53 09 https://www.epicos.com/article/481146/uk-ministry-defence-orders-leonardothales-protection-system-raf-shadow-istar-fleet

  • Air Force, Space Force unveil tool for AI experimentation

    10 juin 2024 | International, Aérospatial

    Air Force, Space Force unveil tool for AI experimentation

    The services want to use the tool to better understand how AI could improve access to information and to gauge whether there’s demand within the force.

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