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  17 août 2020 | International, Aérospatial, Naval, Terrestre, C4ISR, Sécurité

  New Pentagon tech chief to focus on improving project coordination

  By: Andrew Eversden   WASHINGTON — The Pentagon's new acting research chief wants to provide the department's vast research and development enterprise with a “north star road map” amid an effort to adopt emerging technologies ahead of adversaries. Speaking on a webinar hosted by Georgetown University's Center for Security and Emerging Technology, newly installed acting Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Michael Kratsios said that he will focus on providing top-level guidance to the host of organizations that make up the Defense Department's R&D efforts. Those organizations include the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and service laboratories. Kratsios said a team of principal directors are working to establish road maps for individual technologies. “To me, what's critical is that R&E can serve as a place where we can sort of adjudicate disagreements between individual organizations, make sure they're working on these that complement each other, making sure that similar research isn't being done at multiple different labs,” Kratsios said Thursday in his first public speech since taking over the office from Michael Griffin, who left the position in July. The Pentagon's R&E team has laid out several modernization priorities that include emerging technologies, including advancements in hypersonic weapons, artificial intelligence, 5G network connectivity and cyberspace. As different components across the department advance the maturity of these technologies, Kratsios said, his office will ensure modernization areas are not siloed. “The way that we succeed and provide the best tools for the war fighter is understanding that these technologies are going to interact with one another,” Kratsios said. “Even when, for example, you want to launch a hypersonic missile, that requires so much other important technology that all needs to be done and working together in concert. So for me, it's really building those relationships between those individual modernization priorities and making sure they don't remain stovepiped.” Kratsios still serves as the U.S. chief technology officer at the White House, a position he's held since August 2019. He has advised President Donald Trump on technology issues since early 2017. In that experience, Kratsios said, he's learned about the importance of looking across R&D efforts throughout the federal government, pointing to the research done by the National Science Foundation or the Energy Department on artificial intelligence as examples. “What I've learned is that in order to get the most out of the federal government's technology ecosystem to drive innovation ... you need to be better coordinated across all aspects of the ecosystem,” Kratsios said. https://www.defensenews.com/battlefield-tech/it-networks/2020/08/13/new-pentagon-tech-chief-to-focus-on-improving-project-coordination/

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  19 juin 2020 | International, Aérospatial

  Pentagon releases its Defense Space Strategy to counter Russia and China

  Nathan Strout The Pentagon has put forward a new Defense Space Strategy designed to maintain U.S. military superiority in space amid growing counter-space efforts in Russia and China. “China and Russia have weaponized space and turned it into a war-fighting domain,” Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Space Policy Stephen Kitay said during a June 17 press call. “Their actions pose the greatest strategic threat with ongoing development, testing and deployment of counter-space systems and the associated military doctrine designed to hold allied and U.S. space systems at risk.” The strategy reflects the Defense Department's shift to approaching space as a war-fighting domain, which includes the establishment of both U.S. Space Command and U.S. Space Force in 2019 as well as the ongoing efforts to bolster those two organizations. Space Command in particular has been vocal in calling out the counter-space capabilities being built and fielded by Russia, such as direct ascent weapons and potential on-orbit kinetic weapons. But the threat extends beyond kinetic threats to include electronic warfare, ground-based lasers that can blind space-based sensors, and cyberattacks. “The U.S. space enterprise was not built for the current strategic environment,” Kitay said, adding that the U.S. has historically approached space as a supporting domain, where satellites are launched into orbit and relied upon to deliver capability without interruption. Now, however, the U.S. military is preparing for conflicts that could extend into the space domain, threatening on-orbit assets that war fighters rely on for communications, navigation and intelligence. The self-stated purpose of the strategy is to ensure the space domain is secure, stable and accessible for U.S. and allied activities over the next 10 years through American military strength. Further, it will leverage its space capabilities to employ power across all domains throughout the spectrum of conflict. “The Defense Space Strategy is the next step to ensure space superiority and to secure the nation's vital interests in space now and in the future,” Defense Secretary Mark Esper said in a statement. “We desire a secure, stable, and accessible space domain that underpins our nation's security, prosperity, and scientific achievement. However, our adversaries have made space a war fighting domain and we have to implement enterprise-wide changes to policies, strategies, operations, investments, capabilities, and expertise for this new strategic environment. This strategy identifies a phased approach on how we are going to achieve the desired conditions in space over the next 10 years.” To achieve these objectives over the next decade, the strategy lays out four lines of effort: Build a comprehensive military advantage in space. According to the strategy, the Department of Defense must transform its space enterprise to meet the evolving counter-space threats. To do that, the DoD must become more agile, taking advantage of technological and commercial innovation. Specifically, this line of effort calls for further support for the Space Force; development of military space power doctrines; and the further development of space war-fighting expertise and culture. This effort also includes the fielding of assured space capabilities, including capabilities that can counter the hostile use of space. The strategy also calls for improving U.S. space-based intelligence and command-and-control capabilities. Integrate space into national, joint and combined operations. As the DoD expands its capabilities, doctrine and culture as outlined above, it plans to integrate them into national, joint and combined operations. Space Command must be enabled to plan, exercise and execute joint and combined space operations across the spectrum of conflict, and space war-fighting efforts must be integrated with military plans and staffs, including those of allies and partners. The strategy calls for the realignment of operational authorities and an updated rules of engagement that reflect this new reality. In addition, the document states that the DoD's space program security classifications should be updated. Shape the strategic environment. Under the strategy, the DoD will try to deter hostile and aggressive activities in space. Partnering with the State Department, the Pentagon will work with allies and partners to develop international norms of behavior for space that will reduce misunderstandings and conflict. In addition, the Pentagon will work to inform the public about the growing threats to U.S. space capabilities. Cooperate with allies, partners, industry and other U.S. government departments and agencies. This line of effort calls for the DoD to work with allies and partners to increase information sharing; align space policy; promote favorable standards and norms of behavior for space; and expand cooperative research, development and acquisition. In addition, the DoD will modernize its approach to the commercial licensing approval process. The full Defense Space Strategy can be read here. https://www.c4isrnet.com/battlefield-tech/space/2020/06/17/pentagon-releases-defense-space-strategy-to-counter-russia-and-china/

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  5 décembre 2019 | International, Aérospatial

  Military/Commercial Avionics Outlook Strong, Deloitte Says

  By Frank Wolfe The military and commercial outlook for avionics sales is strong, according to the author of a new Deloitte report, the 2020 Global Aerospace and Defense Industry Outlook. "The outlook for the aerospace avionics market is positive with good growth expected over the next few years, primarily due to the strong aircraft order book," Robin Lineberger, the leader of Deloitte global aerospace and defense, wrote in an email to Avionics International. "Moreover, all the major global militaries are increasing their spending on acquiring advanced military aircraft, further driving the growth for avionics," Lineberger wrote. Such aircraft include the Japanese F-3 twin-engine stealth fighter by Mitsubishi to replace the country's single-engine Mitsubishi F-2 jets and to complement the country's Lockheed Martin F-35s; the European Future Combat Air System (FCAS); and the United States Air Force's sixth generation fighter. In June at the Paris Air Show, Dassault Aviation unveiled an FCAS mock up, as government and company officials signed an FCAS Industry Agreement on Demonstrator Programs. The latter accord covers the main components of FCAS: a new generation, manned fighter; support "remote carrier" drones; and an Air Combat Cloud to integrate sensors. FCAS is to replace Dassault's Rafale fighter and the Airbus/BAE Systems/Leonardo-built Eurofighter. During the unveiling of the mock up, French President Emmanuel Macron said that he favors German-French-Spanish cooperation on FCAS with the British, which are developing their own advanced fighter through the BAE Systems Tempest program. In early October, the Air Force officially stood up a new program executive office to lead Digital Century Series, which will look to rapidly develop and field new aircraft beginning with the service's sixth-generation fighter. Last week, Will Roper, the Air Force's service acquisition executive, said that the new Digital Century Series initiative will look to improve integration of emerging technologies by buying smaller quantities of new fighter jets, potentially from multiple companies at a time. “Demand for military equipment is on the rise as governments across the globe focus on military modernization, given increasing global security concerns,” according to the new Deloitte report. “The uncertainty and sustained complexity of the international security environment worldwide is likely to boost global defense spending over the next five years.” In 2020, global defense spending will reach around $1.9 trillion, driven mainly by the U.S. but also countries such as China, Russia and India, the 14-page report says. It adds that NATO members in Europe, under pressure from the U.S., are also increasing defense spending to hit a target of 2 percent of GDP, and tensions in the Middle East are also driving demand for defense equipment. By 2023, global defense spending is expected to be $2.1 trillion, Deloitte said. Commercial and general aviation avionics sales are also expected to grow. "Demand for new and advanced flight capabilities from airlines and small general aviation aircraft owners to make flight operations more efficient and safer will continue to drive demand for commercial avionics," Lineberger wrote in his email to Avionics International. "Moreover, significant investments will be made on avionics because of government-mandated upgrades, for instance, the mandates for Automatic Dependent Surveillance/Broadcast capability (ADS-B), Head-Up Displays (HUD) and Controller/Pilot Datalink Communications equipment (CPDLC). However, there are some challenges which include longer product development cycle that leads to increased development costs." Urban air mobility, electric propulsion and fully automated flight decks are technology trends to watch in years ahead, according to the Deloitte report. "Although commercial aircraft manufacturers are increasingly relying on automated flight controls, including automated cockpits, the commercial aerospace sector is aiming to transition to fully automated flight decks," Lineberger wrote in his email. "Such a transition will likely reduce the number of crew members in the cockpit, resulting in lower costs for airlines. Moreover, automated flight decks would also address the growing pilot shortage issue currently faced by the aviation industry, which will likely be accentuated in the future as the commercial aircraft fleet continues to grow." https://www.aviationtoday.com/2019/12/04/military-commercial-avionics-outlook-strong-deloitte-says/