26 février 2020 | International, Aérospatial, C4ISR
By: Jen Judson
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Army is requesting $364 million to conduct a division-sized exercise in the Indo-Pacific region in fiscal 2021, the service confirmed to Defense News.
Yet, the cost breakout details are classified, according to an Army spokeswoman.
The exercise is fueled by a rising China, characterized in the National Defense Strategy as a long-term, strategic competitor of the United States. The NDS lays out a world where great power competition rather than counterterrorism will drive the Defense Department's decision-making and force structure.
While the U.S. Army has 85,000 permanently stationed troops in the Indo-Pacific region and is already conducting exercises such as Pacific Pathways with allies and partners, the service is aiming to practice rapid deployment from the continental United States to the Pacific.
In FY20, the Army will conduct a smaller version of Defender Pacific while Defender Europe will get more investment and focus. But then attention and dollars will swing over to the Pacific in FY21.
Defender Europe will be scaled back in FY21. The Army is requesting just $150 million to conduct the exercise in Europe, according to the Army.
This year it has been reported that Defender Europe, already underway with troops and equipment arriving at ports on the continent this month, will cost about $340 million, which is roughly in line with what the service is requesting in FY21 for the Pacific version.
The only specific funding lines broken out for the FY21 Defender Pacific exercise is home station training; it's unclear if those numbers are included in the total cost.
The Army is requesting $150,000 for home stationing training devoted specifically for Defender Pacific and is also asking for another $214,252 for an “expanded level deployment exercise that demonstrates employment of [Continental United States]-based forces into the Pacific Theater,” according to budget documents. The funds include additional transportation, maintenance and operations for the exercise.
Defender Pacific will build upon the U.S. Army's expanding role in the region. The service is already growing its Pacific Pathways exercise series and plans to focus on reinforcing the Oceania region this year. The series began in 2014 and has supported training efforts that satisfy bilateral needs between the U.S. Army and its allies and partners in the region in roughly three rotations each year for about 10 months total.
Last year, Pacific Pathways shifted from shorter rotations that involved more countries to longer visits that involve fewer countries as a way to improve bilateral relations. And participation has grown from a battalion-sized task force to roughly the size of a brigade.
The Defender series is intended to be a regular exercise each year in the Pacific and Europe with the regions trading off being the larger exercise every other year.
24 février 2023 | International, Naval
Total contract value if the options for Lots 5, 6, and 7 are all exercised at the maximum production quantities is $227,647,890
27 juillet 2020 | International, Aérospatial, Naval
By: Brian Wynne Unmanned maritime systems are increasingly allowing military and commercial users alike to go farther and deeper than ever before. Initially proven by the military for their dependability and reliability, they are now also disrupting the commercial sector and enabling applications from mapping to surveillance to port security. In recognition of the many benefits UMS stand to offer, the president's budget for fiscal 2021 requested strong support for the U.S. Navy's unmanned programs. Now, as Congress considers the National Defense Authorization Act for FY21, it should fully fund UMS research and development efforts to allow innovation to flourish and for military and commercial operators alike to reap the benefits. As president and CEO of the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International, I have witnessed the growth in UMS innovation firsthand. Our membership includes organizations from across the defense industrial base that support the growing integration of unmanned and autonomous systems in the force protecting the United States. Their investments have led to substantive achievements in the development of autonomy, reliability, propulsion and integration of advanced payloads and sensors. Fielding UMS will ensure continued U.S. naval dominance and support the industrial base. Unfortunately, Congress is currently considering disrupting funding to the research and development of this vital technology. Both the House and Senate versions of the NDAA drastically cut R&D funding for medium and large unmanned surface vessels, with the Senate eliminating all requested funding for the program entirely. The severe reduction in funding considered in the FY21 NDAA would eliminate jobs, drive many small companies out of business, and cause larger companies to shift their R&D investments to more stable opportunities. AUVSI is also taking issue with Congress' misunderstanding of UMS operations, focusing on the reliability of individual components rather than that of the system as a whole, ignoring the operational context in which the UMS will be used. Unmanned systems have well-documented reliability in the commercial sector performing in a range of demanding and complex environments, including deep-water exploration. If Congress attempts to apply unique reliability requirements to UMS use by the U.S. Navy, it will only serve to drive up cost, decrease competition and significantly delay fielding of the systems to the war fighters that need them. While Congress has previously demonstrated its support for the growth and integration of unmanned systems in the future Navy fleet architecture, its reliability concerns and proposed funding cuts in this instance are misplaced. Industry has determined that the wholeness of autonomy is critical to mission duration and success, and the emphasis on testing reliability should be on that wholeness rather than focusing on individual components. What's more, the Navy's R&D effort is already working to field systems that can prove reliability in a realistic operational context. The utilization of unmanned technology is inevitable and timely, but appropriate levels of R&D funding are needed to field this critical capability. Industry has invested significant resources to support the Navy's UMS programs thus far and will continue to do so if these programs are adequately funded by Congress. Conversely, proposed funding cuts will drive industry to move its investments away from UMS to other markets, drive small, developing businesses out of the unmanned maritime business, and cost jobs throughout the developing unmanned industrial base. Congress should therefore adopt the funding levels set out in the president's FY21 budget request without any cuts to ensure that innovation will flourish, R&D can continue unabated and our nation's Navy can take full advantage of the potential that UMS stand to offer. https://www.defensenews.com/opinion/commentary/2020/07/24/funding-for-naval-drones-in-the-ndaa-will-encourage-innovation/
12 septembre 2019 | International, Aérospatial
Helen Chachaty A trois, on y va. L'Italie a officiellement rejoint le programme d'aviation de combat du futur, mené par le Royaume-Uni. Un secret de polichinelle qui a pris la forme de la signature de deux accords distincts, le premier impliquant les autorités politiques, le second établissant les bases pour la coopération industrielle à venir entre les deux pays. Les documents ratifiés cette semaine prévoient aussi bien un partenariat renforcé sur les plateformes actuelles, Eurofighter et F-35, qu'un développement conjoint du prochain aéronef de combat, au sein du programme Tempest. La déclaration d'intention signée entre le chef du Defence Equipment & Support (l'équivalent britannique de la DGA), Sir Simon Bollom, et le Lieutenant général Nicolò Falsaperna, vice-secrétaire général à la Défense italien, couvre cinq aspects de coopération : un rapprochement des deux gouvernements sur les capacités futures de l'Eurofighter ; la définition conjointe des besoins militaires concernant le Tempest, le développement d'une feuille de route pour l'aviation de combat, avec le transfert de technologies de l'Eurofighter au Tempest ; la mise en place d'un cadre de coopération industrielle ; le lancement d'études pour de nouvelles voies de « travail collaboratif ». Cette annonce politique a été suivie le lendemain par la signature d'un accord de coopération entre les principaux industriels britanniques et italiens, à l'occasion du salon DSEI, qui se tient jusqu'au 13 septembre à Londres. Il s'agira de « travailler ensemble pour définir un concept innovant et un modèle de partenariat qui inclura le partage de connaissances, la conception et le développement de technologies en vue d'un développement conjoint des systèmes de combat aérien futurs », selon le communiqué officiel. Côté britannique, on retrouve BAE Systems, Leonardo UK, Rolls Royce et MBDA UK, tandis que la partie italienne va impliquer Leonardo - évidemment - Elettronica, Avio Aero et la MBDA Italy. L'Italie devient ainsi le troisième acteur impliqué dans le programme de développement du système de combat aérien du futur lancé et dirigé par le Royaume-Uni, le deuxième au sein du programme Tempest. La Suède s'est pour sa part contentée de signer un accord de coopération pour l'aviation de combat de nouvelle génération lors du salon aéronautique de Farnborough, sans toutefois rejoindre le programme Tempest en lui-même. Selon Jane's, la décision formelle est attendue pour la fin de l'année 2020. Le paysage européen de l'aviation de combat du futur se répartit à présent comme suit : France, Allemagne et Espagne coopèrent sur le SCAF, tandis que le Royaume-Uni, l'Italie - et peut-être la Suède - s'engagent sur le Tempest, chacun avec ses industriels dédiés. Certains, tels que MBDA ou encore Safran (qui figurent tous deux dans la liste « team Tempest »), tirent cependant leur épingle du jeu, en étant impliqués dans les deux programmes. https://www.journal-aviation.com/actualites/43040-l-italie-embarque-a-bord-du-tempest