19 juin 2019 | International, Aérospatial

Russia's MiG Developing Drone Wingman Concept for Fighters

SALON DU BOURGET, PARIS -- The Russian government has accepted its first two MiG-35 aircraft, the latest multirole fighter made by MiG Russian Aircraft Corporation that straddles fourth-and-fifth generation capability, according to a company spokesperson. But beyond supplying new MiGs to the Russian air force, MiG is currently designing and developing drones to pair up with the new combat-capable aircraft, said spokeswoman Anastasia Kravchenko.

"We are looking for network cooperation of both manned and unmanned aircraft," Kravchenko said through a translator during an interview with Military.com at the Paris Air Show. "And we're going to also use the technologies of artificial intelligence."

When asked if this is similar to what other countries like the U.S. are aiming to develop for manned-unmanned teaming, Kravchenko said, "Of course."

"Because you know, this is the future. We have already started to use these technologies, even on MiG-35 aircraft," she said.

"MiG-35 can be like a command post and control other aircraft," Kravchenko added. "It's one of the key elements of how the aircraft is going to be used in the future."

This concept of operations mimics how the U.S. is working to boost its fifth-gen aircraft -- and its proposed future tech -- to pair automated systems or artificial intelligence with a human in the cockpit so that the machine can learn how to fly, gather information, or more.

Kravchenko said that "we have drone designs in our company," for the prospective program. But she did not provide more detail because she said "everything depends on the Russian Ministry of Defence" for future development and procurement.

"MiG-35 was designed with open architecture" in mind, Kravchenko added.

Currently, the Pentagon is working on open architecture, or ways to plug more equipment into the common, networked system for battle management and command-and-control.

The MiG-35 itself has been designed to replace its MiG-29s, which entered service in the 1980s.

The new "fourth-plus-plus" gen fighter is the direct follow-on to the MiG-29K/MiG-29KUB and MiG-29M/MiG-29M2 model aircraft, with increased engine and thrust power, according to a provided brochure.

The MiG-35 was designed as an air superiority fighter that has "[made gains] against fourth and fifth-generation fighters," the brochure said.

MiG said it's proposing to incorporate the active electronically scanned phased-array, known as AESA, for all the MiG-35s it produces. The radar, which has extended range, can simultaneously track multiple targets in the air and on the ground.

"At the same time, 10 targets can be attacked" from the fidelity and information the radar gives the aircraft, Kravchenko said. "Out of them, six are aerial targets and four are ground targets."

The MiG-35 has been in development for well over a decade, with the first reported demonstration flight at the Aero India Air Show in Bangalore in 2007. Its public debut was held in January 2017 at MiG's production plant in Lukhovitsy.

"MiG has great experience. We have a lot of design experience," Kravchenko said of the company, which will celebrate its 80th anniversary this year. "And that's why we're completely sure that our new product, MiG 35, will use technologies of fifth-generation."

That includes some stealth capabilities, increased maneuverability, electronic warfare and the ability to operate despite jamming.

"This aircraft can be modified so that it can be upgraded depending on the requirements of our customers," she added. MiG is expected to deliver six MiG-35 fighter jets by 2023, according to Russia's TASS news. Moscow Times reported this week, however, that the remaining four jets could be delivered by the end of the year.

MiG, which is part of the United Aircraft Corporation that includes companies like Sukhoi, among other aerospace defense companies, is separately developing its own fifth-generation fighter.

Meanwhile, Russia is already slated to purchase 76 of Sukhoi Su-57 fifth-generation aircraft, which the country says rivals the American-made F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.

"We are currently we are working on this," she said of MiG's own next-gen craft.

MiG has cooperated with Sukhoi, but it is not planning on forming an official partnership for the project, she said.

Kravchenko could not provide additional details for when a new fifth-gen fighter may come online.

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2019/06/18/russias-mig-developing-drone-wingman-concept-fighters.html

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5 septembre 2018 | International, C4ISR

Modular Northrop Grumman Vanguard Surveillance Radar Details Unveiled
Northrop Grumman has revealed the details of a production-ready new radar called Vanguard that the company's Electronic Systems division quietly launched about five years ago with the ambitious goal of reinventing the active, electronically scanned array (AESA), the company confirms exclusively to Aviation Week. Northrop designed the Vanguard architecture to support a shift away from developing highly tailored AESA systems optimized for only one application to a modular approach that ... http://aviationweek.com/defense/modular-northrop-grumman-vanguard-surveillance-radar-details-unveiled
19 octobre 2020 | International, Aérospatial

Tempest future fighter worth £25bn to UK economy
Harry Lye Analysis from PwC, commissioned by BAE Systems on behalf of Team Tempest, the partnership behind the Tempest future combat air system programme has said that the project to develop a future fighter will contribute at least £25bn to the UK's economy and support an average of 20,000 jobs a year between 2026 and 2050. Team Tempest is a partnership between BAE Systems, Leonardo, Rolls-Royce, MBDA and the Royal Air Force's (RAF) Rapid Capabilities Office, as well as a host of small-medium enterprises and academia. Preliminary findings from the PwC report due to published in full later this year said that the programme including ‘R&D spillover' would add £25.3bn to the UK economy for the first 30 years of the programme and ‘support an average of circa 20,000 jobs every year between 2026 and 2050'. The findings added that for every 100 people directly employed by Team Tempest, a further 270 would be employed across the UK. BAE Systems director combat air acquisition programme Michael Christie said: “Tempest is an exciting and ambitious multi-decade programme that will help to preserve our national security whilst at the same time driving significant economic benefits for the UK. “The initial analysis revealed today demonstrates that Tempest is critical to ensuring the UK can sustain its world-leading Combat Air Sector, preserving the sovereign capability that is essential to retaining military freedom of action for the UK.” rogramme is essential for national security and future prosperity The economic benefits of the programme come alongside the release of more technical details about the future fighter by Team Tempest, which the consortium said can “capture the equivalent of a ‘city's worth of data' in a second”. Tempest is expected to come into service in the mid-2030s and is set to replace the Eurofighter Typhoon within the RAF. The aircraft is set to form part of a broader combat air system that will likely include ‘wingman' uncrewed aerial systems (UAS). ADS chief executive Paul Everitt added: “The Tempest programme is essential for our national security and future prosperity. The high-value design and groundbreaking engineering skills required for success will create a new generation of talent to drive UK industry. “Defence programmes like Tempest offer an invaluable opportunity to secure a recovery from the current Covid-19 crisis. It will embed high-value design and manufacturing skills in the UK for decades to come, sustain thousands of high paying jobs and give apprentices the opportunity to build their career in an iconic programme with massive export potential.” Capture a city's worth of data in a second Team Tempest today also unveiled several insights into the programme including that Leonardo, the programme's electronics lead, was developing new radar systems capable of providing over 10,000 times more data than existing systems. Leonardo director of major air programmes Iain Bancroft said: “The collaborative relationship between Team Tempest and our network of academic and SME partners enables us to bring together the ‘best of the best' engineering talent from across the UK. Crucially, we are embracing new ways of working as an integrated team to dramatically improve efficiency and pace – sharing intelligence and refining our concepts digitally to deliver innovations that will shape the next generation combat air system. “Our new radar technology is a concrete example of the gains this approach has already brought, costing 25% less to develop while providing over 10,000 times more data than existing systems.” The ‘Multi-Function Radio Frequency System' is slated as being able to collect data ‘equivalent to the internet traffic of a large city such as Edinburgh' every second. The new sensor is described as providing a range of ‘abilities beyond traditional radar', with the company having already built complete sub-systems utilising the technology with a path set for airborne demonstrations in the ‘coming years'. On top of this, BAE Systems said it had begun flight-testing components for the aircraft's ‘wearable cockpit' technology. The system will see physical controls in the aircraft replaced with ‘Augmented and Virtual Reality displays projected directly inside the visor of a helmet' allowing them to be configured to meet different missions. A team from MBDA is also working on this technology to ensure the early introduction of weapons concepts. The MBDA team is also looking at how ‘weapons system information and operation' is optimised for pilots. BAE Systems is also exploring the development of a ‘virtual co-pilot' that can take on and automate some of the pilot's responsibilities. ‘Psycho-physiological' technology is also being trialled to measure a pilot's physical and cognitive processes. BAE Systems said this would help better understand ‘increasing exertion, stress, workload and fatigue'. BAE Systems test pilots are currently trialling these technologies on the Typhoon aircraft. Rolls-Royce is working on the programmes ‘advanced combustion system technology'. Team Tempest has said that the next-generation system will need to be ‘hotter than any previous platform' to increase the efficiency of Tempest's engines. The engine manufacturer has also been working on advanced composite materials and additive manufacturing techniques, to produce lighter weight, denser components able to withstand higher temperatures than current parts. https://www.airforce-technology.com/features/tempest-future-fighter-worth-25bn-to-uk-economy/
26 novembre 2020 | International, Aérospatial, Naval, Terrestre, C4ISR, Sécurité

Pentagon transition begins, with a COVID-19 twist
By: Aaron Mehta WASHINGTON — Less than a day after the General Services Administration opened the doors for the landing team from the Biden-Harris campaign to arrive at the Pentagon, members have already had two conversations with current defense officials, with more to come. But while the Presidential Transition Act of 1963 lays out clear directives on how one administration helps usher in the next — it literally comes with a handbook on best practices — this transition, like so much else in 2020, may require some flexibility thanks to COVID-19. The GSA's move — which came after growing criticisms from Democrats who felt the agency was slow-rolling the start of the transition for political purposes — freed up funds, office space and, critically for the Pentagon transition, allowed the sharing of sensitive information with the incoming team. However, the transition is kicking off just as the Pentagon upped its level of COVID preparedness. As a result, maximum occupancy has dropped to 40 percent, with extra temperature checks. According to Washington Headquarters Services Director Thomas Muir, the agency transition director, that won't stop the transition, but it may require the team to rely more on video teleconferencing than previous groups. The incoming team “is willing and certainly able to abide by the COVID restrictions here in the Pentagon. They agreed with the protection measures we're doing for our families, our employees, ourselves, our colleagues, our comrades here in the Pentagon.” Muir said at a press conference Tuesday, adding that “Some will work in the building, some will be virtual.” Kash Patel, the newly installed chief of staff for newly installed Acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller, will be leading the transition for the current administration. But Muir will manage the day-to-day work, according to chief Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Rath Hoffman. “I spoke with the chief of staff today, and he is assured me that Tom here is the lead on this and that he is going to be working with Tom, and Tom is going to be the one working with the team today,” Hoffman said, adding that Patel's role is mainly “to be the touch point for the secretary, to ensure the secretary has insight into what's going on and to make sure the transition is successful.” Patel also reached out to transition lead Kathleen Hicks in order to share his contact information in case she had any questions. Muir said his team has been preparing for six months in case a transition was needed, and believes the current set up will allow the Biden-Harris team to work as safely as possible. Included in that setup: office space at the Pentagon that allows for social distancing, and which comes equipped with both secure and unsecure VTC capabilities. With the GSA certification, the FBI and Department of Justice can begin giving security clearances to the transition team, allowing access to classified information needed to give an up-to-date situation report to the president-elect and his advisers. Informing the transition is a group of “transition assistance coordinators,” largely general officers or senior executive service civilians, drawn from key offices around the military agencies, combatant commands, joint staff and OSD. That group, which meets weekly, will provide information as needed to the transition team and help set up interviews with key officials. Muir noted he expects daily conversations with the Biden-Harris group, adding “They're looking forward to participating in discussions in the Pentagon. I'm providing a small tour on Monday next week.” https://www.defensenews.com/smr/transition/2020/11/24/pentagon-transition-begins-with-a-covid-19-twist/

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