9 mai 2023 | International, Naval
L3Harris, BigBear.ai partner on autonomy for surface vessels
The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps are betting big on uncrewed technologies — whether that's in the air, on the water or beneath the waves.
4 septembre 2018 | International, Aérospatial
The US Air Force is asking for hypersonic weapon ideas as a new arms race with China and Russia heats up
- The US Air Force put out an open-ended request Thursday for hypersonic weapon concepts and development programs from qualified vendors with experience related to hypersonic platforms.
- The call comes amid an escalating arms race with China and Russia, both of whom have been actively testing new hypersonic systems.
- A hypersonic weapon is decidedly dangerous because its speed coupled with its unpredictable flight patterns make it almost impossible for existing air and missile defense systems to effectively intercept.
- "The homeland is no longer a sanctuary," Air Force Gen. Terrence O'Shaughnessy, head of US North Command, saidrecently.
With rivals China and Russia rapidly developing hypersonic weapons able to penetrate defenses to deliver devastating strikes on their enemies, the US Air Force is preparing to enter the arms race in a big way, signaling that the US is not yet ready to cede its competitive advantage in advanced weaponry to adversarial competitors.
The Air Force posted a contracting announcement online Thursday calling for qualified vendors experienced in hypersonic aerodynamics, aerothermal protection systems, advanced hypersonic guidance, navigation and control, solid rocket motors, and so on to assist the service in research on "hypersonic weapon rapid development, production and sustainment."
The multi-award contract, as The Drive first reported, appears to be an open-ended request for any and all hypersonic concepts and development programs.
The Air Force awarded Lockheed Martin a contract in August for an Air-Launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW), a hypersonic weapon and the second such contract offered by the Air Force this year. The service awarded a contract to Lockheed in April for a Hypersonic Conventional Strike Weapon (HCSW).
The Air Force reportedly has four different hypersonic weapons programs in the works for the B-52, according to The Drive, as well as submarine-launched and ground-launched systems in development. And, there could certainly be more.
The newfound interest in hypersonic weaponry comes after repeated warnings from senior military officers suggesting that the US was losing its edge to peer competitors. "China's hypersonic weapons development outpaces ours... we're falling behind," Adm. Harry Harris, the former head of US Pacific Command (now called Indo-Pacific Command), said in February.
The head of US Strategic Command warned in March that the US needs to bolster its defenses, explaining to the Senate Armed Services Committee that the US does not "have any defense that could deny the employment of such a weapon against us." The recently-signed 2019 National Defense Authorization Act approves investments in America's missile defense capabilities in the face of certain emerging threats from US rivals.
"The homeland is no longer a sanctuary," Air Force Gen. Terrence O'Shaughnessy, head of US North Command, said recently. "We're in a changing security environment. We used to think about the sanctuary we had with oceans and friendly countries to our north and south, but that's changing with adversaries that are actually able to reach out and touch us now."
In the beginning of August, China tested the Xingkong-2 (Stary Sky-2) hypersonic experimental waverider vehicle able to fly at speeds as high as Mach 6. The hypersonic aircraft reportedly has the potential to be used as a hypersonic strike platform capable of carrying conventional and nuclear payloads and evading modern air and missile defenses.
China, which has made the development of hypersonic systems a national priority, called the test a "huge success."
Russia has also been experimenting with advanced hypersonic systems. For instance, Russia is expected to deploy its Avangard hypersonic boost-glide vehicle on the country's Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile within the next year or so. The Russians are also developing the hypersonic Kinzhal (Dagger) cruise missile, which could be ready for combat by 2020. While the weapon has only been tested on a MiG-31 fighter, Russia reportedly intendsto mount the weapon on a strategic bomber.
https://www.businessinsider.com/the-us-air-force-asking-for-hypersonic-weapon-ideas-2018-9
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Air Force unveils command changes, wing plans in bid to outpace China
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16 juillet 2020 | International, Terrestre
Key House Democrats want to lock in New START weapons limits
By: Joe Gould WASHINGTON ― The chairmen of the House foreign affairs and intelligence committees are pushing a measure meant to extend the last remaining U.S.-Russia arms control agreement amid fears President Donald Trump will let it lapse. Led by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., the proposal would require congressional approval to increase the nuclear arsenal above the limits of the 2010 New START treaty, if the pact is allowed to expire next year. The measure was offered as an amendment to the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act, which is set for floor consideration next week. Engel's amendment was cosponsored by House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and House Intelligence, Emerging Threats and Capabilities Subcommittee Chairman Jim Langevin, D-R.I. “This Administration's recklessness has left New START as the only remaining agreement limiting Russia's nuclear weapons. Despite the White House's claims, there's no ‘better deal' with Russia and China on the horizon, and the clock on New START is ticking,” Engel said in a statement. “The president doesn't seem to have a problem with Russia developing more and more nuclear weapons that could strike the United States, so Congress has to do everything we can to keep these protections in place.” The action came days after Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warned he's not very optimistic about prospects for an extension because of Washington's focus on making China sign onto the pact. U.S. and Russian envoys held talks last month in Vienna, but Beijing has refused to take part. Engel's amendment states that the U.S. should extend the pact for five years, to an expiration date of February 5, 2026, unless Russia is in material breach of the treaty or if it is replaced by a new, stronger agreement. It also provides the executive branch with permission to continue inspection activities and other transparency measures if New START expires on February 5, 2021, assuming that the government of Russia reciprocates these steps The New START treaty limits each country to no more than 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads and 700 deployed missiles and bombers and envisages sweeping on-site inspections to verify compliance. The amendment would bar funding to increase the arsenal above the treaty limits unless the president notifies Congress in advance of the new military requirements, certifies that the additional deployments are necessary and justifies the deployments, reports the associated costs and operational implications, and requires that any increase in deployed nuclear weapons is subject to a joint resolution of approval. It also requires detailed reports on Russian nuclear forces and, with and eye toward potential growth in China's nuclear arsenal, requires briefings and reports regarding the administration's arms control approach with Beijing, according to a summary. It also requires a presidential certification before New START would lapse that this would serve U.S. national security interests, an assessment whether continuing limits on Russian nuclear forces would serve U.S. interests and a plan for how the U.S. military and intelligence communities will address the post-New START environment, including the potential funding and development of additional nuclear deterrence and intelligence requirements. If Engel's amendment is accepted by the House Rules Committee and adopted by the House, it would almost certainly invite resistance from hawkish supporters of the president during negotiations to reconcile the House and Senate versions of the NDAA. Senate Armed Services Committee's Chairman Jim Inhofe, a proponent of nuclear weapons spending, has historically been a skeptic of the treaty. Kingston Reif, the Arms Control Association's director for disarmament and threat reduction policy, said the Trump administration doesn't seem like it will extend New Start and that Congress ought to be putting in roadblocks. “Crucially, the amendment would require congressional approval to increase the nuclear arsenal above the treaty limits, if the treaty is allowed to expire next year. A decision as consequential as increasing the size of the deployed arsenal, which hasn't occurred in decades, merits special scrutiny,” Reif said. After both Moscow and Washington withdrew from the 1987 Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty last year, New START is the only remaining nuclear arms control deal between the two countries. Russia has offered its extension without any conditions, while the Trump administration has pushed for a new arms control agreement that would also include China. Moscow has described that idea as unfeasible, pointing at Beijing's refusal to negotiate any deal that would reduce its much smaller nuclear arsenal. Trump declared an intention to pull out of the agreement in May, citing Russian violations. Russia denied breaching the pact, which came into force in 2002, and the European Union has urged the U.S. to reconsider. https://www.defensenews.com/congress/2020/07/15/key-house-democrats-want-to-lock-in-new-start-weapons-limits/