5 décembre 2024 | International, C4ISR, Sécurité
CISA Warns of Active Exploitation of Flaws in Zyxel, ProjectSend, and CyberPanel
CISA flags critical flaws in Zyxel, ProjectSend, and I-O DATA routers, urging immediate remediation.
3 décembre 2019 | International, Aérospatial, Naval, Terrestre, C4ISR, Sécurité
SASC chairman: We must build the national security innovation base our defense strategy requires
By: Sen. Jim Inhofe
Since World War II, the American people have believed our military has had the best of everything, but the technological superiority that kept us 20 years ahead of our competitors has rapidly diminished. In some cases, we're already behind. By 2030, unless we pursue “urgent change at significant scale,” as former Defense Secretary Gen. James Mattis put it, it's likely the U.S. will face an enemy with superior weapons, superior equipment and superior capabilities.
Nowhere is this better illustrated than in our strategic competition with China. China used to just steal our technology. Now, through heavy investment, they are improving it. The result? China is outpacing the U.S. in key areas like hypersonic weapons, artificial intelligence and biotechnologies — not to mention conventional capabilities.
China isn't the only one. Technological development is accelerating across the globe, expanding to more actors and changing the very nature of war.
We can't afford to let our advantage erode further. It is up to the Department of Defense and Congress to make sure that the defense-industrial base becomes, as the National Defense Strategy demands, an “unmatched 21st century National Security Innovation Base.” If we want to “sustain security and solvency,” we need to consider wholesale change to industry culture and its interface with the Department of Defense, shed outdated management processes, and reimagine a resilient supply chain that mitigates 21st century risks.
This begins with software, which is foundational to military capability. The DoD and its traditional hardware-dominant industry partners have been behind on software in almost every way — talent, tools, development and delivery processes. Software innovation has failed in countless DoD programs, including the Ford-class carrier, the F-35′s Autonomic Logistics Information System and the GPS next-generation operational control system. Instead of taking the Pentagon for granted as an endless source of cash flow, partners must refocus their attention on delivering secure capability that actually works.
Next, the Department of Defense needs to continue to expand capacity — prioritizing speed of delivery and adapting its systems to maximize value and output. For too long we have been slow to expand our stockpiles of fifth-generation weapons required to fight peer adversaries. The second production line for JASSM-ER cruise missiles is a good start toward building the capacity needed to retain advantages that will make any enemy think twice before attacking. We must do the same for other fifth-generation weapons, including air-to-air missiles.
Shipbuilding, including aircraft carriers, surface ships, submarines and our logistics fleet, is another area where our capacity is severely limited. The Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy, which recently surpassed ours in size, is on track to reach 400 ships in 2025 and is nearly self-sufficient for all components.
Size of the fleet isn't a sole consideration. We've focused on ensuring the capability of our fleet remains unmatched and bolstering suppliers of critical components, but we must also improve the construction performance of lead ships in new classes to maintain and build upon our capability advantage. The last thing we want is a fair fight. Innovation is best done at the subsystem level through a rigorous engineering-based process centered on building knowledge through full-scale prototypes, which can then inform ship design. We are eager to work with the Navy to identify and fund more of these prototypes, which will serve as the building blocks of the future fleet.
We also must accelerate innovation. Recent defense authorization legislation encourages the DoD to streamline acquisition, take a business-minded approach to contracting, and tap into nontraditional suppliers and public-private partnerships. This must continue. Dilapidated testing infrastructure is holding us back from catching up to our enemies. Just look at hypersonic weapons: Beijing is parading around dozens of its newest weapons, and we have yet to build one. The DoD has looked to Silicon Valley, but we are competing with Chinese influence there as well, and the Pentagon has often proven an impossible customer due to its antiquated bureaucracy.
Any technological improvements will be meaningless if vulnerable to being infiltrated or stolen. Recent legislation continues support for the DoD as it assesses and mitigates risks to its supply chains posed by adversaries. Both the government and contractors need to cooperate on and use modern verification tools to identify trusted suppliers and manufacturers, as well as fix vulnerabilities. To make these tools useful, the DoD must first establish a working digital model of its suppliers.
Lastly, while we must continue to invest in the domestic, organic industrial base, it's important to remember that we can't take on China and Russia alone — which is why the National Defense Strategy emphasizes our network of allies and partners. We must remove unnecessary barriers to industrial cooperation that degrade our collective competitive edge.
We do not have to make a false choice between investing domestically and in our allies — we can do both. Under our National Technology and Industrial Base partnership with Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom, we can develop a more diverse, resilient industrial base, secure our supply chains, and become a “five eyes for defense procurement.” It's in our best interest to ensure our allies can leverage our technological advantages and we can leverage theirs.
Without a strong national security innovation base, the Pentagon cannot implement the National Defense Strategy. Congress' job is to put the appropriate, tailored policy in place and provide sufficient, predictable resources to help the industrial base meet these challenges. Together, we can harness the power of American innovation to ensure that we are able to win the wars of the future.
Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., is the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
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6 juillet 2020 | International, C4ISR
Army PEO C3T awards another contract to Leonardo DRS
Andrew Eversden Leonardo DRS has won a $104 million contract to deliver next-generation mission command computing systems to the Army, the company announced June 30. The delivery order will be fulfilled by the company's Land Electronics business. Defense Information Systems Agency awarded the contract on behalf of Project Manager Mission Command and the Army's Program Executive Office Command, Control, Communications-Tactical, which is tasked with network modernization. The mission command computing systems are part of the Mounted Family of Computer Systems II, the service's combat computing platform that includes tablets, processors and ruggedized displays. Last week, Leonardo DRS announced a $206 million award by PEO C3T for ground vehicle installation kits for MFoCS II. Hardware delivery will begin in October 2020 and finish in September 2021, according to Paul Mehney, director of public communications at Army PEO C3T. Leonardo DRS is in the second year of a five-year contract to support the Army's mounted computing environment. According to the news release, the system will “support the continued fielding and upgrades of the Army's Joint Battle Command-Platform and features critical system capability upgrades, cybersecurity improvements and multi-touch displays.” The Joint Battle Command-Platform is the Army's next-generation friendly force tracking system that's integrated on 120,000 platforms across the service. There are also “significant” performance enhancements to the platform computing server, the company said. “We are proud to be able to provide these advanced, ruggedized tactical computing systems to give our warfighters the best possible networked situational awareness on the battlefield when they need it,” said Bill Guyan, senior vice president and general manager of the Land Electronics business. “These cyber-hardened systems have more than 20 years of experience built into them and are a key component of the Army's Mounted Computing Environment while continuing to enable the service's network modernization efforts to deliver next-generation Mounted Mission Command capability.” Work on the contract will be completed at the company's facility in Melbourne, Florida. https://www.c4isrnet.com/yahoo-syndication/2020/06/30/army-peo-c3t-awards-another-contract-to-leonardo-drs/
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31 juillet 2020 | International, Naval
Curtiss-Wright awarded contracts valued in excess of US$220 million to support critical U.S. Naval Defence Platforms
Davidson, N.C.— July 28, 2020 - (BUSINESS WIRE)-- Curtiss-Wright Corporation (NYSE: CW) today announced that it has been awarded contracts valued in excess of $220 million to provide propulsion valves, pumps and advanced instrumentation and control systems for the U.S. Navy's Virginia-class nuclear powered attack submarine, Columbia-class submarine and Ford-class aircraft carrier programs. The awards were received from Bechtel Plant Machinery, Inc. (BPMI) and General Dynamics Electric Boat to support ship construction, spare parts and submarine back-fit procurements. “Curtiss-Wright is proud to have been awarded these important naval defense contracts, building upon our long-standing relationship with the U.S. Nuclear Navy and reflecting our ongoing support of these critical naval defense platforms, which continue to receive strong Congressional support,” said David C. Adams, Chairman and CEO of Curtiss-Wright Corporation. “We look forward to delivering the most advanced, reliable and vital technologies and remain well-positioned to benefit from the continued expansion of our U.S. naval fleet.” Curtiss-Wright is performing this work at its facilities in New York and Pennsylvania within the Company's Defense and Power Segments. Engineering and manufacturing has commenced and will continue through 2024. For over 60 years, Curtiss-Wright has ensured safe, reliable operations by supplying innovative, high-performance products for every nuclear submarine and aircraft carrier commissioned by the U.S. Navy. In addition, Curtiss-Wright technologies, such as power-dense motors and enhanced valve designs, enable more efficient operations, reduce manpower and cost, and increase safety. For more information on Curtiss-Wright's Defense Segment and Power Segment products for the U.S. Navy, please visit www.cwdefense.com or www.cw-ems.com, respectively. About Curtiss-Wright Corporation Curtiss-Wright Corporation (NYSE:CW) is a global innovative company that delivers highly engineered, critical function products and services to the commercial, industrial, defense and energy markets. Building on the heritage of Glenn Curtiss and the Wright brothers, Curtiss-Wright has a long tradition of providing reliable solutions through trusted customer relationships. The company employs approximately 8,900 people worldwide. For more information, visit www.curtisswright.com. This press release contains forward-looking statements made pursuant to the Safe Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements, including statements relating to Curtiss-Wright Corporation's expectations of future performance of our pump and valve products, the continued relationship with an existing customer, the continued funding of these programs by the U.S. Navy, the successful implementation of our products into these naval defense programs, the overall success of these naval defense programs and future opportunities associated with these programs, are not considered historical facts and are considered forward-looking statements under the federal securities laws. Such forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: a reduction in anticipated orders; an economic downturn; changes in competitive marketplace and/or customer requirements; a change in US and Foreign government spending; an inability to perform customer contracts at anticipated cost levels; and other factors that generally affect the business of aerospace, defense contracting, marine, electronics and industrial companies. Please refer to the Company's current SEC filings under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, for further information. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200728005570/en/ Jim Ryan (704) 869-4621 jim.ryan@curtisswright.com Source: Curtiss-Wright Corporation View source version on Curtiss-Wright Corporation: https://www.curtisswright.com/news/press-releases/news-release-details/2020/Curtiss-Wright-Awarded-Contracts-Valued-in-Excess-of-220-Million-to-Support-Critical-U.S.-Naval-Defense-Platforms/default.aspx